Druid

Attributes & Races
What Race should I be?

When determining race in Dark Age of Camelot it is important to remember that by level 50, most stat deficiencies or bonuses can be leveled out with Realm Abilities. There are however certain circumstances in which a particular race is better for a class. For Druids, dexterity for spell casting speed, and empathy are going to be the deciding factors.

Celt - Probably the best choice for a Druid. They have the most dexterity. This means they will cast spells faster than their counterpart Firbolg or Sylvan. However, a lower Empathy score means less healing, but your bonus to dexterity more than makes up for this.

Firbolg - Not the worst selection for a Druid. They are big and can be spotted easily in RvR, and have a really low starting dexterity. While they have a bonus to their Empathy score, their lack of dexterity makes them less appealing.

Sylvan - Worst choice for a Druid. They have a bonus to stats that have no effect on a Druid, and are lacking dexterity.

As mentioned before, once you reach level 50 and get some Realm Ranks for your character, these deficiencies can be leveled out. Choosing your race is completely up to you and your preferences.

Abilities & Specialization
Common Specializations

Healing / Field Buffs - This spec is fairly common among druids that like to participate in RvR, and can also work well for PvE. You can buff your groupmates if they die or become sheared. This spec can vary slightly depending on personal preference.

 40 Nurture, 35 Regrowth, 9 Nature

PVE
PvE for a druid is quite simple. When in a group, you will need to heal them when they become low on HP, or their pets. It is important to note that the different heals on a Druid can get you aggro. Simply put, the smallest heal nets you less aggro, while the biggest heal nets you more aggro. Also note that depending on the class of your groupmates, they can taunt with styles, or take aggro with damaging spells. Your DoT can get you aggro as well.

Druids are fairly essential to PvE in Hibernia. Finding groups will be easy for both PvE and RvR.

RVR
RvRing on a druid can be difficult. You will need to have skills in mobility and kiting, reading and knowing your own groupmates, and knowing when to use certain heals. Your primary abilities will consist of your Major Heal, Greater Heal, Instant Heal, Minor Group Heal, Group Heal, Spreadheal, and Root. Secondary abilities will be your buff shears, curing poison/disease, and DoT.

How Do I know what Heal to use?

Knowing your heals is very important. There are many different scenarios in which certain heals will be best.

If one of your groupmates is in Line of Sight, and has become assist targeted or taking massive damage, it is best to use your single target Greater Heal. If they are not in line of sight, sometimes it is best to use your Spreadheal, and sometimes best to use your Group Heal.

What is a Spreadheal?

Spreadheals are specialized healing spells that intelligently heals the most damaged member of the group. It is usefull when there's no time to detemine who in your group needs help first. It is best to think of a Spreadheal as a pool of healing. When cast, it is distributed amongst your groupmates to whoever needs it the most. The cast time on this spell is long, however, and can sometimes be inappropriate to use depending on how fast you need to get a heal off. The amount of healing Spreadheals can do depends on how large the group is.

Should I be fighting?

Yes, and no. If there is little to no healing to be done, you can help your group by interrupting opponents with your DoT, buff shear, or Root. You will have to determine when it would be helpful, or when trying to Kite something off of you, or a groupmate.

Useful Realm Abilities

 * Augmented Acuity
 * Augmented Dexterity
 * Ethereal Bond
 * Mastery of Healing
 * Serenity
 * Wild Healing
 * Divine Intervention
 * Mystic Crystal Lore
 * Raging Power
 * Perfect Recovery

Neutral Realm Abilities

 * Avoidance of Magic
 * Purge
 * Toughness
 * Mastery of Focus
 * Mastery of Concentration
 * Wild Minion

Lesser Use Realm Abilities

 * Augmented Strength - Not a recommended RA, but will help with melee damage and increase your encumberance, that is helpful for crafters or those that carry seige into battle.
 * Lifter - Helps increase your encumberance, if you're a crafter it is particularly useful, particularly if you tend to craft seige to carry into battle though the later is likely more often done by tank class.
 * Long Wind - Reduces cost of sprinting. Can be useful, but not often a chosen RA because of Bards.
 * Mastery of Magery - this will increase DoT (Damage over Time) damage. Can be a helpful RA for a Nature Druid.
 * Mastery of Pain - Increased chance to achieve a critical hit in combat. This RA is only helpful to a Nature Druid.
 * Veil Recovery
 * Veil Recovery
 * Adrenalin Rush
 * Barrier of Fortitude
 * First Aid
 * Second Wind

Useful Artifacts
Weapon

Bruiser

Armor

Jewelry

Egg of youth

Jacina

eternal plant

crocodile tear ring

zo'arkat

Other Useful Items
Weapons

CL or dragon quest, dragon scales buckler

Armor

Astral Leggings of Fortification

Netherworldly Scale Hauberk

crafted items

Jewelry

Construct Forged Ring, Glimmerspirit Cloak, Glimmershade Bracer

Mythirian

Greater Mythirian of Power