Druid
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The druidic tradition of Gaea stretches back for eons right through the era of the gods. The great god of destruction, Gunahkar, struck a fell blow against the Tree of Life in an attempt to hasten the end of the world. In the process of doing so he also nearly annihilated the sildanyar of the fae world and he triggered their exodus to the mortal world and entrance into the War of the Gods.
Sensing the great pain of the World Tree, Dana the Earth Mother journeyed to it and bonded with it. She then took seeds and planted them at various places all across the globe. As time passed these seeds gave flower and blossomed into smaller versions of the original extra planar World Tree. The union of these trees and the magic they permeated the world with crossed thousands of miles and ignored culture and physical boundaries. In time it came to be known as the Ygdrassil Union and those who learned to tap into the magic it provided came to be the first druids.
Many modern day Druids are unspoken members of the Union although smaller druidic circles do exist that are more culturally focused. The oruch of the People of Adom in the northlands have a strong tradition of animism and worship of the elemental forces of nature. Their tribal shamans are often druids who espouse these teachings without realizing, or rationalizing its connection to The Union. Many sylvanori and human druids are members of The Union. Sylvanori druids act as forest wardens and keepers of the boundaries of the great wood while druidic traditions are also common among the Phurai Dae of the Vast.
The Union itself is largely a neutral organization and thus it produces as many benevolent druidic circles as it does tyrannical. Some radical druid groups have been known to take active measures against the continued industrialization efforts of various nations. They speak out against what they believe to be unnatural uses of magic and often prove quite dangerous to the attempts of others to build settlements or to use artifice.
For more on druids and their connection to the divine, see other practitioners of divine magic.
Druid
Role: While some druids might keep to the fringe of battle, allowing companions and summoned creatures to fight while they confound foes with the powers of nature, others transform into deadly beasts and savagely wade into combat. Druids worship personifications of elemental forces, natural powers, or nature itself. Typically this means devotion to a nature deity, though druids are just as likely to revere vague spirits, animalistic demigods, or even specific awe-inspiring natural wonders.
Alignment: Any neutral.
Hit Die: d8
Class Skills: Climb (Str), Craft (Int), Fly (Dex), Handle Animal (Cha), Heal (Wis), Knowledge (geography) (Int), Knowledge (nature) (Int), Perception (Wis), Profession (Wis), Ride (Dex), Spellcraft (Int), Survival (Wis), and Swim (Str).
Skill Ranks per Level: 4 + Int modifier.
| The Druid | |||||||||||||||
| Level | Base Attack Bonus | Fort Save | Ref Save | Will Save | Special | Spells per Day | |||||||||
| 0 | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | 6th | 7th | 8th | 9th | ||||||
| 1st | +0 | +2 | +0 | +2 | Nature bond, nature sense, orisons, wild empathy | 3 | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2nd | +1 | +3 | +0 | +3 | Woodland stride | 4 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 3rd | +2 | +3 | +1 | +3 | Trackless step | 4 | 2 | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 4th | +3 | +4 | +1 | +4 | Resist nature's lure,Wild shape (1/day) | 4 | 3 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 5th | +3 | +4 | +1 | +4 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| 6th | +4 | +5 | +2 | +5 | Wild shape (2/day) | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 7th | +5 | +5 | +2 | +5 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | |
| 8th | +6/+1 | +6 | +2 | +6 | Wild shape (3/day) | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 9th | +6/+1 | +6 | +3 | +6 | Venom immunity | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | — | — | — | — |
| 10th | +7/+2 | +7 | +3 | +7 | Wild shape (4/day) | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 | — | — | — | — |
| 11th | +8/+3 | +7 | +3 | +7 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | — | — | — | |
| 12th | +9/+4 | +8 | +4 | +8 | Wild shape (5/day) | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 | — | — | — |
| 13th | +9/+4 | +8 | +4 | +8 | A thousand faces | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | — | — |
| 14th | +10/+5 | +9 | +4 | +9 | Wild shape (6/day) | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 | — | — |
| 15th | +11/+6/+1 | +9 | +5 | +9 | Timeless body | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | — |
| 16th | +12/+7/+2 | +10 | +5 | +10 | Wild shape (7/day) | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 | — |
| 17th | +12/+7/+2 | +10 | +5 | +10 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | |
| 18th | +13/+8/+3 | +11 | +6 | +11 | Wild shape (8/day) | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 |
| 19th | +14/+9/+4 | +11 | +6 | +11 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | |
| 20th | +15/+10/+5 | +12 | +6 | +12 | Wild shape (at will) | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
Class Features
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Druids are proficient with the following weapons: club, dagger, dart, quarterstaff, scimitar, scythe, sickle, shortspear, sling, and spear. They are also proficient with all natural attacks (claw, bite, and so forth) of any form they assume with wild shape (see below).
