Ranger

Rangers are the defenders of their societies from the horrors that lurk beyond the borders of civilised lands. They are skilled in all the arts of survival in the wilderness. They habitually work alone, or in very small groups.

Rangers must abide by certain limitations:

1. First, the ranger must always remain of good alignment (lawful, neutral or chaotic). Any deliberate change in the ranger’s alignment away from good will result in the character becoming a mere fighter, with 8-sided hit dice, never able to regain ranger-hood. An unintentional change will transform the character into a fighter as above, but in this case, with sufficient questing and atonement, the ranger may be permitted to recover his or her status. The GM will determine the precise details of this process according to the situation.
2. Second, rangers may not employ mercenaries or servants until they reach 8th level or higher. Even once permitted, a ranger may not employ, or continue to employ, any mercenary or servant who he or she suspects (or ought to suspect) is not of good alignment.
3. Third, a maximum of three rangers may travel or operate together at any one time.
4. Fourth, rangers travel light and may not keep any more treasure than they can lift (including any amount the ranger can carry on his or her steed, if any, but not including any pack animal).

The Ranger Character

* Rangers are different from fighters and paladins in terms of hit points. Rangers roll 8-sided dice to determine their hp, but they receive two such dice at first level. They gain 1d8 per level thereafter until they achieve a ceiling of 11 hit dice (at tenth level).

Ranger Class Abilities

Alert Against Surprise: Rangers are less likely to be surprised (only on a 1 on 1d6), and more likely to surprise others (1-3 on 1d6) than other character classes.

Damage Bonus vs Humanoids: Rangers receive a bonus of +1 damage per ranger level against evil humanoid or giantish opponents (including such creatures as orcs, goblins, ogres and giants, for example). Thus, a 3rd level ranger would receive +3 damage per hit against these creatures. This damage bonus applies only in hand-to-hand “melee” combat.

Tracking: Rangers may track other creatures, with a base 90% chance (3+ on d20) of success in rural settings (modified by the GM according to such factors as the age of the trail, the prevailing terrain and current weather conditions) and a base 65% chance (8+ on d20) in urban or dungeon settings (again, modified by the GM to take account of local conditions).

Advanced Abilities

Bonus Attacks (8th): Rangers gain additional attacks as fighters do, but less swiftly. A ranger has one attack at 1st to 7th level, 3/2 attacks at 8th to 14th level, and two attacks at 15th and above. If the optional weapon specialisation rules are permitted by the GM, rangers may specialise as fighters do, save that they receive fewer proficiencies and gain extra attacks more slowly as described above.

Spell Casting (8th): At eighth level, rangers receive limited spell powers, drawn from the Druid and Magic user spell lists according to the table given hereafter.

Band of Followers (10th): Rangers of 10th level or higher receive a special body of followers. The GM will determine the exact nature of a ranger’s special followers, but the group may include unusual and magical creatures; centaurs and werebears, for example, would be possible followers.

Scrying Device Use (10th): Rangers of 10th level or higher may use crystal balls and other such devices that permit magical scrying.

* Constitution-based hp adjustments no longer apply

† 6th is the ceiling spell casting level for rangers.

Each level gained thereafter requires 325,000 additional experience points and gains 2hp.

NB: Rangers do not gain bonus druid spells for having high wisdom. This ability is limited to “true” priests, i.e. clerics or druids.