Druids: Promoting and Maintaining Balance

[AllMYBudgies]

I think that druids and their methods are always going to cause some contention within the playerbase. While some expect them to be cheery old hermits, others expect them to be brutal and bloodthirsty killers. I am of the opinion that there should always be both, that without one there is no real Balance in the viewpoint of Nature factions. The alignment spectrum and the differentiating opinions and methods of the deities they follow allow for a real variety of character, there's really no need for all druids to follow the status quo and end up generic in their approach to the character.

The best nature groups I've been a part of have always comprised of a variety of character types. Inner conflict is one of the most fun aspects of playing a Nature character, where your allies are not always your closest friends. Where one might actively promote new life, another might wish nothing more than to see it wither. That really is the nature of Balance, balancing out everyone's opinions and moving toward your constant main goal. A majority of these characters have high wisdom, and as such there is a springboard in place for them to really get together and moot. Having played several nature PC's, I can say with honesty that this is something that really does go on in the wilds and is something that people often miss out on.

What seems like a random gank squad encounter can be something that has been pulled apart, discussed and fought over for a number of months. Decisions are rarely made on the spur of the moment, relationships between nature characters often go through as many changes and are rarely fluid through each threat and changing situation.  It isn't always the only end to a conflict, but in our setting there are sometimes few options other than FD. Thankfully, I've noticed this change over recent times, but I think that players should really consider that a majority of Druids and their guardians are not going to take the time to have tea with your necromancer or pass many words with your infernalist. It should also be a point that when a nature group bashes you down and sends you away, that coming back with your army of fire wielding city dwellers is going to give you fewer options than FD - the attitudes some players have for RPing with some respect for each conflict is something that I have often found frustrating while playing a nature character.

So long as players remember that there are rules in playing a Druid, that they aren't a Mistlocke resident that hangs out with everyone under the sun, that they take a certain amount of consideration to play and are never going to be a part of this weeks quest train - then you can get some wonderful characters and roleplay through this class.

[chezcaliente]

Druids should be EXTREMELY intolerant and xenophobic, and VERY loathe to trust any kind of outsider.

To be honest I think this sentence is far too strongly worded, and LTS' response is appropriately  antagonistic to that.

Druids are diverse. Some are extremely isolationist, some see no problem  in trusting city-folk who show respect for the wilds, some see the city  as an abomination to be destroyed always, some see cities as being part  of the Balance (depending on how the city interacts with the wilds and that particular druid's personality etc).

What I can agree on is that no druid should be living in Mistlocke or  other towns, none should be automatically trusting of outsiders unless  the outsider has made some effort to earn that trust, and certainly none should be tolerant of outsiders who are clearly disrespectful to nature and the Balance.

I think the character expectations post covers it pretty well.

Beyond that, let players roleplay their character how they wish.

[TakenByVisions]

I'd like to add something legit to this conversation and I feel that it also applies to a lot of Cleric discussions in part, so here it goes. Hopefully this is not completely false, as it's a class I basically refuse to play myself.

Druids are typically -very- wise and even intelligent (I'd guess that most are above "average" with a 12 or even 14 score) and are thus quite capable of seeing reason and understanding logic that may not be of their own "belief".

While some Druids may pursue more fanatical and dangerous ways of preserving their belief and territory, others may pursue more peaceful paths and seek to educate rather than destroy, enlighten those who do not understand the importance of the balance, and more. The same reasoning could be applied to some of your evil and fanatical Clerics in game who are exceptionally wise and able to foresee the result of their actions pretty easily. You might know your bad and evil, and you might want to spill your enemies blood on the battlefield and never run away, or you might want to animate undead in your free time, but wisdom would allow them to understand the penalties and advantages of doing those things at certain times, or even possibly triggering smaller events to bring those upon them more easily.

In my opinion a Druid SHOULD enter Mistlocke every now and then, assuming they aren't the more fanatical type and are wanted or whatever, and look to bring knowledge of the local threats, warning, and -lead- expeditions to oppose the many things they should be fighting against. If they are not natural leaders due to their charisma, they should seek out some contacts that can do that sort of work for them, but all in all they should be using Mistlocke as a tool and not a haven to rest and hang out.

A proactive Druid of any alignment and "faith" should at all times be opposing those things that are unnatural, whether it's undead, Abberants, outsiders, or whatever else that litters the module. Opposing a small village that has technically been around for a long time without encroaching on the land to a large extent is a secondary concern to any Druid on Ymph I think, yet they should certainly be kept in check while you take up a powerful role opposing the previously mentioned things (namely H'Bala)

[Mist Seeker]

Also consider how the module has changed. In EfU:A the main PC settlement was a large city / town with a faction (the Dominion) that was often actively trying to expand into the wilds and civilize them. As such it was completely IC for a lot of the druidic / natural characters to join up and work against the Dominion. Now the main PC settlement is a small village that seems to have little to no interest in expanding into the area around it. It will take a bit of time for people to adjust to the new setting.