Wield the powers of nature with our druid optimisation guide for D&D 2024.
Druids are hugely versatile spellcasters that can easily operate as healers, ranged damage dealers, battlefield controllers and in a bunch of other utility roles. Not only this, but their wild shape makes them capable of tackling combat on the front lines as well as providing them with a bunch of utility tactics outside of combat.
Unlike wizards (who obtain magic through study of the weave) or clerics (who obtain their magic from the gods), druids obtain their magic from the powers inherent in nature. But nature is a varied thing, and different druids will dedicate themselves to different aspects of nature to obtain their magic. This could come from terrestrial sources like the land and the sea, or from celestial sources like the moon and the stars.
With the introduction of D&D 2024, Wizards of the Coast have completely overhauled the druid class. With that come a load of quality of life improvements that make playing as a druid more interesting and more versatile. I’ve gone over exactly how a 2024 druid can be played, built and optimised in the guide below.
At a glance
Strengths
- Full spellcaster with a strong range of healing, buff and debuff spells
- Wildshape provides lots of utility and can be useful in combat with the right subclass
- Highly adaptable spellcasting class
Weaknesses
- Not great when it comes to just dealing damage
- Wildshape is only good in combat if you play a moon druid
What’s changing for druids in D&D 2024?
Quite a lot. Druids get a big reworking of the entire class with many things changed considerably. If you want to read about these in detail, check out my article on the druid changes, or you can read my briefer summary below:
- Wild shape has had a big overhaul. Now, it doesn’t use 2 separate stacks of hit points, it instead grants you temporary hit points and can be activated using a bonus action
- Bigger spell lists
- Many spells have been reworked
- Options to either hone your martial prowess further or your spellcasting prowess
- Subclasses (especially the circle of the moon and circle of the land) have been updated for better flavour and abilities
- A brand new subclass called the circle of the sea
Tactics
Druids are versatile spellcasters. They’re not exclusively good at spellcasting like wizards and sorcerers, but do possess powerful spells like other full casters and unlike half casters like rangers and paladins (who are a bit more weapon-oriented). With this comes a bunch of tactics you can employ as a druid:
Healing
Druids are full casters, and with their nature powers comes a load of healing. They’re not quite as profound healers as clerics, but they’re the next best thing if you don’t have one in the party.
Wild shape for utility
Wild shape is a hugely versatile feature. It’ll let you transform into a bunch of different creatures. It tends to be best for scouting as it will let you swim, climb, get small and eventually fly.
It grants temporary hit points too and potentially some handy attacks. The problem is that the power-scaling is rarely going to mean you’ll do more damage than your humanoid form or have a great AC. That is unless you play a moon druid, in which case, your wild shape can be an excellent tool for combat.
Wild shape can be used for other things too
Wild shape isn’t just limited to transforming into a beast, you can also use it to summon a familiar or for some of your subclass powers like transforming into a starry form (which empowers you in combat) or creating a watery emanation to harm your foes.
Battlefield control
Druids possess lots of great spells for controlling the battlefield. Think entangle, spike growth and similar spells that can cause a lot of problems for enemies. What they lack in damage dealing, they more than make up for in this department. You can check out my druid spell guide for more advice on what spells to pick.
Versatile
Druids can work as a frontline caster, a backline caster or even as a melee combatant. And you can even switch roles fairly easily. You’ll rarely be the most effective class at any of these, but you range from adequate to pretty good at all of them. And outside of combat, spellcasting and wild shape mean you can adapt to many situations here too.
Creating an optimised druid build
Creating a great druid build isn’t always easy. They fulfil a lot of roles and have a lot of utility elements to consider. You also have the usual complications of spellcasting (made more complicated by the utility nature of many of their spells) combined with the added complexity of wild shape.
To help you out, I’ve provided some guidance on different aspects of character creation.
Ability score
Recommended options
- Wisdom: Druids use wisdom as their spellcasting ability so you’ll want to make sure this is maximised. A bunch of subclass features also use wisdom.
