What DO you DO for... Druids?

[Nyaricus]

So, in the neverending, multi-thread disscussion of houseruling classes, this thread has been create with this one single question in mind: what do you change about druids?

For myself, I am designing a Celtic Druid which has a variety of different abilities from the core druid. He doesn't wildshape, animal companion is up in teh air, he has basically been stripped of everything. Here's a previous post of mine from house rules. Mind you, it's still only a rough outline....

[sblock]you may recognise this from a previous post of mine; i have edited it a bit and stuff, and although most of this stuff isnt written in stone yet (or properly baalnced) it does give you a good idea of a celtic druid, adn thus if you simplified/got rid of certain class features, added in a bit more about spirits and such, you could have an awesome class going.

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okay, here is my rant regarding WotC chopping up the idea of nature priests into Lycanthropic guys with weird flavour additions, such as changing one apearance at will (thank you A Thousand Faces, via level 13), with spells and a pet wolf. Plus, the weapons allowed in no way corresponds with real-life tales of druids (some druids are mentioned using bows etc (although the ironwood spell can make up for this)

Regarding specifics, i dont like the whole idea of Wild Shaping. This should ability should only be reserved for Bearsarks and Ulfhednar (two real-life Norse prestigue classes [insired from real life] that follow the tales of Beserkers [a base class that i use in the stead of the Barbarian] who, while in a rage, can transform into fearsome wolves (the Ulfhednar) or bears (the Bearsarks). Other than that, The ability to change shape is a Lycanthropic ability, of which tales can be read about from all over the world (Were-boars from Greece, Loup-garou from France, and the hilarious Were-Hare from certain North American groups) Thus, to get a "true" druid class, one shouldn't look too long at the PHB druid.

obviously, i ahve been doing a bit of research, adn have found a few intersting details regarding druids. Most of this was found in "The Oxford Dictionary of Celtic Mythology" (i give it 2 thumbs up)
-There was a druid named Figol (of the Tuatha De Danaan [a race of tall, beautiful, light-haired people. they were warrios and magicains, and some have attributed their desciption with JRR Tolkiens concepts of "elves") who promised to "rain fire from the sky" to kill invading Fomorians (a race of giant. primordial, demonic raiders who came from the sea to invade. this definitively gives druids some major damage dealing spells, etc, adn helps to set the mood, for no-one crosses an angry druid
-Another mentionable was a Druid named Eliavres of whom was a Druid-Sorcerer (i think it sounds like a cool character concept)
-Feth Fiada was a Druid ability to summon a fog which made those under it undectable. I think that in gaming terms, you could start off with a basic ability (ie, undetechable Alignment while in the fog) then improve it (ie those within a radius, whose size [the radius's] depends on the caster levelof the druid [to clarify, any sound within this area is not transmitted outside the radius, so those even five feet away from the outside of this radius couldnt hear anyone inside it, adn also, when this ability is gained, could not detect alignments]) and eventually, invisibility (as per the spell, only within the radius, also the silence adn un. align, ability) also, a limit to the times one couls use this per day would be appropriate
-also, i should note, that Feth Fiada's also referred to magical veils that druids and, presumably, non-druids could don to gain the same ability as the actualy fog. Hello "Craft Wonderous Item"!!
-other noteables of Druids include the fact that they werent subject to taxes (if you haev those in your game) they were not required to do battle (sorry, the BAB just dropped to "poor"), had authority over divine worship (spellcasting, etc) they ran the show at sacrifices (it is noted that even human sacrifices might have occured; but only to criminals and such) they were also judges of sorts (some skills there, like sense motive, etc) and they taught their sacred knowledge to pupils. Furthermore, they were healers and were associated with mistletoe for that power adn the druids also considered it unlawful to build temples to the gods or to worship them within walls.

Essentually, a druid is a nature priest (or priestess, the order of the druids wasnt a sexist one) who has a few different abilities at his disposal.

so, the historically correct Druid Class would probably look something like this:

HD = d8
BAB = 1/2 HD (as Wizard)
FORT and WILL good, REF bad
Spells Per Day/Known - as Druid
NO spontaneous casting of "summon" spells.
Animal Companion should stay and Wild Empathy too
Purity of Body (Poisons) and Purity of Body (diseases) should be brought into game play
Keep Trackless Step (maybe usuable only within the Feth Fiada?, or maybe as is?)
bring in the Woodland Stride ability from the Ranger class
and have the Feth Fiada as a class ability, but note: this could become too powerful at higher levels, so dont allow players to cast "meteor swarm" (for ex) from with the confines of the Feth Fiada. If spells are cast within the Feth Fiada, then they should automatically fail, and the Feth Fiada is dispelled and cannot be summoned for another 24 hours. The idea is to be a bit steatly with this, adn times of use/day should help to balance use of this, but i havent yet made specifics.

