I tried to balance this as best I could, of course wording will need to be done correctly but this is a draft. Thanks in advance. 3rd level ability I balanced against other rangers getting usually an extra flat d8 on every turn hitting at about 65% of the time. This ability could be bad unless you are strategically using it to give your crits to allies who can smite or sneak attack. Or use big dmg spells with atk rolls. 7th level ability maybe needs a limit on how much you can do it, but I wanted to reward rangers for making checks to find out information about what kind of creatures they were fighting etc. The 11th level ability I took straight from a UA fighter subclass. It feels very Ranger to me, and that was the goal here. The 15th level feature I obviously wanted to be powerful and I feel like it is. My goal was to make a Ranger subclass that was helpful to a party that rewarded players for doing things like scouting and making good survival and nature checks. I feel like this is a good subclass, probably the best Ranger but I don’t think it feels broken. I feel like I want to give it a spell list like other rangers have but idk. I was thinking like Grease, Earthbind, Tiny Servant, Fabricate and Mislead.
Ranger Subclass: Guardian
3rd level
When you roll a 20 on an attack roll you can choose not to roll double your damage die. Instead you can choose an ally you can see and, the next time they hit with an attack, they can roll double the damage die for their attack.
7th level
As a bonus action you give (wisdom mod) allies +2 to AC, as well as attack and damage rolls against a chosen creature type on their next turn in combat.
11th level
You don’t have disadvantage against creatures adjacent to you with ranged weapon attacks. Additionally, if you hit a creature with a ranged weapon attack within 5ft of you, that creature loses their reaction.
15th level
As an action, Choose a creature type, the next time (wisdom mod) allies take damage from that creature they take half damage. Once per long rest.
When you roll a 20 on an attack roll you can choose not to roll double your damage die. Instead you can choose an ally you can see and, the next time they hit with an attack, they can roll double the damage die for their attack.
I like this, but I am trying to logic it out. I get how Grave Domain for Clerics do this, but exactly how is your Ranger doing this? How is the Ranger transfering over a crit from "their" attack, and is that for magic and melee? If you can think of how this works, then excellent. If you cannot think of a good Ranger way for this to happen, then maybe, just a thought, if you choose not to crit and the creature is marked...for the duration of Mark everyone now has advantage attacking that creature, and all benefit from the hunter's mark damage...?
UPDATE: also, for a level 3 ability this is very limited, based upon how little people roll 20's etc.
7th level
As a bonus action you give (wisdom mod) allies +2 to AC, as well as attack and damage rolls against a chosen creature type on their next turn in combat.
Yes this must be limited in use, I suggest the proficiency bonus. That way it is limited, but will scale in uses as you level. Also, the sentence is a little unclear...exactly what do they get for attack and damage roles...+2? Also, what chosen monster type, just anything that round? Based upon what you typed in the opening paragraph, do you mean for the Ranger here to use insight to understand a chosen creature, after having done so allies get said bonuses? This should maybe give expertise to insight (or whatever you want to use here), and the said affects only happen if the Ranger successfully checks the creature? If not insight, whatever proficiency you deem correct for this etc...
15th level
As an action, Choose a creature type, the next time (wisdom mod) allies take damage from that creature they take half damage. Once per long rest.
This works. Just a thought...maybe any creatures that are successfully checked by the 7th level ability get the damage reduced by half in general. That way it is a bit more Guardian like, and it can be used on a few more creatures or encounters, based upon your prof modifier?
Thanks for the feedback, so what I originally had for the 3rd level ability was that when the Ranger rolls a 20 he can transfer his ability to roll double die to an ally who can maybe smite or sneak attack or use it for a big inflict wounds. Then on top of that, when an ally rolls a 20, say while you’re within 60ft the next time you deal damage, you double your die. That way the ability balances out a little better as far as damage across a session. The lore, call it that, behind that is that you’re opening up weaknesses for your teammates. Shooting a creature in its knee to slow it down etc. Calling out an opening with your critical success etc.
Originally the 3rd level ability was stacked with the 11th level ability as well, and they got the 7th level eagle totem barb ability as well to see clearly up to a mile.
For the 7th level ability my logic was, you are fighting a creature or tracking one. You pass some checks to find out the creature type, then since you know what creature type you’re fighting (undead, beast, etc) you can give yourself and your team a bonus across the board against that creature type. +2 AC against any attacks from that creature type and then when you target that creature type with any attacks +2 to atk and dmg rolls. This was gonna last a minute but I wanted it to be a versatile ability because you may face two or three different creature types and being able to as a bonus action activate it for a turn and give your team a boost is nice and rewarding. You rollplayed your way to that advantage using mechanics.
Thanks for your feedback though. I’ve been playtesting this class with a home brew race I’ve made which is basically just a Dryad, I started with wood elf base took away sleep charm immune added magic resistance (gnome cunning basically) took away everything else except dark vision, then took 5+ to speed and added tree stride from the dryad creature stats. which is basically 10ft of movement you can teleport 60ft between trees if they’re big enough. I love rangers but they’ve always been so lackluster to me, so I wanted something we could add to our games that made rangers feel good to play.
