Druid Feat Question - Downloaded from the Wizards Community, all coding removed by Solauren

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 Krivonyak Sep 01, 2014 19:17:11	So, I'm one of those players who stubbornly refuses to play anything other than Humans. In this edition that means I get a feat and a skill, which I'm cool with.. but I'm planning on making a Moon Druid and I can't decide between Sentinel and Mage Slayer for him. Sentinel is good basically all the time espically since I just learned that Druids basically have a ton of Temp HP and can afford to stick to one BBEG at least for a little while. Also it's just a darn good feat. Mage Slayer is good simply because it can be used very effectively against a very scary type of enemy (mage, duh) and can lock them down fairly well. So since I can't decide between the two I'll let this forum do it for me! (Yay internet!) Oh, and I'm not completely dead set on just those two. I'm open to suggestions and maybe there is something I haven't seen or considered that I should. Thank y'all!
#2 Leugren Sep 01, 2014 22:16:29	I would strongly consider War Caster, Resilient (Con), and Resilient (Dex) before either of the feats you mention. A lot of your best spells require Concentration. Unless you want those spells to go poof during your first round in beast form, you'll definitely want to buff up your Concentration saves. Consider the following scenario: in the first round of combat you cast Faerie Fire on your foes, granting yourself and all of your allies advantage against the BBEG for up to 10 rounds, but only if you can maintain Concentration. You then turn into a Dire Wolf as a bonus action and go charging into combat drawing three attacks from your enemies over the next round. Given that your Constitution is 14, and that the minimum DC for Concentration is 10, how likely do you think it is that you will be able to maintain Concentration for more than a round or two? Now imagine that you have advantage on your Concentration checks, and that you also get to add your Profiiciency modifier to them. Suddenly, the prospect that everyone in your party will retain advantage on their attack rolls over the course of the four or five rounds that it will take to give the BBEG a nice dirt nap seems much brighter. And that's just the 1st-level Faerie Fire spell. Take a look at the Druid spell list and you will notice that the vast majority of your best spells require Concentration. Resilient(Con) and Resilient (Dex) also contribute to your role as a damage mitigator by keeping you on your feet in the face of poison, paralysis, petrification, dragon breath, fireballs, pit traps, etc.
(Reply to #2) Krivonyak	Leugren wrote:
#4 Polaris Sep 01, 2014 20:07:58	Talk to you DM before taking Warcaster especially if you are going Moon Druid. As a Moon Druid, you won't be casting most of the time (but yes that does mean you'll likely be making concentration checks). Instead you are more likely to be burning spell slots to heal yourself. In any event, you can't cast spells in Animal form (until level 18), and when you aren't, you'll almost assuredly be able to cast without worrying about Somatic Components. Also consider that you'll be using your beast form attributes not your own. Frankly I'd take Resiliant [Con] over War-Caster since it's more likely to be useful. -Polaris
#5 Leugren Sep 01, 2014 21:53:53	Polaris wrote:
#6 Polaris Sep 01, 2014 21:59:19	Leugren wrote:
#7 Leugren Sep 01, 2014 22:17:50	Polaris wrote:
#8 AtomicPope Sep 02, 2014 2:43:47	There are a few things to remember as a Moon Druid: * Beasts have a low AC * Your physical stats change * You can't cast spells * You gain Proficiency in Saves and Skills but don't lose Proficiency * You gain the attacks of the Beast Knowing this you'll NEED to take Resilience - Constitution to pass those Concentration Saves reliably. This should be your starting Feat. The Sentinel Feat will turn you into a bit of a Tank and give you a possible extra attack. If you're tanking you'll need to be conscious of your low Beast AC and the easiest way to get an AC boost is Barkskin. Savage Attacker is also a good Feat for Moon Druids, especially since your attacks per round tend to be low. Skulker gives you better Perception in Dim Light, and the ability to hide in light mist and fog like a Velociraptor from Jurassic Park. At higher level you can choose Allosaurus and then you'll be an absolute terror on and off the battlefield. Mobile gives you a speed boost of +10ft and the ability to Hit-n-Run. If you use this with a form that grants Knockdown you could just shut down a monster all day. So... think of the style of play you want and choose a Feat to support it, but remember you can't cast spells making your Concentration very important. You could be a Bird flying around and dropping Call Lightnings on Monsters who can't break your Concentration. It's annoying but it works.
#9 Leugren Sep 02, 2014 4:38:13	AtomicPope wrote:
#10 1eejit Sep 02, 2014 6:03:20	Other good Moon Druid feats includ the universally useful Lucky and the Bearhug-tastic Grappler.
#11 Gruff_Ironfist Sep 02, 2014 9:59:48	Leugren wrote:
#12 Lharn Sep 02, 2014 14:17:30	Savage Attacker allows a reroll for a melee weapon attack. Im sure some beast forms might be capable of wielding a weapon, but most wont.
#13 Kavrek Sep 02, 2014 14:30:24	Lharn wrote:
#14 RCanine Sep 02, 2014 15:28:22	Before you go rushing off to buff you con saves, remember just how few spell slots you have early game. IMHO there's no reason to waste a level 1 or 2 spell slot on a concentration spell for a few levels. Your magic is going to be far more useful in other parts of the game.
#15 Leugren Sep 02, 2014 15:37:09	RCanine wrote:
#16 RCanine Sep 02, 2014 16:50:52	Whereas I've spent most of my magic healing and avoiding non-combat challenges. I guess it varies a lot by table.
#17 7he_professor Sep 02, 2014 17:16:55	I'm building a Moon Druid for an upcoming game and my first two feat choices are War Caster and Sentinel. This lets me be as tank-y as possible while stil maintaining some caster support spells via Concentration. The recommendations for Resilient (constitution) are highly over-valued until at least level 8+ in my opinion. Either way...just my 2 cp
(Reply to #4) DSZ	Polaris wrote:
#19 Polaris Sep 03, 2014 12:00:03	DSZ wrote:
#20 Squad Sep 03, 2014 12:14:40	Gruff_Ironfist wrote:
#21 LongTimeLurker Sep 06, 2014 10:30:43	Plus don't forget that you get to use the CON mod of the creature you changed into. Giant Boar has a 16 con, has the most hps (42) and Relentless may let you soak an extra attack before being shifted back (or let you avoid blow through damage and shift back on your own turn).

