How useful are druids in deserts?

[Voadam]

Every level of druid spell has summonings that will work in a desert, and they can spontaneously cast them.

All their healing and buff spells work just as well.

They have their animal companions and all their animal buff spells work on them.

Almost all of their attack spells work in the desert, they generally lose out on entangle.

All their elemental type spells are still effective.

Their wildshape works just as well.

They have survival as a class skill, very useful in a desert. And they have a +2 on their rolls as a class feature and wisdom is their casting stat.

They can create water as a 0-level spell, very useful.

They can determine north as a 0-level spell, useful for not becoming lost in the desert wastes.

They can cast endure elements as a 1st level spell to not be bothered by the heat.

They do not wear overheating heavy metal armor.

Core only druids are an awesome class in the desert.

Plant spells are something druids do better than anybody else, but they are only one dispensible arrow in a really big quiver. I've played druids with no plant spells and they were not gimped.

 

[Celebrim]

Or UNDERGROUND.

Considering how much stuff takes place in dungeons and the underdark, there's no spells that work underground except the few Stoneshape/spike spells out there.

Even if we restrict ourselves to core, I think more than half of the Druids spell list that is effective underground. And in practice, I think that Druid plant/animal magic is just gravy alongside their healing, buffing (including buffing their animal companion), and elemental magic.

 

[knitnerd]

After a TPK in a desert campaign, where our citydweller party was killed by our own camels who panicked when attacked by jackels, I created what I thought was the perfect desert druid,with create water,sense direction,endure elements,and lots of healing. Then the DM sent us into the sewer of the city. Of course I didn't take any ranks in swim.

 

[Nifft]

Druids can create water.
Really, what else do you need to know to judge them useful?

Cheers, -- N

 

[jbear]

And they can summon camels!

 

[Orius]

I think the question you are really asking is, "How effective is a druid in an erg?"

Create water should be useful against the sandworms, right?

But really, the core druid itself isn't that badly adaptable to a desert, in fact the 3e druid works even better in the desert than she did in previous editions.

Let's look at class abilities:

Sylvan as a bonus language. This is pretty uselss in the desert, granted. But then if the DM doesn't bother enforcing different languages, so what? If not, and your druid is a native of the desert region or part of a druidic circle centered in the desert, then maybe the DM might be persuaded to swap Sylvan for a different language.

Animal companion. Pretty much everything on there could be found in a desert, hell the second animal listed is a camel. So no problems there.

Nature Sense. Should work just as well in a desert as anywhere else.

Wild Empathy. Ditto.

Woodland Stride. Might not find as much use in a desert unless said desert is scrubland with a lot of hardy plants. If said desert is more like Arrakis or Tatooine, your DM might substitute sand dunes for undergrowth if he's feeling generous.

Trackless Step. This should work just as well with sand dunes and salt flats as it does with forests and swamps and stuff.

Resist Nature's Lure. This really depends on how much the DM is going to use fey in a desert setting. The typical woodsy fey like sprites and dryads naturally aren't going to be a around, but it should work just as well against desert fey.

Wild Shape. Not affected by desert.

Venom Immunity. Should still be useful. Maybe even more useful, what with all the gila monsters, snakes, scorpions, stingers, etc. you'll run into out there.

A Thousand Faces/Timeless Body. Neither should be affected by the desert.

I'd say see if the DM would let you swap Earth domain spells for some of the plant stuff, but the druid already gets them all except iron body, which doesn't really feel appropriate for the druid anyway. So basically you'll probably need plant spells less, and there's enough on the core druid spell to substitute anyway.

The druid's sacred grove probably won't be a bunch of oaks or something. An oasis is more likely. And instead of using mistletoe and holly for a holy symbol, something like the flower of a cactus or other desert plant that only blooms once a year when the rains come is probably more appropriate.

And Sandstorm is probably a good reference. Also there's some druid spells on this page too (if they weren't included in Sandstorm)
The Far Corners of the World - Sand and Sun (Spells of the Desert)

 

[nedjer]

I don't have the strength to check the spelling but there's a whole bunch of desert adapted plants: xerophytic (?) maybe.

Then there's every oasis and using water for prestige, e.g. Hanging Gardens of Babylon.

Yeah, I'd take a Druid into the desert.