pregnancy in 5e

[krugaan]

Any rules on handling this? was reading the "druid shape into seen beasts" thread, and the thought process went like this:

- druid can summon any beast and thus learn to shapeshift in that form
- a druid is never lonely (snicker)
- can shapeshifted forms get pregnant?
- I can't think of a single adventure where pregnancy is actually involved, other than ... well, eggs.

Thoughts?

[JoeJ]

This definitely falls under "ask your DM."

I don't use The Book of Erotic Fantasy in my game, so I doubt the question would ever come up. If it did for some reason, I'd rule that they're as fertile in Wild Shape (or Polymorphed) as in their natural form. As for what species the hypothetical baby would be, it would be whatever I think would be the most fun for the group to deal with.

However, nothing like that has ever happened in a game I've run, or played in.

[MadBear]

Any rules on handling this? was reading the "druid shape into seen beasts" thread, and the thought process went like this:

- druid can summon any beast and thus learn to shapeshift in that form
- a druid is never lonely (snicker)
- can shapeshifted forms get pregnant?
- I can't think of a single adventure where pregnancy is actually involved, other than ... well, eggs.

Thoughts?

This would fall strictly into the realm of DM fiat, and the goals of the player, party and DM. For example, RPing mating in any form is something my party doesn't do. Others may think do it differently.

What ends up actually happening would be interesting to see.

[krugaan]

I mean, even in published adventures, I've never heard of anything even remotely close to the subject being handled, other than "momma dragon protects her eggs."

a quest to protect a pregnant princess or whatever until she's safely back within the castle walls or whatever presents interesting challenges.

also, not talking about the salacious methods by which one becomes pregnant, merely the effects of it.

edit: requesting rule 34 on intellect devourer mating through host bodies, lol

[AvatarVecna]

The only problem I can see is what happens when Wild Shape ends; unless the entire process of reproduction is done by the time you change back to your normal form (maybe you laid an egg or something), the question will remain "what happens now?", since the rules don't answer that question (because of course they don't). Of course, that's if your druid is the female, rather than the male; at that point, it depends on how you got the beast to you (summoning runs into the same problem of "ends after awhile", while animal companions or naturally-occurring beasts don't have that problem).

It bears (heh) mentioning that, regardless of what form you're in at the time, and whether you're doing the beast or vice versa, this is going to turn out to be an incredibly awkward roleplaying session unless you "fade to black" the whole thing, or unless your group is particularly...open-minded. Yeah, that's probably the nicest way to put it.

[AvatarVecna]

edit: requesting rule 34 on intellect devourer mating through host bodies, lol

Saw something like this in an Animorphs book; one of the high-ranking brain-controlling slugs fell in love with an underling after they were both separated from the rest of their race, and the two of them mated using their human hosts, and had "children" (technically human children, but the Yeerks that made it happen considered the children to be their own).

And that's not even a bad fanfic, or a porn parody; that's canon in the Animorphs universe.

[krugaan]

I think I know what we're all thinking.

"I'm going to use true polymorph to turn into a pregnant dragon and make a fortune selling dragon eggs."

You heard it here first, folks.

I suppose male druids could turn into female bears?

also Re: Animorphs) can't get away from that Rule 34.

[Mr.Moron]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KUnHb2jnbpo

[Temperjoke]

To add to the curiosity, Wild Shape has a time limit, so if the druid in question did become pregnant as a result of such a tryst, would the baby develop in the animal shape it was conceived, or would it develop in the mother's regular form? Or would it be some hybrid form between the two?

Maybe it's a way to introduce shifters in a campaign from the UA: Eberron!

[Forum Explorer]

Logically the baby would be absorbed into the body during any sort of shapeshift considering how little it would have been developed since shape****ing only lasts a short time.

On the other hand that logic forbids something like this from occurring
http://narbonic.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2000/09/000911.jpg

and that's just tragic. :smallbiggrin:

[krugaan]

someone write out a stat block for an only-an-hour-from-labor bear that druids can shift into.

[Logosloki]

The druid is indeed pregnant but the foetus is absorbed when the druid shapeshifts back. Whenever the Druid shapeshifts into that form the foetus resumes development. A druid that constantly uses this form, especially a long lived race like an elf will eventually shift enough times that the foetus begins to impact on combat slightly. Enough time passes by the foetus will develop enough to be born, giving you a normal newborn baby of that species.

