Wild shape - what can be brought over.

[8wGremlin]

The PHB states that

You retain the benefit of any features from your class, race, or other source and can use them if the new form is physically capable of doing so. However, you can’t use any of your special senses, such as darkvision, unless your new form also has that sense.

So what gets taken over from each race, class etc.

Do vhuman's get to use their extra feat?
Do Half orcs get to use their Savage Attacks, and darkvision?
Do Tortles get to pull their shells (AC17) across?

How do feats that give stat bonuses work with wild shape, do they apply to the new form?

What is RAW, what is RAI, and what is homebrew for your tables?

Thanks in advance.

[Breashios]

I'd need my rulebook in front of me to be more accurate, however, think of wild shape as what would that beast be able to do physically. If the class ability or feat would work for that beast, then it would be possible to use it in that wildshape. Dark vision is the example "special sense" that would not transfer over. Also, since you are getting a new physical form, nothing that comes from the old physical form, such as a Tortle's shell, would transfer. They physical bonuses from feats would not transfer as you use the forms physical stats. The mental would transfer as normal per wildshape.

I don't really have an area where I believe RAW and RAI differ in such cases. You are free to use the Rule of Fun when making decisions for house rules, but think carefully, so that you don't unbalance the ability and get stuck with something that is an issue in the long run.

[8wGremlin]

Awesome - thank you for that.

What about UA feats, (yes I understand the legality of these feats, but for this please take them as sanctified rules)

for instance in Racial skill feats: https://media.wizards.com/2017/dnd/downloads/RJSJC2017_04UASkillFeats_24v10.pdf


Prerequisite: DragonbornYou sprout draconic wings. With your wings, you have a flying speed of 20 feet if you aren’twearing heavy armor and aren’t exceeding your carrying capacity.

Do you sprout draconic wings?

or


Prerequisite: Dwarf, gnome, or halflingYou are uncommonly nimble for your race. You gain the following benefits:


Increase your Strength or Dexterity score by 1, to a maximum of 20.
Increase your walking speed by 5 feet.
You gain proficiency in the Acrobatics or Athletics skill. If you’re already proficient in the skill, your proficiency bonus is doubled for any check you make with it.



Do you add +1 to the creature's Strength or Dexterity score?
Do you add 5' to it's walking speed?


oh and thank you all for the help.

[Chugger]

There are some youtube/podcasts where the game designers (j crawford iirc) discuss this.

The rule is meant to be liberal or player friendly, but up to a reasonable limit. You can't talk in animal form, so you can't make use of the linguistics feat in animal form, except maybe for understanding. If a feat grants you the ability to do fine work with your fingers - but you have bear paws now - no dice.

But if you have an athletics proficiency, you retain that knowledge and can use that prof bonus to your animal's str bonus number. They specifically said that. I would assume acrobatics would work the same - unless you've become a shark - and a shark's body and humanoid acrobatics moves are so different, maybe not (unless a dm opts liberal and says ok, you get your acro prof bonus even though you're a shark and in the water - this could go either way). But even if you're a quadroped in animal form, some of that acrobatic training would carry over, so be liberal - you get your prof bonus plus your animal form's dex bonus.

If you cast a concentration spell before you go animal form, you can keep the effect of it going. So you can cast flaming sphere or summon animals or call lightning or barkskin - then use a bonus action (if moon d) to go beast form yourself. Next round you can attack as a beast with the other spell running. If it was barkskin you have ac 16 min. If it was flaming sphere you can move it and slam it into a monster for 2d6 dam or w/e. If you have call lightning going, iirc, you use a bonus action to call down a bolt and maybe hit two creatures - and - attack as a beast for your action. If you've conjured animals to help you, they help you - they do what you ordered them to do.

I hope that helps.

[Nidgit]

It's really kind of a common sense thing. Is there any reason that a bear or a shark should be able to sprout dragon wings? As metal as that is, not really. But if you're turning into a Giant Snake or Lizard, then there's some wiggle room. The DM may or may not allow it. If I were the DM, you'd be barred from using your breath weapon but you'd keep the elemental resistance.

Take the Forest Gnome as another example:
Lose Darkvision unless your Wildshape Beast has it, keep Gnomish Cunning, usually keep Speak with Small Beasts (it specifies grunts and gestures), and technically keep Natural Illusionist but be unable to cast in Wild Shape until you get Beast Magic.

