Any Word on the 3.5 Druid?

[Kestrel]

The flavor text should explain that druids do not use "metal raped from the earth", and therefore use only "natural" armors.

As opposed to the "skin flayed from the back of helpless animals?" Interestingly, thier ethos allows them to use metal raped from the earth for thier sickles, daggers, and scimitars.

Weapon restrictions are anti-thetical (that right?) to the theme of 3rd ed. Options not restrictions. Boot the restrictions, which are ridiculous, and just give them simple weapons. Give them a code of nature, much like paladins code of chivarly, instead.

 

[Benben]

The club and staff, spears, etc., represent the woods' trees. The dagger, dart, etc., the thorns. The scimitar and sickle the crescent moon... The problem is more with the flavor text than the weapons allowed.

No the problem is that by a technical reading, if a Druid uses a sling to attack a vampire everything is okay, but if she tosses it at the vampire then she looses access to her spells for 24 hours.

An argument could also be made that the natural weapons of a wildshaped druid also break their oaths.

Base proficiency in natural looking weapons is fine. The current writing of the spiritual oaths is poorly done.

 

[Acmite]

Wild Shape has probably changed to go with the new Polymorph.

Eeks! I relly hope not. IMO, they finally got Wildshape to a fun, workable form when they completely disassociated it from polymorph in Masters of the Wild. I'd really be disappointed if they arbitrarily reassociated them.

It makes no sense to me. The Polymorph string of spells has no genetic relationship to the Wildshape ability.

Also, animal companions and Wild Shape will become more versatile, since many beasts will become animals (Wild shape into a dinosaur! Or have a Bullette animal companion).

This confuses me--I know the beast type was somewhat arbitraty and has its own complications, but it seems removing it might create new quirks. I don't want to see druids able to turn into landsharks or owlbears, but dinosaurs I'd have a hard time arguing against--it feels wrong, but it makes sense.

 

[Aaron L]

I really hope they drop the ridiculous weapon restrictions for druids. If they did I would play one.

 

[Michael Tree]

I hope they drop the ridiculous weapon punishment, and give druids the ability to cast cure spells spontaneously. After all, clerics weren't given that ability so they'd be more powerful, they were given that ability so they could prepare the many cool and useful spells on their list without the other players complaining that they didn't prepare any healing. Giving druids the ability won't make clerics redundant, since druid cure spells are inferior to cleric cure spells, since aside from Cure Light Wounds they're all at least one spell level higher for druids.

 

[Nail]

I hope they drop the ridiculous weapon punishment...

Wow. This topic really gets th' fur flying, eh? But seriously: what's the big deal? I'd imagine most DMs are relatively leinent here. Rule Zero is a rule, after all.

... and give druids the ability to cast cure spells spontaneously. [/B]

That's a good point, and one I hadn't concidered before. Thanks. Right now our druid wastes most of her slots on cures, and it's boring.

 

[Aaron L]

Wow. This topic really gets th' fur flying, eh? But seriously: what's the big deal? I'd imagine most DMs are relatively leinent here. Rule Zero is a rule, after all.

Many of us have DMs who go by what is written in the book and only what is written in the book, no matter how hard we try to point out that what is written in the book is dumb.

 

[Nightfall]

I guess it depends on one's pov when it comes to druids and their "roles" but if I'm playing a Scarred Lands druid, the LAST thing I'm going to do (if I'm a non-Denevian Druid) is waste my spell slots on healing spells.

Player: Heal me please!
Me (as a Chernian): Disease and death makes for stronger people. Heal yourself!

 

[Pielorinho]

Druids are supposed to be nature priests. Their weapons are supposed to be representative of that. The club and staff, spears, etc., represent the woods' trees. The dagger, dart, etc., the thorns. The scimitar and sickle the crescent moon...

The spear is natural, but the short bow is not?
The sickle is natural, but the kama is not?
The scimitar is natural, but the scythe is not?
The club is natural, but the greatclub is not?
The dagger is natural, but the net is not?
The sling is natural, but the blowgun is not?

Humph. Guess I fall in the "these restrictions are dumb" camp.

And remember your vows, druids, when you transform into a monkey: one flung handful of monkeypoo (not on your allowed weapons list), and you lose your wildshape ability and fall from the tree.

It's perfectly possible to make a coherent list of restricted weapons for druids: if they restrict druids to nonmetal weapons only (and put the rules for nonmetal weapons in the PhB), I'd be perfectly happy. As it is, the rules are pretty silly.

Daniel

 

[tmaaas]

It's perfectly possible to make a coherent list of restricted weapons for druids: if they restrict druids to nonmetal weapons only (and put the rules for nonmetal weapons in the PhB), I'd be perfectly happy. As it is, the rules are pretty silly.

Daniel

I essentially used this as a house rule for Druids. Except I said they could not use weapons, tools, implements, etc. of worked metals except for Silver and Mithril (which I counted as 'mystical' for the Druid).

This is both more and less restrictive than the PHB rule. You can theoretically use any weapon, but cannot use that iron crowbar . . .

-tmaaas