D&D (2024) 2024 Player's Handbook reveal: "New Ranger"

"More than any other class, the ranger is a new class."

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It has been a year (less a day) since we last saw the Ranger in UA Playtest 6. There still could be a lot of change. My sense is that they are more or less happy with three of the subclasses (Fey Wanderer, Beastmaster, and Gloom Stalker), but many questions remain: Will anyone be happy with the favored enemy/relation to the land abilities? Will Hunter's Mark be foregrounded in multiple abilities? Will rangers at least get a free casting of the Barrage/Volley spells? For the Hunter, will the "Superior" abilties at levels 11 and 15 continue to be things you didn't choose at lower levels? For the Gloom Stalker, will they pull out 3rd level invisibility from "Umbral Sight"? Any chance for a surprise substitution of the Horizon Walker? Let's find out.

OVERVIEW

• "widely played, but ... one of the lowest rated"
• Spellcasting and Weapon Mastery at 1 (as with Paladin). Spellcasting can change spells after long rest (not every level)
• NEW: Favored Enemy: Hunters Mark always prepared, and X castings per day. (was level 2 in PT6, where it was WIS times/day)
• NEW: Fighting Style at 2 (no limits on choice). or you may choose two cantrips (again, like Paladin).
• NEW: Deft Explorer at 3: expertise in a proficient skill, +2 languages. NO INTERACTION WITH LAND TYPES. This is a nerf from PT6, where at least you got a bonus to Intelligence (Nature) checks.
• Extra attack at 5, Roving at 6 (+10' move, Climb Speed, Swim speed).
• Two more expertise options, at 9, presumably. Compared to the playtest, this is a nerf: PT6 gave 1 expertise, the spell Conjure Barrage always prepared, and +2 land types for Explorer. These had problems, but it's a lot to lose for one additional expertise.
• At 10, Tireless (as in PT6) -- THP and reduced Exhaustion.
• NEW: At 13, Damage no longer breaks concentration with Hunter's Mark.
• At 14, Nature's Veil -- invisibility. At 18, Blindsight.
• NEW: At 17, advantage vs person marked with Hunter's Mark.
• NEW: Damage of Hunter's mark increases to d10, not d6. (This too is a nerf from the playtest, which gave +WIS to hit, and +WIS to damage.)

The clear expectation is you are using Hunter's Mark, occupying your concentration and taking your first Bonus action every combat, from levels 1-20.

SUBCLASSES
Beastmaster

• command Primal Beast as a bonus action, and higher level abilities as in PT6, apparently.
• stat blocks level up with you (as in Tasha's and PT6). Beast gets Hunter's Mark benefits at 11.

Fey Wanderer

• vague on specifics; apparently just as in Tasha's.

Gloom Stalker

• as in PT6, Psychic damage bonus a limited number of times per day. +WIS to initiative (cf. Assassin and Barbarian)
• Umbral Sight, darkvision bonus, and invisible in the dark.
• NEW: psychic damage goes up at level 11. Mass fear option of Sudden Strike mentioned, nothing about Sudden Strike.

Hunter.

• Hunter's Lore at 3: know if there are immunities/resistances of creature marked by Hunter's Mark.
• NEW: Hunter's Prey at 3: you have a choice and can change your choice every short/long rest.
• NEW: Defensive Tactics at 7: you have a choice, and again can choose after a rest. The choices are Escape the Horde, Multiattack defense (not Evasion, Uncanny Dodge, and Hunter's Leap, as in PT6).
• NEW: At 11, Hunter's mark now "splashes" damage onto another target.
• NEW: you can choose to take resistance to damage, until the end of your turn.

 

[Minigiant]

Early on, yes. Increasing damage, but it only applied to 1 attack.

Then they reversed that.

Yeah.

Just check the article

"Foe Slayer — Level 20

Hunter’s Mark now deals 1d10 Force damage on a hit instead of 1d6. Between Favored Enemy giving you free castings of this spell, Relentless Hunter protecting your Concentration from being broken, and Precise Hunter giving you Advantage on marked targets, the level 20 Ranger is now a master combatant"

See what I did there. I like both classes, but I really don't see what Ranger has (outside of Beast Master) that would be temptingly unique.

I was half being serious half cheeky.

I can think of a few unique nonmagical things a ranger who have different from a fighter.

