Druid

**Druids** were primal spellcasters of considerable power and versatility, who gained their power through being at one with nature or through a connection to a powerful deity. Guardians of the wilderness, druids saw themselves less as masters of the natural order and more as an extension of its will.

## Culture

Known for their mysterious nature, druids called the wilderness their home, emulating the ways of wild beasts and other creatures of nature. Believing that nature's health depended on a precarious balance, druids believed that the four elements of the natural world - air, earth, fire, and water - must be prevented from ever gaining advantage over one another, lest the world become dominated by the forces of the elemental planes. Likewise, druids believed nature exists outside of civilized conceptions of good, evil, order or chaos, instead seeking only to maintain a natural state of being which most of the civilized world cannot or will not understand. But though druids may have accepted cruelty in nature, they abhorred that which was alien to it, violently opposing the existence of aberrations and undead, both of whom were affronts to the natural order.

Powerful sentries of the natural world, druids were often seen by outsiders as primal controllers of the wilderness. However, although druids drew great power from nature, druids, nigh universally, did not see themselves as masters of the wild but rather its servants, much as a cleric might serve a god or a knight his liege. > To a druid, claims of power over the wild was something that only those lacking a proper understanding of nature could profess. The primal power that druids drew upon came to them not through control, but through a spiritual unity with the forces of nature. This distinction was, however, lost on most.

Druids were not the only caretakers of the wilderness, though they were perhaps the best known. Comparable to wizards, druids were nature's lorekeepers, possessing an enormous degree of knowledge about the inhabitants, locations, and phenomena of the wilderness. However, while wizards frequently sought this knowledge for knowledge's own sake (or power's), druids acted in behalf of that which they studied.

Druids shared a brotherhood of sorts with all other druids, though it was often a loose association rather than a tightly bound network. Ignoring the artificial boundaries of kings and princes, druids respected and protected all the lands of the world, working with druids from far-away lands as readily as with those whom they know personally.

Communication within this society was aided by the use of a secret language common to all druidic circles, known as Druidic. Induction into these societies often required knowledge of secret rites and passing dangerous tests, but, once accepted as members, druids were rarely cast out and were allowed to more or less carry on their work in their own way.

## Abilities

Druids were capable in a number of diverse skills related to the care of the natural world, such as the ability to perceive changes in the environment or interact peaceably with wild beasts. When it came to martial ability, all druids were proficient to some degree in the use of light or medium armor and shields as well as clubs, daggers, darts, javelins, maces, quarterstaffs, scimitars, sickles, slings, and spears, with the notable exception that druids would not use armor or shields forged from metal.

In addition to their more mundane abilities, druids were also adept in the casting of spells born of primal magic. Like clerics or wizards, druids also knew how to cast rituals. Additionally, with sufficient experience, the intimate connection between druids and the primal magic they wielded grew so strong as to slow their aging, down to a rate of approximately one-tenth that of regular members of their species.

Among the more formidable abilities known to druids was a form of shapeshifting known as Wild Shape. This ability allowed druids to shapeshift into any beast, among other creatures.

Other druids had less common abilities. Some druids had, in addition to their *wild shape* evocations, animal companions that filled some of the functions provided by wild shaping. A few druids were innate experts in the fields of botany and zoology, identifying various species with perfect accuracy by instinct. As a result, druids were naturally keen to deception by wildlife and fey. Likewise, druids held a natural sense for the safety of drinking water and many were immune to the effects of organic poisons. Several druids were also masters at moving through the wilderness at fast speeds, ignoring the hampering effects of natural hazards such as thorns or briars. With enough training, these druids did not even leave a hint of their movement through the wild.

## Druid circles

In addition to the loose fellowship shared by all druids, druids were divided into more localized organizations known as circles, many of which shared certain common beliefs and abilities.

Core Classes
Ardent • Avenger • Barbarian • Bard • Battlemind • Bushi • Cleric • **Druid** • Fighter • Invoker • Monk • Paladin • Psion • Ranger • Rogue • Runepriest • Samurai • Seeker • Shaman • Sorcerer • Spellscarred • Swordmage • Warden • Warlock • Warlord • Wizard

Priests
Avenger • Bard • Cleric • **Druid** • Invoker • Monk • Paladin (Blackguard)

Primal Spellcasters
Barbarian • **Druid** • Ranger • Seeker • Shaman • Warden