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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Ohmyn" data-source="post: 7624084" data-attributes="member: 6999115">But they didn't do this. They actually did the opposite of this, which says a lot about what you're saying versus what they have stated.The original wording in the PHB was flimsy because it said they will not wear metal armor, and people wanted clarification as to what that means. This is why it appeared so quickly in the Sage Advice Compendium. Some people interpreted it as meaning it's a personal choice for the class that can be bypassed by story reasons, largely because the Druid still has proficiency in the armor and there were no mechanical implications saying they can't wear metal armor. Other people interpreted that as meaning Druids absolutely can't wear metal armor, although that had no further clarification behind it that could be interpreted from the rules as written. The developer of the game responded, declaring the official interpretation to be that there's nothing in the game that prevent Druids from having the ability to wear metal armor, that it's just a choice, and that there's no penalties in the rules for choosing otherwise, unless of course the DM wants to use their discretion.From the SA:"The idea is that druids prefer to be protected by animal skins, wood, and other natural materials that aren’t the worked metal that is associated with civilization. Druids don’t lack the ability to wear metal armor. They choose not to wear it. This choice is part of their identity as a mystical order." They say there's nothing stopping the Druid from doing it, that they possess the ability to do it, and the book says they are proficient in it. There is nothing in the game system that prevents it, or that is broken, if a player character just so happens to make this choice differently. Heck, a Druid could denounce their grove, or even the mystical order in its entirety, just as a Monk can denounce the monastery that has always been a part of their identity, or a Cleric can denounce the church that has always been part of their identity. There are many role play reasons why this could be the case, from corruption to a change of morals, but they do not lose their class as a result. This could of course lead to potential role play consequences if you were ever to encounter members of the order you separate yourself from, but there is nothing in the rules that say the Druid itself suffers any consequences for this decision, or that anything stops them from making it. Applying a rule that says a Druid can't wear metal armor after the official statement of the developers is that they can would be nothing more than DM fiat, which their advice does say the DM is free to do, but that's just a reminder as it's literally true of everything in the game.</blockquote>

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