If a Druid sees an animal’s corpse, can they Wild Shape into that animal? Announcing the arrival of Valued Associate #679: Cesar Manara Planned maintenance scheduled April 17/18, 2019 at 00:00UTC (8:00pm US/Eastern)Is a dead creature's body considered an “object”?In D&D Adventurers League, what can Druids Wild Shape into?Do fey spirits in the form of creatures from the Conjure Animal Spell count towards creatures one has seen for Wild Shape?Can druids Wild Shape into creatures other than beasts?Can a druid use a focus to cast beast spells while in wild shape?The Druid is being better burglar than the Rogue. How can I fix that?Can you wild shape into an animal that has a template applied?Can Polymorph be used to give a druid new Wild Shape forms?Is there anything stopping a druid from combining animals to form a new wild shape?What creature(s) can a Moon Druid transform into that would benefit from their armor?Can a druid Wild Shape into a Cranium Rat and use Telepathy?

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If a Druid sees an animal’s corpse, can they Wild Shape into that animal?



Announcing the arrival of Valued Associate #679: Cesar Manara
Planned maintenance scheduled April 17/18, 2019 at 00:00UTC (8:00pm US/Eastern)Is a dead creature's body considered an “object”?In D&D Adventurers League, what can Druids Wild Shape into?Do fey spirits in the form of creatures from the Conjure Animal Spell count towards creatures one has seen for Wild Shape?Can druids Wild Shape into creatures other than beasts?Can a druid use a focus to cast beast spells while in wild shape?The Druid is being better burglar than the Rogue. How can I fix that?Can you wild shape into an animal that has a template applied?Can Polymorph be used to give a druid new Wild Shape forms?Is there anything stopping a druid from combining animals to form a new wild shape?What creature(s) can a Moon Druid transform into that would benefit from their armor?Can a druid Wild Shape into a Cranium Rat and use Telepathy?



.everyoneloves__top-leaderboard:empty,.everyoneloves__mid-leaderboard:empty,.everyoneloves__bot-mid-leaderboard:empty margin-bottom:0;








19












$begingroup$


The Druid’s Wild Shape feature says:




you can use your action to magically assume the shape of a beast that you have seen before.




However, if a Druid sees the creature’s corpse, can they turn into a living version of the creature?










share|improve this question











$endgroup$







  • 4




    $begingroup$
    Related: Is a dead creature's body considered an “object”?
    $endgroup$
    – Sdjz
    Apr 10 at 17:51

















19












$begingroup$


The Druid’s Wild Shape feature says:




you can use your action to magically assume the shape of a beast that you have seen before.




However, if a Druid sees the creature’s corpse, can they turn into a living version of the creature?










share|improve this question











$endgroup$







  • 4




    $begingroup$
    Related: Is a dead creature's body considered an “object”?
    $endgroup$
    – Sdjz
    Apr 10 at 17:51













19












19








19


1



$begingroup$


The Druid’s Wild Shape feature says:




you can use your action to magically assume the shape of a beast that you have seen before.




However, if a Druid sees the creature’s corpse, can they turn into a living version of the creature?










share|improve this question











$endgroup$




The Druid’s Wild Shape feature says:




you can use your action to magically assume the shape of a beast that you have seen before.




However, if a Druid sees the creature’s corpse, can they turn into a living version of the creature?







dnd-5e class-feature druid wild-shape






share|improve this question















share|improve this question













share|improve this question




share|improve this question








edited Apr 11 at 3:44









V2Blast

27k594164




27k594164










asked Apr 10 at 17:34









MrHiTechMrHiTech

943324




943324







  • 4




    $begingroup$
    Related: Is a dead creature's body considered an “object”?
    $endgroup$
    – Sdjz
    Apr 10 at 17:51












  • 4




    $begingroup$
    Related: Is a dead creature's body considered an “object”?
    $endgroup$
    – Sdjz
    Apr 10 at 17:51







4




4




$begingroup$
Related: Is a dead creature's body considered an “object”?
$endgroup$
– Sdjz
Apr 10 at 17:51




$begingroup$
Related: Is a dead creature's body considered an “object”?
$endgroup$
– Sdjz
Apr 10 at 17:51










2 Answers
2






active

oldest

votes


















30












$begingroup$

On a literal reading, no



Corpses are objects. Jeremy Crawford has unofficially advised as much on Twitter:




A non-undead corpse isn't considered a creature. It's effectively an object.