Druids are proficient with light and medium armor but are prohibited from wearing metal armor; thus, they may wear only padded, leather, or hide armor. A druid may also wear wooden armor that has been altered by the ironwood spell so that it functions as though it were steel. Druids are proficient with shields (except tower shields) but must use only those crafted from wood.
A druid who wears prohibited armor or uses a prohibited shield is unable to cast druid spells or use any of her supernatural or spell-like class abilities while doing so and for 24 hours thereafter.
Spells: A druid casts divine spells which are drawn from the druid spell list presented in Spell Lists. Her alignment may restrict her from casting certain spells opposed to her moral or ethical beliefs; see Chaotic, Evil, Good, and Lawful Spells. A druid must choose and prepare her spells in advance.
To prepare or cast a spell, the druid must have a Wisdom score equal to at least 10 + the spell level. The Difficulty Class for a saving throw against a druid's spell is 10 + the spell level + the druid's Wisdom modifier.
Like other spellcasters, a druid can cast only a certain number of spells of each spell level per day. Her base daily spell allotment is given on Table: Druid. In addition, she receives bonus spells per day if she has a high Wisdom score (see Table: Ability Modifiers and Bonus Spells).
A druid must spend 1 hour each day in a trance-like meditation on the mysteries of nature to regain her daily allotment of spells. A druid may prepare and cast any spell on the druid spell list, provided that she can cast spells of that level, but she must choose which spells to prepare during her daily meditation.
Spontaneous Casting: A druid can channel stored spell energy into summoning spells that she hasn't prepared ahead of time. She can “lose” a prepared spell in order to cast any summon nature's ally spell of the same level or lower.
Chaotic, Evil, Good, and Lawful Spells: A druid can't cast spells of an alignment opposed to her own or her deity's (if she has one). Spells associated with particular alignments are indicated by the chaos, evil, good, and law descriptors in their spell descriptions.
Orisons: Druids can prepare a number of orisons, or 0-level spells, each day, as noted on Table: Druid under “Spells per Day.” These spells are cast like any other spell, but they are not expended when cast and may be used again.
Bonus Languages: A druid's bonus language options include Sylvan, the language of woodland creatures. This choice is in addition to the bonus languages available to the character because of her race.
A druid also knows Druidic, a secret language known only to druids, which she learns upon becoming a 1st-level druid. Druidic is a free language for a druid; that is, she knows it in addition to her regular allotment of languages and it doesn't take up a language slot. Druids are forbidden to teach this language to nondruids.
Druidic has its own alphabet.
Nature Bond (Ex): At 1st level, a druid forms a bond with nature. This bond can take one of two forms. The first is a close tie to the natural world, granting the druid one of the following cleric domains: Air, Animal, Earth, Fire, Plant, Water, or Weather. When determining the powers and bonus spells granted by this domain, the druid's effective cleric level is equal to her druid level. A druid that selects this option also receives additional domain spell slots, just like a cleric. She must prepare the spell from her domain in this slot and this spell cannot be used to cast a spell spontaneously.
The second option is to form a close bond with an animal companion. A druid may begin play with any of the animals listed in Animal Choices. This animal is a loyal companion that accompanies the druid on her adventures.
Unlike normal animals of its kind, an animal companion's Hit Dice, abilities, skills, and feats advance as the druid advances in level. If a character receives an animal companion from more than one source, her effective druid levels stack for the purposes of determining the statistics and abilities of the companion. Most animal companions increase in size when their druid reaches 4th or 7th level, depending on the companion. If a druid releases her companion from service, she may gain a new one by performing a ceremony requiring 24 uninterrupted hours of prayer in the environment where the new companion typically lives. This ceremony can also replace an animal companion that has perished.
Nature Sense (Ex): A druid gains a +2 bonus on Knowledge (nature) and Survival checks.
