Druid Circles - Apocryphal Teachings
T
he moon rose blood red over the Tainted Making Enemies
Forest, and Azum Anitar was ready to begin
the ritual. Forty lives had ended that morning Druidic teachings primarily focus on a oneness with the
in the woods where his conclave rested, and natural world and the abdication of civilization. However, in
forty corpses would act as grim warnings to all the apocrypha of druidic lore lie sleeping secrets that most
of Pelor's devout. "Let it be known that any would consider unnatural. The Circle of the Dead teaches
who practice restorative magic in this forest that the natural resolution of all life is to die, and to come
swim against the tide of nature's entropy," the druid said. He between that end is to make an enemy of nature itself. Those
continued to carve runes into the cheeks and foreheads of the in the Circle of the Earth see the plantlife and creatures of
dead with a rusty blade while his supplicant prepared to the world in equal opposition to nature as civilizations and
string up the dead. technology. They view the earth as the only natural substance
Deep in the Underdark, a duergar slept peacefully under a and treat all life, including themselves, as a temporary fixture
statue at the mouth of a natural cave - one undisturbed by oppsing the purity of earth and stone.
drow, cave worm, or lichen. The old druid heard the footfalls The following options are available to Druids of 2nd level:
of a rogue and awoke with his magical staff already in hand. The Circle of the Dead and the Circle of the Earth. Each of
Many had attempted to plunder the diamonds within, and just these druidic circles is an alternative to those listed for the
as many had failed. The unwary rogue was caught in awe of druid class in the Player’s Handbook.
the many statues outside the cave entrance. He would soon Additionally, some content presented here is found in the
join their like in eternal slumber and submission to the Elemental Evil Player's Companion. Such content is marked
druid's earthen might. with a superscript ee.
Making Enemies APOCRYPHAL TEACHINGS 1
Circle of the Dead Grave Calling
The Circle of the Dead is a secluded cult that reveres natural At 10th level, you gain resistance to necrotic damage. Druids
death. These druids use the powers of necromancy to spurn of this circle become attenuated to the mystical energy
those that would stand against death. To their teachings, surrounding death, numbing their susceptibility to it.
prolonging a life when it should naturally end is an Dead Thrall
abomination in the eyes of nature's intent. All things must die At 14th level, you have the ability to reanimate the fallen as
when their time comes be it from sickness, old age, or your slave. As an action, choose a humanoid corpse that was
violence. Worse is the act of returning a soul to its body after slain no more than 24 hours ago. Over the course of 1
it has passed through the veil; nothing could be more minute, the corpse returns to life with maximum hit points.
abhorrent to nature’s will. The body must be mostly intact - injuries such as missing
Often mistaken for evil conjurers, these druids act as fierce limbs will not affect the reanimation process, though missing
protectors of the natural order. Priests, doctors, and clerics legs will cause the thrall to be unable to move and a missing
that heal the injured and cure the sick are seen by them as head will cause the thrall to be unable to see and hear.
meddlers and obstructionists in the natural course of death. The creature has the same game statistics that it had in life
Clerics of the Life domain in particular are feverishly opposed with the following modifications.
by the Circle of the Dead for their egregious and wanton acts
of restoration. Though the druids of this circle can cast The creature’s type becomes undead.
healing spells as other druids can, they rarely choose to The creature gains immunity to the poisoned condition
unless the act can be justified. Magical healing is often and to poison damage.
received by the druid with bitterness, but tends to be The creature gains darkvision out to 60 feet.
welcome during times of need - only the most fanatic among The creature cannot cast spells.
the circle will sooner see their own death than live to protect The creature cannot speak, but it understands the
the harmony of nature’s intent. Some follow this path simply languages it spoke in life.
for the power it bestows and care little for the tenets of the
more dogmatic members. Your thrall will follow your commands to the best of its
Druids of this circle will rarely, if ever, choose to the take ability, even endangering its safety in doing so. In combat, the
the form of a live beast with Wild Shape. If they do, the thrall rolls its own initiative and acts on its own turn. Once
animal form often has the visage of a sick and diseased slain, the creature dissolves to dust and cannot be
creature that shows signs of mange and rotting flesh usually reanimated again.
accompanied by an acrid, foul smell though the creature’s You can only have one dead thrall at a time - creating a new
health is no less than that of a normal one. Alternatively, thrall causes the old one to die immediately. Attempting to
many druids of this circle enjoy the form of insects, especially reanimate the corpse of a foe with a CR higher than your
those of carrion-feeders, roaches, mosquitoes, and other druid level will fail.
bearers of plague. Once you use this feature to reanimate a thrall, you can’t do
so again until you finish a long rest.
