The Circles (CDH)

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All druids dwelling within the bounds of a domain are organized into a circle. Circles typically are named for the geographic area their domain occupies, but sometimes they bear other names, harking back to their founders or the gods the druids worship (if they worship deities rather than Nature itself). For instance, druids might have formed "The Dragon Isles Circle" or "The Circle of Danu."
The members of a circle hold themselves responsible for the well-being of the wilderness and the continuation of the orderly cycles of Nature within their domain. This doesn't mean a circle remains unconcerned about what occurs in other domains—forming circles is just the druidic order's way of recognizing that those druids who live in a particular region can best serve to protect it, and should therefore hold formal responsibility for the domain.
Circles operate within a very loose structure. They use no large temples or abbeys, for rarely do more than a few druids live together. When they do, their dwelling places are usually less than ostentatious: small cottages or huts of the style of local hunters or farmers. All druids within the circle acknowledge a single great druid as their leader and recognize this figure's moral authority. The great druid gives the circle's members great freedom compared to most other religious leaders. The druids adhere to a rather informal hierarchical structure and require their initiates to hold true to the basic ethos of the druidic order and respect higher-ranking druids.
A few traditions described in this chapter have grown up to govern the harmonious workings of a circle: initiations, the challenge, the ban, the moot, and selection of acolytes. All druids, from the humblest initiate to the great druid, may freely follow their own interpretation of druidic beliefs and act however they believe best serves Nature.
==Druidic Demographics==
A typical domain (one that has seen no persecution of druids but includes other priestly faiths as well) contains, on average, one druid for every 10 square miles of rural farmland or 400 square miles of lightly inhabited wilderness or steppe. Druids dwelling in rural areas usually are initiates (1st to 8th level, generally). Those in the wilderness usually have reached higher experience levels, frequently 7th to 11th level. A circle may include a maximum of nine 12th-level druids, three 13th-level druids, and one 14th-level druid. Often circles have no higher-level druids at all.
Below 12th level, the number of druids of a given experience level stands at about double the population of the next level up. So, a typical circle may include 18 initiates of 11th level, 36 initiates of 10th level, etc., all the way down to some 18,000 1st-level initiates. The entire circle thus consists of more than 36,000 druids. A domain might feature one druid per 500 to 1,000 citizens, although this statistic gives a distorted picture, since druids are concentrated in some locales and rare in others.
==Circles and Branches==
Chapter 1: Druid Characters examined the different branches of the Order: forest druids, desert druids, and so on. A given circle normally covers a domain vast enough to include members from several, but usually not all, branches. A domain with a temperate climate might contain a circle composed of forest, swamp, and mountain druids. In contrast, a circle in a tropical domain with flat terrain would consist of jungle, plains, desert, and swamp druids.
All druids should possess an equivalent number of advantages and disadvantages regardless of branch. However, equality is never guaranteed. In most fantasy worlds, the forest druids exercise the most influence. Due to the resources of the woodlands and humanity's desire to clear them for use as farms, forest druids often consider their problems the most pressing. The Order's priorities frequently reflect this stance; circles dominated by forest druids try to make sure that a member of that branch ends up as Grand Druid, the leader of the druidic order. As jungle druids and swamp druids share many of the forest druids' concerns, they often become allies.
A well-balanced druid sees each branch as part of a single tree, all equally important. Unfortunately, though, not all druids have this vision. Members of the informal forest-plains-swamp-jungle coalition sometimes look down upon desert and arctic druids due to the relative infertility of their habitats. Sometimes druids fall too deeply in love with their own particular part of the world—forest druids who see trees as the be-all and end-all of Nature may hold arctic, desert, and gray druids to be inferior. The victims of such prejudice, in turn, can come to resent the forest branch. Great druids from the few circles dominated by arctic or desert druids often ally to try to keep a forest druid from becoming Grand Druid—although more often than not, they fail.
==Initiates==
Initiates constitute the 1st- to 11th-level druids within a circle. Their experience level determines their role in the circle.
A typical 1st- or 2nd-level initiate (an NPC) often works part time as a Village Druid. This initiate keeps up a rural occupation (beekeeper, farmer, herder, etc.) while studying under a higher-level druid mentor. The exceptions to this stereotype are rare individuals (PCs). An average person finds it tough to recognize beginning druids, since most seem just like other peasants.
Initiates between 3rd and 6th level have achieved most of their granted powers, with the exception of shapechanging. The cornerstones of the druidic order, they frequently devote their full time to their faith. They normally live in stone, wood, or mud-brick cottages and act as the protectors of a small tract of wilderness—a wood or river valley—or of a village or group of hamlets. Most druids of this status have the Village Druid or Guardian kit, and those who choose to protect a village usually have become respected community leaders.
Initiates between 7th and 11th level have received all their branch's granted powers. Such druids live simply but have widened their areas of influence, perhaps becoming the guardians of entire forests or mountains, or of all the villages in a barony. These druids often dwell near a sacred grove surrounded by a few acres of virgin wilderness a sanctuary for rare and magical plants, animals, and supernatural creatures. This natural setting may be magically defended as well. Temporal rulers of the area respect (or fear) druids of such level.