What did you think of the subclass spell list? Grease, Earthbind, Tiny Servant, Fabricate and Mislead? I wanted it all to be very practical magic to match the resourcefulness I think of when I think Ranger
Ah ok, so for the D20 role, when you give the crit to someone else it will be "only" one the creature you already attacked, not just a random one right? If so, that then makes sense how your Ranger is doing this yes. Ok here is a thought again, I mentioned in my update edit, that this was a little lackluster for a lvl 3, because in my mind the lvl 3 ability should be something that is used more, as you have it for your whole characters build. So only being able to use this on a crit, will limit the use of this greatly. Could there be something that provides the use of mark damage, or you have to use a bonus action to roll a survival check or insight check and if successful the selected team mates get advantage, this is then available based on your wis modifier when you call out, like you said, the arrow to the knee? That way you get something to use from lvl 3-20 that is useful? Then the bonus of this ability is the D20 crit option?
Anyhow my main point is, the lvl 3 ability need something usable in normal situation imo.
Spells - being a Guardian and observant, True Seeing? Though that might be too high level at 6th? Find the Path, another 6th lvl spell though...? That is about all I can think of right now.
Yeah okay, I think that’s something I will consider. I was afraid of the ability being too powerful at 3rd level. I appreciate the feedback and I am gonna retool the character and try it after that.
I think this is gonna be a revision for this class. To make it simpler and effective. I need to word things ofc but I like this better but it seems far far more powerful.
3rd level
No disadvantage at close range with ranged weapons, when you hit an enemy with a Ranged weapon at close range they lose their reaction.
Additionally, when a creature within 60ft of you rolls a 20 on an attack roll (ally or enemy), you and any ally you can see gain +10 to damage rolls until the end of your next turn.
7th level ability
As a reaction you and prof bonus allies can immediately move up to your speed without provoking opportunity attacks. 1 use, regain all uses long rest.
11th level
Creatures more than 30ft away from you take 1d8 extra damage on hit with ranged weapons. Creatures less than 10ft away from you are slowed by 10ft on hit.
15th level
Gain the following:
You can see clearly up to a mile in dim light and darkness. (1 mile dark vision).
(Some way to give a surprise round to the team once a day if some circumstances are met) Haven’t fiured it out yet.
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I tried to balance this as best I could, of course wording will need to be done correctly but this is a draft. Thanks in advance. 3rd level ability I balanced against other rangers getting usually an extra flat d8 on every turn hitting at about 65% of the time. This ability could be bad unless you are strategically using it to give your crits to allies who can smite or sneak attack. Or use big dmg spells with atk rolls.
7th level ability maybe needs a limit on how much you can do it, but I wanted to reward rangers for making checks to find out information about what kind of creatures they were fighting etc. The 11th level ability I took straight from a UA fighter subclass. It feels very Ranger to me, and that was the goal here. The 15th level feature I obviously wanted to be powerful and I feel like it is. My goal was to make a Ranger subclass that was helpful to a party that rewarded players for doing things like scouting and making good survival and nature checks. I feel like this is a good subclass, probably the best Ranger but I don’t think it feels broken. I feel like I want to give it a spell list like other rangers have but idk. I was thinking like Grease, Earthbind, Tiny Servant, Fabricate and Mislead.
Ranger Subclass: Guardian
3rd level
When you roll a 20 on an attack roll you can choose not to roll double your damage die. Instead you can choose an ally you can see and, the next time they hit with an attack, they can roll double the damage die for their attack.
7th level
As a bonus action you give (wisdom mod) allies +2 to AC, as well as attack and damage rolls against a chosen creature type on their next turn in combat.
11th level
You don’t have disadvantage against creatures adjacent to you with ranged weapon attacks. Additionally, if you hit a creature with a ranged weapon attack within 5ft of you, that creature loses their reaction.
15th level
As an action, Choose a creature type, the next time (wisdom mod) allies take damage from that creature they take half damage. Once per long rest.
3rd level
When you roll a 20 on an attack roll you can choose not to roll double your damage die. Instead you can choose an ally you can see and, the next time they hit with an attack, they can roll double the damage die for their attack.
I like this, but I am trying to logic it out. I get how Grave Domain for Clerics do this, but exactly how is your Ranger doing this? How is the Ranger transfering over a crit from "their" attack, and is that for magic and melee? If you can think of how this works, then excellent. If you cannot think of a good Ranger way for this to happen, then maybe, just a thought, if you choose not to crit and the creature is marked...for the duration of Mark everyone now has advantage attacking that creature, and all benefit from the hunter's mark damage...?
UPDATE: also, for a level 3 ability this is very limited, based upon how little people roll 20's etc.
