D&D 5E Can your Druids wear metal armor?

[Yaarel]

They are proficient in all medium armors, you just have to find medium armor that is not made of metal. It's a pretty clear distinction.

I agree with this: the Druids are proficient with ALL medium armor types, but not ones made of metal. I agree, it is pretty obvious distinction.

Where we perhaps disagree is, what happens if the Druid gains metal armor proficiency from an other source, like multiclassing, race, feat, or so on. This more customized Druid character can learn to cast Druid spells while wearing a proficient metal armor.

 

[Northern Phoenix]

The post I was responding to was saying that ENWorld is the only place that is talking about this matter. My intent was to show that no, discussion of the Druid armour restrictions has happened on other sites, and that antipathy towards the "no metal" rule is not limited to ENWorld.

You're reading his post too literally. Millions of people play DnD these days. All the users of all the old-style forums combined are a tiny minority.

 

[Faolyn]

Haven't read everything yet, so I don't know if this has been answered, but:

In a game where multiclassing and feats are a thing, as are races that grant armor proficiency, I will ask again; why do my hands fall off when I equip leather armor as a monk?

I mean, a hobgoblin monk is doing 1d4+dex damage and has an AC of 10 +dex and wis, finds a suit of leather and puts it on, and suddenly he does 1+str mod and has an AC of 11 + dex? Care to explain (and cite page numbers) why that makes sense?

Hobgoblins (meaning hobgoblin PCs) have proficiency in light armor (it's under Martial Training in their racial template). And proficiency often means "trained in how to use." (Other times it means "has some innate ability in.") All hobgoblins, due to their Martial Training, are trained in how to wear leather armor. Monks, however, receive no training in how to wear armor. I guess leather armor has particularly difficult buckles, or it bunches up uncomfortably if they don't wear it right. So it's not that a human monk's hands will fall off if they wear leather armor, or even plate armor. It's that they suffer a penalty while wearing it, as per the PH, page 144.

Armor Proficiency.
Anyone can put on a suit of armor or strap a shield to an arm. Only those proficient in the armor's use know how to wear it effectively, however.

Your class gives you proficiency with certain types of armor. If you wear armor that you lack proficiency with, you have disadvantage on any ability check, saving throw, or attack roll that involves Strength or Dexterity, and you can't cast spells.

So a hobgoblin monk is trained in leather armor, as well as other light armors. But they'd still be at a penalty if they put on a chain shirt, because while every hobgoblin wears leather armor to elementary school and takes a class on martial weapons, only those hobs who go on to Fighter College or whatever learn how to use heavier armors.

 

[Faolyn]

In previous editions, there were nonmetal materials to make armor out of. For example, 4e emphasizes these alternative exotic materials. For example, the Githzerai make Githweave, a kind of cloth armor including crystalline material.

The 5e Druid has proficiency with medium armor, but not if its material is metal.

As others have pointed out, it doesn't say that.

I'll give an example with the wizard (and sorcerer). The wizard isn't proficient in Simple Weapons. Instead, they're proficient with daggers, darts, slings, quarterstaffs (grr, staves), and light crossbows. they are not proficient in any other simple weapon, including javelins, clubs, handaxes, or shortbows. I don't know why a club or mace is more difficult for them to use than a quarterstaff, but there you go. Likewise, monks are proficient in Simple Weapons and shortswords.

Druids are proficient with Light and Medium armor. They are not proficient in "Light armor and Hide armor." In other words, if the writers didn't want them to not be proficient in metal armor, they would have limited them in the armor they could use.

The problem here is that the writers failed to include a section on making weapons and armor out of unusual materials beyond silver, mithril, and adamantine. Maybe it was an oversight; maybe they had a whole section and trimmed it to avoid adding too many things to the PH but forgot to change the druid section to reflect that.

 

[Yaarel]

As others have pointed out, it doesn't say that.

I'll give an example with the wizard (and sorcerer). The wizard isn't proficient in Simple Weapons. Instead, they're proficient with daggers, darts, slings, quarterstaffs (grr, staves), and light crossbows. they are not proficient in any other simple weapon, including javelins, clubs, handaxes, or shortbows. I don't know why a club or mace is more difficult for them to use than a quarterstaff, but there you go. Likewise, monks are proficient in Simple Weapons and shortswords.

Druids are proficient with Light and Medium armor. They are not proficient in "Light armor and Hide armor." In other words, if the writers didn't want them to not be proficient in metal armor, they would have limited them in the armor they could use.

