Ranger
Animal Companion
Unlike most class talents, this talent takes up two ranger class talent slots.
You have a normal-sized animal companion that fights alongside you in battle. See Animal Companion Rules.
If you would rather have a smaller beast as a pet, see the Ranger's Pet talent.
Animal Companion Rules
You have a devoted animal companion who fights alongside you like a member of your adventuring party.
Recoveries
Add two recoveries to your total recoveries. You can use a recovery on yourself or your animal companion.
Actions
Your animal companion acts on your initiative turn, either immediately before or after you, depending on the animal type.
Your animal companion moves gets a move action and a standard action, but not a quick action.
If you have powers that care about the 'first time you attack an enemy,' an attack by your animal companion counts as your attack.
Animal Harm
Your animal companion can be healed like an ally. If it gets healed without you being healed, it uses one of your recoveries. When you use a recovery while next to your animal companion (including being engaged with the same enemy), your animal companion is also healed using a free recovery.
Instead of dying like a monster or NPC at 0 hp, your animal companion follows PC rules for falling unconscious at 0 hp and dying after four failed death saves or when its negative hit points equal half its normal hit points. If your animal companion dies, you can summon another one. If you're still on the same adventure, you can call a new animal companion the next day, but it will be one level lower than an animal companion would normally be. At the start of a new adventure, or when you gain a level, bump the companion up to its proper level.
Stats & Levels
Each animal companion has roughly the same base stats as listed below.
Your animal companion is always one level lower than you. As a 1st level ranger, you'll have a level 0 animal companion. Once you gain a level, your animal companion rises to 1st level.
On top of the base stats, each type of animal has a zoologically appropriate power or advantage.
Animal Companion Baseline Stats
Use the following stats as the baseline for your animal companion. Remember that your companion stays a level lower than you. Generally your companion's Physical Defense should be higher than its Mental Defense, but you could flip that if you have a good explanation.
Level |
Attack |
Damage |
AC |
PD (or MD) |
MD (or PD) |
HP |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
0 |
+5 vs. AC |
d8 |
16 |
14 |
10 |
20 (10) |
1 |
+6 vs. AC |
d10 |
17 |
15 |
11 |
27 (13) |
2 |
+7 vs. AC |
2d6 |
18 |
16 |
12 |
36 (18) |
3 |
+9 vs. AC |
3d6 |
19 |
17 |
13 |
45 (22) |
4 |
+10 vs. AC |
4d6 |
21 |
19 |
15 |
54 (27) |
5 |
+11 vs. AC |
5d6 |
22 |
20 |
16 |
72 (36) |
6 |
+13 vs. AC |
6d6 |
23 |
21 |
17 |
90 (45) |
7 |
+14 vs. AC |
7d6 |
25 |
23 |
19 |
108 (54) |
8 |
+15 vs. AC |
8d6 |
26 |
24 |
20 |
144 (72) |
9 |
+17 vs. AC |
9d6 |
27 |
25 |
21 |
180 (90) |
10 |
+18 vs. AC |
10d6 |
28 |
26 |
22 |
216 (108) |
Animal Companion Bonuses
Each type of animal companion is a little different.
Bear (also Giant Badger, Wolverine)
Acts: After ranger
Advantage: The bear gains temporary hit points equal to its level each time it hits with an attack.
Champion Feat
The temporary hit points increase to double its level.
Boar (also Spiky Lizard)
Acts: Before ranger
Advantage: The boar gains a +1 attack bonus when it moves before its attack during the same turn.
Eagle (also Falcon, Hawk, Owl, Vulture)
Acts: Before ranger
Advantage: It flies! Its melee damage die is dropped by one size (d6 at level 0).
Panther (also Lion, Tiger)
Acts: Before ranger
Advantage: The panther's crit range expands by 2 against enemies with lower initiative.
Snake (also Giant Spider, Poison Toad)
Acts: After ranger
Advantage: The snake also deals ongoing poison damage equal to twice your level on a natural attack roll of 18+.
Champion Feat
The ongoing damage is three times your level instead.
Epic Feat
The ongoing damage is four times your level instead.
Wolf (also Big Dog, Coyote, Hyena, Jackal)
Acts: After ranger
Advantage: The wolf gains a +1 attack bonus against enemies its master attacked the same turn, or against enemies engaged with its master.
