The Romanian Ranger

Another Redesigned Ranger:the only thing special about it is that it's made by a Romanian....how OP could this get?

Dargon Black

Notes about the author:A ranger specialized in fighting with melee weapons

  • Armor Class 18
  • Hit Points too many to count
  • Speed 30ft.
STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA
18 (+4) 14 (+2) 18 (+4) 11 (0) 16 (+2) 10 (0)
  • Cantrips known As many as you would expect from a lvl 16 multiclass with arcana cleric and magic initiate druid?
  • Senses passive Perception 20
  • Languages Romanian,English,Elvish,Tiefling
  • Challenge Insane (Unlimited XP)
  • Kryptonite Cute girls, alcohol, rolling dice (especialy d20's)

Build

14 levels in Romanian Ranger. Superstitious, rude ranger, hunts beasts,elves & tieflings.

Was blessed with an afinity for Druidic arts. Received Magical Initiations in the art of druidism,but the no metal stuff was a massive turn off.

Emulates the Hunter Ranger Archetype. Horde Breaker,Escape the Horde and Multi attack (later to be redesign as Hunter's

For the spawn of 2 levels has found peace of mind as an Arcana Cleric. But that didn't last for long...

Thieveing elves and tieflings. As well as the lack of female companionship,made him return to his life as an adventurer

Now Dargon wonders the land...

Change log:

  • added ritual caster for ranger and druidic cantrips (3 at level 10,2 before that) at level 2

  • removed fighting styles - mention of them are kept in the section variant core class features in case someone wants to mess around with the concept that each subclass of ranger should have different weapon choices.

This means that each subclass gets diferent fighting styles option.

For example,monster hunter looses the Defense fighting style and gains Great Weapon Fighting.

The Hunter Ranger gets Great Weapon Fighting in it's list of fighting style choices as well,but does not get an expanded spell list due to it's focus on dealing weapon damage.

  • Highlighted the table underneath the table as a biography for the in game character that wrote this book - a manuscript of his knowledge of what Rangers can do.

  • Foe Slayer is a lvl 14 cap stone

  • Added new level 10 feature called Home field Advantage (not sure how to corectly spell this btw-help apreaciated)

  • The new level 20 cap is the PHB Hide in Plain Sight feature,but now you can camouflage party members as well.

If your party size is 5 it takes 5 minutes to gather the camouflage materials for everyone in the party. Also you can make stealth checks to keep the Hide in plain sight feature rolling.

4 september 2018

  • made Primeval Awarenes an ability that is focused on finding your favored enemies.

Without expanding a spell slot,you know if any of your favored enemies are around, but by expanding a spell slot you gain a radar that lets you know when you found your enemies. This radar has a 3 foot radious outside of your favored terain,but within your favored terain it's a wooping 9 foot radious.

  • adjusted the home-field advantage class feature so it doesn't overlap with favored enemies class feature

  • swaped Dex out for Wisdom,regarding proficiencies in saving throws

  • added fighting styles back as core feature,removed ritual casting and cantrips

7 september 2018

  • added more synergy between Natural Explorer,Favored Enemy and Home field-advantage

  • started working on a variant feat to replace home-field advantage

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    12 september 2018

  • swaped some variant traits with some core traits

  • added the shout out section

  • Land's stride has been renamed - please give me ideeas for better names as I don't like the current one

  • Made this version of Land's Stride to be different from what druids get

  • Your favored enemy now improves at levels 6, 10 & 14.

Shout out Section

  • Shout out to u/Astray91 for this awesome and practical simplification of natural explorer
  • Shout out to u/Anysnackwilldo for the reading material provided
  • Shout out to u/thinger for his interesting take on Primeval Awareness
  • Massive shout out to all you beautifull fackers who refuse to comment on my homebrews and motivate me out of spite to keep posting remade versions of these things!

  • rewrote favored enemy to highlight there is an alternative to learning a language - by making the insight bonus the main feature

  • Added the following features: Reliable Guide & Ranger Training.

  • Improved spellcasting capabilities of Rangers, by adding Ritual casting and proficiency with druidic spellcasting focci.

  • Added author's notes to clarify certain skills.

  • Renamed natural explorer to ranger training.