The problem here is that the writers failed to include a section on making weapons and armor out of unusual materials beyond silver, mithril, and adamantine. Maybe it was an oversight; maybe they had a whole section and trimmed it to avoid adding too many things to the PH but forgot to change the druid section to reflect that.

The difference is. For the Wizard weapons, the materials that the weapon types are made out of doesnt matter. A dagger might be steel, bronze, quartz, obsidian, or "ironwood".

But for the Druid armors, the materials that the armor types are made out of do matter.

The Druid armor proficiencies explicitly exclude metal materials. The Druid would be proficient with a breastplate made out of nonmetal "ironwood".

 

[Faolyn]

Why do rogues have to use finesse weapons to sneak attack?

Rogues don't have to use finesse weapons. They can also use Light weapons. The reason for being limited to finesse is because rogues need to be able to maneuver the weapon in such a way that it inflicts Sneaky damage.

Why do all barbarians need to use strength weapons to rage?

Because when they're Raging, they'd not thinking clearly and they're relying on sheer muscle. Dex weapons require more skill beyond just hack-and-slash to use.

Why can't monks use martial arts in armor?

Range of motion.

Why can't wizards learn healing magic?

How many wizards have tried creating healing spells? I don't think there's any rules saying they can't.

Why can I have draconic blood magic and make pacts with devils but not vice versa?

Dragons, despite their awesome power, are not actually supernatural beings (note that dragons can't be affected by a [...] evil and good spell). All warlock patrons so far are supernatural beings; it can be assumed that a Fathlomless patron is probably an aberration or elemental. It actually makes a bit of sense that a mortal being can't grant powers to another being through a pact.

Why are paladins held to oaths but not clerics?

In effect, clerics do swear an oath to their god (or ideal, or ancestors, or whomever they get their power from). It's just that they didn't include the Terms & Service for each clerical domain in the PH, since that's more an individual god thing.

 

[carkl3000]

They are proficinct, but with a caveat that they won't wear it made of metal.

That is separate from being proficinct in specific armors and akin to a monk losing martial art benefits in leather armor or a rogue who is unable to sneak attack with a club.

It's different because in the book they spell out specific mechanical detriments to doing the thing that the rule prohibits. The publishers of the book have instead said specifically that there really is no reason not to allow druids to use metal armor.

They could very easily have said that druids are proficient with all light armor and medium that is not made of metal. They could have said that druids are proficient with light and medium armor AND that if they wear armor made of metal or wield a metal shield, they suffer penalties as described for a character that uses armor with which they are not proficient. Either wording would have been fine and impossible to argue with. It even includes the penalty that a lot of the strict no metal contingent would like to impose (no spellcasting) That's not what they chose to do.

 

[Yaarel]

The problem here is that the writers failed to include a section on making weapons and armor out of unusual materials beyond silver, mithril, and adamantine. Maybe it was an oversight; maybe they had a whole section and trimmed it to avoid adding too many things to the PH but forgot to change the druid section to reflect that.

It seems to be, the 5e designers (initially) removed special materials because of bounded accuracy. By design, plate armor is the highest AC value. Magic item bonuses were rarified. I am less sure how true that is today, especially when official adventures are generous with magic items.

For the Druid armors, the materials dont need to be better than normal metal, they just need to be nonmetal.

 

[abirdcall]

As others have pointed out, it doesn't say that.

I'll give an example with the wizard (and sorcerer). The wizard isn't proficient in Simple Weapons. Instead, they're proficient with daggers, darts, slings, quarterstaffs (grr, staves), and light crossbows. they are not proficient in any other simple weapon, including javelins, clubs, handaxes, or shortbows. I don't know why a club or mace is more difficult for them to use than a quarterstaff, but there you go. Likewise, monks are proficient in Simple Weapons and shortswords.

Druids are proficient with Light and Medium armor. They are not proficient in "Light armor and Hide armor." In other words, if the writers didn't want them to not be proficient in metal armor, they would have limited them in the armor they could use.

The problem here is that the writers failed to include a section on making weapons and armor out of unusual materials beyond silver, mithril, and adamantine. Maybe it was an oversight; maybe they had a whole section and trimmed it to avoid adding too many things to the PH but forgot to change the druid section to reflect that.

There is Dragon Scale Mail from the DMG.

 

[Yaarel]

How many wizards have tried creating healing spells? I don't think there's any rules saying they can't.

Funny enough, the most powerful healing spells in the game, like Regeneration, Clone, Wish, etcetera, are all Wizard spells.