Summary

  • Druids in 2024 PHB face drastic Wild Shape changes but gain new features like Primal Order decisions and Wild Resurgence benefits.
  • Wild Shape buffs like speaking in beast form and ease in form-shifting are contrasted by limited forms to choose from, but less HP gains for balance.
  • Elemental Fury, high level improvements, and subclass changes all shake up druid gameplay in a controversial way.

Of all the classes in 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Dungeons & Dragons, the druid has perhaps undergone the most drastic changes in the 2024 Player's Handbook compared to its 2014 form. This is primarily a result of sweeping changes applied to Wild Shape, which have brought the feature's former ability to generate absurd amounts of additional hit points in line.

Related
Dungeons & Dragons: 7 Ways The Paladin Class Is Changing In The 2024 Player's Handbook

Streamlining the path to divinity.

1

Unfortunately, the cost of this balance change has many players concerned, as the versatility of Wild Shape is usually what makes playing a druid suc꧙h a unique experience. Wild Shape aside, there are many other tweaks that the druid class has received. Ready your brain garden for a growth of new information.

1 ℱ Primal Order 🥃

A druid flexes before a great vine with his magic staff behind his back.
Circle of the Moon Druid by Nicholas Elias

Every class's subclass access has been pushed back to level three in the 2024 Player's Handbook, and the druid is no exception to this new rule. Thankfully, they do get a new class feature in exchange for the subclass delay.

At first level, Primal Order gives druids a decision that will impact their playstyle for the remainder of their career. Like the cleric, the druid has always struggled with a double ide🌟ntity of melee-based bruiser and ranged spellcaster. This new feature will help druids decidꦑe which fantasy they want to focus on right out of the gate.

Primal Order Choice

Benefits

Warden

  • Proficiency with martial weapons and medium armor.

Magician

  • Learn an extra cantrip.
  • Add your Wisdom modifier to your Intelligence-based Arcana and Nature skill checks (in addition to your Intelligence modifier).

Additionally, the druid's Druidic feature gained at first level has been buffed to also give you access to Speak with Animals. Forming relationships with animals is a core element of playing a druid character, so it only makes sense that all druids are able to speak with them.

2 🦩 𓄧 Wild Resurgence

Various creatures enjoy a sigil street
Sigil Street by Sergio Castaneda

At fifth level, druids now pick up Wild Resurgence. This feature lets you swap spell slots for uses of Wild Shape and vice versa. However, it does come with limitations. You can only exp🍃end one use of Wild Shape to regain a single first level spell slot once per long rest.

You can also expend a spell slot to regain a single use of Wild Shape, and there is no limit to the number of times you can make this exchange. In other words, if you want to use all of your spell slots to fuel a ton more uses of Wild Shape, go for it. Considering the changes that have been made to how hit points work in Wild Shape, you might just need to if you 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:plan on tanking in your beast form. Let's take a look at what we mean.

3 🍷 Wild Shape

Wilson, Refined Grizzly by Ilse Gort

While there has been a lot of pushback from the community concerning the new Wild Shape, the final iteration of this ability seems like a good compromise between designers and players. Designers were concerned with how confusing the 2014 Wild Shape often was due to its wealth of options 💖and reliance on statistic blocks from the DM, while players were afraid they would lose all of 𒐪the options that make this feature so great.

At second level, druids unlock the ability to Wild Shape. Using Wild Shape now only requires a bonus action for all druids. Previously, this was only the case for the Circle of the Moon druid subclass. You will also now gain more uses of Wild Shape as your druid achieves higher levels. Druids get two uses at level two, three uses at level six, an✃d four uses at level seventeen.

Related
Dungeons & Dragons: 6 Ways The Warlock Class Is Changing In The 2024 Player's Handbook

We're still a way off D&D's 2024 Player's Handboo𒊎k, but it's already looking like a great timဣe for warlocks.

1

On top of using Wild Resurgence to gain more uses of Wild Shape as discussed above, druids will regain one use of Wild Shape any time they take a short rest. You can also now speak꧑ in beast form, and you no longer need to have encountered a beast to take its form. Altogether, these are a ton of buffs to Wild Shape th🎉at make it much more accessible for all druids. Now for the nerfs.

Instead of gaining the full hit point pool of the creature you Wild Shape into, you will now only gain temporary hit points equal to your druid level when you Wild Sha♉pe. Additionally, you only know a limited number of beast forms. Choose a total of four beast forms at level two, six forms at level four, and eight forms at level eight. You can swap a form out for another when you finish a long rest.

While these changes are significant, they keep the 2014 Wild Shape's versatility mostly intact while also reducing the number of forms to a reasonably sized list for newer players. Furthermore, the nerfs were quite necessary to bring druid hit point pools in line with other classes. Lastly, the Tasha's optional rule that allowed you to expend a use of Wild Shape to cast Find Familiar is now a base part of the druid class.

4 𝔍 Elemental Fury

A druid infuses a root with magic in a port town
Dynaheir, Invoker Adept by Caroline Gariba

At seventh level, druids now pick up Elemental Fury, which is an expansion on their first level Primal Order choice. Like Primal Order, Elemental Fury allows you to pick between two options. Primal Strike is the first option. It 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:adds extᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ𒀱ᩚᩚᩚra dama♏ge to your melee attacks and will likely go well on druids🍒 who make the warden Primal Order selection.