Class Features

As a Ranger, you gain the following class features

Hit Points

  • Hit Dice: 1d10 per Ranger level
  • Hit Points at 1st Level: 10 + your Constitution modifier
  • Hit Points at Higher Levels: 1d10 (or 6) + your Constitution modifier per Ranger level after 1st

Proficiencies

  • Armor: Light armor, Shields, Medium armor
  • Weapons: Simple weapons, martial weapons
  • Tools: None
  • Saving Throws: Strength,Wisdom
  • Skills: Choose three from Animal Handling, Athletics, Insight, Investigation, Nature, Perception, Stealth, and Survival

Equipment

You start with the following equipment, in addition to the equipment granted by your background:

  • (a) scale mail or (b) leather armor
  • (a) two shortswords or (b) two simple melee weapons
  • (a) a dungeoneer's pack or (b) an explorer's pack
  • A longbow and a quiver of 20 arrows

Ranger Training

You are particularly familiar with the natural world and are adept at traveling and surviving in such regions.

When you make an Intelligence or Wisdom check while in outdoors and not on the streets of a village or city, within the plane you became a ranger,relating to the natural world, you add half your proficiency bonus,rounded down to these checks,unless you are using a skill with which you are proficient,in which case you double your proficiency bonus.

Author's notes

The way this trait works is, while you are not in a building, dungeon or on the streets of a city/village, if you are proficient in Investigation ,Nature, Survival, Animal Handling & Perception you can double your proficiency bonus whenever you make a skill check with any of these skills relating to the natural world.

However, if you are not proficient with any of these 5 skills,then you only add half your proficiency bonuses whenever you execute a skill check relating to the natural world.

Favored Enemy

Beginning at 1st level, you have significant experience studying, tracking, hunting, and understanding a certain type of enemy.

Choose a type of favored enemy: Aberrations, Beasts, Celestials, Constructs, Dragons, Elementals, Fey, Fiends, Giants, Monstrosities, Oozes, Plants, or Undead. Alternatively, you can select two races of humanoid (such as Gnolls and Orcs) as favored enemies.

You have advantage on Wisdom (Survival) checks to track your favored enemies, as well as on Intelligence Checks to recall information about them.

When you gain this feature, you also have advantage on Insight checks when trying to determine the emotional state (if any) or intentions of your favored enemy.

Whenever you make a Survival or Insight checks that use your wisdom modifier but not your proficiency modifier, you may add half your proficiency modifier rounded down.

You choose one additional favored enemy, as well as an associated benefit, at 6th, 10th and 14th level. As you gain levels, your choices should reflect the types of Monsters you have encountered on your Adventures.

Author's note: I consider this variant of Favored Enemy to be an improvement over the PHB version because it retains it's value if you chose a type of favored enemy that does not speak,however you can chose to learn a new language if your favorite enemy is capable of speach instead of gaining the Insight bonus.

I am not sure if any of my readers are aware,but there is a ranking list for the enemy types which you can chose as a favored enemy. Enemies that appear frequently in campaings and are capable of speaking a unique language (i.e Fiends) are on the upper spectrum of this tier list,while common enemies that do not speak are on the lowest spectrum of this list (i.e Beasts & Undead)

By reworking Favored Enemy in this manner I hope to have wrecked the validity of that tier list.

Spellcasting

By the time you reach 2nd level, you have learned to use the magical essence of Nature to cast Spells, much as a druid does.

Spell Slots

The Ranger table shows how many Spell Slots you have to cast your Spells of 1st level and higher. To cast one of these Spells, you must expend a slot of the spell's level or higher. You regain all expended Spell Slots when you finish a Long Rest.

For example, if you know the 1st-level spell Animal Friendship and have a 1st-level and a 2nd-level spell slot available, you can cast Animal Friendship using either slot.

Spells Known of 1st Level and Higher

You know two 1st-level spells of your choice from the ranger spell list.

You learn an additional ranger spell of your choice at each odd numbered level thereafter. Each of these Spells must be of a level for which you have Spell Slots. For instance, when you reach 5th level in this class, you can learn one new spell of 1st or 2nd level. Additionally, when you gain a level in this class, you can choose one of the ranger Spells you know and replace it with another spell from the ranger spell list, which also must be of a level for which you have Spell Slots.

Spellcasting Ability

Wisdom is your Spellcasting ability for your ranger Spells, since your magic draws on your Attunement to Nature. You use your Wisdom whenever a spell refers to your Spellcasting ability. In addition, you use your Wisdom modifier when Setting the saving throw DC for a ranger spell you cast and when Making an Attack roll with one.

