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

[Snarf Zagyg]

Druids - eschewing materials found in nature in favor of slaughtering nature and wearing the corpse since 1973.

1. Texas Chainsaw Massacre shows up in theaters in 1974.

2. Two years later, Dennis "I love the Bunnies AND the Burrows" Sustare contributes the Druid to Eldritch Wizardry.

COINCIDENCE? I THINK NOT!

Olaf, the Dim-Witted Fighter: Say, Hacky Sack Dave, that's some nice armor you have there!

Dave the Druid: Why, thank you Olaf! It's my new leather armor.

Olaf: I've always wanted to know, Dave, why is it that a hippy druid like you who won't even eat meat will slaughter animals and wear leather armor?

Dave: (taking a long puff off of his 'magic stick'): Well, Olaf, I'm glad you asked. No animals ... no friends of nature were hurt making this leather armor.

Olaf: Okay, but ... wait a second, have you seen the party's bard anywhere? I swear he was around at some point.

Dave: Mmmmm..... nope. Can't say that I have.

 

[Maxperson]

To be pedantic, rules don’t violate player agency, DMs do.

They do if they make it so that my druid who wants to put on metal armor for a purpose, can't without any mechanical reason for it. Especially since no edition other than 2e has ever issued wording that prevents druids from wearing armor and editions have allowed it with a penalty to using abilities.

 

[ECMO3]

5e: It's a taboo with no penalties for putting it on. Nothing says they cease being a druid, which has never in any edition been a penalty for breaking this taboo. A draconian DM could enact that never before seen penalty, but it would be a house rule to do so.

This is a really good point. RAW a Druid is "allowed" to wear metal armor, they just "choose" not to .... which brings up a whole discussion on player agency.

More to the point, if a Druid puts on metal armor, let's say the fighter in the party forces him to put on half-plate or the wizard hits him with suggestion ... then he can do just fine. He has proficiency, he wears it with no penalties etc.

 

[cbwjm]

If you accept “druids will not wear metal armor” as a rule, that rule does.

I tend to see it more as a "rule" than a rule, or to quote Barbosa from pirates of the Caribbean, it's more of a guideline than an actual rule.

 

[ECMO3]

It's as enforceable as any other rule in the book. There's this word called "no". Typically coinciding with a conversation about following the rules of the game unless the DM has created a specific house rule.

Not really. What do you do if I am the player and I say I put on that suit of half-plate?

The rules do not say I lose my Druid powers, they don't say I can't shapeshift or cast Druid spells and none of the non-proficiency penalties apply since I am actually proficient.

So what happens at your table when that plays out? You have to improvise or homebrew a rule here. No RAW has any effect in this circumstance.

 

[ECMO3]

Vegetarians, not vegans. And I've known vegetarians that occasionally backslide a bit before returning to their vegetarian ways. Why? Because a personal choice is just that, a choice. You can always choose to do something else.

Yeah, my brother-in-law is a vegetarian who eats meat all the time.

 

[Crimson Longinus]

Not really. What do you do if I am the player and I say I put on that suit of half-plate?

Why would you? Did you as player agree to play the game by the rules? Why would you intentionally break a rule?

 

[Crimson Longinus]

Yeah, my brother-in-law is a vegetarian who eats meat all the time.

No he's not. Words mean things.

 

[Wolfram stout]

Why would you? Did you as player agree to play the game by the rules? Why would you intentionally break a rule?

maybe they got drunk and did it on a dare, what happens?

 

[Swarmkeeper]

Not really. What do you do if I am the player and I say I put on that suit of half-plate?

The rules do not say I lose my Druid powers, they don't say I can't shapeshift or cast Druid spells and none of the non-proficiency penalties apply since I am actually proficient.

So what happens at your table when that plays out? You have to improvise or homebrew a rule here. No RAW has any effect in this circumstance.

In such a case, if a DM really wanted to, they could quickly point to the table on page 45 of the PHB which says a Druid's Armor and Weapon Proficiencies are:
Light and medium armor (nonmetal), shields (nonmetal), clubs, daggers, darts, javelins, maces, quarterstaffs, scimitars, sickles, slings, spears

And the game would proceed from there with the DM describing the scene, the player deciding what their character would like to do next, and the DM adjudicating accordingly. No improvisation or homebrew necessary, at least in some circles.