But the community isn't there yet creatively. So a nonmagical ranger today would be stealing fighters' stuff like 4em

 

[mellored]

Yeah, because Nick exists, TWF Ranger seems to be a thing. Sadly, I cannot see a reason to go two-handed Str Ranger...

4d6 maul + 2d6 HM + 10 Str
= 6d6+10
Vs
2d6 short sword + 1d6 scimitar + 3d6 HM + 10 Dex
= 6d6 + 10

Ignoring fighting style, feats, stats, ect.. it's equal.

Though levels 1-4, two weapon will be ahead.

 

[Charlaquin]

They tried Druid Templates but got some hard pushback from part of the community (they say it has a 50/50 split for/against Shapeshift Templates). I myself would have loved templates, but with more options than they tested (burrow, size, etc.)

I think a huge part of the problem was that the templates were divided along terrain lines instead of along lines of actual utility. I’m a fan of the idea of templates, but I would want a Scout template, a Steed template, a Skirmisher template, and a Defender template, not the air/land/sea breakdown of the beastmaster.

 

[SteveC]

I've always thought the Ranger was a strange class in 5E. I don't know that there's anything wrong with it, but it's odd that like I've seen a Paladin in every campaign I've played in, I've never seen a Ranger. We had a player who was going to play a Gloom Stalker (and I was excited because I could see how they would play) but then they couldn't make the timing for the game. So I've never actually seen one in play.

 

[fluffybunbunkittens]

Ignoring fighting style, feats, stats, ect.. it's equal.

The question is more like, does Ranger get anything from 2h approach, compared to being a 2h Fighter or Barbarian? Their damage adds are not nearly as conditional, or actively limiting (PAM/GWM also want your bonus action).

 

[Marandahir]

Choice selective quoting time! I like both classes, but I really don't see what Ranger has (outside of Beast Master) that would be temptingly unique (or not achieved via a small dip).

Dip should never be assumed as baseline. Most players never want to touch multiclassing to achieve their character archetype due to missing out on endgame levels (might be less of an issue now that you can level up past 20th) or at the very least the slower leveling of power.

I do think you could make a Ranger Archetype Fighter, and the Arcane Archer with the Nature skill choice gets close to some Ranger concepts, as would taking the Eldritch Knight and swapping out spell choices and a few features. But I also think this undervalues the Ranger as an Expert Gish – it's 1/4 Rogue, 1/4 Fighter, and 1/2 Druid, sort of like how the Bard is a mix of Rogue, Druid, and Sorcerer.

I think the calls for Martial Ranger class highlight the overlap with Rogue and Fighter – something that the magical druidic stuff helps differentiate it. I also like the Breath of the Wild stamina/exploration features in the Tasha and 2024 Rangers, which definitely lean a different direction than any of its related classes.

 

[fluffybunbunkittens]

Most players never want to touch multiclassing

Then they don't care about optimizing, and the usefulness/power of different classes doesn't really matter to them.

Though I do think it would be a lot healthier to ban multiclassing, but that requires a GM ready to be the bad guy.

missing out on endgame levels

I am not even going to pretend that people who play from 1 to 20 are a meaningful portion of the crowd.

 

[UngeheuerLich]

Not a big fan of the Hunters splash damage.

To me the Hunter was the martial option that does all plausible martial stuff and let you pick subtler spells as a Warrior with wilderness tricks.

Everything is better than 2014 multiattack.

 

[Marandahir]

Then they don't care about optimizing, and the usefulness/power of different classes doesn't really matter to them.

Though I do think it would be a lot healthier to ban multiclassing, but that requires a GM ready to be the bad guy.

I am not even going to pretend that people who play from 1 to 20 are a meaningful portion of the crowd.

It's not about getting to 20th Level. It's about seeing that 20th level endgame feature, and realizing that if you multiclass NOW, you're cutting yourself off from your endgame powers. The FOMO for something you're they're not even going to get to scares off players.

Multiclassing is also just very janky and really for the dials-and-levers players (such as 3.5e CharOp fans). Many MANY players were options paralyzed by feat and spell choice before more guidance has been provided.

You shouldn't have to be a CharOp to achieve a classic archetype. That's why the Eldritch Knight is a subclass and not just assuming you can MC Fighter with Wizard.

 

[Minigiant]

Multiclassing before level 5 is a self nerf for 90% of builds.

Everything is better than 2014 multiattack.

Volley is better than 1d6 splash damage.