Druid Direct Damage

[Snorkasaurous]

What are the best direct damage spells for a druid at the following levels 5, 10, 15, and 20?  I'm not thinking of the whole battlefield spells, like Frostfell or Storm of Vengence, but more targeted, like Call Lightning or Splinterbolt.

[Solo]

It starts with "V" and rhymes with "enomfire".

[ksbsnowowl]

Level 15 would let you do an Empowered Fire Seeds (Holly Berry Bombs).  Have up Energy Immunity to fire (Draconomicon), and just stand next to your target, and speak the trigger word.  The 8 holly berry bombs will deal (8*(1d8+CL))*1.5 = average 234 fire damage at 15th level.  Get the empower via a metamagic rod, or sudden empower.  Also note that there is no Caster Level cap on the Holly Berry Bombs, so any CL boosts will add to that.

[cru]

* Energy Vortex (lvl 3, SpC), empowered via cheap lesser rod, deals 63-84 energy damage at CL20
* Junglerazer (lvl 3, SpC), up to 10d10 at CL10 vs animal, plant, fey, vermin
* flame strike (lvl 4, core), up to 15d6, half fire half divine
* ice flowers (lvl5, SPC), up to 15d6, no SR
* fire seeds (lvl 6, core, see post above)
* explosive pinecone (lvl 7, Forge of War), up to 25d6, ranged touch, no SR/save

* summon nature's ally 3-9 (storm elementals, MM3) - up to 1d4+1 * 31d6 = ~380 average at lvl 17

[CantripN]

I'll add Deadfall (SpC, Druid 8 - No Save/SR for Evasion/Mettle, Untyped Damage), Cometfall (SpC, Druid 6 - No SR, Untyped Damage), Extract Water Elemental (SpC, Druid 6 - 20d6 Cap, Untyped Damage), Boreal Wind (Frostburn, Druid 4 - 1 Level lower than a Wizard, 15d4 EVERY ROUND, Battlefield Control) and Arc of Lightning (SpC, Druid 4, No SR, EASY TARGETTING)

[Phoenix00]

Want to add one thing about fire seeds.  If you use the Holly Berry Bombs version and you play with UA spell point variant.  Then you don't have to spend extra spell points to increase the damage of Fire Seeds.  It is only 11 spell points for each casting.

Furthermore you can stack multiple castings on one word of command.

[Nox_Noctis]

Creeping Cold
Extend Spell
Energy Substitution: Fire
Dracolexi 1 (taking the Valignat draconic word)

Call Lightning
Energy Substitution: Fire
Dracolexi 1 (taking the Valignat draconic word)

In both cases, the beauty is that you can empower the spell for free and then continue to use Valignat's ability of using a swift action each round to burn a target for 5d6 (i.e. you don't have to empower every round, you set and ignore).

[Viletta Vadim]

If you can get a fixed range on Creeping Cold (like, say, via Occular Spell) and get turning (say, from Sacred Exorcist), you can DMM persist it and have it scale through the roof for about a hundred million die of damage by daybreak.  Energy Substitution: Fire as well as Searing Spell let it bypass any immunity the enemy may acquire before the spell ends.  Just fire it and teleport out.

[CantripN]

If you can get a fixed range on Creeping Cold (like, say, via Occular Spell) and get turning (say, from Sacred Exorcist), you can DMM persist it and have it scale through the roof for about a hundred million die of damage by daybreak.  Energy Substitution: Fire as well as Searing Spell let it bypass any immunity the enemy may acquire before the spell ends.  Just fire it and teleport out.

If only there wasn't such a thing as Dispel...

[Rebel7284]

Dweomerkeeper to make it supernatural obv.

[Dragonamedrake]

What are the best direct damage spells for a druid at the following levels 5, 10, 15, and 20?  I'm not thinking of the whole battlefield spells, like Frostfell or Storm of Vengence, but more targeted, like Call Lightning or Splinterbolt.

5th - Hypothermia (3rd, SPC 118) 1d6/CL plus Fatigued 10d6 Max, Fort for Half.
        Column of Ice (3rd, Frost 90) Throw someone on a column 5ft/lvl high (aka 1d6 dmg/5ft when they fall) or 4d6 if they hit a ceiling.

