(3.5e) Epic Level Druid Build Help

[CptnCopyright!~]

I am currently in an epic level campaign at 21st level. I intend to take World Guardian, so I have Skill Focus (Nature), but I'm wondering how I should go about my epic feats.
My Feats (so far): Exalted Wild Shape, Extend Spell, Natural Spell, Skill Focus: Knowledge (Nature).
Feats I'm Considering: Flyby Attack, Spell Penetration, Multiattack, Exalted Companion (I heard you can get your companion to take the Vow of Poverty?).
Epic Feats I'm Considering: Dragon Wild Shape (Beast Wild Shape as a prerequisite) and may Gargantuan Wild Shape (although I doubt I'll have enough HD to make use of Gargantuan Dragons so).
Epic Feats I Need For World Guardian: Epic Skill Focus (Nature) and Extended Life Span.

Here are my Stats (I also have a leftover +1 from 20th level since we went up two levels after beating one of the two BBEGs):
Str - 11
Dex - 19
Con - 19
Int - 13
Wis - 26
Cha - 9
HP - 198
Race - Nezumi (Oriental Adventures).
I'm really having a hard time choosing my epic feats, but I know how I'm meant to build a Druid. I'm allowed to use the Monster Manuals 1 through 5, BoED, BoVD,, EpLH, PHB, SpC, and the DMG.

[Doctor Despair]

Does it have to be straight Druid into Epic Druid? Or could you use a 10-level prestige class to advance druidic things?

[CptnCopyright!~]

Does it have to be straight Druid into Epic Druid? Or could you use a 10-level prestige class to advance druidic things?

I'm currently reoptimizing my character and I've been told to keep my class and race the same, but feats and epic stuff can be changed. I've been playing this druid for about two years now.

[Doctor Despair]

I'm currently reoptimizing my character and I've been told to keep my class and race the same, but feats and epic stuff can be changed. I've been playing this druid for about two years now.

Oh... That's disappointing. Well, I'm not super familiar with epic things, but off the top of my head, don't overlook Epic Spellcasting. It's literally the most powerful epic feat there is.

[Biffoniacus_Furiou]

If you can, say you visited the Frog God's Fane in Complete Scoundrel to get your Skill Focus: Knowledge (Nature) feat for 2,000 gp instead of spending a feat on it.

Dragon Wild Shape (https://www.d20srd.org/srd/epic/feats.htm#dragonWildShape) was updated to no longer require Beast Wild Shape, since there's no longer a Beast creature type in 3.5 edition. Gargantuan Wild Shape specifically only allows gargantuan animal forms, not elemental or vermin or plant or any other creature type you're able to turn into.

For that last +1 stat, ideally you would get tomes/manuals or wishes/miracles to put a +5 inherent bonus on Con and Wis, in which case it's best spent on Wis. If not, put it on Con since the most recent update to Wild Shape says your hp doesn't get adjusted by our new form's Con score.

The first epic feat you should take is Improved Elemental Wild Shape (https://www.d20srd.org/srd/epic/feats.htm#improvedElementalWildShape). That allows you to take the form of an Immoth (MM2) and use its ice runes ability to cast/store all your remaining spells for the day as ice runes that you can activate as a free action. Each of those lasts indefinitely, so you could have nearly limitless such spells at your disposal, and you don't even need to remain in that form to activate them.

After looking over the World Guardian, I'm not impressed at all. Its first level ability looks interesting but it's not exactly powerful by then, and everything after that is completely redundant if you maintained full spellcasting until the epic levels. Its bonus epic feats come just as often as a single-classed Druid gets them, but the list of choices is significantly shorter. By taking that you'll stop progressing your Wild Shape class feature, which makes it not as good as more Druid levels.

I you're looking for an interesting prestige class, consider taking Lion of Talisid in BoED. That gets full spellcasting and animal companion progression with Exalted Companion as a bonus feat, and it only loses two levels of Wild Shape progression. That gives you Scent and Pounce in all forms, but may not be worth taking for more than five levels.

With Exalted Companion you can get a Celestial (https://www.d20srd.org/srd/monsters/celestialCreature.htm) version of a normal animal companion, or one of several specific creatures. The key difference this makes is that animals are always neutral, they can't ever be any other alignment, but an exalted companion is good aligned which enables them to have an exalted status. This means it can take exalted feats as it gains more HD, including Vow of Poverty.