And see Is a dead creature's body considered an "object"? which addresses this.



A beast is a type of creature. So, having seen an animal's corpse, you haven't seen a beast.



From an in-universe point of view, you could perhaps justify this by saying the Druid needs to see how the beast moves before turning into it.



Many DMs might rule you could



My above answer is a painfully literal reading of the rules, and I personally would allow a Druid who'd seen an animal's corpse to turn into it.






share|improve this answer











$endgroup$








  • 3




    $begingroup$
    A little support for the "no" RAW answer: sageadvice.eu/2015/05/14/corpse-creature-or-object
    $endgroup$
    – Blake Steel
    Apr 10 at 17:44






  • 4




    $begingroup$
    I'd like to point out how much I smiled at the admission of how painfully literal the RAW reading is. Enjoy many a +1, good sir.
    $endgroup$
    – 3C273
    Apr 11 at 1:36






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    Let's try to remember that both Sage Advice and Twitter are not official rulings. They are opinions, perhaps very well informed opinions, but opinions all the same. It's not equal to the official rules saying one thing or another.
    $endgroup$
    – Aeyt
    Apr 11 at 2:43






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    @NathanS I've found it - it's in the Druid UA, where it's presented as an alternate rule. From my reading it's pretty clear it stands in opposition to the normal rule of "any beast you've seen before", so I don't think it supports the point particularly.
    $endgroup$
    – Vigil
    Apr 11 at 8:43






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    Fair enough, reading this Q&A just reminded me of having read something along those lines. Still, good answer with or without that, already has my +1.
    $endgroup$
    – NathanS
    Apr 11 at 10:32


















5












$begingroup$

I am not aware of any written rules to support this answer, so we'll have to go with what makes sense.



You can Wild Shape into the shape of dead animals.



It seems overly pedantic to assume that the beast is no longer similar enough to itself when it was alive that you don't gain what you need to be able to morph into it. Especially since you only need to see it in order to use the ability (rather than needing to touch a living, breathing thing).



And just to throw in the "plain English interpretation", the corpse is still the "shape of a beast" that you have seen before; you saw the "shape of a beast"(assuming that it hasn't been butchered or something similarly disfiguring).






share|improve this answer











$endgroup$












  • $begingroup$
    I assume you mean Wild Shape rather than Shapechange?
    $endgroup$
    – Vigil
    Apr 10 at 17:44










  • $begingroup$
    @Vigil fixed, thanks!
    $endgroup$
    – goodguy5
    Apr 10 at 17:46











Your Answer








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2 Answers
2






active

oldest

votes








2 Answers
2






active

oldest

votes









active

oldest

votes






active

oldest

votes









30












$begingroup$

On a literal reading, no



Corpses are objects. Jeremy Crawford has unofficially advised as much on Twitter:




A non-undead corpse isn't considered a creature. It's effectively an object.




And see Is a dead creature's body considered an "object"? which addresses this.



A beast is a type of creature. So, having seen an animal's corpse, you haven't seen a beast.



From an in-universe point of view, you could perhaps justify this by saying the Druid needs to see how the beast moves before turning into it.



Many DMs might rule you could



My above answer is a painfully literal reading of the rules, and I personally would allow a Druid who'd seen an animal's corpse to turn into it.






share|improve this answer











$endgroup$








  • 3




    $begingroup$
    A little support for the "no" RAW answer: sageadvice.eu/2015/05/14/corpse-creature-or-object
    $endgroup$
    – Blake Steel
    Apr 10 at 17:44






  • 4




    $begingroup$
    I'd like to point out how much I smiled at the admission of how painfully literal the RAW reading is. Enjoy many a +1, good sir.
    $endgroup$
    – 3C273
    Apr 11 at 1:36






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    Let's try to remember that both Sage Advice and Twitter are not official rulings. They are opinions, perhaps very well informed opinions, but opinions all the same. It's not equal to the official rules saying one thing or another.
    $endgroup$
    – Aeyt
    Apr 11 at 2:43






