And those problems are now considered so minor by WotC that they have abandoned the idea of doing a direct fix to the class.
I'm looking for a path that allows those who feel that the PHB Beastmaster doesnt' fit their style to up it's power level via the introduction of new spells. That does come at a cost of other things you could do, but IMO that's a fair trade off. The UA Beastmaster basically gives you everything you want for free
And getting fixes that allow the class to fit players preferred playstyle for free is bad?
I don't care if WoTC thinks the problems are minor, there are lots of things they don't feel the need to address that I feel need attention, but "charging" players for trying to make their concept work is kind of a ridiculous stance to start with, IMO.
That said, the spell list I suggested was a first draft, so I've taken a look at your constructive crit and tried to revise accordingly. My goal here is to have some things that work for both the disposable and constant companion style of play, while allowing the constant companion style to boost the ability to use their companion as a living weapon. Interested in your thoughts on the revisions.
Sure, though of course, dude on internet opinion may not be worth a lot.
1st Level Ranger Spells
Hunting Party - 1 Min, Concentration, Bonus Action, self - When you cast this spell, you gain an additional action that you can use only to command your Beast Companion, additionally, the beast gains Temporary Hit points equal to 5 times your proficiency bonus. You also gain advantage on attacks against a creature your companion is engaged with. (Combined the two 1st level spells into a single boost and added a free help action. This is clearly a more powerful option than Hunters Mark, especially at higher levels)
What do we mean by "engaged with" becomes a very important question. Also, if flanking rules and melee ranger are involved, the math changes. The reason "Engaged with" becomes important is because certain animals, like the Owl or Flying Serpent, get fly-by attacks. They have attacked and "engaged" the enemy, but do not remain adjacent. But, if Adjacent is our only concern, then running up and dodging is also considered "engaged" which may or may not fit what you are going with.
I still don't like the idea of "here is a spell that lets you do what you should already be able to do" but adding in 10 temp hp and advantage on ranged attacks is pretty powerful. How powerful can be debated, since a spell like Faerie Fire will also give advantage, on multiple targets, but I could see this not feeling like being insulting as a must grab option.
It is a must grab option for a beast master who wants to actually utilize their beast in combat, and must be cast every combat, and may be lost due to concentration, but at least it gives enough benefits to make it seem like you had a choice to begin with.
2nd Level Ranger Spells
Revivify Beast - Action, Touch - You touch the body of a beast that has been dead for less than 1 minute and it returns to life with 1 HP. (revised to make clear that this does not work if the body of your companion doesn't exist)
4th level
Reincarnate Beast - 1 Hour Casting Time, Permanent - You focus on the spirit of a beast dead for not more than 30 days. The beast is reincarnated, appearing from nearby at the end of the 1 hour casting time. (No change. At higher levels, this spell becomes useful as you may not always have the chance to revivify your companion. If you want to make sure you can bring your companion back, you choose this)
Since you didn't change them my opinion of them doesn't change. And, while you say you might not always get a chance to revivify your companion, you very often will get a chance. Most combatant's don't drop til mid or late combat, giving you 10 rounds, and, unless your GM is really hard out to measure the seconds, once the combat ends and you say "I revive my companion" you've generally met the timeline.
Additionally, the person who cares enough about their beast to take this spell will care enough to take measures to ensure they survive, such as curing them when they drop or stabilizing them. In addition to all of that, three death saves need to be failed, which is just hard enough to push this over the edge.
Now, Raise Dead makes sense for the Cleric, because the Cleric will prepare Raise Dead the next day to cast it, and then not prepare it the following day when it isn't needed, but Rangers learn spells permanently, and they have only 11 spells known. That is fewer than the Eldritch Knight or the Arcane Trickster, and you aren't really going to expect those classes to take a spell like that Reincarnate Beast spell that they may use once a campaign and took as a precaution. It just doesn't work with the way the RAW class is designed.
2nd Level
Alter Beast - Action, Touch, 1 Hour - You touch a beast and it's natural weapon damage dice each gain 1 level (d1>d4>d6>d8>d10>d12) and it also gains one of the following benefits, It's natural weapons become + 1 magical weapons, It's AC increases by 2, the DC of any of it's abilities increases by the caster's proficiency bonus. When you cast this spell at a higher level, the damage dice increase and additional step for each level and you can choose one more optional benefit. (Revised to allow additional damage boost)
That damage scaling can be either pretty good or really meh. For example, the d1 represents creatures who deal only a single point of damage like the hawk, but if you break down the likely math the Hawk is really dealing 1d4-3, which will just upgrade to a 1d6-3... which is still very likely to be 1 damage, since we have a minimum of 1.
