#druid lore

I keep pondering Halsin's situation... particularly due to the mysterious logbook discovered in the Inner Sanctum of the Emerald Grove (XIII:1371 bg3.wiki). I don't believe the ''rich vs poor'' concept fully encapsulates him.

Halsin strikes me as cash-poor by choice and politically(spiritually) powerful. A Grand Druid may not keep a personal vault of coin. But he can control access to land, medicine, sacred groves, rare alchemical components, hunting rights, grazing, and the movement of civilization through protected wilderness.

So he is not ''wealthy'' like a monarch, merchant, or Baldurian patriar... Halsin’s lifestyle aligns more with someone self-sufficient: economically secure through skill, land, community, and natural resources, rather than dependent on wages, markets, or coin.

Halsin has the power and capacity to(example):

Forbid logging companies from cutting down trees.

Grant hunters the right to cull the boar population when their numbers encroach on nature's balance.

Dispatch rangers and adventurers to root out unnatural or corrupting influences in the rural wilderness.

Prevent farmers from hiring poachers by teaching them how to protect their flocks and herds.

Mediate between settlements and apex predators (bears, wolves, mountain lions, etc.)

Give access to the land, but only under strict terms and close watch.

Serve as Nature’s Ward in times of crisis, mobilizing defenders of the grove and forge alliances.

And then there is the Emerald Enclave itself. Even if Halsin personally lives modestly and doesn't hoard silver or gold, the Enclave clearly operates within the wider economy when needed. They can hire rangers, compensate adventurers, equip members with armor and weapons, trade in rare earth gems and metals, and move resources through networks of allies. That feels like stewardship wealth more than anything else.

But I am curious...

"Come and enter the Enchanted Forest, deep in the heart of the Green World, and discover the greatest secrets of the Ancient Mystery Tradition--- the hidden legacy of Elves & Faerie."

Nature’s Soulmates

The silvery moon shone brightly in the vast sky.  Like a single cat’s-eye, it pulsed with a luminescence through a soft haze.  The thin layer of clouds partially obstructed its full view, like a sheer lace curtain on a breezy summer evening; graciously allowing for the forest to be fully aglow with a guiding light. As the crisp autumn air brought forth a hint of the impending chill that signified nature’s warning of the change of season, leaves began to crack and crumble with each deliberate step.

A magical feeling surged through the air.  And it was nights such as this, where our female druid felt most alive.  Each full harvest moon, she paid homage to Selene by taking the form of a large wolf as part of her Circle of the Moon ritual. Her long flowing coat was pale blue with highlights of teal.  While this was an unusual color for a natural wolf, it was the normal effect of the shapeshift that depicted her natural color as a genasi. Tonight, she frolicked in the dried leaves, ran full speed through the forest, and leaped over large rocks and dead tree stumps. After much consuming fun, nearly breathless, she stumbled upon a gently flowing brook and stopped to take a drink.  Something caused her to stop mid-lap. It was the sound of a plaintive wail, from off in the distance.

She quickly ventured towards the sound.  Through the dense foliage she saw it; it was a medium sized grey wolf. The wolf, whimpering in pain, was caught in a hunter’s trap.  The beast’s left front paw was stuck in the steel trap. The wolf licked its leg feverishly, and desperately tried to release the trap. To no avail, the wolf was in dire need of help.  Our druidess had a decision to make.  She knew, in wolf form, that she would not be able to spring the trap.  As large as she was, she did not have the strength in her lanky legs to apply the proper amount of force. By opposition, she realized that by dropping her wolf form, she would run the risk of frightening the wounded animal. She decided, she should approach as a familiar to try to gain the trust of the wolf before dropping form and freeing it. This was going to take some finesse.

Cautiously she approached with her head down to take a submissive stance. The grey beast bared its large fangs and growled. Lowering her head even further, she crept forward slowly.  When she was a meter away, she dropped and laid prone on the ground. This act seemed to have pacified the wolf. It leaned forward to gather the scent of the druid but stopped suddenly as it was perplexed by the lack of a recognizable smell. This wolf did not smell like other beasts in the forest. Something was not right. Still, the larger wolf was down, showing no threat, and the wounded wolf was in such pain that its sole focus was removing itself from the predicament.

She felt that she should at least attempt to spring the trap while in her current state.  Without making eye contact, she stood up and placed her large paw on the release lever; nothing, it would not budge. The grey wolf somehow sensed what the blue wolf was trying to do and did not attack.  In fact, it joined in the pursuit and took its free paw and applied it on top of the larger paw to apply more pressure. The joint effort was futile.  Even with the combined strength of both, the lever would not release.  At this point, the druidess became extremely frustrated and began jumping up and down with both paws falling on the lever. She was pouncing and jumping; trying in vain the release the trap.  The grey wolf howled in agony, because the missed attempts were jostling the trap and causing it to dig further into the wolf’s leg.  Seeing the misfortune that she was causing; she abruptly stopped and snorted a gruff pant in defeat.

