It is required to open the dude to talk to for Druid’s spirit boons. He is in that bottom area that has nothing until the stronghold is beaten.
And then you need to run into the woods to get the deer skull.
Yes they give you the spirit you needed to have dropped before…but you still have steps to get to this.
Plus you can only pick a bond down in that area also, this cannot be done from the screen.
They made every other one purely optional.
Except Druid and I heard barb from someone else…I have only leveled Druid and Sorc since.