I know Druids can be evil, but how evil can they really be?
- Thread starter Thyrkill
- Start date
Sigurd
First Post
They have a huge capacity for treachery
Potions that heal and then control. Poultices that contain fungal spores that turn people into plants. Introducing a magical whatsit into water supplies.
A Druid that sees humanity as a blight could be horrific -- not least because you might never see him directly. He could shape nature's worst actions to attack civilizations greatest weakness. Sickness, overcrowding, pollution and waste could all be removed from nature just by removing all the dirty people.
Sure humans would see him as evil but would fey creatures? Not everyone loves the unwashed masses of humanity that seem to prosper everywhere.
S
Potions that heal and then control. Poultices that contain fungal spores that turn people into plants. Introducing a magical whatsit into water supplies.
A Druid that sees humanity as a blight could be horrific -- not least because you might never see him directly. He could shape nature's worst actions to attack civilizations greatest weakness. Sickness, overcrowding, pollution and waste could all be removed from nature just by removing all the dirty people.
Sure humans would see him as evil but would fey creatures? Not everyone loves the unwashed masses of humanity that seem to prosper everywhere.
S
Nifft
Penguin Herder
VirgilCaine said:
Woah, really? IMC, good Druids work with civilization to "advise and harmonize" the human habitation zones and transportation network, but they'd never work to actively expand civilization's presence in wild places. They're the absolute best people to have around when you want a big harvest or a road built (stone shape at low level and such), but they want a lot of eco-friendly promises in return.
-- N
s/LaSH
First Post
It seems that druids are always interpreted as servants of nature. But their spell list is almost the exact opposite: they are the masters of nature. Whatever the source of their power (evil god seems well-established, but long-forgotten arcane mysteries, esoteric and delusional psionics, or an awesomely powerful artifact of some forgotten force would also work), just the philosophy of 'I can command nature, what do I want it to do?' should throw out some ideas. An evil deity, in particular, would probably be quite happy if a trail of smouldering ashes and corpses were left in the druid's path. 'Acceptable losses'.
Or there's always the old-school druid of Europe. They're associated with nature, and old gods, and occasional human sacrifice. The most important thing to them, however, would be followers. Their god might not care about the state of nature - after all, the heyday of druids was in the era when Germany was one big forest, what's one tree burned to the ground from time to time? Human worshippers are much more valuable, and nature is a useful tool/focus to encourage such worship. An evil druid would be the kind who enjoys the adulation of the masses, happy or terrified, and will use any means to stay in charge.
Or there's always the old-school druid of Europe. They're associated with nature, and old gods, and occasional human sacrifice. The most important thing to them, however, would be followers. Their god might not care about the state of nature - after all, the heyday of druids was in the era when Germany was one big forest, what's one tree burned to the ground from time to time? Human worshippers are much more valuable, and nature is a useful tool/focus to encourage such worship. An evil druid would be the kind who enjoys the adulation of the masses, happy or terrified, and will use any means to stay in charge.
TheLostSoul
Explorer
s/LaSH said:
Just because Druids can command nature, does not mean that they are its masters, IMO. They are granted the ability to command nature in an attempt to serve it. Animals and plants are not sentient, so their caretakers has to force them to do their bidding at times. That is how I see it...
s/LaSH said:
Germany was most certainly not one big forrest. The different Germanic tribes (who has no "traditional" Druidic traditions) and Celtic tribes had a well established agricultural tradition. It is true, however, that there were more forrest then in comparison to today, but there were still large open areas where cattle roamed and fields were planted.
The D&D Druid is also not based on the Celtic tradition. It does contain a few elements from their traditions, but it is mostly a modern construct.
MoogleEmpMog
First Post
I do like the idea of druid as master of nature rather than its servant. Personally, though, I like the feral druid. The druid who is more like a werewolf than anything else, albeit a werewolf with spells, animal control and superior shapechanging.
There's an old Magic card (Black Knight) whose flavor text reads: "Battle doesn’t need a purpose; the battle is its own purpose. You don’t ask why a plague spreads or a field burns. Don’t ask why I fight."
That's how I see the feral druid. He's a natural-born predator, killing at will simply because he can, and as such he's obviously the top of the food chain. He doesn't resent humanity's place at the top of the food chain (actually, dragons arguably occupy that place), he just wants to surmount it for himself personally.
Now, from 1-20, a druid can just flat out dominate any other character (or most equivalent CR monsters) in a duel situation. A druid with this kind of food-chain attitude will soon reiforce his ideas about himself by overpowering even allegedly more powerful enemies.
A word of warning, though:
Druids are D&D's best loners, the only true single-classed quadruple-threat. At many levels, a single druid is equivalent to multiple other characters who supposedly share a CR; if well played, he can and will tear through PCs. Treat druids like dragons - creatures you have to be very careful about because their CRs are almost always undervalued.
There's an old Magic card (Black Knight) whose flavor text reads: "Battle doesn’t need a purpose; the battle is its own purpose. You don’t ask why a plague spreads or a field burns. Don’t ask why I fight."
That's how I see the feral druid. He's a natural-born predator, killing at will simply because he can, and as such he's obviously the top of the food chain. He doesn't resent humanity's place at the top of the food chain (actually, dragons arguably occupy that place), he just wants to surmount it for himself personally.
Now, from 1-20, a druid can just flat out dominate any other character (or most equivalent CR monsters) in a duel situation. A druid with this kind of food-chain attitude will soon reiforce his ideas about himself by overpowering even allegedly more powerful enemies.
A word of warning, though:
Druids are D&D's best loners, the only true single-classed quadruple-threat. At many levels, a single druid is equivalent to multiple other characters who supposedly share a CR; if well played, he can and will tear through PCs. Treat druids like dragons - creatures you have to be very careful about because their CRs are almost always undervalued.
frankthedm
First Post
yep, wotc went way too far giving them that spell swap.
Has anyone seen the movie The Wicker Man?
Spoilers
The leader of a strange fertility and nature cult on a remote island off the coast of Scotland is an exotic plant grower named Lord Summerisle. Lord Summerisle would make a good approximation for an evil druid (especially since Diplomacy is a class skill; Bluff would need to be bought cross-class unless you have optional feats such as Cross-Class Learning). In order to preserve their crops and ensure a good harvest, Summerisle tricks a Christian detective from the mainland of Scotland into becoming a human sacrifice, where he is burned alive. Summerisle is truly a servant of Nature, revering the natural gods and sacrificing to them to gain their favour. He simply doesn't care about his victim.
End Spoilers
Spoilers
The leader of a strange fertility and nature cult on a remote island off the coast of Scotland is an exotic plant grower named Lord Summerisle. Lord Summerisle would make a good approximation for an evil druid (especially since Diplomacy is a class skill; Bluff would need to be bought cross-class unless you have optional feats such as Cross-Class Learning). In order to preserve their crops and ensure a good harvest, Summerisle tricks a Christian detective from the mainland of Scotland into becoming a human sacrifice, where he is burned alive. Summerisle is truly a servant of Nature, revering the natural gods and sacrificing to them to gain their favour. He simply doesn't care about his victim.
End Spoilers
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