D&D General Why does the Hunter subclass for the 2014 & 2024 Ranger not have bonus spells?

[Corinnguard]

They let the 3PPs fool around with that stuff, which is why Morrus' Advanced 5E and LaserLlama's designs exist.

And not only do they exist, but they are also sometimes better than the originals.

I'm shocked that a talented 3pp designer has a more cohesive design scheme than WotC; shocked, I tell you.

Actually, it tickled the first time I came across his work. Now, it's a pleasant tingly feeling whenever I visit his page on GM Binder.

 

[bedir than]

It's good actually that WotC demonstrated right in the original subclasses that not all Rangers need to built as casters.

 

[Mephista]

hmm:
Beast strike:
use your spell attack modifier,
damage bonus on attack: Wis mod.

so much for being more martial...

guess it's Magic initiate: Druid and Shillelagh or bust with this subclass also.

Meh, Shillelagh is overrated. There, I said it.

I find the best option for Beastmaster Ranger is actually... Bow and use all the Summon / Conjure spells you want. Grab Archery FS, bracers of archery. Maybe go for Heavy Weapon Mastery if you're worried about the damage, but I prefer shortbow (and Vex) to longbow w/ HWM (and Slow); less investment required and better Mastery. Your Companion and Summon Beast/Fey come with innate Advantage generation, so rely on that for the pets' accuracy.

You're less at risk from losing Concentration while further away, so you'll keep the summons up for longer. The Summon spells don't take your BA, so you're free to use that while combined with the Companion and your two Attacks. The Conjure spells are better as AoE damage than single target, so I'm partial to keeping my level 3 slot open for an AoE if necessary, while keeping Summon Beast for single target.

 

[GarrettKP]

The Hunter and Beast Master don’t get extended spells because of the whole “spellless Ranger” crowd. In the lead up to the 2024 PHB, Crawford said those subclasses are meant to represent Rangers that are less focused on spells.