Ranger

Coated with leaves, branches, and soot, a human stalks alone through the shadows of trees, skulking behind a pack of trolls marked by a bounty. Clutching a shortsword in each hand, he becomes a whirlwind of steel, cutting down one enemy after another.

A half-orc, eyes burning with anger, quickly deflects the magical influence of an vampire. As her comrades rush in to flank the hissing monster, she trains her crossbow at its chest. Muttering under her breath, she looses a bolt.

Holding her hand high, a half-elf whistles to the hawk that circles high above her, calling the bird back to her side. Whispering instructions in Elvish, she points to the owlbear she's been tracking and sends the hawk to distract the creature while she rushes in, pulling the maul off her back.

Far from the bustle of cities and towns, the biting wind whistles as a cloaked man stalks through tall, dead grass amid the cold tundras of winter. Crouching low, he examines a large set of tracks as a shadow slowly looms over the hill. He looks up, tightening his grip on the bow in his hand.

Independent Adventurers

Though a ranger might make a living as a hunter, a guide, or a tracker, a ranger's true calling is to adapt to and master the physical world around them. In some places, rangers gather in secretive orders or join forces with druidic circles. Many rangers are independent almost to a fault, knowing that, when a dragon or a band of orcs attacks, a ranger might be the first - and possibly the last - line of defense.

This fierce independence makes rangers well suited to adventuring, since they are accustomed to life far from the comforts of a dry bed and a hot bath. Faced with city-bred adventurers who grouse and whine about the hardships of the wild, rangers respond with some mixture of amusement, frustration, and compassion. But they quickly learn that other adventurers who can carry their own weight in a fight against a merciless foe in the wild are worth any extra burden. Coddled city folk might not know how to feed themselves or find fresh water in the wild, but they make up for it in other ways.

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Art by Will O'Brien

Fighting Style

At 1st level, you adopt a particular style of fighting as your specialty. Choose one of the following options. You can't take a Fighting Style option more than once, even if you later get to choose again.

Ranger Conclave

Starting at 1st level, you choose to emulate the ideology, training, or legacy of a ranger conclave. Your choice grants you features at 1st level and again at 3rd, 7th, 11th, and 15th level.

Ranger's Quarry

At 2nd level, it takes but a moment to size up an enemy. As an action or as part of an attack against a target that you can see, you mark your target as your quarry. The mark lasts until the target falls to 0 hit points or until you take a short or long rest. You may have a number of quarries as described in the Ranger class table. A creature can only have one mark at a time.

Once per turn you may make a weapon attack against a creature marked by you if it makes an attack or uses an action that does not include you as its target. This attack does not use your reaction and does not count as an opportunity attack.

You also gain advantage in Perception and Survival checks made to track a quarry.

Wayfarer

Starting at 2nd level, you are more than adaptable enough traverse, survive, and guide in the wilds. You gain proficiency in the Survival skill if you do not already have it. You add double your proficiency bonus to checks using this skill instead of your normal proficiency bonus.

Additionally, once per long rest, whenever you or an ally spends a hit dice to restore hit points during a short rest, each creature that spent a hit die may regain additional hitpoints equal to 1d6 + half your ranger level.

You also learn an additional language when you gain this feature. You learn another language at 14th level.

Overtaker

Starting at 3rd level, you gain advantage on initiative rolls. Additionally, on your first turn in combat, you have advantage on attack rolls against creatures have not yet acted.

Ability Score Improvement

When you reach 4th level, and again at 8th, 12th, 16th, and 19th level, you can increase one ability score of your choice by 2, or you can increase two ability scores of your choice by 1. As normal, you can’t increase an ability score above 20 using this feature.

Extra Attack

Beginning at 5th level, you can attack twice, instead of once, whenever you take the Attack action on your turn.

Dire Pursuit

At 6th level, if the target of your ranger's quarry feature ends its turn at least 5 feet away, you can use a reaction to move up to your movement speed. Moving this way does not provoke opportunity attacks and ignores difficult terrain.

Hide in Plain Sight

Starting at 6th level, you can spend 1 minute to don or doff camouflage over your armor and clothing. To do so, you must have access to fresh mud, dirt, plants, soot, or other naturally occurring materials with which to create your camouflage. This camouflage lasts until removed or destroyed by rough conditions.

Once you are camouflaged in this way, while you press against a solid surface, such as a tree or wall, that is at least as tall and as wide as you are, you gain a +10 bonus to Dexterity (Stealth) checks.

To remain camouflaged in this way while within a creature's sight, you can't move more than 5 feet during a single turn or take any actions; once you do, you must remain unseen by that creature for at least 1 full round while camouflaged to regain this benefit.

Fleet of Foot

Beginning at 8th level, you can use the Dash action as a bonus action on your turn.

Pathfinder

Starting at 9th level, you ignore the effects of nonmagical difficult terrain.

In addition, you have advantage on saving throws against plants that are magically created or manipulated to impede movement, such as those created by the entangle spell

Evasion

Starting at 10th level, when you are subjected to an effect, such as a red dragon’s fiery breath or a Lightning Bolt spell, that allows you to make a Dexterity saving throw to take only half damage, you instead take no damage if you succeed on the saving throw, and only half damage if you fail.

Seasoned Traveler

Starting at 13th level, your travels have led you to a complete understanding of the natural realm.

You and your party have advantage on saving throws against conditions caused by weather, and no longer suffer penalties for traveling at a fast pace.

Additionally, you can no longer be surprised while resting on your travels.

Vanish

Starting at 14th level, you can use the Hide action as a bonus action on your turn. Also, you can't be tracked by nonmagical means, unless you choose to leave a trail.

