For me favored foe always. FE does some nice things, but usually abilities, and in a pinch spells will cover that. FF is like having extra spells available. Not real powerful ones but decent.
Also because of the zero action cost you can chain them and do it more than once a turn, which will outrun most other nova damage boosts, especially at high level.
Also because of the way the spell is worded you can get favored enemy bonuses from favored foe. It is highly situational but the description says:
"When you hit a creature with an attack roll, you can call on your mystical bond with nature to mark the target as your favored enemy for 1 minute"
RAW this would mean when you mark the target it becomes a "Favored Enemy" giving you advantage on Wisdom and Intelligence checks as per the Favored Enemy feature. This is probably not RAI, but in a strict RAW it works for a minute after a hit.
For me favored foe always. FE does some nice things, but usually abilities, and in a pinch spells will cover that. FF is like having extra spells available. Not real powerful ones but decent.
Also because of the zero action cost you can chain them and do it more than once a turn, which will outrun most other nova damage boosts, especially at high level.
Also because of the way the spell is worded you can get favored enemy bonuses from favored foe. It is highly situational but the description says:
"When you hit a creature with an attack roll, you can call on your mystical bond with nature to mark the target as your favored enemy for 1 minute"
RAW this would mean when you mark the target it becomes a "Favored Enemy" giving you advantage on Wisdom and Intelligence checks as per the Favored Enemy feature. This is probably not RAI, but in a strict RAW it works for a minute after a hit.
RAW is: „You gain no benefit from the replaced feature and don't qualify for anything in the game that requires it.“
I think both features are weak because favored foe can only be used # proficiency per long rest and favored enemy is situational. However I took favored enemy: Humans and Elves with my last character because for campaign reasons I had to take the noble background and got the history skill (could convince my DM to swap persuasion to insight). Now the rider at least gives me advantage on most history checks (with my crap Int stat) for almost anything important in our campaign. For me that‘s worth it, knowledge skills are important in our group.
RAW is: „You gain no benefit from the replaced feature and don't qualify for anything in the game that requires it.“
I think both features are weak because favored foe can only be used # proficiency per long rest and favored enemy is situational. However I took favored enemy: Humans and Elves with my last character because for campaign reasons I had to take the noble background and got the history skill (could convince my DM to swap persuasion to insight). Now the rider at least gives me advantage on most history checks (with my crap Int stat) for almost anything important in our campaign. For me that‘s worth it, knowledge skills are important in our group.
I've been playing with a Swarmkeeper Ranger for a little while now and I went the other way and took Favored Foe on top of having hunter's mark as a prepared spell, so I can choose which one to use when.
For me this is partly because I picked up Polearm Master so I often want to avoid the competition for my bonus action from hunter's mark because it costs me an extra attack, and Favored Foe is just so convenient to trigger when I'm faced with a tougher enemy with no chance to fire off an early spell. It's also been a big help for my resource management; while two uses early on doesn't seem like much, it's potentially "double" the resources. Of course that's with a lot of caveats, as hunter's mark can be reused for up to an hour, so long as it isn't interrupted and you have multiple fights within the space of that hour, but ultimately a use of Favored Foe is a spell slot you haven't spent, and if you have hunter's mark anyway you can still use it when you know it'll be better to do so, which I've done a few times.
But yeah, how easy it is to trigger is a major point in its favour for me, despite the worse damage, shorter duration and lack of re-use. Every spell slot saved is also a potential free slot that can be spent on goodberry before a long rest (for extra healing the next day). In terms of resource economy I've been finding it very useful, though others' mileage will definitely vary.
For completeness' sake though I should also mention this is in a Spelljammer campaign so I have no idea what a sensible pick for favored enemy is. 😂
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So what would be suggested for a Curse of Strahd setting Grave Domain Cleric/Monster Hunter Ranger?
You should probably talk to your DM to get an idea of how they intend to run the campaign and how they might want to interpret Favored Enemy; as you might expect there will be a fair few undead in Curse of Strahd, so being able to recall useful information and track them can be great, but it depends how your DM would normally handle such information.
For example, a lot of undead are resistant or immune to necrotic, poison and/or psychic damage, and knowing which damage types are going to be less effective can really help you in the opening rounds of a fight when dealing with a new type of undead your adventurers haven't fought before. Withholding that information and making players roll to find out what their characters know (which is really how you're supposed to run it) will make Favored Enemy a lot more valuable, but some DMs are less strict about players using knowledge their characters don't have (e.g- from another campaign where you've encountered undead) so this can undervalue it.
