D&D 5E (2024) Brainstorming ways to fix ranger with new spells.

[Minigiant]

there is no bonus damage that could justify spending a 3rd level slot to turn one hit into a crit.

even if you are ranger 9/rogue 11, it would be a bad 3rd level spell. and that is at 20th level.

Boon of Irresistible Offence adds 20 flat damage. Plus whatever your magic items might do. And you have the piercer, crusher, slasher feat.

Exacting Strike ​

Level 3
Transmutation
Range: Self
Action: Bonus Action (which you take immediately after hitting a creature with a weapon)
Duration: Instantaneous.

As you hit the target, primal forces pull it deeper. Your hit is now a critical hit as if you rolled a 20 on the attack roll.

 

[Horwath]

Boon of Irresistible Offence adds 20 flat damage. Plus whatever your magic items might do. And you have the piercer, crusher, slasher feat.

so what?
burn your epic boon to deal reliable +20 damage couple of times per day at 20th level?
really not impressive.

Exacting Strike ​

Level 3
Transmutation
Range: Self
Action: Bonus Action (which you take immediately after hitting a creature with a weapon)
Duration: Instantaneous.

As you hit the target, primal forces pull it deeper. Your hit is now a critical hit as if you rolled a 20 on the attack roll.

no matter how you write it, it's one hit turned into crit.
it's weak as it gives nothing extra that could not happen on it's own.
that is why I do not hate Shield or Silvery barbs, they add nothing new, they just force an outcome that could have happen anyway without it.

and you need to look at at pure ranger class only, multiclass issues later....

1st level ranger.

you use heavy crossbow as it it strongest ranged option for levels 1-4. Longbow for levels 5+
you have your HM on target.
now you turn 1d10+1d6+3(12) into 2d10+2d6+3(20), net gain of 8 damage.
Is 8 damage worth your 1st level slot and Bonus action? It's not,
That is why I see paladins today waiting for a crit to use Smite(they did it before also) as Bonus action is a valuable resource now(potions).


now, to be fair, like many other spells, this can be exploited with feat/species/subclass choices.
and if you can combine 2014/24 rules, it can be fun.

Background: knight of Solamnia
gain feat: Squire of Solamnia
Precise Strike. Once per turn, when you make a weapon attack roll against a creature, you can cause the attack roll to have advantage. If the attack hits, you roll a d8 and add the number rolled as a bonus to the attack's damage roll. You can use this benefit a number of times equal to your proficiency bonus, but a use is expended only if the attack hits. You regain all expended uses when you finish a long rest.

Species: Goliath
Fire's Burn (Fire Giant). When you hit a target with an attack roll and deal damage to it, you can also deal 1d10 Fire damage to that target.

now the spell turns:
1d10+3+1d6+1d10+1d8(22) into 2d10+3+2d6+2d10+2d8(41), net gain of: 19 damage.
is 19 damage worth 1st level slot and Bonus action. Yes, yes it is!
is it game breaking? No. as Paladin can wait for smite on attack crit and gain +18 damage on it. almost the same.
is this spell A or even S tier if you cheese the hell out of it? yes.

is it broken?
no, as anyone can take that combo without the spell and hope to be in that 9,75% that will roll 20 with advantage and score that massive 1st level crit.

 

[Tigris]

Why not just do it the same way as PF2 does it successfully with some half casters:

Mostly just give/use utility spells for non combat.


This way you dont need to create specific spells and try to make low level spells efficient in combat.


5.24 already leads in this direction with giving rituals and the option to change 1 spell per long rest to rangers and the option to get druid cantrips (which are not really useful for attacking).


Even most subclass spells are utility. Only the spell needed for the level 11 feature from the fey subclass and the winterwalker with the ice theme are really combat spells.

 

[mellored]

to make it more "martial" and to avoid problems with spellcomponents/counterspell/anti-magic area

burning a 3rd level slot for extra 2 attacks is probably not worth is. that is 15-20 extra damage to the target.

Blinding smite is 3d8 = 13.5 extra damage + blind.

So 15-20 sounds about right to me.

 

[mellored]

no matter how you write it, it's one hit turned into crit.
it's weak as it gives nothing extra that could not happen on it's own.

How about turning a miss into a crit?

 

[rp4man]

I would create a super powerful lvl 3 or up spell that has the drawback of giving you exhaustion.

This would really be a boon to the ranger as they are the only class that can decrease exhaustion with a short rest

 

[Minigiant]

so what?
burn your epic boon to deal reliable +20 damage couple of times per day at 20th level?
really not impressive.

Well its not a bad feat.

no matter how you write it, it's one hit turned into crit.
it's weak as it gives nothing extra that could not happen on it's own.
that is why I do not hate Shield or Silvery barbs, they add nothing new, they just force an outcome that could have happen anyway without it.

It's about controlling the outcome.

As long as the damage and effect is worth a slot.

Crits is something that is commonly stacked on in D&D.

 

[mellored]

Share Mark, level 1.
Reaction, when the target of your Hunter's Mark gets hit by someone besides you.
The target takes damage equal to twice your Hunter's Mark die.
At higher levels
Increases the damage delt by one die per level above 1.

Wolf Pact Mark, level 2
Bonus action when you are concentrating on Hunter's Mark.
Duration: special
All attacks against the target of your Hunter's Mark has advantage. This effect lasts until you loose concentration, or you change targets.
At higher level: when cast at level 4 or greater, the effect lasts even if you change targets.

 

[Sorinth]

Just fix Hail of Thorns and the problem is mostly solved. The '24 edition did fix the issue with concentration and when it gets cast, but it just fails to do what it's supposed to be good at which is dealing with groups of mooks or a boss standing next to their minions.

My personal pet peeve with it is that it requires both the first successful attack roll and then there's an additional save for half damage. Just imagine how much worse Divine Smite would be if there was a save for half damage on it. Get rid of the save for half damage and things start looking a lot better, it's in most instances doing more overall damage then smite because of the additional target(s) getting hit by the AoE, but that's inherently balanced because spreading out damage is less effective then focus fire anyways.

It would also be hugely beneficial if you could choose the targets who take the AoE damage and open it up for melee.


This leads into the idea that Rangers are the half-caster that deals with large groups of enemies with AoE and/or battlefield manipulation stuff like Entangle, Spike Growth. Whereas Paladin's are the ones to deal with single targets and use stuff like Compelled Duel to keep that single target focused on them.

 

[Horwath]

How about turning a miss into a crit?

I would say that is a 2nd level slot.
it's moving from doing nothing to doing something really good.

1st level slot, turning hit to a crit
upcast;
2nd level slot, turning miss into a crit