# RPing Evil Druid



## lordcloaker (Oct 24, 2005)

How do you roleplay a Evil Druid ? Normally when you think evil you think about mass destruction, killing spree and other silly normal evil things. Evil sometimes involves domination (tirany, etc)... but how does evil fit with a druid ? Druids can be LN, NN, CN, NG, and Neutral Evil. PHB says its normal for Gnoll Druids (accepted but not liked), but its not my focus on Gnolls, just the alignment really.

Druids praise life and the living, which really fit well goodie guys. I can see a Evil druid being harsh (death maybe?) on expanding farmers destroying a forest, but other than that I really cant see how a evil druid acts and sees the world. Anyone played one ? Tips, ideas ? Anything will help.

Thanks in advance


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## Brother MacLaren (Oct 24, 2005)

1) Civilization is a threat to nature and must be wiped out.  Personally, I hate this variant, but it's the one most often raised.
2) Druidic magic is a source of power, to be used and exploited just as arcane magic or any other source of power would be.  Animals can be useful servants or warriors (properly directed), and the ability to alter the weather can destroy an army.  The druid dominates and controls nature.  My favorite.
3) The druid likes being red in tooth and claw.  He is the top predator in his world, and everything else is prey.   Nothing personal, you understand.  Good for a warshaper/nature's warrior type.
4) The druid serves an evil nature god; the god of plague-infested swamps and rabid wolves.  
5) The druid used to be good, but has become corrupted; perhaps a blighter.


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## Twiggly the Gnome (Oct 24, 2005)

In my Eberron game, I have a Unseelie Greensinger Druid NPC who's a bit of a malicious prankster.


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## jgbrowning (Oct 24, 2005)

Have the druid plan on warping a small village of humans into the mutant version of honey ants. But have the sugar be a weapon that can be used against larger population centers. The end goal: the druid living off the fat of the effort of others—literally.

joe b.


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## Voadam (Oct 24, 2005)

Eco terrorists.

Human sacrifices.

Evil sorcerer whose magic is nature based.

Greatest game hunter.

Protects sacred grove with extreme prejudice.

Goes for power within druid circle ruthlessly.

Druids are often advisors to kings in mythology, an evil power behind the throne in a tribe is easy to see.

Likes kittens, kicks babies.

Curse master (think of witch stories for the archetype).


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## Testament (Oct 24, 2005)

First thing that comes into my mind is "Ultimate Predator".  This is THEIR territory, and everything else that comes in is a trespasser, prey, or both.

Ecoterrorist is the other one that comes to mind.  Like a Werewolf: The Apocalypse game gone into full cliche mode.


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## Sejs (Oct 25, 2005)

Self-centered.

Predatory.

Egotistical.

Bemused.

Sarcastic.


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## kolikeos (Oct 25, 2005)

an evil druid might not see himself as protecting nature, he may be munipulating the power of nature for his own goals. animals are there to be his slaves and servants, trees are to be his animated army (not unlike the nacromancer with his army of the dead). there is no bueaty in nature, it is there to be used by those with the power to use it.


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## Oryan77 (Oct 25, 2005)

Yeah I have an evil Druid Gnome that is hunting down the PC's. I created him as the overprotecting master of an evil grove. The grove isn't impressive at all, rocks, dirt, fiendish wildlife, dead looking trees, no green plants, ect ect; but it's beautiful to him and he keeps it looking that way. When a PC druid died and the party buried him in this grove (not knowing about the evil Druid), the evil Druid was furious about the PC's tainting his grove with the body of a good creature, and a good Druid to top it off. So he hunted the party down for revenge.


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## Henry (Oct 25, 2005)

In Eberron, the Ashbound are typically the "civilization is evil" types, but there is another type: The Children of Winter, who believe (as your druid could) that the world is due for a rebirth, and the only way to hasten this cycle of rebirth is to corrupt and destroy as much as possible. So, to hasten the greater good of the Rebirth, you corrupt and destroy now.


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## deClench (Oct 25, 2005)

Henry said:
			
		

> In Eberron, the Ashbound are typically the "civilization is evil" types, but there is another type: The Children of Winter, who believe (as your druid could) that the world is due for a rebirth, and the only way to hasten this cycle of rebirth is to corrupt and destroy as much as possible. So, to hasten the greater good of the Rebirth, you corrupt and destroy now.





