@doctorbadwolf , sorry for spamming, but I just dusted off my last full ranger rewrite attempt, thought I'd share it with you, see if you like any of it. I feel like it balances against the Rogue if you assume an Arcane Trickster rogue gets as much oomph from its subclass abilities and spells as a ranger gets from its subclass abilities and spells, but that probably isn't the case. It feels balanced against the Paladin to me, but I haven't gone too deep with white room analysis (doing that today actually). I've changed a few features, and I have notes explaining my thoughts.
XEVIAT’S EXPANDED RANGER
LEVEL 1: SPELLCASTING
You have learned to channel the magical essence of nature to cast spells. See chapter 7 for the rules on spellcasting. The information below details how you use those rules with Ranger spells, which appear in the Ranger spell list later in the class’s description.
Spell Slots. The Ranger Features table shows how many spell slots you have to cast your level 1+ spells. You regain all expended slots when you finish a Long Rest.
Prepared Spells of Level 1+. You prepare the list of level 1+ spells that are available for you to cast with this feature. To start, choose two level 1 Ranger spells. Cure Wounds and Ensnaring Strike are recommended.
The number of spells on your list increases as you gain Ranger levels, as shown in the Prepared Spells column of the Ranger Features table. Whenever that number increases, choose additional Ranger spells until the number of spells on your list matches the number in the Ranger Features table. The chosen spells must be of a level for which you have spell slots. For example, if you’re a level 5 Ranger, your list of prepared spells can include six Ranger spells of level 1 or 2 in any combination.
If another Ranger feature gives you spells that you always have prepared, those spells don’t count against the number of spells you can prepare with this feature, but those spells otherwise count as Ranger spells for you.
Changing Your Prepared Spells. Whenever you finish a Long Rest, you can replace one spell on your list with another Ranger spell for which you have spell slots.
Spellcasting Ability. Wisdom is your spellcasting ability for your Ranger spells.
Spellcasting Focus. You can use a Druidic Focus as a Spellcasting Focus for your Ranger spells. For 10 gp, you can inscribe runes and attach totems to a bow or wooden haft or handle and use that weapon as a Spellcasting Focus as well.
LEVEL 1: FAVORED ENEMY
You learn how to effectively read and track your prey. As a bonus action, you can choose a creature you can see within 90 feet and mark it as your favored enemy. For the next hour, you gain the following benefits:
- Once per turn, when you hit the target with a weapon attack, you can deal 1d4 additional damage to it of the same type as the weapon’s damage. This die changes as you gain ranger levels, as shown in the Favored Enemy column of the ranger table.
- Add your Favored Enemy die to any Intelligence, Wisdom (Perception), or Wisdom (Survival) check you make to Search or Study it.
- The target is considered “familiar” to you for the purposes of spells, like Locate Creature.
You can have a number of creatures marked as your Favored Enemy equal to your Wisdom modifier. If you mark another creature when you have already reached your maximum, you choose which creature loses the mark (no action). You can also end the effect on a creature you have marked without an action. The effect ends if the creature is on a different plane than you.
Your Favored Enemy die changes as you gain levels, as seen in the Favored Enemy column of the Ranger class table. At level 5 it is 1d6, at level 9 it is 1d8, at level 13 it is 1d10, and at level 17 it is 1d12.
Additiinally, at level 9, a creature remains marked as your Favored Enemy for up to 8 hours. At level 17, it remains marked for up to 24 hours. (Considering having it scale 1 minute/level, 1 hour/level, 1 day/level, 1/month level, permanent, but that's just the old school in me.)
LEVEL 1: WEAPON MASTERY
Your training with weapons allows you to use the mastery properties of two kinds of weapons of your choice with which you have proficiency, such as Longbows and Shortswords.
Whenever you finish a Long Rest, you can change the kinds of weapons you chose. For example, you could switch to using the mastery properties of Scimitars and Longswords.
LEVEL 2: DEFT EXPLORER
You are skilled at navigating and surviving the untamed wilds. You gain the following benefits:
- You ignore difficult terrain.
- You have advantage on saving throws against environmental hazards and effects.
- You can take the Dash, Hide, Search, or Study actions as a Bonus Action.
Additionally, when traveling for an hour or more, you gain the following benefits:
Difficult terrain doesn’t slow your group, provided they can see and hear you.
Even when you are engaged in another activity while traveling (such as foraging, navigating, or tracking), you remain alert to danger.
You can move stealthily at a normal pace. If you are leading a group, you can grant this benefit to a number of creatures equal to your Wisdom modifier.
LEVEL 2: EXPERTISE
Choose two of your skill proficiencies with which you lack Expertise. You gain Expertise in those skills.
LEVEL 2: FIGHTING STYLE
You gain a Fighting Style feat of your choice (see chapter 5). Instead of choosing one of those feats, you can choose the option below:
- Druidic Warrior. You learn two Druid cantrips of your choice (see the Druid class’s section for a list of Druid spells). Guidance and Starry Wisp are recommended. The chosen cantrips count as Ranger spells for you, and Wisdom is your spellcasting ability for them. Whenever you gain a Ranger level, you can replace one of these cantrips with another Druid cantrip.
