Ok. Let's see how much more of this I can tackle...hahaha.
Precision Dice: Nothing mechanically wrong with this. However, it's awfully similar to the battlemaster fighter. and you get it at level 1 vs. a battlemaster fighter's level 3! The thing is the battlemaster fighter is all about managing superiority dice as a resource within a single combat, so it's a distinctly tactical approach. I'm not convinced that's the feel the ranger should have. Rangers strike me more as the types to engage in long-term strategies of guerrilla warfare, reconnaissance, outlasting the enemy, etc. The tactical angle of dice recharging after a short rest doesn't feel distinctly "ranger-y" to me. Instead, I would use a damage mechanic that emphasizes the ranger's unique approach to combat: scouting, knowing the enemy, and exploiting their weaknesses. YMMV.
You are quite correct. I was looking for something that smelled like Superiority Dice and tasted like a Rogue's Cunning Action.
But was not, precisely, either. SO it wasn't just a "reskin" of an existing mechanic but something the ranger gets to call their own.
[Something I do consider quite important both from the 5e philosophy perspective and class design, for any system, in general.] They should "feel" and "play" different than other classes. They can be similar...the ranger [paladin and druid and bard] especially because they are a "combo class" to begin with.
That is, they span multiple class abilities without multi-classing. IN the ranger's case, for me, the primary of these are Fighter and Rogue. Other people often [want to] attribute them as more Fighter/Mages or Fighter/Druids. As this whole exercise, from my perspecitve, is to form a mundane [or mostly, no spell use] base-ranger, they seem, to me, to be situated neatly betwee nFighter and Rogue.
So, I thought to myself, I thought, "Self. The Ranger's core mechanic really needs to feel fightery and roguey at the same time. What's the cool Fighter options thing they have that isn't going to steal a base fighter's thunder? The Rogue's?"
Sneak Attack was considered, and has been used for other homebrewed rangers or ranger-equivalents of mine over the years. But ultimately, I feel it is too much the "Rogue combat thing" to really be justified in another class...in 5e.
So, we got Precision Dice. Significantly less options than the battlemaster accumulates, but you have access to all of them, right away, and can spend your dice as seems fit/most helpful for the given situation.
I'm not sure how to convince you of the flavor...a ranger being a specialized fighter/in combat [without relying on Favored Enemy] is completely, in my view, a "tactical"/"decision making" matter. They have the knowledge and skill and stamina to make these choices, on the fly, as the situation requires/arises.
Saying a ranger isn't/shouldn't feel like a tactical fighter reads the same to me as, "a ranger shouldn't have any wilderness skill." It's kind of a given, from my pov.
Ranging Stride: This looks like a feature that should improve with level, at least in terms of the speed bonus it grants.
I'll consider it. That does free up, then, the movement ability of the Warden for something else cooler.
Scrying Adept: Still not sure when "proficiency with any magic item that deals with clairvoyance or divination magic, including spell scrolls, crystal balls, wands of detection, etc" would come into play.
Your party never finds scrolls? Wands? A crystal ball?
Or you mean the proficency/mechanic part? Doesn't spellcasting generally include the proficiency bonus as part of the spell DC? Since these guys aren't, necessarily, spellcasters, doesn't that need to be specified as part of their use of the items/spells?
Guardian - Home Field Advantage: That seems like a major bonus for a class that can already wear medium armor. Hmm. No other class gets an AC-boosting feature that good. I think a Guardian Ranger would have the best AC in the game!
Isn't that a good thing? hahaha.
Guardian - Honed Senses: That seems flat-out OP. Essentially ANY scenario that could involve senses/balance the character gets proficiency in? Shoot, there are so many scenarios I can think of that qualify. Probably too broad of a bonus.
Yeah. I'll admit it. I was at a loss for a second level 3 ability for the guardian ranger and didn't want to delete this from the class somewhere...so I figured the guardian, being kinda more about utility, could find this more useful. But it probably is too much for 3rd level...of course, the PHB (and now, my warden) have Primeval Awareness at 3rd...next to that I don't know how OP this really is.
Guardian - Pass without Trace: OTOH this is a little under-powered. Probably should apply to the whole adventuring party rather than having the number of creatures increase. Say 8 companions and be done with it. These are the sorts of abilities you want to apply to the entire party or not at all.
Makes sense. I could totally see doing this (just making a straight 8 people) and swap it with Honed Senses. Make PwT the 3rd level ability. As a 7th level ability maybe Honed Senses isn't so bad?
Guardian - Forgotten Lore: I like it! Only change I'd make is that "casting from spell books" isn't usually an option for ANY spellcaster. Better to leave that bit out, as it's prone to abuse.
Good point. But if I say "any written form" and the ability is called Decipher Magical Writings...wouldn't casting from spellbooks be a given?
Guardian - Ranger-Knight: One precision die to grant the entire party a +4.5 bonus to hit and +4.5 damage is probably OP given that most parties have characters who can make multiple attacks. Even if you only allowed each character to benefit from this on ONE of their attacks, it is still VERY VERY powerful. Are you balancing this based off a spell or another class' feature?
Not really. Just figured as a 15th level ability, it was ok. It was, funnily enough, a "first attack only" and I took that out. Maybe put it back in and let it be "hit or damage" or damage only or something?
Slayer - Slayer's Fury: I don't think this damage boost is necessary, and actually some added utility would do this sub-class well. Since this is the "monster hunter" build, maybe some sort of boon that you gain from tracking a monster? If I think of something else I'll let you know...
Yeah. I was thinking the same thing. Maybe something about ignoring exhaustion if in pursuit of a favored quarry or something.
Warden - Spellcasting: Nothing in the sub-class flavor you describe seems to indicate they would have access to Wizard spells. I know there's a bit of 1e nostalgia here (and I appreciate that as much as the next gamer!), but I actually think it's anachronistic for the Warden. I think the Guardian sub-class captures the 1e vibe perfectly. If you do agree with my critique, then you may also want to change Warded Step.
This was a tough call...and I was afraid adding the wizard spells in would make it blend with the guardian more than I want. [Thanks again very much for the compliment on the guardian and capturing the 1e feel. That's really what I was going for and, as someone recommended in the other ranger thread, would make that the "default Ranger subclass" a la the Champion Fighter or Evoker Mage.]
You're right though. It should be just druid spells. Or druid and/or ranger spells (since we have a ranger spell list to work off of).
What would you want to change the warded step for? I know it's not a druid thing, really (other than tree stride).But seems very flavorful and useful for someone who is magical and going to be trying to cross distances/deal with magical problems, get themselves into tight spots that need a quick fix, etc... Could rewrite/reflavor it as a Tree Stride, I guess. hmmm...
