Ranger buff and rework

[licho]

Hello,

I think that rangers need a buff. Even if i have no problems playing one (actually it was either 18/1/1 or 12/7/1 so not pure ranger) it leave the feeling that any other class would perform better, and the best i can bring to party is my gear, rogue skills, ele resist and knowledge - and none of this is Ranger specific.

The problems of ranger i see:

I. Not fun class mechanic. There is 22 groups of FE, half of them are not used by anyone even if FE: "Halfings" is so tempting. The groups are greatly inbalanced in terms of popularity, and in the end everyone has very similar set varying only depending on temporary farm. Just compare Evil Otsiders vs Plant.

Also there is not much game around FE.
In comparison rogues with SA can build threat reduction items, can use skills, or weapons which grant temporary SA as well as play for SA (like let the sorcerer get whole agro) but you cant do much with FE.

II. Empty levels, Levels 1-6 of Ranger, are great. Like 7 free feats, Rams might, jump and 2 FE. Some best levels here. But after that there is only worse. After lv 11 (12 if we need tempest II) there is not much to look for.

III. Limited spell selection.
There is 16 spell slots, but how many of them are really cool and worth sloting, and cant be achieved by other means by everyone?
Jump, Resist, Ram, prot, Barksin, Fom, CSW. Thats 7/16.
There are some situacional like Tumble, Camuflage, and PTW.
Longstrider would be cool if Strider 30% wasnt a standard.
Moreover the cool stuff is mostly at tier 1,2 and 4.

IV. PL Active
While passive pl is great on the way to perfect artificer, the active seems pointless. Even more for second life Ranger.

V. No Capstone, half capstone. Melee rangers dont have captsone for them.
Even ranged are confusing, i doubt if any combat style is made right if it can be added 25% bonus AS just like that. But ranged combat is big topic for another time.

VI. Weak Temp III.
Tier III is generally place when classes get big stuff, like vorpals, or massive crits. 5% doublestrike just dont make it.

VII. Boring AA.
Arcane Archer by itself is little boring for me. What exacly it gives?
Slayer Arrow and...?
True Shot - does it have any use?
Conjure arrow - Pay 4AP for lv 1 Artificer spell. Does Rangers get any better deals?

VIII. CR 4 pets.
I dont care about pets, but CR4 pet at level 14+ is pure joke. It dont live long enough to be worth SP. And Shard of Xoriat (or GS elie) is more useful. Even PnP aproach (cr=cl/2) have more sense.

In short its hard to name what Rangers brings to the party beside gear and charming personally of player behind (always good to have) but what class brings? DPS - is not as big against FE not to speak outside list. Utylity 1d6 spells is not great buffing power. Resilence - ok maybe Rangers are hard to kill, especially while kitting long enought. But how good is that, does it help other party members which are less resilent. Or does it only makes Ranger the true piker class, you dont even need to watch the buff (unlike Bards) and nobody expects from you more than staying alive.

1. Favored Enemy rework
First step is to group better Favored Enemies, so there be less groups but each worth pick.
The selection:
- Natural Hazards: Plants, Animals, Vermins, magical beast
- Twisted Forms: Aberattions, Ozzies
- Humanoids: Any playable race (dwarf, human, drow, elf, halfing, Horc)
- Monsterous Humanoids: Gnolls, old Monsterous Humanoids, Orcs, Hobgoblins, reptiles.
- Big Game: Giants, Dragons and anything big enough.
- Undeads
- Constructs
- Elementals (featuring also neutral outsiders)
- Chaotic Outsiders
- Lawful Outsiders

Note: There is no more evil Outsiders, since this was a autopick. Yes some buffs are like nerfs. If you want evil outsider FE go play Pally.

Note: The enemies may be multiply type. So Giant sceleton counts as both big game and undead. Siilar dire bear is both kingsize and animal.

Note: Im little less sure about Humanoids and Monsterous Humanoids since this group seems like 1.5 value. But the any split will leave not so good groups, and most of this is just a trash.

2. New item enchantment: Trophy
If you posses FE class ability you gain +1 tohit, todmg, AC, saves against all your FE.

3. Add feats:
Dismiss Carm (lv1)
Dismiss Summon (lv4)

Are any comments needed?

4. Remove feat: Bow strenght
This feat is abomination and should never exist, the only purpose of it is to feat tax any bow combatant. It would be a reason if archery was super effective combat style but its quite opposite.
Does Sorcerers need to spend a feat to unlock Ice spells, or conjuration spells? So why no caster have to spend a feat to make combat style anything near viable. Even without bow strenght archery would suck in general, and even more before you sink in this several feats and PrEs.

The bow strenght effect is granted to all characters proficient with a bow including Elves and Silver Flame Divines.