Alternatively the Foetus due to ~the divinity of nature~ shifts back and forth with the Druid, the druid then gives birth to a were-creature or a natural shapeshifter, depending on your setting.

Alternatively the foetus develops into a hybrid, a possible origin story for dragonborn, half-dragons or half-elementals for example.

Consider the Owlbear. What if it wasn't an errant wizard but two druids...exploring the possibilities.

[krugaan]

everyone seems to love that owlbear example, lol.

also, interesting idea about the lycanthropes.

As for the pregnancy "resuming" when shifting into the same form ... does a druid who uses brown bear shape a lot shift into the "same" bear?

... that reminds me of another question re: wild form.

Druid wildshapes into a giant frog/toad and swallows a bandit. Druid then gets knocked out of wildshape with bandit still swallowed. What happens?

a) does the druid shrink around the full size bandit and explode?
b) as a), but somehow vomit out the bandit?
c) bandit get crushed?

How would this apply to a fetus?

NOTE: please do not attempt to relate this to real life in any way, or carnage will result.

[Tenmujiin]

Wait, wouldn't it work like when metallic dragons get freaky with well...everything (especially those damn silvers).
The child of a dragon and anything not a dragon is always a half dragon/half other thing so same logic should apply.

[Safety Sword]

One of the most fun adventures I ever played was protecting the pregnant princess in a crumbling tower whilst the mage lords tried to kill her. Tenser's Floating Hospital bed....

When she went into labor the PCs were effectively anchored to the tower and had to outlast the attackers until we could get the princess and her new born heir to safety.

We saved the royal line and became the royal bodyguards. Best campaign ending ever.

[krugaan]

One of the most fun adventures I ever played was protecting the pregnant princess in a crumbling tower whilst the mage lords tried to kill her. Tenser's Floating Hospital bed....

When she went into labor the PCs were effectively anchored to the tower and had to outlast the attackers until we could get the princess and her new born heir to safety.

We saved the royal line and became the royal bodyguards. Best campaign ending ever.

See, that sounds frickin awesome. Was that a homebrewed or published adventure? That's exactly the kind of thing I was envisioning.

Or your party cleric is, I dunno, pregnant with an avatar of her god... and you have to protect her while demons attempt to kill her. As soon as labor is over, the baby wipes out the remainders with a blast of divine power and then roots around for milk.

[Safety Sword]

See, that sounds frickin awesome. Was that a homebrewed or published adventure? That's exactly the kind of thing I was envisioning.

Or your party cleric is, I dunno, pregnant with an avatar of her god... and you have to protect her while demons attempt to kill her. As soon as labor is over, the baby wipes out the remainders with a blast of divine power and then roots around for milk.

Home made adventure. My group has 2 really good DMs (one is me :P) and another in training.

We've all been playing since AD&D was new so we have a fair idea of what is fun for our group.

[Capac Amaru]

Problems / Considerations:

Many animals are only fertile at specific times. Presumably a druids control over their wildshape/forces of nature would give them control over whether or not the shapeshifted creature was in the fertile part of its natural cycle.

Druids power over nature presumably give them power over their OWN fertility. That would certainly make fertility cults a lot easier to manage.

Some animals fertilise many potential offspring at once. Lets say a druid mates with a crocodile, fertilising dozens of eggs. If each viable egg transitions to a viable human foetus, what are the ramifications for a human shape bearing 30+ offspring?

Some animals have wildly different breeding cycles than humans (marsupials, seahorses) where problems could arise from humans not having analogous structures like pouches to protect offspring.

[Nishant]

Saw something like this in an Animorphs book; one of the high-ranking brain-controlling slugs fell in love with an underling after they were both separated from the rest of their race, and the two of them mated using their human hosts, and had "children" (technically human children, but the Yeerks that made it happen considered the children to be their own).

And that's not even a bad fanfic, or a porn parody; that's canon in the Animorphs universe.

What book of the series was that in? I cant remember for the life of me?

[krugaan]

Problems / Considerations:

Many animals are only fertile at specific times. Presumably a druids control over their wildshape/forces of nature would give them control over whether or not the shapeshifted creature was in the fertile part of its natural cycle.