She had no choice. There was only one option.  She had to drop form, because in this state she did not possess the strength; nor could she cast any magic. She retreated two meters, looked the wolf in the eyes, and dropped form. She stood before the wounded wolf in all her glorious genasi form. She was three inches short of six feet. Her long teal locks cascaded down her back, which complimented the tone of her pale blue skin. Her markings glowed white in the full moonlight; while her piercing blue eyes sparkled as she stared cautiously at the wolf. Oddly, while startled, the wolf made no aggressive movements. She carefully reached out her hand as she gazed tenderly into the wolf’s tearful eyes.

 “Easy girl.  Easy now.  I am not going to hurt you.  Let me help you get out of this.  Okay? I am here to help.  Please don’t attack me.  Relax now.  It’s going to be okay.  Work with me here.”, she pleaded.

Cautiously she encroached closer as she looked deeply into the wolf’s eyes while she hummed a melodic tune lightly. Without the wolf noticing, she shortened the gap; until at long last, she was within the distance she needed. She promptly stepped on the release lever and reached down and carefully removed the broken paw from the trap. She placed both hands around the leg and muttered something in an ancient primordial language. A warm light engulfed the wound that brought an immediate sense of relief. She released her hold and disengaged.

 “There you go. That wasn’t so bad now, was it? See, that feels better, doesn’t it?  It’s going to take a while to fully heal, so go easy on it. Be well my friend. Okay, now off with you.  Head back to your pack. Go on now. Go on.”, she urged.

She waved her hands in a scooting motion. But the wolf was not retreating. At first, the druidess thought she might be in trouble.  Was the wolf going to attack?  She felt the best course of action was to back away slowly, while not breaking eye contact. When she had built up enough of a safe distance, she waved “goodbye” and turned around and walked away.  She continued to walk back to the stream where she was prior to the incident.  She had walked for about 15 minutes when she felt an odd sensation; like she was being watched. She turned around and noticed that the wolf was following along at a languid pace due to its limp.  She turned around and tried to shoo the wolf to go away again.

 “Hey now. I thought I told you to head back to your pack.  Why are you following me?  I’m not really a wolf, okay?  It’s just something I can do.  I mean, technically I can change into any animal I see, but some of them may scare you. I just can’t do it right now and show you.  Why am I trying to explain this to you?, she babbled.

You don’t even understand. Go now. LEAVE!”, she shouted as she stomped her foot on the ground hoping to scare the wolf into going on its way.

The wolf was not deterred and continued its awkwardly gradual pursuit as the druid continued to press forward until she reached the bank of the stream. She turned and looked over her shoulder and saw the wolf sitting as it awaited her next move.  She placed her feet into the cool water and smiled. Finally, she relented and patted the ground to motion for the wolf to join her.

 “Okay, silly, come on over.  I guess you are very thirsty, huh?  I might as well, clean and bandage that wound while I am at it.”, she grinned as she realized she had lost her heart a wolf.

The wolf strolled up next to her. Carefully, it leaned its head forward and began to drink its fill of the cold water.  The druidess tore off a strip of fabric from her royal blue cape.  She submerged it into the water and meticulously used it to clean the wound on the leg while it was engaged in quenching its thirst. When she cleared away all of the blood, she carefully wrapped the cloth around the leg to prevent infection and to offer a makeshift support brace.  

 She lightly joked, “See that. You are mine now. You are wearing my colors. I hope you like blue.”

Where’s your family, girl? Don’t you have anyone? I guess you are like me; all alone in this big world. Well you are more than welcome to accompany me if you want.  It would be nice to have some company.”, she muttered on as she sighed.

When the wolf finished drinking, it sat besides the druid on the bank and stared into her eyes.  She smiled and gently ran her fingers through the wolf’s fur.  The contented wolf appeared appreciative and nudged closer.  As she continued her soft petting, the wolf leaned forward and applied a huge slobbery lick to the druid’s face. The smiling druid threw her arms around the wolf and hugged tightly as she wiped the wolf saliva off her cheek by burying her face into the wolf’s pelt.  Exhausted by the ordeal, they both collapsed on the grass and nestled close to one another. As the druidess laid her head on the wolf’s stomach, they both drifted off into a deep and peaceful slumber under the starry night sky.

And hence, this is the story of how druids and wolves tamed each other and became companions.  To this day, they travel night and day throughout many lands interwoven in spirit through their devotion and loyalty for each other. Fiercely protective; creating a supernatural soul-bond that can never be broken for all of eternity.

Can druids speak while shapeshifted?

