What's gigantic mount? A spell? Or do you mean gigantic steed, the mammoth rider ability?
The problem with riding as druid, is that riding is not even a class skill for them, and that's a lot of skill points spent to be really meadiocre (low dex, because size penalty, full plate check penalty, and no class bonus. Hope you don't have to make a lot of checks).
Maybe with a dip in Ranger (lead blades wand) or Barbarian (rage)? Or fighter for the new titan fighter stuff, and using an oversized lance?
Stegasaurus is listed
The Mammoth Rider says that GMs can expand the list to include other mounts, and I think my GM would allow it, specially when it's mostly for aesthetic reasons . In any case, I'm not sure yet, as the character was conceived originally as a half-troll going back to his legacy, and dips into Mammoth Rider, ranger, etc, would slow that.
Maybe Shaping Focus feat? Shaping Focus and Shapeshifiting Hunter could make for a nice combo.
You should take a level in ranger. Favored enemy giant. Then take feat that allows ranger levels an druid levels stack for favored enemy. Huge bonus damage.
Stegasaurus is listed
No, the only listed dinosaur is Triceratops. Also, if I were the GM, I'll be much more tolerant with a T-Rex mount, than a stegosaur mount. Stegosaurs have huge scales in the back, which make riding them... difficult at least. On the other hand, T-rex and t-rex like creatures as mounts are a staple of fantasy. I've seen even t-rex riding alien Hitler, and alien robot races that transform themselves in cars, riding robotic t-rexes
Oops oversite. Stegasaurus looks just like triceratops.
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The problem with riding as druid, is that riding is not even a class skill for them, and that's a lot of skill points spent to be really meadiocre (low dex, because size penalty, full plate check penalty, and no class bonus. Hope you don't have to make a lot of checks).
That's not quite accurate, regular druids have ride as a class skill, and most of the basic ride checks are quite easy to make, even with ACP. It's only the stuff like quick mount/dismount and mounted combat/indomitable mount that you would need a really high ride skill. Though you are correct that your build lacks the ride skill, because the goliath druid trades it out.
Quite frankly, if you were going to go with a mounted character, I'd suggest a level dip in ranger/dragoon fighter for the lance proficiency, ride as a class skill, and a number of other bonuses (spells/heavy armor proficiency). Though I don't think I'd suggest riding, since you'll do enough damage already, and don't need to spend 3-4 feats for the times that you'll be able to charge with a huge mount.
Personally I say go with an animated shield and a Scimitar or Falchion, and use your reach to hit everything that moves within 15 feet. Though you'll probably have to focus on boosting Dex to counter the size drops, maybe by focusing on a Str/Dex belt instead of Str/Con. Pick whatever AC you like best. A stegosaurus might not be my animal of choice at high level, but I've had one serve me valiantly in the lower levels.
I'm thinking right now about Druid 7 Ranger 1, Fighter 1 Mammoth Rider 1 at level 10
With Shapeshifting Hunter and Shaping Focus as 7th and 9th feats.
So you get Heavy Armor back through retraining (as you gain it with Fighter), which you could spend in Boon Companion, then you get 1 fighter feat (Weapon focus or power attack, probably). (I'll take the Roughrider archetype, in case I take a second level of fighter some day). Slightly better skills (Same number, but some new class skills for you, including riding), you get full wildshape ability, favored enemy, and full animal companion.
You lose spellcasting, which hurts a lot (worse Greater Magic Fang, for example, and less access to things like Animal growth or Strong Jaw), but you'll get your full troll ability at lvl 12th, plus favored enemies, access to a few interesting ranger spells through wands (lead blades for example). You get Lance proficiency as well, and some martial proficiencies with weapons with reach and brace (which is huge combat control when you have 15' natural reach...) and you might go for sprited charge if you want, or you could go with shillelagh plus secondary natural attacks, all of them are good options.
So, so far, I think I'll take:
1 Druid (Big Game Hunter)
2 Druid
3 Druid (Heavy Armor)*
4 Druid
5 Druid (Craft woundreous Items)
6 Druid (wildshape into non-regenerating troll)
7 Ranger (Shapeshifting hunter, Giants +4 Dragons +2 as enemies)
8 Fighter (retrain heavy armor into Boon companion, **combat feat**)
9 Mammoth Lord (huge mount, **some feat**)
10 Ranger or fighter (**combat feat**) or druid (4th lvl spells, which means Strong Jaw)
11 Druid (Shaping focus)
12+ ?????
The problem with riding as druid, is that riding is not even a class skill for them, and that's a lot of skill points spent to be really meadiocre (low dex, because size penalty, full plate check penalty, and no class bonus. Hope you don't have to make a lot of checks).That's not quite accurate, regular druids have ride as a class skill, and most of the basic ride checks are quite easy to make, even with ACP. It's only the stuff like quick mount/dismount and mounted combat/indomitable mount that you would need a really high ride skill. Though you are correct that your build lacks the ride skill, because the goliath druid trades it out.
Yes, my fault. I was talking about Goliath druids, not the regular ones.