LEVEL 3: RANGER SUBCLASS (Conclave, I like all the subclasses having their own categorical name)
You gain a Ranger subclass of your choice. Your subclass represents the kinds of creatures you have specialized to track and fight, or the kinds of places that you range. A subclass is a specialization that grants you features at certain Ranger levels. For the rest of your career, you gain each of your subclass’s features that are of your Ranger level or lower.
LEVEL 3: PRIMEVAL AWARENESS
LEVEL 4: ABILITY SCORE IMPROVEMENT
You gain the Ability Score Improvement feat (see chapter 5) or another feat of your choice for which you qualify. You gain this feature again at Ranger levels 8, 12, and 16.
LEVEL 5: EXTRA ATTACK
You can attack twice instead of once whenever you take the Attack action on your turn.
LEVEL 5: RELENTLESS HUNTER
You are able to mark a target as your Favored Enemy part of an Attack action against it. You may also mark it as part of a Search or Study action while examining the creature, it's tracks, or one of its possessions, even if the creature is out of range. You must make a successful Wisdom (Perception), Wisdom (Survival), or an Intelligence (Arcana, History, Investigation, Nature, or Religion, depending on creature type) check, DC 10 + 1 per hour since creature made the tracks or touched the object to use this feature.
LEVEL 6: ROVING
Your Speed increases by 10 feet while you aren’t wearing Heavy armor. You also have a Climb Speed and a Swim Speed equal to your Speed.
LEVEL 9: EXPERTISE
Choose two of your skill proficiencies with which you lack Expertise. You gain Expertise in those skills.
LEVEL 10: TIRELESS
Primal forces now help fuel you on your journeys, granting you the following benefits:
Temporary Hit Points. As a Magic action, you can give yourself a number of Temporary Hit Points equal to 1d8 plus your Ranger level plus Wisdom modifier. You regain use of this feature after you finish a Short or Long rest.
Decrease Exhaustion. Whenever you finish a Short Rest, your Exhaustion level, if any, decreases by 1.
LEVEL 13: PRECISE HUNTER
You have Advantage on attack rolls against the creature currently marked as your Favored Enemy. If you otherwise would have had advantage to attacks against it, you instead add your Wisdom Modifier to any weapon damage rolls against it. Additionally, creatures marked as your Favored Enemy suffer disadvantage on saving throws against your abilities.
LEVEL 14: NATURE’S PROTECTION
You invoke spirits of nature to magically protect you against its threats. You have advantage on saving throws against the abilities of Beasts, Elementals, Fey, Oozes, and Plants.
You also gain Resistance against one damage type, chosen from Acid, Cold, Fire, Lightning, Poison, or Thunder. Whenever you finish a Short or Long rest, you can change the damage type to another on the list.
LEVEL 18: FERAL SENSES
Your connection to the forces of nature grants you Blindsight with a range of 30 feet.
LEVEL 19: EPIC BOON
You gain an Epic Boon feat (see chapter 5) or another feat of your choice for which you qualify.
LEVEL 20: FOE SLAYER
When you attack a creature marked as your Favored Enemy with advantage, if both attack rolls would hit the target, your attack becomes a Critical Hit instead.
Additionally, creatures marked as your Favored Enemy remain marked permanently, until you choose to end the effect.
RANGER SUBCLASSES
Ranger subclasses are themed around the kinds of creatures they hunt, or the kinds of places they range. Originally I was trying to move the favored enemy concept into the subclasses, but then found that synonyms for Ranger and Hunter helped me latch onto broad concepts without everything having to be X Hunter or X Slayer. Single nouns (Beastmaster movie was one word, it's always been one word to me, ignore that it's a compound word) help keep things archetypical and not hyperspecific.
- Beastmaster: Bonds with animals, protects people from beasts and protects beasts from people. Built around animal companion, but easier to direct and use like paladins can with their divine steed.
- Dragoon: Dragon riders and dragon slayers. Yes, real world dragoons were french cavalry named for their guns, dragons, but shhhh.
- Hunter: Bounty Hunters, big game hunters, monster hunters (like the game “Monster Hunter”). The more generic subclass.
- Keeper: Protects people and nature against the unnatural alien aberrant beings from the far realm. Struggled with a name but I like Keeper as it has multiple connotations: keeper of forbidden knowledge, keeps us safe. Bit of a psionic theme.
- Planeswalker: Ranges on the outer and inner planes, adept at dealing with varied magical environmental threats as well as elementals and outsiders. Little elemental theme, likely summoning focused.
- Predator: Kills for fun, draws on the power of nature's predators, takes trophies. Bit of a barbarian+druid theme, using aspects of beasts rather than wild shape. Antithesis with the Hunter, bit of an evil theme.
- Slayer: Monster slayers, adept at dealing with monstrous humanoids like lycanthropes, vampires, corporeal undead, and the like. But of a divine theme, think Van Helsing and the like, but with the ranger's nature theming.
- Stalker: Ranges in the Shadowfell and underdark, stealth focused. Basically the gloom stalker, but one word.
- Wanderer: Ranges in the Feywild and magical wilderness, adept at dealing with fey and other magical creatures. Basically fey wanderer. Teleportation and trickery focused.
- Warden: Ranges in the material world, adept at dealing with natural threats and hazards. Bit more druidic magic focused.
What do you think?
