: Correct me if I'm wrong, but do we ever see Shiver in
: command of any 'undead' of the typical sort (Thrall,
: Wights, Ghasts?).
: She seems to me to have a lot of Fetch and Soulless, so
: perhaps she did not have any ability whatsoever. In
: which case, was this because she was not magically
: talented? Or because the Dream was something only The
: Watcher and Balor were privvy to?
We do, actually. In TFL, during the levels up to Homecoming, you are fighting Shiver's army (she's the one laying seige to Madrigal), and you fight nothing but Thrall and Soulless, and later wights when you play Siege of Madrigal. In M2, you fight lots of thrall, although it could be argued that these are Soulblighter's troops merely "leant" to Shiver to try to keep her alive and kicking. But it is possible that she has lost some of her power after being blasted into her constituent atoms by Mazzarin.
As for the theory that more powerful sorcerers make more thrall than less powerful ones, I think that is correct. It only makes sense that someone like the Baron, who is certainly nowhere near the power level of a Fallen Lord since he gets hacked to pieces by a handful of warriors, would only be able to raise lesser undead and fewer of them. For example: You do fight lots of ghasts on Willow Creek, but a fair amount of time has elapsed since he appeared. And the army of thrall he sends towards Tallow and Willow Creek is ten abreast by a hundred deep: 1000 thrall. Not very impressive in the grand scheme of things, especially since Soulblighter has a huge army and lots of Myrkridia. So I think that this one is on the money.
I think shades can use dispersal dreams because they are generally raised from Avatara. So I think that people like these would retain some of their former power, and it is possible that if someone like The Watcher were raised as a shade he could cast the dream of unlife too.
