School of Necromancy (Ardu)

The school of Necromancy is famous fortwo things, it's death curses and it's life saving healing spells. As such it is also the only school of magic which provides healing spells, similar in effect to those of the clerics. But where clerics claim that they get the lifeforce from their god as a present and sacrifice of this god for the faithful, the Necromancers take it from the immediate surrounding.

Due to Ardu's teeming lifeforce, usually enough is there to not feel an effect but a chill breeze or a slightly sick feeling, but for the largest necromantic rituals, if performed properly, whole countrysides could suffer, if a necromancer of enough experience chooses them to do so in order to aquire enough lifeforce. Also the reviled technique of prolongation of life beyond it's natural limits lies in the capabilities of experienced necromancers, albeit the cost of lifeforce to this end exceeds the benefit by far, and only the worst of the worst would use it, also becauset it's similarities to the vampiric way of survival has only worsened bad reputation of the necromantic school.  Which is largely unearned,  as most necromancers chose to study this art to help people, and the "Sisterhood of the Red Skull" or "Red Skull for short" is (actually) living proof for this. The sisters and brothers (it stopped to be a true sisterhood already centuries ago) of the Red Skull either traverse the lands, always in search for those who are in need of either medical help or help with the harvest in times of drought or other catastrophes. 

Hence two things happened: Where the Church forbade Necromancy, namely Haven, The Oskrajan Union, Odhal, Ulthwe and on the Island of R'hyll, people fear and condemn the necromancers, and the only necromancers allowed are those that create and handle the  tables that are used fo "curbing" the students which face no chance to survive the confrontation with their nemesis fiend. Because this is a necromantic technique too. But they have about the same reputation as executioners have, albeit with more payment. In these countries the "Red Skull" or other "Necromantic sects" (which are mostly totally not religious, even the bad ones), are forbidden, and only the clerics of the Creator are allowed to work healings or ressurections.  Also, in the towers of High Haven, Rhyll, Ulth, Tenetty and Novodan the school of necromancy is only taught to those select few which perform the job of the Curber, and its teachings are otherwise forbidden.

In countries where the Necromancers are allowed to work more openly, the clinics and wandering "Necro-doctors" of the "Red Skull" have burn't the image of helpful, caring and warm hearted men and women into the minds of the general public and the picture of the "evil necromancer" has stepped into the Background. This view has proven to be another source of conflict with the countries of the Church though. Necromancy today is taught in Krynn, Amn, Xandattaway, Eridu, Soth-Kessuth, Audelver, Rimmersgard and Tso-Kal. 

Necromancy Savant

Beginning when you select this school at 2nd level, the gold and time you must spend to copy a healing or necromancy spell into your spellbook is halved.

The Life Equation

When you would normally roll one or more dice to restore hit points with a spell to a creature at 0 hit points, you instead use the highest number possible for each die.

In addition, you learn the spare the dying cantrip, which doesn’t count against the number of cantrips you know. For you, it has a range of 30 feet, and you can cast it as a bonus action.

You can speak resurrection spells (revivify, raise dead, resurrection, true resurrection) once you have learned them, but spoken by you they require another victim (not necessarily a self-conscious one) to die for the ressurected. When casting a ressurection spell the creature (or soul vial) sacrificed must have a number of hit dice equal or larger than the level of the spell used.

Vampiric Strike

You can bless one ally you can see within 30 ft. of you until the end of your next turn. The next time this this ally hits anything, he regains the damage lost by the creature that was hit as his own hitpoints and the blessing ends. In case the hitpoints of said ally exceed the maximum hitpoints, he regains the exceeding hitpoints as temporary hitpoints.

Life Trader

Once the Necromancer becomes more versatile in the art of Life transition, he also discovers more options to take the life force and redistribute it.

Beginning at 6th level, the healing spells you cast on others take the energy from targets of your choosing. When you cast a spell of 1st level or higher that restores hit points to a creature other than you, and you choose to do so, another creature of your choosing, which you can see, loses hit points equal to 2+ the spell’s level. You can choose another target, which you can see, which heals for the damage done to the creature you chose plus any exceeding hitpoints not used by the first target.You can choose yourself as a second target.

Focused Necromancy

While you are concentrating on a necromancy spell, your concentration can’t be broken as a result of taking damage. Necromantic spells with a casting time take only half as much time.

Soul Syphon

You can tear hit dice from a living being you touch. If the number of hit dice equals the number of hit dice the creature has, the creature is left as a driveless husk, which will inevitably die if not cared for. The process is necromantic and takes ten rounds to perform while the creature is alerted to you. If the creature is not restrained it gets a DC10 dexterity save to break contact. The lifeforce can be stored in crystal vials (5 gold per number of hit dice stored) for purposes of being later for ressurections or to boost other spells. Healing  or necrotic damage spells supported by the sacrifice of a soul vial do not roll dice for their effect but instead use the highest number possible for each die. (i.e. 12 instead of 2d6). If used for a spell, the vials must contain a number of hit dice equal or larger than the spell level.