Post/Author/DateTime

Post

Krivonyak

Sep 01, 2014 19:17:11

So, I'm one of those players who stubbornly refuses to play anything other than Humans. In this edition that means I get a feat and a skill, which I'm cool with.. but I'm planning on making a Moon Druid and I can't decide between Sentinel and Mage Slayer for him.

Sentinel is good basically all the time espically since I just learned that Druids basically have a ton of Temp HP and can afford to stick to one BBEG at least for a little while. Also it's just a darn good feat.

Mage Slayer is good simply because it can be used very effectively against a very scary type of enemy (mage, duh) and can lock them down fairly well.

So since I can't decide between the two I'll let this forum do it for me! (Yay internet!)

Oh, and I'm not completely dead set on just those two. I'm open to suggestions and maybe there is something I haven't seen or considered that I should. Thank y'all!

Leugren

Sep 01, 2014 22:16:29

I would strongly consider War Caster, Resilient (Con), and Resilient (Dex) before either of the feats you mention. A lot of your best spells require Concentration. Unless you want those spells to go poof during your first round in beast form, you'll definitely want to buff up your Concentration saves. Consider the following scenario: in the first round of combat you cast Faerie Fire on your foes, granting yourself and all of your allies advantage against the BBEG for up to 10 rounds, but only if you can maintain Concentration. You then turn into a Dire Wolf as a bonus action and go charging into combat drawing three attacks from your enemies over the next round. Given that your Constitution is 14, and that the minimum DC for Concentration is 10, how likely do you think it is that you will be able to maintain Concentration for more than a round or two? Now imagine that you have advantage on your Concentration checks, and that you also get to add your Profiiciency modifier to them. Suddenly, the prospect that everyone in your party will retain advantage on their attack rolls over the course of the four or five rounds that it will take to give the BBEG a nice dirt nap seems much brighter. And that's just the 1st-level Faerie Fire spell. Take a look at the Druid spell list and you will notice that the vast majority of your best spells require Concentration. Resilient(Con) and Resilient (Dex) also contribute to your role as a damage mitigator by keeping you on your feet in the face of poison, paralysis, petrification, dragon breath, fireballs, pit traps, etc.