10th - Arc of Lightning (4th, SpC 15) Big line affect 1d6/CL 15d6 Max
         Blast of Sand (4th, Sand 112) 1d6/CL 10d6 Max, Cone-shaped burst!
         flame strike (4th, core 231) 1d6/CL 15d6 Max, half Fire/Divine dmg.
         ice flowers (5th, SPC), 1d6/CL 15d6 Max, no SR
         Boreal Wind (4th, Frost 89) 1d4/CL 15d4 Max for 1 round + 1/2 CL, CC spell

15th - Cometfall (6th SpC 50) - As said No SR, Untyped Damage, Creats Dense Rubble and can knock targets prone so its part Crowd Controll too.
         Deadfall (8th, SpC 59) - Again No Save/SR, Untyped Damage. It also creats Dense Rubble and can knock targets prone.
         Extract Water Elemental (6th, SpC 86)  - 1d6/CL 20d6 Max, Untyped Damage... and its weird and horrible at the same time.
         Fire seeds (6th, core 230) - Talked about in post above.
         Tidal Surge (6th, SPC 220) - 1d6/CL 15d6 Max untyped dmg + a Bullrush. Can effect a radius if near a body of water.
         Bombardment (8th, SPC 37) - 1d8/CL 20d8 Max, Long Range, 15 ft radius, and a failed save results in the being buried/no casting if requires somatic/material component

20th - Tsunami (9th, SPC 224) - wow... 1d6/CL 20d6 Max, 20ft/CL wide wave that dmgs, knocks prone, and carries all in range dealing beginning dmg EVERY ROUND.
                                             Requires a SWIM CHECK to try and get out of the area and it last for 1 round/CL. Its a steep cost in Material Comp but when you
                                             absolutely positively gotta kill every ********* in the room.... Accept no substitutes

5th, 10th, 15th, 20th... Like solo said the number one spell we got Venomfire... so good... so so good.

Now for the spells you should really REALLY consider. They dont necessarly do dmg but they will take a person out of a fight just the same:

[spoiler]5th - Poison (3rd, core 262) 1d10 Con DMG/ 1d10 Con 1 min later. Hard fort save... at lvl 6 your looking at least a DC 18... at lvl 20 at least a DC 28, more like a 30.
        Infestation of Maggots (3rd, SPC 123) 1d4 con for 1 round/ 2 lvls, Fort save

10th - Baleful Polymorph (5th, core 202) Just read it. Turn em into a dog or monkey and use Wild Empathy to turn it into your pet! Plus they keep thier BA, HP,
         and Saves so it can be a combat pet... if the DM doesnt throw a book at you that is.

         Languor (4th, SPC 131) Love this spell!!! 1d6 +1/2 CL 1d6 +10 Max, Will to not be slowed. Throw a Twined version and your going to knock just about
                                         anyone out of the fight. Drink a Truestike pot to make sure it hits. Its golden.
        
         Jungle's Rapture ( 5th, SPC 128) 1d6 dex dmg per day till they hit 0 and turn into a normal plant. So when your pet Dog/Monkey gets boring make him a plant.
                                                     Hell have a Green house of plants that used to be your enemys.... that would make a fun evil druid NPC come to think about it.

         Boreal Wind (4th, Frost 89) 1d4/CL 15d4 Max for 1 round + 1/2 CL, As said above this is a great CC spell

         Choking Sands (5th, Sand 112) Target either A looses a Full Round or B begins to sufficate... either way casters cant cast if they cant breath. Well usually.

         Memory Rot (5th, SPC 140) 1d6 Int dmg (no save) and 1 int dmg per round per CL (fort to end).

         Poison Vines (4th, SPC 160) 1d6/2d6 secondary dex dmg to a 10ft/CL area. Sign me up. And you can make allies in the area immune.

15th - Reverse Gravity (8th, core 273) Large area fall up, No save/SR. Fall dmg unless they can fly. Of course by the time you get this alot of things can fly.

         Miasma (6th, SPC 141) AWSOME spell. Locks down casters. Love it. [/spoiler]

Hope that helps. I love druids. Awsome class full of win.

[Viletta Vadim]

Dweomerkeeper to make it supernatural obv.

Quite.

Lessee... Dweomerkeeper bypasses dispelling and spell resistance, Energy Substitution: Fire plus Searing Spell bypasses energy resistance/immunity.  Touch spells are fairly easy to land.  It's fortitude for half, meaning a save won't normally help, but... I'd say the only conventional ways to survive this would be sufficient touch AC that the spell misses or Mettle... anyone know a good way around Mettle?