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    @NathanS I've found it - it's in the Druid UA, where it's presented as an alternate rule. From my reading it's pretty clear it stands in opposition to the normal rule of "any beast you've seen before", so I don't think it supports the point particularly.
    $endgroup$
    – Vigil
    Apr 11 at 8:43






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    Fair enough, reading this Q&A just reminded me of having read something along those lines. Still, good answer with or without that, already has my +1.
    $endgroup$
    – NathanS
    Apr 11 at 10:32















30












$begingroup$

On a literal reading, no



Corpses are objects. Jeremy Crawford has unofficially advised as much on Twitter:




A non-undead corpse isn't considered a creature. It's effectively an object.




And see Is a dead creature's body considered an "object"? which addresses this.



A beast is a type of creature. So, having seen an animal's corpse, you haven't seen a beast.



From an in-universe point of view, you could perhaps justify this by saying the Druid needs to see how the beast moves before turning into it.



Many DMs might rule you could



My above answer is a painfully literal reading of the rules, and I personally would allow a Druid who'd seen an animal's corpse to turn into it.






share|improve this answer











$endgroup$








  • 3




    $begingroup$
    A little support for the "no" RAW answer: sageadvice.eu/2015/05/14/corpse-creature-or-object
    $endgroup$
    – Blake Steel
    Apr 10 at 17:44






  • 4




    $begingroup$
    I'd like to point out how much I smiled at the admission of how painfully literal the RAW reading is. Enjoy many a +1, good sir.
    $endgroup$
    – 3C273
    Apr 11 at 1:36






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    Let's try to remember that both Sage Advice and Twitter are not official rulings. They are opinions, perhaps very well informed opinions, but opinions all the same. It's not equal to the official rules saying one thing or another.
    $endgroup$
    – Aeyt
    Apr 11 at 2:43






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    @NathanS I've found it - it's in the Druid UA, where it's presented as an alternate rule. From my reading it's pretty clear it stands in opposition to the normal rule of "any beast you've seen before", so I don't think it supports the point particularly.
    $endgroup$
    – Vigil
    Apr 11 at 8:43






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    Fair enough, reading this Q&A just reminded me of having read something along those lines. Still, good answer with or without that, already has my +1.
    $endgroup$
    – NathanS
    Apr 11 at 10:32













30












30








30





$begingroup$

On a literal reading, no



Corpses are objects. Jeremy Crawford has unofficially advised as much on Twitter:




A non-undead corpse isn't considered a creature. It's effectively an object.




And see Is a dead creature's body considered an "object"? which addresses this.



A beast is a type of creature. So, having seen an animal's corpse, you haven't seen a beast.



From an in-universe point of view, you could perhaps justify this by saying the Druid needs to see how the beast moves before turning into it.



Many DMs might rule you could



My above answer is a painfully literal reading of the rules, and I personally would allow a Druid who'd seen an animal's corpse to turn into it.






share|improve this answer











$endgroup$



On a literal reading, no



Corpses are objects. Jeremy Crawford has unofficially advised as much on Twitter:




A non-undead corpse isn't considered a creature. It's effectively an object.




And see Is a dead creature's body considered an "object"? which addresses this.



A beast is a type of creature. So, having seen an animal's corpse, you haven't seen a beast.



From an in-universe point of view, you could perhaps justify this by saying the Druid needs to see how the beast moves before turning into it.



Many DMs might rule you could



My above answer is a painfully literal reading of the rules, and I personally would allow a Druid who'd seen an animal's corpse to turn into it.







share|improve this answer














share|improve this answer



share|improve this answer








edited Apr 11 at 3:44









V2Blast

27k594164




27k594164










answered Apr 10 at 17:43









VigilVigil

6,9933284




6,9933284







  • 3




    $begingroup$
    A little support for the "no" RAW answer: sageadvice.eu/2015/05/14/corpse-creature-or-object
    $endgroup$
    – Blake Steel
    Apr 10 at 17:44






  • 4




    $begingroup$
    I'd like to point out how much I smiled at the admission of how painfully literal the RAW reading is. Enjoy many a +1, good sir.
    $endgroup$
    – 3C273
    Apr 11 at 1:36