Druids power over nature presumably give them power over their OWN fertility. That would certainly make fertility cults a lot easier to manage.

Some animals fertilise many potential offspring at once. Lets say a druid mates with a crocodile, fertilising dozens of eggs. If each viable egg transitions to a viable human foetus, what are the ramifications for a human shape bearing 30+ offspring?

Some animals have wildly different breeding cycles than humans (marsupials, seahorses) where problems could arise from humans not having analogous structures like pouches to protect offspring.

hmmmm, that's interesting to note about the whole power of nature stuff. Although with the crocodile, since the eggs are external, that probably wouldn't present any problems (for the druid, physically). But that might be a problem for other species, as you note.

... has a druid/wizard ever tried to "seduce" their way past a wild animal? Polymorph into a female behir and lure away the male, lol...

[DracoKnight]

Saw something like this in an Animorphs book; one of the high-ranking brain-controlling slugs fell in love with an underling after they were both separated from the rest of their race, and the two of them mated using their human hosts, and had "children" (technically human children, but the Yeerks that made it happen considered the children to be their own).

And that's not even a bad fanfic, or a porn parody; that's canon in the Animorphs universe.

It wasn't Visser One was it? God, it's been years since I read those books.

[tieren]

I'll admit I had considered a beast master ranger \ druid MC that would use speak with animals and wildshape to form a lifetime mate relationship with an animal companion, not so much for breeding but for RP issues.

Edit: in truth it was my plan to recreate Dar from the beast master movie. Was going to take magic initiate to grab find familiar for a ferret, take an eagle as my beast companion, and then try to seduce a tiger to just willingly choose to accompany me.

[krugaan]

I'll admit I had considered a beast master ranger \ druid MC that would use speak with animals and wildshape to form a lifetime mate relationship with an animal companion, not so much for breeding but for RP issues.

Edit: in truth it was my plan to recreate Dar from the beast master movie. Was going to take magic initiate to grab find familiar for a ferret, take an eagle as my beast companion, and then try to seduce a tiger to just willingly choose to accompany me.

all i can remember from the beast master movies was the ferrets, and when you said lifetime mate relationship, i got very disturbed.

[Steampunkette]

Through DnD history this question has been asked in a variety of different ways. The general consensus is that shapechangers, natural or magical, impart the ability on the fetus that is a part of them.

A pregnant doppelganger who takes human form is pregnant with a doppelganger fetus in human form. She changes back and so does the fetus. She becomes an elf it becomes an elf.

With male characters turning into females to get pregnant, one of two things happens based on the setting's fertility deity. Either he turns back and the baby is lost, typically the case with blastocysts, or he is unable to take on a form that cannot sustain the life, and defaults to a female.

Similarly, pregnant female ahapechangers may temporarily be unable to assume male forms.

Some DMs, however, fiat that regardless of form the pregnancy continues, because magic trumps science. Others fiat changing kills the baby in 100% of cases.

[Malifice]

Thanks to the lecherous nature of our party swashbuckler, and the big drinking and partying skills of our female party druid, this... is a good chance of coming up in my campaign.

They've already had a few.. encounters. The swashbuckler bought fertility herbs to speed things along too.

Its quite hillarous.

[pwykersotz]

It wasn't Visser One was it? God, it's been years since I read those books.

I collected them back in the day (I was in middle school). I have every one, even the choose your own adventure books and the special chronicles. Now I almost want to re-read them.

[Regitnui]

Similarly, pregnant female shapechangers may temporarily be unable to assume male forms.

The changelings of Eberron defaulted to this in 3.5e, so it'd be safe to say that it still applies. Yes, I do have the BoEF, but that was in Races of Eberron. No I'm not going to go read the BoEF again, just on the chance they have rules about druids and wildshape. Changelings are as far as I'm willing to go.

[Capac Amaru]

hmmmm, that's interesting to note about the whole power of nature stuff. Although with the crocodile, since the eggs are external, that probably wouldn't present any problems (for the druid, physically). But that might be a problem for other species, as you note.

... has a druid/wizard ever tried to "seduce" their way past a wild animal? Polymorph into a female behir and lure away the male, lol...

Crocodiles are internally fertilized. If you shapechanged before you laid the eggs...