D&D's Druid: Circle of the Shepherd Appearing in 'Xanathar's Guide to Everything'

[@DungeonDad]

As a DM, I hope none of my players ever choose this class. As a player, I am very excited to try this class.

[@Varatho]

I feel you, the last pass not only had them summoning hordes of creatures, but also buffing the stats on those creatures, forcing you to recalculate all of their stats after they are summoned.

[@Vladdyboy]

@@Varatho oh easy fix, make the player modify all those creatures beforehand, amd obviously check for any foul play. Tell them that you will not let them summon anything that they haven't already prepared.

[@zaelhurtado8661]

"Its the druid that you could imagine is wandering around the forest and they have rabbits following them and birds and things like that" So Circle of the Shepherd is basically playing as Radagast

[@falren9360]

Zael Hurtado Sounds good to me!

[@bacchianlout110]

A disney princess

[@invaderzam]

Or a crazy cat lady

[@fhuber7507]

I told my DM that I want my druid t herd cats (panthers) and explained how he could.

[@drmann15]

Adds stuff that the class couldn’t already do but should have. Doesn’t contradict the traditional class concept or step on the toes of other classes. Nice addition

[@metric7575]

I can hear Matt Mercer screaming already.

[@mousehatescheese]

Right??? No one better tell Laura.

[@ianthe2131]

Sumalee didn't really summon that much tho. I guess they were too low level.

[@Telleryn]

Wish there was a plant theme focussed circle, with a super-shillelagh and barkskin type effect as a form, basically a treant to smash enemies while still effectively being humanoid so able to cast some spells, use a weapon, talk etc

[@ChroOmega]

Rangers had a UA subclass for that, but I’m pretty sure it’s not making it into XGTE

[@maciejhermanowicz8799]

look for Sprouting Chaos on homebrewery

[@Tanglangfa]

Maciej Hermanowicz I️ agree that they need to do more with animated plants.

[@tonysladky8925]

This was basically the Warden in 4E. I never managed to play one (never played a Defender at all...) but they sounded really cool.

[@recoveringweirdo5050]

He didn't mention that you can TALK TO ANIMALS!!!! 😍😍😍😍

[@goodmorningandwelcometo7324]

"it's not a real creature. It still bleeds and suffers, but it's not a real creature. It has no free will, it does whatever I want, and it's a REPRESENTATION" A Druid desperately trying to defend his lawful good alignment after defeating a roper by choking it to death on kittens.

[@valleer8130]

That's too good.

[@paulh3892]

Hahahaha!

[@pikazooka]

This is pretty close to my druid's excuse for making meat shields

[@treedude4246]

Summoning creatures is a dms worst nightmare

[@aenorist2431]

Yeah, thats some shitty design. Looking at you, Ranger, still not even halfway workable.

[@treedude4246]

I mean as a player summoning creatures is a blast Who doesnt wanna 8 horses or giant frogs but like as dm im like jeeeesus

[@religionintherealms]

I tell anyone who is going to use summoning spells that is all on them, to have the stats for the monsters, the miniatures ready, and to be quick about it. If they can do that much, then I am fine with the summoning spells.

[@stewanmaleno]

To be a summoner a player must be thorough and manage their own creatures. But it is certainly possible to play one without having the DM to do all the work, and I would argue that it's not a design flaw but rather a hard or "advanced" play-style. Some people can't even manage their spells and maybe should be playing a fighter. There are unspoken tiers of difficulty between the classes. If my players are not very experienced, I make a custom simplified sheet for their companions, animal forms, etc... and let them know from early on that it's their responsibility to keep track of that stuff.

[@F4R207]

The worst part is that summoning is so poorly implemented into the theme, cast a spell and poof it appears, no real explanation, no fluff to it, nothing, just a mechanism and an effect for a bit of stats from a manual. Such a poorly implemented mechanism.

[@abouttime837]

my favourite druid!

[@RichardHaywardMelbourne]

Amer Turkistani what do you like about it? I don't get a good sense from this vid.

[@KyleMaxwell]

Let the beard flourish, Mike!

[@cameronpearce5943]

I just wish their was a Druid class that could get companions again.

[@ericschulz6627]

For some reason I’m seeing Snow White ala Shrek 3 style

[@MrCompassionate01]

This sounds hilarious, I anticipate a lot of funny stories emerging.

[@TheJopetzki]

Circle of the Shepherd is cool in theory, I like that there is a path focused in summoning. But like others have mentioned, there's a lot to keep track of and I'm probably going to shove prints with statblocks on them on to my player's hands and tell them to keep track of most things. I'm disappointed that Circle of the Twilight won't be making it to the book. Out of any circle, it was my favorite. I'm just going to have to go with my homebrewed version of it, tweaked from the UA. I've also homebrewed a version of Shaman by replacing all of druid's wildshape features with stuff that expands or improves spellcasting, like wizards or clerics, but with druidic spellcasting.