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    Let's try to remember that both Sage Advice and Twitter are not official rulings. They are opinions, perhaps very well informed opinions, but opinions all the same. It's not equal to the official rules saying one thing or another.
    $endgroup$
    – Aeyt
    Apr 11 at 2:43






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    @NathanS I've found it - it's in the Druid UA, where it's presented as an alternate rule. From my reading it's pretty clear it stands in opposition to the normal rule of "any beast you've seen before", so I don't think it supports the point particularly.
    $endgroup$
    – Vigil
    Apr 11 at 8:43






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    Fair enough, reading this Q&A just reminded me of having read something along those lines. Still, good answer with or without that, already has my +1.
    $endgroup$
    – NathanS
    Apr 11 at 10:32












  • 3




    $begingroup$
    A little support for the "no" RAW answer: sageadvice.eu/2015/05/14/corpse-creature-or-object
    $endgroup$
    – Blake Steel
    Apr 10 at 17:44






  • 4




    $begingroup$
    I'd like to point out how much I smiled at the admission of how painfully literal the RAW reading is. Enjoy many a +1, good sir.
    $endgroup$
    – 3C273
    Apr 11 at 1:36






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    Let's try to remember that both Sage Advice and Twitter are not official rulings. They are opinions, perhaps very well informed opinions, but opinions all the same. It's not equal to the official rules saying one thing or another.
    $endgroup$
    – Aeyt
    Apr 11 at 2:43






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    @NathanS I've found it - it's in the Druid UA, where it's presented as an alternate rule. From my reading it's pretty clear it stands in opposition to the normal rule of "any beast you've seen before", so I don't think it supports the point particularly.
    $endgroup$
    – Vigil
    Apr 11 at 8:43






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    Fair enough, reading this Q&A just reminded me of having read something along those lines. Still, good answer with or without that, already has my +1.
    $endgroup$
    – NathanS
    Apr 11 at 10:32







3




3




$begingroup$
A little support for the "no" RAW answer: sageadvice.eu/2015/05/14/corpse-creature-or-object
$endgroup$
– Blake Steel
Apr 10 at 17:44




$begingroup$
A little support for the "no" RAW answer: sageadvice.eu/2015/05/14/corpse-creature-or-object
$endgroup$
– Blake Steel
Apr 10 at 17:44




4




4




$begingroup$
I'd like to point out how much I smiled at the admission of how painfully literal the RAW reading is. Enjoy many a +1, good sir.
$endgroup$
– 3C273
Apr 11 at 1:36




$begingroup$
I'd like to point out how much I smiled at the admission of how painfully literal the RAW reading is. Enjoy many a +1, good sir.
$endgroup$
– 3C273
Apr 11 at 1:36




1




1




$begingroup$
Let's try to remember that both Sage Advice and Twitter are not official rulings. They are opinions, perhaps very well informed opinions, but opinions all the same. It's not equal to the official rules saying one thing or another.
$endgroup$
– Aeyt
Apr 11 at 2:43




$begingroup$
Let's try to remember that both Sage Advice and Twitter are not official rulings. They are opinions, perhaps very well informed opinions, but opinions all the same. It's not equal to the official rules saying one thing or another.
$endgroup$
– Aeyt
Apr 11 at 2:43




1




1




$begingroup$
@NathanS I've found it - it's in the Druid UA, where it's presented as an alternate rule. From my reading it's pretty clear it stands in opposition to the normal rule of "any beast you've seen before", so I don't think it supports the point particularly.
$endgroup$
– Vigil
Apr 11 at 8:43




$begingroup$
@NathanS I've found it - it's in the Druid UA, where it's presented as an alternate rule. From my reading it's pretty clear it stands in opposition to the normal rule of "any beast you've seen before", so I don't think it supports the point particularly.
$endgroup$
– Vigil
Apr 11 at 8:43




1




1




$begingroup$
Fair enough, reading this Q&A just reminded me of having read something along those lines. Still, good answer with or without that, already has my +1.
$endgroup$
– NathanS
Apr 11 at 10:32




$begingroup$
Fair enough, reading this Q&A just reminded me of having read something along those lines. Still, good answer with or without that, already has my +1.
$endgroup$
– NathanS
Apr 11 at 10:32













5












$begingroup$

I am not aware of any written rules to support this answer, so we'll have to go with what makes sense.



