Optimizing Core Druid

[Hassassin]

This statement typifies a common approach to D&D which I have always find ironic (and try to guard against with myself). No one balks at the idea that a Druid can change into an animal and can cast a spell without penalty because of a feat, but somehow an animal casting spells is so strange in the world of D&D that other creatures shouldn't be able to recognize the action as easily?

It's a mystery to me when/why people decide to impose a sense of plausibility or believability in a game in one instance and ignore it in another.

This isn't really about plausibility - both rulings are plausible, just different. The druid trains in it, so it seems fine to me that *he* avoids penalties. I just like to use circumstance bonuses/penalties in play to make (more) actions have consequences.

 

[Arrowhawk]

This isn't really about plausibility - both rulings are plausible, just different. The druid trains in it, so it seems fine to me that *he* avoids penalties...

Really? You get Wild Shape at 5th level. At 6th level you get another feat and can take Natural Spell. How much training goes on such that a Druid can go from not being able to cast at all in Wild Shape to being able to cast without penalty?

Let's be honest. The game doesn't mandate any plausibility with learning feats or multi-classing or a whole bunch of other stuff. In fact, you can learn a language fluently without having been exposed it once. Look at multi-classing. A Wizard's starting age is on average 22. A Fighter's' is 17.5. But by 2nd level, a Fighter can learn everything a Wizard learns...by killing a bunch of Goblins. Isn't there some thing about how Wizards devote all this time and energy to memorizing Read Magic so they can cast it without having it in their spell book? Great to see any class can pick up that ability with a couple of days worth of adventuring.

My point is that it is sometimes interesting to see where people draw this imaginary line of plausibility. I could just as easily argue that an animal casting a spell is so incredibly odd that it's more obvious what the spell is and when the animal is casting it. Or, that the art of spell casting practiced by a Druid based on its humanoid form and that as an animal it has to exaggerate the V,S,M to so an extent it's easy to recognize.

The underlying message here is that where all just making it up.