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

[Chaosmancer]

Not exactly. My intent was to remind the player that the rules would prohibit the activity he was declaring for his druid. I wanted to do this in a way that didn't break the fourth wall, and when that didn't work, I called a break to discuss it.

Ah, so you made up something to enforce the rules, and prevent a player's actions. And when that didn't dissuade them from doing what they wanted, you decided to pause the game and continue trying to enforce what you saw as "proper" on the player.

And if memory serves me, you also said that if the player had insisted, you would have retconned the armor to not be what it was, further removing the player's ability to wear the metal armor, by simply making the metal armor no longer exist.

The player could never make the choice to wear metal armor. You would prevent that from happening.

That's a pretty awesome way to carry that theme forward, sure. But there are no rules that state "a druid will not carry metal coins," so there wouldn't be much of a need for me to remind the player of the rules.

So, Druids have no issue with metal. In any form, except armor and shields.

Why? "Because those are the rules" is a terrible reason. That just makes it a pointless assertion.

Honestly I don't think the issue is that it is worked metal...after all, the druid is proficient with several weapons that have metal components, and there is no restriction for the druid using hunting traps, ball bearings, or any other metal equipment. But the rules do say that a druid won't wear metal armor or use a metal shield, specifically. Maybe it's more about faith and belief, that no druid would rely on metal for protection but would seek safety through other means? The rule doesn't come with any fluff, so it could be just about anything. It might even vary from druid to druid, and enclave to enclave.

Knowing then what I know now, I would have discussed this with the player at Session Zero. Maybe have this conversation:

"So, Chuck. You are going to play a druid, right? Excellent, that's a good choice. Listen, the rules say that druids will not wear metal armor or use metal shields. Why does your druid feel that way? What is it about metal armor and metal shields that prevents your druid from wearing it?" and then take notes.

If Chuck says "Well you see, this druid is super-special and unique and that particular rule doesn't apply because Reasons," I'd need to have a very different conversation, one about following the rules as written vs. creating a house-rule.

And hey, I'm glad you would talk to your player in the future. But that again rolls back to the conversation.

If this is something about faith and belief.... then it should be struck from the rulebook. Not only does it not make sense for all druids to have a taboo against wearing metal armor, but that should be a player decision. Not something imposed on all druids regardless of situation, as a blanket rule.

 

[Oofta]

You are right about Regenerate. Heh. That one snuck in from previous editions or house rules (related to making a Ring of Regeneration)!

But Clone is something like self-resurrect.

Wish has special rules for healing: "You allow up to twenty creatures that you can see to regain all hit points, and you end all effects on them
described in the Greater Restoration spell." Wish is an incredibly powerful healing spell.

Mass heal is also incredibly powerful. But having a spell very few wizards will ever be able to cast in the majority of campaigns does not make them healers IMHO.

 

[doctorbadwolf]

Which is why changing the rule or allowing for alternate materials is not an issue.

It’s also why it shouldn’t be in the rules, or should have the word “most” added to it.

 

[Vaalingrade]

Because I accept the rules of the game and accept that if I don't like a rule I can always change it.

I would love to play in a circle where I can change the rules of other DM's games.

 

[Yaarel]

You can read it that way, but the designers have said you are wrong.

Heh, I find the Sage Advice explanation to be less clear the Players Handbook. So, yeah, the Druid wont explode. But what actually happens or doesnt happen, remains unexplained. Indeed, I read the Sage Advice, and read it to mean, the Druid can wear metal armor but lacks proficiency for it. The reason for the lack of metal proficiency is ... TRADITION!!! But this tradition is absent from the 5e Druid description. Also the tradition itself is incoherent, since the earth element is part of druidry, and the Druids do use metal weapons.

Anyway. The 5e Druid, for some unexplained reason, lacks proficiency with armors made out of metal.

 

[Chaosmancer]

If you feel that, then provide other reason.

Though personally I really don't agree, if the belief reason was communicated before the class selection. Many different classes (clerics and paladins in particular) kinda expect the character to buy into certain belief systems. If the player doesn't want that, they simply can choose some other class.

Tell me. What belief system must you be engaged in to be a cleric?

 

[PsyzhranV2]

Heh, I find the Sage Advice explanation to be less clear the Players Handbook. So, yeah, the Druid wont explode. But what actually happens or doesnt happen, remains unexplained. Indeed, I read the Sage Advice, and read it to mean, the Druid can wear metal armor but lacks proficiency for it. The reason for the lack of metal proficiency is ... TRADITION!!! But this tradition is absent from the 5e Druid description. Also the tradition itself is incoherent, since the earth element is part of druidry, and the Druids do use metal weapons.

Anyway. The 5e Druid, for some unexplained reason, lacks proficiency with armors made out of metal.

Everybody else in this thread, and everybody in the past that I have spoken to on this subject, has the common understanding that Druids have Medium Armour proficiency, PERIOD, as a mechanical element of their class design, but for some reason have a universally imposed taboo against metal armour. They will not wear it as a personal choice that somehow every Druid in the universe makes, but in the situation where they happen to find themselves encased in it, they would still be able to cast their spells and not be slapped with Disadvantage on their ability checks as per the game's proficiency rules. That is what the term "proficiency" means in a 5e game design context when applied to armour. There is no mechanical requirement in 5e for a weapon, armour, skill, or tool proficiency to have been the result of past in-universe training, which is why I do not believe your argument that Druids lack metal medium armour proficiency holds water. They have the proficiency, they just decide not to use it.

Then again, all the arguments over 5e's rules over the years have shown to me that "natural language" in 5e is hardly natural, and barely qualifies as language at all.

 

[Chaosmancer]

Never wearing it means never becoming proficient with it.

A fighter has never worn full plate made out of crystal. Are they proficient in it?

Has every single fighter, paladin, cleric, and ranger worn a suit dragonscale armor? Because they are all proficient in it.

How about adamantium armor? Mithril Armor? Does every single fighter wear full plate made of adamantium at some point in their lives? Because, according to your logic, if they don't, they can't be proficient in it.

 

[Yaarel]

It's clear in the rules. It's clear in the sage advice. Druids are proficient in medium armor but they will not wear metal armor. No exceptions.

It doesnt say, "no exceptions". And a specific rule like a feat, beats a general rule like druids wont.

 

[Yaarel]

Everybody else in this thread, and everybody in the past that I have spoken to on this subject, has the common understanding that Druids have Medium Armour proficiency, PERIOD, as a mechanical element of their class design, but for some reason have a universally imposed taboo against metal armour. They will not wear it as a personal choice that somehow every Druid in the universe makes, but in the situation where they happen to find themselves encased in it, they would still be able to cast their spells and not be slapped with Disadvantage on their ability checks as per the game's proficiency rules. That is what the term "proficiency" means in a 5e game design context when applied to armour. There is no mechanical requirement in 5e for a weapon, armour, skill, or tool proficiency to have been the result of past in-universe training, which is why I do not believe your argument that Druids lack metal medium armour proficiency holds water. They have the proficiency, they just decide not to use it.

Then again, all the arguments over 5e's rules over the years have shown to me that "natural language" in 5e is hardly natural, and barely qualifies as language at all.

The Druids lack the proficiency with metal armor, because they just decide to never learn how to use it.

The nonproficiency is relevant to Druid spellcasting. Generally, if Druids wear metal armor, they become unable to cast Druid spells.