The difficulty with druids is that while there’s a lot to work with, ultimately it’s vague in its explanations. This guide will show you how to build interesting encounters and roleplay. I’ve worked with my DM to share what we did in our games that might be useful to anyone who’s set on playing this class and wants to build unique encounters. Inspired by these videos: MonarchsFactory, ImaginaryJeremy.
TL;DR: A druid automatically spots messages in druidic, so they may notice what the rest of the party may not. Perception followed by arcana checks are only for non-druids. Druidic shouldn't be limited to being found in forests, nor should it be seen as an entirely written language.
Druidic Language:
Druidic is the language of druids, and cannot be learned without taking a level in the class. It is magical in nature, since non-druids need to roll a perception check of 15 to perceive these messages but can’t decipher them without magic.
Using druidic as a phenomenon in nature that people can overlook works in your favor. Like a pattern in the rocks on shore (such as The Fibonacci sequence), or a flower blooming where it’s not supposed to be, bird songs, whistled languages, or written messages in Ogham, a language used by real life druids. There’s a reddit thread of the written version of Druidic which you can find here by Larius.
It’s a good way to include your druid players without taking up too much spotlight, but I recommend speaking to your players about this. For example: My human druid, Enid, was constantly contacting other druids in subtle ways: from moving the clouds using Skywrite into different formations and shapes, to mimicking the wind’s whistling at high speeds. I did this in the background while my party did other things, with the exception of Skywrite.
You can also try looking at markings on trees, and listening to bird calls, all without being disruptive. Think about using the environment around you and how communication can change depending on the area. Druids of a frigid tundra would communicate differently than druids of a scorching desert.
Encounters:
How would you build encounters using a language that rarely sees use? One way would be to present it as something only druids will notice that others won’t, like secret messages and/or warnings.
In our campaign, we narrowly evaded an ambush by an abominable yeti. This would not have been possible had my druid not received a warning moments before. We still had to fight the yeti, but not unprepared.
Though the message did not prevent an encounter in this case, it can be used as such depending on DM discretion. It's up to the DM as to what kinds of messages the player receives. At no point was I spoiled to what was actually coming in an encounter, instead I received a hint and was given the chance to act on it.
As a DM, I’d reward good observation skills, a druid can notice things others may not without being a disruptive player. Think of common things in nature that could easily be overlooked.
Alternatively, other druids might also be an encounter. “Like creatures of the wilderness, however, druids sometimes compete with or even prey on each other.” Either a friendly sparring match, training, or simply the party encroached upon an unfriendly circle’s territory. Will your druid's words hold sway over the other druids? A druid’s circle is their community and meetings are a regular occurrence. For a non-combat encounter: I can think of establishing trade and exchanging ingredients for potions, components for spells, or even magic items specific to druids or spell casters.
The encounter itself need not be combat focused either, it could be a chance to handle things in a more diplomatic fashion.
Roleplay:
Practicing roleplay etiquette, especially if your table isn’t roleplay heavy may be difficult, but worth the practice. Common disruptions are speaking over people, to the point that maybe a quieter player is unheard? Talk to your DM or other players, communication is key. If you have a disruptive player at your table, it’s best to address it out-of-character, either before or after a session.
For druid roleplay, it might seem like a nature loving character is the only way to go, but that is not the case. Like with any character you make, it’s up to you what themes work or not. Druid is a class that is focused on nature, which is reflected in the spell list, and armor restrictions (no metal).
Consider where your character comes from. What do they like or dislike? What motivates them? Because the only difference when choosing this class is: What connection to nature does your druid have? How protective are they of it, if at all? How important is their connection to nature, which channels their magic, to them?
Did your character become a druid because they wanted to become closer to nature, or because of something, or someone? What circumstances lead them to walking the path of a druid? Was it willingly? There is a lot you can build from there. For example: My human druid never had a real divide between civilization and nature since she was raised as an acolyte of an agricultural goddess, seeing the two as important and necessary to keep in balance with each other. She dresses like a common civilian than the typical image of a druid. In contrast, my eladrin druid is a chaotic force of nature, who is deeply connected to the Feywild and lives far more freely.
Conclusion:
To summarize: There is a lot you can do with druids and druidic, many of which depend on DM approval, and player engagement. Navigating this class can be overwhelming due to the amount of options presented for druid players, however, it is interesting to develop.
This guide was meant to make those options more approachable for both DM’s and players, however you’d like to play, there is no wrong or right way. Thank you for reading!
It doesn't get much play but my druid will present themselves whenever entering another's territory. Its usually just bending the tips of branches just the right way or quick scratches on tree trunks in Druidic saying their name, how many are in the party and our reason for the intrusion.
