Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="Fanaelialae" data-source="post: 7624672" data-attributes="member: 53980">To me it's the fact that extracting and refining significant enough quantities of metal to fashion armor isn't easy. It reeks of civilization.Leather, by comparison, is fairly easy to fashion. While I'm not a hunter myself, I have it on good authority from a friend of mine who is that basically all you need to tan a deer hide is the deer's brain. (But please keep in mind that there can be prions in the brain that can lead to death if someone isn't careful when using this method, so he also told me that it's not something he'd recommend to anyone in the modern day.)IMO, it's not so much about metal being bad, since druids can use metal tools, as what armor represents which is civilization. Uncivilized tribes are capable of fashioning leather, but armor made of metal would be largely beyond their means.I wanted to clarify, since my previous post was a bit rushed (we were in the middle of a game session but had paused to grab some dinner). A druid IMC can worship and serve a god, however it's somewhat like a fighter who serves a god. Unlike a nature cleric, whose power flows from their god, a druids power flows from the primal forces that the god embodies. It's like a rushing mountain stream that feeds into a calm lake. It's the same water essentially, but the druid is drinking from the stream whereas the cleric drinks from the lake. The druid is closer to the source.I see what you mean about the PHB saying that druids can gain their magic from a nature deity. That's a bit strange to me, in that why is the druid distinct from the nature cleric when their power comes from the same source. I suppose if a druid player wanted to gain their power from a nature deity, I would have them worship the old aspect of the god, whereas the nature clerics would worship the newer, more humanized face of the deity. Sort of like how the Greek primordial deity Gaia became the goddess Terra in the Roman pantheon. I wouldn't have dryads coming out of the woodwork to attack the party you've described (unless for some reason the dryads were hyper-aggressive and inclined to attack anyone they felt distrustful of). However, with most druids the dryads would be favorably inclined. Being fey, the dryads are closer to the primal source than most, and they can sense a kinship of sorts with the druid. Think of it as a reaction roll that defaults to a favorable result. In the case of a metal armored druid however, it's like seeing someone you recognize as a soldier for your side wearing the enemy's colors. Automatic unfavorable reaction. They won't necessarily attack, unless it's in their nature to do so, but they certainly aren't likely to help the druid either. As for the cleric and the paladin, that's pretty much just a normal reaction roll. Despite their relationship with nature, they aren't as close to the primal as either the dryad or the druid. They basically have a foot in each world, essentially a serving as intermediaries between the primal and civilized worlds. Basically, the dryad will default to assuming that a non-metal wearing druid is on her side, but she's going to be less sure about the other two. Maybe they'll choose her side or maybe they'll favor the townsfolk. Obviously, this all precludes pre-existing reputations and relationships. But at the end of the day, I don't make it too hard to create armor made from alternate materials, and I don't recall ever having had a DM who did so either, which makes it largely a moot point. It usually involves a mini quest to track down a craftsman and/or a creature with a sufficiently tough hide. Plenty of times though, the PCs come across a proper creature simply as part of their adventures. If there is a craftsman in the party, they might not even need to locate an NPC. So the level of effort might vary a bit, but it's generally something that you can accomplish within the first few levels with a little help from the party.</blockquote>

Verification