The beauty of the Children of Winter is that they can be played along the spectrum of evil.  They can actively seek to hasten that "rebirth" as you say or they can take a more "red in tooth and claw" as mentioned earlier.  Everything this latter version does is with brutal efficiency with no dissenting conscience.  They are the epitome of the dark side of nature: following need and desire rather than rational thought.  They have no real goals; they are simply living as an animal.  They live "survival of the fittest."  I would actually view those trying to proactively hasten a "rebirth" as an extreme sect.

Cheers.


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## Teemu (Oct 25, 2005)

Lordcloaker, you’ve ever watched the news?

Earthquakes killing thousands; hurricanes and forest fires destroying everything in their paths; tsunamis obliterating thousands and thousands of lives, families, and homes; diseases reaping people; floods devastating towns and villages.

Then there’s the smaller stuff, such as random attacks by animals.

Have you ever watched nature documentaries? Predators don’t necessarily kill their targets as quickly as possible. Killer whales, among others, play with their prey before killing and eating them. 

There’s supposed to be Good in nature?


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## Reynard (Oct 25, 2005)

Voadam said:
			
		

> Goes for power within druid circle ruthlessly.




I like this one best.  Still a druid.  Still doing druidy things.  But when it comes to that old 'single combat' thing, poison and politics all the way.  Whee!

(and he's definitely not a hippie  )


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## Olgar Shiverstone (Oct 26, 2005)

Reynard -- you make me miss the 1E druid, who had to challenge his superiors for mastery to gain levels (much like the 1E monk, too).


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## Wormwood (Oct 26, 2005)

Two words:

Wicker Man


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## fusangite (Oct 26, 2005)

We learned, initially, of the druids from the Romans who did believe them to be Neutral Evil. I would take seeing all living things in the same category to its logical conclusion -- cannibalism, human sacrifice, bestiality, etc.


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## Trepelano (Oct 26, 2005)

I usually think of druids as viewing nature through their alignment.  Good druids tend to see nature as a benefactor, Chaotic druids tend to see nature as wild and untameable, Lawful druids tend to see nature as inviolate and orderly, Evil druids tend to see nature as brutal and savage.

These views are broad enough to allow druids of the same alignment to still have some variety in personalities.


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## Hatchling Dragon (Oct 26, 2005)

lordcloaker said:
			
		

> Druids praise life and the living, which really fit well goodie guys. I can see a Evil druid being harsh (death maybe?) on expanding farmers destroying a forest, but other than that I really cant see how a evil druid acts and sees the world. Anyone played one ? Tips, ideas ? Anything will help.




Evil can be a matter of perception.  What we consider 'evil' isn't always such to those that practice it.  Think of Ecco-terrorists of today, destroying the 'evils of civilization' that are themselfs destroying nature.  Think of those same people actualy being granted power from Nature itself.  What better way to stop those that are destroying all you hold dear than to use the powers you were given to stop them, thus prooving that your ideals were better all along.  After all, in nature only the strong survive, and you are obivously the stronger.  You have Mother Nature herself on your side!


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## TheAuldGrump (Oct 26, 2005)

Wormwood said:
			
		

> Two words:
> 
> Wicker Man




We'll keep the fire burnin' for ya!

And do not forget The Wild Hunt...

The Auld Grump - Nature, red in tooth and claw...


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## Sejs (Oct 26, 2005)

> There’s supposed to be Good in nature?




No, there's not supposed to be any of that stuff in there either.  Just Neutral through and through.


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## Tonguez (Oct 26, 2005)

I have a Druid BBEG (Level 18) he is the master of the wild hunt and surrounds himself with werewolfs, cannibal pixies and storm elementals. He hunts the Dark Forest killing (at eating) with savage furyanything that crosses his path


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## Psychotic Jim (Oct 26, 2005)

How about combining a few of the known archetypes? What about taking the "Purifier" concept and mixing it with the "Survival of the Fittest"? What if the evil druid took developed a twisted take on Social Darwinism and used it to justify a brutal status quo? Perhaps focusing on eliminating all forms of charity and mercy as it only makes survival of the species weaker in the long run.


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## TheAuldGrump (Oct 26, 2005)

I am amazed that Darkness has not yet shown up to discuss the Druids in the Scarred Lands... some _really_ evil examples there...

