A Challenge: make an alternative Ranger

[Nyaricus]

hello all,

i will get right to the point here: i dont really like the ranger class as is. The rangers combat styles dont do any justice to the feel i am trying to get in my campaign, and also the ranger looses alot of appeal in higher levels (you might as well start taking levels in fighter). Tolkien is my heaviest influence, along with "accurate" real-world ideas (like my Berserker class, in another on of my threads). So what i want is a class that would be appealing to, say, a dwarf who hates orcs. also, i want this one to be a non-spellcaster class (IMC, only mages, priests and druids get spells; paladins are replaced by a crusader class, and i am trying to figure out a non spellcasting bard [which gives me an idea for another thread . . . ]).

keep in mind: i would like to keep the favoured enemy (or perhaps a favoured terrain, like the woodsman class from the wheel of time PHB), make him a non-spellcaster, keep HD=BAB (as figher) and possibly give him back him 3.0e d10 HD.

the call is out. heed it!!

 

[Nifft]

Welcome to house rules. There's a sticky thread at the top where people put their new & revised classes. Since everyone and his dog has already posted a variant Ranger, you might find it useful to check there first.

Cheers, -- N

 

[Nyaricus]

Welcome to house rules. There's a sticky thread at the top where people put their new & revised classes. Since everyone and his dog has already posted a variant Ranger, you might find it useful to check there first.

good point, and i have only skimmed the mentioned thread a bit, but i was asking if someone could suggest something with a bit of flavour, if they have heard of this, etc. but thanks, ill take a second glance at the thread, and hope that someone might make suggestions and not condemnations.

cheers

 

[Shariell]

Keep the 3.0 ranger, take away the spells, add-in 2 bonus feats, and make the "favored enemy" class ability effective even against monsters immune to critical hits (expecially undeads).
If the class seems weak, try to adjust the bonus from the favored enemy to +2 at the first time he get it (+2 only to the first step for every favored enemy, so the ranger ends up with a +6 bonus against his first favored enemy and a +2 bonus against the last).

Hope this help as a start point.
Bye!
Shariell

 

[Thanee]

You could probably swap out some stuff you dont like for some of the ranger specific feats, many of which improve the favored enemy class ability.

Also there is a variant without spellcasting in Complete Adventurer, I think.

Bye
Thanee

 

[Kisanji Arael]

I'm working on an alt right now that gives the Ranger much more focus on unique animal companions (which I don't allow to the druid) such as unicorns, a type of dragon (think dragonriders of Pern), and such. I'm also revamping the combat styles, but I haven't figured out what approach I'm putting toward this.

 

[Sammael]

I'm pretty satisfied with the current ranger. If I were to change it, I'd probably drop the combat styles and spellcasting, and add a couple of speed increases and scout's skirmish ability.

 

[Aus_Snow]

i would like to keep the favoured enemy (or perhaps a favoured terrain, like the woodsman class from the wheel of time PHB), make him a non-spellcaster, keep HD=BAB (as figher) and possibly give him back him 3.0e d10 HD.

Sounds exactly like my non-magic rangers, though they're not called that.



However...

i was asking if someone could suggest something with a bit of flavour

...as to this, my variant is utterly 'flavourless'. Vanilla? Eh, whatever. It's something I'm trying to do with all the base classes IMCs. That way, they should be more applicable more of the time (so the theory goes - and so far, that's held up pretty well).

It's ended up as a master fo the wild / light armoured wilderness warrior, pure and simple. Feat-based, largely - as the fighter is. Therefore, any one instance of the class could - and probably will - be radically different to any other, mechanics-wise.


So anyway, what's the flavour you do want? You did mention Tolkien - so Aragorn might be a base to work from? Any historical basis for this variant you have in mind?