Who has played a Circle of Stars Druid at any levels from Level 4 to Level 12?
-- What are your favorite 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 6th level spells? Did you reflavor the spells for your Stars Druid? If so, how?
-- In combat, do you find that you frequently upcast Guiding Bolt and/or Moonbeam (very thematic spells for the subclass) rather than casting (less thematic) higher level spells?
-- Have you multiclassed? If yes, why, when, and what class/subclass? If no, why not?
-- What feats have you picked for your Stars Druid?
-- What have you found to be the most fun/thematic things to do in and out of combat for your Stars Druid?
I'm just starting to think about next steps for my sea elf Circle fo Stars Druid (who is currently at Level 3). She's a former sailor who loves star gazing. In combat she relies on shooting stars (Guiding Bolt), prickly seaweed (Thorn Whip), bright starlight (Moonbeam), and multi-colored spiky coral (Spike Growth). She sometimes relies on the power of wind/storms from her sailing days (Thunderwave, Gust of Wind, Warding Wind). She also likes to see the future in the stars and then buff her allies accordingly - "You got this! I saw it in the stars!" (followed by a casting of Guidance, Enhance Ability, or Pass Without Trace). As a sea elf, she's not good with land animals, land plants/trees, nor fire damage.
I would love to hear about other people's Stars Druid builds!! Thanks so much!!
As a 4th level Elf Starry druid I am curious about other people's experience too.
I took Fey Touched Feat at 4th level for the wisdom boost and misty step. I also switched shillelagh for primal savagery to give myself a better melee option - reflavored as a burst of starlight that turns to acid. (And picked up thorn whip)
My guidance is "may the stars guide you!"
I have used moonbeam and guiding bolt a lot. And have almost exclusively used the Archer form in combat. I haven't unveiled the Dragon form yet to my party.
I think faerie fire could also be a good thematic spell with falling star light. Or something.
Looking ahead at third level spells, I was looking forward to conjure beasts and call lightning, but I am curious what others use.
Who has played a Circle of Stars Druid at any levels from Level 4 to Level 12? Currently level 5 (2 stars druid 3 artificer alchemist)
-- What are your favorite 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 6th level spells? Due to early multiclassing into artificer, I only have access to first level spells at the moment, but because the stars druid doesn't gain any additional access to spells beyond guiding bolts Its fairly standard druidic fair. (though i think sunbeam is a solid on theme for the subclass).
-- In combat, do you find that you frequently upcast Guiding Bolt and/or Moonbeam (very thematic spells for the subclass) rather than casting (less thematic) higher-level spells? I generally cast my freebee guiding bolts and occasionally upcast if I think it will finish off an encounter. Generally, I'm tossing out healing spells more than anything.
-- Have you multiclassed? Yup, Im playing artificer/druid combo. Im primarily taking advantage of chalice to act as the party healer. I do switch to archer to toss out multiple attacks per round. (one cantrip and the bonus action star form attack). The whole build revolves around being able to toss out as much healing as possible per spell slot. Currently the minimum I can heal a party member is 10, at artificer 5 it will bump to min 15.
-- What feats have you picked for your Stars Druid? ...Chef...because flavor....I am the more experienced player in the group so I decided to go full support and this was a fun way to contribute. I plan to grab either arberant dragonmark or healer after reaching 20 int.
-- What have you found to be the most fun/thematic things to do in and out of combat for your Stars Druid? In combat I have reskinned most of my spells to be drawing power from tattoo's of the stars on her arms. Out of combat I'm still trying to get a feel for the character, I'm plotting a few new tattoo's
Pretty much the idea is to use chalice to supercharge healing, and archer to turn into a DPS machine when the shit hits the fan.
Thanks for the replies so far! It’s fun to hear how others are building and playing their stars druids! It would be great to hear strategies, experiences, flavor, and tips from other players!
My sea elf stars druid (now at Level 4) faced her most difficult encounter to date yesterday. She and her 3 allies (Alchemist Artificer, Swarmkeeper Ranger, and homebrew Paladin) went about 18 rounds with 5 enemies who had over 90 hp and three attacks each. Hits forced Con saving throws; failures led to the poisoned condition for one round. My stars druid stayed further back, cast Summon Beast, went into Archer starry form, cast Enlarge/Reduce on the paladin, and relied on Guiding Bolt, Thorn Whip, and Shillelagh. She also got lucky and pulled a dire wolf out of her Bag of Tricks (such a fun magic item!!). The other characters stayed in melee and kept getting hit and poisoned. My stars druid eventually shifted to Chalice starry form and brought each ally back from 0 hp. A boar — also pulled from the Bag of Tricks — gored the last enemy standing. My sea elf druid then dealt the final blow with her trident. She was poisoned only once and never lost concentration (thanks to Resilient Con taken at Level 4), never went unconscious, and finished the 18 rounds with 3 hp.
