D&D 5E Best druid class for this modified version of gritty realism?

[stuffnsuch]

Starting at Level 6

Short Rest is 8hrs rest somewhere reasonably safe, Long Rest is after 3 such nights.

So extra weight is given to any ability that gives you resourceless abilities, extra castings, etc

I have plenty of backstory and character ideas covering each subclass but looking at them mechanically I'm wondering about which druid to take.

Here are my thoughts but I'd apprecaite your expertise

Dreams: underpowered normally, here even moreso as best abilities are per Long Rest

Land: additional spells known aren't mind-blowing but nothing to sniff at and allow you to prep spells you might otherwise. Natural Recovery is always handy to expand casting in GR. Nice that no subclass abilities use wildshape so that is a resource still avaible for scouting /hiding/traversing etc. Not much there are level 2 except poison immunity

Moon: Would need to save wildshape for combat so little/non utiilty wildshape. Great pool of HP twice per day and we're passed the early levels where it is busted. No subclass options outside of that twice per day resource. Lasts a long time so with some kind of Telepathy I might be able to milk it for all it's worth.

Shepherd: Clearly very strong but I'm not a fan of summoning in 5e and the aura ability would only be once per day

Spores: Main ability burns wildshape so little/no utility wildshaping but x4 level in temp HP twice per day is great and scales well. As for the rest of the subclass every time I come back to it and try and make it work my brain breaks so I'd be grateful for advice. A melee or weapon based druid could be kinda resourceless so that's handy

Stars: Main ability burns wildshape so little/no utility WS, and it only lasts 10min, but it's adaptable. Free Guiding Bolt castings are nice although they and Cosmic Omen are both now only prof bonus per 3days. Still a great versatile all rounder.

Wildfire: Main burns wildshape so little/no utility WS, and it only lasts one hour and without it you have no subclass features. Great ability though for offense and battlefield manoeuvrability

Secret Option: If you want to be resourceless as possible and have utilty wildshape then go Gloom5, Druid X with CBE and SS

Thanks for reading

 

[Kobold Stew]

At a glance,
I think you are underestimating the Wildfire companion for utility: it has team teleportation (short distance) and since it lasts an hour, you have it for a couple of combats typically.

I'd pick Stars or Wildfire.

 

[stuffnsuch]

It's true that battlefield manoeuvrability stays useful all the way to level 20. But equally, so does scouting/sneaking/flying as a bug so, in GR, I'm wary of subclasses that double dip the WShape resource. Especially if all the subclass abilities rely on it. You're right that 2hrs per day is a fair amount, and much more than Stars' 20min

 

[ad_hoc]

Whether you will be short on resources still depends on how many encounters you are facing between rests.

The narrative time has lengthened but that doesn't mean there will actually be more encounters.

Do you know how many to actually expect?

The game might just play out like a typical game.

 

[stuffnsuch]

Whether you will be short on resources still depends on how many encounters you are facing between rests.

The narrative time has lengthened but that doesn't mean there will actually be more encounters.

Do you know how many to actually expect?

The game might just play out like a typical game.

Encounter frequency can vary between a few days stuck in a dungeon, to a few days exploring a city with one encounter per day, however as the narrative deepens everything starts getting very time sensitive so we won't often be able to hang out for 3 days to rest/prep

 

[rgoodbb]

Up to eight Healing word (light) free castings for Dreams with your bonus action is nothing to grumble at and saves a lot of spell slots. Also Land has that extra cantrip as well as the great Natural Recovery. Druid cantrips are some of my favourite ones. Thorn whipping someone into your bonfire at will (if you can get the positioning) is pretty good for free.

 

[ad_hoc]

Encounter frequency can vary between a few days stuck in a dungeon, to a few days exploring a city with one encounter per day, however as the narrative deepens everything starts getting very time sensitive so we won't often be able to hang out for 3 days to rest/prep

The same can be true of regular rest times.

Are you expecting to be facing 10-15+ encounters per long rest?

Or is it just a narrative device?

 

[stuffnsuch]

The same can be true of regular rest times.

Are you expecting to be facing 10-15+ encounters per long rest?

Or is it just a narrative device?

Yes, there will be times where we're facing multiple encounters every day for 3/4/5 days and won't be able to Long Rest until we're in a safe settlement with no time time pressures

 

[ad_hoc]

My guess would be that Moon is the way to go.

Twice per day your wildshape will act as both a big heal for you as well as your combat casting for that battle. Sometimes you might get more than 2 battles out of it.

Then you can save your spells for other battles or tasks. I imagine Pass Without Trace is going to be huge to avoid danger.

While I am a big fan of Land Druid, pure casters are going to have it rough with this many encounters/long rest.