If game mechanics are anything to go by then yes, druids can speak in animal form. However, the novella Elegy is one of the few canon sources to explicitly, not just implicitly, say otherwise. Toward the end of the novella, one of the lines says, “Ferryn was beside her in his favorite shape - that of the nightsaber. For a moment, Delaryn rejoiced. But then she realized that he was speaking. He should not have been able to.” There are also several other moments in Elegy where it is at least implied, if not stated outright, that shapeshifted druids cannot speak. For example, “The muzzle of a nightsaber was not built for smiling, but even so, hot delight tugged at the muscles around Ferryn’s great fangs.” If a druid-nightsaber cannot smile, then it goes without saying that they certainly do not possess any capabilities for speech.

The World of Warcraft comic series also strongly implies that druids cannot speak in their animal forms, as Broll Bearmantle never utters a word while shapeshifted [Page: Druid, World of Warcraft Comic Issue #9, Issue #10].

In-game, however, virtually every druid NPC in World of Warcraft speaks in their druid forms. Notable examples include Malfurion, Tenno Thornpaw, Koda Steelclaw, Thaon Moonclaw, Zen’kiki, Ruul Snowhoof, Gaivan Shadewalker, Ulfar, and Arthur Tradewind, among many others. While I won’t go into detail, most of these characters speak to the player while shapeshifted, typically in quest text (as is the case with Ulfar, Koda Steelclaw, and Gaivan Shadewalker) or while accompanying the player on a mission (as seen with Arthur Tradewind, Thaon Moonclaw, and Malfurion).

(Sidenote: Worgen can, obviously, speak while in worgen form. The most salient and well-known example of this is Genn Greymane, who speaks while shapeshifted during a couple of the fully rendered Battle for Azeroth cinematics. I will note, however, that it doesn’t appear as if the Druids of the Scythe who took on worgen form originally could speak while transformed until after they were “blessed” by the Scythe of Elune [Curse of the Worgen, Issue #3, pg. 10-13]  The Druids of the Scythe in the comic series only speak while in their humanoid forms until the blessing, never when shapeshifted. Therefore, I would not say that worgen being able to talk is evidence druids have the ability to speak in their animal forms.)

Depending on whether or not you give the story precedence over game mechanics, then you might be persuaded to believe that druids are not supposed to be able to speak while shapeshifted.  Since Elegy is a fairly recent story set in canon, it’s probable that it has the absolute say in this matter. Therefore, in order to reconcile the apparent discrepancies between what happens in novelizations and in-game, some have opted to believe that druids talking in animal form is just game mechanics and does not accurately represent what druids can do.

The Chalice of Renewal

—A druid’s approach to contraception (lore drop/Halsin head-canon)

Something glinted, drawing Tempest’s gaze to the Grand Druid’s veined, steady hands. A chalice. A soft ringing emanated from it, moonlight haloing the silver rim as he circled it with his finger. “Pleasure is sacred,” he said. “It is the pulse of life itself —the balance of sun and soil, of seed and bloom. Our rites follow the wheel of the seasons: Greengrass, Midsummer, and Highharvestide...” He raised the cup to his lips —a ritual of devotion and responsibility both —before the silver light faded back into shadow.

Do shapeshifted druids have to deal with animalistic urges?

The short answer is: yes. However, I suspect the intensity of urges they have to deal with varies from form to form and depends in part on the practicing druid’s level of control. 

To start, we know that druids do fully take on the traits and abilities of their chosen form. When Ferryn in Elegy shifts into a nightsaber, his, “sense of smell [is] keener than . . . when he was in night elf form” and, further, he has “the augmented vision of the great cat whose form he had taken.” As another example, one quest has the player shapeshift into a nightsaber because that form’s heightened senses are necessary for tracking an adversary [Quest: Tracking the Enemy]. Lastly, snippets of dialogue from the druids in Sylvan Falls, seen below, clearly indicate that fledgling druids do have to deal with certain animalistic urges unique to their chosen form. I would bet, however, that more practiced druids can overcome and suppress these urges.

While I consider it a unique example that doesn’t necessarily apply to the other animal forms, it’s important to talk about pack form, more popularly known as worgen form, in answering this question. During the War of the Satyr, the druids who practiced pack form found themselves utterly consumed by the form’s rage and volatility, practically becoming savage beasts in the process. One character says of being in pack form that, “Feral power surged through every fiber of our beings with but one primal, savage, and base instinct - survival,” while another comments, “It is as if… I lose all that is myself in that form. I only recall fragments” [Curse of the Worgen, Issue #2, pg. 10, 22]. Druids employing this form didn’t just transform into something akin to a wolf, they actually took on the bloodthirsty essence of the wild god Goldrinn himself [Curse of the Worgen, Issue #1, #2].

