D&D (2024) What type of ranger would your prefer for 2024?

[Kalmi]

I don't necessarily mind Rangers having spellcasting, per se. I do think Ranger magic should be different, but not in the handwavey "well you get your magic from a deep connection with nature but uh you cast spells exactly like a Wizard." It should be actually different, a Ranger should not require flashy somatic gestures or need to verbally scream that they're turning invisible. On the other hand, they should require components, namely some form of natural material, like using herbs to heal, a bone whistle to summon animals, etc. And their magic should simply be more powerful in natural environments, for the same reason.

Also get rid of silly spells like "Conjure Volley," this is just 5e designers trying to hack the magic system to give Rangers something that should be a martial power, if those were allowed to exist in 5e. But considering Weapon Masteries and Cunning Actions exist now, there's no reason the Ranger can't have something similar. Just make Hunter's Mark a class feature (again, why is this a spell?) and let the Ranger trade HM damage for extra effects just like Cunning Actions. So now the Ranger can trade some damage to shoot multiple arrows at once, something that it can do without magic.

Again, I don't have a problem with Ranger magic, but Rangers should be able to use it in a Ranger-y way, and it should be focused on things that are actually magical, like speaking to animals, disappearing without a trace, or healing.

 

[Minigiant]

Here are the core 1st level rangers spells of 5e.

1. Alarm
2. Animal Friendship
3. Cure Wounds
4. Detect Magic
5. Detect Poison and Disease
6. Ensnaring Strike
7. Fog Cloud
8. Goodberry
9. Hail of Thorns
10. Hunter's Mark
11. Jump
12. Longstrider
13. Speak with Animals

Really of these 13 spells, only 3 Detect Magic, Fog Cloud, and Hail of Thorns don't feel like required in the list of choosable abilities of a Ranger. And you could argue those 3.

And that's just the 10 effects from 1st level spells: a type of base alarming, beast charming, talking to beasts and mounts, healing, antivenoming and not eating poisoned berries, an entangle, foraging, tracking, running, jumping.. 6-8 more with 2nd spells

it's a lot of abilities to convert into spell-less. And that's not counting the spells not in the PHB. Or spells never converted to 5e. Or effects missing entirely like climbing stuff, snow stuff, and creating camps.

 

[Emberashh]

1. Alarm
2. Animal Friendship
3. Cure Wounds
4. Detect Magic
5. Detect Poison and Disease
6. Ensnaring Strike
7. Fog Cloud
8. Goodberry
9. Hail of Thorns
10. Hunter's Mark
11. Jump
12. Longstrider
13. Speak with Animals

1-5 and 11-13 can and should be handled by skills. 8 shouldn't exist.

The remainder are easily handled via an explanation derived from uncanny skill.

Most of these are also the same filler garbage spells that don't really need to be taking up any classes real estate, even the Wizards.

 

[le Redoutable]

... because of prepared sells ...

 

[CreamCloud0]

Here are the core 1st level rangers spells of 5e.

1. Alarm
2. Animal Friendship
3. Cure Wounds
4. Detect Magic
5. Detect Poison and Disease
6. Ensnaring Strike
7. Fog Cloud
8. Goodberry
9. Hail of Thorns
10. Hunter's Mark
11. Jump
12. Longstrider
13. Speak with Animals

Really of these 13 spells, only 3 Detect Magic, Fog Cloud, and Hail of Thorns don't feel like required in the list of choosable abilities of a Ranger. And you could argue those 3.

And that's just the 10 effects from 1st level spells: a type of base alarming, beast charming, talking to beasts and mounts, healing, antivenoming and not eating poisoned berries, an entangle, foraging, tracking, running, jumping.. 6-8 more with 2nd spells

i'm just going over that level 1 spells list (and include their spells that were also added later on) and say which ones i really think need to use magic to be performed, red is mundane, green needs magic, blue toes the line and could go either way depending on your interpretation of what/how it's happening