  • Spell save DC = 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Wisdom modifier

  • Spell Attack modifier = your proficiency bonus + your Wisdom modifier

Ritual Casting

You can cast a druid spell as a ritual if that spell has the ritual tag and you have the spell prepared.

Spellcasting Focus

You can use a druidic focus as a spellcasting focus for your druid spells.

Fighting Styles

At 2nd level, you adopt a particular style of fighting as your specialty. You can't take a Fighting Style option more than once, even if you later get to choose again.

  • Archery: You gain a +2 bonus to attack rolls you make with ranged weapons.

  • Defense: While you are wearing armor, you gain a +1 bonus to AC.

  • Dueling: When you are wielding a melee weapon in one hand and no other weapons, you gain a +2 bonus to damage rolls with that weapon.

  • Two-Weapon Fighting: When you engage in two-weapon fighting, you can add your ability modifier to the damage of the second attack.

Primeval Awareness

Beginning at the 3rd level once per short rest, you gain a preternatural instinct that grants you the ability to see the world as if you were one with the land.

By spending 10 minutes to concentrate on your surroundings and communing with the forces of nature, you can determine one of the following truths about your surroundings

  • if there are any man-made structures or settlements within 5 miles. You then know the general direction and location of these structures.

  • if there are any of the following creatures present: humanoids, beasts, dragons, plants, monstruosities, fey and giants. You then chose a number of creatures equal to your wisdom modifier and know the general direction and location of these creatures.

Aditionaly,when you use this ability you may also burn a spell slot. Until your next short rest you maintain the ability to determine where you are in relation to the things you have detected earlier.

Ranger Archetype

At 3rd level, you choose an archetype that you strive to emulate. Your choice grants features at 3rd level, and again at 7th, 11th, and 15th level.

Ability Score Improvement

When you reach 4th level, and again at 8th, 12th, 16th, and 19th level, you can increase one ability score of your choice by 2, or you can increase two Ability Scores of your choice by 1. As normal, you can’t increase an ability score above 20 using this feature.

Extra Attack

Beginning at 5th level, you can Attack twice, instead of once, whenever you take the Attack action on your turn.

Seasoned Explorer

Starting at 8th level, moving through nonmagical difficult terrain costs you no extra Movement.

You can also pass through nonmagical Plants without being slowed by them and without taking damage from them if they have thorns, spines, or a similar hazard.

In addition, you can't be tracked by nonmagical means, unless you choose to leave a trail.

Reliable Guide

Starting from the 10th level whenever you make a Investigation,Nature,Survival,Animal Handling or Perception and are able to apply the bonus from your Ranger Training you can treat a d20 roll of 9 or lower as a 10.

Additionaly whenever you make either a Survival, History, Medicine, Insight or charisma based ability check that relates to a creature that is listed as one of your favored enemies you can treat a d20 roll of 9 or lower as a 10.

Foe Slayer

At 14th level, you become an unparalleled Hunter of your enemies. Once on each of your turns, you can mark one enemy creature using your bonus action.

Whenever you target that creature for an attack, you can add your Wisdom modifier to the attack roll or the damage roll of an attack you make against it.

At the 20th level you may apply this mark to any number of creatures that are either within 5 feet of you or within 10 feet of a point you can see within your weapon's range

Feral Senses

At 18th level, you gain preternatural Senses that help you fight creatures you can't see. When you Attack a creature you can't see, your inability to see it doesn't impose disadvantage on your Attack rolls against it. You are also aware of the location of any Invisible creature within 30 feet of you, provided that the creature isn't hidden from you and you aren't Blinded or Deafened.

Master Ranger

Starting at 20th level, you can spend 1 minute creating camouflage for yourself or one ally. You must have access to fresh mud, dirt, Plants, soot, and other naturally occurring materials with which to create your camouflage.

The people camouflaged in this way,can try to hide by pressing themselves up against a solid surface, such as a tree or wall, that is at least as tall and wide as you are. That person gains a +10 bonus to Dexterity (Stealth) checks as long as they remain there without moving or taking actions.

Every time before someone camouflaged in this manner, moves or takes an action, they must imediately make a stealth check to maintain this benefit.

Author's note: If your party size is 5 it takes 5 minutes to gather the camouflage materials for everyone in the party. Also you can make stealth checks to keep the Hide in plain sight feature rolling.

Faq:

Why did you replaced the proficiency in dexterity saving throws with proficiency in wisdom saving throws

  • Answer:I feel that a proficiency in wisdom saving throws is more relevant than dexterity saving throws because as a Ranger,there are times when you are alone in the wilds and need to endure the mental stress of being alone surounded by predators who can kill you in the instant you let your guard down.