Stars druids rock in my opinion!! I love the versatility of switching between summoner, striker, battlefield controller, healer, and buffer. So much fun!!
Tobias Stoneback is a Tortle Circle of Stars Druid. As a child he and his siblings loved to skip stones in the swamplands he grew up in and spent his early years wandering various lands and cultures learning their different cuisines. (Our DM granted all of us a bonus Feat at the start and Tobias took Chef.) The stone skipping led him to learn Magic Stone as a young druidic acolyte. That, with multiple free Guiding Bolts, plus the Archer form makes him a pretty powerful ranged opponent. But his natural armor and taking extra CON from Chef makes him a very effective tank, so at 4th level he took the Spell Sniper feat to enhance his long range attacks, but chose Green Flame Blade as his cantrip (to be reskinned as Starlight Blade). That, in combination with Shillelagh makes him formidable in the fray, even with 1 attack per round. We just got to 7th level and he has not had a chance to try out all that in combination with Fire Shield which may be reskinned as a Starry Shield with radiant damage.
His favorite thematic spells are Faerie Fire and Moonbeam. Call Lightning sure kicks butt, but we have been in close quarters at times making it unavailable to use and Moonbeam can do the same amount of damage if cast at 3rd level.
Being a pretty strong tank who can do up to 3d8+5 worth of damage in a single attack (Shillelagh + Green Flame Blade) plus an Archer bolt, he has been concentrating more on non-damage spells for the party lately such as Faerie Fire, Hold Person, and Earthbind, but always keeps Healing Word and Revivify prepared. (And a hearty snack after a battle helps everyone feel 1d8 better.)
I am the lone caster in my group (monk, rogue, ranger and barbarian) so I predominantly am using frostbite to impose disadvantage on attacks, my free guiding bolts and lots of heals. I have used a couple faerie fires, spike growth and pass without trace along the way. Just hit 5 and looking to pull out a summon fay sometime soon.
I play a 4th level Firbolg Druid. Rather than the usual forest-y Firbolg, my people were islanders. As a child, when on a pilgrimage with my family from one island to another, a hurricane stuck and I lost my family. I washed up on shore on the mainland and am very much a fish out of water. The stars sung to her when she was adrift at sea and taught her to navigate. She is very much into the notion of the stars being guides.
For her star chart, I took inspiration from Polynesian stick charts of the Pacific. Instead of coconut fronds and shells, hers is woven bits of fishing net and shells. The pattern represents islands and currents in the sea as well as the stars in the sky. She is proficient in Navigator's Tools (she has the Shipwright background), but instead of the usual "tools" she uses her star chart and deep understanding of the sea and sky.
Her spells are often themed around the stars influence on fate or lighting the way. So Guidance is "let the stars guide your way". Silvery Barbs has a burst of star light flowing from one target to the other hand "your fates are crossed". For Augury, which she uses frequently, she has a tiny boat that she floats in a bowl of water. Night or day, you can always see stars reflecting on this water. The path of the boat across the reflected starlight in the water yields the Weal or Woe result. This will continue to be the mechanism for Cosmic Omen when she reaches 6th level. She carries a kayak paddle, the last artifact of her original life, carved up and down with runes telling the story of her people, and this paddle is her Shillelagh. She uses Shape Water extremely often, as she believes she was reborn and the sea is her true mother. She of course often uses Faerie Fire, Guiding Bolt, and Moonbeam like any Stars Druid would.
I took the Fey Touched feat, just made sense for a Firbolg. This gives her Misty Step, which fits the traveler motif, and Silvery Barbs, as mentioned above.
Looking ahead, there aren't many 3rd level spells that are really compelling, other than Freedom of the Waves, Tidal Wave, Wall of Water, for obvious reasons. To your point, there really aren't a lot of thematic higher level spells for Star Druids besides upcasting the ones you mentioned, so she'll be doing that and leaning into her secondary theme of being a bit of a water elementalist as well as the wee bit of divination Druids get.
