Before I start, let me say I am a big fan of Larian's realisation of the class. Top marks for flavour, and it's making for a very different play-through.

Druids have some unique abilities that make them unparalleled for scouting, sneaking, manoeuvring and talking to and otherwise handling animals - I love that you can saunter almost anywhere as a cat; my kitty robbed the goblins and Zhent traders in Selune's Temple blind. Their powers enable some cool tactical plays (burrow, thorn whip, flaming sphere, etc). Wild shape allows them to soak up lots of damage (but the poor armour class of the animal forms means they take lots of it), and you can jack their armour class in human form right up, so they can survive on the front line.

But when it comes to combat, they're mediocre. Possibly the worst class, as clerics can at least pop off the odd Guiding Bolt. Their animal attacks miss a lot and the damage output of both their wild shapes and their spells is low. Which is fine, that's the price you pay for versatility - it just means you have to consider the makeup of the rest of your party very carefully. Don't rely on a druid as your tank, unless you want some very long fights and lots and lots of long rests.

In short, druid is not the class for the power gamer, or, I would argue, for a beginner. It's more something to try if you’ve already completed the game with one of the simpler, less tricksy classes and are looking for a new challenge (and some brilliant flashes of humour from the conversations with animals. And a discount from Arron the trader). Maybe this will change when the level cap is raised. I look forward to finding out.