Ranger

Description

Warriors of the wilderness, the rangers specialize in hunting the monsters that threaten the edges of civilization. Ranging from humanoid raiders, rampaging beasts to monstrosities. Terrible giants and deadly dragons. They learn to track their quarry as a predator does, moving stealthily through the wilds and hiding in brush and rubble. Rangers focus their combat training on techniques that are particularly useful against their specific targeted foe.
As a ranger, you’ll be using your mastery of light blades and bows to combat your foes as you traverse the wilds, possibly with a bonded animal companion by your side.

Indrid's Information

Stat Priority

Primary: Authority
Secondary: Agility
Tertiary: Vitality
Perks:

• Bow Mastery
• Beast Tamer
• Aura Mastery
• Stealth
• Weapon Finesse

Roleplay Redux Information

Stats:

• +1 Dexterity
• +1 Constitution
• +1 Wisdom

A Closer Look at Rangers

Rough and wild looking, a human stalks alone through the shadows of trees, hunting the orcs he knows are planning a raid on a nearby farm. Clutching a shortsword in each hand, he becomes a whirlwind of steel, cutting down one enemy after another.

After tumbling away from a cone of freezing air, an elf finds her feet and draws back her bow to loose an arrow at the white dragon. Shrugging off the wave of fear that emanates from the dragon like the cold of its breath, she sends one arrow after another to find the gaps between the dragon’s thick scales.

Holding his hand high, a half-elf whistles to the hawk that circles high above him, calling the bird back to his side. Whispering instructions in Elvish, he points to the owlbear he’s been tracking and sends the hawk to distract the creature while he readies his bow.
Far from the bustle of cities and towns, past the hedges that shelter the most distant farms from the terrors of the wild, amid the dense-packed trees of trackless forests and across wide and empty plains, rangers keep their unending watch.

Deadly Hunters

Warriors of the wilderness, rangers specialize in hunting the monsters that threaten the edges of civilization—humanoid raiders, rampaging beasts and monstrosities, terrible giants, and deadly dragons. They learn to track their quarry as a predator does, moving stealthily through the wilds and hiding themselves in brush and rubble. Rangers focus their combat training on techniques that are particularly useful against their specific favored foes.
Thanks to their familiarity with the wilds, rangers acquire the ability to cast spells that harness nature’s power, much as a druid does. Their spells, like their combat abilities, emphasize speed, stealth, and the hunt. A ranger’s talents and abilities are honed with deadly focus on the grim task of protecting the borderlands.

Independent Adventurers

Though a ranger might make a living as a hunter, a guide, or a tracker, a ranger’s true calling is to defend the outskirts of civilization from the ravages of monsters and humanoid hordes that press in from the wild. In some places, rangers gather in secretive orders or join forces with druidic circles. Many rangers, though, are independent almost to a fault, knowing that, when a dragon or a band of orcs attacks, a ranger might be the first—and possibly the last—line of defense.
This fierce independence makes rangers well suited to adventuring, since they are accustomed to life far from the comforts of a dry bed and a hot bath. Faced with city-bred adventurers who grouse and whine about the hardships of the wild, rangers respond with some mixture of amusement, frustration, and compassion. But they quickly learn that other adventurers who can carry their own weight in a fight against civilization’s foes are worth any extra burden. Coddled city folk might not know how to feed themselves or find fresh water in the wild, but they make up for it in other ways.

Culture

Most at home on the edge of civilization, rangers were often hunters, trackers, or some combination of the above, serving as protectors of the civilized world against the wilderness' feral threats. Stereotyped as wild frontiersmen, rangers were often imagined most at home within dense woodlands. However, this was not true of all rangers and others were more at home within ancient ruins, vast deserts, caverns of the Underdark, or city sewers. What defined a ranger was not so much a bond with nature, though many share such an affinity, but rather their attraction to the unknown and the untamed, most often to protect it but sometimes to subjugate it or emulate its feral power instead, a drive which inspired rangers in as distant and varying locations. Undoubtedly useful allies, rangers could also be deadly enemies. When in combat, rangers generally relied on evasive hit-and-run tactics, darting in and out of harm's way.
The stereotype of the nature-loving ranger was not without merit, however, and many rangers fit the image of cunning hunters and protectors of forests or other wildlands. These rangers saw themselves as guardians against nature's corruption and had a special affinity for barbarians and druids, who often shared similar goals. Other rangers were however more mercenary, fighting for personal glory or wealth. As their aspirations differed so did rangers' backgrounds: some came from special military training while others learned under solitary mentors who vested them with lessons on how to survive in places where few of the civilized races cared to tread. Regardless of how they came about their training, all rangers were fairly self-reliant and were as much at home (if not more) in the wild as in a bustling city.
Rangers were very often motivated by good intentions and many had a well-placed sense of right and wrong. Many felt it was their calling in life to protect the innocent from monsters, hunting down the wicked wherever they arose to terrorize the weak. Conversely, many rangers had an innate distaste for civilization's creature comforts and the griping it inspired in city folk forced into the wild. For this latter reason — and in spite of their often good nature — rangers rarely got along with paladins. Rangers with other motives were not uncommon however, and evil rangers who took on the role of a cruel and savage predator were rightly feared. Similarly, while rangers are often chaotic in mindset, others felt an attraction to law or preferred to put themselves on neither "side" of law and chaos. In spite of their general desire for distance from the trappings of civilization, many rangers did align themselves with larger organizations. Regardless of their moral or ethical outlook, most rangers held themselves accountable to gods of the wilderness, such as Jhebbal Sag.
Among the civilized humanoid races, rangers were most common among the elves, whose culture placed a high value on the natural world and whose natural grace lent itself to a ranger's lifestyle. Wood elves in particular were very common, though many high elves also pursued the way of the two-blade ranger. Among the other races humans, due to the race's physical and mental versatility, and dragonborn also gave rise to a fairly large number of rangers. Half-orcs and half-elves, while less physically and emotionally suited, were often attracted to the ranger's ways as well, half-elves particularly through their elven ancestors and half-orcs out of a desire to get away from the ostracizing confines of civilized society or — for that matter — orcish society. Dwarven rangers, while rare, were well-respected and commonly known as "cavers" among their people. Halflings were, however, both physically well-suited for a ranger's lifestyle and culturally acclimatized, with the exception of the ghostwise. The rarest of the civilized races to breed rangers were gnomes, with an exception for deep gnomes who often produced rangers to explore the Underdark. Among the savage races rangers were rarer, though gnoll rangers were not entirely uncommon.

