D&D 5E The Dual Wielding Ranger: How Aragorn, Drizzt, and Dual-Wielding Led to the Ranger's Loss of Identity

[auburn2]

More old books

Drizzt is mentioned in FR5 The Savage North, including stories of his adventures in IWD and is documented to be a 10th level Ranger. The Savage North was published in 1E in 1988 and Salvatory was not an author.

This means not only was the TSR staff aware of Drizzt, they were writing about him in the FR setting, independent of Salvatory, prior to 2E.

Considering that this campaign manual was released at the same time as CS, this means as a point of fact that the TSR staff was working with and consulting Salvatory about the character, with enough detail to put him into print. While this does not prove that Drizzt was the inspiration for TWF, it certainly shows that Drizzt was a TWF Ranger in 1E, the only TWF Ranger ever written about by TSR in 1E and the time of that writing coincides with the development of 2E. Those things are all irrefutable fact.

Considering he is the only Ranger being written about by the TSR staff at the time 2E was being developed, it is safe to assume his character heavily influenced the 2E Ranger even if we can not prove it was specifically the inspiration for TWF.

As such, I stand by my opinion based both on this data and as someone who was playing heavily at the time and saw the developments real time as they happened (and thought then what I think now). IMO Drizzt is why the Ranger class was given TWF.

 

[AnotherGuy]

The planes stir as Titans of Grognardia, Masters of the Arcane and the Forgotten, counterspell myths and legends with ease, shedding parchments with voluminous lore and trinket-like artefacts.

Sitting prone and quietly I cower behind 3/4 cover readying my cantrip.

 

[Don Durito]

Drizzt does not have monologues in the Crystal Shard. In fact the incredibly annoying monologues didn't begin under the Dark Elf Trilogy.

However, it is also not really accurate to say the he was a 'sidekick' in the Crystal Shard either. He may have conceptually begun as a sidekick, but it was clear even in the first book that he had moved during the writing to take on a much more central role. He's as much the real hero as Wulgar.

 

[auburn2]

Drizzt does not have monologues in the Crystal Shard.

The following text is the monolog from the Crystal Shard Part 1:

If I could choose what life would be mine, it would be this life that I now have, at this time. I am at peace, and yet, the world around me swirls with turmoil, with the ever-present threat of barbarian raids and goblin wars, with tundra yetis and gigantic polar worms. The reality of existence here in Icewind Dale is harsh indeed, an environment unforgiving, where one mistake will cost you your life.

That is the joy of the place, the very edge of disaster, and not because of treachery, as I knew in my home of Menzoberranzan. I can accept the risks of Icewind Dale; I can revel in them and use them to keep my warrior instincts finely honed. I can use them to remind me every day of the glory and joy of life. There is no complacency here, in this place where safety cannot be taken for granted, where a turn of the wind can pile snow over your head, where a single misstep on a boat can put you into water that will steal your breath away and render muscles useless in mere seconds, or a simple lapse on the tundra can put you in the belly of a fierce yeti.

When you live with death so close, you come to appreciate life all the more

And when you share that life with friends like those that I have come to know these last years, then you know paradise. Never could I have imagined in my years in Menzoberranzan, or in the wilds of the Underdark, or even when I first came to the surface world, that I would ever surround myself with such friends as these. They are of different races, all three, and all three different from my own, and yet, they are more alike what is in my heart than anyone I have ever known, save, perhaps, my father Zaknafein and the ranger, Montolio, who trained me in the ways of Mielikki.

I have met many folk up here in Ten-Towns, in the savage land of Icewind Dale, who accept me despite my dark elf heritage, and yet, these three, above all others, have become as family to me.

Why them? Why Bruenor, Regis, and Catti-brie above all others, three friends whom I treasure as much as Guenhwyvar, my companion for all these years?

Everyone knows Bruenor as blunt—that is the trademark of many dwarves, but in Bruenor, the trait runs pure. Or so he wants all to believe. I know better. I know the other side of Bruenor, the hidden side, that soft and warm place. Yes, he has a heart, though he tries hard to bury it! He is blunt, yes, particularly with criticism. He speaks of errors without apology and without judgment, simply telling the honest truth and leaving it up to the offender to correct, or not correct the situation. Bruenor never allows tact or empathy to get in the way of his telling the world how it can be better!

But that is only half of the tale concerning the dwarf, on the other side of the coin, he is far from blunt. Concerning compliments, Bruenor is not dishonest, just quiet.