The Auld Grump


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## Li Shenron (Oct 26, 2005)

For me the easiest way would be just that of a Druid who hates humans and other civilized folks. Considers them responsible for corrupting the earth or escaping nature's rules, and occasionally spills human blood to satisfy the earth's thirst.


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## Edena_of_Neith (Oct 26, 2005)

I had thoughts on evil druids, and it caused me to take a new look at trees.
  Consider just how powerful an animated tree would be.  It must hold up it's own immense weight just as a normal tree, and withstand windstorms which generate truly colossal forces against it.
  Now, it is walking, talking, flexing it's branches ... and anything in it's way is history.
  Now, when the entire forest gets involved, everything in their way - including assorted cities, countries, archwizards, super clerics, and even those industrially minded gnomes  are history.

  So we have an evil druid.  And the evil druid says:

  For countless millennia, elves and men have chopped down the trees.
  Now, it is time for the trees to chop down the men and elves.
  Arise forest, and march in your countless billions to Green Glory!

  Are you sure you want evil druids in your world?  

  (Paraphrased from The Illearth War, by Stephen Donaldson:  Against the might of the Deep, even Fleshharrower's immense army was insignificant, a paltry insult hurled against an ocean.  The trees overwhelmed the cunning of the ur-viles, the brute strength of the cavewights, and the mad, cornered fury of the myriad stonewarped creatures.  Knife-wielders were slain, fires were stamped out, lore and force were overwhelmed.  Then the trees obliterated all traces of their victims, in a storm of satisfied vengeance.)


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## Sejs (Oct 26, 2005)

...and then one stray cigarette butt tossed out of a car window, and it's all brought crashing down.

Smokey the Bear may have taught us what we can do to prevent forrest fires, but if we purposefully opt not to do those things we can SAVE THE WORLD!

Smokey the Bear: Savior of Humanity. 

*nod*


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## deClench (Oct 26, 2005)

Edena_of_Neith said:
			
		

> _*snip*_
> 
> For countless millennia, elves and men have chopped down the trees.
> Now, it is time for the trees to chop down the men and elves.
> ...




...for the trees need fuel for their hearth fires and... material for their shelters *ick*  


Hey baby, wanna kill all humans?


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## Edena_of_Neith (Oct 27, 2005)

Consider the Old Forest (from Tolkien) and the attitude of it's trees.
  Then imagine a druid sheparding those trees.  (Actually, Old Man Willow could be considered a druid in this sense, and he was not very nice!)

  An evil druid could be the ultimate poison wielder, deriving poison from magical and mundane sources and envenoming her weapons, her arrows, her caltrops;  everything.
  She could create venoms that only paralyzed or slept her victims.


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## Dannyalcatraz (Oct 27, 2005)

An evil druid could...

Poison people, yes- but why poison individuals when they could foster the growth of aspergillis and other molds and fungi that wither crops, or cause hallucinations and death in whole cities.  Ditto with plagues if he sends in enough carrier rodents or birds.

Withold rain from farmers' lands, or could cause weeds to overrun crops- especially if he's trying to extort money from the villagers.

Command animals to attack, even the usually harmless and mild domesticated ones.  Rats?  Killer Bees?  Wolves?  Definitely.  Depending on the environment, this could be devastating.  Consider Aquaman (DC) and Namor (Marvel) sending whales and krakens to attack surface ships.


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## Dannyalcatraz (Oct 28, 2005)

Actually, as I recall, there is something about Zuttmogy (sp?) in the latest Dragon magazine...talking about molds and fungi and so forth.


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## Hussar (Oct 28, 2005)

I love the idea of evil druids as a BBEG group.  The cult of evil druids sets up shop somewhere, starts sacrificing, pillaging, burning, doing bad things generally.  They see only the savagery in nature and venerate that in themselves.  They could also quite possibly become the "mad scientists" "improving" on nature and discarding their mistakes for others to deal with.


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## Edena_of_Neith (Oct 28, 2005)

In the first IR, the druids were the first group to attack the gnomes (who were busy industrializing and spreading their industrialization around.)
  Then the druids attacked the industrializing nations.
  This sorta set the stage for what followed.  The druids had become the 'bad' guys.