Weapon and Armour Proficiency: Druid have proficency in all shields (except tower shields, non-metal only) light and medium armours (non-metal only) and (in no specific order) the Dagger, Club, Quarterstaff, Sling, Sickle, Scythe, Short and Long Bows, Greatclub, morningstar, darts, and any one-handed spears

as for class skills go for (6+INT mod)x4 at first level, and 6+Int mod at allother levels, and clas skills should be as follows: Climb, Concentration, Craft, Diplomacy (again, i call it Persuade in my world), Handle Animal, Heal, Intimidate, Jump, Knowledge (all sub-skills) (again, i call it Lore in my world), Listen, Profession, Ride, Sense Motive, Spellcraft, Spot, Survival, Swim and Use Rope.[/sblock]

It came from this thread, about shamnism



[sblock=Other What DO you DO Threads]
What DO you DO for Bards and Barbarians were lost in the Crash and will be restarted after we get through to the Wizard class. Thanks for your patience.

What DO you DO for... Clerics?
Part 3 of my House Ruled Classes Series

What DO you DO for... Druids?
Part 4 of my House Ruled Classes Series

What DO you DO for... Fighters?
Part 5 of my House Ruled Classes Series

What Do you Do for... Monks?
Part 6 of my House Ruled Classes Series
[/sblock]

 

[Dog Moon]

Finally! Sheesh.

Actually, the only change I've made is that Druids cast Arcane spells instead of Divine [setting reason; Arcane has been changed a little and Divine comes ONLY from Deities, so only Clerics, Cleric variants, and Paladins have Divine magic; and PrCs based off them]. Druids gain the ability to cast in Light Armor without ASF at 1st level.

I also kinda want to make slight variants of the Druid to be a little more fitting for different nature settings, but haven't yet gotten around to it.

 

[dvvega]

My major change to druids is giving them Domains every 5 levels. At every 5 levels, a druid can choose a Domain from a limited list (Plants, Earth, Water, Air, etc) and they gain the domain ability and the spells are added to their spell list.

I've experimented with giving them the domain spell bonus of clerics as well.

I do however like the Totemist as an option for an alternative druid based on many concepts of totem animals being used to gain power ... very much like Bravestar (cartoon show).

 

[Tetsubo]

My changes mostly deal with equipment:

Druids are not restricted to the weapons selection in the Players Handbook. The only restrictions as far as weapons are concerned are that they must be made from natural materials. Bone, horn, wood and stone. Bows are also allowed. Armour is restricted to light and medium and must also be made from natural materials. Though I am willing to entertain a greater selection than offered by the Players Handbook. Wooden items that have been enchanted by the ironwood spell are allowed.
The 6th level Ironwood spell now applies to all rigid organic materials. Example: bone, teeth, shell, hooves, horn, etc.

 

[el-remmen]

IN my games Druids are just another form of "specialty priest"

 

[Aus_Snow]

Depends.

For one campaign, Druids are called Shamans. . and that's the extent of changes there. That's pretty much D&D with all the trimmings though. So the idea is that many books can be used 'as is', especially WotC ones.

For another, Shamans (there are no 'Druids' here either) are so radically different from Druids that they are not relevant to the thread, most likely. And there is nothing at all like the 'Druid' in said campaign. So yeah. That's all from me, sorry. :\

 

[Sir Brennen]

Only change I’ve made for druids is the general house rule for all divine casters to add spells from outside the PHB to their lists:

To gain spells beyond those listed in the Player's Handbook, a divine spellcaster may choose spells from any d20 source, subject to DM approval. However, the spell must be conceptually related to their deity's areas of influence, or otherwise appropriate to their class, such as light spells for a cleric of a sun god, or combat-oriented spells for a paladin.

To gain access to a new spell, the character must spend a day in prayer and meditation, burning incense and other materials worth 100gp/spell level during the process. At the end of the day, the character then makes a class level + Wis Modifier check against a DC of 15 + spell level. A successful roll indicates the character has been granted the spell by their deity and may add it to their spell list. Otherwise, the character has used up one half of the gp value of the materials and may try again later.

If a character performs the above check based on a spell they have found transcribed on a scroll or similar object, they receive a +2 on the roll (provided they are able to read the spell initially.) Having the assistance of someone who already knows the spell also gives a +2 bonus to the check.

 

[Greg K]

For druids in my campaign, there are two choices

1. For one of my settings cultures, I use the following: http://www.enworld.org/showthread.php?t=100153

2. Other cultures use Green Ronin's Shaman

 

[Nyaricus]

Finally! Sheesh.

I know, I know. Clerics has definitly been gone for awhile, so here we go again

Actually, the only change I've made is that Druids cast Arcane spells instead of Divine [setting reason; Arcane has been changed a little and Divine comes ONLY from Deities, so only Clerics, Cleric variants, and Paladins have Divine magic; and PrCs based off them]. Druids gain the ability to cast in Light Armor without ASF at 1st level.

That's pretty cool. Using Elements of Magic: Mythic Earth Revised allows one to build a "priest", "druid" or "wizard" simply by bonus ability selection and the types of spells you craft. And everythgin is ASF, which I love. Everything

IN my games Druids are just another form of "specialty priest"

You know what, El-remmen, this is a line of thought I've been considering recently. I mean, when it comes down to it, is worshipping nature any different than worshipping a deity of nature, in D&D context?

