Why isn't druid the gnome's favored class?

[Ogre Mage]

Looking at the gnome's racial abilities, I think druid should be their favored class, not bard. Gnomes get:

+2 to listen: 3.5 ruled that listen is a class skill for druids, I suppose because those who live in the wilderness must remain alert.

+1 on attack rolls vs. goblinoids and +4 dodge vs. giants: these creatures are frequently enemies of the forest, and the druid is on the frontlines far more than the bard is.

+2 Constitution: a nice benefit for wild shape, since HPs remain the same. Plus, constitution is more important for druids than bards.

Speak with animals once/day: this just screams druid.

Gnome Lands: "Gnomes make their homes in hilly, wooded lands."

Of course, the gnomish +1 DC to illusion spells does favor the bard class. But overall, I think WotC goofed in making bard the favored class for gnomes.

 

[d20Dwarf]

Looking at the gnome's racial abilities, I think druid should be their favored class, not bard. Gnomes get:

+2 to listen: 3.5 ruled that listen is a class skill for druids, I suppose because those who live in the wilderness must remain alert.

+1 on attack rolls vs. goblinoids and +4 dodge vs. giants: these creatures are frequently enemies of the forest, and the druid is on the frontlines far more than the bard is.

+2 Constitution: a nice benefit for wild shape, since HPs remain the same. Plus, constitution is more important for druids than bards.

Speak with animals once/day: this just screams druid.

Gnome Lands: "Gnomes make their homes in hilly, wooded lands."

Of course, the gnomish +1 DC to illusion spells does favor the bard class. But overall, I think WotC goofed in making bard the favored class for gnomes.

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[Lord Ravinous]

Looking at the gnome's racial abilities, I think druid should be their favored class, not bard. Gnomes get:

+2 to listen: 3.5 ruled that listen is a class skill for druids, I suppose because those who live in the wilderness must remain alert.

+1 on attack rolls vs. goblinoids and +4 dodge vs. giants: these creatures are frequently enemies of the forest, and the druid is on the frontlines far more than the bard is.

+2 Constitution: a nice benefit for wild shape, since HPs remain the same. Plus, constitution is more important for druids than bards.

Speak with animals once/day: this just screams druid.

Gnome Lands: "Gnomes make their homes in hilly, wooded lands."

Of course, the gnomish +1 DC to illusion spells does favor the bard class. But overall, I think WotC goofed in making bard the favored class for gnomes.

And give Favored Class: Bard to Half-Elves

 

[BSF]

Heh! In my world, Gnomes are the best Druids. For that matter, they are almost all the Druids. But, I am not going to go into all the reasons why. At the time that I made the decision, it just felt right.

Anyway, your analysis makes a lot of sense. Though, I suspect there will be others that disagree.

 

[Psiblade]

My personal favorite class for gnomes is sorcerer. The +1 DC for illusions really helps on the shadow line of spells. I may house rule sorcerer as a favorite class for gnomes in the next campaign I run. Regarding half-elves being favorite class bards, half elves need more benefits to be equal with the other races not less.


-Psiblade

 

[Crass]

Heh! In my world, Gnomes are the best Druids. For that matter, they are almost all the Druids. But, I am not going to go into all the reasons why. At the time that I made the decision, it just felt right.

Anyway, your analysis makes a lot of sense. Though, I suspect there will be others that disagree.

Agreed with that. Off topic slightly, I understand WHY a decision was made to introduce favoured classes for races, but have long thought that races that have a "favoured class" assigned to them should be given a choice of 2 classes if the race is found in the PHB, or of one "favoured class" if it is a sub-race of a PHB race, or a race found in other sourcebooks like the MM. For example, "Elf" in the PHB should be given two classes to choose from, like Wizard or ... say, bard. For "Wood Elf" or "Wild Elf", from the DMG, the choice of favoured class should be restricted to one class only, like ranger for Wood Elf and Barbarian for Wild Elf.

 

[Argent Silvermage]

Part of the reason must lay in the fact that no Divine Caster classes are racial favorites. It makes sence in the fact that How would a society full of clerics (or Druids, Rangers, Paladins) be like. How would they function with religion being such a personal thing.

I like the Gnome-Bard link.

 

[Sarellion]

I made the favored class a cultural thing. For example: The western elves of Cydalin are still the wizardly type, the western ones have a culture that emphasizes skills and cleverness and values them highly. So I gave them rogue as favored class.

I think that gnomes would be fine druids and the druidic view of divine energy is still different from clerics. It is more like being one with nature and using its power, a concept that would be interesting to build a society on.

 

[Dimwhit]

I agree. I think Druid would make a better favored class than Bard from the Gnome.

Of course, I think the whole concept of favored classes is silly to begin with...

 

[d4]

i often go with favored class differing by culture also.

strangely enough, in my first homebrew 3e campaign, just a few months after the release of the core books in 2000, one of my gnome cultures did have bard as their favored class.

and as we're talking about races and their favored classes, i've always thought sorcerer fits elves better than wizard. elves are often described as chaotic and innately magical. wizards are more structured and external in their approach to magic.