  The elves joined the druids.  Some nations allied with the elves joined the elves.
  So the industrializing nations formed a confederation known, simply, as the Technomancy.  It included the FR nations of Tethyr, Amn, Calimshan, the nations of the Vilhon Reach, Unther, Mulhorand, and Thay.

  The druids launched truly massive attacks that brought death to hundreds of thousands and mass destruction across the Technomancy.  They enlisted the faerie to help them.
  Needless to say, everyone in the Technomancy started to hate druids, elves, the faerie, and anyone allied with them.

  When Forrester, King of the Humanoids, rose in power and conquered most of northern Faerun to form the Humanoid Empire, he sided with the Technomancy.
  Forrester absolutely hated elves.  Forrester wanted all that technology for himself and his people.  Because the druids had started the trouble and drawn in the elves, the elves now had to face Forrester and his Empire as well as the Technomancy.

  When Forrester besieged Evereska, the Technomancy nicely looked the other way.  And even the dwarves decided to sit on the fence, since they were benefitting from the technology and in any case did not wish to be foes of the Technomancy (which sat right atop their realms.)
  Forrester and his humanoids conquered and destroyed Evereska and it's people were devoured.  The Technomancy sent ambassadors to the feast.

  The druids enlisted the aid of the Lord's Alliance and Evermeet, Cormyr, and other nations, but they were caught between Forrester's Empire and the Technomancy, and could not overcome all that power.
  So the druids ... turned to Maxtica across the Trackless Ocean, and recruited vast numbers of faerie and elves from that continent to help them.  This, of course, pulled hapless Maztica into the war.

  Then the illithid, seeing that everyone on the Surface was fighting, began a war of conquest, conquered (and ate) the drow, conquered most of the other Underdark peoples, and became a major threat to Forrester's Empire.

  Perhaps at that point the druids could have enlisted the aid of the Illithid Empire in their fight.  But the Druids would not do so (perhaps the illithid ate all their emissaries?)
  Forrester's Empire began a massive technological buildup to protect itself from both the Druids and the Illithid Empire, until he became so mighty he was able to attack Evermeet itself.

  The siege of Evermeet was long, bitter, and ended with the destruction of the Island and almost the destruction of all surface life on the planet.
  The sacrifice of the Psionic League undid enough of the damage to enable the nations to continue (and continue to fight), and of course in the Underdark the illithid were little affected by the cataclysmic destruction of Evermeet.

  So now the Elven Imperial Fleet of Realmspace made a grim decision.  Extermination.  Extermination of everything on the planet.  What was happening was simply too big a threat to elves everywhere, to be allowed to continue.
  The Technomancy, Humanoid Empire, Empire of Necromancy (the Shining South countries from Chult to Var the Golden) moved to protect the planet, and hired vast armies of Gith and other spelljamming beings to help them.
  The illithid stayed out of it, and also the druids had little part in it.  The faerie of Toril had fled the planet after the destruction of Evermeet, abandoning it to it's fate (typical faerie behavior ...)

  The assault on Toril caused the people of Zakhara to join the Technomancy for their own protection (and profit.)
  Kara-Tur refused to ally with anyone, but instead formed it's own Super-Empire, creating the Union of Toril.

  Then there was this great battle up in Realmspace, between the elves and the Torilians ...

  But all this started because some druids decided that technology was bad, and they were going to put a stop to it, and they would do whatever it took to stop it.

  EDIT:  Oh yes, the elves decided to throw a communal spell to end all magic on Toril.  This was to stop 'technomancy', the melding of magic and science.  It worked, and killed millions  of people ... and made everyone so mad at the elves that nobody interfered with Forrester's complete extermination of them.
  But the druids were all for this temporary halting of magic, deeming the destruction of the Technomancy paramount to their designs.

  All started by druids ...


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## genshou (Oct 28, 2005)

Edena_of_Neith said:
			
		

> In the first IR, the druids were the first group to attack the gnomes (who were busy industrializing and spreading their industrialization around.)
> Then the druids attacked the industrializing nations.
> This sorta set the stage for what followed.  The druids had become the 'bad' guys.<snip to save space>



Holy vampire cows, Batman!  That's so awesome!


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## Hussar (Oct 29, 2005)

Now THAT'S a FR campaign I'd like to play in.