 

[Khaalis]

For a homebrew game world we are creating, we did some very similar changes to the druid, making them much more a "priest" of a faith rather than the lycanthropic combat beast they are in represented as in core. However, being based on celtic druids, who did fight, we retain some small combat skill in the form of the medium BAB.

Key Features:
Alignment: Must be neutral (any)
HD: d6
BAB: Medium
Class Skills: Concentration, Craft, Diplomacy, Handle Animal, Heal, Knowledge (history, geography, nature, planes), Listen, Profession, Ride, Spellcraft, Spot, Surviva, and Swim.
Skill Points: 4
Class Features:
Dropped:
* Animal Companion (no druid in historic reference mentions familiars/animal companions).
* Resist Nature's Lure (we just never really felt this ability belonged as fey are technically outside the natural order)
* Venom Immunity (druids were no more resistant to poison than anyone else)
* Wild Shape (druids are not refered to historically as shapechangers).
* Thousand Faces (druids are not described in history as metamorphs or masters of disguise).

Retained:
* Bonus Languages
* Nature Sense
* Wild Empathy
* Natural (woodland) Stride
* Trackless Step
* Timeless Body
* Ex-Druids

Added:
* Nature Lore: A druid gains a bonus to all knowledge (nature) checks equal to their druid level to see whether they know some relevant information about local notable creatures, legendary locations, or noteworthy natural wonders. If the druid has 5 or more ranks in Knowledge (history), they gain a +2 bonus on this check. A successful nature lore check will not reveal the powers of a magic item but may give a hint as to its general function from stories of the item’s history. A druid may not take 10 or take 20 on this check; this sort of knowledge is essentially random. (See Bardic Knowledge Table) This ability counts as Bardic Knowledge for purposes of class ability prerequisites and stacking as well as feat prerequisites.

* Totem Spirit: Basically each druid communes with nature through a specific totem spirit. This is a little more shamanic than druidic, but it was something we wanted for the world's druids to set them slightly apart. This spirit is the focal point between the druid and the greater power that is "Nature".

Totem Spirit: At 1st level all druids choose a totem spirit, or some say the totem chooses the druid, to which they have a direct affinity. Once chosen, the druid’s totem cannot be changed. The druid gains the ability to speak with animals related to their totem spirit as if using the speak with animal spell. This is an extraordinary ability usable at will.
..........Totems: Badger, Bear, Boar, Hawk, Lion, Owl, Snake, Stag, Turtle, Wolf
..........At 4th level and every 3 levels thereafter (7th, 10th, 13th, 16th, and 19th), the druid gains a totem power from their totem spirit. Note that some totem powers have a level prerequisite. No power may be chosen twice with the exception of bonus feats, though each bonus feat counts as a separate totem power.

{These powers include things like:
• Courage of the Badger (Ex): The badger totem druid gains a +4 bonus on saves against fear as well as a +2 bonus to initiative checks.
• Natator (Ex): The bear totem druid gains their totems affinity for water, gaining a +4 to all Swim checks.
• Speed of the Hawk (Ex): The hawk totem druid gains a +2 competence bonus to Initiative checks.
etc.}

* Rites (Su): At 2nd level, druids gain the ability to administer the religious rites, including prayers, funerals and marriage, acting as an instrument of the natural divine order to render these ceremonies truly holy. The divine energy imparted by one of these ceremonies grants the effects of a bless spell on those who participate for one hour. Participants with the Piety feat gain the effects of a bless for 24 hours after such a ritual. This divine energy (and blessing) is one reason many blue and green knights {PrCs} will pray with a druid before a battle (along with cleansing the soul in case of death).

* Improved Nature Sense (Ex): By 5th level the druid can identify plants and animals (their species and special traits) with perfect accuracy without the need to roll a knowledge (nature) skill check. The druid can also determine whether water and plants is safe to drink/eat or if they are dangerous without need for a Survival skill check.

* Commune with Totem Spirit (Sp): A 9th level druid can speak directly with their totem spirit once per day. This acts just as an divination spell. At 17th level the druid can commune with their totem spirit twice per day.

* Commune with Nature (Sp): A 12th level druid can, once per day, commune with the spirits of nature such as water spirits, tree spirits, etc. as if using the Commune with Nature spell. At 20th level the druid may use this ability twice per day.


Spells: For our world we altered the casting for druids to a spontaneous caster mimicing the Beguiler/Warmage/Dread Necromancer template. This isnt necessary, but it seemd to make more sense than a cleric who has to pray for spells. Druids shouldnt have to "pray" for their spells. They should simply know them and cast what is necessary as it is required.

The druid spell list was also altered to remove elemental direct damage spells but retain weather oriented elemental spells such as call lightning, ice storm, etc. We also removed some of the more arcane-like spells such as freedom of movement, spider climb, word of recall, shapechange, etc. However, they gain the priestly oriented spells such as bless, prayer, etc. as well as some anti-undead spells since druids are protectors of the natural order and undead are the direct opposition to that natural order.