Druid Wild Shape items nonfunctional?

[Envic]

My group hasn't had anyone play a druid in a good long time and finally have someone deciding to play one.

Regardless, after reading the Wild Shape Errata, what's the point of a druid to wear any type of magic items other than armor that has the wild special ability? As we're reading it, all items become nonfunctional.

Wild Shape
Player’s Handbook, page 37
Replace sentence 3 of this class feature with the following text:
This ability functions like the alternate form special ability (see the Monster Manual), except as noted here.
Add the following sentence to the end of paragraph 1:
Each time you use wild shape, you regain lost hit points as if you had rested for a night.
Add this new paragraph after the current paragraph 1:
Any gear worn or carried by the druid melds into the new form and becomes nonfunctional. When the druid reverts to her true form, any objects previously melded into the new form reappear in the same location on her body that they previously occupied and are once again functional. Any new items worn in the assumed form fall off and land at the druid's feet.

 

[Runestar]

The point is to first take off your magic items, wildshape, then have your party help you put them on.

But you are right that at lv8+, there isn't really much point.

 

[StreamOfTheSky]

I find it kind of silly that you have to buy wilding clasps and such just to get out the annoyance of playing dress up, but yeah. Just take all the various magic item off, wildshape, and get help putting them back on. And then point to the wildshape rules and how much of a pain it is to keep your gear functional when the DM complains that you spend all day wildshaped.

The only magic item slot other than weapons (duh) that you can't do this with is armor, and even then, if you're going to stay in wildshape, just get a barding to fit your animal form and have that put on afterwards, don't even bother with magical armor in humanoid form.

 

[akbearfoot]

Ask your DM to let you spend some extra cash on some of your magic items so that they reshape to fit your forms when you wild shape. Wilding clasps already exist, so its not as if they meant for it to be impossible(just expensive).

Or possibly research a spell that keeps some of your magic items functional...like a 3rd or 4th level spell that keeps 1 item per 3 caster levels functioning. It could last an hour per level. Call it Natural Attunement or something.

Druids don't really need magic items while wild shaped...Unless your whole party consists of wizards, clerics, artificers, and archivists then the druid is one of the strongest characters in the party. If your group already has 2 or 3 of those classes it wont matter anyways....you'll all rule the planet in a few levels, and anyone who isnt one of you will be left in the dust.

 

[Envic]

Which book are the wilding clasps in? We've only been playing with the core 3 books and books relevant to our setting, Dragonlance.

 

[Jhaelen]

Which book are the wilding clasps in? We've only been playing with the core 3 books and books relevant to our setting, Dragonlance.

I don't know where they originate from, but they've been updated and included in the Magic Item Compendium.

 

[Runestar]

They originated from masters of the wild, IIRC.

 

[Envic]

Hmmm... a 3.0 accessory book. Didn't think they really went with 3.5

 

[Envic]

Meaning that 3.5 isn't completely compatible with 3.0

 

[frankthedm]

what's the point of a druid to wear any type of magic items other than armor that has the wild special ability? As we're reading it, all items become nonfunctional.

The point is to discourage the druid from staying in the wildshape all day. WotC had been trying to fix the problem of the druid being able to buff up the already buffed up wildshape. They did not do too great of a job.

PHB2's druid variety really help fix {snip-snip] the druid.