- Dexterity: You’ll need this for a decent AC outside of your wild shape. Moon druids can worry less about this but others will need to make sure it’s at least fairly high. You can opt for the warden primal order for medium armor proficiency if you want to invest less in dexterity.
- Constitution: Constitution is important for giving you the extra durability you’ll need, especially if you’re on the frontlines.
Options to avoid
- Charisma: You’ve got little need for this unless you’re needed to be the face of the party. Druids aren’t really built to be a party face but some charisma skills from your background and some investment here could make you passable if required. Otherwise, this can be dumped.
- Intelligence: This can be dumped, you don’t need it other than for skills and you can enhance some of these with primal order magician.
- Strength: This can be dumped.
| Ability score | Point Buy | Standard Array |
|---|---|---|
| Strength | 8 | 8 |
| Dexterity | 15 | 14 |
| Constitution | 15 | 13 |
| Intelligence | 8 | 10 |
| Wisdom | 15 | 15 |
| Charisma | 8 | 12 |
Skills
Recommended options
- Perception: Important for anyone in the party and highly used.
- Insight: Important face skill.
- Nature: Decent knowledge skill.
- Arcana: Decent knowledge skill.
- Religion: Decent knowledge skill.
Options to avoid
Animal handling: Used far too little to be of much use.
Medicine: Magic is a much more effective form of healing.
Best druid species
When picking a race for your druid, I’d keep the following considerations in mind:
- Innate spellcasting: Druids have plenty of spell slots and are great at casting spells so innate spellcasting gives you a chance to grab some spells from other class lists that you can repeat use effectively.
- Increased resilience: Druids can be used as tanks and melee combatants, but aren’t as naturally suited to durability as the likes of barbarians and paladins are. This means that any resistances, hit points or other durability features you can pick up with a race, the better!
- Overlapping utility options: Druids have a lot of utility options that can overlap with species traits. This may mean wasting features and can include things like flight, swimming, healing and features that don’t work with your wild shape (which is mostly problematic for moon druids).
Recommended options
Dwarf (2024): An extra hit point per level will stack with your wild shape really nicely.
Elf (2024): Grab some innate utility spells and an extra skill.
Gnome (2024): Out of combat utility through spells and some resilience to magic.
Human (2024): Your best option for a moon druid. Grab an extra origin feat and an extra skill proficiency. Plus you get a free use of heroic inspiration every day. All of this can easily be used alongside wild shape.
Tielfing (2024): Lots of innate spells to repeat cast and a resistance for extra durability.
Backgrounds
Backgrounds are much more important now with D&D 2024 as the ability score increases previously tied to your race/species are now linked to your background. Remember that you can either choose to increase one of the ability score options from a background by 2 and the other by 1, or you can choose to increase all 3 ability scores by 1.
You also get an origin feat linked to your background too.
For druids, you need to make sure you prioritise wisdom for your ability score increase with all the spells you can expect to launch. There’s also benefits for the cantrip damage boost from elemental fury and certain subclass features that are enhanced by wisdom too. Any background without this isn’t worth taking.
Of these backgrounds, the ones with the best other features for a druid are:
| Name | Ability scores | Origin feat | Skill proficiencies | Tool proficiency |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Farmer | Strength, constitution, wisdom | Tough | Animal handling, nature | Carpenter’s tools |
| Guide | Dexterity, constitution, wisdom | Magic initiate (druid) | Stealth, survival | Cartographer’s tools |
| Sage | Constitution, intelligence, wisdom | Magic initiate (wizard) | Arcana, history | Calligrapher’s tools |
| Sailor | Strength, dexterity, wisdom | Tavern brawler | Acrobatics, perception | Navigator’s tools |
| Scribe | Dexterity, intelligence, wisdom | Skilled | Investigation, perception | Calligrapher’s supplies |
| Wayfarer | Dexterity, wisdom, charisma | Lucky | Insight, stealth | Thieves’ tools |
I’d say farmer, wayfarer and scribe are your best options out of these, but may depend on what you need for your build.
