1st Edition Rangers in 3.x E?

[haakon1]

Are there rules out there for 1st Edition style Rangers in 3.x e?

What I mean is, rangers that are wilderness fighters, without the 2e and 3e mods. Rangers who are Robin Hood, not Drizzt.

In particular, the rules I don't like/don't think fit the archetype are:
- Favored Enemy
- Combat Style: two-weapon combat. I think this isn't a terrible rule, but I wish a lot more combat styles were available.
- Animal Companion

What I like compared to a fighter/what fits for the archetype:
- Larger list of Skills, appropriate to an outdoors fighter
- More skill points
- Track and improvements on it at higher levels
- Wild empathy
- Endurance
- Evasion
- Camouflage

The druid spells I could do with or do without. They are 1st Edition-esque, and they sort of fit, but I wouldn't miss them.

If nobody has what I'm talking about, what's a fair swap in creating my own variant Ranger? Should each Favored Enemy be traded in for a Fighter Bonus feat? Or just the whole series for one feat? How about Animal Companion? Is that worth a feat?

 

[Ravellion]

In particular, the rules I don't like/don't think fit the archetype are:
- Favored Enemy
- Combat Style: two-weapon combat. I think this isn't a terrible rule, but I wish a lot more combat styles were available.
- Animal Companion

The Favored Enemy can be powerful, but usually isn't. The Animal companion is a liability. So that leaves you with the combat styles as something that actually adds easily discernible power to the ranger.

Remove both the Favoured Enemy AND the Animal Companion. Replace Combat Style with bonus feats from the fighter list. This makes for a slightly less powerful Ranger, but only ever so slightly (you add some power with the sudden versatility of the feats). If you think it slightly low on power, give out favoured terrain at 1st level. This can be as simple as +2 to all skill checks when in favoured terrain.

Rav

 

[Plane Sailing]

Well, if you wanted to model a 1e ranger you would want:

* druid and wizard spells (1st-3rd and 1st-2nd respectively)
* extra damage against giant-class (either goblinoid/orc or giants)
* surprises others/doesn't get surprised so often
* funky group of followers
* Use clairvoyance and healing items

So my suggestion would be:

a) multiclass Ranger with three levels of wizard and five levels of druid
b) Take giants/goblins/orcs (as appropriate) as main favoured enemy and concentrate on them
c) take leadership feat when available and get a funky cohort (best take around 12th level) and don't summon your animal companion until then.
d) what to do about the redundant ranger spells? You could forgo the five levels of druid and just rely upon your ranger spells (most 'Core' method) or you could see if the DM would allow the ranger spells to be swapped out for something else - perhaps the ability to lump together goblins, orcs and giants together as one main favoured enemy type like the 1e ranger had.

Hows that for an answer?

Cheers

 

[Seeten]

Compare Ranger with your likes to base Fighter. At every step where you think to yourself, "Wow, I'd so much rather a fighter level" give a bonus feat.

What I mean is, frex, if you ditch favored enemy and combat styles, ranger 1 and 2 are both empty do nothing levels, so both should give a bonus feat. 5th level, same, so I would say a light armored d8 fighter with no fave enemy and no combat style needs bonus feats to replace, or your just making a gimp.

 

[ruleslawyer]

Are there rules out there for 1st Edition style Rangers in 3.x e?

What I mean is, rangers that are wilderness fighters, without the 2e and 3e mods. Rangers who are Robin Hood, not Drizzt.

Excuse me? Since when is the 1e ranger more Robin Hood than Drizzt?

The key features of the 1e ranger, as noted by Plane Sailing, are:

-Extra damage against giant-class creatures (which roughly resembles favored enemy, a class feature you seem to dislike)
-Druid and wizard spellcasting
-Loads of followers at 10th level
-Bonus hit points

That's it. Not a single one of the qualities you listed as "what I like" is present for the 1e ranger. That list of qualities befits the 3.5e Scout, which is the first D&D class to have them in any edition.

 

[Nellisir]

This is my take on the ranger, adapted and revised from several OGC sources. It's a higher-powered variant, so you'll have to knock Hit Dice down to d8 to even begin to balance it against core classes. Also, I give 1 feat every level (except ability increase levels), and broke favored enemy up into two feats.

Cheers
Nell.

 

[Herremann the Wise]

I DM a party who has a scout in it from Complete Adventurer and can thoroughly recommend it. While I would not say it is 1st ed"ish", it does seem to follow most of the elements on your list.

Best Regards
Herremann the Wise

 

[Aaron L]

If someone has a 1E style ranger, by which I mean:


Bonus damage against foes
Bonuses against suprise (spot and listen a a class skills)
Bonuses to cause suprise (hide and move silently)
Druid spells
Wizard spells
And they can do it all in heavy armor

Then Im all ears.

Otherwise, it aint a 1E ranger

Til then, I like the 3E ranger fine.


(I LOVE 1E rangers)

 

[trancejeremy]

Isn't favored enemy really just a more flexible version of the Ranger's bonus vs giants/humanoid?

And while it wasn't automatic, the Ranger could get critters for followers when they reached higher levels. So it's not too much of a stretch.

 

[Aus_Snow]

That list of qualities befits the 3.5e Scout, which is the first D&D class to have them in any edition.

Second, at best. Wilderness Rogue, all the way.

/broken record


Oh and yeah, what Plane Sailing said. Pretty much covers what I can remember too.