Since this has turned into a regular druid evaluation and brainstorm I'll my two cents. I've played several druids, one to lvl 30, one is around lvl 20 and I've started a few druid characters that are shelved for the time being. Druid (alon with ranger) is probably my favourite class.
Seven identified one of the core problems with the class: what the hells is the class supposed to excel at? What's the focus?
The class is a good addition to any party in PVE: it's an above average healer (plenty of spells, restoration and disease/poison removal), a good buff class (barkskin, stoneskin, protection from spells, FoM etc.) it's got damage spells (some of which have been buffed), it's got plenty disabling spells too and the class has access to a fair range of death spells. A druid can even fill the role of an average tank and can supply the party with aid from summons and animal companion. It doesn't, however, excel in any of these fields which is where Seven's pin-pointed problem becomes evident. It is also because of this a druid is usually going to be very "meh" in pvp.
As has also been pointed out: the class has plenty staying power in PVE and is fairly easy to lvl if you go for medium xp instead of high risk/high xp rewards. The class really drops off in the late lvl game up until obtaining DS (which is circumstantially very powerful but also "doors").
For me this problematic core is also what makes the class fun and why I keep thinking up new druid characters: it's a very versatile class both in terms possible rp-concepts of mechanics. This discussion seems to be mainly about mechanics so I've stuck to that. I will emphasize that giving the druid one or two viable mechanic paths will make it easier to tweak the class in ways that makes it more viable. I'd just hate if this mechanical tweak or buff were to limit the versatality of the class and that's a real risk. You really can't have it all.
I think the proposed "aspect" idea is very interesting. The main issue is giving the druid powers that scale well in the later lvls.
Possible avenues of tweaking:
- Spells that increase in power after lvl 20
- Druid specific gear designed for wildshaping. Is there a way to script bonuses that only apply when wildshaped?
- Rescripting the way items merge
- Make "Nature Sense" grant additional bonuses as the druid lvls: starting with +2 ab in natural environments it could go on to add more ab, more dmg, skill bonuses, resistances, immunities etc. in natural environments
- Tweaking the various shapes to be more useful in Areltih's environment
Totems:
My lvl 30 druid is a totem and while the totem path enhanced his rp I'll say that the totem shape was increadibly useful in terms of increasing durability and tankiness in the 10-20 lvl range. After that strong summons, shapechange spell and elemental shapes seemed better choices mechanically because of special abilities like innate dr, greater damage and immunity crit/sneak, mind etc.
I love the totem concept but I'd say mechanically enhancing the shapechange/summon aspects and weakening casting prowess might be the way to go. Right now your best bet when going totem is buffing wisdom to high hells and try to compensate the physical penalties via spells/eq. You get a caster character with a glorified panic button as some have correctly called it. High wis also nets you DS.
Possible tweaks instead of the -4 to physical stats (pick and choose)
Penalties:
- totems do not recieve the Arelith specific extra spell slots
- totems recieve a -2 to wisdom
- totems recieve a penalty to animal empathy. Against creatures of their totem subtype, they recieve a bonus and the ability to turn (one or two) animals to henchmen (this is probably a hassle to script)
- Totems can only select spell focus in conjuration or transmutation
- Casting high lvl spells costs more piety for high lvl totems
- Totems cannot cast evocation spells
- Totems cannot pick epic spells (EDK, GR, HB)
Bonuses (along with or instead of the current stat/skill bonuses):
- Totem druids gain bonuses akin to those granted by SD shadows. These could vary from sneak attacks/crippling strikes/poison (snakes, rats, panthers) to enchantment bonuses/ damage bonuses /regeneration (wolf, bear) to debuff swarms like the shadow conjuration (bats, spiders, maybe rats too), to damage shields, skill bonuses to hide/ms, discipline etc while in the company of totem animal/companion.
- Totems can use flame and ice berries (last rounds instead of turns for the druid)
- spell-like abilities in totem shape (perhaps based on spell focus feats or off summons/companions): grease, quillfire healing sting, mass camouflage, vine mine, healing circle, nature's balance (summon or animal companion counts as spell focus abj, summon and animal counts as greater spell focus abj), aura of vitality and the like
Addendum: did NWN2 get something right? (Blasphemy, I know)
NWN2 incorperated various druid spells and feats that could be very interesting to look at.
Here's a selection of spells: foundation of stone (immunity to kd, slower movement), jagged tooth (target has keen on creature weapon - works for a wild-shaped druid too), body of the sun (burns nearby enemies), flame weapon (could be "elemental weapon"), extract water elemental (cold dmg, if it kills target: summon water elemental), vigorous cycle (party gains regen for 10 rounds + 1 ound per caster lvl), storm avatar (could be elemental avatar)
Feats of interest: plant shape (treant or shambling mound shape at lvl 12), elephant's hide (use wildshape to gain bonus to natural armor without shifting), oaken resilience (use wildshape to gain immunity from sneak/crit, poison), magical beast wild-shape (take on the shape of a magical beast - for Areltih Aborreal Wolf, Gorgon and the like could be possible uses), natural spell (cast spell while shapechanged, probably only possible with haks)
Reference:
http://nwn2.wikia.com/wiki/Druid