[CptnCopyright!~]

Dragon Wild Shape was updated to no longer require Beast Wild Shape, since there's no longer a Beast creature type in 3.5 edition. Gargantuan Wild Shape specifically only allows gargantuan animal forms, not elemental or vermin or plant or any other creature type you're able to turn into.


Thank you, I guess I was reading from an outdated handbook.



The first epic feat you should take is Improved Elemental Wild Shape. That allows you to take the form of an Immoth (MM2) and use its ice runes ability to cast/store all your remaining spells for the day as ice runes that you can activate as a free action. Each of those lasts indefinitely, so you could have nearly limitless such spells at your disposal, and you don't even need to remain in that form to activate them.


I'll make sure to take this.



After looking over the World Guardian, I'm not impressed at all. Its first level ability looks interesting but it's not exactly powerful by then, and everything after that is completely redundant if you maintained full spellcasting until the epic levels. Its bonus epic feats come just as often as a single-classed Druid gets them, but the list of choices is significantly shorter. By taking that you'll stop progressing your Wild Shape class feature, which makes it not as good as more Druid levels.


I was mostly looking to dip a level into that prestige class, mostly because of that first ability, since the world itself in this campaign is becoming corrupt, and when I brought it up to my DM he said that a World Guardian would definitely know what's going on (although wouldn't an epic Druid know that too?)



I you're looking for an interesting prestige class, consider taking Lion of Talisid in BoED. That gets full spellcasting and animal companion progression with Exalted Companion as a bonus feat, and it only loses two levels of Wild Shape progression. That gives you Scent and Pounce in all forms, but may not be worth taking for more than five levels.


As said in another reply, I'm simply reoptimizing my character and my DM told me to keep my class the same, but all else can change (spells, feats, companion, etc.) Would Lion of Talisid be worth taking in epic levels?

Thanks for all your help, I really appreciate it!

[Biggus]

You shouldn't need to take Extended Lifespan if you're going straight Druid for your first 20 levels as Druids get Timeless Body in 3.5.

As for feats: Quicken Spell and Multispell are worth considering, as is Improved Spell Capacity (especially if you can get your Wis up to 30). Improved Metamagic when you reach level 27 too.

[anthon]

get on the path to turn into a dragon. Period.

to do less than this chain of feats is to rob yourself of the best stuff out there.

Dragon Wild Shape [Wild][Epic]
Prerequisites
Wis 30, Knowledge (nature) 30 ranks, wild shape 6/day.
Benefit

You may use wild shape to change into a dragon (black, blue, green, red, white, brass, bronze, copper, gold, or silver). The size limitation is the same as your limitation on animal size. You gain all extraordinary and supernatural abilities of the dragon whose form you take.



Colossal Wild Shape [Wild][Epic]
Prerequisite
The ability to wild shape into a Gargantuan creature.
Benefit

You can use your wild shape to take the shape of a Colossal animal.
Normal

Without this feat, you cannot wild shape into an animal of greater than Huge size.

Gargantuan Wild Shape [Wild][Epic]
Prerequisite
Ability to wild shape into a Huge animal.
Benefit

You can use your wild shape to take the shape of a Gargantuan animal.
Normal

Without this feat, you cannot wild shape into an animal greater than Huge size.

[Anthrowhale]

Once you've maxed out spell progression, you can take 4 levels in classes that do not progress casting and get them back with practiced spellcaster. This means you can get Master of Many Form 4 (granting access to Fey and Giant forms) or you could pick up an arcane class and go into Arcane Hierophant (granting arcane casting and your AC familiar abilities). Hierophant (https://www.d20srd.org/srd/prestigeClasses/hierophant.htm) also becomes a good class. You can load up on metamagic or share Dragon Wild Shape with the whole party.

I'd probably pick up Epic Spellcasting at level 21. You should talk to your DM about this thought, because it's game-breaking as written. How is Epic spellcasting going to be handled?

I'd also take 3 levels of a specialist wizard and pick up Alternative Source Spell and Theurgic Specialist (Dragon #325) as well as Practiced Spellcaster[Druid]. The former allows to swap the arcane/divine label, allowing you to double your epic spellcasting limit per day. The latter allows you to add together the caster levels of Druid and Wizard for specialist spells. The best specialist class here is Abyssal Specialist (DoTU?) which may not fit your flavor although it might. If you are chaotic, you could also take the Aligned Spellcaster ACF (Dragon #357) to make most spells specialist.

After that, picking up Arcane Hierophant is a natural, followed by maybe dipping Hierophant to share Dragon Wild Shape once you get access to it.