One thing I hear rather a lot from folks is “what even is a ranger?” I’ve seen folks argue that if somebody is a stealthy archer, they depend as a ranger. I feel that’s an oversimplification. The foundational textual content for rangers, The Lord of the Rings, doesn’t use ranger as a generic time period for scouts or guides. Ranger in The Lord of the Rings has the identical connotation that paladin has taken on in Dungeons & Dragons and different video games. In different phrases, “paladin” isn’t only a knightly warrior.
That stated, we don’t get a chapter full of knowledge telling us precisely what rangers do, and what makes them particular, simply that they do appear to be particular, that they appear to be a specific calling. It additionally doesn’t assist that whereas we all know rangers are particular, and they’re searching for risks within the wilderness and gathering information of rising hazard, a few of what we find out about rangers, we all know due to Aragron, and it’s not all the time straightforward to extricate what’s particular about Aragorn, versus what’s particular about rangers.
Absolutes
No person needs to be getting absolute talents. Somebody being good at one thing within the recreation ought to nonetheless require the participant to have interaction with the principles, as an alternative of ignoring them. Rangers can get misplaced, it’s simply not going. Rangers might help folks discover meals and shelter, however that ought to make issues last more, not take away no matter you need to observe for assets as a priority.
Animal Lore
Rangers needs to be good with animals. A standard animal that isn’t compelled by one thing malevolent most likely received’t need to harm a ranger, so long as the ranger can attain out to the animal and calm them down. Alternatively, I don’t suppose rangers ought to have an animal companion as a compulsory characteristic. It needs to be elective.
Rangers with the ability to calm animals down is an effective potential. Rangers with the ability to converse with animals sooner or later of their profession? Additionally one other good potential for rangers. When you actually need to do one thing we haven’t seen earlier than, what if rangers have resistance to wreck from beasts? One thing that reveals a ranger is aware of how animals work.
Rangers can have an animal companion, as an choice. However it will even be fascinating if that manifested, not simply in several precise animals or totally different stat blocks for flyers or land creatures, or no matter. However what if these companions had an specific secondary potential. You’ve got a hawk? You get a particular potential to assemble info at vary. You’ve got a snake? Past simply doing poison injury, does that open up new circumstances to inflict? Simply one thing past a stat block with totally different motion charges or hit factors.
Fight Fashion
If Drizzt wasn’t the origin of two weapon combating in rangers, and I’ve seen some designers say that’s the case, I don’t know what ranger “story” conjures up a dueling fashion that’s often related to swashbucklers quite than woodsy varieties that will or might not be good at stealth and ambushes. That stated, I’m not in opposition to it as a doable fight fashion.
As a lot as I missed my plate armor that my 1st version AD&D ranger had, I agree that rangers shouldn’t have armor that doesn’t allow them to transfer quick and probably lets them cover out within the wilderness. I’ll go one step additional and say, shields don’t really feel particularly woodsy. I don’t know that I’d say rangers shouldn’t be capable to use them, simply that possibly it’s not one thing they need to have a devoted fashion to mirror.
Archery is sensible, nevertheless it additionally shouldn’t be the one choice, or the one choice aside from two weapon combating. It shouldn’t even be the one ranged choice for rangers. I can simply see a wilderness primarily based combatant throwing daggers, hand axes, or spears, quite than capturing a bow.
I do know I discussed that shields don’t really feel like one thing a ranger wouldn’t have distinctive expertise with, however I’m high quality with them having two handed weapons. A number of that’s that I can image lots of rangers utilizing versatile weapons that can be utilized one or two handed, in two handed mode after they go toe to toe with a selected foe, as soon as they observe them down.
We’re going to get into this slightly within the “information” part, however rangers are sometimes portrayed as wilderness guides or protectors. Which means rangers ought to have entry to combating types that assist them defend others.
