From the origin of the creation of the Necromancers of Diablo by Rathma, their evolution and their role in Diablo 4 with the complete lore!

Diablo's necromancers different from other lore

Heralds of death or saviors of sanctuaries

How not to know the necromancers? From World of Warcraft through the works of Tolkien and up to Diablo, these wielders of death have fascinated us and continue to haunt our minds. Known to be often associated with the blackest of magic, in the singular universe of Sanctuary, this is not the case. We invite you to discover their true face and a fragment of their story together.

It is useful, first of all, to underline the etymology of this name which is, to say the least, explicit. The prefix "Necro" means "directly connected with death", and "mancie", "connected with divination" - as well as intimately connected with the occult arts. The whole gives us: “divination by the dead”. What we mean by this is not the art of reading the future using human skulls, but rather the ability to raise the dead and thus interact with them. This is what the presentation video of the Diablo 4 Necromancer pointed out, we will come back to this a little later.

The origin of the Necromancers

To get to the heart of the matter, let's start by talking about their order. Necromancers belong to a circle bearing the name of Priests of Rathma - named after their founder, child of the angel Inarius and the succubus Lilith, creator and creator of the world of Sanctuary and father and mother of the Nephalems respectively. Rathma is thus the first necromancer, and by far the most powerful - moreover very rarely understood by the inhabitants of Sanctuary. Thereafter, he gave an axis to his disciples, balance. This notion of balance changed everything in the perception and dynamics of the existence of necromancers in Sanctuary. They were no longer messengers of death bringing bad omens, but protectors of the balance between light and shadow, between good and evil. The use of the terms "good" and "evil" is quite subjective concerning them: they protect neither one nor the other, but preserve the fragile balance that unites them.

It is important however to note the systematic presence of a necromancer throughout the history of Sanctuary, and especially in each generation of Nephalem. Nevertheless, their order did not always exist as such, as we learn from the book saga written by Richard A. Knaak. This order was only created after a major event in the world of Diablo, The Sin War, when Rathma was no longer able to maintain balance and the world went to war. It was also during this period that he met the person who was to become his apprentice, Melden.

Following the end of the war and knowing the humans in peril in the near future, Melden who, having become an official apprentice of Rathma, decided with his agreement to create the famous Priests of Rathma. The goal is to maintain balance and protect humanity. Like his master, previously named Linarian, Melden changed his first name to become Kalan, who later became known for his memoirs left as an example to any new necromancer.

Rathma, child of Inarius and Lilith

Role and organization of the Necromancers

Necromancers have a position of protectors of the balance of Sanctuary, a mission they fulfill by using occult magic despite everything. Let's go back to the introductory video of the Necromancer where the priest of Rathma arrives on the spot following a violent and bloody massacre of several people. On his arrival, most certainly commissioned to solve these crimes, he will first of all bring back a deceased. The goal is not to disturb a poor victim cruelly put to death, but to have a concrete testimony of the facts. Indeed, to be sure to restore the balance and thus remove a threat, he had to have the fairest version of events. We thus learn from the mouth of the corpse that he and his family had been murdered. Having collected what he needed to know, the priest cut off the zombie's head – the only way, according to the famous belief, to eliminate it. Following this, he set out to eradicate this threat in the name of balance.

Regarding the social structure of the members of this order, it is in no way different from the others. The masters choose an apprentice who will later become a necromancer. They are drawn into the Necropolis, the capital of the priests of Rathma, being in the territory of the swamps of Hawezar, more precisely under them. You can discover this territory directly in Diablo 4.

Beneath the swamps of Hawezar, the necropolis of necromancers