My DM said that I would start with a dark gift and a feat. (observent and mist walker)
I created a tortle living with nature on an island know for a persistant mist, curious about this mist a tried ot learn about it and found I could manipulate the air and the moisture in it to travel short distances however the land turned against me so that I can not remain in the same place for long. I went to a port town and being very perceptive and knowing some things about the weather I managed to get a job on a merchant ship, most fof mty work was as lookout and deckhand but the navigator said he saw poential in me and started showing be the skills of navigation I became absorbed in the stars and their constellations.
Currently level 5 the party is an armorer, a aberant mind sorcerer and a soul knife, and a beast barb has also recently joined, at low levels I used create bonfire quite a bit to attack multiple enemies though now concentration is being used for summon animals or a control spell. Stary form has only been archer so far and is my usuual use of wildshape though an owl familar also make an appearance quite regularly for scouting.
I play a 4th level Firbolg Druid. Rather than the usual forest-y Firbolg, my people were islanders.
I love her! Especially the little boat and the oar. Tobias casts Shillelagh on one of his wooden cooking spoons, flips it around to hold it near the spoon end and thumps his foes with the handle.
I wanted to make a Stars Druid based on moving enemies in and out of Moonbeam but the radius is so small I had a lot of trouble. So while it sounded good on paper, not a great use even with thorn whip, gust, transmute rock, etc. So switch to summon elemental and its just a great tank to have on the field and with Dragon form you don't really need to worry too much about losing concentration and having it go crazy on you.
Still a fan of Transmute Rock, Hallucinatory Terrain, Polymorph, Conjure Animals (I try to stick to at most 4 to not overwhelm my DM and slow the game down) to name a few of the higher 3rd, 4th and 5th spell favs.
Currently playing a Lvl 6 Dragonborn Druid, who is is 4 Druid & 2 fighter.
I have gone Archer almost exclusively, but have done chalice for clutch heals! Added the feat Fey Touched bc range attacks are the goal. I have found Locate object is too good for role play and cure wounds is perfect for quality of life. The cantrip primal savagery with enhance ability (bear form) is awesome since we always use our wild shape for starry forms. Gonna go to lvl 6 fighter for that sweet double attack action and sweet health dice and feat. This also makes it so that you can still get full of stars at level 14 Druid!
Thinking of adding feat spell sniper and shadow touched.
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Who has played a Circle of Stars Druid at any levels from Level 4 to Level 12?
-- What are your favorite 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 6th level spells? Did you reflavor the spells for your Stars Druid? If so, how?
-- In combat, do you find that you frequently upcast Guiding Bolt and/or Moonbeam (very thematic spells for the subclass) rather than casting (less thematic) higher level spells?
-- Have you multiclassed? If yes, why, when, and what class/subclass? If no, why not?
-- What feats have you picked for your Stars Druid?
-- What have you found to be the most fun/thematic things to do in and out of combat for your Stars Druid?
I'm just starting to think about next steps for my sea elf Circle fo Stars Druid (who is currently at Level 3). She's a former sailor who loves star gazing. In combat she relies on shooting stars (Guiding Bolt), prickly seaweed (Thorn Whip), bright starlight (Moonbeam), and multi-colored spiky coral (Spike Growth). She sometimes relies on the power of wind/storms from her sailing days (Thunderwave, Gust of Wind, Warding Wind). She also likes to see the future in the stars and then buff her allies accordingly - "You got this! I saw it in the stars!" (followed by a casting of Guidance, Enhance Ability, or Pass Without Trace). As a sea elf, she's not good with land animals, land plants/trees, nor fire damage.
I would love to hear about other people's Stars Druid builds!! Thanks so much!!
Great question! Thanks for asking
As a 4th level Elf Starry druid I am curious about other people's experience too.
I took Fey Touched Feat at 4th level for the wisdom boost and misty step. I also switched shillelagh for primal savagery to give myself a better melee option - reflavored as a burst of starlight that turns to acid. (And picked up thorn whip)
My guidance is "may the stars guide you!"
I have used moonbeam and guiding bolt a lot. And have almost exclusively used the Archer form in combat. I haven't unveiled the Dragon form yet to my party.
I think faerie fire could also be a good thematic spell with falling star light. Or something.
Looking ahead at third level spells, I was looking forward to conjure beasts and call lightning, but I am curious what others use.
