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bokodasu
2010-10-26, 11:25 AM
Does anyone ever use Wild Shape (plant)? Is there any point to it? Why is it 12th level?

It's not like I'm complaining; I'm just... puzzled by this ability. There are like four plants in the Monster Manual and by the time you're 12th level there are probably a dozen better things to wild shape into in any circumstance.

I guess "flavor" is a fine answer, but I think I'm missing whatever flavor it provides.

(Maybe there's a Complete Gardener splatbook I'm missing?)

The Glyphstone
2010-10-26, 11:27 AM
Well, if you don't have Mind Blank handy, Plantshape can be a good defense against mind-affecting baddies. Or you just want to set up an infinite Con-boosting loop with a Shambling Mound.

Quirp
2010-10-26, 11:31 AM
Plants are normally immune to critical hits, so they are useful if you fight against scythe wielders.

I once searched for useful wild shape forms and found the Ironmaw (Fiend Folio), the Octopus Tree (Fiend Folio), the Tendriculos (MM), the Sporebat (Fiend Folio) and the Dread Blossom Swarm (MM3).

It is some time ago that I made that list, so I donīt know why I chose those forms.

Starbuck_II
2010-10-26, 11:33 AM
Does anyone ever use Wild Shape (plant)? Is there any point to it? Why is it 12th level?

It's not like I'm complaining; I'm just... puzzled by this ability. There are like four plants in the Monster Manual and by the time you're 12th level there are probably a dozen better things to wild shape into in any circumstance.

I guess "flavor" is a fine answer, but I think I'm missing whatever flavor it provides.

(Maybe there's a Complete Gardener splatbook I'm missing?)

The plant type is very awesome. Granted, you don't gain that.

Treants are very strong.
There may be extraordinary special that are strong...

Sir Swindle89
2010-10-26, 11:34 AM
pretend to be a necromancer by turning into one of those yellow creeper things that makes the parasite zombies.

Khatoblepas
2010-10-26, 11:36 AM
pretend to be a necromancer by turning into one of those yellow creeper things that makes the parasite zombies.

To clarify: Imagine a necromancer that never has his minions lose their Con score, and that the minions are also intelligent. The zombies also "tend" you instinctively as long as you're alive, too, so enjoy being a druid with all the trimmings and a hoarde of zombies willing to cut your hair and give you a manicure.

Druids really do do everything better than everyone else.

Zaydos
2010-10-26, 11:38 AM
Enhanced Wild Shape (lv 4 spell) let's you get their Extraordinary Special Abilities; that's a lot of immunities, as well as the occasional gem like Con boosts on a shambling strider.

The Glyphstone
2010-10-26, 11:39 AM
Enhanced Wild Shape (lv 4 spell) let's you get their Extraordinary Special Abilities; that's a lot of immunities, as well as the occasional gem like Con boosts on a shambling strider.

...That spell's on all my druids so often I forgot stuff like that doesn't come standard.:smalleek:

Kaww
2010-10-26, 12:29 PM
Plants are normally immune to critical hits, so they are useful if you fight against scythe wielders.

I once searched for useful wild shape forms and found the Ironmaw (Fiend Folio), the Octopus Tree (Fiend Folio), the Tendriculos (MM), the Sporebat (Fiend Folio) and the Dread Blossom Swarm (MM3).

It is some time ago that I made that list, so I donīt know why I chose those forms.

Now this is irony...

@ OP: SS and Enhanced wild shape give some twisted flora... There are some really good SUs on certain plants...

Raging Gene Ray
2010-10-26, 12:47 PM
...That spell's on all my druids so often I forgot stuff like that doesn't come standard.:smalleek:

You wouldn't happen to remember where that spell is from?

Zaydos
2010-10-26, 12:49 PM
It's in Spell Compendium, but I don't remember the original source.

bokodasu
2010-10-26, 01:06 PM
Yeah, mostly I'm asking from a core-only viewpoint, since that's when it was written. (And, ok, because I'm playing a Druid in a mostly-core game.) I mean, who thought "wow, you can shriek really loudly" was a 12th-level ability?

In 3.0, did you get the special abilities of the things you changed into? I can't recall. It would kind of make sense if they just carried it over without thinking about that.

Chen
2010-10-26, 01:53 PM
Well if I recall correctly, pre-errata you did get the plant type when you wildshaped into one which has enough bonuses to make a tendriculous a pretty useful form. I remember plants didn't stand up to animals pre-errata since you could animal growth yourself and your companion which just blew the plant forms out of the water. Now that you keep your form some of the stronger plants (Ironmaw notably) are quite good even without the plant type.