Death Shape
When you choose this circle at 2nd level, you can use your
Wild Shape class feature to transform into an undead
creature instead of a beast creature. The same rules and
limitations apply as though you were transforming into a
beast.
Necromancy Magic
Also at 2nd level, the following spells are added to your druid
spell list and can be prepared if you meet the requirements
for preparing them.
Spell Level Spell
1st false life, inflict wounds, ray of sickness
2nd blindness/deafness, ray of enfeeblement
3rd animate dead, speak with dead, vampiric touch
Necrotic Presence
Starting at 6th level, you begin to emanate a fetid aura of
death. When any number of creatures within 30 feet of you
regain hit points, you can use your reaction to reduce the
amount of healing received by those creatures to half. Once
you use this feature, you can’t use it again until you finish a
short rest.
2 APOCRYPHAL TEACHINGS
Circle of the Earth Attunement to the Earth
Druids of the Circle of the Earth admire a world bereft of When you choose this circle at 2nd level, you gain proficiency
what is normally considered nature's splendor. The plants with heavy armor. Druids of your circle have no compunction
that take root in the earth, the water that carves it in twain, against wearing metal armor. You see metals, alloys, and
and the creatures that curse it with their rot are all in precious gems to be no different than any other material
abeyance of the world's wondrous, primal state as immutable found in the earth, regardless of civilization's tampering with
earth. These apocryphal protectors of the land believe that all their composition.
are born from the earth and, eventually, all will return to it You also learn the mold earthee cantrip. When you cast
when their time comes. mold earth, you can choose a portion of metal instead of dirt
Such sages and preservers of undisturbed lands differ from or stone. When you do, treat the metal as though it were
other druids in their views on civilization. To those of the loose dirt or solid stone for purposes of the spell's effect. If
Circle of the Earth, a forest of trees and a forest of stone are you already know this cantrip, you learn a different druid
no different; each has taken something from the earth that cantrip of your choice. The cantrip doesn't count against your
must be returned in time. Some of these druids seek actively number of cantrips known.
to burn the land, purify the forests, and return them and all Earthen Form
their woodland denizens to the ash that spawned them just as Starting at 6th level, you always have the meld into stone spell
soon as they would destroy the festering, diseased cities of prepared as a druid spell, and it doesn’t count against the
the world. They are often viewed as misguided zealots by the number of spells you can prepare each day. When you cast it,
more peaceful members of the circle who see the entire you can choose to step into an object made of earth or metal
domain of the world as their protected charge. instead of stone.
Druids of this circle often use spells that draw from the Additionally, your body begins to take on certain physical
power of the earth itself. Though they have a healthy respect aspects of the earth. Your skin might begin to show signs of
for the other natural elements of the world such as air and rough cracking like dry dirt or take on the appearance and
fire, some shy away from these aspects of nature and prefer a hardness of weathered stone. Your new durability grants you
full adherence to earthen magic. When a druid of this circle a +2 bonus to AC as long as you aren't wearing a shield.
uses Wild Shape, she might transform into creatures that pay
similar reverence to the earth, such as badgers, moles, Alluvial Wonders
worms, and beetles. Starting at 10th level, you always have the creation spell
The Circle of the Earth also promotes unity with all natural prepared as a druid spell, and it doesn’t count against the
materials found in the ground, whether transformed by number of spells you can prepare each day. When you cast it,
civilization or not. As such, druids of this circle tend to wear you cannot create anything composed of organic material,
the best protective equipment they can find. They choose to such as vegetable matter.
embrace iron and steel without feelings of contradiction to Additionally, your body takes becomes impenetrable to
their moral code. These druids prize rare gems and will often foreign substances as you begin to emulate the earth's natural
plant them as other druids plant seeds, waiting eons for the resolve. You become immune to the poisoned condition, and
crystals to grow. you gain resistance to poison damage.
Abandon Flesh
Starting at 14th level, you always have the flesh to stone spell
prepared as a druid spell, and it doesn’t count against the
number of spells you can prepare each day. When you cast it,
you can choose to turn the target creature into iron instead of
stone.
Additionally, your skin becomes as hard as natural iron and
takes on the qualities of precious gems. You gain resistance
to bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage.
APOCRYPHAL TEACHINGS 3
Changelog
Current version: 1.0
v1.0: Initial Release
Credits
Art:
Druid
Necromancer
Tauren Druid
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4 APOCRYPHAL TEACHINGS
