Best Feats for Moon Druid 5e
by Prince Phantom
I’ll be taking a slightly different approach to this feat list than the other Druids, as the Circle of the Moon is the only subclass to directly buff our Wildshape ability. The problem with the subclass is that it ONLY buffs Wildshape and nothing else about the Druid, so if you’re playing this circle then you might as well lean into Wildshape as hard as you can. For that reason this will be a list more focused on feats that work in tandem or buff Wildshape in some way.
Exactly what features carry over into our Wildshape is a bit difficult for even the designers of the game to agree on, but most of those disagreements are surrounding racial abilities. However, racial feats are definitely muddy water, for example, does the Tiefling Infernal Constitution still apply when we aren’t a Tiefling? I’m honestly not sure, so I will not be mentioning any racial feats in this list. Talk to your DM about those. All other feats seem to be on the table, but do ask your DM how taking a feat as part of your race (variant human or custom lineage) interacts with Wildshape. There’s an argument that because that feat is a racial ability, you don’t get it during Wildshape. I do feel that we have to take certain feats at level 4 and 12, but your selection at level 8 is actually quite free and can really define what type of Wildshape user you want to be. Enough preamble, let’s get to the list.
Best Feats for Moon Druid 5e
War Caster (Lv 4): The best strategy a Moon Druid can employ is to cast a concentration spell then Wildshape. The problem is that the majority of Wildshapes suck at concentration checks. The only one with proficiency is the CR 5 Brontosaurus, which you don’t access until level 15. War Caster fixes that, and while we won’t benefit from to other aspects of the feat while Wildshaped, we won’t be in wildshape 100% of the time, so they may see usefulness during those times.
Savage Attacker (Lv 8): If you know me, you’ll know that I think this feat is hot garbage, so it’s appearance on this list will be surprising. The main issue with Savage Attacker is that the majority of our damage from weapons is coming from our modifier and a feat like Sharpshooter. The actual dice is fairly inconsequential, but the same is not true for the vast majority of Wildshapes. Take the CR 2 Giant Elk for example, available right at level 6. Their hooves attack deals 4d8+4 damage, so turning a bad roll of those dice into a good one can be a major damage increase. This also gains points for being basically the only good way to increase our damage in Wildshape.
Gift of the Chromatic Dragon (Lv 8): This is another feat that I generally find underwhelming, but finds a niche for Wildshape. I’m less interested in the ability to deal an extra d4 damage with a bonus action because our bonus action on turn 1 is already called for with Wildshape, but in long combats it might be good to use it on turn two, or you could just use it on an ally who will be making more attacks than you. I’m more interested in the ability to essentially cast Absorb Elements on ourself even while we are in Wildshape, something we normally cannot do, providing a massive bump to our durability.
Crusher/Telekinetic (Lv 8): Both of these feats provide similar utility, that being forced movement. Crusher is very reliable, especially because we can Wildshape into large and larger sizes, reducing the odds of running into a monster too big to push. Telekinetic lets us push pretty much anyone on the battlefield we want, including allies, but offers a saving throw to unwilling targets. Both feats offer an additional minor upside, and both offer a +1 to an ability we care about (Con or Wis, respectively). The biggest difference is that Telekinetic uses a bonus action and Crusher doesn’t, but most Wildshapes don’t have bonus actions to use anyway so this isn’t that big a deal.
Mobile (Lv 8): A quick glance at your options for Wildshape will show that while many forms have high HP, they almost universally have poor AC. This is compounded by the fact that basically all Wildshape forms force us into melee, and the giant bear in the middle of the battlefield makes for a pretty appealing target for our enemies. Mobile helps our Wildshapes effectively perform a hit and run skirmisher strategy, which is rare in this game but enabled by many Wildshape’s high base speed, added to by Mobile. Our friend the Giant Elk from earlier has a base speed of 60ft, which would be boosted to 70 by Mobile. This means we can run up 35ft to an enemy, hit them, then run back 35ft out of their range to run and hit us. This is a great way to make your Wildshapes last and increase your durability.
Sentinel (Lv 8): Sentinel gives us a way to keep enemies fighting us, which is great since we are such a huge HP sponge. Our attacks as a beast are also often quite strong, meaning increasing our potential for opportunity attacks is a great way to deal more damage each turn. Sentinel is a great way to increase both our damage and support to our party.
Resilient Constitution (Lv 12): As previously mentioned, there is exactly one Wildshape option with proficiency in Constitution saves, meaning that this will provide a buff to basically every Wildshape your use. We talked about how casting a concentration spell and then wildshaping is a good idea, and this is the best buff we can get for that strategy outside of War Caster. The two of them combined plus most Wildshape form’s good constitution scores means that we should very rarely ever loose concentration on a spell.
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