Likewise if you think any tracking and survival might be involved, as having bonuses on those checks is again very useful when a campaign is run by a DM who wants time spent in the wilderness to matter. For example, if you're tracking Strahd or one of his minions then every hour wasted could mean something terrible will happen, more resources (food, water etc.) spent and so-on. But again, some DMs can be very casual about these aspects of the game, which hurts Rangers in general when the exploration/survival pillar is part of their whole deal.
So yeah, if you think your DM is less likely to emphasise character knowledge and tracking/survival then Favored Foe will probably be more useful to you, but I'd ask them first as they could be really onboard with pushing these aspects of the game.
Former D&D Beyond Customer of six years: With the axing of piecemeal purchasing, lack of meaningful development, and toxic moderation the site isn't worth paying for anymore. I remain a free user only until my groups are done migrating from DDB, and if necessary D&D, after which I'm done. There are better systems owned by better companies out there.
I have unsubscribed from all topics and will not reply to messages. My homebrew is now 100% unsupported.
So what would be suggested for a Curse of Strahd setting Grave Domain Cleric/Monster Hunter Ranger?
You should probably talk to your DM to get an idea of how they intend to run the campaign and how they might want to interpret Favored Enemy; as you might expect there will be a fair few undead in Curse of Strahd, so being able to recall useful information and track them can be great, but it depends how your DM would normally handle such information.
For example, a lot of undead are resistant or immune to necrotic, poison and/or psychic damage, and knowing which damage types are going to be less effective can really help you in the opening rounds of a fight when dealing with a new type of undead your adventurers haven't fought before. Withholding that information and making players roll to find out what their characters know (which is really how you're supposed to run it) will make Favored Enemy a lot more valuable, but some DMs are less strict about players using knowledge their characters don't have (e.g- from another campaign where you've encountered undead) so this can undervalue it.
Likewise if you think any tracking and survival might be involved, as having bonuses on those checks is again very useful when a campaign is run by a DM who wants time spent in the wilderness to matter. For example, if you're tracking Strahd or one of his minions then every hour wasted could mean something terrible will happen, more resources (food, water etc.) spent and so-on. But again, some DMs can be very casual about these aspects of the game, which hurts Rangers in general when the exploration/survival pillar is part of their whole deal.
So yeah, if you think your DM is less likely to emphasise character knowledge and tracking/survival then Favored Foe will probably be more useful to you, but I'd ask them first as they could be really onboard with pushing these aspects of the game.
Best answer by a mile!
See how the DM intends to run this stuff and it will make the decision a lot easier.
On a "generic" Ranger, Favored Foe always sounds better, but whenever I'm looking at a specific character, it turns into "sometimes." I'm currently playing a Beast Barbarian, planning to multiclass into Ranger, so having a core feature with concentration is a non-starter. If I can't use it when I'm raging, it's not much good to me in a fight. (Except for ranged combat; maybe I should consider that?)
But for RP reasons, Favored Enemy makes a lot of sense for him; there are certain creatures he has every reason to be an expert at fighting. So for this particular character, Favored Enemy beats Favored Foe for both mechanical and RP reasons.
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Thank you so much
For me favored foe always. FE does some nice things, but usually abilities, and in a pinch spells will cover that. FF is like having extra spells available. Not real powerful ones but decent.
Also because of the zero action cost you can chain them and do it more than once a turn, which will outrun most other nova damage boosts, especially at high level.
Also because of the way the spell is worded you can get favored enemy bonuses from favored foe. It is highly situational but the description says:
"When you hit a creature with an attack roll, you can call on your mystical bond with nature to mark the target as your favored enemy for 1 minute"
RAW this would mean when you mark the target it becomes a "Favored Enemy" giving you advantage on Wisdom and Intelligence checks as per the Favored Enemy feature. This is probably not RAI, but in a strict RAW it works for a minute after a hit.
RAW is: „You gain no benefit from the replaced feature and don't qualify for anything in the game that requires it.“
I think both features are weak because favored foe can only be used # proficiency per long rest and favored enemy is situational. However I took favored enemy: Humans and Elves with my last character because for campaign reasons I had to take the noble background and got the history skill (could convince my DM to swap persuasion to insight). Now the rider at least gives me advantage on most history checks (with my crap Int stat) for almost anything important in our campaign. For me that‘s worth it, knowledge skills are important in our group.
