What Kind of Druids Do You Like?

[arscott]

On Historical Druids:

-Folks, we already have wizards in the game. No need to make the same class twice.

On my preferred Druid:
Animal druid--I want a druid to be able to speak with animals and command animals, but not to be able to summon animals out of the Aether for combat purposes. Summon Nature's Ally is dumb.

Elemental druids--The powers I want a druid to have touch on some of the Greek and Japanese elements, but I don't actually want the druid to be based around them or even use them for categorization.

Nature druid--We've already got a Warlock that bargains with fey. No need to repeat.

Plant druid--Hell yes. I see entangle as the druid's Iconic power.

Shaper druid--Some, but not the focus of the class. A druid should be able to turn into a bird so that he can fly, or a mouse so he can get into tiny spaces, but he should have more effective ways of fighting than turning into a bear.

Spirit druid--Summoning a wolf spirit? Hell no. Saying "Wolf Spirit grant me strength"? Cool, but I think that it would actually work better for barbarians.

Weather druid--Big here too. With a lot of emphasis on terrain control--some "call lighning" is okay, but the standouts should be stuff like sleet storm and wind wall.

Other--Ground control. Transmute stone to mud, stoneshape, etc.



Of course, we haven't seen what the Wizard can do yet. There was talk about the Orb-Implement Wizard having lots of terrain control powers, which might clash with the plant/earth/weather-druid I have in my head. I'd rather have distinct classes than have the druid conform exactly to my expectations.

 

[Quartz]

I voted Other. It's a redundant class. There's nothing really in the druid that can't be done by adapting the cleric. Make it a Paragon Path / Prestige Class if you will. Shapechanging can be a granted power of the Animal domain, the various plant-related powers can come from the Plant domain, etc.

 

[see]

Just wondering — how many of you calling for a historical/Celtic druid are similarly calling for a historical paladin?

 

[Bishmon]

Hmm, from the looks of things it seems WoTC made the right choose for what to place more emphasis on.

I disagree. If anything, this shows they should have made the class much more flexible, because different people have very different ideas about what a druid should be.

 

[Clavis]

Just wondering — how many of you calling for a historical/Celtic druid are similarly calling for a historical paladin?

I am. The Paladin should be firmly based on Roland, Lancelot, etc.

 

[Surgoshan]

Roland was a French knight. Lancelot was a French knight thrust into the story of an ancient celtic warlord reimagined as a French king. Neither was an historic paladin, though. For most of its practical usage, a Paladin was an administrative official. The Lord Baltimore was granted a palatinate in the land of Maryland.

 

[MaelStorm]

I said, animal, nature, plant and weather druid.

 

[Fiendish Dire Weasel]

I'd like 1 Class as a Wild Shaper (striker) and 1 Class as a Weather/Nature caster (controler). I don't care which one is called a "Druid" but I think those would be both solid and unique classes.

 

[Dr. Strangemonkey]

Honestly - a Druid in DnD is as unique a concept to DnD as a Beholder.

You talk about beholder in any other context and it most certainly does not mean a floating eye topped with short tentacles which themselves are topped with eyes. In the context of DnD it just means that.

You talk about a Druid in any other context and it most certainly may not mean a shape changing eco-terrorist who literally hates metal. But in the context of DnD that's what a Druid is.

Historical Druids may or may not be awesome, but the DnD shapechanging metal hating eco-warrior definitively is awesome in that it's entirely awesome that the game could hang such an idiosyncratic meaning on that word.

So please, let's not try to demean DnD's awesome achievement by trying to bring rationality into it.

It's not like DnD wizards have much to do with running a royal household steward style either.

 

[Wyrmshadows]

I loathe the idea of the Druid as a class whose primary function is shapeshifter. This only began in 3e. In 1e and 2e, they were a type of nature priest(ess). And with 2e's rules for speciality priests, there actually could be druids more along the lines of celtic nature/scholar priests instead of the wierd eco-warrior, shapeshifting bollocks that druids became. I didn't like 1e and 2e's anti-metal stance so I houseruled it out anyway.

IMO druids should be along the lines of a priesthood closely attuned to nature who perhaps worships a sun god (as supposedly the historic druids were a solar cult) but they should be wise men and women with particular skill in lore and natural magic wisdom and healing.

Let another atavistic class, more along the lines of animal totem shaman who shapeshift and fight against progress and civilization if necessary take the current druid's role.

It should be worth noting that it would be much more resonate with myth and legend to have a fairy attuned casted have an aversion to metal as supposely cold-iron is bane to the fey. This is of course is because metal represents industrialization and this is anethema to the nature based ways of the fey.



Wyrmshadows