7th level
As a bonus action you give (wisdom mod) allies +2 to AC, as well as attack and damage rolls against a chosen creature type on their next turn in combat.
Yes this must be limited in use, I suggest the proficiency bonus. That way it is limited, but will scale in uses as you level. Also, the sentence is a little unclear...exactly what do they get for attack and damage roles...+2? Also, what chosen monster type, just anything that round? Based upon what you typed in the opening paragraph, do you mean for the Ranger here to use insight to understand a chosen creature, after having done so allies get said bonuses? This should maybe give expertise to insight (or whatever you want to use here), and the said affects only happen if the Ranger successfully checks the creature? If not insight, whatever proficiency you deem correct for this etc...
15th level
As an action, Choose a creature type, the next time (wisdom mod) allies take damage from that creature they take half damage. Once per long rest.
This works. Just a thought...maybe any creatures that are successfully checked by the 7th level ability get the damage reduced by half in general. That way it is a bit more Guardian like, and it can be used on a few more creatures or encounters, based upon your prof modifier?
Anyhow, keep it up!
Thanks for the feedback, so what I originally had for the 3rd level ability was that when the Ranger rolls a 20 he can transfer his ability to roll double die to an ally who can maybe smite or sneak attack or use it for a big inflict wounds. Then on top of that, when an ally rolls a 20, say while you’re within 60ft the next time you deal damage, you double your die. That way the ability balances out a little better as far as damage across a session. The lore, call it that, behind that is that you’re opening up weaknesses for your teammates. Shooting a creature in its knee to slow it down etc. Calling out an opening with your critical success etc.
Originally the 3rd level ability was stacked with the 11th level ability as well, and they got the 7th level eagle totem barb ability as well to see clearly up to a mile.
For the 7th level ability my logic was, you are fighting a creature or tracking one. You pass some checks to find out the creature type, then since you know what creature type you’re fighting (undead, beast, etc) you can give yourself and your team a bonus across the board against that creature type. +2 AC against any attacks from that creature type and then when you target that creature type with any attacks +2 to atk and dmg rolls. This was gonna last a minute but I wanted it to be a versatile ability because you may face two or three different creature types and being able to as a bonus action activate it for a turn and give your team a boost is nice and rewarding. You rollplayed your way to that advantage using mechanics.
Thanks for your feedback though. I’ve been playtesting this class with a home brew race I’ve made which is basically just a Dryad, I started with wood elf base took away sleep charm immune added magic resistance (gnome cunning basically) took away everything else except dark vision, then took 5+ to speed and added tree stride from the dryad creature stats. which is basically 10ft of movement you can teleport 60ft between trees if they’re big enough. I love rangers but they’ve always been so lackluster to me, so I wanted something we could add to our games that made rangers feel good to play.
What did you think of the subclass spell list? Grease, Earthbind, Tiny Servant, Fabricate and Mislead? I wanted it all to be very practical magic to match the resourcefulness I think of when I think Ranger
Ah ok, so for the D20 role, when you give the crit to someone else it will be "only" one the creature you already attacked, not just a random one right? If so, that then makes sense how your Ranger is doing this yes. Ok here is a thought again, I mentioned in my update edit, that this was a little lackluster for a lvl 3, because in my mind the lvl 3 ability should be something that is used more, as you have it for your whole characters build. So only being able to use this on a crit, will limit the use of this greatly. Could there be something that provides the use of mark damage, or you have to use a bonus action to roll a survival check or insight check and if successful the selected team mates get advantage, this is then available based on your wis modifier when you call out, like you said, the arrow to the knee? That way you get something to use from lvl 3-20 that is useful? Then the bonus of this ability is the D20 crit option?
Anyhow my main point is, the lvl 3 ability need something usable in normal situation imo.
Spells - being a Guardian and observant, True Seeing? Though that might be too high level at 6th? Find the Path, another 6th lvl spell though...? That is about all I can think of right now.
Yeah okay, I think that’s something I will consider. I was afraid of the ability being too powerful at 3rd level. I appreciate the feedback and I am gonna retool the character and try it after that.
I think this is gonna be a revision for this class. To make it simpler and effective. I need to word things ofc but I like this better but it seems far far more powerful.
3rd level
No disadvantage at close range with ranged weapons, when you hit an enemy with a Ranged weapon at close range they lose their reaction.
Additionally, when a creature within 60ft of you rolls a 20 on an attack roll (ally or enemy), you and any ally you can see gain +10 to damage rolls until the end of your next turn.
7th level ability
As a reaction you and prof bonus allies can immediately move up to your speed without provoking opportunity attacks. 1 use, regain all uses long rest.
11th level
Creatures more than 30ft away from you take 1d8 extra damage on hit with ranged weapons. Creatures less than 10ft away from you are slowed by 10ft on hit.
15th level
Gain the following:
You can see clearly up to a mile in dim light and darkness. (1 mile dark vision).
(Some way to give a surprise round to the team once a day if some circumstances are met) Haven’t fiured it out yet.