Inexperienced DM vs. MIN/MAX druid

[Valorian]

- can his animal companion stats be rolled (so he can eventually get a really rocking animal companion from good rolls)?

I think this is a bad idea...you as DM might want to assign slightly higher stats for a given animal (especially if for role-playing purposes, he selects a less than ideal combat animal), if the character went out of thier way to find the best specimen of the type he could find.

- can his animal companion raise levels? (I'd like to implement this just to offset the first request, so I can "simulate" a bond of friendship between him and his animal.)

I don't think you should let an animal have levels, but I'd let it increase in HD...I've even let a druid use the awakened spell on an animal and still keep him as a companion (I know the sage has ruled against this, but I haven't found the fact that the animal is intelligent to be a problem...in fact it gives me the feedom to not have to micro-manage the druid character when he want his animal to do things that might seem too smart for the animal)

- can he make armor other than hide out of critter skins (like plate mail from monster x) (he could use the AC, but is there a reason other than flavor for this restriction)?

Oriental Adventures has Bone Armor (light armor, Cost=20gp, Armor Bonus =+3, MDB=+4, ACP=-3 ASF=15% 20lb) and Leather Scale (light armor, Cost=35gp, Armor Bonus =+3, MDB=+6, ACP=-2 ASF=15% 20lb)...I don't see a reason why a druid could'nt have access to one of these armors.
If he want a better medium or heavy armor, I'd look at the rules for Dragon Scale Armor, but I might allow something similar for other exotic skin armors (say wyvern, or I have non-intelligent dragons (draces) in my campain)

As to the question of weapons, I personally don't like the religions restrictions thing about druids (reminds me of the things I thought we had gotten away from from 1e...I mean now wizards can use greatswords (and one of my wizards did...1st level Barbarian, with 18 CON, a toad familirar (20 CON)...I was the high hit point character in the campaign...and it was cool when the loin cloth wearing, great sword carrying character was identified as the party's wizard)...I allow them to use other weapons but only if they multi-class, took the feat, or got a weapon as a racial package (ala elf).

 

[Michael Tree]

Wow, this is the first thread about druids I've seen that almost has a consensus!

- Rolling stats: No, definitely a bad idea. This is the most munchkinish of your player's suggestions. The other ones add flavour, but this one just adds power.

If you do end up letting him do this, modify the animal's "effective HD" for high stats. For example, a 2HD wolf with 18 strength should count as a 3 or 4 HD animal for the purposes of the Animal Friendship spell.

- Letting animals companions level. If by this you mean letting animal take levels in classes, then no, definitely not. If by this you mean letting animal companions gain hit dice, in line with the animal advancement rules in the MM, then sure. Just remember that regardless of animal advancement, a druid can still only have as many HD of animal companions as his level if adventuring.

- Exotic hide armors: Sure, but don't just give the druid the AC of the creature. Dragons have high armor bonuses not only from their strong scales, but also because they're massively powerful beasts with several feet of muscle and sinew to penetrate before hitting anything vital. Simply making armor out of the skin of a great wyrm will not give you the armor bonus of a great wyrm. (Also note that making armor out of such exotic skins would be a very challenging task, and thus very expensive if the druid doesn't have the skill and time to do it himself).

- Letting the druid use other weapons: This is fine. Do not give the druid any extra proficiencies, but let him use any proficiencies he gains through feats, multiclassing, or racial abilities.

 

[Spatula]

- can his animal companion stats be rolled (so he can eventually get a really rocking animal companion from good rolls)?

This is too much, IMHO. Animals already have decent stats, and that's assuming a base of 10/11. Since druids are free to cast off animals companions in place of new ones, and the Animal Friendship spell doesn't cost the druid anything, I would tell him to just use the default stats.

One question: what limit on animal companion HD are you using? The 2HD per druid level as stated in the PHB, or the 1HD listed in the errata?

- can his animal companion raise levels? (I'd like to implement this just to offset the first request, so I can "simulate" a bond of friendship between him and his animal.)

Sure, after the animal has been Awakened by the spell.

One thing you might do is allow the animal to advance in HD with time, following the guidelines in the animal description. Of course the tougher animal's increased HD would count against the druid's limit of companion HD.

- can he make armor other than hide out of critter skins (like plate mail from monster x) (he could use the AC, but is there a reason other than flavor for this restriction)?