Who has played a Circle of Stars Druid at any levels from Level 4 to Level 12? Currently level 5 (2 stars druid 3 artificer alchemist)
-- What are your favorite 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 6th level spells? Due to early multiclassing into artificer, I only have access to first level spells at the moment, but because the stars druid doesn't gain any additional access to spells beyond guiding bolts Its fairly standard druidic fair. (though i think sunbeam is a solid on theme for the subclass).
-- In combat, do you find that you frequently upcast Guiding Bolt and/or Moonbeam (very thematic spells for the subclass) rather than casting (less thematic) higher-level spells? I generally cast my freebee guiding bolts and occasionally upcast if I think it will finish off an encounter. Generally, I'm tossing out healing spells more than anything.
-- Have you multiclassed? Yup, Im playing artificer/druid combo. Im primarily taking advantage of chalice to act as the party healer. I do switch to archer to toss out multiple attacks per round. (one cantrip and the bonus action star form attack). The whole build revolves around being able to toss out as much healing as possible per spell slot. Currently the minimum I can heal a party member is 10, at artificer 5 it will bump to min 15.
-- What feats have you picked for your Stars Druid? ...Chef...because flavor....I am the more experienced player in the group so I decided to go full support and this was a fun way to contribute. I plan to grab either arberant dragonmark or healer after reaching 20 int.
-- What have you found to be the most fun/thematic things to do in and out of combat for your Stars Druid? In combat I have reskinned most of my spells to be drawing power from tattoo's of the stars on her arms. Out of combat I'm still trying to get a feel for the character, I'm plotting a few new tattoo's
Pretty much the idea is to use chalice to supercharge healing, and archer to turn into a DPS machine when the shit hits the fan.
Thanks for the replies so far! It’s fun to hear how others are building and playing their stars druids! It would be great to hear strategies, experiences, flavor, and tips from other players!
My sea elf stars druid (now at Level 4) faced her most difficult encounter to date yesterday. She and her 3 allies (Alchemist Artificer, Swarmkeeper Ranger, and homebrew Paladin) went about 18 rounds with 5 enemies who had over 90 hp and three attacks each. Hits forced Con saving throws; failures led to the poisoned condition for one round. My stars druid stayed further back, cast Summon Beast, went into Archer starry form, cast Enlarge/Reduce on the paladin, and relied on Guiding Bolt, Thorn Whip, and Shillelagh. She also got lucky and pulled a dire wolf out of her Bag of Tricks (such a fun magic item!!). The other characters stayed in melee and kept getting hit and poisoned. My stars druid eventually shifted to Chalice starry form and brought each ally back from 0 hp. A boar — also pulled from the Bag of Tricks — gored the last enemy standing. My sea elf druid then dealt the final blow with her trident. She was poisoned only once and never lost concentration (thanks to Resilient Con taken at Level 4), never went unconscious, and finished the 18 rounds with 3 hp.
Stars druids rock in my opinion!! I love the versatility of switching between summoner, striker, battlefield controller, healer, and buffer. So much fun!!
Tobias Stoneback is a Tortle Circle of Stars Druid. As a child he and his siblings loved to skip stones in the swamplands he grew up in and spent his early years wandering various lands and cultures learning their different cuisines. (Our DM granted all of us a bonus Feat at the start and Tobias took Chef.) The stone skipping led him to learn Magic Stone as a young druidic acolyte. That, with multiple free Guiding Bolts, plus the Archer form makes him a pretty powerful ranged opponent. But his natural armor and taking extra CON from Chef makes him a very effective tank, so at 4th level he took the Spell Sniper feat to enhance his long range attacks, but chose Green Flame Blade as his cantrip (to be reskinned as Starlight Blade). That, in combination with Shillelagh makes him formidable in the fray, even with 1 attack per round. We just got to 7th level and he has not had a chance to try out all that in combination with Fire Shield which may be reskinned as a Starry Shield with radiant damage.
His favorite thematic spells are Faerie Fire and Moonbeam. Call Lightning sure kicks butt, but we have been in close quarters at times making it unavailable to use and Moonbeam can do the same amount of damage if cast at 3rd level.
Being a pretty strong tank who can do up to 3d8+5 worth of damage in a single attack (Shillelagh + Green Flame Blade) plus an Archer bolt, he has been concentrating more on non-damage spells for the party lately such as Faerie Fire, Hold Person, and Earthbind, but always keeps Healing Word and Revivify prepared. (And a hearty snack after a battle helps everyone feel 1d8 better.)
