Druid Characters (CDH)

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The traditional druid is a guardian of the woodlands. Nature, however, is vast and diverse; thus the druids detailed in this book might live their lives protecting jungle rain forests, arctic tundra, or even the subterranean Underdark. As a result, several distinct branches of druid are presented here, each essentially a new subclass built around the basic concept of the druid class. As a player, choose your druidic branch right after deciding to play a druid character.
==Druidic Organization==
The basic druid as described in the PH is referred to here as the "forest druid." The names of the other branches reflect their geographic specialty: arctic druids, desert druids, and so on.
Members of all the branches of the druidic order have the same alignment—true neutral—and worship Nature. They share one ethos and owe at least nominal allegiance to the world's Grand Druid. But, as befits the infinite diversity of Nature, every branch differs in details and approach to its mission. The granted powers and spells that Nature finds appropriate for a druid in one region are often inappropriate for a druid from a very different climate and terrain.
For instance, while the forest druids described in the PH have major access to the Plant sphere of priest spells, the branch of desert druids has only minor access to that sphere, reflecting the less abundant plant life in the desert. Similarly, while a forest druid's ability to pass through overgrowth is very useful in the woods, it has much less utility for a desert druid. Instead, the branch of desert druids has granted powers enabling them to survive in arid country.
Some rivalry exists between the different branches of druids. On most worlds, the forest druids belong to the dominant branch. However, on a few worlds (such as one in the midst of an ice age) another branch might wield the most power. For more details on rivalry between branches, see Chapter 3: The Druidic Order.
The Dungeon Master can restrict some branches to nonplayer characters (NPCs) or even prohibit them to suit the background or direction of a campaign. For example, the Dungeon Master (DM) might decide that the gray druids of the Underdark would make exciting adversaries for the characters. Since having player characters (PCs) as gray druids would water down the impact of the gray druids as foes, the DM can prohibit players from choosing that branch. Later in the campaign, after the party has encountered the gray druids, the DM might open the branch to players.
Similarly, some druid branches simply may not seem very logical or useful in certain campaigns. A wise DM would discourage players from selecting the arctic branch for their druid characters in a campaign set in a jungle.