11th level summoning druid

[rye0006]

making a summoning druid with a dire tortoise animal companion. what feats, and spells should i be taking to perform this role best? want to buff up my summons and companion as much as possible. also, what other equipment should be i taking?

basically want my druid to stand at the back and let animals deal with everything else.

i've had a quick read of the druid handbook, but didnt find the spells section very helpful.

[HalfDragonCube]

Remember that you do not need to prepare any Summon Nature's Ally spells, since you can spontaneously convert other spell slots into them.

Augment summoning is good to give your critters more hitting and staying power. Ocular spell allows you to summon critters out of your eyes, which too awesome not to include.

[gallagher]

druids...need....equipment?

[Urpriest]

Natural Spell is, as always, necessary. Eventually you'll want to wild shape into a Dire Tortoise yourself (with the spell Enhance Wild Shape (SpC)), so as to never be surprised. Until then, being a bird or the like will help keep you safe while your summons do the work.

Greenbound Summoning is nice at low levels, but at your level is probably not worthwhile, since your non-animal summons have begun being useful.

[PollyOliver]

Well, if you're a summoner, you want augment summoning (and it's pre-req, spell focus conjuration), right off the bat. If your DM allows it (or, you don't think it's cheesy), you might want Rashemi Elemental Summoning, which gives your elemental summons some nifty abilities. Imbued summoning can be useful also, but isn't really needed. Beckon of the frozen is okay, but your summons will be vulnerable to fire.

For summons, at level 11 a huge elemental, a large storm elemental (be careful where you put them, because they can hurt your party members with their AoE abilities), and a dire bear are the best options. Elephant can be useful.

Basically, summon what you want to summon. If it's an animal, greater magic fang and/or animal growth on it and your companion. And that's about it, really. If you want to beef up the companion further (and intend to do any wild-shaping yourself--if this is a yes, you're taking natural spell at 6 or 9), it shares buffs with you, including ones like Bite of the WereX. Companion spellbond extends the range to 30 ft.

If you don't use imbued summoning, quicken is great for buffs, but it always is, so it's not like you can't take both. Then stand back and let your summons go to town, and throw in a blasty spell or debuff of something if you want.

Edit:
For equipment, I'm afraid I can't be very helpful. I was building a similarly-leveled druid a while back, but ultimately decided to go with VoP. But ring of the beast is great for a summoner, as it lets you cast one SNA higher than the spell slot you're using (but not higher than you can cast). Mantle of the beast lets you wild shape as a swift action and gives you a +1 to attack and damage in wild shape (both are in CC). You can never have too many pearls of power, and wilding clasps (MIC) will let you wear the more vital pieces of equipment, like a cloak of resistance, in wild shape form.

[HalfDragonCube]

druids...need....equipment?

Good point. As a tier one class, they can pretty much turn up at an encounter, maul stuff, then leave.

[gallagher]

Good point. As a tier one class, they can pretty much turn up at an encounter, maul stuff, then leave.

they dont even need to maul stuff. they can have their animal do it for them

[Biffoniacus_Furiou]

Ring of the Beast in Complete Champion is absolutely necessary, as is a Circlet of Rapid Casting (MIC) with a Wilding Clasp (MIC). You can add an Enhancement bonus to Wisdom to the circlet for the same price as a separate item with an equal bonus (MIC p234).

The feat Ashbound in ECS is absolutely necessary provided you can use feats from multiple different settings. Greenbound Summoning in Lost Empires of Faerun and Rashemi Elemental Summoning in Unapproachable East are better to have if you can only choose feats from one setting.

Get Augment Summoning (and Spell Focus: Conjuration) along with Imbued Summoning from PH2. The Ring of the Beast will pretty much make Imbued Summoning free, but you can also get Metamagic School Focus in CM to make it actually free 3/day. You'll probably want Rapid Metamagic from CM if you plan on spontaneously casting those summons.

If you didn't get Ashbound then use Nature's Favor with Imbued Summoning, assuming you're summoning animals and not plants (Greenbound). If you do have all of those setting-specific feats then you'll probably want to use Barkskin or (Greater) Magic Fang.

If you're summoning animals and not plants, get a Lesser Rod of Chain Spell (CA) to use with Enrage Animal (and cast it with the Circlet of Rapid Casting). You can also use the Circlet of Rapid Casting with Mass Snake's Swiftness provided everything is threatening someone. See if you can get that circlet for double the cost with twice as many charges/day, or triple the cost for three times as many charges, etc.

If you can get away with it, get a standard Strand of Prayer Beads which has had the Bead of Smiting removed. By DMG pricing it should only cost you 9,000 gp, and it has the Bead of Karma and Bead of Healing. Use the Bead of Karma to get +4 CL when you cast your hour/level and 24 hour buffs for the day. Get a Lesser Rod of Extend for 30-hour Longstrider and Greater Magic Fang (for your companion), and be sure to cast Greater Resistance or Superior Resistance every day.

Get some Unguent of Timelessness and put it on eight Bone Talisman (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/mb/20040721a) spell foci, the spell should last 365 times longer than normal and the foci can be reused indefinitely. Prepare that spell a few times every day, spontaneously convert them to Summons if you need to, but otherwise cast them before you rest and especially during downtime. That should give you a few uses of Turn Undead at full caster level, which you'll be extremely glad to have if the situation comes up. You can cast all your buffs before you rest instead of after you prepare spells, so you can get the +4 CL from the Bead of Karma when you cast Bone Talisman as well. That way you'll have your buffs prepared all day so you can recast them if they get dispelled.

Over the next few levels plan on getting a standard Rod of Extend and a 6th level Pearl of Power. Every other day prepare Energy Immunity twice and cast it three times with the rod, using the pearl to recover one, so each lasts 48 hours. On the days in between prepare Superior Resistance and Energy Immunity once, cast both of those (Energy Immunity twice using the pearl) with the rod so they each last 48 hours. That gives you continual immunity to all five energy types and a +6 Resistance bonus on all saving throws, for the cost of those two items and two 6th level spell slots each day.