Relations with Others
Here's how relations often stand between druids and the people and monsters
that live in or near the wild.
Woodcutters and Hunters
Druids act much as game wardens do, letting woodcutters know which trees they
may cut and which they must leave standing, and telling hunters which species
they may hunt and which are protected.
Sometimes these folk resent or even disobey such orders, but most druids
temper their restrictions with reason and balance punishment with reward. People who
live or work in the wild and follow a druid's laws remain under druidic
protection. Druids use their spells when necessary to cure injury or sickness in
hunters' families, prevent starvation among woodcutters in harsh times, and so on.
Those who don't follow druidic rules cannot expect help, even in cases of dire
need.
Local Animals
Druids try to get to know most wild animals within a few miles of home,
learning their daily habits, the locations of their lairs, and so on. A druid makes a
point of keeping track of animals that are pregnant, weak, or sick, and
usually aids (or puts down) diseased, mad, or injured local creatures. However, a
druid does not interfere with normal cycles of predators and prey. Think of this
attitude as that of forest rangers or game wardens: Protecting species holds
greater importance than safeguarding individuals. Still, druids often befriend a
few local animals, whom they respect and protect as they would human companions.
Animals frequently serve as a busy druid's eyes and ears.
Sylvan and Faerie Creatures
Druids respect certain creatures as sentient embodiments of the "spirit" of
Nature. Forest druids, in particular, would risk their lives to protect sylvan or
faerie beings and would oppose other humans to protect the wilderness where
they live. In return, these creatures often give druids official standing in
their communities, perhaps as ambassadors to human realms. A druid might receive an
invitation to speak at a sylvan or faerie council to offer a "human
viewpoint," although only rarely would humans extend the same courtesy.
Outlaws, Fugitives, and Bandits
Folk living away from society sometimes find themselves operating in the same
wilderness areas as druids. As druids know their woods intimately, they can
become vital allies--and bitter enemies, for they know exactly where outlaws hide
and can lead pursuers to them if they choose. Thus, any outlaws exist on the
druids' sufferance.
Druids usually prefer to avoid becoming involved with criminals. They
sometimes shelter individual fugitives and, rarely, offer assistance to entire bands of
outlaws whose activities further druidic goals and show proper respect toward
Nature. Druids' actions generally depend on the situation.
For instance, a character wishing to discourage farmers or loggers from making
inroads into a forest might consider an alliance with bandits, while one on
good terms with neighboring villagers and nobility would seek to drive them away
or reveal their location to the law. But most often, the druid remains
uninvolved, acting only to protect the wilderness from threats.
Local Monsters
Druids usually stay on good or neutral terms with local monsters, opposing
them only if they threaten the entire area or the druid personally. For instance,
a beholder that uses a woodland cave as its sanctuary makes a fine neighbor for
a druid; one that tries to enslave large numbers of sylvan folk to conquer a
nearby elven kingdom means trouble and should be eliminated before it engulfs
the forest in a devastating war.
In general, the druid will act more favorably to creatures that "belong" in an
area. A green dragon, a native of woodlands just as much as an elf or bear,
finds it only natural to prey on elves and men. A druid has no argument with this
tendency. After all, the humans and elves can always send a knight to slay the
dragon.
Most druids make an effort to stay on speaking terms with intelligent
monsters, good, evil, or neutral. The druid may do occasional favors for a creature on
a quid pro quo basis. For example, the druid might volunteer to heal a sick or injured
monster; the druid wants something in return, like a promise that the beast will
refrain from attacking a certain village, will free its captives, or will aid the
druid in battle.
Evil Humanoids
The druid knows these evil humanoid races make up a natural part of the world
and have a right to struggle for existence. As a result, druids will not act
against orcs, goblins, or the like simply because of their race or "evil" nature.
In fact, in the eyes of the druids, these races represent less of a threat to
the wilderness than do humans or dwarves: Few humanoids organize beyond the
tribal level, they rarely build big cities above ground, and they prefer hunting
and gathering to extensive farming.
A few druids--especially Shadow Circle members--ally with native humanoids to
protect the wilderness against encroachment or to aid weaker tribes being
persecuted for no good reason. However, they make these agreements with care and in
utmost secrecy, for they realize the humanoids' evil nature makes them
treacherous comrades. Moreover, if word of such an alliance got out, it could damage
the druidic order's reputation among humans and elves.
Evil humanoids hold the druids in fairly high regard--some tribes always
release druid captives. While these races couldn't care less for the sanctity of
Nature or the welfare of animals, most humanoids respect Nature's mighty power and
its servants.
Rangers and Elves
The ranger class and the elven race resemble each other in that both consist
of good aligned beings dwelling in the wild, protecting it from evil forces.
Elves and rangers sometimes argue with druids over how best to guide the sylvan
peoples and maintain the guardianship of the forests, but this is usually a
friendly disagreement. If an area has a particularly effective ranger presence,
druids may agree to divide up responsibility for its guardianship: Rangers handle
human and demihuman affairs, while druids take care of sylvan creatures and the
problems of native animals and plants. Such informal arrangements, however,
often prove subject to swift change.
Druids consider it a courtesy for a ranger of equivalent or lower level to ask
permission to operate in an area they occupy and usually resent those who
neglect this courtesy. If a ranger does ask permission, a druid generally feels
pleased to cooperate.
Occasionally druids find elven or ranger actions one-sided, impetuous, or
insufficiently ruthless to the job at hand. On the other hand, some elven council
chambers and ranger gatherings ring with the accusation that druids would give
as much credence to the word of an orc or a green dragon as they do an elf or a
treant. Those outside the Order fear the overly cunning druidic stratagems do
not have the best interests of the elven nations at heart. But despite the
occasional suspicion, many friendships grow up between druids and rangers or elves,
and each group respects the other as protectors of the wild.
Gnomes and Halflings
Druids generally get along with the small folk and help them when the need
arises. In turn, a majority of gnomes and halflings (even those that do not follow
the druidic religion) respect druid characters.
Most gnomes and halflings follow an ethos compatible with druidic beliefs:
Live in harmony with the environment and rarely take from it more than needed.
Moreover, druids see them as practical people who, though inclined toward good,
rarely develop the fanatical opposition to "evil" the druids have seen in some
humans, elves, and dwarves.
Dwarves
The dwarven affinity with the earth primarily extends to unliving stone and
metal, while the druids prize living trees and animals. As a result, druids and
dwarves have very different philosophical outlooks.
It doesn't help relations when dwarves cut down forests and dig ugly mine
shafts in green mountainsides in their quest for the coal and firewood needed to
feed their hungry forges. Nor do dwarves enjoy seeing druids favor elves and
advocate a "live and let live" policy with the dwarves' arch-foes, the goblin
races. The result? Druids and dwarves remain on poor terms and have harsh words for
each other when they meet.
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