Gnolish WarBow now grants Bow Proficiency, as well as SHocking Burst and PBS feat.

Unfortunetly Rangers dont get any feat back at lv 1 but will get some at lv 13+. (since they are already front loaded)

5. New/Old class ability: Natural Companion (ranger)
At level 4 Rangers get the class ability which allows to summon any of:
Dog, Wolf, Winter Wolf, Black Widow, Bear, Razor Cat, Lioness.
Some of them are unlocked at leiter levels, or need to charm a single creature of the type to unlock.
The CR of summoned creature is equal to ranger levels + some of ED.
So yes, you can summon cr 25 Wolf.
This is simple summon counting to summon limit. (not the summon hire as druids have).

Note: This is really optimal solution. The pet will not die so fast, and maybe will get some agro. But in the same time it will not create impression that rangers have great class feature so lets nerf everything else.

6. Real Capstone
If its possible to increase ROF for Archery by 25% just do it for all, its what players asked for long time. But dont make it ranger specific.

How Rangers SHould ended:
Fluffy text, +2dex, vorpal against FE.
+2 dex translates to all small stuff like To hit, ref seve, AC, skills.
And Vorpal is a dps boost Rangers deserve and need. Anything less will not stop me from splashing rogue and monk.

Note: Some creatures are not vorpalized but smited, distrupted, banished and like that.

7. Spell Selection
So we have 7 good spells. Just add 14 more for some choices and go on.

Tier 1
Surefoot - get a +5/10/15 enhacement bonus to balance score.
SweetBerries - creates a exclusive consuable which grants 10+1/2cl temporary HP, removes fatigue and restores single ability score lost.
Bowyer - summons stack of 1000 arrows with +1 enhancement which increase with CL up 2 +6. Not every AA is a ranger, not every ranger is AA.

Tier II
Claws of The Beast - You grow claws and can attack them as slashing weapon with base dmg of 1d6 (scaling with levels up to [2.5]1d6. You can use handwraps in that form. Also all natural weapon buffs work on you. If you slot the normal weapon the feat will still be active but take no effect.
Nature Favor - self or allied animal. Gain +1/+1 to hit to dmg bonus for short time.
Wind Wall - any projectives have a 50% to miss. This wall is actually sphere surroding Ranger so some of allies can use it as well.

Tier III
Darkvision - You ignore darkness even if vision may be colorless. So sad there is 1 quest to make use of it. So far.
Inspire Aim - allies in big radius gain +2 competence bonus to ranged attacks.
Waterbreath - why this spell isnt on ranger list?
Waterwalk - you can walk on the water and dont even need to move for that.
Bane weapon - your weapon gain bane enhancement against one of your FE (only from the short list). It dont stack with the same type. So not greater bane of bane. And counts toward enhancement weapon limit.

Tier IV
Mineral Dust - you cover your weapon with mineral dust, giving it mineral enhancement. It counts toward enhancement limit ( so no stacking with Deadly or fire and ice)
Vigor - The 1st3 tiers of vigor Rangers as well.
Repeal animal - Plants, Vermins and Animals cant aproach you without passing will save.(which can be problematic on ranger, but not against vermins)
Blindsight - Target is immune to blinding effects. Long lasting. Can be cast on friend.
Blades of Fire and Ice - Self only, demands 2wf. One of your blade is covered with Ice and second with Fire. (classic 1d6)
Gust of Wind - similar to Druid spell.
SweetBerries Mass - as tier 1 spell but for all.

8. Pick up class perks (lv 13, 16, 19)
Ranger after lv 12 do not gives much, and as no full caster class have empty levels. So the solution is to give some late levels class abilities similar to rogue one. The purpose of this would be to give the reason to stay ranger to the end instead of abandon after lv 12.

What could be picked at this levels:
- Of course Hide in plain sight - exept now it will be optional.
- Some Ranger related feats like: Oversized 2WF, Empower Healing, 2wf defense (and blocking), PBS, Tougness, Augment Summoning, whirwind attack.

Note: While Rangers still dont have Racial Tuffness enhancement, they could pick Tougness as class feat. So its same.

Unique perks:
- Mark of the hunter - you pick one enemy which is on your FE list. This single creature is now easier target for your comrades, and they gain +2 bonus to hit to dmg aoutattacking it.
- Alligned (requires FE X Outsider and opposite alligment) - your attacks are now threaten as alllignent (either chaotic or lawful).
- Salted (requires FE Natural Hazards) - you are now immune to non magical poisons and diseases.
- Sacred (requires FE Undead, must be good) - you are under pernament Deathblock effect.
- Blindfight - you cant be blinded, and reroll on concelment.
- Giant Hold (requires FE Big Game) - you gain .5[W] to your weapons. You are used to big things.
- Improved Evasion
- Disapear, perform a Stelth check as diplomacy effect. If succed yout got stealthed, and enemies around lose interest in you.
- Know Enemy (requires 16 lv of ranger) , choose a target which is not your FE. Perform roll: Ranger Level - Creature Level +wis+1d20-DC10. If succed then this creature race is considered your FE for next 30 sec.

