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.

 

[Rocker26a]

SO instead of homebrewing hunter's mark to make it less lame... the only possible thing we can do is homebrew an entirely new ability, rewriting the ranger class and subclass?

I mean, could do both? That's what I did/am in the process of doing. I personally made Hunter's Mark add Force damage equal to your spell modifier on weapon attacks against marked target(s), and you also learn the immunities, resistances and vulnerabilities of the marked targets. And also, uh. Yeah. It's a spell.

What about making it potentially a more powerful locator spell than Locate Person? That's what I've proposed, after all. Would it still be unpalatable?

Uhhh, I mean if you're talking about it as a change to Hunter's Mark itself, it's fine I guess. I don't want it as a class feature though.

 

[Gammadoodler]

You know what? That would be a pretty cool version of the spell. I don't feel a need to add that to my new version of it, because 90% of the time the ranger will just keep it as force damage, but that would be a fun way to play with vulnerabilities.

Yeah if force remains the universal resistance bypass, access to other elements isn't that impactful, the key part would be the change to the weapon damage rather than the nature of any bonus damage.

The nice thing would be that the spell would be more of a tool in the kit of an experienced hunter rather than a combat necessity. If the enemy has no resistances or weaknesses, use a different spell.

 

[ECMO3]

The language is "The first time on each of your turns that you hit the favored enemy and deal damage to it, including when you mark it, you can increase that damage by 1d4". Which suggests the first time, and not subsequent times. So, once per turn.

That is the first time on each of your turns after you invoke it, but there is nothing preventing you from invoking it multiple times in one turn

Here is the verbiage note bolded:

When you hit a creature with an attack roll, you can call on your mystical bond with nature to mark the target as your favored enemy for 1 minute or until you lose your concentration (as if you were concentrating on a spell).

The first time on each of your turns that you hit the favored enemy and deal damage to it, including when you mark it, you increase that damage by 1d4.


So your 5th level Ranger can use this 3 times a day.

He goes into combat and hits an enemy, he calls on his mystical bond and does an extra 1d4 to that enemy and enacts concentration. He attacks again and hits again, that same enemy or maybe a different enemy, and he calls on his mystical bond again. The concentration on the first favored foe goes away and now he is concentrating on the second favorfed foe and does anohter 1d4 on this turn. He makes his 3rd attack from two weapon fighting and hits, again maybe the same enemy maybe a different enemy, and he calls on his mystical bond a third time on this turn and does another 1d4 on this turn to whoever he hit.

A 5th level Ranger has used all three uses of favored foe for the day. While he continues to concentrate on future turns he does 1d4 to the last enemy he hit, the first time (and first time only) that he hits that enemy. If he was 9th level he could use it again the next turn and do 2d4 that turn and then 1d4 from then forward.

The fact that you can technically piss away a handful of your uses over one turn seems more like a crack in the design than a reason why it's not so bad actually.

I mean I am evaluating it against RAW. It is not that powerful, there is no reason to keep extra uses around considering the subclass abilities and spells you have at your disposal.

I'm not compelled by this line of reasoning, they could be a high damage class, a lot of the fantasy associated with them may suggest they ought to be even, WOTC have just made a habit of releasing weak revisions.

The design is not a high damage class but with TCE it is a very effective class overall, both in combat and out of combat. Swim speed, climb speed, extra hit points, invisibility as a bonus action that is not broken by attacking, nearly as many leveled spells a day as a full caster .... there is a ton in that kit.

 

[Rocker26a]

there is nothing preventing you from invoking it multiple times in one turn

Correct! I still think it's lame. You're still jumping through hoops for a few pips of bonus damage however you slice it.

The design is not a high damage class but with TCE it is a very effective class overall, both in combat and out of combat. Swim speed, climb speed, extra hit points, invisibility as a bonus action that is not broken by attacking, nearly as many leveled spells a day as a full caster .... there is a ton in that kit.

These were steps in the right direction, but they consistently cannot stick the landing. Things like movement options, HP options, visibility options, these are things that're held up by a good foundation in my view, which Ranger has just never had.

 

[fluffybunbunkittens]

You're still jumping through hoops for a few pips of bonus damage however you slice it.

Yes, but... it's free, as in, it does not cost you any actions. Having played a Tasha Beast Master for 10 levels, I can tell you that there was no point in trying to save my uses of Favored Foe. It was so rarely that I had a moment in which I didn't have better concentration spells going (or could afford to drop them), so I might as well spend it on all the hits.

Most of the time, Favored Foe just went unspent. It's not a great class feature, but that's more damning Ranger's spells than it.

 

[Rocker26a]

Yes, but... it's free, as in, it does not cost you any actions.

You are correct, this is absolutely a thing you could do if you wanted to use that version of Ranger. But I do not wish to do that, because it sucks.

 

[fluffybunbunkittens]

because it sucks.

Ah, the true class fantasy of being Ranger!

 

[Rocker26a]

Ah, the true class fantasy of being Ranger!

Got me there.
(I am actually really happy with my homebrew Ranger so far though, just tinkering with level 14 currently.)

 

[Corinnguard]

Yes, but... it's free, as in, it does not cost you any actions.

If you happen to be multiclass into Rogue and use Sneak Attack with a ranged or finesse weapon, you can stack the damage of Favored Foe and Sneak Attack without costing you any additional actions.

 

[fluffybunbunkittens]

If you happen to be multiclass into Rogue and use Sneak Attack with a ranged or finesse weapon, you can stack the damage of Favored Foe and Sneak Attack without costing you any additional actions.

Yes, but... it starts off as a +1d4 with limited uses. You'd get an unlimited +1d6 if you just stayed Rogue.