Choosing your subclass
Druids specialise in their circle at level 3. Some gain enhancements to their wildshape form, others gain enhanced spellcasting while others can harnass the elements to support them in combat. Below are all the druid subclasses that have been released for D&D 2024 (though you can still use subclasses from the 2014 version of the rules too).
Circle of the Land
Druids of this circle draw their powers from the various biomes of the land. They are master spellcaster with an adaptable set of spells.
Circle of the Moon
Drawing on the power of the moon, these druids have access to enhanced wildshape forms, making them a powerful and tough opponent in melee combat.
Circle of the Sea
These druids gain their powers from the sea, and they harnass this with short range effects and defences.
Circle of Stars
Gaining power from the stars, these druids take on a starry form to transform them into a more effective warrior or spellcaster. These druids tend to work best dealing with enemies at range.
Feats
Origin feats
To help with picking your background (or if you’re playing a Human, which works really well for a druid), I’ve evaluated your origin feat options for a druid:
Recommended options
- Alert: Ensures your initiative rolls are higher allowing you to go earlier in combat. Works best on a spell-focused druid that wants to land an AoE spell early in combat (the best time to do this normally).
- Lucky: Great on any class to have some extra rerolls available.
- Magic initiate: Grab some extra spells known from another spell list. Something like toll the dead from the wizard’s spell list will outperform starry wisps for damage.
- Musician: A generally excellent origin feat for helping your allies out with some heroic inspiration (kind of like a slightly better lucky, you give to your friends).
- Tough: Really valuable extra hit points for a moon druid who can expect to take a beating. Decent for other druids as resilience is always useful.
General feats
At level 4, you can start picking up general feats.
Recommended options
- Fey touched: Misty step is great (and you don’t get it with your class). Plus you get more spells known.
- Inspiring leader: Temporary hit points after every rest for your whole party is very handy. Just remember, it won’t stack with wild shape temporary hit points so may not work as well for a moon druid (though your party will still thank you).
- Resilient: Grab proficiency in constitution saving throws to help you maintain concentration. Is a little less useful for a moon druid, but still handy.
- Shadow touched: Invisibility and an illusion spell are great for a caster class.
- Warcaster: Great for better concentration and spells as opportunity attacks. probably best for something like a sea druid who sits on the frontlines but also uses concentration spells a lot.
Epic boon feats
Choose an epic boon which will grant you a super feat and an ability score increase that also allows your ability scores to go above the usual maximum of 20!
Recommended options
- Boon of fortitude: A big stack of extra hit points is great for melee druids (primarily moon druids).
- Boon of recovery: Another great one for moon druids. Allows you to heal yourself with a bonus action and recover half your hit points if you’re reduced to 0.
- Boon of fate: Universally useful for ensuring crucial d20 rolls are passed or failed.
- Boon of dimensional travel: Free uses of misty step every turn keeps you safe or allows you to move easily between targets. Druids don’t naturally get misty step so a particularly handy one.
Weapons
Druids have much better options than weapons in almost every situation. Here’s a few alternatives you should be using instead of weapons:
- Wild shape: Even if you’re not a circle of the moon druid, there are wild shape options that are better than a druid’s weapon attacks.
- Shillelagh: Grab a club or quarterstaff and this will be better than your standard attacks.
- starry wisps: Your best damage dealing cantrip for ranged combat that beats any ranged weapons you could use.
Armor
Use studded leather armor and a shield. A shield is definitely worth taking as you’ll rarely need both hands for something more useful.
If you take the warden primal order, half plate might be your best option for medium armor. Keep in mind that there’s no longer a restriction on the use of metal armor for druids.
Other class guides
Not sure a druid is for you. Not to worry, why not check out one of our other class guides.