If the trait or feature is somatically-based, usually it doesn't carry over. If it's based on movement, it depends on the Shape. If it's not one of those, it should usually be allowed.

[8wGremlin]

It's really kind of a common sense thing. Is there any reason that a bear or a shark should be able to sprout dragon wings? As metal as that is, not really.

So basically what I'm reading from what both of you have said, is it really is a DM call.

The feat Dragon Wings, I would have thought would transfer, regardless of what form you're in.
Normal Dragonborn do not have wings, this feat gives it to you, by spouting new wings.

The dragon breath I believe was answered by a tweet, that if you had a mouth, you had the capability of breathing thus the breath weapon would work.

But it's good to get other DMs perspectives, thank you

[nickl_2000]

So basically what I'm reading from what both of you have said, is it really is a DM call.....

100% yes. If you are going Moon Druid, make friends with your DM. There is all kinds of craziness that you will have to check with them on. For example, I asked my DM last night what Wild Shape forms would another player be able to ride my character while I am wild shaped (the answer was any quadruped could be ridden without a saddle, but anything else would require one). So, I followed up with, could I buy an exotic saddle that could be adjusted to fit on both a snake and a bipedal dinosaur.

We are going with all kinds of craziness right now. Wildshape Druid with Sentinel, Bladelock with a lance and Mounted Combatant, and Stone Sorcerer who can give the Bladelock resistance at level 6. It will certainly be fun!

[Aett_Thorn]

So basically what I'm reading from what both of you have said, is it really is a DM call.

The feat Dragon Wings, I would have thought would transfer, regardless of what form you're in.
Normal Dragonborn do not have wings, this feat gives it to you, by spouting new wings.

The dragon breath I believe was answered by a tweet, that if you had a mouth, you had the capability of breathing thus the breath weapon would work.

But it's good to get other DMs perspectives, thank you

Just because a feat gives it to you, doesn't mean that you'd get to keep it. Dragon Wings gives you wings while in your normal, Dragonborn form. It does not necessarily let you take those with you. Since you are changing your form to (Beast X), unless that beast form has wings, no feat or trait should let you keep the wings.

I feel like you think that there is some sort of order of operations that you're just trying to work out, like Standard Form < Wild Shape < Feats. But that's not the case. It really is just a "if the new shape can support the feature, it works. If not, it doesn't work."

Certainly, DMs can stretch that a bit, but I wouldn't allow you to fly as a bear just because you took a feat giving you wings in your normal form.

[nickl_2000]

Just because a feat gives it to you, doesn't mean that you'd get to keep it. Dragon Wings gives you wings while in your normal, Dragonborn form. It does not necessarily let you take those with you. Since you are changing your form to (Beast X), unless that beast form has wings, no feat or trait should let you keep the wings.

I feel like you think that there is some sort of order of operations that you're just trying to work out, like Standard Form < Wild Shape < Feats. But that's not the case. It really is just a "if the new shape can support the feature, it works. If not, it doesn't work."

Certainly, DMs can stretch that a bit, but I wouldn't allow you to fly as a bear just because you took a feat giving you wings in your normal form.

I'll would give the player the wings in beast form. Simply because you are burning a feat (which you don't get a lot of) to get wings. I would give it to you as a RAF ruling. Besides, you will be able to wildshape into something that would fly once you hit level 8 anyways.

That being said, I would limit the wings ability to fly to Large or Smaller creatures. A dragonborn's wings just wouldn't be strong enough to support flight for a Mammoth, Brontosaurus, or Giant Elk

[DarkKnightJin]

The dragon breath I believe was answered by a tweet, that if you had a mouth, you had the capability of breathing thus the breath weapon would work.

But it's good to get other DMs perspectives, thank you

...And now I want to make a Dragonborn Druid, and be a Dragonbreathing cat or something.. just for sheer fricken ridiculousness.

[tieren]

We take the book pretty literal.

You get the beast's stat block, but keep your mental stats; if the beast can do something you can use your skills and proficiencies.

We wouldn't allow breath attacks or wings if the form doesn't have those. Bears have eyes, but they don't get your darkvision, etc...