Sub-Portal: DRUID

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Posted December 6th, 2006 by Shayalyn

by Zinn

If you like a class with options and versatility the druid might be the class for you. At its heart, the Druid is an arcane caster focused on dealing damage, but it also provides many options. The Druids has heals, buffs, utility spells, evacs, snares, and the ability shape shift herself and her group. The Druid also has amazing powers called Wonders and Calamities that can quickly change a chaotic losing fight into a winnable encounter. A druid is a veritable Swiss Army knife of a class that is well-suited for those who like variety in their play style.

Sigil's Official Description

Druids are powerful spell casters who use the power of nature to break their enemies and bolster their allies. Druids are able to call down very powerful destructive spells called Calamities and can also produce awesome beneficial effects through the use of abilities called Wonders. Druids are able to use their impressive powers to call elementals from the earth and sky.

Druid at a Glance

Races: Thestran, Halfling, Vulmane, Varanjar, Lesser Giant, Mordebi, Varathari, High Elf, Wood Elf, Half Elf

Armor: Light

Weapons: Daggers, one-handed blunt weapons and two-handed staffs.

Quick Links

Druid Creation Guide

Druid 11-20 Leveling Guide

Spells/Abilities Level 1-25

Spells/Abilities Level 26-50

Healing Guide for Druids

Kiting 101

Class News & Information:

PHENOMENON POINTS

Phenomenon points are stored natural energy that a druid accumulates over time. She can use these points to create Wonders or Calamities. Calamities can cause great devastation to an opponent while Wonders can be of great aid to a group. With Wonders and Calamities the Druid has the ability to quickly turn the tide of a battle that a group might otherwise lose.

Phenomenon points regenerate at one point per minute. These powers are designed to be special and far greater in power than normal spells. Examples of Druid Wonders and Calamities are Earthquake and Lifestream.

PETS

Druids can summon temporary elemental pets to aid them. These pets cannot be controlled and are more like a visual DoT than a pet. The pet will fight for the druid until the druid dies or if it is not engaged in combat for longer than 10 seconds. At high levels Druids gain access to longer lasting pets that can be controlled.

COUNTERSPELLS

Druids, like other arcane damage classes, have counterspells that will be able to nullify enemy caster spells. The counterspell could either completely nullify the spell or change the enemy spell into something beneficial to her group. For example, his level 30 counterspell, Healing Turn, may turn a damage spell into health for himself or his defensive target.

WEAKNESSES

A weakness is a player created vulnerability in your enemy that remains for a short period of time. Some weaknesses can be exploited by using certain skills. When one exploits a weakness the attack used becomes more powerful and may add more than additional damage but may debuff the enemy or buff you or your party. For more information on weaknesses please take a look at Ten Ton Hammer’s Weakness FAQ and chart.

CHANGING THE WEATHER

One of the most interesting features of Druids was Sigil’s plan that Druids would be able to control the weather.The plan was that some spells would be affected by the weather. Fire spells may do less damage in the rain while Lightening spells may do more damage. It has been mentioned that Vanguard will have dynamic weather patterns and Druids will be able to change the weather. Dynamic weather is slowly making its way into the game but it is unknown if these type Druid abilities are still in Sigil’s plans. One can only hope.

TYPES OF SPELLS

Damage Spells

While the Druid has many useful utility spells, his main role is that of a damage dealer. Druids have powerful Direct Damage (DD) spells and Damage over Time spells (DoTs). Their Calamities do extraordinary damage but can only be used on a limited basis

Heals Druids get small heals and can be used as a secondary healer. Their Lifestream wonder can also be used to greatly heal their group.

Buffs

Druids are excellent Buffers. Melee classes love them for their weapon damage buffs but they have many other beneficial buffs including damage shields, group run speed, AC buffs, levitate, increased resistances, increased strength, vitality and water breathing.

Druids also can create berries for themselves and their group mates.The berries can be eaten to restore health or cure poison.

Druids can also shapeshift themselves and their groups into a wolf form. While in wolf form melee attack speed, strength and dexterity increase.

Snares and Kiting

Druids of EQ were known for their ability to kite MOBs by the use of their snares. Druids can still kite and snare quite well in Vanguard. To learn more about kiting see Ten Ton Hammer’s kiting guide, Kiting 101.

Utility Spells

Druids get a little bit of everything. Direct damage spells, Dots, heals, evacs buffs, snares, some crowd control, underwater breathing, pets, shape shifting, wonders, calamities and more.