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## Brother MacLaren (Oct 29, 2005)

Edena_of_Neith said:
			
		

> Now, when the entire forest gets involved, everything in their way - including assorted cities, countries, archwizards, super clerics, and even those industrially minded gnomes  are history.
> 
> So we have an evil druid.



Wait, I'm confused.  Killing tinker gnomes is a bad thing?


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## Edena_of_Neith (Oct 29, 2005)

A sincere thank you for the compliment to the IR.  I and the others in the IR had a good time.  It spawned a 2nd IR (which altered Toril and Realmspace even more) and then a 3rd IR (which altered all the local Crystal Spheres after they nearly got pulled into Ravenloft.)  Then there was a 4th IR, the Rokugan IR, and several people attempted 5th IRs.

  But it wasn't a tabletop game.  It occurred right here on ENWorld.  In fact, it occurred right here in this forum, General Discussion.

  For those of you familiar with the Forgotten Realms, the Industrial Revolution started in Lantan.  It then spread to Amn and Tethyr (think of the Real World IR that started in northwest Europe.)  It spread to the Vilhon Reach next, then Thay (you'd expect the Thayvians to want technomancy ...)  Reacting to this, Mulhorand's IR began next, then Unther's (for fear of Mulhorand), then Chessenta (for fear of them both.)
  Finally, and more slowly, Calimshan (perhaps because it was more decadent?) joined in.

  The Industrial Revolution was blocked from going northward by the combined might of the Lord's Alliance, Luskan, the Fire Knives, Cormyr and it's War Wizards, and an alliance between Rashemen and Thesk.  Runaway industrialization was seen as an evil in most of northern Faerun.
  It is not clear why the IR did not spread southward to Halruaa, Dambrath, Var the Golden, and the other nations of the Shining South (some nations were frightened of it, some had divinations that it would overthrow the status quo or see ruin brought to the whole nation, and in Var the Golden's case they preferred simply to trade in technomancy much more than actually build any themselves.  Zakhara was a rich market for technomancy across the Shining Sea.  Dambrath was too isolationist to get in on the act so early.)

  The 'Gods' of Realmspace - all of the various pantheons - had ceased all direct divine interference in what was going on, prior to the start of the industrialization in Lantan.  Likewise, the Chosen of Mystra - perhaps at Mystra's behest - had retreated into isolationism, linking their countries in alliance, but not interfering outside of those areas (Waterdeep, Luruar, Shadowdale, and Aglarond.)

  Obviously, in Evermeet and Evereska, industrialization was rejected.  But as I had mentioned, the dwarves were embracing it, more or less.

  Even then, Forrester was amassing power.  A being of multiple humanoid backgrounds (a mongrel of orc, goblin, ogre, and other humanoid races) he had great charisma and cunning.
  He managed to start a crusade among the humanoids.  This crusade swept King Obold up in it's path, until he was forced to acknowledge the overlordship of Forrester.  Then the vast humanoid peoples of the Spine of the World fell under Forrester's sway.  The crusade crossed Anarouch and saw the unification of the humanoids of the Great Glacier.  Thar joined the growing confederation out of greed and fear, and the other humanoids of the mountainous area around saw which way the wind was blowing.

  Ten-Towns, Luskan, Waterdeep, the dwarves of the Spine of the World, Luruar, Evereska, Cormyr, the Dalelands, Zhentil Keep and the other cities of the Moonsea, Damara, Thesk, and Rashemen all turned fearful eyes to the north.  The peoples of the High Forest and the Great Dale fortified for war.
  But Forrester did not attack.  He sent emissaries to these countries instead, asking for peace and alliance.  He spoke of a terrible threat from Below (the illithid, even then on the rampage against the drow and other Underdark races.)  He spoke of the need for cooperation.
  The fact that Forrester and his humanoids were industrializing as fast as they could (especially the kobolds) was not mentioned (and the Chosen of Mystra, if they knew, did not speak of it.)
  The fact that Forrester absolutely refused to treat with elves of any kind, much less offer alliance or friendship to them, was also overlooked.

