Alternative Wild Shape Rules
Wild Shape is a powerful ability shared by all Druids, allowing them to transform into almost any animal they can think of. Often, this causes issues such as 'has my druid ever seen a Velociraptor?'
These alternative rules attempt to not only answer that question, but also give GMs an alternative way to reward their Druid players, in a similar way to Wizards, who can copy spell scrolls into their spellbook.
Limited Wild Shape Options
Like a spellcaster choosing spells, when a Druid gains the Wild Shape feature at 2nd-level, they may choose four animals that they have learned to transform into. These creatures must be of the beast category, and follow all normal restrictions for Wild Shaping at this level (CR and movement speeds).
These four creatures are the only animals the Druid can transform into using Wild Shape. As the Druid levels up, they can add more beasts to their Wild Shape list, as shown in the table below.
At any level where they gain an Ability Score Increase, they can swap one of their Wild Shape choices with another beast that they can transform into.
| Druid Level | Number of Wild Shape Options |
|---|---|
| 2 | 4 |
| 3 | 4 |
| 4 | 5 |
| 5 | 5 |
| 6 | 6 |
| 7 | 6 |
| 8 | 6 |
| 9 | 7 |
| 10 | 7 |
| 11 | 7 |
| 12 | 8 |
| 13 | 8 |
| 14 | 8 |
| 15 | 9 |
| 16 | 9 |
| 17 | 9 |
| 18 | 10 |
| 19 | 10 |
| 20 | 10 |
Learning New Wild Shapes
Developing a new Wild Shape option isn't as simple as seeing a new creature. A Druid must study the creatures lifestyle, abilities and nature in order to truly become one.
As a Druid levels up, it is assumed they work on these studies during downtime. They gain new Wild Shapes due to this study when they level up, however a Druid can actively search for new Wild Shape options as they adventure.
A DM can award the Druid with information about new creatures as part of quest rewards. This information can take many forms.
Perhaps travel across country happens to coincide with the migration of a heard of bison, giving the Druid ample time to observe and study them? Perhaps the Druid uncovers a manuscript detailing the life cycle of a long extinct creature?
In these situations, a Druid can attempt to add the creature in question to their Wild Shape list by completing a special ritual.
Preparing for the ritual takes 1 day per CR of the creature in question, and materials for the ritual cost 200 GP per CR of the creature. Note that most Wild Shape legal creatures have a CR below 1, so often the time and price of materials will be lower than the base amount.
Once the ritual is complete, you must succeed on a Wisdom (Insight) or Wisdom (Animal Handling) check to add the creature to your Wild Shape list. The DC is equal to 9 + 8 times the creatures CR.
If you have spent time studying the creature in its natural habitat, you have advantage on this check. If you are using a written or illustrated record of a creature, you can only attempt the ritual once (unless you find a different record of the same creature).
Why Limit Wild Shapes?
The intention of these optional rules is to provide a new option for GMs to reward Druid players, similar to the way Wizards can be rewarded with Spell Scrolls. Druids still receive ample choices for Wild Shaping so while this obviously does reduce the player's options, it shouldn't be by so much that it hugely hampers the character's effectiveness. It is also worth mentioning that this new system does not affect any extra uses of Wild Shape granted by the Druid's subclass. This system also allows groups to easily bypass the issue of which animals a Druid has seen, and the question of if they can transform into creatures they haven't encountered. You can encourage your Druid player to link their choices to their backstory. Perhaps the Druid was raised by wolves, or spent time as a shepherd herding sheep? This can help provoke ideas as a player will likely want to justify their choices with their backstory. Finally, this also provides a Druid player with their own minor short term goals. Something they can pursue in addition to the main quests of the party that will give them a tangible benefit without offering an enormous boost of power over the other players.