Personally I say go with an animated shield and a Scimitar or Falchion, and use your reach to hit everything that moves within 15 feet. Though you'll probably have to focus on boosting Dex to counter the size drops, maybe by focusing on a Str/Dex belt instead of Str/Con. Pick whatever AC you like best. A stegosaurus might not be my animal of choice at high level, but I've had one serve me valiantly in the lower levels.
I thought about it, but I'm not convinced with the lack of multiattack because of the lower BAB compared to natural attacks. A simple club with shillelagh does 3d6 when you are large, which is quite good, and almost literally free of cost, but with just a bane holy AoMF and greater magic fang you can do more damage I think (havent run the numbers), and once you get into higher levels, Rending Fury and Strong Jaw makes a lot of damage
Ok, the character is lvl 5, soon lvl 6.
I'm going to take ranger 1 at 7th lvl, to get Shapeshifting hunter, which gives me Favored enemy (giants) at +4, which fits perfectly with the char background and the campaign (giantslayer).
Nos what?
I could go with ranger 1/druid (gokiath) 11, or maybe Ranger 2/barbarian (armored hulk) 2/druid 8. Much worse caster, bit keep wildshape and pet up to lvl (boom and shaping focus) and gain a bump un REF, some class skills, and rage (fiend tótem, raging grappler). But losing CL hurts.
Any advice?
Yes, that and raging grappler (which allows doing damage again with the grapple un the first turn is mostly one hit KO eith Strong Jaw and T-Rex form (or a trample/powerful charge form and Lockjaw)
However after talking with the rest of the party (currently an archer Ranger Beastmaster and a paladin -also mounted-) we decided I dhould keep the cster lvls. We have a lot of frontline, and really lack spells. Originally we were going to hace also a wizard, and the paladin was an oracle until he died, so my char was going to be the mrlee, but things hace changed, fortunately druids are versatile
Just be careful, and try to stay focused on what you want.
Sometimes its easy to get caught up chasing this or that bonus with only a 1 or 2 level dip, and you become ineffective in the main class.
The main draw (IMO) of Goliath Druid is wildshaping into a Giant, I wouldn't want to delay getting that by multiclassing.
Neither do I. But Shaping Focus keeps your wildshape at your lvl. You can get Shaping Focus and then retrain it once your don't need it anymore
Character update.
So far the character is lvl 7.
I'm a Goliath Druid 6/Trophy Hunter Ranger 1. I took Shapeshifting Focus, so I have a full level Giant Favored enemy, which is cool.
I use regularly a two headed troll form, and I'm liking the char a lot. It's not as versatile as a regular druid (which has much better scouting forms, for example), but it's a good melee combatant, and I have a decent amount of skills to play out of combat too. We are using the Unchained Background skills, which gives you 2 not-so-great skills, but it's really good for druids because you can put one of those to Handle Animal. With the Skilled half-orc racial trait, I have 5 skills +2 background skills, which is a lot.
I have STR 23 DEX 12 CON 14 INT 10 WIS 16 CHA 10 including the wildshape form and belt/headband. Attacks go with +11/+11/+11/+11 for 1d6+7+1d6, against vanilla targets, but against giants (the bread and butter of Giantslayer), it goes up to +16/+16/+16/+16 for 1d6+13+1d6. I also carry a Lucern hammer to have 20' reach, and a Cold Iron+Bludgeoning weapon, which often is used when the enemy approach (while I buff myself) and the dropped to fight with natural weapons.
I have AC 28 not counting spells, with a +2 dragonscale full plate, +1 ring of protection, +3 Nat Armor (includes half orc favored bonus), +2 luck from jingasa and +1 insight from dusty rose ioun stone.
AC can go as high as 31 with Barksin for 1 hour, or 32 with Ironskin for a couple minutes. (that's 33 and 35 vs Giants, by the way). I only have 53 hp, which is too few probably, but a high AC helps there.
My saves are FOR 13 REF 8 WILL 12, and CMB and CMD are respectable too: +17 and 31, +1 with and versus grapple. With Lockjaw spell and resinous skin, that's +24 CMD when grappling. At lvl 7, that's a lockdown for almost anything in my CR.
I have half decent party face skills, as Diplomacy is a class skill for Goliaths (?), I have +10 Diplo, +21 Perception (including the +8 bonus from scent), I'm a huge tracker (+18, and scent to ignore terrain DC),plus a bit of everything in other skills and enough Spellcraft to craft stuff for myself with CWI. Probably lack in Knowledges, though.
Overall, the char is doing well. He has a good mix of in and out of combat utility, has been useful exploring the wilderness, speaking with NPCs, finding hidden stuff, crafting magic items, and he's a decently tough defensive stalwart, that can also dish decent damage, with a few spells to help (faerie fire has been useful a couple of times, so was Warp Wood in a certain situation. Animal Messenger, Call Animal, purify food, create water, and some other spells have been useful too, in and out of combat)
Druids are awesome. Goliath are just a certain flavor of awesome