Turn Lesser Undead

School	Restoration
Level	Apprentice
Magicka Cost	84
Casting	Fire and Forget
Delivery	Aimed
Effect	Undead up to level 6 flee for 30 seconds.
Duration	30 seconds
Perk	Apprentice Restoration (1)
Spell Tome	Spell Tome: Turn Lesser Undead
Game/DLC	Skyrim

Turn Lesser Undead is the first Restoration spell made for fighting the undead. It makes a single undead creature, up to level 6, flee for 30 seconds. Turn Undead and Turn Greater Undead are the stronger versions.

Turn Lesser Undead belongs to the early game, once Restoration reaches the Apprentice rank. Most court wizards sell the tome, and so does Colette Marence at the College of Winterhold.

Spell Tome

Turn Lesser Undead is learned by reading Spell Tome: Turn Lesser Undead. Calcelmo, Colette Marence, Falion, Farengar Secret-Fire, Madena, Nelacar, Sybille Stentor, Wuunferth the Unliving and Wylandriah sell the tome.

How It Plays

Turn Lesser Undead is an aimed fire and forget spell. When it hits an undead creature of level 6 or lower, the creature turns and runs for half a minute.

Stronger undead do not flee, but the spell still staggers them. That stagger alone can save a mage or an archer who is caught in melee by a draugr or a skeleton. The pause gives time to step back and find a better position.

Nordic tombs and Halls of the Dead are full of undead, which makes the spell useful there. A fleeing draugr turns its back, and the caster can attack it freely.

Compared with the Stronger Spells

Turn Undead, the Adept spell, turns undead up to level 13. Turn Greater Undead, the Expert spell, turns undead up to level 21. Repel Lesser Undead and Repel Undead send out a wave that can catch several undead at once. Circle of Protection, Guardian Circle and Bane of the Undead cover whole areas.

Perks and Builds

The Apprentice Restoration perk halves the cost of the spell. The Necromage perk raises the level of undead it can turn and makes the fear last longer. Restoration Dual Casting makes the fear last longer as well, though it leaves the level limit unchanged.

Training Restoration

The Turn Undead spells are a good way to train Restoration. Casting them on undead gives experience even when the target is too strong to flee. A conjurer can summon an undead minion and turn it again and again. The Boneman, Mistman and Wrathman from the Dawnguard DLC suit this well, since they need no corpse.

What Counts as Undead

The spell works on every kind of undead in Skyrim. Draugr, skeletons, ghosts, dragon priests and vampires all count. So do the corpses that necromancers raise to fight for them, which makes the spell handy in a necromancer's lair as well as in a tomb.

Cost and Value

Turn Lesser Undead costs 84 magicka at a skill of zero. The level limit of 6 covers only the weakest undead of the early game. Even so, the stagger on stronger undead keeps the spell useful a little longer.

The Necromage perk adds a quarter to the level limit and half again to the length of the fear. The tome also turns up on hostile mages and in chests, so it is easy to come by.

Gameplay Tips

The Necromage perk lets the spell turn stronger undead and makes the effect last longer.

Spell Categories

All Restoration Spells

Novice

Novice spells are the first a mage learns and cost the least magicka.

Name	Image	Cost	Casting	Effect
Healing		12 per second	Concentration	Heals the caster 10 points per second.
Lesser Ward		34 per second	Concentration	Increases armor rating by 40 points and negates up to 40 points of spell damage or effects.

Apprentice

Apprentice spells need a little practice in the school.

Name	Cost	Casting	Effect
Fast Healing	73	Fire and Forget	Heals the caster 50 points.
Healing Hands	25 per second	Concentration	Heals the target 10 points per second, but not undead, atronachs or machines.
Steadfast Ward	58 per second	Concentration	Increases armor rating by 60 points and negates up to 60 points of spell damage or effects.
Turn Lesser Undead	84	Fire and Forget	Undead up to level 6 flee for 30 seconds.
Necromantic Healing	37 per second	Concentration	Heals the undead target 10 points per second, but not the living, atronachs or machines.
Sun Fire	24	Fire and Forget	Ball of sunlight that does 25 points of damage to undead.

Adept

Adept spells are the middle rank and hit noticeably harder.

Name	Cost	Casting	Effect
Close Wounds	126	Fire and Forget	Heals the caster 100 points.
Greater Ward	86 per second	Concentration	Increases armor rating by 80 points and negates up to 80 points of spell damage or effects.
Heal Other	80	Fire and Forget	Heals the target 75 points, but not undead, atronachs or machines.
Repel Lesser Undead	115	Fire and Forget	All affected undead up to level 8 flee for 30 seconds.
Turn Undead	168	Fire and Forget	Undead up to level 13 flee for 30 seconds.
Heal Undead	115	Fire and Forget	Heals the undead target 75 points, but not the living, atronachs or machines.
Stendarr's Aura	248	Fire and Forget	For 60 seconds, undead in melee range take 10 points sun damage per second.
Vampire's Bane	72	Fire and Forget	Sunlight explosion that does 40 points of damage in a 15 foot radius to undead.
Poison Rune	246	Fire and Forget	Targets that fail to resist take 3 points of poison damage per second for 30 seconds.

Expert

Expert spells are powerful and expensive to cast.

Name	Cost	Casting	Effect
Circle of Protection	171	Fire and Forget	Undead up to level 20 entering the circle will flee.
Grand Healing	254	Fire and Forget	Heals everyone close to the caster 200 points.
Repel Undead	353	Fire and Forget	All affected undead up to level 16 flee for 30 seconds.
Turn Greater Undead	267	Fire and Forget	Undead up to level 21 flee for 30 seconds.

Master

Master spells are the strongest in the school and need the most skill.

Name	Image	Cost	Casting	Effect
Bane of the Undead		988	Fire and Forget	Sets undead up to level 30 on fire and makes them flee for 30 seconds.
Guardian Circle		716	Fire and Forget	Undead up to level 35 entering the circle will flee. Caster heals 20 health per second inside it.