You can Wild Shape into the shape of dead animals.



It seems overly pedantic to assume that the beast is no longer similar enough to itself when it was alive that you don't gain what you need to be able to morph into it. Especially since you only need to see it in order to use the ability (rather than needing to touch a living, breathing thing).



And just to throw in the "plain English interpretation", the corpse is still the "shape of a beast" that you have seen before; you saw the "shape of a beast"(assuming that it hasn't been butchered or something similarly disfiguring).






share|improve this answer











$endgroup$












  • $begingroup$
    I assume you mean Wild Shape rather than Shapechange?
    $endgroup$
    – Vigil
    Apr 10 at 17:44










  • $begingroup$
    @Vigil fixed, thanks!
    $endgroup$
    – goodguy5
    Apr 10 at 17:46















5












$begingroup$

I am not aware of any written rules to support this answer, so we'll have to go with what makes sense.



You can Wild Shape into the shape of dead animals.



It seems overly pedantic to assume that the beast is no longer similar enough to itself when it was alive that you don't gain what you need to be able to morph into it. Especially since you only need to see it in order to use the ability (rather than needing to touch a living, breathing thing).



And just to throw in the "plain English interpretation", the corpse is still the "shape of a beast" that you have seen before; you saw the "shape of a beast"(assuming that it hasn't been butchered or something similarly disfiguring).






share|improve this answer











$endgroup$












  • $begingroup$
    I assume you mean Wild Shape rather than Shapechange?
    $endgroup$
    – Vigil
    Apr 10 at 17:44










  • $begingroup$
    @Vigil fixed, thanks!
    $endgroup$
    – goodguy5
    Apr 10 at 17:46













5












5








5





$begingroup$

I am not aware of any written rules to support this answer, so we'll have to go with what makes sense.



You can Wild Shape into the shape of dead animals.



It seems overly pedantic to assume that the beast is no longer similar enough to itself when it was alive that you don't gain what you need to be able to morph into it. Especially since you only need to see it in order to use the ability (rather than needing to touch a living, breathing thing).



And just to throw in the "plain English interpretation", the corpse is still the "shape of a beast" that you have seen before; you saw the "shape of a beast"(assuming that it hasn't been butchered or something similarly disfiguring).






share|improve this answer











$endgroup$



I am not aware of any written rules to support this answer, so we'll have to go with what makes sense.



You can Wild Shape into the shape of dead animals.



It seems overly pedantic to assume that the beast is no longer similar enough to itself when it was alive that you don't gain what you need to be able to morph into it. Especially since you only need to see it in order to use the ability (rather than needing to touch a living, breathing thing).



And just to throw in the "plain English interpretation", the corpse is still the "shape of a beast" that you have seen before; you saw the "shape of a beast"(assuming that it hasn't been butchered or something similarly disfiguring).







share|improve this answer














share|improve this answer



share|improve this answer








edited Apr 11 at 3:45









V2Blast

27k594164




27k594164










answered Apr 10 at 17:43









goodguy5goodguy5

10.3k23879




10.3k23879











  • $begingroup$
    I assume you mean Wild Shape rather than Shapechange?
    $endgroup$
    – Vigil
    Apr 10 at 17:44










  • $begingroup$
    @Vigil fixed, thanks!
    $endgroup$
    – goodguy5
    Apr 10 at 17:46
















  • $begingroup$
    I assume you mean Wild Shape rather than Shapechange?
    $endgroup$
    – Vigil
    Apr 10 at 17:44










  • $begingroup$
    @Vigil fixed, thanks!
    $endgroup$
    – goodguy5
    Apr 10 at 17:46















$begingroup$
I assume you mean Wild Shape rather than Shapechange?
$endgroup$
– Vigil
Apr 10 at 17:44




$begingroup$
I assume you mean Wild Shape rather than Shapechange?
$endgroup$
– Vigil
Apr 10 at 17:44












$begingroup$
@Vigil fixed, thanks!
$endgroup$
– goodguy5
Apr 10 at 17:46




$begingroup$
@Vigil fixed, thanks!
$endgroup$
– goodguy5
Apr 10 at 17:46

















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