I've been playing with a Swarmkeeper Ranger for a little while now and I went the other way and took Favored Foe on top of having hunter's mark as a prepared spell, so I can choose which one to use when.
For me this is partly because I picked up Polearm Master so I often want to avoid the competition for my bonus action from hunter's mark because it costs me an extra attack, and Favored Foe is just so convenient to trigger when I'm faced with a tougher enemy with no chance to fire off an early spell. It's also been a big help for my resource management; while two uses early on doesn't seem like much, it's potentially "double" the resources. Of course that's with a lot of caveats, as hunter's mark can be reused for up to an hour, so long as it isn't interrupted and you have multiple fights within the space of that hour, but ultimately a use of Favored Foe is a spell slot you haven't spent, and if you have hunter's mark anyway you can still use it when you know it'll be better to do so, which I've done a few times.
But yeah, how easy it is to trigger is a major point in its favour for me, despite the worse damage, shorter duration and lack of re-use. Every spell slot saved is also a potential free slot that can be spent on goodberry before a long rest (for extra healing the next day). In terms of resource economy I've been finding it very useful, though others' mileage will definitely vary.
For completeness' sake though I should also mention this is in a Spelljammer campaign so I have no idea what a sensible pick for favored enemy is. 😂
Former D&D Beyond Customer of six years: With the axing of piecemeal purchasing, lack of meaningful development, and toxic moderation the site isn't worth paying for anymore. I remain a free user only until my groups are done migrating from DDB, and if necessary D&D, after which I'm done. There are better systems owned by better companies out there.
I have unsubscribed from all topics and will not reply to messages. My homebrew is now 100% unsupported.
Yeah favored enemy is so hit or miss depending on the campaign. Foe isn't amazing but it's very reliable.
So what would be suggested for a Curse of Strahd setting Grave Domain Cleric/Monster Hunter Ranger?
the “campaign dependent” Favored Enemy or the more “globally reliable” Favored Foe?
thanks!
You should probably talk to your DM to get an idea of how they intend to run the campaign and how they might want to interpret Favored Enemy; as you might expect there will be a fair few undead in Curse of Strahd, so being able to recall useful information and track them can be great, but it depends how your DM would normally handle such information.
For example, a lot of undead are resistant or immune to necrotic, poison and/or psychic damage, and knowing which damage types are going to be less effective can really help you in the opening rounds of a fight when dealing with a new type of undead your adventurers haven't fought before. Withholding that information and making players roll to find out what their characters know (which is really how you're supposed to run it) will make Favored Enemy a lot more valuable, but some DMs are less strict about players using knowledge their characters don't have (e.g- from another campaign where you've encountered undead) so this can undervalue it.
Likewise if you think any tracking and survival might be involved, as having bonuses on those checks is again very useful when a campaign is run by a DM who wants time spent in the wilderness to matter. For example, if you're tracking Strahd or one of his minions then every hour wasted could mean something terrible will happen, more resources (food, water etc.) spent and so-on. But again, some DMs can be very casual about these aspects of the game, which hurts Rangers in general when the exploration/survival pillar is part of their whole deal.
So yeah, if you think your DM is less likely to emphasise character knowledge and tracking/survival then Favored Foe will probably be more useful to you, but I'd ask them first as they could be really onboard with pushing these aspects of the game.
Former D&D Beyond Customer of six years: With the axing of piecemeal purchasing, lack of meaningful development, and toxic moderation the site isn't worth paying for anymore. I remain a free user only until my groups are done migrating from DDB, and if necessary D&D, after which I'm done. There are better systems owned by better companies out there.
I have unsubscribed from all topics and will not reply to messages. My homebrew is now 100% unsupported.
Best answer by a mile!
See how the DM intends to run this stuff and it will make the decision a lot easier.
I usually go favored enemy because it kind of rewards or punishes you if you choose the wrong enemy.
Have they given any preliminary feed back?
On a "generic" Ranger, Favored Foe always sounds better, but whenever I'm looking at a specific character, it turns into "sometimes." I'm currently playing a Beast Barbarian, planning to multiclass into Ranger, so having a core feature with concentration is a non-starter. If I can't use it when I'm raging, it's not much good to me in a fight. (Except for ranged combat; maybe I should consider that?)
But for RP reasons, Favored Enemy makes a lot of sense for him; there are certain creatures he has every reason to be an expert at fighting. So for this particular character, Favored Enemy beats Favored Foe for both mechanical and RP reasons.
Behind every successful Warlock, there's an angry mob.