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4th Edition Druid (complete)

Olgar Shiverstone said:
I like it, though I would have preferred to see a few of the "leader" powers dropped for a more "controllerish" feel -- with the hybrid being striker/controller, rather than striker/hybrid. But it's a good template and certainly captures most of the druid achetypes.


The elemental path is semi-controllerish. Most of the powers are about knocking people prone and immobilizing them.

Druids are leaders, due to the fact that they can heal and assist their allies. This was true in 3rd edition and it should be in 4th. However just because they have the label doesn't mean you have to pick up leader or healing type powers. If you want to play a striker/controller, just max str,wis and pick up the controller-type elemental attacks and a few melee attacks.
 

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Druids are leaders, due to the fact that they can heal and assist their allies.

Druids never where big on buffs and many of their iconic spells are control spells (entangle comes to mind).

Sure they can heal, but you don't need to be leader to heal. Paladins can heal.

It's a metagame reason, but 4E needs more controllers and druids are one of the few strong archetypes that can fit the bill.



I'd like to see druids as controllers with some healing and the ability to shift in a pinch.



Which isn't to say you've done a bad job, your version isn't the most ambitious, but because of that it's very solid.

one question, why light shield? it makes druids more martial than clerics currently
 

Bestial Fury seems like a powerful class feature; more powerful than the bonus feats, for sure. I'd make the change a +1 to attack rolls. If you want to use two-handed weapons to affect that, the bonus should be a damage bonus, not an attack bonus. Bonuses to attack are hard to come by in 4e, and a +3 to attack is HUGE. Especially for a leader-type character.

Nature's touch sort of makes this a clone of the cleric. But, I'd keep it - it at least gives the player some options in creating his character.

I like how you call druidic powers "pacts". That's cool.

Snake's Swiftness seems kind of silly. Sorry. In my group, we'd be making all sorts of jokes every time it was used. It's also weaker than the warlord's ability to grant an extra basic attack.

I like growling strike. But I'd add to it the ability to gain temp HP instead of a saving throw, as an option. This way, it mimics the power of the cleric's sacred flame. But then, you can use this power while in wild shape form, so I guess it should be weaker...

Produce flame seems a bit powerful for an at-will. While it almost seems like an inverse of Lance of Faith (which grants an ally nearby an attack bonus against that foe), a -2 penalty to attack provides a broad defensive boost. Essentially, it grants +2 AC to ALL of your allies against that opponent's attack, as opposed to just one. I'd change it to "-2 attack against an ally of your choice" or something similar. Still combos well with a fighter's mark, though.

Magic stone seems a bit heavy. An extra thing to keep track of. I'd much rather it be something simple - if the target is gonna be hit anyways, why not just tack on the con damage already? Or, better yet, why not just make it a [w] + wis modifier, to mimic how magic stone worked in 3e? I never knew a druid to actually THROW the stone. I'd do it that way, and tack on a "one ally within five squares of you gets X" ability. +1 attack rolls? tempory hit points equal to charisma modifier + half level?

Aspect of the Wolf is cool. Like it.

Like the bear aspect, too.

Sandblast is cool. Easy damage, and allows healing. Very leader-y.

Raging Flame: Why is it under encounter powers? It has a daily use. Also, what's the blast area? It says each enemy within blast, but gives no parameters for the blast shape. I like how you can push the enemies - that's a nice controller aspect. But, I'd change it to slide, so you can move enemies towards you as well - since it's a blast, we could expect some enemies to move AWAY from the point of origin, right?

Entangle is COOL. On the down side, it's very similar to a 5th level wizard daily, Web. Web doesn't deal damage, has the same area of effect (but more range), and lasts longer. That being said, I think Entangle might be a tad too powerful for 1st level.

Faerie Fire does a buttload of damage for a burst attack. I'd drop it to 2d8+wisdom modifier damage. Also, you have it under daily pacts, but it has an encounter usage.

Bestial Slam has a huge amount of damage (similar to a striker's big attacks) and lowers AC for at least a few rounds. I'd drop the AC negation, or at the very least lower it to -1. Remember, what you are saying here is "all allies that attack this foe get +2 on attacks". And that's a big deal.

Brambles seems cool.

Now, I'm not gonna go past level 1, only because I only have experience PLAYING level 1, so going beyond that isn't something I'd feel able to do. A few more points:

1) I like how you did wild shape. Seems cool, very druidic.
2) Giving druids history is perfect, in my book. Good call.
 

generalhenry said:
It's a metagame reason, but 4E needs more controllers and druids are one of the few strong archetypes that can fit the bill.
I agree on this point.