Perhaps that is why I love him. I see in him Icewind Dale itself, cold and harsh and unforgiving, but ultimately honest. He keeps me at my best, all the time, and in doing that, he helps me to survive in this place. There is only one Icewind Dale, and only one Bruenor Battlehammer, and if ever I met a creature and a land created for each other …

Conversely, Regis stands (or more appropriately, reclines), as a reminder to me of the goals and rewards of a job well done—not that Regis is ever the one who does that job. Regis reminds me, and Bruenor, I would guess, that there is more to life than responsibility, that there are times for personal relaxation and enjoyment of the rewards brought about by good work and vigilance. He is too soft for the tundra, too round in the belly and too slow on his feet. His fighting skills are lacking and he could not track a herd of caribou on fresh snow. Yet he survives, even thrives up here with wit and attitude, with an understanding, better than Bruenor’s surely, and even better than my own, of how to appease and please those around him, of how to anticipate, rather than just react to the moves of others. Regis knows more than just what people do, he knows why they do it, and that ability to understand motivation allowed him to see past the color of my skin and the reputation of my people. If Bruenor is honest in expressing his observations, then Regis is honest in following the course of his heart.

And finally there is Catti-brie, wonderful and so full of life. Catti-brie is the opposite side of the same coin to me, a different reasoning to reach the same conclusions. We are soulmates who see and judge different things in the world to arrive at the same place. Perhaps we thus validate each other. Perhaps in seeing Catti-brie arriving at the same place as myself, and knowing that she arrived there along a different road, tells me that I followed my heart truly. Is that it? Do I trust her more than I trust myself?

That question is neither indictment of my feelings, nor any self-incrimination. We share beliefs about the way of the world and the way the world should be. She is akin to my heart as is Mielikki, and if I found my goddess by looking honestly into my own heart, then so I have found my dearest friend and ally.

They are with me, all three, and Guenhwyvar, dear Guenhwyvar, as well. I am living in a land of stark beauty and stark reality, a place where you have to be wary and alert and at your very best at all times.

I call this paradise.

-Drizzt Do'Urden

 

[Don Durito]

The following text is the monolog from the Crystal Shard Part 1:

If I could choose what life would be mine, it would be this life that I now have, at this time. I am at peace, and yet, the world around me swirls with turmoil, with the ever-present threat of barbarian raids and goblin wars, with tundra yetis and gigantic polar worms. The reality of existence here in Icewind Dale is harsh indeed, an environment unforgiving, where one mistake will cost you your life.

That is the joy of the place, the very edge of disaster, and not because of treachery, as I knew in my home of Menzoberranzan. I can accept the risks of Icewind Dale; I can revel in them and use them to keep my warrior instincts finely honed. I can use them to remind me every day of the glory and joy of life. There is no complacency here, in this place where safety cannot be taken for granted, where a turn of the wind can pile snow over your head, where a single misstep on a boat can put you into water that will steal your breath away and render muscles useless in mere seconds, or a simple lapse on the tundra can put you in the belly of a fierce yeti.

When you live with death so close, you come to appreciate life all the more

And when you share that life with friends like those that I have come to know these last years, then you know paradise. Never could I have imagined in my years in Menzoberranzan, or in the wilds of the Underdark, or even when I first came to the surface world, that I would ever surround myself with such friends as these. They are of different races, all three, and all three different from my own, and yet, they are more alike what is in my heart than anyone I have ever known, save, perhaps, my father Zaknafein and the ranger, Montolio, who trained me in the ways of Mielikki.

I have met many folk up here in Ten-Towns, in the savage land of Icewind Dale, who accept me despite my dark elf heritage, and yet, these three, above all others, have become as family to me.

Why them? Why Bruenor, Regis, and Catti-brie above all others, three friends whom I treasure as much as Guenhwyvar, my companion for all these years?

Everyone knows Bruenor as blunt—that is the trademark of many dwarves, but in Bruenor, the trait runs pure. Or so he wants all to believe. I know better. I know the other side of Bruenor, the hidden side, that soft and warm place. Yes, he has a heart, though he tries hard to bury it! He is blunt, yes, particularly with criticism. He speaks of errors without apology and without judgment, simply telling the honest truth and leaving it up to the offender to correct, or not correct the situation. Bruenor never allows tact or empathy to get in the way of his telling the world how it can be better!

But that is only half of the tale concerning the dwarf, on the other side of the coin, he is far from blunt. Concerning compliments, Bruenor is not dishonest, just quiet.