The Origins of Pack Form

“The pack form’s strength comes from the wolf demigod Goldrinn, as you know, but its essence is rooted in his rage against our moon goddess. You see, it was Goldrinn’s feral insistence that disappointed Elune so. It was his unwillingness to tame his savagery and bloodlust that overshadowed his noble heart. When her great light illuminated the dark during the full moons, it was as if her eyes glared down upon him in judgment. His anger at her conviction caused Goldrinn to become even more bloodthirsty and indomitable than ever. It is this volatile nature of which Malfurion is most concerned. It is this essence that is rooted deep within the form.” - Tyrande, Curse of the Worgen Issue #1, pg. 27-28

It’s easy to see that pack form, which is no longer widely practiced by druids, was notorious for how incredibly difficult it was to control. This strongly implies that druids do have to deal with animalistic urges when shapeshifted, but pack form was so singularly extreme that I don’t think it can be used as a baseline example when it comes to the kind of animalistic impulses druids might experience in their other forms.

There is, however, an additional example that proves druids can still succumb to animal urges in less dangerous forms. Originally an RPG-only concept that recently made it into the live game, Savagekin are druids who sacrifice their humanity to live exclusively like beasts [RPG: Alliance Player’s Guide, pg. 60]. In fact, one line from the RPG even says, “Savagekin constantly battle the inner beasts that threaten to consume them, clinging to their last vestiges of sentience.” This certainly seems to suggest that druids have animalistic urges, but because this is from the RPG, it’s no longer canon.

Despite that, there is a form of Savagekin that exist in-game, although they are never directly referred to as such. These druids, who can be found on the Verdant Wilds island, are night elves who believed that they are, “at [their] core, wild creatures, and [their] humanoid forms are merely a guise” [Quest: Druidic Fur]. Because of that, they left mainstream society after the War of the Satyr and chose to live as animals for millennia.

With all of this in mind, it appears druids do have to deal with animal impulses, especially since they take on the attributes of whatever animal form they choose. Even so, it’s likely that trained druids are able to suppress it whereas feral druids, or Savagekin, choose to fully give in.

Link to #druidweek introduction post here!

What is shapeshifting like and how quickly can it be done?

This is a question that’s somewhat difficult to answer since it’s almost never elaborated on in game mechanics, quest text, lore, or story. Even Elegy, which has shed significant light on other mysteries surrounding druids up to this moment, has very little to say on this topic. Any mention of shapeshifting in the novella is usually just reduced to singular sentences mentioning a “shift” or “transformation” without shedding light on the process or what it’s like. Here are some examples:

“Ferryn shifted shape in midair and dropped lithely to his feet.”

“He shifted his shape, and an instant later, there sat a tall, pale blue night elf with long, wild hair the color of moss.”

“Ferryn shifted back to his kaldorei form.”

“. . . then she saw a storm crow. It fluttered down to the shan’do, shifting its form to reveal a kaldorei girl.”

While I don’t have direct access to it, the Traveler book supposedly says it’s rare for druids to be able to shapeshift in a matter of seconds [Page: Druid]. Most of the druids in Elegy, however, appear to shift virtually instantaneously. Ferryn likely would not have shifted in midair if it took him several moments to complete the transformation.

Some depictions of druids, like Curse of the Worgen, almost make it look like shapeshifting is a painful process (see below) [Curse of the Worgen, Issue #1]. However, if that’s true, no druid has ever said as much. 

Druids can directly shift between forms without needing to revert to their humanoid shape in between [Elegy, World of Warcraft Comic Issue #9].

Link to #druidweek introduction post here!

What is it?

Like Shark Week… but better, because it’s about druids.

Quite some time ago I got an ask about the lore behind the specifics of druid shapeshifting. I took that ask, ran with it, and ended up doing a whole lot more research into the finer details of druid lore and shapeshifting than I initially bargained for. So, with that in mind, I’m going to be doing something of a week-long info lore dump session on Druid Shapeshifting. For every single one of the next seven days, I will be posting popular questions (and my answers) about druids, shapeshifting, their animal forms, and more!

To give you a taste of what’s to come, I will be answering questions like:

Can druids speak while shapeshifted?

When druids die, do they return to their humanoid form?

What determines what druids can shapeshift into?

Can druids cast spells while in animal form?

Do druids in animal form have to deal with animalistic urges?

What is shapeshifting like and how quickly can it be done?

Can all druids shapeshift into all forms?

If you find you have other questions you want me to answer, please send me an ask or message and I’ll get back to you ASAP!

As always, I am not an absolute authority on any of these topics and readily admit that I have not meticulously combed through all of the relevant source material. Therefore, if you know I’ve missed something or you want to contribute your input on these topics, you are completely welcome to do so (in fact, I encourage it!).