D&D (2024) 2024 Player's Handbook reveal: "New Ranger"

"More than any other class, the ranger is a new class."

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It has been a year (less a day) since we last saw the Ranger in UA Playtest 6. There still could be a lot of change. My sense is that they are more or less happy with three of the subclasses (Fey Wanderer, Beastmaster, and Gloom Stalker), but many questions remain: Will anyone be happy with the favored enemy/relation to the land abilities? Will Hunter's Mark be foregrounded in multiple abilities? Will rangers at least get a free casting of the Barrage/Volley spells? For the Hunter, will the "Superior" abilties at levels 11 and 15 continue to be things you didn't choose at lower levels? For the Gloom Stalker, will they pull out 3rd level invisibility from "Umbral Sight"? Any chance for a surprise substitution of the Horizon Walker? Let's find out.

OVERVIEW

• "widely played, but ... one of the lowest rated"
• Spellcasting and Weapon Mastery at 1 (as with Paladin). Spellcasting can change spells after long rest (not every level)
• NEW: Favored Enemy: Hunters Mark always prepared, and X castings per day. (was level 2 in PT6, where it was WIS times/day)
• NEW: Fighting Style at 2 (no limits on choice). or you may choose two cantrips (again, like Paladin).
• NEW: Deft Explorer at 3: expertise in a proficient skill, +2 languages. NO INTERACTION WITH LAND TYPES. This is a nerf from PT6, where at least you got a bonus to Intelligence (Nature) checks.
• Extra attack at 5, Roving at 6 (+10' move, Climb Speed, Swim speed).
• Two more expertise options, at 9, presumably. Compared to the playtest, this is a nerf: PT6 gave 1 expertise, the spell Conjure Barrage always prepared, and +2 land types for Explorer. These had problems, but it's a lot to lose for one additional expertise.
• At 10, Tireless (as in PT6) -- THP and reduced Exhaustion.
• NEW: At 13, Damage no longer breaks concentration with Hunter's Mark.
• At 14, Nature's Veil -- invisibility. At 18, Blindsight.
• NEW: At 17, advantage vs person marked with Hunter's Mark.
• NEW: Damage of Hunter's mark increases to d10, not d6. (This too is a nerf from the playtest, which gave +WIS to hit, and +WIS to damage.)

The clear expectation is you are using Hunter's Mark, occupying your concentration and taking your first Bonus action every combat, from levels 1-20.

SUBCLASSES
Beastmaster

• command Primal Beast as a bonus action, and higher level abilities as in PT6, apparently.
• stat blocks level up with you (as in Tasha's and PT6). Beast gets Hunter's Mark benefits at 11.

Fey Wanderer

• vague on specifics; apparently just as in Tasha's.

Gloom Stalker

• as in PT6, Psychic damage bonus a limited number of times per day. +WIS to initiative (cf. Assassin and Barbarian)
• Umbral Sight, darkvision bonus, and invisible in the dark.
• NEW: psychic damage goes up at level 11. Mass fear option of Sudden Strike mentioned, nothing about Sudden Strike.

Hunter.

• Hunter's Lore at 3: know if there are immunities/resistances of creature marked by Hunter's Mark.
• NEW: Hunter's Prey at 3: you have a choice and can change your choice every short/long rest.
• NEW: Defensive Tactics at 7: you have a choice, and again can choose after a rest. The choices are Escape the Horde, Multiattack defense (not Evasion, Uncanny Dodge, and Hunter's Leap, as in PT6).
• NEW: At 11, Hunter's mark now "splashes" damage onto another target.
• NEW: you can choose to take resistance to damage, until the end of your turn.

 

[Staffan]

I'm not interested in a Ranger with no spells. That is like a Hamburger without beef.

I'd be fine with a spell-less ranger (though it would be harder to come up with different subclasses without having magic to juice it up, making them perhaps more suitable as a fighter or rogue subclass). But if the call is made to make the ranger a magical class, you might as well lean into that.

 

[Remathilis]

it doesn't matter that you don't have new features tied to it at those levels, cause it comes right out of the gate with it's 'always known and free castings' at level 1 saying hint-hint, nudge-nudge this is something you're meant to be using, look at these features you're going to get at later levels, if you're not using those free uses you're wasting resources, why aren't you using hunters mark huh?

imagine the reaction if they made witch bolt innately known on all wizards with free castings and dedicated their wizard features to it, because it's the same thing.

