Druid wild-shape/ favorite environment

[Lloyd-Starbuck]

So this is my third thread on this character, but decided this needed it own thread.

So looking at the druid wild-shape ability, druid can only wild-shape into a animal he familiar with (sample: forest druid can't wild-shape into a polar bear). i know that most people use knowledge nature to become familiar with the animal he trying to wild-shape into,but looking at the alternate class features in Unearthed Arcana i notice the rangers favorite environment class feature, it say that rangers becomes familiar with the environment from living there. would a druid/ranger gestalt with favorite environment let the druid wild-shape into any animal from any of the favorite environments the rangers choses.

[Troacctid]

Ask your DM. It's ultimately a judgement call. Answers will vary.

[Flickerdart]

Ultimately, there's no real rules definition for familiarity. Several spells require you to be familiar with a subject - for instance, Teleport defines a place you feel at home at as 'very familiar' which is clearly a cut above the merely 'familiar' requirement of Wild Shape - but a spell, or for that matter an ACF, has no authority to rule on anything beyond itself.

[Bronk]

Any particular reason knowledge nature checks are out of the question?

Otherwise, you could use 'summon nature's ally' spells to get acquainted with them, take one as your animal companion for a while, go capture one and say hi, or even visit a zoo. Some DMs care, others could care less.

[eggynack]

Otherwise, you could use 'summon nature's ally' spells to get acquainted with them, take one as your animal companion for a while, go capture one and say hi, or even visit a zoo. Some DMs care, others could care less.
Notably, the rules compendium standard for familiarity is that it must be an animal one has seen or could otherwise know about, so those solutions would all be effective by the comparatively not-vague seeing method. No real interaction is required.