  Perhaps the northern nations can be excused.  Because to their south, the southern nations were building very advanced technomantic weapons, mass producing magical firearms and cannons, building ironclad naval ships, putting up telegraphs, building factories and mills and whole new cities, and were in all ways becoming a major threat.
  Baldur's Gate, caught in the middle of this mess, caught between Waterdeep and the Knights of the Shield (who were pro-technomancy) tried to play it both ways, and ally with both sides.  They signed treaties of alliance with Lantan (which was allied with Tethyr) and with Waterdeep.

  Perhaps this unstable but still peaceful situation could have lasted for a long time.
  Perhaps they might have found a agreeable way to settle the growing tension.

  But the druids, from the High Forest to Cormanthor to Rashemen, decreed that this industrialization would be stopped, at all costs.
  Their initial attacks were small, but infuriated the southern countries which struck back.
  Stung, the druids gradually united (undoubtedly with help from various meddling groups and nations with agendas) and then they struck massively:  they caused great earthquakes in the southern countries.  They summoned elementals and other powerful monsters to attack the southern countries.  They even goaded a number dragons into action, promising them a wealth of magic and technomagic for their troubles.
  Factories exploded, mines collapsed, fuel sources exploded.  The new cities suffered catastrophic damage, dwarven strongholds caved in.  Communications were lost as railroads twisted and buckled, and the telegraph lines were thrown down.

  This act, by the druids, caused all the southern countries to unite as the Technomancy.  For the first time in their history, the Red Wizards of Thay united.  Thay reunited with Mulhorand.  Tethyr and Amn put aside their feuding.  Both put aside their ancient feud with Calimshan.  Lantan, being a small nation, united with the others for protection.  Chessenta, caught in the middle, capitulated.  Then the rest of the southern nations quickly fell into line, and a new - and the first - super nation, was born.

  The industrializing humanoids had been overlooked by the druids and were not damaged.  Thus, their strength was enhanced by default.

  IF everyone had left the druids to face the consequences of their actions by themselves - which would have seen the extermination of the druids by the Technomancy - then that would have been that.
  But, seeing the Technomancy was reeling, the elves jumped into the act.  Then, some nations allied with the elves jumped into the act.  Then the faerie jumped into the act (prodded on by the druids, incidentally.)

  Everyone wondered if the Chosen of Mystra would now act.  But they did not, either against the Technomancy or Forrester.  They stayed quietly put.  But gradually, everyone else got into the act, egged on by the druids, certain of victory over the failing Technomancy.

  Then Forrester struck.  
  Luskan allied with Forrester early on, so it remained intact.  The High Forest was scoured of elves (and everything else the humanoids did not like) - many in Luruar, infuriated with Alustriel's neutrality, fought for the High Forest and died in it's defense.  The people of Anarouch were not disturbed (Forrester did not wish to provoke the phaerimm.)  Cormyr was beaten after a massive war and brutally subjugated.  
  Zhentil Keep offered it's services to Forrester, who accepted.  Fzoul became a confidante to Forrester (but Forrester was always wary of him.)  Mulmaster surrendered at once (most strangely.)  Hillsfar fell after a bloody siege.  Then Forrester and the Zhentarim swept through Cormanthor and conquered Sembia with ease.
  Damara was easily conquered.  Rasheman put up a tremendous fight, with covert help from Aglarond, and when it was seen they would be defeated the Witches fled southeastward into the Hoardlands to establish a new colony there.  As for Thesk, it appealed to Thay for protection ... Thay and Forrester had already cut a deal, and divided Thesk between them.
  The Dalelands were, for the most part, occupied and required to acknowledge the overlordship of Forrester.

  This left only the nations of the Chosen of Mystra:  Waterdeep, Luruar, Shadowdale, and Aglarond.  But Forrester never attacked them, and they never interfered with his war.  Needless to say, many humanoids wanted to attack these nations, and most denounced the Chosen for their neutrality, but be that as it may only minor skimishes occurred.

  After that began the long and famous siege of Evereska, the Last Haven of the Elves on Faerun.

  And now that the northern nations no longer threatened, and the elves were busy with Forrester, the Technomancy had free rein to rebuild and expand.  And boy, did it expand ... and expand ... and expand ...

