Did the ranger start out as a martial controller?

[Felon]

Just looking at the powers the ranger has in the PHB, I notice that a lot of them are designed to give multiple attacks against multiple targets, and have effects like slowing, staggering, debuffing, and pushing those targets. Seems very "controlly" to me, not so much of a single-target destroyer as I'd expect a striker to be.

I dunno, maybe it's just me.

 

[Mort_Q]

You could certainly play as one.

 

[Victim]

It doesn't seem like that to me. Most classes can do those sorts of things. Fighters have plenty of push, debuff, and/or multitarget attacks too.

 

[DandD]

Ehrm, some of these, the Fighter also does. Controlling isn't about applying "debuffing" stuff. The wizard's power are all about making it that the enemies can't stay together (because he has area-of-effects-abilities like fireballs, sleep, icy terrain and so on), or literally changing the battlefield (that place is now difficult terrain, and that other place has spikey daggers of force who stab everyone who pass through it). Stuff like Flaming Sphere also makes it so that you have to move, or else, you get damage again.

If anybody of you knows the game "Breath of Fire V", the caster, Nina, got to do some controllerish stuff, like setting magical rune traps, attacks with a straight line-of-effect, or blow-up dolls that lured the enemy to it.

Damn, I need to play that game again...

 

[beepeearr]

I was going to ask the same thing, the ranger does seem to do some of the things you would expect a controller to do, besides it always seemed silly to me that they would have two martial strikers in the first book, but only 1 controller, makes me wonder if they originally intended the ranger to be the second controller.

Ironically it basically does what I would think a martial (or any non-casting controller), would do, basically use speed, multiple and area attacks to hamper the enemy, plus the fact that many of its powers can be used at range or in melee.

Really the only things I think are missing to make it a full blown controller is battlefield altering effects, I could easily see these done through pinning effects type abilities

Maybe by giving it interrupt powers that allow the ranger to move to and attack opponents for melee or make ranged attacks against opponents who move within short range and LOS, or attack an opponent, secondary effect burst 5 vs Will, effected opponents cannot move or maybe lose an action instead, ie minor, move, or attack), maybe utility powers that allow the ranger to set traps prior to battle, or maybe even attack powers, as long as they aren't too over the top

Right now, the assumption of a balanced party means every group has to have a Wizard, though, which kind of sucks