It seems like its the best we are going to get so I'm on board, I was always looking for another reason to load up more on Wis anyway. I prefer to think of it more of a call to my friend than a summon spell, basically I have 3 companions, one of land, one of sea and one of air and when I have need I call to the one of them. I pick and name each one, a coywolf named Terra, a sea turtle named Flotsam and a snowy owl named Garnet.
I'm almost set on making the change (through rebuilding) after my next adventure with my current Ranger. I've compared a few Beast Master builds around for a while, though not against other archetypes and only using the Panther as a pet for the PHB one (since the Wolf's Pack Tactics are not that shiny after you get access to Guardian of Nature, and Snakes are not really an option as this character is in Avernus and almost everything is immune to poison damage). What I found about the change to Tasha's feature so far is (for me):
The Good: "Proficiency" in all saving throws and skills (specially in Tier 4, saving throws are usually more important than even AC); Higher hit point maximum; Versatility (this is the big one, since you can cast stuff and do other things while your beast is still able to attack); Higher saving throw DC on knocking prone: Damage output is more evenly distributed between the Ranger and the Beast (this changes according to who's using the magic item attunements among you).
The Neutral: The damage peaks actually go down a bit, since the Panther used to get a whole extra attack against prone targets, though average damage is higher and probably makes up for it.
The Bad: Lower AC (barding no longer stacks proficiency bonus on top of it); Slightly lower bonus to hit (though the bonus is still so high this is almost irrelevant); Unable to choose a specific beast and get its special abilities (as my beast used to be a miniature displacer beast able to cast blur, this one felt bad); Being a summoned creature that changes when you choose a different statblock (and nothing is said about it being the same creature if you return to the previous statblock), you may be unable to stack permanent benefits (like True Polymorph or Wish-granted resistances) if you change at all; Bonus action economy gets weird once you involve a few of your spells in the mix (Shillelagh, Guardian of Nature, Misty Step).
Well, that is what I could gather about the change, I haven't seen it in action yet, who knows if there's something I didn't catch or that may change my mind. Anyway, thinking of adding a cantrip attack like Green-Flame Blade (along with Shillelagh) to seal the deal on the Ranger's damage output.
I'm almost set on making the change (through rebuilding) after my next adventure with my current Ranger. I've compared a few Beast Master builds around for a while, though not against other archetypes and only using the Panther as a pet for the PHB one (since the Wolf's Pack Tactics are not that shiny after you get access to Guardian of Nature, and Snakes are not really an option as this character is in Avernus and almost everything is immune to poison damage). What I found about the change to Tasha's feature so far is (for me):
The Good: "Proficiency" in all saving throws and skills (specially in Tier 4, saving throws are usually more important than even AC); Higher hit point maximum; Versatility (this is the big one, since you can cast stuff and do other things while your beast is still able to attack); Higher saving throw DC on knocking prone: Damage output is more evenly distributed between the Ranger and the Beast (this changes according to who's using the magic item attunements among you).
The Neutral: The damage peaks actually go down a bit, since the Panther used to get a whole extra attack against prone targets, though average damage is higher and probably makes up for it.
The Bad: Lower AC (barding no longer stacks proficiency bonus on top of it); Slightly lower bonus to hit (though the bonus is still so high this is almost irrelevant); Unable to choose a specific beast and get its special abilities (as my beast used to be a miniature displacer beast able to cast blur, this one felt bad); Being a summoned creature that changes when you choose a different statblock (and nothing is said about it being the same creature if you return to the previous statblock), you may be unable to stack permanent benefits (like True Polymorph or Wish-granted resistances) if you change at all; Bonus action economy gets weird once you involve a few of your spells in the mix (Shillelagh, Guardian of Nature, Misty Step).
Well, that is what I could gather about the change, I haven't seen it in action yet, who knows if there's something I didn't catch or that may change my mind. Anyway, thinking of adding a cantrip attack like Green-Flame Blade (along with Shillelagh) to seal the deal on the Ranger's damage output.
Giant crab might also be good for Avernus. I know some love the free grapple and the swim speed might help if swimming in blood and not lava. Giant frog with acid might also be ok.
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It seems like its the best we are going to get so I'm on board, I was always looking for another reason to load up more on Wis anyway. I prefer to think of it more of a call to my friend than a summon spell, basically I have 3 companions, one of land, one of sea and one of air and when I have need I call to the one of them. I pick and name each one, a coywolf named Terra, a sea turtle named Flotsam and a snowy owl named Garnet.
How about the damage output of the beast of the land at levels 11+? Compared to other ranger subclasses.
I'm almost set on making the change (through rebuilding) after my next adventure with my current Ranger. I've compared a few Beast Master builds around for a while, though not against other archetypes and only using the Panther as a pet for the PHB one (since the Wolf's Pack Tactics are not that shiny after you get access to Guardian of Nature, and Snakes are not really an option as this character is in Avernus and almost everything is immune to poison damage). What I found about the change to Tasha's feature so far is (for me):
The Good: "Proficiency" in all saving throws and skills (specially in Tier 4, saving throws are usually more important than even AC); Higher hit point maximum; Versatility (this is the big one, since you can cast stuff and do other things while your beast is still able to attack); Higher saving throw DC on knocking prone: Damage output is more evenly distributed between the Ranger and the Beast (this changes according to who's using the magic item attunements among you).
The Neutral: The damage peaks actually go down a bit, since the Panther used to get a whole extra attack against prone targets, though average damage is higher and probably makes up for it.
The Bad: Lower AC (barding no longer stacks proficiency bonus on top of it); Slightly lower bonus to hit (though the bonus is still so high this is almost irrelevant); Unable to choose a specific beast and get its special abilities (as my beast used to be a miniature displacer beast able to cast blur, this one felt bad); Being a summoned creature that changes when you choose a different statblock (and nothing is said about it being the same creature if you return to the previous statblock), you may be unable to stack permanent benefits (like True Polymorph or Wish-granted resistances) if you change at all; Bonus action economy gets weird once you involve a few of your spells in the mix (Shillelagh, Guardian of Nature, Misty Step).
Well, that is what I could gather about the change, I haven't seen it in action yet, who knows if there's something I didn't catch or that may change my mind. Anyway, thinking of adding a cantrip attack like Green-Flame Blade (along with Shillelagh) to seal the deal on the Ranger's damage output.
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Giant crab might also be good for Avernus. I know some love the free grapple and the swim speed might help if swimming in blood and not lava. Giant frog with acid might also be ok.