THIS IS ASSUMING NO MODS!!!!

How are druids best used? Are they melee fighters, healers, offensive spellcasters, are they good with shapeshifts, or are they better with a dip into other classes (monk, bard, ect.)?

I want a druid in my party, but don't know how to best take advantage of the class.

What is the best racial choice for a druid?

The best experience I've had with one was to use all the Wis boosting items on her, and go with GSF: Evocation and a couple of the elemental casting feats. They get some very nice offensive spells. Mine was a wild elf, so I used a bow with her as well. She mostly kept out of melee and didn't wild-shape much. The Wis stat can get very high so the Druid's spells are very hard to resist, plus they are versatile (can heal, shape-change and are decent fighters in a pinch too).

Best racial choice tho? Probably Aasimar or Drow, just to get the starting Wis of a 20 (guess a Deep Gnome could be interesting too). Would depend on the party to know how bad the ECL could be. And that is assuming you want a pure Druid. I have seen alot of people take 1 or 2 Monk or Barb levels and the rest Druid, and that ends up with a better tank and with enhanced Wild Shape abilities.

Krunchyfrogg, to be quite honest, for spellbook/role-in-the-party choices, try it out yourself. You'll know why it's better and by trying out different spell combos, you'll figure out which ones work better than others. Asking other people which one works better is like asking what profession you should be in real life; sure, you might chance upon a real gem of a suggestion, but more often than not, it just turns out to be what works for the other person. An average person can't become a physicist, while that physicist might not be able to play football professionally.

Now, as to classes: I personally like Human. The extra skills are nice, and the Wis bonus of the other classes isn't that big compared to the points you save on Int.

[ 11-27-2005, 03:58 PM: Message edited by: Assassin ]