The equipment section is empty. Here's a start, a discussion about druids and armor.
Light and Medium Armors
premise: druids are proficient with light and medium armor, with wooden shields and cannot wear metal (except druids of Mielikki, FRCS)
Start with leather (light) or hide (medium) armor for a handy +2 or +3 to AC.
Consider sharkskin armor (stormwrack), +3 AC, light, +6 escape artist to cut bonds, 85 gp
Chitin armor (stormwrack): +4 AC, medium, 75 gp
Mammoth leather, +4 AC, light (RoS) is an exotic armor, ergo it sucks.
Living coral (+6) from Stormwrack is probably not worth it.
Next, consider dragonhide (dmg) or chitin (RotD) breastplate, 700 gp, +5 AC, +3/4 max dex, medium
[or bluewood (UE), wildwood (RotW, -1 AC)...]
If you suspect to stay longer with low funds, +1 or +2 magic enhancement of the armor might be worth it. This will hopefully be enough for you to survive until you can wild shape.
Shields
Druids can and probably should use shields, such as Darkwood Shield (dmg): It weighs 5 pounds and has no armor check penalty. Price 257 gp.
Talking about shields... there's the exotic Rider's Shield (RoS), granting your shield bonuses to your mount. If you tend to stay on the back of your animal companion, an (animated) rider's shield is an uncommon, but possibly interesting option.
Wearing shield negates the effect of monk's belt.
Full plates and Monk's Belt and Wild Shape
A character who is wearing armor with which she is not proficient applies its armor check penalty to attack rolls and to all skill checks that involve moving, including Ride.
Druids are not proficient with heavy armors. Taking feat sucks. Still, druids might want full plates. There have been suggestions armor melded with body in wild shape (with wild enchantment) does not incur penalties. Maybe. But for now, here are some definitely legal options.
Blue Ice (material from Frostburn) is treated as 1 category lighter, +7000 gp, +1 max dex, half weight, grants penalty -1 to Reflex and Initiative unless you're tolerant to cold
Sentira (material from Sarlona) - organic, stats as mithril (+9000 gp, +2 max dex)
We've got the armor, how to keep it in Wild Shape?
Wild armor (price +3 bonus) - keep armor and enh.bonus in WS; while in WS, armor can't be seen
Wilding Clasp 4000 gp - attached to any item worn on the body; prevents the worn item from melding into your new form when you use wild shape (as long as the item could reasonably be worn by the new form). Thus, the item remains fully functional...
Provided you can use Wilding Clasp, it is the most cost-effective solution. 1800+7000+4000 = 12800 gp for a blueice fullplate (+8 AC, 2 max dex) + the clasp. You can enchant the armor as you wish. Not bad.
+1 Wild blue ice full plate costs considerably more, at 24800 gp, and it's more expensive to add further magic to it.
Unclear points:
- can clasp be used? it doesn't mention changing sizes, and e.g. small plate cannot reasonably be worn by the new form. discuss
- new form can have high dex and armor limits it. RAW it seems that clasp will limit it. wild armor enchantment might not limit it (armor not seen = melds). discuss
Then there's Monk's Belt (DMG, 13000 gp), granting armor bonus equal to Wis bonus +1, also if flatfooted or vs. touch attacks. You might need a wilding clasp to keep it functional in WS (or not). What's not to like? Well - you can use neither armor nor shield. I miss the animated/wild shield.