D&D 5E It's official, WOTC hates Rangers (Tasha's version of Favored Foe is GARBAGE)

[Minigiant]

You don't need special skills to predict massive storms are coming when you are high up - you can see them. Not a lot you can do about it though other than baton down the hatches (Air Vehicle proficiency).

not if a fairy did it.

That's Navigator's Tools proficiency. It has nothing to do with Survival skill.

It's Navigator's tool to plot the course.
It's Survival to look up, taste salt in the air, and realize somebody is screwing with the wind with magic.
That''s the route guy's job.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

not if a fairy did it.

Actually, Talos did it. If the players wanted to avoid it they shouldn't have stolen stuff from his temple.

[the story develops out of players' actions, not random rolls and which skills they have]

It's Navigator's tool to plot the course.
It's Survival to look up, taste salt in the air, and realize somebody is screwing with the wind with magic.
That''s the route guy's job.

The NPC gnome navigator has his charts and instruments, he had no need for such primitive methods.

 

[Asisreo]

Exactly
When you are high level in D&D, you tend to stop running into realistic problems as much for some reason and crazy fantastical stuff tends to happen around you for some reason.

You say it like that, but the reasoning is entirely up to the DM and they can easily use whatever bits of lore they have from their own worldbuilding to make reasonable problems spring up in a reasonable timeframe.

Between low-level adventures, there can be a week or two of downtime which isn't that long, but the crises aren't as world-threatening. At high-level adventures, decades could pass as downtime and the opinions of several powerful, ancient beings could change. The once peaceful dragon is seeing how the dwarves have done nothing but ruin the mountains he once created. The archdevil's plans have finally begun formulating. The Gods have one last trial to put them through before they are ready to challenge the evil god of murder or something.

High-level problems will find the players since they've become so strong and recognizable that powerful, intelligent creatures know they'll need to destroy them to carry out whatever they need to do. They were nobodies at level 1 and they weren't even on the villain's radar, but level 17+ adventures are threats that must be countered directly using intel-gathering, countermagics, and deadly force.

 

[Minigiant]

You say it like that, but the reasoning is entirely up to the DM and they can easily use whatever bits of lore they have from their own worldbuilding to make reasonable problems spring up in a reasonable timeframe.

Between low-level adventures, there can be a week or two of downtime which isn't that long, but the crises aren't as world-threatening. At high-level adventures, decades could pass as downtime and the opinions of several powerful, ancient beings could change. The once peaceful dragon is seeing how the dwarves have done nothing but ruin the mountains he once created. The archdevil's plans have finally begun formulating. The Gods have one last trial to put them through before they are ready to challenge the evil god of murder or something.

High-level problems will find the players since they've become so strong and recognizable that powerful, intelligent creatures know they'll need to destroy them to carry out whatever they need to do. They were nobodies at level 1 and they weren't even on the villain's radar, but level 17+ adventures are threats that must be countered directly using intel-gathering, countermagics, and deadly force.

That's what I mean by for some reason.
PCs are relative forces of nature wherever they are. Powerful people will start to notice them or seek them out. Aperfect time for hostile action is while out in the wild. And at high levels,potential aggressors have a lot of tools at their disposal.

Actually, Talos did it. If the players wanted to avoid it they shouldn't have stolen stuff from his temple.

[the story develops out of players' actions, not random rolls and which skills they have]

What do you mean? The players stole from a temple. That's why the smoth airship ride hit a sudden storm.
Again trouble follows the PCs.
Not because they are PCs but because they are active level 10+ characters who shake nations.

The NPC gnome navigator has his charts and instruments, he had no need for such primitive methods.

You still need to take measures. Still a Survival check.
Meteorology is Survival in D&D.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

What do you mean? The players stole from a temple. That's why the smoth airship ride hit a sudden storm.

I mean, what skills they had, and the presence or absence of rangers, made no difference, only actions counted.

Again trouble follows the PCs.
Not because they are PCs but because they are active level 10+ characters who shake nations.

Actually, I think they where level 4 or 5 at the time.

You still need to take measures. Still a Survival check.
Meteorology is Survival in D&D.

Routine tool use requires no skill check if you are proficient. Especially if the character in question is not a player character.

 

[Minigiant]

I mean, what skills they had, and the presence or absence of rangers, made no difference, only actions counted.

Skill use is not exclusive.
Weather prediction is a function of Survival if natural or Arcana or a spell if magical.

Actually, I think they where level 4 or 5 at the time.

Well that's your problem right there.
Your setting has no use for rangers as it has cheap low level long ranger transport and detection.

Routine tool use requires no skill check if you are proficient. Especially if the character in question is not a player character.

Sure.
But... Meteorology is Survival in D&D. There are no meteorology tools in base D&D.
Again your setting has no use for rangers and no reason to travel in the wilderness.
It's not that wildnerness exploration isboring. You just cut it and rangers out your game.

 

[doctorbadwolf]

Trees, mud, unaccountably psychopathic wildlife, more mud.

You mean, a meaningless series of random encounters with no plot?

Yeah, I've played it...

Seems like you’ve just had bad wilderness DMing.

And maybe very little experience actually being in the wilderness, but it’s hard to be sure.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

Skill use is not exclusive.
Weather prediction is a function of Survival if natural or Arcana or a spell if magical.

And looking out the window. That's the best way of finding out the weather.

Well that's your problem right there.
Your setting has no use for rangers as it has cheap low level long ranger transport and detection.

No, it had the transport because I had to get the party from Cormyr to the Moonshaes and no one wanted to traipse through 1200 miles of boring wilderness. It wasn't cheep.

But... Meteorology is Survival in D&D. There are no meteorology tools in base D&D.

Navigation is tools. Meteorology is irrelevant. It doesn't matter if you know the weather if there is nothing you can do about it anyway.

Again your setting has no use for rangers and no reason to travel in the wilderness.
It's not that wildnerness exploration isboring. You just cut it and rangers out your game.

You are putting the cart before the horse. I cut wilderness from the game because it is boring, it's not boring because I cut it from the game.

As for rangers, I'm not going to create a situation where the adventure cannot proceed if the party does not have a ranger, so there is never going to be a situation that requires a ranger.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

And maybe very little experience actually being in the wilderness, but it’s hard to be sure.

I've had enough to know I would rather not be there.

 

[Minigiant]

And looking out the window. That's the best way of finding out the weather.

It's too late toaviod the storm if you just look out the window.

Navigation is tools. Meteorology is irrelevant. It doesn't matter if you know the weather if there is nothing you can do about it anyway.

So people don't track storms and build defenses accordingly?

No, it had the transport because I had to get the party from Cormyr to the Moonshaes and no one wanted to traipse through 1200 miles of boring wilderness. It wasn't cheep.

If a 1200m travel is boring then there isn't enough happening. And in most official settings, the wilds are lively. It's the reason why the ranger class still exists.

You are putting the cart before the horse. I cut wilderness from the game because it is boring, it's not boring because I cut it from the game.

As for rangers, I'm not going to create a situation where the adventure cannot proceed if the party does not have a ranger, so there is never going to be a situation that requires a ranger.

Again I don't see how the wilderness can be boring.
But I can see how it ends up that way since the official books don't handle wilderness well until late in an edition's life.

As for ranger, you don't need rangers to survive in wilderness. You just get all the aspects condensed in one package.