Abilities

Trained to be nimble and deadly, rangers were experts in survival wilderness, both on their own and with company. They could move quickly over difficult terrain, evade natural hazards, and disguise their tracks or camouflage themselves to blend in with their surroundings, hiding themselves from their enemies. Although these skills were often very general in nature, every ranger also had their own particular terrain that they knew best, over which they could travel, forage, and track more effectively. Some rangers preferred the wilderness of the surface world, while others dwelt beneath in the caverns of the Underdark. In either case rangers trained their senses to an extremely keen level, allowing them to focus their awareness on the area around them to notice if deadly monsters were nearby. With additional experience, rangers could even perceive unseen enemies as easily if they were visible.
All rangers were proficient to some degree in light or medium armor and most military-grade weapons as well as shields. Generally, rangers preferred to be lightly protected, as it allowed them more agility and use of their reflexes then heavier armor made possible. In addition to their general proficiency with martial and simple weapons, rangers specialized in a particular fighting style, such as archery, the use of armor, dueling with a single weapon, or dual wielding. Rangers who emphasized either style often become members of traditions that further specialized them, such as the High Forest scout or the Impilturan demon-slayers. Whatever their particular combat style, rangers were deadly foes, and with a little bit of experience could attack with startling speed. Rangers also honed their combat skills against particular foes whom they had a particular enmity for, such as aberrations, dragons, or undead, allowing them to better track, hunt, or even communicate with such adversaries. The most experienced rangers could also exploit their knowledge of a foe's weakness to more easily injure or kill them.
Nearly all rangers were trained in some degree of magic, which they used to enhance their own abilities. This magic was often primal in nature, drawn from the power of nature itself. Each day rangers focused this power within themselves, preparing which spells they intended to cast.

Ranger Archetypes available in Roleplay Redux

While all rangers were expert scouts and trackers, their precise methods differed from one ranger to another. Some of the most common kinds of rangers are listed below.

Beast Master

The Beast Master archetype embodies a friendship between the civilized races and the beasts of the world. United in focus, beast and ranger work as one to fight the monstrous foes that threaten civilization and the wilderness alike. Emulating the Beast Master archetype means committing yourself to this ideal, working in partnership with an animal as its companion and friend.

Hunter

Some rangers seek to master weapons to better protect civilization from the terrors of the wilderness. Members of the Hunter Conclave learn specialized fighting techniques for use against the most dire threats, from rampaging ogres and hordes of orcs to towering giants and terrifying dragons.

Arcane Archer

An Arcane Archer studies a unique elven method of archery that weaves magic into attacks to produce supernatural effects. Arcane Archers are some of their most elite warriors among the elves. They stand watch over the fringes of elven domains, keeping a keen eye out for trespassers and using magic-infused arrows to defeat monsters and invaders before they can reach elven settlements. Over the centuries, the methods of these elf archers have been learned by members of other races who can also balance arcane aptitude with archery.

Skirmisher

While many rangers preferred the elegance of the bow or the companionship of a beast, skirmisher rangers found more solace in their skill with weapons of steel. These rangers, who were often stronger than their more nimble colleagues, focused on closing in on their prey and engaging them with melee weapons before darting away. Like all rangers, skirmisher rangers preferred ambushes to a straight fight, so speed and dexterity were very important to skirmishers, but if forced into a standstill they stood a better chance of surviving a melee than other rangers.

Rangers

A half-elven female ranger

RANGER