Originally Posted by
Tanarii
Nitpick ... AD&D 1e was neither the beginning of D&D nor the beginning of the Druid class. Because from Dungeons & Dragons Supplement III - Eldritch Wizardry, which is where the Druid class first appeared as a PC class:
"They may wear armor of leather, and use wooden shields. They may not use metallic armor."
Roleplaying rules for Druids, from the same book:
"Druids have an obligation to protect woodland animals and plants, especially trees. Unlike the obligation of lawful and good types towards others of this sort, the tendency of druids will be to punish those who destroy their charges, rather than risk their own lives to actually save the threatened animal or plant. Druids will not slay an animal if it can be avoided, and they can never willingly or deliberately destroy a copse, woods or forest —no matter how enchanted or evil it may be—although they may attempt to modify such a place with their own [sic] magicks."
Like most roleplaying games, D&D has a long history of roleplaying rules and/or restrictions. It's a modern fallacy that players must/should be in charge of what their PC believes at all times. Just as the idea that all rules can be divided into the categories of fluff/mechanics is a modern fallacy.