(Reply to #2)

Krivonyak

Leugren wrote:

Polaris

Sep 01, 2014 20:07:58

Talk to you DM before taking Warcaster especially if you are going Moon Druid. As a Moon Druid, you won't be casting most of the time (but yes that does mean you'll likely be making concentration checks). Instead you are more likely to be burning spell slots to heal yourself. In any event, you can't cast spells in Animal form (until level 18), and when you aren't, you'll almost assuredly be able to cast without worrying about Somatic Components.

Also consider that you'll be using your beast form attributes not your own. Frankly I'd take Resiliant [Con] over War-Caster since it's more likely to be useful.

-Polaris

Leugren

Sep 01, 2014 21:53:53

Polaris wrote:

Polaris

Sep 01, 2014 21:59:19

Leugren wrote:

Leugren

Sep 01, 2014 22:17:50

Polaris wrote:

AtomicPope

Sep 02, 2014 2:43:47

There are a few things to remember as a Moon Druid:
* Beasts have a low AC

* Your physical stats change
* You can't cast spells

* You gain Proficiency in Saves and Skills but don't lose Proficiency

* You gain the attacks of the Beast

Knowing this you'll NEED to take Resilience - Constitution to pass those Concentration Saves reliably. This should be your starting Feat.

The Sentinel Feat will turn you into a bit of a Tank and give you a possible extra attack. If you're tanking you'll need to be conscious of your low Beast AC and the easiest way to get an AC boost is Barkskin.

Savage Attacker is also a good Feat for Moon Druids, especially since your attacks per round tend to be low.

Skulker gives you better Perception in Dim Light, and the ability to hide in light mist and fog like a Velociraptor from Jurassic Park. At higher level you can choose Allosaurus and then you'll be an absolute terror on and off the battlefield.

Mobile gives you a speed boost of +10ft and the ability to Hit-n-Run. If you use this with a form that grants Knockdown you could just shut down a monster all day.

So... think of the style of play you want and choose a Feat to support it, but remember you can't cast spells making your Concentration very important. You could be a Bird flying around and dropping Call Lightnings on Monsters who can't break your Concentration. It's annoying but it works.

Leugren

Sep 02, 2014 4:38:13

AtomicPope wrote:

#10

1eejit

Sep 02, 2014 6:03:20

Other good Moon Druid feats includ the universally useful Lucky and the Bearhug-tastic Grappler.

#11

Gruff_Ironfist

Sep 02, 2014 9:59:48

Leugren wrote:

#12

Lharn

Sep 02, 2014 14:17:30

Savage Attacker allows a reroll for a melee weapon attack. Im sure some beast forms might be capable of wielding a weapon, but most wont.

#13

Kavrek

Sep 02, 2014 14:30:24

Lharn wrote:

#14

RCanine

Sep 02, 2014 15:28:22

Before you go rushing off to buff you con saves, remember just how few spell slots you have early game. IMHO there's no reason to waste a level 1 or 2 spell slot on a concentration spell for a few levels. Your magic is going to be far more useful in other parts of the game.

#15

Leugren

Sep 02, 2014 15:37:09

RCanine wrote:

#16

RCanine

Sep 02, 2014 16:50:52

Whereas I've spent most of my magic healing and avoiding non-combat challenges. I guess it varies a lot by table.

#17

7he_professor

Sep 02, 2014 17:16:55

I'm building a Moon Druid for an upcoming game and my first two feat choices are War Caster and Sentinel. This lets me be as tank-y as possible while stil maintaining some caster support spells via Concentration. The recommendations for Resilient (constitution) are highly over-valued until at least level 8+ in my opinion.

Either way...just my 2 cp

(Reply to #4)

DSZ

Polaris wrote:

#19

Polaris

Sep 03, 2014 12:00:03

DSZ wrote:

#20

Squad

Sep 03, 2014 12:14:40

Gruff_Ironfist wrote:

#21

LongTimeLurker

Sep 06, 2014 10:30:43

Plus don't forget that you get to use the CON mod of the creature you changed into.

Giant Boar has a 16 con, has the most hps (42) and Relentless may let you soak an extra attack before being shifted back (or let you avoid blow through damage and shift back on your own turn).