Ok, so I’ve played my Necro up to level 50 and it was easy-peasy.  I use a full necro build. After some discussion with guildies, it’s very apparent that some folks just don’t “get it” with how to play a necro properly.  My pet almost never dies, and my character only dies if I’ve really fubar’d for some reason – Feign Death is pretty much a “get out of soulwalk free” skill.

Early on, you really want to be working your way towards your “bread and butter” skills, which are: Soul Purge (your “I Win” skill), and Ancient Tomb for the Skeletal Knight uber tank.  On your way up the tree towards Soul Purge and Ancient Tomb, you’re going to want to sink points into: Death’s Ally, Flesh Rot, Consumption/Greater Consumption and Life Bane.  Spend “left over” points in Warlock and Dominator souls (at 50 I only have 3 points in Dom on the Clinging Form skill, and I spent those pretty early to lengthen the Transmogrify “save my butt” skill). On the Warlock side of the house I spent 3 on Improved Life leech, and then 5 on Magical Affinity – once you get Soul Purge, you want to be able to build up charge ASAP).

Basic Tactics:

• Open with a debuff or two (@50 I use this rotation: Last Gasp, Death’s Grasp, Looming Demise, Essence Link)
• Next stack on a couple DoT’s (Necrosis & Warlock’s Dark Touch, Life Leech at early levels, I don’t use LL later ‘cuz it takes too long to cast) – if you don’t have your de-buffs yet, use these as openers.
• If the mob has a buff, use Consumption to remove it and regain some power for yourself.
• Then I smack them with one or two Plague Bolts to get more charge and add some Deathly Calling debuff.
• By this time you should be up around 75% charge or more and then you call out your “I Win” skill: Soul Purge – this should pretty much kill the mob and fully heal you and your pet.  
• Pre-Soul purge, you’re going to have to use Revivify on your pet to keep it going, and reapply some insta DoT’s, and/or smack the mob with your Dom’s instas; Neural Prod & Thunder Blast.

After you get Soul Purge and your Skeletal Knight, you want to get Feign Death, this is the best “Save your Butt” skill ever.  If you over pull, or things are otherwise turning out badly, just run somewhere out of their original aggro range and “plop dead” with FD.  The mobs run back to their original positions, and you can re-think your strategy.  You lose your pet, but by this time you should have Exhume, so you can just insta-call your pet.

If you’re facing multiple mobs, you can “Squirrel Pull” by Transmogrifying one mob, sicking the pet on another and allowing the third to smack you around a bit, or let the pet aggro both of the others, your call.  Just make sure you can build up enough charge to use Soul Purge to heal you and your pet through the first barrage before the Transmogrify wears off. 

Later on, the “must have” skills to spend points on are: Life Bane, Master Chirurgeon, Vengeful Spirit, and Clattering Bones.  All of which either increase pet health/damage. If you’re grouping, make sure you’re using the Shadow Revenant pet – it’s ranged and does more DPS than the Knight, but it can’t tank at all so you can’t solo well with it. They’re the only two pets I use.  

I hope future Rift Necro’s find this useful. Enjoy!