9. Tempest rework:
You need just dodge and 2wf for Temp I
Temp I, Mobility and i2wf for Temp II
Temp II and spring attack and one of bonus feats for Temp III.
Tier I of PrE demanding 3 feats is just bad idea.

Temp II now Grants Deflect Arrows ability when dualwielding.
Temp III also grants full str to offhand attack.
Additionally grants clikie on longer cld (2 min)
Whirwind Tempest - for 20 sec you gain 30% Enchantment speed boost, same attack speed boost, and 30% chance to attack foes adjecent to your primary target.
Switching off 2wf ends it prematuraly.

10. Arcane Archer rework
AA is dump, all it brings is moar dmg. And Slayer Arrow makes all other imbues obsolete. The concjure arrows is tier 1 spell for 4 AP. Yay, thats the deal rangers live with.
Even Barbarians are funnier with supreme cleave clikie.
Moreoever AA is to good, so any archer build need to be HE. There is no space for Kensai Archers or Frienzied Archers.
Yes the AA should be nerfed in terms of pure dps, while the archery in general buffed.

How i see it:
AA I
- grants 1st imbue (force)
- grants concjure +1 (not all AA are rangers)
- grants explosive arrow clikie
AA II
- concjure +2
- grants True Shot clikie
AA III
- Concjure +3
- Imbue gains blast
- Elemental Prison clikie
AA IV
- Conjure + 4
- grants Fear Arrow strike
AA V
- Concjure +5
- Imbues are now with Burst
- Arcane Archer keen senses grants him pernament true seeing effect
AA VI (lv 20)
- Concjure +6
- Slay Arrow clikie.

Imbues unlock:
AA I grants only force one imbue. But starting from level 6 and AA I you can unlock other elements with 1 AP each.
Multiclasses give access to extra imbuses:
Wizard PM: Negative Energy Imbue
Cleric or FvS: LIgh imbue
Bard: Sonic Imbue
Note: Its impossible to unlock all imbues at level 6, but possible at 7.

Imbues:
- imbues is a static 1d6 for elements. blast at lv 12 adds bonus dmg on crits ( so its small boost). At lv 18 adds Burst.
- Force deals just 1d4 but it hits incorporals.
Cross class imbues also use 1d6 dice so its good deal, but you need to have any other PrE I.
- True Shot is clikie single shot which sets the dice to 20, which means any Vorpals, crits on. (20sp, 30sec)
- Explosive Shot deals additional Ranger Level 1d6 dmg of imbued element to main target and all around. (10sp, 15 sec)
- Fear Arrow is on demand shot with PD effects. If succed all enemies around are shaken. (60sec, 40sp)
- Slay Arrow is 250 untyped dmg and save or die roll of Ranger lv + d20 + wis mod vs enemy fortitude. (single shot) (50sp, 60sec)
- Ellemental prison depends on imbued element. (30sp, 30sec) and trigers CC effect with save (like 10+ranger level + wis mod vs save+1d20) Effect depends:
Ice prison
Earthgrab
Trip
MoltenLava - slow MS, AS and reduced healing effects.
Blind (light)
Stun (sonic)
Fear (negative energy)

All special shots cost small amount of SP, (well slaying arrow cost 50sp which is something) so playing AA better dont skip sp pool.

Elven AA use character levels instead of Ranger Levels.

11. Buff Ranger PL, especially active.
The passive is ok, sice elemental resist is always good, and even for melee ranger there are times when ranged dmg pays off. But active is poor, very poor.
This could stay:
Past Life: Ranger
+2 to elemental resistance
+2 to ranged dmg
+1 to spot and listen

This would be new Active PL:
Past Life: Warrior of the Wild
+ If you have FE class ability the effect of it increases by 1 (for tohit, dmg, saves, AC)
+ If you are dual wielding you gain 3% doublestrike.
+ You can produce 10 times per day one of effects: Jump, Barskin, longstrider which uses your character level as caster level.

So ranged rangers get a little more from passive, but 2wf rangers get more from active.
Other classes gain funny spell like abilities (not a big deal), and everyone gets 3% doublestrike while dualwielding.
Rangers with ranger PL have a boost to FE. (similar to monks)


And thats it.

Final Note:
Im not balancing future rangers with nowadays Paladins.
Im balancing future rangers with todays Wizards.