  Even then, matters might have been resolved, but the druids - frustrated with the situation - went overseas to Maztica, gathered the largest army of Mazticans and faerie and planar beings they could find, and brought them in to continue the attack on the Technomancy.  They goaded the peoples of the Hordelands into attacking (they worked with the exiled Witches of Rasheman here.)  They bought the help of spelljamming gith (pulling the peoples of Realmspace into the war in the process.)
  Apparently the druids thought the illithid would neutralize Forrester.  By that time, the illithid had overthrown most of the drow (and eaten said drow) and become the premiere power of the Underdark (aside from the phaerimm and sharn, who were left strictly alone.)
  And indeed, there was now heavy fighting between the illithid and the humanoids.  Most of the industrialization of the humanoids had occurred underground, easy targets for the illithid, and the humanoids were having a hard time defending against the psionic onslaught of the illithid.
  Thus, the druids chose not to counterattack Forrester at that time.
  (To protect themselves from Forrester and the illithid under their leader Phasmus, all the dwarves united into one nation, save only those in the nations of the Chosen.  Because they did, they survived where other Peoples Below did not.  Many refugees, of svirfneblin and other types, took refuge in dwarven cities when their own homes were overrun.)

  A more peaceful group of neutral (balance) minded people, druids and others, formed the Psionic League, dedicated to peace and the preservation of the Toril that was.  This group offered it's protection to Candlekeep and to other places where the knowledge of the ancient past was preserved.  
  The Psionic League did not attempt to control any land, control any King or Queen, or attempt to forcibly do anything.  But they did council caution, prudence, and restraint to all involved.

  There was another group that, although they did not advocate peace and quiet, offered a sanctuary to all who fled hither, and who refused to embrace technomancy or to become involved in the growing conflict.
  This was Nimbral and it's ruling cabal of mages.  They established their island as the haven, and thereafter it was known as Hope Island.  Many celestials were summoned by the mages to Hope Island to protect it, and ultimately nobody ever attacked this island.
  Eventually, Hope Island became the last place on Toril where elves remained in large numbers.

  So there were the rabble-rousing (an irony, if ever there was one) druids, and the quiet, peace seeking, balance seeking druids and those who thought like them.

  Were the druids who attacked the Technomancy evil?  Well, certainly the peoples of the Technomancy thought they were evil!  They certainly thought they were evil after they massacred hundreds of thousands of people in the industrializing countries and razed many of their cities to the ground!
  What did the druids think?  The druids, believed that industrializing nations had to be stopped, that the felling of forests and mining of coal had to stop, that the ruin and destruction of Faerun had to be halted.  They had already pleaded and pleaded and pleaded their case in every court in the southlands, but reason and logic and even sanity had been cast aside by the industrializing nations and their greedy rulers.  And so they had to do ... what had to be done.  That was their thinking.


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## Dannyalcatraz (Oct 29, 2005)

Check out the Master of Vermin PrCl (either Savage Species or Monsters of Faerun- I forget which).  Essentially, it is a PrCl for evil druids that enables them to control or (kinda) wildshape into swarms of arthropods!

I ask you: What is more evil than an evil druid who BECOMES Creeping Doom?

(Answer: An evil druid who BECOMES Creeping Doom and has a GOATEE!)


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## DragonLancer (Oct 29, 2005)

I've never played an evil druid but I have thought about it from time to time. One thing to remember with druids, regardless of alignment, is that they are not hippies or treehuggers, but everyday people with the same desires and needs as anyone else.

Now one idea I have thought about is that people come into faiths for a varierty of reasons, and theres no reason why a NE individual couldn't take up the role and proffession of Druid simply for the power that it gives them. They don't have to go around burning, killing and slapping the local woodsmen for chopping a tree down, same as any other druid.

Think about why this person became a druid and that will go a long way to helping you play them.


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## Edena_of_Neith (Oct 29, 2005)

Well put, Dannyalcatraz!

  Of course, hornets, wasps and bees were always a Druid's Best Friend.  So was green slime, if used judiciously


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## genshou (Nov 3, 2005)

Edena_of_Neith said:
			
		

> A sincere thank you for the compliment to the IR.  I and the others in the IR had a good time.  It spawned a 2nd IR (which altered Toril and Realmspace even more) and then a 3rd IR (which altered all the local Crystal Spheres after they nearly got pulled into Ravenloft.)  Then there was a 4th IR, the Rokugan IR, and several people attempted 5th IRs.<snipped for brevity>



*sound of jaw dropping to the floor*

Can I play in one of your games?


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