Transforming into an undead is not an easy task; it's not as simple as finding a place with a strong presence of dark magic power, stabbing yourself, and then sitting back to wait for the transformation.
Doing so would result in a seventy percent chance of becoming rotting flesh and bone, becoming nourishment for the dark magic power, and perhaps your soul would also be devoured by this land of death, with no future beyond that point.
The real difficulty in undead transformation lies in preserving the integrity of the soul; the body is actually incidental.
The ritual for Amberser to transform into a Lich cost him a lot of his savings, and the success rate wasn't particularly high; he had to gamble the remaining few Dice of Destiny to ensure a higher chance of success.