The name of the other option has not yet been provided, but what is kno𝔍wn is that it allows you to add your Wisdom modifier to the damage to your cantrips. This feature develops further at fifteenth level as Primal Strike gains even more additional damage, and the other choice increases the range of your cantrips out to 300 feet. This might seem like a ribbon feature until you realize you can cast cantrips on creatures while soaring high in the skies in a flight form.

5 🤪Improved High Level Features 🌳

Baba Lysaga, witch, riding her magic creeping hut
Baba Lysaga, Night Witch by Slawomir Maniak

Speaking of high level abilities, level 18 now sees druids unlock Beast Spells, which allows you to cast spells while in Wild Sha🌊pe. This is something druids were previously never allowed to do, so it will be interesting to see what kinds of wacky antics this ability unlocks. Of course, high level play is already known for being utterly ridiculous, so this feature should fit right in.

Druids retain their Archdruid feature at twentieth level with a few minor impro𝐆vements. For one, you now regain a use of Wild Shape upon rolling🔥 initiative if you have none left. Secondly, your Wild Resurgence is no longer limited to turning only one Wild Shape into a spell slot per day. This is all in addition to the incredibly flavorful feature of your druid gaining an impossibly long lifespan.

Related
Dungeons & Dragons: 6 Ways The Monk Class Is Changing In The 2024 Player's Handbook

Because weapons and armor are for chumps.

You no longer get unlimited uses of Wild Shape; however, this part of Archdruid was unarguably busted and would be especially broken now that 🍷druids can use Wild Shape with as little as a bonus action.

6 Subclass Changes 🐻 🃏

An elf bard and human wizard approach an orc ambush
Adventures in Icespire by Greg Rutkowski

The druid is one of the few classes that is receiving an entirely new subclass in the 2024 Player's Handbook. On top of this brand-new addition, the Circle of the Moon subclass has been overhauled to make 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:fighting in your beast form a much more enjoyable endeavor. Wild Shape may not pꦗrovide as many hit points as it did previously, but it sure does look a lot more fun to use in this new Moon💯 druid rendition.

Subclass

Changes

Circle Of The Moon

  • Your Wild Shape AC is now equal to the Beast's AC or 13 + your Wisdom modifier.
  • Instead of assuming the beast's hit points, you now gain temporary hit points equal to your level. Moon druids gain even more temporary hit points.
  • Wild Shape forms have a longer duration.
  • You remain in your Wild Shape form unless knocked completely unconscious. Even if your temporary hit point pool is broken, you still keep your Wild Shape form.
  • Circle of the Moon spells allow you to cast certain spells while in Wild Shape.
  • The ability to heal yourself by expending spell slots is retained.
  • Wild Shape forms can now deal radiant damage.
  • At level 10, Moonlight Step lets you teleport as a bonus action and provides advantage on your next attack roll.
  • At level 14, Lunar Form adds extra radiant damage to your attacks and allows you to transport a creature with you when you use your Moonlight Step teleport.

Circle Of The Land

  • Redesigned so much it's almost a brand new subclass.
  • Pick your land specialty every time you long rest.
  • Land types renamed to Arid, Temperate, Polar, and Tropical.
  • Land's Aid lets you expend a use of Wild Shape to simultaenously harm foes and heal allies.
  • Natural Recovery buffed to give you a free casting of a first level spell.
  • At level 10, Nature Ward gives you resistance to a damage type based on your land choice. It also makes you immune to the poisoned condition.
  • At level 14, Nature's Sanctuary lets you expend Wild Shape uses to give your party half cover and share your damage resistance from your land type.

Circle Of The Sea

  • Actual brand new subclass.
  • Circle of the Sea spell list includes Fog Cloud, Gust of Wind, Ray of Frost, Shatter, Thunderwave, Lightning Bolt, Water Breathing, Control Water, Conjure Elemental, Ice Storm, and Hold Monster.
  • At level 3, Wrath of the Sea lets you expend a Wild Shape use to deal cold damage to a nearby enemy and potentially force movement.
  • At level 6, Wrath of the Sea improves, and you gain a swimming speed.
  • At level 10, Wrath of the Sea gives you a flying speed. It also gives you resistance to lightning, thunder, and cold damage.
  • At level 14, Oceanic Gift lets you use your Wrath of the Sea benefits on another creature.

Circle Of The Stars

  • Remains mostly unchanged.
  • Like the other subclasses, it provides ways to expend your Wild Shape uses outside of turning into animals.

The druid has some of the biggest changes coming in the 2024 Player's Handbook out of every class in the game. While exciting, many of these changes are controversial as players greatly enjoyed the nearly endless amount of hit points druids could previously access through Wild Shape.

That being said, dungeon mast🅠ers everywhere can breathe a collective sigh of relief for their future encounter balancing regarding parties with druids. No matter how you feel about the changes, we can all agree that happier dungeon masters are good💖 for the game.

Next
Dungeons & Dragons: 6 Ways The Cleric Class Is Changing In The 2024 Player's Handbook

Faith is not for the fickle.