Suggestions for NE Druid//Incarnate gestalt?

[Starmage21]

Went Druid//Incarnate because I want to avoid the lootGen as much as possible. Its a straight up diablo-esque hack n slash.

NE Druid 5//Incarnate 5
I have a leopard animal companion (fluffed as a cougar)
DM let me start with a Necrocarnum Zombie Lion (5HD)


Suggestions on soulmelds, gear, feats?

I was thinking Share Soulmelds and then Natural Spell at 6th

[malonkey1]

Wait, wouldn't Necrocarnum be exactly against what the Druid is all about?

[Starmage21]

Wait, wouldn't Necrocarnum be exactly against what the Druid is all about?

I suppose it could be, fluff wise. Alignment requirements match up, though.

[The Insaniac]

I could totally see an evil druid going with necrocarnum. Remember that groups like the shadow druids hate humanoids. So this is an evil, humanoid hating druid torturing the souls of the "defilers of nature".

[malonkey1]

Well, I suppose, but the issue is more with Necrocarnum Zombies, which are pretty much the thing most against the natural order possible.

[eggynack]

Wait, wouldn't Necrocarnum be exactly against what the Druid is all about?
Feh. Necromancer druids are sweet. Especially if you run aberration wild shape at the same time to play up the unnatural druid thing. There's a pretty reasonable quantity of druid resources that help to pull it off, like myconid sovereign form, animate with the spirit (not in this case, cause evil), or blackwater tentacles to trigger an uncontrolled wightpocalypse. I mean, you're not exactly great at this stuff, at least not as great as something like a wizard or cleric, but it's not really an un-druid thing either.

[Red Fel]

First off, I should ask, what's the goal with this character? Melee-capable? Multi-use? Casting-oriented?

Because I'd like to point out, as a preliminary note, that Totemist might be a better option for this build than Incarnate. For one thing, stat-wise, Incarnate is mostly redundant when gestalted with Druid; exact same saves and lower BAB. By contrast, Totemist will comfortably shore up your missing save (Reflex). Further, conceptually, Totemist fits well with Druid - beast spirits, natural essences, and massive quantities of natural weapons. You can be a frightening melee brute without the need for gear, with natural weapons aplenty from Wild Shape and soulmelds.

That said, if you want to go Incarnate, as stated in my initial question, it depends on what you want to do. For example, you could simply stock up on Necrocarnum soulmelds - Circlet for turn resistance and animation, Mantle for flavor, Shroud for fear effects or negative levels, Touch for a ray, Vestments for bonus HP and immunities, etc. They're not all amazing, but they suit the flavor of a walking vessel of negative energy quite nicely.

Other options depend on play style. For instance, Bloodwar Gauntlets make for great melee tools, but might become inert in Wild Shape (which is when a Druid generally melees). Similarly, a Crystal Helm is great for melee - deflection bonus and force damage are fantastic against incorporeals, particularly if you're going loot-light. Incarnate Avatar is also a good way to tack on damage in melee, and at level 19 it grants you flight. (Because a Druid can't fly before then, obviously.)

Dissolving Spittle is a great general-use ability; it's always handy to have an inflatable ranged touch attack. Lucky Dice, while not thematically suited to the character, are always useful. A Spellward Shirt is a fun defensive ability (SR is a lovely thing).

As for gear, the standard rules on Druid gear apply. I might add that you could consider some Essentia Focus items. Wildling Clasps are your friend, and you can't go wrong with overpowered jewelry.

With regard to feats, again, focus on Druid. Druid is really the core of the build; be an effective Druid, and the Incarnate aspect should simply complement that. Natural Spell, a feat to augment summoning (such as Greenbound), and a feat to add to your Wild Shape options (such as Frozen or Dragon Wild Shape). If you really want to do other stuff, you could take Necrocarnum Acolyte, although I don't know that you'll be using the soulmelds that involve DCs, and since you're already Evil it doesn't give much advantage. You could take Azure Wild Shape, which basically lets you use Essentia to inflate your Wild Shape (generally a Good ThingTM).

Ultimately, this build should function as a Druid+. Standard Druid rules apply, but with additional Incarnum flavoring.

[Starmage21]

Red, the campaign is hack and slash. I'm not worried too much about flavor, as we're going to RP very little (but we all still RP a bit). To that end, the entire concept is we're trapped. My purpose for picking druid and incarnate is I want to avoid the loot generation entirely, because I wont get any chance to craft.

In general, I'm looking to fill the role of damage dealer, in melee. With spells or soulmelds as backup. And the Necrocarnum Zombie Lion I've got currently helps immensely. But, I still need to plan on what I'm going to use to help shore things up, in terms of soulmelds, and feats. Thats what I'm asking about the most.

[Red Fel]

Red, the campaign is hack and slash. I'm not worried too much about flavor, as we're going to RP very little (but we all still RP a bit). To that end, the entire concept is we're trapped. My purpose for picking druid and incarnate is I want to avoid the loot generation entirely, because I wont get any chance to craft.

In general, I'm looking to fill the role of damage dealer, in melee. With spells or soulmelds as backup. And the Necrocarnum Zombie Lion I've got currently helps immensely. But, I still need to plan on what I'm going to use to help shore things up, in terms of soulmelds, and feats. Thats what I'm asking about the most.

If you want melee damage dealer, Totemist is just plain better. Incarnate gives some great utility, but Totemist gives you a wide array of powerful (and inflatable) natural weapons. Slaughter becomes a snap.

With regard to melee damage dealer as a Druid, step one is picking a powerful Wild Shape feat. Frozen Wild Shape is an excellent choice, because it gives you access to Cryohydra (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/hydra.htm#cryohydra) (a Magical Beast with the (Cold) subtype). Dragon Wild Shape is also an excellent choice, for what should be obvious reasons. As mentioned, Wilding Clasps will allow you to keep what little gear you may have on hand while in Wild Shape. From there, simply build around that role; there are plenty of Druid handbooks that can advise you on that point, as well as on other feats, spells, and so forth. (Like this one (http://brilliantgameologists.com/boards/index.php?topic=1354.0), for example.)

Don't try to be an Incarnate with this build. That's the key point. Try to be a Druid who happens to have soulmelds. Experiment at your leisure; you can change them from day to day. Keep in mind also that, generally, soulmelds are not a substitute for actual magic items. Incarnates have more utility than Totemists or Soulborns, it's true, because of their versatile array of soulmelds, but that utility is nonetheless limited.

Remember also that soulmelds may become inert if you assume a shape that lacks a corresponding slot. For example, Cerulean Sandals do nothing if you Wild Shape into a snake. Accordingly, your best soulmelds will tend to cover body parts you're guaranteed to always have - brow, heart, soul, throat, and waist, for instance, are slots you'll always have available.

Apart from that, my advice is much like it was above. If you chose to go Totemist, it would be different; Incarnate's options to augment melee damage are somewhat limited and underwhelming.

[Starmage21]

Totemist is going to give me even more natural weapons than will be useful when in a Wild Shape? We got to start at 5th level, so I made both Str and Dex my dump stats, as they get replaced.