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The difficulty with druids is that while there’s a lot to work with, ultimately it’s vague in its explanations. This guide will show you how to build interesting encounters and roleplay.
I’ve worked with my DM to share what we did in our games that might be useful to anyone who’s set on playing this class and wants to build unique encounters. Inspired by these videos: MonarchsFactory, ImaginaryJeremy.
TL;DR:
A druid automatically spots messages in druidic, so they may notice what the rest of the party may not. Perception followed by arcana checks are only for non-druids. Druidic shouldn't be limited to being found in forests, nor should it be seen as an entirely written language.
Druidic Language:
Druidic is the language of druids, and cannot be learned without taking a level in the class. It is magical in nature, since non-druids need to roll a perception check of 15 to perceive these messages but can’t decipher them without magic.
Using druidic as a phenomenon in nature that people can overlook works in your favor. Like a pattern in the rocks on shore (such as The Fibonacci sequence), or a flower blooming where it’s not supposed to be, bird songs, whistled languages, or written messages in Ogham, a language used by real life druids.
There’s a reddit thread of the written version of Druidic which you can find here by Larius.
It’s a good way to include your druid players without taking up too much spotlight, but I recommend speaking to your players about this.
For example: My human druid, Enid, was constantly contacting other druids in subtle ways: from moving the clouds using Skywrite into different formations and shapes, to mimicking the wind’s whistling at high speeds. I did this in the background while my party did other things, with the exception of Skywrite.
You can also try looking at markings on trees, and listening to bird calls, all without being disruptive. Think about using the environment around you and how communication can change depending on the area. Druids of a frigid tundra would communicate differently than druids of a scorching desert.
Encounters:
How would you build encounters using a language that rarely sees use? One way would be to present it as something only druids will notice that others won’t, like secret messages and/or warnings.
In our campaign, we narrowly evaded an ambush by an abominable yeti. This would not have been possible had my druid not received a warning moments before. We still had to fight the yeti, but not unprepared.
Though the message did not prevent an encounter in this case, it can be used as such depending on DM discretion. It's up to the DM as to what kinds of messages the player receives. At no point was I spoiled to what was actually coming in an encounter, instead I received a hint and was given the chance to act on it.
As a DM, I’d reward good observation skills, a druid can notice things others may not without being a disruptive player. Think of common things in nature that could easily be overlooked.
Alternatively, other druids might also be an encounter. “Like creatures of the wilderness, however, druids sometimes compete with or even prey on each other.”
Either a friendly sparring match, training, or simply the party encroached upon an unfriendly circle’s territory. Will your druid's words hold sway over the other druids?
A druid’s circle is their community and meetings are a regular occurrence. For a non-combat encounter: I can think of establishing trade and exchanging ingredients for potions, components for spells, or even magic items specific to druids or spell casters.
The encounter itself need not be combat focused either, it could be a chance to handle things in a more diplomatic fashion.
Roleplay:
Practicing roleplay etiquette, especially if your table isn’t roleplay heavy may be difficult, but worth the practice. Common disruptions are speaking over people, to the point that maybe a quieter player is unheard? Talk to your DM or other players, communication is key.
If you have a disruptive player at your table, it’s best to address it out-of-character, either before or after a session.
For druid roleplay, it might seem like a nature loving character is the only way to go, but that is not the case. Like with any character you make, it’s up to you what themes work or not. Druid is a class that is focused on nature, which is reflected in the spell list, and armor restrictions (no metal).
Consider where your character comes from. What do they like or dislike? What motivates them? Because the only difference when choosing this class is: What connection to nature does your druid have? How protective are they of it, if at all? How important is their connection to nature, which channels their magic, to them?
Did your character become a druid because they wanted to become closer to nature, or because of something, or someone? What circumstances lead them to walking the path of a druid? Was it willingly? There is a lot you can build from there.
For example: My human druid never had a real divide between civilization and nature since she was raised as an acolyte of an agricultural goddess, seeing the two as important and necessary to keep in balance with each other. She dresses like a common civilian than the typical image of a druid. In contrast, my eladrin druid is a chaotic force of nature, who is deeply connected to the Feywild and lives far more freely.
Conclusion:
To summarize: There is a lot you can do with druids and druidic, many of which depend on DM approval, and player engagement. Navigating this class can be overwhelming due to the amount of options presented for druid players, however, it is interesting to develop.
This guide was meant to make those options more approachable for both DM’s and players, however you’d like to play, there is no wrong or right way.
Thank you for reading!
It doesn't get much play but my druid will present themselves whenever entering another's territory. Its usually just bending the tips of branches just the right way or quick scratches on tree trunks in Druidic saying their name, how many are in the party and our reason for the intrusion.