How does this change impact Gloom Stalker's Iron Will feature?

  • Answer: they get the Steel Will from the hunter archtype in place of that basicaly. Not all rangers behave like Tarzan in the sense that they swing/jump from tree to tree and I don't even know if there is something from which you can swing from in the Underdark. I doubt I will give rangers feats that give them proficiency in dex saving throws as a result.

Why does this Homebrew not have Hunter's Mark as a class feature?

  • Answer: because it does not stack with Hunter's prey,a class feature from Xanathar's Guide to everything called Monster Slayer. I advocate againts merging Hunter's Mark with Hunter's Prey as that would make all other subclasses weaker in favor of Monster Slayer, because you lose out on Hunter's Sense,the pair for Hunter's Prey.

Design Rationale

I have designed this class to compete with Bards & Rogues that chose to apply their Expertise feature to the Survival skill.

I have acchieved this by giving Rangers a modified version of both Jack of All Trades and Expertise from the Bard main class.

In order to control the power creep of these 2 skills,I have limited their use by focusing them on stuff Ranger's should be good at.

Jack of all trades felt like a very good fit here because,regardless of how bad of a Ranger your PC tunred out to be story wise, that PC spent a good portion of his life training/trying to be a Ranger and that kind of training should leave a mark on any PC. Adding half your proficiency modifier to skill checks relating to Ranger stuf is a good mechanic in my eyes.

Expertise to Ranger stuff is rewarded with Expertise. However in order to limit the abuse of Perception Expertise and similar banes to the life of the DM,I am limiting the applicability of these bonuses to the natural world or as I like to define it while in outdoors and not on the streets of a village or city, within the plane you became a ranger.

Using the skills presented to us by Wizzards of the Coast I came to the conclusion,a exceptional ranger should be proficient in Investigation ,Nature, Survival, Animal Handling, History, Insight & Perception.

However,because not everyone min/maxes and not all Rangers are exceptional or even competent at their job, I needed to limit the aplicability of these bonuses to toppics Rangers should be experts in such as lore about terrain, plants and animals, the weather, and natural cycles as well as camouflage, hunting and tracking.

Variant core class features

Natural Explorer

You are particularly familiar with one type of natural Environment and are adept at traveling and surviving in such regions. Choose one type of favored terrain: arctic, coast, desert, forest, grassland, mountain, swamp, or The Underdark.

When you make an Intelligence or Wisdom check related to your favored terrain, your proficiency bonus is doubled if you are using a skill that you're proficient in or half your proficiency bonus if you are using a skill with which you are not proficient in. While traveling for an hour or more in your favored terrain, you gain the following benefits:

  • Difficult terrain doesn't slow your group's travel.
  • Your group can't become lost except by magical means.
  • Even when you are engaged in another Activity While Traveling (such as foraging, navigating, or tracking), you remain alert to danger.
  • If you are traveling alone, you can move stealthily at a normal pace.
  • When you forage, you find twice as much food as you normally would.
  • While tracking other creatures, you also learn their exact number, their sizes, and how long ago they passed through the area. (this is not limited to your favored enemies)

Home-field Advantage

Starting at level 10 while in your favored terain you gain the following benefits:

  • You gain advantage when seting traps and searching for traps. This does not apply to traps that are built within buildings (example:trap doors)

  • You have advantage on stealth checks.Your favored enemies gain disadvantage on perception checks to detect you

  • You can't be tracked by nonmagical means, unless you choose to leave a trail.

  • You can take the dash and hide options as bonus actions while in combat

  • You gain advantage on survival checks to find food and tracking foes who are not your favored enemies.

  • Your favored enemies have disadvantage on detecting traps you set up

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Primeval Awareness

Beginning at the 3rd level, you can attune your senses to determine if any of your favored enemies lurk nearby. By spending 1 uninterrupted minute in concentration (as if you were concentrating on a spell), you can sense whether any of your favored enemies are present within 5 miles of you. This feature reveals which of your favored enemies are present, their numbers, and the creatures’ general direction and distance (in miles) from you. If there are multiple groups of your favored enemies within range, you learn this information for each group.

Additionally, you can also expand one spell slot in exchange for the ability to sense whether any of the creatures you have listed as your favored enemies are present within 3 miles of you (or within up to 8 miles if you are in your favored terrain).