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.

 

[Minigiant]

It's essentially replacing hunting skills with a form of external technology and implies skills aren't good enough for adventuring on their own. A hunter can't possibly hunt without magical GPS target paint, etc.

This is a community issue

Most D&D fans have no outdoorsman skills.

So unless you

1. spell everything out
2. force them to read it
3. force them to use it

nonmagical technical skills tend to not work in D&D.

 

[Incenjucar]

This is a community issue

Most D&D fans have no outdoorsman skills.

So unless you

1. spell everything out
2. force them to read it
3. force them to use it

nonmagical technical skills tend to not work in D&D.

A ranger is to a hunter as an AI artist is to an artist.

 

[Gammadoodler]

This is a community issue

Most D&D fans have no outdoorsman skills.

So unless you

1. spell everything out
2. force them to read it
3. force them to use it

nonmagical technical skills tend to not work in D&D.

I think, in this case, "hunting skills" is being confused with the mechanical skills in D&D. And I don't really think you need a lot of outdoorsman skills to grok hunters' abilities to find and kill stuff as a normal hunter skillset.

While the more general point is that 5e admits few areas where fantasy characters can exhibit extraordinary nonmagical proficiency.

Do you really think there are people who require a ton of explanation for why a great hunter (the ranger class fantasy), should be able to be great at normal hunting activities, without needing to memorize a spell?

 

[UngeheuerLich]

It's essentially replacing hunting skills with a form of external technology and implies skills aren't good enough for adventuring on their own. A hunter can't possibly hunt without magical GPS target paint, etc.

I guess modern hunters would also use available technology. Why shouldn't they.
And the ranger can have archery fighting style, weapon mastery and survival expertise with a slight bit of training of they want to challenge themselves...

I bet even stone age hunters used the most modern technology available to reduce the risk of dying while hunting.

 

[UngeheuerLich]

A ranger is to a hunter as an AI artist is to an artist.

Someone using the most modern technology.
I guess a stone age person who painted the walls of the caves would have used oil paint if they were available.

 

[Micah Sweet]

I'm clear.

People don't like what I say because....

then people need to accept spell that negate specific exploration challenge and WOTC has to hand them out carefully.

OR

People need to accept complex exploration mechanics and track resources.

You can't have your cake and eat it too, folk.

I favor complex exploration mechanics and resource tracking personally. All the magic does from my perspective is skip fun parts of the game.

 

[Minigiant]

I think, in this case, "hunting skills" is being confused with the mechanical skills in D&D. And I don't really think you need a lot of outdoorsman skills to grok hunters' abilities to find and kill stuff as a normal hunter skillset.

While the more general point is that 5e admits few areas where fantasy characters can exhibit extraordinary nonmagical proficiency.

Do you really think there are people who require a ton of explanation for why a great hunter (the ranger class fantasy), should be able to be great at normal hunting activities, without needing to memorize a spell?

I mean most people don't know what wilderness challenges ARE to attribute them to ranger then make fantastical versions of it.

And I don't think many in WOTC or TSR did either.

 

[Micah Sweet]

Trying to sneak as a group without Pass without Trace is pretty much guaranteed failure. Someone is going to get unlucky, roll a 2 and get spotted even if they have a decent stealth bonus.

I thought it was a group check. You need a majority for success.

 

[Micah Sweet]

This is a community issue

Most D&D fans have no outdoorsman skills.

So unless you

1. spell everything out
2. force them to read it
3. force them to use it

nonmagical technical skills tend to not work in D&D.

Most D&D fans have no combat skills either, but that seems to work out ok.

 

[Incenjucar]

Somwone using the most modern technology.
I guess a stone age person who painted the walls of the caves would have used oil paint if they were available.

Case in point.

Edit: There are bow and crossbow hunters and only a portion of people use things like laser sights and GPS and motion sensors for hunting. They're also more likely to just sit in a hut eating cheeseburgers while farm-bred deer wander up to eat corn.