D&D (2024) 2024 Player's Handbook Reveal: Shape of "New Druid"

Druid video today. Where will wildshape land?

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We saw three druids in the playtest, and each was meaningfully different. The most recent look at the class was in PT8 (UA Playtest document 8); with the Moon Druid in PT8, and Land Druid and Sea Druid in PT6, with the Stars Druid in Tasha's. What will change? What will be revealed? Will it be feasible to pick an combat animal shape and stick with it through 20 levels? Let's find out!

OVERVIEW

• "there is a ton of new in the druid": but it was all in the playtest materials. Very little to see here. "the final version has elements people didn't get to see" in the playtest, however everything they discuss was in the playtest documents.
• Primal order choice at level 1: Warden or Magician. Warden gives proficiency in Medium armor and martial weapons; Magician gives cantrip and nature checks (and so =PT8). Magician incentivizes not dumping Intelligence.
• no mention of metal armor; presumably any restriction is now gone.
• Druidic includes speak with animals prepared.
• Wildshape (as in PT8): as a bonus action; wild companion option from Tasha's for a familiar; you can speak; spellslot for another wildshift at 5.
• NO MENTION OF BEAST FORMS IN THE PHB.
• At level 7, Elemental Fury choice not determined by level 1 choice; you can mix-and-match. (would you want to?) Improved at level 15 -- extra range option works at range while flying, if you want.
• new cantrips: Starry Wisp (ranged spell attack in PT8) and Elementalism (PT6).

Overall, this is pretty disappointing in terms of a preview for people who have been invested in the playtest. No discussion of the beast forms in the PHB, no mention of distinctive Druid features (metal armor, though the silence is probably revelatory) or adjustements to canonical spells (any adjustments to Reincarnate so it might actually see play?).

Narrator: His questions would not be answered.

SUBCLASSES
Land

• Almost all as in PT6. This is "all about your spellcasting".
• you choose your land type every long rest. Arid, Polar, Temperate, Tropical (as in PT6).
• use wildshape at 3 to create "eruption of nature magic" (harms and heals). Expanded at 14 to include resitances.
• Two damage resistances at 10 (with flexibility: poison plus one determined by land type

Sea

• wanted to "make sure we don't have the Aquaman problem".
• NEW: Water breathing replaces Sleet storm on the subclass spell list.

Moon

• Almost everything exactly as in PT8: AC is "more reliable"; gain in temporary hit points instead of just taking over the creature's hit points. (a nerf, but a needed one). (Crawford ties it to abilities that activate when you get zero hp;
• NEW: subclass spell list given (it is different from PT8):
  • 3: cure wounds, moon beam, starry wisp (unchanged)
  • 5: conjure animals (replacing Vampiric touch)
  • 7: fount of Moonlight (new spell, as in PT8)
  • 9: mass cure wounds (replacing Dawn).

Stars

• like Tasha's, but starting now at level 3. Enhanced by core class, but no specific changes made.

 

[Baumi]

In that scene, she transforms from Fly, Mouse, self, Mouse, Hawk, Cat, Cockatrice, Deer. Because she's able to fly in wildshape, that put's her at 8th level at minimum. I'll use 8th as the baseline for comparison.

Just a small nitpick .. these oversized Bird-thingies werent Cockatrice but Axe Beak.

Axe beak

Axe beaks were tall and aggressive flightless birds.[1] Axe beaks got their name from their sharp wedge-shaped beaks. They had strong necks and powerful legs, which they used to sprint at high speeds.[1][5] Axebeaks were faster runners than most horses.[2][note 2] Axe beaks were aggressive...

forgottenrealms.fandom.com

 

[Veltharis ap Rylix]

Just a small nitpick .. these oversized Bird-thingies werent Cockatrice but Axe Beak.

I can never look at Axe Beaks without thinking Chocobo...

 

[Parmandur]

I can never look at Axe Beaks without thinking Chocobo...

Well, that's because Chocobo's are Axebeaks, and then Chocobo's are probsvly the reason WotC likes Axebeaks so much now.

 

[Veltharis ap Rylix]

Well, that's because Chocobo's are Axebeaks, and then Chocobo's are probsvly the reason WotC likes Axebeaks so much now.

Final Fantasy steals from D&D, D&D steals from Final Fantasy - the circle of life continues.

Goes back to polishing his gunblade in preparation for Dawntrail.

 

[Thommy H-H]

In the 2024 rules, those 7 transformations would give her a potential of 56 THP if she's not a moon druid, or 168 THP if she is (depending on how many THP were used before making the next tranformation). In either case, it would cost her her 2 Wildshape uses plus 4 1st level slots and 1 2nd. With the 14 rules, those 7 Wildhsapes would have given her at most 30-40 THP from the beast forms (and again, some of those would be lost due to transforming before she needed to), but also, she would never have been able to Wildshape 7 times in a scene anyhow. She would have needed at least 3 short rests in between to do so.

Temporary hit points don't stack. I don't think this has changed in the 2024 rules, has it?

 

[Undrave]

I skimmed the ten pages or so since this was introduced - did a discussion ever start?

Because this is exactly on point: if you want to scout combat ability just gets in the way, and so on.

You choose optimal forms for the intended function and everything else is just a distraction, or worse, something that brings the CR out of reach despite not needed.

We talked about it a little back when they playtested for templates and I suggested purpose oriented templates that could accommodate multiple animals without needing brand new stats blocks for each. Probably with additional characteristics you can add depending on your level.

it makes way more sense when you consider how wild shape is generally used in game.

 

[mellored]

Temporary hit points don't stack. I don't think this has changed in the 2024 rules, has it?

Nope.

But as a bonus action, you can renew your wild shape, and the THP that comes along with it.

2024 can easily stay in beast form longer at the cost of spell slots.

Even mid level non-moon druids can make use of it. Call Lightning, turn into a bird, blast as your action, and every time you take damage, bonus action expend a level 1 slot for 10 THP.
Assuming you don't lose Concentration.

 

[OB1]

Temporary hit points don't stack. I don't think this has changed in the 2024 rules, has it?

Correct, that's why I mentioned the full value would depend on how many THPs were used in each form, but the same holds true for the 'THP' of the 2014 wildshapes. For a scene like Doric's infiltration, the utility of being able to switch shapes 7 times is what matters (possible in 24, not in 14), but for the main way that Moon Druids would use the forms, you likely wouldn't switch or re-up a current form unless those THP were spent, unless you needed access to a spell not available in wildshape or some other function of being a humanoid.

 

[Thommy H-H]

Oh, okay, I misunderstood what you were saying, I think. I read it like you were adding them to a running total of actual THP, not keeping track of how many were potentially available taken in aggregate.

 

[CapnZapp]

it makes way more sense when you consider how wild shape is generally used in game.

Yes, WotC should group together animals suited for various functions.

Whether this then us a wolf ir a bear doesn't matter, as long as it's suited to it's intended purpose.

Just like ac and HP is entirely irrelevant when you turn into a bird or mouse just to easvesdrop into a discussion.