Druids

[Rhûn]

Although I like the role-playing value of the druid, are there any real plusses to having one in your party over, say, a cleric?

[Luis Antonio]

Different spells, different level up values, different armors. He can also be used as a healer, but his focus on the spells is different. Also, he is a bit more vulnerable due to the lack of heavy armor. And, in BG this is a bit of a concern but not much since you wont use him as a tank, he wont have magical weapons except for the staff.

Its a very good character, I prefer Druids to Clerics always. Better roleplaying and better spells.

[Jaldur]

i don't but can druids shapeshift in BG1?

[Luis Antonio]

Only in the end. They dont start with this hability, they receive it at fifth level, as I recall.

[Curry]

[QUOTE=Rhûn]Although I like the role-playing value of the druid, are there any real plusses to having one in your party over, say, a cleric?[/QUOTE]

No.

They have different spells but clerics have better spells and they are more useful in battle.

[Luis Antonio]

@Curry, why?

[Erenor]

I believe that the cleric is much more useful at a lower level, when you just need a healer most of the time. In BG the druid is kinda weak early on, b/c the cleric has almost all the same spells and a few more to boot. Shapeshifting is definately cool later on, though, and it's true that druids are a better role-playing class, in my opinion anyway.

[VonDondu]

Druids are just plain weird. And I've never understood why their Charisma is supposed to be 15 or higher. I've never seen a charismatic Druid. Jaheira? Faldorn? Cernd? Any of the other NPC Druids? All of them are arrogant and sound pretty silly when they try to talk tough.

[Erenor]

[QUOTE=VonDondu]Druids are just plain weird. And I've never understood why their Charisma is supposed to be 15 or higher. I've never seen a charismatic Druid. Jaheira? Faldorn? Cernd? Any of the other NPC Druids? All of them are arrogant and sound pretty silly when they try to talk tough.[/QUOTE]

Yeah, I don't understand the need for a high Charisma either. All three of them have the minimum 15 CHA, though, so maybe that has something to do with it. They are all pretty surly, if you ask me.

Hey, does anyone have any idea why druids can use scimitars and daggers, but no other metal weapons? Does anyone know the role-playing significance of that?

[Luis Antonio]

Actually, the roll of the druid is to guide people out and to help animals, so they are supposed to be kind creatures.

[VonDondu]

[QUOTE=Erenor]Yeah, I don't understand the need for a high Charisma either. All three of them have the minimum 15 CHA, though, so maybe that has something to do with it. They are all pretty surly, if you ask me.[/QUOTE]
Look at it this way. Jaheira, Faldorn, and Cernd have 15 CHA because that is the minimum requirement for Druids and they're supposed to be Druids. There's no other justification for their high Charisma.

Something tells me that every Druid in existence only has the minimum required Charisma. I don't even know what a Druid with CHA 18 would look like.

[Luis Antonio]

@Vondondu: A fairy?

[VonDondu]

Or perhaps a nymph.

[FireLighter]

[QUOTE=Erenor]Yeah, I don't understand the need for a high Charisma either. All three of them have the minimum 15 CHA, though, so maybe that has something to do with it. They are all pretty surly, if you ask me.[/QUOTE]
Um, I think it has something to do with if you have any less, wild animals (bears) will attack you on sight. And if you get attacked by all the animals you see, well, you're not a very good druid are you?
Same as rangers if i remember correctly.

[Erenor]

You'd think having Jaheira or a Druid PC walking around animals in BG wouldn't get them eaten, but it has no effect whatsoever that I can see. If you stay too close to a black bear or brown bear for more than about five seconds, you get attacked no matter what unless you feel like using a charm animal spell. You'd think it would be a natural ability for druids instead of a spell. Wolves and Cave/Mountain/Polar bears seem to always start hostile. I guess they're hungrier or something...

[Coot]

In terms of power, clerics are far more useful than druids. There's a lot of undead running around in both BG and BG2. In BG, the only thing druids have going for them is the 'call lightning' spell, which can only be used outdoors. By the time druids get their shapechanging abilities, those abilities are pretty much obsolete. IWD2 did a little better in that area.
Also, in terms of roleplaying, I never understood the whole neutral alignment thing (I actually don't understand the whole alignment thing in BG but that has been debated to death) and the whole we-must-have-balance-ideology.
In addition, almost all druids presented in the BG-series are very much uncharismatic! And both Faldorn and Cernd are among the least popular npc's.

[Curry]

[QUOTE=Luis Antonio]@Curry, why?[/QUOTE]

Less equipment restrictions IIRC

[Coot]

And better THAC0.

[TheAmazingOopah]

I prefer the clerics too. I just don't like this whole 'true neutral' thing, and the druids this game has to offer (Jaheira, Faldorn) aren't as good as the clerics in the game (Yeslick, Viconia, Branwen etc.). I think clerics are better in combat and have better spells.
Druids in sidequests are okay (Cloakwood), as they put some spice in the story. I hope that in Baldur's Gate, they will be more usefull as NPC's too.

[lompo]

[QUOTE=Coot]And better THAC0.[/QUOTE]

Well Thac0 should be exactly the same between clerics and druids, and same goes for saving throws improvement.