Help with a druid PC...

[Vraister]

That is exactly what CQF does.
If somebody uses Improved Grab you get an AoO and add the damage dealt to your grapple check.

Without Improved Grab you would get an AoO anyway.

Cheers
Vraister

 

[fett527]

You know I always debated between the Brown Bear and the Dire Ape. I usually wnet for the dire ape for the rend. I like rolling more dice for damge, it's just fun! Plus you get reach with the dire ape.

 

[IndyPendant]

Heh. The rules gurus are leaving this alone, so it seems everything's on the up-and-up, as I thought. And I should I suppose talk about the setting a bit. It's RttToEE, which in essence is one big Temple dungeon with some monsters. So humanoids are the primary foes, hence the talk of classes. But I have no problem fiddling with things in the module to tailor foes to be more suited to the party--especially since the slow-dinosaur-type temple people are finally starting to become aware of what's going on.

It also doesn't help that there are three arcane casters in the party--and elementalist (cold), an alienist, and a sort of counterspell-specializing sorceror. The fifth player is an archer-style rogue, and the cleric NPC just bought it last session. So the cleric and druid were serving as tanks, and it's not as bad as it seems. It's the numbers that are driving me batty. Absurd grapple check mod, awesome attack bonus, very good damage and ac. The only weakness seems to be prep time--but Barkskin is approaching fire-and-forget status.

And yes, the druid has actually just recently reached 9th level, and Animal Growth will just be sick. Believe it or not though, I don't have a problem with that. AG is 1 min/level and a 5th level spell. It won't be used every battle (at least, not for a good many levels.) When it is used, it should kick butt! : )

Thanks for the ideas guys. There's some good ones here, and I'm already filing them away for future reference...

 

[Dimwhit]

What that Druid needs in Multiattack, so the bite is only at -2 from the claws. Then Power Attack. Then she needs to be casting Greater Magic Fang (still 1 hour/level).

You're right that a higher level Druid can be wicked tough as a bear. I know mine is. With the help of our Bard, my 14th-level Druid regularly has +25/+25/+23 with the dmg mod being around the +16/+20 range. Then the Power Attack comes, which is a much better feat for a bear than your normal fighter. Much, much better.

Your best tactic? Enemies that fly.

 

[Testament]

Animal Growth is irrelevant on the Druid, if they're going Brown Bear, it doesn't stack. The spell even says "multiple magical effects that increases size do not stack". AFAIC, wild shaping/polymorphing yourself from a medium to large creature fulfills that critereon.

Anyways, attack them with a group and grappling becomes somewhat more dangerous. Especially if there's a rogue who can sneak attack the grappling bear. Flyers are also a good choice. And freedom of movement on a melee type to just say "no" to the Bear.

 

[DM_Matt]

Animal Growth is irrelevant on the Druid, if they're going Brown Bear, it doesn't stack. The spell even says "multiple magical effects that increases size do not stack". AFAIC, wild shaping/polymorphing yourself from a medium to large creature fulfills that critereon.

Anyways, attack them with a group and grappling becomes somewhat more dangerous. Especially if there's a rogue who can sneak attack the grappling bear. Flyers are also a good choice. And freedom of movement on a melee type to just say "no" to the Bear.

IMHO...

Wild Shape isn't a size alteration, its a form alteration that may coincidentally alter size. When you wild shape, you ARE the base creature minus some special abilities. You then can increase it once from the base creature.

 

[Lord Pendragon]

A druid is definitely strong. I'd venture to say one of the strongest classes in the game. But in a pure melee sense, they are not invincible. An animal's AC isn't great (even with Barkskin,) and the loss of most of the druid's magical equipment is going to leave the druid vulnerable. (I do not allow druids wildshaped into bears to continue benefitting from rings, belts, amulets, etc. etc. unless they have invested in Wild armor or Wilding clasps.)

It takes the druid several rounds to buff up. In that time, most melee brutes will have little difficulty pounding the druid for serious damage. Don't just give the druid time to buff up, any more than you'd have your baddies ignore the cleric while he casts Divine Favor, Divine Power, and Righteous Might.

 

[Rystil Arden]

IMHO...

Wild Shape isn't a size alteration, its a form alteration that may coincidentally alter size. When you wild shape, you ARE the base creature minus some special abilities. You then can increase it once from the base creature.

This is correct. Polymorph specifically states that it changes form. The magic itself is not a size alteration beyond the size of the assumed form. A druid who Wildshapes into a Brown Bear becomes a Brown Bear. Then with Animal Growth she (and all her animal buddies too, since it affects multiple targets) can grow one additional size. If she also had 9 levels in cleric for some bizarre reason, she could not then cast Righteous Might and gain a size increase because of the restriction against multiple size increase spells. Of course, then the Wu Jen casts Giant Size and becomes size Colossal, following up with Tenser's Transformation and grabs the bear easily.

 

[youspoonybard]

Close Quarters Fighting only works if you threaten the bear, though, by the letter of the rules, which makes it useless vs huge bears who grapple you with their reach.

As previously stated, size is king in grapples; barring size, um, effects like Freedom of Movement to avoid grapples altogether is probably your best bet - can the BBEG set up traps designed to catch an aggressive bear? I dunno.

 

[Al'Kelhar]

The druid's wildshape is considerably less powerful than a wizard's simple 4th level spell - polymorph. A brown bear comes off second-best to an annis hag, for example. The wizard can cast all his spells in annis form and his magic items don't meld and become inoperative. The annis is stronger, has a better AC, and has reach and rend. If you can be bothered and have time, put bull's strength, fire shield, stoneskin etc. up. So the power of the wildshaping druid is not something to be scared of, nor is it particularly out of the ordinary for 8th+ level characters. You're simply playing to the wildshaping druid's strength - close combat. IIRC, there are plenty of places and plenty of bad guys in RttToEE which don't play to this strength. You can always replace a bad guy or two for "set-piece" battles. Let the druid get cocky that he can tear apart anything he comes across. Then get up in the air. See how effective the druid is against the erinyes ranger (archer-build) you've put in the Fire Temple, for example. The druid can wildshape into what - an eagle? Even a mid-level wizard with fly and displacement up becomes a reasonable contest.

Also, make it inconvenient for the druid to stay in brown bear shape; make him burn up those daily uses of wild shape. Try narrow corridors or portals which cannot be navigated by Large creatures without crazy-high Escape Artist checks. Put more water in the Water Temple, so the druid feels it necessary to wild shape into a shark. Etc.

Cheers, Al'Kelhar