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

[Undrave]

'Druids will not wear metal armour' That is the rule! I literally cannot understand where the difficulty is. If your character has a rule 'Will not do X' then them doing X is against the rules. This must truly be the bizarrest attempt at rules lawyering I have ever seen; simply claiming that words don't mean things.

It's the only place in the game where a rule is worded as 'WILL' outside of maybe NPC rules! It's not following the same jargon established in any other rule in the game, and it's the only piece of imperative deterministic language anywhere.

It's like if Magic had 1 card where all its rule was written in italic, like flavor text. It'd be pretty normal for people to argue wether it's rule or flavor text!

It might be the board game/tcg player in me, but a rule that doesn't follow the meta-rules of how rules are formulated stick out like a sore thumb and feel super amateurish.

This lack of proper formatting automatically makes its language vague and prone to interpretation. Consistency in rule language is primordial when making a game and I will not budge on that point.

 

[Chaosmancer]

No, they don't state that, they state the opposite. Druids choose to no wear metal armour. Like vegans choose not to eat meat. There is no indication that they could choose otherwise and remain druids or vegans, except the later stipulation that basically amounts to 'GM can change the rules if they want,' which we all of course already know.

The vegan example is interesting.

Let us say that a vegan eats meat on Friday the 14th of June of 2002. Then they never eat meat ever again.... are they still a vegan?

I mean, most vegans ate meat before they became vegans. No one is born a vegan. So, if a vegan chose to eat meat, in a situation where they felt it was necessary to their survival, are they never allowed to say they are a vegan again? Heck, the druid doesn't even get that. They are incapable of choosing to pick up a metal shield, no matter what. They can't even make the attempt, because the rule book says they won't do it. Magical metal shield that they need to save the world? Better hope a different party member is nearby to pick it up, too bad it wasn't a magical metal crown, then they could choose to touch it.

 

[Crimson Longinus]

The explanation is that they choose not to. My character chooses to do so. Unless you are saying that my character is incapable of choice, then that would be the end of it. Druids also can't cast magic missile, and yet there are a good dozen ways I can have my druid do so via other rules. There is no such nuance in this "rule" simply a refusal of my character making a choice.

The rule is "druids will not wear armour or use shields made of metal." It's up to you and your GM to figure out why they won't but they won't. Anything else is a houserule.

Yes, Sage advice wants the player to talk to the GM, but considering we have posters who are saying "players who don't follow this rule will be removed from my table" and others who will do everything to prevent a player from doing this, all because of their personal aesthetics, then I think we have an issue. Becuase this is not the case for any other class in the game. No where in the game is the player's choice removed like this.

It is exactly the similar issue than the player wanting to ignore any other rule. Ask the GM.

So, the druid has a harder time getting armor than anyone else in the game, because you feel that they shouldn't wear metal, because you can't accept that metal is as natural as chemically treated beholder hide.

Yes. Just like all other rules the classes have may have influence how hard certain things are for them.

 

[Crimson Longinus]

I can read the optional fluff just fine.

That certainly is an interesting tactic. Just arbitrarily declare that any rule you don't like isn't actually a rule. I can't really argue against such "logic."

 

[Chaosmancer]

You mean this Sage Advice?
Don't you think it somewhat conflicts with your interpretation (especially the bolded part)?

Druid
What happens if a druid wears metal armor? The druid explodes.
Well, not actually. Druids have a taboo against wearing metal armor and wielding a metal shield. The taboo has been part of the class’s story since the class first appeared in Eldritch Wizardry (1976) and the original Player’s Handbook (1978). The idea is that druids prefer to be protected by animal skins, wood, and other natural materials that aren’t the worked metal that is associated with civilization. Druids don’t lack the ability to wear metal armor. They choose not to wear it. This choice is part of their identity as a mystical order. Think of it in these terms: a vegetarian can eat meat, but chooses not to.
A druid typically wears leather, studded leather, or hide armor, and if a druid comes across scale mail made of a material other than metal, the druid might wear it. If you feel strongly about your druid breaking the taboo and donning metal, talk to your DM. Each class has story elements mixed with its game features; the two types of design go hand in hand in D&D, and the story parts are stronger in some classes than in others. Druids and paladins have an especially strong dose of story in their design. If you want to depart from your class’s story, your DM has the final say on how far you can go and still be considered a member of the class. As long as you abide by your character’s proficiencies, you’re not going to break anything in the game system, but you might undermine the story and the world being created in your campaign

I think the more important takeaway from that sage advice is two-fold.

1) They were not intended to lack proficiency. This is not a game balance concern.

2) The metal armor is entirely a flavor and theme concern.

And in my experience, #2, should never be a rule. Trying to force a theme to be a rule, leads to problems.

 

[Maxperson]

That certainly is an interesting tactic. Just arbitrarily declare that any rule you don't like isn't actually a rule. I can't really argue against such "logic."

So, there's nothing arbitrary about it. English language means something and "won't" will never equate to "can't." One of us is reading the English as it is written and it's not you. You're fictionalizing something that isn't there. I'm going by the real meaning, which makes my position reasoned and not arbitrary.

And no, you can't really argue against that kind of logic. Because fictionalized definitions fail to hold up to real meanings.

 

[Vaalingrade]

"druids will not wear armor or use shields made of metal"​

Can you read?

Can't they write?

I get that writing 'rules' meal-mouthed and in literally unenforceable manner that serves to empower the DM is a thing some people like, but let's not pretend this dumb 'rule' as written is unenforceable by RAW and as per Sage, by RAI.

So nothing hangs on it, it isn't enforced, and it's written as a mindset instead of a limitation. It's a rule in the same way not posting in giant text and bold and then adding condescension in normal size is a rule: it's a suggestion to establish a certain tone that's not codified.

 

[Chaosmancer]

Yes. Just like all other rules the classes have may have influence how hard certain things are for them.

Like what? Who else has to go on a quest to get a basic class feature like armor?

 

[Swarmkeeper]

Sure. The DM might want to enact house rules on the matter. The key word in that bolded portion is taboo. A taboo is a choice, not something that in any way prevents you from doing it. People break taboos in real life all the time. They don't explode or cease to be whatever they are.

I'm a bit confused by your response here as it doesn't seem consistent with the position you previously established. Here, it seem that you now agree that if a player feels strongly about their druid to donning metal, as the Sage Advice clearly indicates, the player can speak to their DM and the DM can enact house rules on the matter. Yes?

requoted snippet from Sage Advice for emphasis:
If you feel strongly about your druid breaking the taboo and donning metal, talk to your DM.

 

[carkl3000]

Would they? It requires +5 dex modifier to equal halfplate with +2 dex modifier. I have hard time seeing druids getting 20 in dex and with anything less you're better off with the halfplate.

Sure, some would. Stealthiness is valuable, too.