Opinion/Advice on Half-Orc Druid Ability Scores

[jerrypocalypse]

Hey all, I'm making a caster/summoner Druid (base Druid variant) and using Half-Orc for aesthetic reasons. Going to be playing on default normal difficulty. I'm just curious about my ability score spread.

This is what I'm thinking:

Str: 14
Dex: 14
Con: 14
Int: 10
Wis: 18 (I chose this for my +2 from race so the 18 was cheaper)
Cha: 10

I'm wondering if this is okay or if adjusting it to have 19 Wisdom is really worth it for that extra +1 bonus later on (putting all 5 increases to make it 24 instead of 22/23 with my current setup).

[jsaving]

Your setup will work fine but I'd personally dump INT/CHA, raise WIS to 19, and change archetype to defender of the true world.

[jerrypocalypse]

The extra +1 bonus makes that big of difference on normal?

[Mork]

Originally posted by jerrypocalypse:

The extra +1 bonus makes that big of difference on normal?

Personally i think no it won't

Unless you plan to be a DC caster, then it's 20 wisdom. I like creating builds that reach their full potential around level 16-18. Level 20 is not easy to get unless you keep all skills xp for yourself or cut your group to 4-5 party members.

What weapon and animal companion are you planing to use? Druid strength greatly come from his pet... specially at low level.

[Aranador]

If you are going to be a caster druid, do you need that strength?

[jerrypocalypse]

I was going to roll with the dog companion, and likely either scimitar/shield or spear.

My primary goal is to be a caster/summoner rather than a straight melee/shifter druid

[jerrypocalypse]

Originally posted by Aranador:

If you are going to be a caster druid, do you need that strength?

Yeah, that's what I was just thinking. I mainly upped it because it was cheap for the extra +1 for things like backup AB and CMD. But I think I'll lower it to 12, which should let me get Wis to 19

[jerrypocalypse]

I think my original thought process was to balance the character out a bit more since normal difficulty shouldn't be too crazy I wouldn't think. But I shouldn't really need too much strength. I'm still in the mindset of Neverwinter Nights and not having a larger party like this game allows. So I can be a bit more focused with each character

[Mork]

Originally posted by jerrypocalypse:

I think my original thought process was to balance the character out a bit more since normal difficulty shouldn't be too crazy I wouldn't think. But I shouldn't really need too much strength. I'm still in the mindset of Neverwinter Nights and not having a larger party like this game allows. So I can be a bit more focused with each character

Normal could be considerate the hard difficulty in other games, so keep that in mind. The dog is on the weaker side of the animal companions list.

I did really like playing a Aasimar offtank jack of all trade scimitar/shield defender of the true world with a bear companion. They are not the strongest build out there by far but they are still fun. Getting enough AC can be tricky..

My base stats was something like this 16,14,14,8,18,8

[Doombringer]

As far as pets go:
Pets that start with 1 attack eventually get a 2nd at -5 to hit and a 3rd at -10
(boar, dog, centipede) - they have the worst damage output and their defense isn't any better (or is barely better) than other pets.
Pets that start with multiple attacks get don't get anymore as they level up, but all attacks are at full Base Attack Bonus.
Smilodon gets 5 attacks and pounce (can make all attacks when it charges instead of 1), so it ends up being the best overall.
(Bear gets 3 attacks, but if both claws hit it gets a 4th, also the top druid weapon adds 2d10 damage/hit to it's attacks instead of 2d6... it is okay-ish.)

I'm only mentioning number of attacks and not base damage because to damage bonus ends up being so much larger 1pt avg damage difference in base attack damage doesn't really matter.
(bonus damage from power attack and ~35 Str at max level, can also add spells like greater magic fang, etc.)

[jerrypocalypse]

Originally posted by Doombringer:

As far as pets go:
Pets that start with 1 attack eventually get a 2nd at -5 to hit and a 3rd at -10
(boar, dog, centipede) - they have the worst damage output and their defense isn't any better (or is barely better) than other pets.
Pets that start with multiple attacks get don't get anymore as they level up, but all attacks are at full Base Attack Bonus.
Smilodon gets 5 attacks and pounce (can make all attacks when it charges instead of 1), so it ends up being the best overall.
(Bear gets 3 attacks, but if both claws hit it gets a 4th, also the top druid weapon adds 2d10 damage/hit to it's attacks instead of 2d6... it is okay-ish.)

I'm only mentioning number of attacks and not base damage because to damage bonus ends up being so much larger 1pt avg damage difference in base attack damage doesn't really matter.
(bonus damage from power attack and ~35 Str at max level, can also add spells like greater magic fang, etc.)

The weapon adds to the bear companion's damage?

[Mork]

yes, the difference is not 'insane' but fun and nice +2d10 instead of +2d6 for all his attacks(bear = 3/round)
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1975213842

[jerrypocalypse]

Interesting. Thanks everyone for all the input!

[Doombringer]

There is also a ring you can buy at the start of chapter 2 that gives Animal Companion +2 Str & Dex for 6000.

[jerrypocalypse]

Originally posted by Doombringer:

There is also a ring you can buy at the start of chapter 2 that gives Animal Companion +2 Str & Dex for 6000.

Oh awesome, thanks for the tip.

[jerrypocalypse]

Quick additional question about feats for a Druid caster/summoner. I'm grabbing the augment summoning and superior summoning feats for sure. Is combat casting worth it since I would hopefully not generally be front line? What about spell penetration?