10th lvl Druid in the Underdark

[kristov]

I am playing in a game with 7 players - and our DM has us playinig in the Underdark.

Now my Druid has sucked worse than any of the other characters by far - as I am never very useful and can't find any animals to hang out with me since we are in an eternal cave.

What I need - is some suggestions on what I can do to be useful. Anyone suggest a spell list or something that I may not be thinking of?

Also, if DnD 3.5 has Druid improvements, please suggest away as I have been given permission to immediately start usign 3.5 rules for my character if it helps me - because even the DM knows I suck.

Thanks,

Kristov

 

[Emongnome]

If your DM allows outside d20 books, take a look at Dungeon Craft by Legends & Lairs. 1st chapter, it has a prestige class called Deep Druid. Basically, you only need to be a 5th level druid to qualify, requires Blind-fight as a prerequisite feat, as well as 8 ranks each of Intuit Direction and Wilderness Lore (which is combined into Survival in 3.5E). Anyway, there isn't much to up your combat effectiveness, but you gain darkvision, darkness spell 3/day, a few new options for wild shapes, more wild shapes per day, more spells per day, and more animal companion options.

 

[Endur]

Well, first off, you need to remind your GM that there are tons of Animals and Plants in the Underdark. It is an entire ecosystem down there, and Druids Rock.

For animal companions besides Bears and other traditional cave dwellers, look here:


http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=books/fr/pets

 

[Ferret]

Trans rock to mud could be so handy, make it fall on enemies or sink them in all sorts of stuff. Read some books the underdark if you want some indepth stuff. I suggest Drizz't novels.

 

[Spatzimaus]

On the WotC website, they had some Underdark spells, some of which were Druid-usable.

http://www.wizards.com/dnd/article.asp?x=dnd/fw/fw20021025a

Anyway, like these other guys have pointed out, the Underdark isn't a bunch of empty caves. It's crawling with insects, funguses, and so on. Just because they're not cute and cuddly doesn't mean a Druid can't affect them.

 

[Pielorinho]

Druids, suck? Never!

At tenth level, you should be flamestriking the bejesus out of everyone. Wall of Thorns is a fantastic spell for dividing enemies up, with no save and no SR; remember that you can then wildshape and attack people inside of it (the spell allows druids to move through it without problem). Are you being attacked by hordes of mooks? Spike Stones will take them out. And Giant Vermin is a great thing to cast on spiders and scorpions, each of whom gets fantastic extra powers.

Dire apes, bats, snakes, giant lizards, and the like make good underground animal companions; in 3.5E, dinosaurs will likewise be a good choice.

I play a druid in a dungeoncrawling campaign, and I have no problems being effective.

Daniel

 

[Sejs]

There are tons of animals in caves - and wildshape would be -invaluable- in the underdark. Just use small form instead of big ones, or things that can fly and have blindsight. In 2 more levels you will be every drow's worst nightmare. Exactly how well do you think those hand crossbow-toting limp wristed 98lb nancyboys stand up to a frickin hurricane in their prescious little caves? Not bloody well, I'd imagine. You will more mobile, a better scout, and more deadly than 99% of stuff down there with the right aplication of spells.


10th Druid in the Underdark can really ruin some poor NPCs day.

Get some Rats.. awaken them. Make them your friends. Lots of rats. You will have a thousand eyes and ears all around you. Obscuring Mist, Stone Shape, Dominate Animal, Spike Stones, Giant Vermin, Repel Vermin, Commune With Nature, Control Winds, Transmute Mud to Rock/Rock to Mud, Wall of Thorns, Wall of Fire, Share Husk, Beastmask, Soften Earth and Stone, Stonescreen, Tortise Shell, False Bravado, Meld Into Stone. You don't have trees at the moment to use some of your neat tree-based spells: Quaal's Tree Token can fix that right quick.

 

[DM_Matt]

The 3.5e druid is now immune to ALL POISONS, not just natural ones. That means that the sleep poison that the drow tend to rely heavily on is useless against him.

 

[Brekki]

With 3.5:
- you no longer need wilding clasps because your items go with you without those
- your wildshape gives you the animal type so animal growth, nature's favor and the other animalboost spells work on you too
- one casting of greater magic fang can be used to make all of a creatures natural weapons +1
- use spells like scent and blindsight to be the most perfect scout/tracker in bat or other form

 

[Sejs]

The 3.5e druid is now immune to ALL POISONS, not just natural ones. That means that the sleep poison that the drow tend to rely heavily on is useless against him.

Heh, if capture is imminant - coat yourself in contact poison as discreetly as possible, then surrender and just -wait- for those captors to try and tie you up.