Feral Senses

At 18th level, you gain preternatural senses that help you fight creatures you can’t see. When you attack a creature you can’t see, your inability to see it doesn’t impose disadvantage on your attack rolls against it. You are also aware of the location of any invisible creature within 30 feet of you, provided that the creature isn’t hidden from you and you aren’t blinded or deafened.

Savage Sovereign

At 20th level, your familiarity with the wilds causes those around you to instinctively follow your lead. All allied creatures that can see you benefit from the fleet of foot, pathfinder, evasion, and vanish features.

Additionally, you can now mark an additional two targets using your ranger's quarry feature.

Art by Cristi-B

Ranger Conclaves

The ranger has two classic expressions: The Hunter and the Beast Master. However, there are countless others: Gloom Stalker, Horizon Walker, Monster Slayer, and many more.

Companion's Bond

Starting at 3rd level, you bond with your companion is greatly strengthened.

Your animal companion gains proficiency in saving throws you know and can benefit from your ranger's quarry feature.

Your animal companion uses your proficiency bonus rather than its own. In addition to the areas where it normally uses its proficiency bonus, an animal companion also adds that bonus to its AC.

Additionally, for each level you gain after 3rd, your animal companion gains an additional hit die and increases its hit points accordingly. Whenever you gain the Ability Score Improvement class feature, your companion's ability scores also improve under the same restrictions as you.

Additionally, when you gain the extra attack feature, you may have your companion make one attack in place of you when both you and your companion take the Attack action on your turn.

Bolstered Predator

At 7th level, your bond with your companion has allowed it transcend into an prime specimen of its type. The hit die of your companion increases by one size, increasing its health accordingly. Additionally, its attacks are considered magical for overcoming immunities and resistances.

Storm of Claws and Fangs

At 11th level, as a bonus action, your companion can use its action to make a melee attack against each creature of its choice within 5 feet of it, with a separate attack roll for each target.

Additionally, your companion may benefit from your dire pursuit class feature.

Defensive Teamwork

At 15th level, whenever a creature that you or your companion can see hits it with an attack, the other can use its reaction to halve the damage taken from the attack if it is adjacent to the target.

Gloom Stalker

Gloom Stalkers are at home in the darkest places: deep under the earth, in gloomy alleyways, in primeval forests, and wherever else the light dims. Most folk enter such places with trepidation, but a Gloom Stalker ventures boldly into the darkness, seeking to ambush threats as they stalk the inky veils. Such rangers are often found in the Underdark, but they lurk in every place where the light doesn't reach.

Horizon Walker

Horizon Walkers watch the other planes, seeking out planar portals for one reason or another; venturing to the Inner and Outer Planes as necessary. These rangers are also acquainted to many forces in the multiverse - especially those that are well aware of the natural order and balance of the planes.

Planar Warrior

At 3rd level, you learn to draw on the energy of the multiverse to augment your attacks.

As a bonus action, choose one creature you can see within 30 feet of you. The next time you hit that creature on this turn with a weapon attack, all damage dealt by the attack becomes force damage, and the creature takes an extra 1d8 force damage from the attack.

You may use this feature as part of your attack if your target is also the target of your ranger's quarry. If you do, the additional 1d8 damage is reduced to 1d4 damage.

When you reach 11th level in this class, the extra damage increases to 2d8. Additionally at 11th level, if you use this feature against your quarry as part of the attack, the damage increases to 2d4.

Ethereal Step

At 7th level, you learn to step through the Ethereal Plane. As a bonus action, you can cast the etherealness spell with this feature, without expending a spell slot, but the spell ends at the end of the current turn.

Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a short or long rest.

Distant Strike

At 11th level, you gain the ability to rapidly pass between the planes in the blink of an eye. When you take the Attack action, you can teleport up to 10 feet before each attack to an unoccupied space you can see.

If you attack at least two different creatures with the action, you can make one additional attack with it against a third creature.

Spectral Defense

At 15th level, your ability to move between planes enables you to slip through the planar boundaries to lessen the harm done to you during battle. When you take damage from an attack, you can use your reaction to give yourself resistance to all of that attack's damage on this turn.

Monster Slayer

You have dedicated yourself to hunting down creatures of the night and wielders of grim magic. A Monster Slayer seeks out vampires, dragons, fey, fiends, and other beings that may wield magic. Trained to hyper-refine focus, Slayers are experts at unearthing and defeating mighty, mystical foes.

Wildheart

You have an innate connection with nature that goes beyond that of your peers. A Wildheart truly protects the line between civilization and nature, letting neither consume the other. They use primal energies surrounding them to augment their physical prowess.

Shamanic Fighting

Beginning at 11th level, you learn how to weave spells using successful strikes. Once on each of your turns, if you successfully hit with both attacks using your Attack action, you may cast a cantrip or a 1st-level spell as a bonus action. The spell must have a casting time of 1 action and must be from the druid or ranger spell list. You can use this feature a number of times equal to your Wisdom modifier (minimum of once). You regain all uses after a long rest.

Primal Conduit

At 15th level, you learn one 5th level spell from the druid or ranger spell list. You may cast spells gained from this feature once per long rest. You may change this spell to another 5th level spell from the druid or ranger spell list when you gain a level in this class.

You gain a second 5th level spell and usage at 17th level, and a third spell and usage at 20th level.

Appendix

Credits!

I, No Laifu, don't own ANY of the pieces of art used in this document, nor do I profit from any of them, nor do I intend to profit from any of them in any capacity. If this document is circulated at cost, it is being sold illegally.

• Image on Page 1 is made and owned by Will O'Brien (source: http://www.epilogue.net/art/45522-ranger).

• Image on Page 7 is made and owned by Cristi-B (source: https://www.deviantart.com/cristi-b/art/Falconer-349601676)