Information
Rangers are sometimes portrayed as guides and protectors of others that aren’t as woodsy or outdoorsy because the ranger is. If we glance again to Aragorn and rangers from Center-earth, you’ll be able to see why earlier editions restricted rangers to good alignment, however I don’t suppose hanging mechanics on alignment is nice.
That stated, retaining roads clear and escorting folks touring throughout the wilderness needs to be one thing rangers are good at. Some may try this as a result of they need to defend the harmless, however regardless of how particular and mystic rangers are, I don’t suppose there is a matter with rangers that escort or patrol for cash, or people who work for a specific druid circle, so that they don’t actually fear about anybody that isn’t a member of that circle.
Due to this, being able to guard others is rangery, however I additionally like the concept rangers can grant their allies some advantages within the wilderness by telling them what they should do. It may not even be a nasty alternative between working with an animal companion, or being able to spice up your allies on the highway.
Searching
Rangers are wilderness and weapon targeted characters, so looking looks like its a pure ingredient for rangers. Early editions gave a large bonus on sure opponents. Different editions made the ranger choose a very particular subset of enemies. All of that pushed the rangers in the direction of hating a sure factor, quite than being a talented hunter.
My choice is for rangers to have the ability to rigorously observe a goal, and as soon as they do they get some form of profit. It may be a bonus to hit, a bonus to wreck, however I form of like the concept it does one thing like inflicting circumstances. However positively “do a factor to point out you’re learning a goal, get a fight profit, most likely being restricted by being targeted on looking a single factor at a time.
Mysticism
I feel typically rangers as spellcasters or not spellcasters form of misses why rangers have spells. Aragorn had one thing about him that was past simply the conventional, mortal talents of a human. A few of that was resulting from him being a part of the royal line of Numenoreans, however there was a mystique about rangers in Tolkien, and like most issues in Tolkien that had an air of the supernatural about it, that mysticism was form of refined and vaguely outlined.
So my take is, it’s high quality for rangers to have some form of mystical talents. In actual fact, they most likely ought to have mystical talents, to bolster why there’s something particular about rangers. However as a result of that mysticism was refined, I feel the ranger wants to have the ability to set up their wilderness lore and looking and all of these talents earlier than the mystic talents begin to kick in and probably overshadow no matter else they’ve occurring.
That doesn’t imply I don’t need them to have spells, however I do suppose having a customized ranger spell lists helps tailor spellcasting into that supplemental mysticism. If their spells assist them do what they already do, however they’ll do it with out the spells, that’s most likely a superb begin. Alternatively, should you don’t need them to be full on spellcasters, giving them extra refined supernatural talents is ok too.
Wilderness Lore
Rangers are those who spend a very long time within the wilderness. They really feel pure there. At a base stage, this often interprets into monitoring, however when everybody can observe, it doesn’t all the time really feel satisfying to only get a bonus to creating these checks in comparison with others, as a result of should you each make the verify, the bonus doesn’t matter. You possibly can’t do one thing another person can’t do.
Ideally, a ranger will get one thing further after they efficiently observe one thing, like info that different folks wouldn’t get, possibly past “that is the place they went,” and “that is what number of there are.”
Stealth additionally falls into this class. Its additionally one other factor that different courses can do, so once more, simply getting a much bigger bonus within the wilderness isn’t all the time as satisfying. Ignoring impediments like terrain that slows a ranger down is an effective kicker to this, as is with the ability to transfer at full pace after they use stealth.
Some video games have made it more durable to shock rangers, and I just like the idea of a ranger being vigilant. No matter shock is in your recreation system, the ranger doesn’t have to fret about it when they’re within the wilderness.
So far as the survival side, it’s good if the ranger is best in a position to survive within the wilderness, however not each recreation actually emphasises some type of survival. I do like the concept rangers get better from fatigue within the wilderness as an expression of that toughness.
I like the concept a ranger establishing a campsite may grant individuals who camp there a particular profit. The ranger is aware of the best way to make folks comfy out within the wild, and possibly even understand how sleeping underneath the celebrities could also be higher than sleeping in an inn.
