D&D General The Owlbear Druid: How Would You Do It? (A Poll)

[Vaalingrade]

Yeah, I get it, it "looks" cool, but the "Rule of Cool" has never been a thing in my games and never will be.

What happens if someone kills a big monster on a crit? A giant censor bar appears around it as it falls?

 

[DND_Reborn]

What happens if someone kills a big monster on a crit? A giant censor bar appears around it as it falls?

What the heck are you talking about???

 

[Zardnaar]

Would add it via a feat. New subclass could perhaps to it as well.

Moon Druids don't need the power boost.

 

[JiffyPopTart]

I'd let the druid use bear stats but it looks like an owlbear. Replace the bite attack with a beak attack that is the same except for the name.

I'm pretty sure that statwise the owlbear is just a bigger bear.

Yes, this. You can reskin anything into anything as long as it uses the same mechanical bits.

As you go up in HD and can become bigger bears you can also become bigger owlbears, or weasel-apes, or gar-madillos, or ....

 

[Crimson Longinus]

Would add it via a feat. New subclass could perhaps to it as well.

Moon Druids don't need the power boost.

How would it be a power boost?

 

[TwoSix]

How would it be a power boost?

Agreed, it's not much of a power boost at all. Compared to a giant scorpion (also CR3), the owlbear has a slightly better offense, but the scorpion has better defense, blindsight, and free grapples, not to mention it can spike damage if the target fails a save against poison. It's nice for the flexibility, but it isn't really raising the ceiling of what a 9th level moon druid can do.

Not to mention that the CR3 beasts (available at level 9) quickly get overshadowed by the CR5 elemental forms available at level 10.

 

[CleverNickName]

As much as the game devs wanted it to be, the Challenge Rating stat is not the best measure of a creature's power level.
It's not even a good estimate of a creature's power level.

 

[Zardnaar]

How would it be a power boost?

It's another option that other druids don't get (assuming moon Druids only get it).

 

[Demetrios1453]

What's funny is that while waiting for our DM to show up on Saturday, a fellow player and I were discussing D&D & WoW druids, and how a D&D druids can't shapeshift into owlbears/moonkin. Only a few days later, I'm sending him a link to the trailer and joking about our conversation...

 

[Mecheon]

Absolutely no reason that Owlbears aren't beasts, so, they should just be Beasts.

It's another option that other druids don't get (assuming moon Druids only get it).

Its weaker than the other options the druid has at that level. Owlbear isn't going to outdo the giant scorpion, and while you're doing more damage than an ankylosaurus, you're missing out on the free knockdown every attack and aren't as tanky

and uh, yeah, if you're going into "This is the druid option that sacrifices other things to get more wildshapes" then of course the druid types that get "Mushrooms" and "Fireball" aren't going to get it. That's not a power boost, that's just what that one does