1. Alarm, setting up a noise trap
2. Animal Friendship, befriending a wild animal
3. Cure Wounds, medical skills vs instantaneous healing magic
4. Detect Magic, identifying the presence and types of magic
5. Detect Poison and Disease, reliably identifying signs of poison/illness
6. Ensnaring Strike, instantly restraining your target in bindings
7. Fog Cloud, Edit: (was magic) smoke bomb vs changing the weather
8. Goodberry, foraging enough food vs creating healing food
9. Hail of Thorns, trick spreading arrow vs acually 'bursting' thorns
10. Hunter's Mark, focusing on a target to target weak points or how to track them
11. Jump, juming really good
12. Longstrider, moving faster for a time
13. Speak with Animals, primal language of animals (as in LOTR) vs auto-translation
14. Absorb Elements, redirecting magical energies
15. Beast Bond, seeing through the senses of an animal
16. Entangle, rapid growth of plants to cause difficult terrain
17. Searing Smite, weapon on fire (using oil or suchlike) vs blade becomes glowing hot
18. Snare, it's just a snare trap
19. Sudden Awakening, urgently waking up your companions
20. Wild Cunning, most of the listed actions are mundane barring calling spirits to set up/pack away a campsite, but the idea of being able to set up/pack away a camp rapidly is primarily mundane if the spirits assistance aspect was ommited
21. Zephyr Strike, maneuvering quickly across the battlefield to target an enemy

Edit: breaking that down of 21 abilities that's 9 martial abilities, 5 magic abilities and 7 that could go either way, which if i really had to pick which side i'd put each on: cure wounds, goodberry, speak with animals and wild cunning and fog cloud, hail of thorns and searing smite for 13 martial, 8 magic split

it's a lot of abilities to convert into spell-less. And that's not counting the spells not in the PHB. Or spells never converted to 5e. Or effects missing entirely like climbing stuff, snow stuff, and creating camps.

technically UA ranger options include Deft Explorer(Roving) at level 6 or the Mariner fighting style which both provide climb and swim speeds equal to the ranger's base walking speed.

 

[le Redoutable]

Can you pilot Earth like Terrax?

 

[Minigiant]

1-5 and 11-13 can and should be handled by skills. 8 shouldn't exist.

The remainder are easily handled via an explanation derived from uncanny skill.

Most of these are also the same filler garbage spells that don't really need to be taking up any classes real estate, even the Wizards.

There's no mechanics for it in the PHB.

And the mechanics in the DMG are weak and skipped.

That's the whole problem. No one wants to read or expand the DMG rules. Nobody wants to make room for it in the PHB. So ranger is a spellcaster.

 

[DEFCON 1]

@CreamCloud0 's list is the exact same way I've come up with the Warlord as needed in my games (the one time it was broached by someone). Take the Bard and/or Cleric, strip out the fluff of "magic" on a couple of their abilities... and then go through the spell list and picking and choosing which game mechanics "IE "spells" don't need to be considered "magic" and those are the "non-magical abilities" the character has. And Voila! We had a Warlord that did a lot of the same things the 4E Warlord did.

There is no appreciable difference between the resultant mechanics of Cure Wounds and the mechanics of any potential Create Poultice or Inspiring Word. They all would return 1d8+modfier points to a PC's "hit points" and the only difference would be if we were willing to accept that one was "magical" but the other two were "not magical". But as know... a lot of people are unwilling or incapable of seeing that difference. They have to have three separate things that all accomplish the same effect.

 

[Vaalingrade]

If we were allowed to use tags and labels without having elements of the game being called gamey in a derogatory manner, we could have that work, but no, we have to use perfectly unnatural natural language, making it so it's possible to magically counter chicken soup.

 

[Emberashh]

There's no mechanics for it in the PHB.

And the mechanics in the DMG are weak and skipped.

That's the whole problem. No one wants to read or expand the DMG rules. Nobody wants to make room for it in the PHB. So ranger is a spellcaster.

And are these "no ones" in the room with us right now?

Yet again, we negotiate ourselves out of good ideas based on satisfying the whims of boogeypeople that aren't here.

Not to go that route but this reminds me too much of American politics; so naughty word terrified of rejection that we cede 90% of the ground before theres even been a chance for anything to be rejected, and then we cede 90% of whats left when we actually negotiate with real people and not just our own inane cowardice.

Its ridiculous.