I'd like to see druids as controllers with some healing and the ability to shift in a pinch.

Can my druid not accomplish all that already if you have the powers available for it?

one question, why light shield? it makes druids more martial than clerics currently

I'm actually still considering this myself now that you mention it.
 

Wik said:
Bestial Fury seems like a powerful class feature; more powerful than the bonus feats, for sure. I'd make the change a +1 to attack rolls. If you want to use two-handed weapons to affect that, the bonus should be a damage bonus, not an attack bonus. Bonuses to attack are hard to come by in 4e, and a +3 to attack is HUGE. Especially for a leader-type character.
This was a recent change that I have been mulling over during the weekend.

Snake's Swiftness seems kind of silly. Sorry. In my group, we'd be making all sorts of jokes every time it was used. It's also weaker than the warlord's ability to grant an extra basic attack.

Actually, this is any basic attack, thus you could make your ally shoot 20 squares away with his longbow if you wanted. the warlord's power i believe is melee range.

Produce flame seems a bit powerful for an at-will. While it almost seems like an inverse of Lance of Faith (which grants an ally nearby an attack bonus against that foe), a -2 penalty to attack provides a broad defensive boost. Essentially, it grants +2 AC to ALL of your allies against that opponent's attack, as opposed to just one. I'd change it to "-2 attack against an ally of your choice" or something similar. Still combos well with a fighter's mark, though.

It's good vs a single creature, however when you have 12 kobolds to worry about, it becomes less attractive. But it is a valid point.

Magic stone seems a bit heavy. An extra thing to keep track of. I'd much rather it be something simple - if the target is gonna be hit anyways, why not just tack on the con damage already? Or, better yet, why not just make it a [w] + wis modifier, to mimic how magic stone worked in 3e? I never knew a druid to actually THROW the stone. I'd do it that way, and tack on a "one ally within five squares of you gets X" ability. +1 attack rolls? tempory hit points equal to charisma modifier + half level?
I thought I made it clear that you could use a sling as part of the attack. perhaps reformatting it to be used with implement or weapon keywords.


Raging Flame: Why is it under encounter powers? It has a daily use. Also, what's the blast area? It says each enemy within blast, but gives no parameters for the blast shape. I like how you can push the enemies - that's a nice controller aspect. But, I'd change it to slide, so you can move enemies towards you as well - since it's a blast, we could expect some enemies to move AWAY from the point of origin, right?
This power originally was a daily, but I moved it to encounter, I must have forgotten to type it in. noted for errata.

Entangle is COOL. On the down side, it's very similar to a 5th level wizard daily, Web. Web doesn't deal damage, has the same area of effect (but more range), and lasts longer. That being said, I think Entangle might be a tad too powerful for 1st level.
People can use the "escape action" to get out of entangle. thats why it isn't as powerful.

Faerie Fire does a buttload of damage for a burst attack. I'd drop it to 2d8+wisdom modifier damage. Also, you have it under daily pacts, but it has an encounter usage.
Another mistake, also added to errata.

Bestial Slam has a huge amount of damage (similar to a striker's big attacks) and lowers AC for at least a few rounds. I'd drop the AC negation, or at the very least lower it to -1. Remember, what you are saying here is "all allies that attack this foe get +2 on attacks". And that's a big deal.

Check out the warlord's lead the attack. its better. This power will probably change in the future.

1) I like how you did wild shape. Seems cool, very druidic.
2) Giving druids history is perfect, in my book. Good call.

I'm glad you liked it. I was actually considering to give them religion as well, due to a poster suggesting it on the wizards forums.
 

I have to agree with the call to make the Druid a Controller rather than a Leader. If you're willing to part with D&D canon a little, why not shift the Druid into the Controller role, and bring in the Bard as a Celtic-themed Leader? Only trouble with this approach is that Wild Shape doesn't fit well with the Controller role...
 

bardolph said:
I have to agree with the call to make the Druid a Controller rather than a Leader. If you're willing to part with D&D canon a little, why not shift the Druid into the Controller role, and bring in the Bard as a Celtic-themed Leader? Only trouble with this approach is that Wild Shape doesn't fit well with the Controller role...


The thing is in 3rd edition the druid could technically be almost anything which is why they were so powerful. They could do damage like a fighter, heal pretty well, cast buffs and be potent offensive spellcasters.

Just an interesting note though, I noticed that the cleric template is listed in the dmg on p 188 is listed as a controller (Leader).


I think its safe to say the druid is a hybrid and can't be held down in a single role.
 
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