Perhaps that is why I love him. I see in him Icewind Dale itself, cold and harsh and unforgiving, but ultimately honest. He keeps me at my best, all the time, and in doing that, he helps me to survive in this place. There is only one Icewind Dale, and only one Bruenor Battlehammer, and if ever I met a creature and a land created for each other …

Conversely, Regis stands (or more appropriately, reclines), as a reminder to me of the goals and rewards of a job well done—not that Regis is ever the one who does that job. Regis reminds me, and Bruenor, I would guess, that there is more to life than responsibility, that there are times for personal relaxation and enjoyment of the rewards brought about by good work and vigilance. He is too soft for the tundra, too round in the belly and too slow on his feet. His fighting skills are lacking and he could not track a herd of caribou on fresh snow. Yet he survives, even thrives up here with wit and attitude, with an understanding, better than Bruenor’s surely, and even better than my own, of how to appease and please those around him, of how to anticipate, rather than just react to the moves of others. Regis knows more than just what people do, he knows why they do it, and that ability to understand motivation allowed him to see past the color of my skin and the reputation of my people. If Bruenor is honest in expressing his observations, then Regis is honest in following the course of his heart.

And finally there is Catti-brie, wonderful and so full of life. Catti-brie is the opposite side of the same coin to me, a different reasoning to reach the same conclusions. We are soulmates who see and judge different things in the world to arrive at the same place. Perhaps we thus validate each other. Perhaps in seeing Catti-brie arriving at the same place as myself, and knowing that she arrived there along a different road, tells me that I followed my heart truly. Is that it? Do I trust her more than I trust myself?

That question is neither indictment of my feelings, nor any self-incrimination. We share beliefs about the way of the world and the way the world should be. She is akin to my heart as is Mielikki, and if I found my goddess by looking honestly into my own heart, then so I have found my dearest friend and ally.

They are with me, all three, and Guenhwyvar, dear Guenhwyvar, as well. I am living in a land of stark beauty and stark reality, a place where you have to be wary and alert and at your very best at all times.

I call this paradise.

-Drizzt Do'Urden

That text must have been added in a later reprint.

 

[auburn2]

I always thought Drizzt was a 1e UA drow ranger who dual wielded because of being a drow. The fact that I read The Crystal Shard when it came out a year before 2e did (and that 2e drow PCs explicitly did not have special drow abilities that Drizzt had) may have added to that belief. Plus running a campaign with two dual wielding1e UA drow PCs at the time.

Drow PCs did not have magic resistance or access to Drow weaponry. They did have Drow infravision, Drow TWF and Drow spells in 1E.

Of note Drow PCs in 1E got levitate but Drizzt could not levitate in Crystal Shard (later explained in the books as being lost by being in the sun and even later after that explained as coming from a house insignia and not an innate ability).

 

[Minigiant]

A noticeable weirdness of rangers is that more than one of the iconic or popular characters that people would use as examples are special case snowflake unicorns in their own ranger organization or group. Aragorn Drizzt Jon Snow Aquaman Dar Tarzan. Many are special bloodlines or special races who have aspects that muddled with the idea of ranger features.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

I think the word "ranger" has always meant different things to different people.

For LotR fans it means "like Aragorn"; for others it means "uses a ranged weapon"; or a "park ranger" - protector of the wilderness; or "Texas ranger" - a travelling lawman; or a type soldier.

The class should be renamed wobfazler. What is a wobfazler? A wobfazler is as a wobfazler does.

 

[Dioltach]

I wonder whether part of the fuzziness of the ranger's role has to do with society's changing attitudes toward wilderness.

It's like wolves. In the books that I grew up reading (The Hobbit, Narnia, The Wolves of Willoughby Chase, probably others), wolves are evil and dangerous. Then, as wolves disappeared from civilized habitats, they became noble intelligent creatures, as portrayed in The Wheel of Time and the Farseer series.

I think a similar change in attitude is what has fueled at least some of the evolution of the ranger – from civilization's guardian against the perils of the surrounding wilds to nature's protector against encroaching civilization – and is also why people disagree on the ranger's role. Borderman? Hunter? Nature's protector? Do we need protecting from the monsters in the woods, or are we the monsters threatening the woods?

(Also, Gord the Rogue used two weapons, but I don't recall thieves/rogues ever being specifically linked to dual-wielding. Not sure how that relates to the present discussion, but I thought I'd throw it out there.)

 

[jasper]

2. Drizzt was a sidekick in Crystal Shard, it was not released in hardcover, and Drizzt wasn't that big in the TTRPG community until later....
Maybe in your neck of the woods. But I had Drizzit fan girls at my table almost instantly after Shard was passed around the group.
Note to self. Reorganize you books back to edition order.
Page 10 from 1 E Unearth Arcana. "A dark elf pc is considered an outcast form his or her homeland... "(Sounds like Drizzit. ) Later on down to last full paragraph. "Dark elves do not gain the combat bonuses of the surface elves with regard to sword and bow, but may fight with two weapons without penalty, provided each weapon can be wielded in one hand... may use a spiked buckler as one of the two weapons." (Sounds like Drizzit)
I think unless we have access to the working documents, emails, business notes. The two weapon arguemet is just going to go around and around and around and around and around and around. Hey six rounds. This has lasted more than actual d&D combat. And has taken about the actual real time too.