Alternatively, It can raise a wolf from 2d4 to 2d6, which is a pretty massive boost on average damage. Also, using some of your other spells can lead to other beasts being effected, like the rhino which will go from 2d8 to 2d10 (maybe 4d10 depending on reading of Charge).
So, near useless for some beasts, decently powerful for others, and now the +1 magic bonus is pretty much worthless unless you are fighting something immune to non-magic damage, because the increased dice already get you a +1 or +2 to damage on average and you are better off going for the AC or DC boost.
3rd Level Ranger Spells
Find Greater Companion - 1 Hour Casting time - You call out to the wild to find a new beast companion that can either be Large with a CR equal to 1/4 of your level or Medium with a CR of 1/2 your level (rounded down). The beast must be native to the area that you are in and able to reach your location. If you are in your favored terrain, you pick the beast that appears, otherwise the DM chooses from what is appropriate for the area. (added option to take more powerful Medium creature or less powerful Large creature)
You changed absolutely nothing as far as I can tell, since I can't find a medium beast whose CR is higher than 1. Even pulled out Volo's and checked the Dinosaurs. So, unless there is something highly specific I missed, changing medium to 1/2 your level was a pointless choice.
Also, all of my criticism of this spell from the first go around still applies. A DM who allows this spell will probably allow the exact same thing to happen without the spell, making it a moot point and a waste to take.
4th Level Ranger Spells
Awakened Beast - 1 Hour Casting Time, Permanent Duration - You forge a permanent telepathic bond with your companion. As long as you are on the same plane of existence, you can communicate telepathically as well as see through each others eyes at will. The beast can also add 6 points to it's ability scores, either all to one or split between several. It also gains your save and skill proficiencies. The awakening lasts until your companion is killed. If later brought back to life, the spell must be cast again. (Added save and ability proficencies)
Gaining the proficiencies is nice, Rangers get Dex and Str which may end up being useful. A lot of your skill proficiences are likely wasted on them, such as anything intelligence based since a player will likely not raise a beasts intelligence as their only usage for those 6 points.
Again, it is something I may consider if I was forced to play a PHB Beastmaster, but most of it is actually not useful for the player compared to other spells they could take, and once more, out of 11 spells you are allowed over 20 levels, it becomes hard to justify taking a spell you will only use once. As an Alternative route compared to the Revised Ranger, I just don't see it being worth it.
5th Level Ranger Spells
Heroic Beast - Action, Touch, 10 Minutes - You gain the benefits of both the Command Beast (without concentration) and Alter Beast (as if cast at 4th level) spells, your beast's speed is doubled and it adds your proficiency bonus to all saves. (reworked this completely, think it is comparable to Swift Quiver or Combat Barrage. Note also that you can stack this with Hunters Mark which at this level would effect both you and your companion for even more damage boosting)
Looking forward to more feedback on these!
Command Beast doesn't exist, so I assume you mean Hunting Party. The phrasing is definitely more succinct, but it goes back to ranger casting limitations a little bit. You just made a high level spell that invalidates two other spells. Now, I did double check, and I was wrong, Ranger's can forget a spell they learned and learn a different spell, so this is somewhat less of a problem, but it just feels wonky as a design choice.
Other than that... it is essentially the same spell as it was last time, just worded and not taking a concentration slot.
And, I'm honestly starting to wonder what the beast master does when they run out of spell slots to support these spells. Since they provide temporary access to being a Beast Master.... a ranger up until 17th level when they can gain Heroic Beast has 4 combats from 5th level on where they can act in tandem with their companion, assuming the Ranger never loses concentration on their spell. Then, they start cannibalizing higher level slots, and this assumes the Ranger has cast no other 1st level spells at all.
It is similiar to the paladin smite problem, but where the smite is additional gravy damage, that Hunting Party spell simply brings the beast master up to where they should be anyways.
And, I'm not entirely sure why I would choose to take these spells and the PHB Beastmaster, when I could just as easily play the Revised Ranger. Many of the "benefits" you are giving out are the exact same benefits the Revised Ranger gives the Beastmaster, so since both are optional content, why would I choose this method which eats up spells known and spell slots over my other option which does not?