Wild Empathy (Ex): A druid can improve the attitude of an animal. This ability functions just like a Diplomacy check made to improve the attitude of a person (see Using Skills). The druid rolls 1d20 and adds her druid level and her Charisma modifier to determine the wild empathy check result. The typical domestic animal has a starting attitude of indifferent, while wild animals are usually unfriendly.
To use wild empathy, the druid and the animal must be within 30 feet of one another under normal conditions. Generally, influencing an animal in this way takes 1 minute but, as with influencing people, it might take more or less time.
A druid can also use this ability to influence a magical beast with an Intelligence score of 1 or 2, but she takes a –4 penalty on the check.
Woodland Stride (Ex): Starting at 2nd level, a druid may move through any sort of undergrowth (such as natural thorns, briars, overgrown areas, and similar terrain) at her normal speed and without taking damage or suffering any other impairment. Thorns, briars, and overgrown areas that have been magically manipulated to impede motion, however, still affect her.
Trackless Step (Ex): Starting at 3rd level, a druid leaves no trail in natural surroundings and cannot be tracked. She may choose to leave a trail if so desired.
Resist Nature's Lure (Ex): Starting at 4th level, a druid gains a +4 bonus on saving throws against the spell-like and supernatural abilities of fey. This bonus also applies to spells and effects that utilize or target plants, such as blight, entangle, spike growth, and warp wood.
Wild Shape (Su): At 4th level, a druid gains the ability to turn herself into any Small or Medium animal and back again once per day. Her options for new forms include all creatures with the animal type. This ability functions like the beast shape I spell, except as noted here. The effect lasts for 1 hour per druid level, or until she changes back. Changing form (to animal or back) is a standard action and doesn't provoke an attack of opportunity. The form chosen must be that of an animal with which the druid is familiar.
A druid loses her ability to speak while in animal form because she is limited to the sounds that a normal, untrained animal can make, but she can communicate normally with other animals of the same general grouping as her new form. (The normal sound a wild parrot makes is a squawk, so changing to this form does not permit speech.)
A druid can use this ability an additional time per day at 6th level and every two levels thereafter, for a total of eight times at 18th level. At 20th level, a druid can use wild shape at will. As a druid gains levels, this ability allows the druid to take on the form of larger and smaller animals, elementals, and plants. Each form expends one daily use of this ability, regardless of the form taken.
At 6th level, a druid can also use wild shape to change into a Large or Tiny animal or a Small elemental. When taking the form of an animal, a druid's wild shape now functions as beast shape II. When taking the form of an elemental, the druid's wild shape functions as elemental body I.
At 8th level, a druid can also use wild shape to change into a Huge or Diminutive animal, a Medium elemental, or a Small or Medium plant creature. When taking the form of animals, a druid's wild shape now functions as beast shape III. When taking the form of an elemental, the druid's wild shape now functions as elemental body II. When taking the form of a plant creature, the druid's wild shape functions as plant shape I.
At 10th level, a druid can also use wild shape to change into a Large elemental or a Large plant creature. When taking the form of an elemental, the druid's wild shape now functions as elemental body III. When taking the form of a plant, the druid's wild shape now functions as plant shape II.
At 12th level, a druid can also use wild shape to change into a Huge elemental or a Huge plant creature. When taking the form of an elemental, the druid's wild shape now functions as elemental body IV. When taking the form of a plant, the druid's wild shape now functions as plant shape III.
Venom Immunity (Ex): At 9th level, a druid gains immunity to all poisons.
A Thousand Faces (Su): At 13th level, a druid gains the ability to change her appearance at will, as if using the alter self spell, but only while in her normal form.
Timeless Body (Ex): After attaining 15th level, a druid no longer takes ability score penalties for aging and cannot be magically aged. Any penalties she may have already incurred, however, remain in place. Bonuses still accrue, and the druid still dies of old age when her time is up.
Ex-Druids
A druid who ceases to revere nature, changes to a prohibited alignment, or teaches the Druidic language to a nondruid loses all spells and druid abilities (including her animal companion, but not including weapon, armor, and shield proficiencies). She cannot thereafter gain levels as a druid until she atones (see the atonement spell description).
Starting Kits
When crafting a druid in Pathfinder, be aware that wildshape uses your base statistics...and then adds to them. That is, a druid who wishes to melee will need to invest in areas such as strength and constitution.
Coming soon.
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