What monster is he going to make plate mail out of? Even dragon armor, IIRC, is only masterwork hide by the rules. He could make wooden plate armor with the Ironwood spell. He wouldn't be able to use it (as it is still Heavy Armor), but he could make it.

- can he have weapons outside of his druid weapon restrictions (he reasons that the current restrictions are just flavor, and I worry that some are meant to keep damage low)?

I would give him this, the restrictions are silly. Keep in mind that even without restrictions, he's only proficient in the listed weapons and would have to spend feats or multiclass in order to use better ones.

 

[Carnifex]

In terms of the weapons choices being restricted, I think Piratecat came up with a special feat in his story hour that gives a proficiency with one restricted weapon or something like that...

 

[Deadguy]

Creeping Power Gain

I won't add anything to the specific points you've asked - the crowd have offered usful advice already. What I will say is that I know a player very similar to the one you describe. He always makes reasoned arguments about why things should be changed but they always happen to fall in his favour, i.e. they make his character stronger!

You know what? The other players deeply resent him, and it affects the game play. They are always trying the do him down, and block him, because they know he will be trying to squeeze out every last advantage he can from the situation (or rather his reinterpretation of the situation the way the DM should have done it!).

My advice is to say: "These are interesting points. However, as this is my new world, and I have enough things to think about right now, I would rather just stick to the rules as written. We'll revisit this if I decide to. Thanks for taking an interest!"

Hit it on the head now, Grandpa, or you'll be fighting a rearguard action forever!

Oh, and good luck with the new world. I think you'll find it very rewarding!

 

[Chimera]

Originally posted by Deadguy My advice is to say: "These are interesting points. However, as this is my new world, and I have enough things to think about right now, I would rather just stick to the rules as written. We'll revisit this if I decide to. Thanks for taking an interest!"

Amen to that. I've played with a few of these people. Just a few months ago I had a guy arguing one week that he could cast an invisibility spell in the middle of a packed-to-the-gills tavern (in a town where he was rather well known), then walk through the crowd unnoticed. The next week he was arguing that he should be able to *easily* spot invisible creatures (when he was under attack by an invisible mage).

Head that off right now, or it will plague you every session you play with this guy.

 

[Hadraniel]

I would let him roll HD for the beastie as he went up in level.

But no to the weapon, he picks the class he needs to live with the restrictions. The druid has some other cool abilities such as shapechange and venom immunity. If you started letting them take all of these weapons and armour you might as well play a druid instead of a cleric. You cannot turn undead but you have a lot of abilities in exchange.

Let the players have a little freedom but I would not let them remove a classes rescrictions. Make the players work around the resrictions.

 

[Andor]

Actually most of this is covered in Masters of the wild.

Go ahead and roll stats for his animals, just don't tell him what they are.

As for advancing animal companions as he goes up in levels, sure. There is a ritual for it it the book, it takes a day and costs a couple of hundred XP. Eventually he can awaken it, and it will be able to gain levels.

Others have the armour and weapons stuff right, though I'll note that I hate the druid weapon restrictions for two reasons.

A) What balance issue? The long spear and scimitar are two of the best weapons in the game.

B) How exactly do these oaths come up with that weapon list? I once posted a open challange on this list for how to phrase these spiritual oaths and no one took me up on it.

-Andor

 

[Darkness]

RE: Rolling animals' stats

If you decide to do that, just keep in mind to roll them with 3d6 (as they are not heroic PCs) and using the table for low racial ability scores in the DMG on page 23.

On a non-rules note, I'd suggest you roll the stats yourself and don't tell the player - animal companions are NPCs, and thus, your business and not his.

 

[Forrester]

Rolled stats? Um, no.

Advancement? Maybe, in terms of HD/growth, it would make sense. But that's about it.

Finally -- PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE remember to use the OFFICIAL errata for the PHB that states that adventuring druids only get animal companions up to their level in HD. A 5th level druid gets 5 levels of animals, not 10.

If you're inexperienced, you probably don't know about that. And lord knows the player wouldn't tell you. Do NOT back down from this -- he's adventuring, he's moving around a lot, he doesn't get more HD than his level. Period.

Trust me, if you don't enforce this you're going to regret it when he has not *one* Animal Growthed Huge Dire Weasel, but *two* of them . . .