D&D 5E Can your Druids wear metal armor?

[GMforPowergamers]

For example, if a mountain dwarf with metal armor proficiencies becomes a Druid, this dwarven Druid can cast Druid spells while wearing a metal breastplate. No problem. This Dwarf didnt learn the use of metal armor from the Druid training, but did learn it from the dwarven upbringing.

this is what is so weird. I always thought this WAS what the rule meant...

 

[Yaarel]

this is what is so weird. I always thought this WAS what the rule meant...

It is the rule!

Heh, it is the misinterpreters who are turning the word "will" into something crazy!

 

[Yaarel]

However, as a DM I like my druids to be "one with nature" and forged metal is definitely a sign of "civilization" and all its ills. Most of my worlds druids are like hermits and hide away in the forests and hills far way from the towns and cities so there is definitely an access to metal armour consideration.

Out of curiosity, as a DM, how do you explain your wilderness Druids using metal weapons, if they dont value "civilized" metal?

 

[Tonybro001]

Out of curiosity, as a DM, how do you explain your wilderness Druids using metal weapons, if they dont value "civilized" metal?

Same thing really, they will mostly resort to flint rather than steel and use their spells for most of their attacks.

They know that there are possibly functionally better alternatives out there, but they eschew these in favour of natural alternatives. One of my players wanted to be a lizardman druid so we worked together to come up with a range of weapons which made sense for his race and background. His favourite being the frog poison blowdart gun and he also had a shark tooth jawbone for a knife which was quite cool.

In essence, a rock attached to a stick is still a mace.

 

[Crimson Longinus]

Whilst I think it would actually be pretty cool if druids didn't use any metal at all, I don't think them using metal weapons but not armour is particularly weird. First of, armour of course needs far more metal than just one axe blade or sickle or some such, so if the issue is the negative effects of mining and other environmental reasons, the former is a bigger deal. And of course if it is some sort of supernatural reason, it is easy to imagine than encasing yourself in metal is quite a bit different than just holding metal in your hand. Though shield kinda is weird in that regard.

 

[Oofta]

Please show me where that's actually written. Because I've looked; there's nothing that says that anything can cause them to lose their druidic powers or abilities. Because that's a house rule

And if they are no longer a druid, what are they then?

And do you honestly think that just because it's never happened in your games that it's never happened in anyone's games?

This is why I shouldn't bother with serious responses any more. It's a simple and clear rule. Druids will not wear metal armor. Therefore, in my campaign, when you chose druid as your PC's class you chose to not wear metal armor. If your PC wears metal armor they are not a druid. I don't care what happens in other people's games. I'm sure some ignore the restriction completely.

Maybe I'll just go back to the first line of the Sage Advice. They explode! Why bother reading the rest of it when I have my answer right there? The only question is do they explode immediately, when they use their powers or is there a time delay? Could there be a corps of kamikaze-style druids who infiltrate enemy camps only to put on the first metal armor they find?

 

[GMforPowergamers]

But what if the player just takes the sneak attack dice, rolls them and adds them to the damage? And when challenged, just say that they think that the bit about finesse weapons is just outdated fluff based on D&D traditions and not an actual rule. What then?


What prevents them is the rule clearly written in the book. How that rule is justified within the fiction is up to the player and the GM.


It is a piece of text giving explicit instructions in middle of rule section of the book amongst other rules. Of course it is a rule!


The answer Crawford gives to 'why' is that druids have a taboo against wearing metal. If that is not sufficient to you you can either provide alternative fluff or change the rule.

count me as believing that it IS a rule that druids are not prof in, and will not wear metal armor... however D&D is an exception based system... SO if your race, or multi class, or you take a feat to wear metal armor you are an exception.

SO a 5th level (nondwarf)druid can not wear metal armor unless they took a feat.
a 5th level dwarven druid CAN wear metal armor
a 4th level druid 1st level fighter CAN wear metal armor...

I have played it this way since pretty much day 1.

One of my 1st 5e campaigns had a druid as our main 'tank'/'defender' by useing wild shape. They were a teifling if that matters and around level 7 they multi classed into fighter, took 3 levels and then picked up the eldritch knight subclass. this gave them more hp, action surge second wind and some spells and a fighting style. it also gave them the ability to wear any medium armor, and since they had no real dex they strapped on a breast plate... what I did was have other druids look at her weird.

 

[DnD Warlord]

This is why I shouldn't bother with serious responses any more. It's a simple and clear rule. Druids will not wear metal armor. Therefore, in my campaign, when you chose druid as your PC's class you chose to not wear metal armor. If your PC wears metal armor they are not a druid. I don't care what happens in other people's games. I'm sure some ignore the restriction completely.

Maybe I'll just go back to the first line of the Sage Advice. They explode! Why bother reading the rest of it when I have my answer right there? The only question is do they explode immediately, when they use their powers or is there a time delay? Could there be a corps of kamikaze-style druids who infiltrate enemy camps only to put on the first metal armor they find?

So again I ask, what does “not being a Druid anymore” mean?

do I have to pick a different class and rebuild the character?

my 5th level dwarf Druid takes a breast plate and puts it on, so now he is “not a Druid” do I rebuild those 5 levels? Maybe now I am a rouge 2 fighter 3? Or does it have to be nature cleric? Or do you homebrew an ex Druid?

 

[GMforPowergamers]

do you homebrew an ex Druid?

wasn't there a blighter anti-druid in 3e?

I want to build a blighter druid based on the oath breaker paladin now, and if WoTC did it they could end all of this.

or if they errata the damn books.

remember when they used to errata books

 

[mrpopstar]

Weapons and Armors are easy to change. Here is an example of a simpler armor table.


Armor: Armor Class

Light Armor
Padded: 11 + Dex
Leather: 12 + Dex

Medium Armor
Chain: 13 + Dex (max 4)
Scale: 14 + Dex (max 3)
Plate: 15 + Dex (max 2)

Heavy Armor
Full Chain: 16
Full Scale: 17
Full Plate: 18

Special Materials
Hide: 13 + Dex (max 2). Heavy fur, thick leather, bone, etc., effective but bulky.
Dragon: 15 + Dex (max 2). Shed dragonskin, sometimes gift from dragon.

Note
Scale armor includes many varieties of torso armor that comprises small metal plates connecting together, including fishscale squamata sewn onto a fabric shirt, brigandine cuirass riveted between fabric, banded lorica fastened to leather straps, lamellar strung together, and so on. Full scale armor sometimes has long thin metal splints as limb guards, and sometimes is a brigandine worn over full chain.

We collaborated on simpler armors in a thread a few years ago! I think it ended up something like...

Armor	Armor Class (AC)	Strength	Stealth
Light Armor	11 + Dex modifier	--	--
Medium Armor	14 + Dex modifier (max 2)	Str 11	--
Heavy Armor	17	Str 15	Disadvantage
Shield	+2	--	--