Some years ago I was running a game that seemed to have more than its share of issues with druids. Our first one originally entered the game wanting to play a good aligned drow monk/rogue/assassin. When we explained that there was not such animal, he argued until it was shown straight to hs face that to be an assassin you needed to be EVIL. Once being thwarted on that plan he decided on a druid (not sure where this leap came from, but at least it conformed to the "no evil pc" rule).
His playing style was a little aggressive, but we attempted to share with him the joys of diplomacy and tact, with pretty much no success. However, the point of the game is to have fun so we all made do. That is, until the caravan ambush. You've all probably been there, doing caravan duty through the plains, and failing the spot check. A strategic ambush had been planned that began with entangle spells to stop the caravan. This proved to be successful as the pcs were left with ranged weapons, except the druid who charged out by himself into the fray, accompanied only by his wolf.
For some reason he must not have been paying attention, as the player was visibly upset to learn he rushed into the path of the incoming band of ogres. Unfortunately his wolf was knocked unconscious in the first round. The party decided to back him up and shoot at the ogres (well, back him up and try to take out the enemy) and after careful consideration he came to the conclusion that his best chance of survival was to become a big tree. A big tree that the ogres now took cover behind. This was not considered the best action by his party, and he soon left their company after the battle had been won and the prarie burnt.
Our next one fit in really well, wanted to explore all the fun things a druid could do and was a true credit to his class. His claim to fame was more the great intellect he brought to the table by asking the GM (me) all kinds of questions. Questions like:
If you awaken your animal companion and then awaken his mate and she gets pregnant will the cubs also be awakened?
If I summon a huge earth elemental can I get it to stick its butt into that doorway and block off the enemy? (This was by far the easiest to answer)
Of course, once the bard got involved things really got interesting. Our loveable lech of a bard was given a rare opportunity to speak with the wolf. As it usually did with him, things got around to sex and what to look for in a mate. The druid got a little taste of my side when he was asked if he truly suckled at his mate's breast like a pup.
After that the relationship between the druid and his wolf was never quite the same.
Now I have a druid that speaks with an Australian accent and comes up with some rare bits of information on animals that I'm sure would spin the heads of zoologists everywhere. His animal of choice is a snake and that lends itself to a whole new set of issues. The ranger has the dog.
Tags: Druids Evil