And the paladin has a lot of abilities tied to smite, and warlock to EB. (Though you can now choose a suboptimal cantrip if you prefer).

 

[Chaosmancer]

it doesn't matter that you don't have new features tied to it at those levels, cause it comes right out of the gate with it's 'always known and free castings' at level 1 saying hint-hint, nudge-nudge this is something you're meant to be using, look at these features you're going to get at later levels, if you're not using those free uses you're wasting resources, why aren't you using hunters mark huh?

imagine the reaction if they made witch bolt innately known on all wizards with free castings and dedicated their wizard features to it, because it's the same thing.

So because they give you free uses of a spell, it is automatically the only thing the entire class cares about? So we could strip paladins of channel divinity, auras, lay on hands, find steed, martial weapon proficiency, armor proficiency, weapon mastery, fighting styles... because they get free uses of Divine Smite, hint-hint, nudge-nudge , nothing else you have matters in the slightest because you have this one ability.

 

[Remathilis]

eh, i think if it was more viable to build a competent nonmagic character i think there would definitely be more of them, magic is so omnipresent in 5e that's it's hard not to end up with it on a character one way or another, and practically it really is one of the few reliable ways to get alot of things done, or done at all in some cases.

Sorry, making martials good will violate the Rule of Cool and we can't allow that. Have you considered learning magic instead?

 

[Micah Sweet]

Not very many people. The number of players I see at the table with no magic at all is very, very small. Everyone I have seen play 5E uses magic items, everyone. Even if you don't count that people playing Barbarians, Rogues and Fighters usually have magic as part of their PC through something (a race, multiclass or feat) and more often than not they have spells.

The completely non-magical PC is almost non-existent in 5E and the PC without any spells itself is relatively uncommon.

Because the rules are forced in that direction, not necessarily because everyone wants spells on their characters. I mean, look at fantasy media. How many actual spell-casters are there? Some, certainly, and more of that sort of thing in anime (don't @ me, I know the details are different), but not nearly everyone like default WotC 5e.

 

[Micah Sweet]

I'm saying the LU ranger's main justification is it's tie to the LU Exploration system.

If you take the LU ranger and put it into 75% of 5e games, it's just a nerfed LU fighter.

That is my point

Good thing there's more than one 5e-compatible ranger then. I like the LU ranger, and I play LU. Guess which ranger shows up in my games?

And your percentages are hyperbole, which does nothing but weaken your argument.

 

[Weiley31]

Does anybody know if Conjure Barrage/Volley made it in still?

While I know not everybody here is fond of the *Gates of Babylon/Vergil Phantasmal Sword" flavouring it got in the UA, it can at least be flavoured in a way that works with the image of arrows or bullets.

 

[Chaosmancer]

I wasn't arguing with your examples. I'm not anti-manga.

The big difference between a ranger and a detective is that a ranger is focused on the environmental clues and not social clues. They're tasting muddy tracks, but not putting on a sequin gown to seduce the mayor at a gala to trick her into revealing the vault combination.

Right, different tools for different challenges. A character hunting a man through the city is going to use different clues and signs than a character hunting a man across a tundra, because those are different environments. But the end goal "hunt this man" is still the same.

 

[Minigiant]

This is why I've said for a long time, the biggest thing holding back the Ranger's theme and story, is that "Nature" in DnD is too tame and easy to deal with. Or at least it is perceived that way. I'm actually hoping with their focus on "apex" monsters, that DnD gives us some CR 10 thru 24 BEASTS and PLANTS that truly showcase that, in the deep parts of nature, you need a specialist.

D&D is a higher magic and higher threat than most survival and wilderness media.

Most of the community refuses to come to terms with that.

So when I say a D&D ranger might cast 2 spells and become a dual scimitar wielding three headed werewolf, people balk.

But the wizard is an Archmage.

So the midlevel ranger might look like a werewolf or an anthered fey warrior with teleporting bird tracking the movement of foes.

 

[CreamCloud0]

So because they give you free uses of a spell, it is automatically the only thing the entire class cares about? So we could strip paladins of channel divinity, auras, lay on hands, find steed, martial weapon proficiency, armor proficiency, weapon mastery, fighting styles... because they get free uses of Divine Smite, hint-hint, nudge-nudge , nothing else you have matters in the slightest because you have this one ability.

divine smite doesn't hold your concentration hostage though, you use it quick as and when opportunities arise for it, hunters mark doesn't let you do that.