Original Video:
*This article is an edited version of the script for this video
Race:
Tortle, we have a -2 to dexterity and strength and the class we’re going restricts what armor we can wear so it’s going to be nearly impossible to get a decent AC without going tortle
Ability Scores:
We kind of already went over ability scores in the intro but if you did roll anything higher than 7, which I hope you did, I would put those in wisdom and/or constitution
Ideal Equipment:
One nice thing about this build is that it’s cheap. You just need a spellcasting focus
Level 1: Druid 1
-We will be druid all the way since our scores are too low to multiclass even if we took all half feats.
-Spells:
—Cantrips: Guidance, Any Ranged Cantrip
—1st: Fog Cloud(because it doesn’t use our wisdom), Faerie Fire and Entangle could be ok but our spell save DC is 8. Also keep in mind for the first 3 levels of druid we can only prepare 1 spell because of our -2 in wisdom.
-Basically just try to survive level 1. Or you could just die and roll a new character. Possibly the better option.
Level 2: Druid 2
-Druid Circle: Circle of the Moon. How do we deal with bad stats, we turn into something with better ones. The circle of the moon solves at least half of the problems we have by itself, especially in these early levels
-CR 1 Wild Shape Forms: The forms you’ll usually want to be using at CR 1 are the Brown Bear and the Dire Wolf
Levels 3-4: Druid 3-4
2nd level spells: Pass Without Trace and Spike Growth will be our best options that don’t rely on wisdom
Feat: Resilient: Con, mainly for help with concentration checks but will boost all of our constitution saving throws. This includes the saves we make while wild shaped.
Level 5: Druid 5
-3rd level spells: Conjure Animals is the big one, it doesn’t rely on our wisdom and is one of the best damage spells in the game. You’ll usually want to summon 8 CR 1/4 beasts. This spell is extremely powerful if you are able to choose what beasts you get but a lot of tables aren’t going to let you do that. The way we do it here at Arbitrary 20 is choosing randomly from all 1/4 beasts. There are websites like 5e.tools that can automatically do this for you. I think it helps the spell be more balanced but definitely still good. For damage numbers I’m going to show one with a stronger 1/4 creature and one with a weaker 1/4 creature, though you’ll likely end up with something in between.
-Some other 3rd level spells to consider: Aura of Vitality, Dispel Magic, Revivify
Tactics:
Conjure Animals lasts an hour so if you can I would try to cast it before combat but if you’re not able to just use your action on round 1 to cast it. Then, after you have Conjure animals up just use your bonus action to wild shape and then attack.
DPR(Damage Per Round) Vs 16 AC:
Brown Bear: 11.3
Dire Wolf(advantage): 8.18
Brown Bear + 8 Pteranodons: 32.5
Brown Bear(no advantage) + 8 Velociraptors(advantage): 71.78
Levels 6-9: Druid 6-9
-We’ll unlock CR 2 and 3 forms in this time. The CR 2 forms I would recommend are the Polar Bear and the Giant Elk. The CR 3 forms I would recommend are the Ankylosaurus and the Giant Scorpion. Also, don’t forget you unlock flying forms at level 8.
-We will also get 4th and 5th level spells. For 4th level I would recommend Guardian of Nature, Conjure Woodland Beings, and Polymorph. You’ll probably want to use your 5th level slots to upcast Conjure Animals but you can also take some utility spells like Greater Restoration.
-Feat: Crusher, +1 Con. Combines well with things like Spike Growth if we are using wild shape forms that do bludgeoning damage. This also brings us to a 9 Con and we get 8 additional hp. Never thought I would say that lol.
Level 10: Druid 10
-Elemental Wild Shape: This feature is one of the biggest jumps in power the moon druid gets. All of the elementals have their uses but the Air Elemental and Fire Elemental are probably best overall.
Our tactics are pretty much the same but I would like to show the DPR numbers again here at level 10 using Elemental Wild Shape. In combat, I would pretty much always use Elemental Wild Shape over regular Wild Shape.
DPR Vs 18 AC:
Air Elemental(2 slams): 16.3
Fire Elemental(ignite damage applied once): 13.96
Air Elemental + 16 Pteranodons: 49.1
Air Elemental(no advantage) + 16 Velociraptors(advantage): 118.06
Levels 11+:
-Our tactics will pretty much remain the same for the rest of this characters career. Our big increases to damage will be getting 7th and 9th level spell slots to upcast Conjure Animals. Shapechange could also be a good option for that 9th level slot.
-In terms of feats, I would be sure to pick up 1 more Con half feat to get to 10 to increase our HP and Con saves again. I also like Gift of the Chromatic dragon, it basically gives us Absorb Elements but we can use it in Wild Shape and we can make an ally’s weapon deal a bit more damage.
-In terms of spell selection, I would mainly go with utility spells as its going to be hard to beat just upcasting Conjure Animals in terms of damage. Things like Heroes’ Feast, Transport via Plants, and Plane Shift. If you do want different combat options just to change it up Conjure Fey and Animal Shapes are not too bad.
DPR Vs 20 AC:
Air Elemental: 13.5
Air Elemental + 24 Pteranodons: 48.3
Air Elemental(no advantage) + 24 Velociraptors(advantage): 132.54
Air Elemental + 32 Pteranodons: 59.9
Air Elemental(no advantage) + 32 Velociraptors(advantage): 172.22
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