I am the lone caster in my group (monk, rogue, ranger and barbarian) so I predominantly am using frostbite to impose disadvantage on attacks, my free guiding bolts and lots of heals. I have used a couple faerie fires, spike growth and pass without trace along the way. Just hit 5 and looking to pull out a summon fay sometime soon.
I play a 4th level Firbolg Druid. Rather than the usual forest-y Firbolg, my people were islanders. As a child, when on a pilgrimage with my family from one island to another, a hurricane stuck and I lost my family. I washed up on shore on the mainland and am very much a fish out of water. The stars sung to her when she was adrift at sea and taught her to navigate. She is very much into the notion of the stars being guides.
For her star chart, I took inspiration from Polynesian stick charts of the Pacific. Instead of coconut fronds and shells, hers is woven bits of fishing net and shells. The pattern represents islands and currents in the sea as well as the stars in the sky. She is proficient in Navigator's Tools (she has the Shipwright background), but instead of the usual "tools" she uses her star chart and deep understanding of the sea and sky.
Her spells are often themed around the stars influence on fate or lighting the way. So Guidance is "let the stars guide your way". Silvery Barbs has a burst of star light flowing from one target to the other hand "your fates are crossed". For Augury, which she uses frequently, she has a tiny boat that she floats in a bowl of water. Night or day, you can always see stars reflecting on this water. The path of the boat across the reflected starlight in the water yields the Weal or Woe result. This will continue to be the mechanism for Cosmic Omen when she reaches 6th level. She carries a kayak paddle, the last artifact of her original life, carved up and down with runes telling the story of her people, and this paddle is her Shillelagh. She uses Shape Water extremely often, as she believes she was reborn and the sea is her true mother. She of course often uses Faerie Fire, Guiding Bolt, and Moonbeam like any Stars Druid would.
I took the Fey Touched feat, just made sense for a Firbolg. This gives her Misty Step, which fits the traveler motif, and Silvery Barbs, as mentioned above.
Looking ahead, there aren't many 3rd level spells that are really compelling, other than Freedom of the Waves, Tidal Wave, Wall of Water, for obvious reasons. To your point, there really aren't a lot of thematic higher level spells for Star Druids besides upcasting the ones you mentioned, so she'll be doing that and leaning into her secondary theme of being a bit of a water elementalist as well as the wee bit of divination Druids get.
My DM said that I would start with a dark gift and a feat. (observent and mist walker)
I created a tortle living with nature on an island know for a persistant mist, curious about this mist a tried ot learn about it and found I could manipulate the air and the moisture in it to travel short distances however the land turned against me so that I can not remain in the same place for long. I went to a port town and being very perceptive and knowing some things about the weather I managed to get a job on a merchant ship, most fof mty work was as lookout and deckhand but the navigator said he saw poential in me and started showing be the skills of navigation I became absorbed in the stars and their constellations.
Currently level 5 the party is an armorer, a aberant mind sorcerer and a soul knife, and a beast barb has also recently joined, at low levels I used create bonfire quite a bit to attack multiple enemies though now concentration is being used for summon animals or a control spell. Stary form has only been archer so far and is my usuual use of wildshape though an owl familar also make an appearance quite regularly for scouting.
I love her! Especially the little boat and the oar. Tobias casts Shillelagh on one of his wooden cooking spoons, flips it around to hold it near the spoon end and thumps his foes with the handle.
I wanted to make a Stars Druid based on moving enemies in and out of Moonbeam but the radius is so small I had a lot of trouble. So while it sounded good on paper, not a great use even with thorn whip, gust, transmute rock, etc. So switch to summon elemental and its just a great tank to have on the field and with Dragon form you don't really need to worry too much about losing concentration and having it go crazy on you.
Still a fan of Transmute Rock, Hallucinatory Terrain, Polymorph, Conjure Animals (I try to stick to at most 4 to not overwhelm my DM and slow the game down) to name a few of the higher 3rd, 4th and 5th spell favs.
Currently playing a Lvl 6 Dragonborn Druid, who is is 4 Druid & 2 fighter.
I have gone Archer almost exclusively, but have done chalice for clutch heals! Added the feat Fey Touched bc range attacks are the goal. I have found Locate object is too good for role play and cure wounds is perfect for quality of life. The cantrip primal savagery with enhance ability (bear form) is awesome since we always use our wild shape for starry forms. Gonna go to lvl 6 fighter for that sweet double attack action and sweet health dice and feat. This also makes it so that you can still get full of stars at level 14 Druid!
Thinking of adding feat spell sniper and shadow touched.