I appreciate the advice so far. I'm just curious if anyone has any other insights, about gear, or about a good 1st level spell to add as an SLA.
Maybe Nerveskitter? Winning initiative is always fun.
The DM is cool with the Enveloping Pit (yay!), but I probably will have to find it, and not get it at the shop, as it's a relic. I'll likely buy a Hat of Disguise, just because it's so useful. I'll probably get a +1 bow. That leaves me with roughly 5,000 gp left. I could, in theory, buy an Energy Assault crystal for 3,000 gp, but I'm not sure if it's worth it. I so seldom use that bow. Maybe I'd use it more...
I'll likely boost my AC by 2-3 points unless I can find a really handy item that's just plain useful (on par with the hat). I guess that's my biggest question right now: are there any good items around the 5,000 gp or lower range that are just plain useful? It doesn't necessarily have to have combat applications, but stuff like the Hat of Disguise and Enveloping Pit would be so convenient.
Anklets of Translocation don't have an attunement period, so you could always get a spare, and swap for it when you've used your first one twice in a day. Or if your undead are intelligent, you could give them Anklets. I find that it's useful to get one if you don't have anything else to put in your foot slot. Or, it's useful to get several, if you're doing any sort of melee that needs good positioning. I'd actually get one for each of your intelligent melee minions,
unless they're using a two-handed weapon, and you expect them to get charged (then get them Steadfast Boots instead).
You could also put one of those 300gp Crystal of Return, least on each of your undead minions' melee weapons, so that they can quickdraw them.
I'm also fond of Glyph Seals (1k gp each) for utility. Probably too fond of them, actually, since they mostly only shine when you can get access to spells at a lower level than normal (such as with a Chameleon), but if you have any good first or second level melee buffs, you can put a couple in glyph seals and stick them to the hilt of your Ogre's large greatsword (or whatever it uses). When it quickdraws the thing, it recieves buffs.
The Glyph Seals would mostly be useful once you can commission a runestaff to get spells that aren't on your list, like Wraithstrike, Heroics, and Mirror Image. (Note that two of these are personal buffs. You can still put them in Glyph Seals for your minions.)