[@summerfield738]

I think what everyone is overlooking concerning this sub-class is it's overpowered ability to multi-heal at lvl 2 (by using your Unicorn Totem Spirt), which my party seemed to find very useful in picking up multiple downed party members on more than one occasion as well as just fixing everyone up in two easy steps out or in of combat as required and also gives 'Cure Wounds' a range of 30ft meaning you don't have to leave your position in combat to access downed or wounded allies. Since you regain the use of the totem spirit after a short rest, it quickly becomes a broken ability at lower levels, that is before you finally gain access to your first summoning spell 'Conjure Animals' at lvl 5 and even then you can still summon and multi-heal as required, making this truly a headache class for your DM.

[@on_certainty]

unicorn makes gives the life cleric a run for its money. it doesn't beat it out but it does really well!

[@dayel11]

Those subclasses are awesome, still, I miss the animal companion :(

[@CrazyNerdMonkey]

Sheep army!

[@Tanglangfa]

I️ need an attack squirrel post haste!!! I️ love this idea for a class!!!!!

[@murlend8455]

As a DM this might be my worst nightmare, still cool on paper

[@CrazyConnor2]

*insert comment about DM's hating summoning spells here*

[@harryjohnson1095]

How do you summon animals? Is it a spell or just a class feature? And is it concentration?

[@fhuber7507]

3rd level circle of Shepherd Druid... can potentially cause over 700hp of healing in under 10 rounds.

[@Eveoriginalsinner]

F Huber wait how? Share this knowledge 🙏🙏

[@TuckBolt]

Are these getting shorter every time a new one comes out?

[@MizzNox]

so it's like a summoner paladin?

[@o76923]

How does the unicorn totem interact with the life domain?

[@JacksonBockus]

James Endicott The final class is not released yet, but the revised UA looks like this: if the target of the spell is inside the unicorn’s aura, it would regain 2 + spell level extra hit points from Disciple of Life and druid level extra hit points from Unicorn Spirit. So a life cleric 1, shepherd druid 2 with 16 wisdom casting cure wounds on another creature within the unicorn’s aura would restore 1d8 + 3 (from the spell) + 3 (from Disciple of Life) + 2 (from Unicorn Aura) hit points to the target and 2 hit points to every other creature of the caster’s choice within the aura.

[@MNeilGri]

So basically warcraft's shaman

[@F4R207]

It's a shame that summoning is so poorly implemented thematicly though. It's a system mechanisms that is yearning for more thematical application, explanation, fluff, anything! The class is a small step towards it but the mechanism need a rework to be thematic from the very core of it, no matter class.

[@Fayth300]

Mike is looking increasingly tired in these videos. But this circle is neat!

[@Troommate]

Release the Horde!!!

[@connors7078]

Have Dmed for 30 odd years. Never had a prob with players summoning creatures. Though we have never really had prob with animal companions and 'action economy' others go on about either. I love the sound of this druid being focussed on animals. Not sure about the PC-friendly 'this is not a real animal', but matters not. If a druid did that sort of send my summoned 'friends' down a tunnel to be slaughtered, it imply would not work the next time. But again, I don't have players that would do that :)

[@quietstarsilence7038]

Ha! This would be my groups first idea.... my character had just died and they were dragging my body around, they get this hallway of traps and use my body to trigger them....wich didn't work but they still tried. Course we're also the group who spent 10 minutes trying to figure out a way to get three horses up a ladder before the dm just pull 3 monsters and killed the horses to get us moving

[@jacquestrahan982]

Killer rabbits of dooooom!!!!!!!!! (think Monty Python Holy Grail....)

[@elf-lordsfriarofthemeadowl2039]

WITH BIG POINTY TEEETH!

[@UTYuetu]

Literally playing this with badger and giant badger stats for rabbits and killer rabbits

[@Oops-All-Ghosts]

So the Circle of the Shepherd is a paladin that worships totemic animals?

[@rrockmanx]

I'm so sad for the merging of the shaman and druid. Why must I be a polymorphing chacal to be able to summon a totem spiriit? The two abilities are so different that it feels like an extreme multiclassing. It's really sad because it even limits what settings can be like. In my setting, transforming into an animal is the most crazy thing one could do, they would hunt them down like witches. And that's why the druids are very few. But a totem shaman would be much easier to play. Too bad we can't have it without the Wild Shape ability.

[@RatchildUK]

Totem and ancestral guardian barbarians are 5e's 'Shaman' class.

[@theodorwilliam6943]

Still don't get why this couldn't just have been an animal companion druid but I guess it's all right

[@CM-zs6hh]

they don't want to make rangers completely irrelevant

[@theodorwilliam6943]

Still seems like it would have been simpler

[@miahmagick]

- but WotC already made Beastmaster Rangers irrelevant...

[@reubenfromow4854]

This is a very long-winded way of saying “this is only useful up to third level”

[@nohandles406]

nope, nope, nope. Conjure Animals is enough of a nightmare for me as a DM. Can't imagine this will make things better.