Animal Companion Feats
Ranger animal companion feats are designed so that they do not build on each other. Unlike other feats, you don't have to take animal companion feats progressively, one after the other as long as you qualify for the correct tier.
Once per day, your animal companion can attack twice in a round with a standard action.
Once per battle, your animal companion can turn a disengage success by an enemy it is engaged with into a failure.
Once per day, reroll one of your animal companion's missed attack rolls.
Your animal companion adds the escalation die to its attacks.
Once per day, your animal companion can force an enemy to reroll an attack that hit it.
Your Lethal Hunter talent also applies to your animal companion.
Increase your animal companion's Physical Defense and Mental Defense by +1.
Increase your animal companion's damage die by one size (for example, from d6s to d8s, or d8s to d10s)
Increase your animal companion's AC by +1.
Archery
Once per battle, reroll one of your missed ranged attacks.
Your Archery rerolls gain a +2 attack bonus and the attack's crit range expands by 1.
Once per day, you can use Archery twice in the same battle.
Once per day, you can turn a normal hit with a ranger ranged attack into a critical hit.
Double Melee Attack
When fighting with two one-handed melee weapons, your default option is to make a double melee attack.
Your weapon damage die drops one notch, usually from d8s to d6s. If your first attack is a natural even roll (hit or miss), you can make a second attack as a free action.
If you decide you don't want to try for a double melee attack while fighting with two one-handed weapons, declare it before rolling your attack; the single attack will deal the normal damage dice instead of using reduced damage dice.
Your second attack gains a +2 attack bonus if it is against a different target.
Once per battle, use Double Melee Attack after an odd attack roll.
Each turn, you can pop free of one enemy before one attack roll that is part of a Double Melee Attack. You can also use your move action in between your two attacks if you wish.
Double Ranged Attack
When you attack with a ranged weapon that does not need to be reloaded, your default option is to make a double ranged attack.
Your weapon damage die drops one notch, usually from d8s to d6s. If your first attack is a natural even roll (hit or miss), you can make a second attack as a free action.
If you decide you don't want to try for a double ranged attack when firing your bow or other ranged weapon, declare it before rolling your attack; the single attack will deal the normal damage dice instead of using reduced damage dice.
Your second attack gains a +2 attack bonus if it is against a different target.
Once per battle, you can use Double Ranged Attack after an odd attack roll.
Each turn, you can pop free of one enemy before one attack roll that is part of a Double Ranged Attack. You can also use your move action in between your two attacks if you wish.
Favored Enemy
Choose a specific monster type (e.g. aberration, beast, construct, demon, dragon, giant, humanoid*, ooze, plant, or undead). The crit range of your ranger attacks against that type of enemy expands by 2.
*Choosing humanoid: Unlike other favored enemies, choosing humanoid as your favored enemy takes up two ranger class talent slots.
You can change your favored enemy by meditating when you take a full heal-up.
Your crit range for attacks against favored enemies expands by 1 (to +3).
Choose a second non-humanoid monster type as a favored enemy.
Fey Queen's Enchantments
Choose one daily or recharge spell of your level or lower from the sorcerer class. You can cast this spell as if you were a sorcerer (though you can't gather power).
You can choose which ability score you want to use as the attack ability for sorcerer spells you can cast.
You can now choose from sorcerer at-will spells.
You gain an additional sorcerer spell of your choice that is your level or lower; a total of two from this talent.
First Strike
The first time you attack an enemy during a battle, your crit range for that attack expands by 2 (usually to 18+). A mob of mooks counts as a single enemy.
The crit range of your First Strike attacks expands by 1 (to +3).
Once per day, deal triple damage with a First Strike crit instead of double damage.
Whenever you hit with a First Strike attack, you can reroll your damage once and use the higher roll.
Lethal Hunter
Once per battle as a free action, choose an enemy. The crit range of your attacks against that enemy expands by 2 for the rest of the battle. A mob of mooks counts as a single enemy.
The crit range of your Lethal Hunter attacks expands by 1 (to +3).
One battle per day, you can use Lethal Hunter against two different enemies.
Your Lethal Hunter crits deal triple damage instead of double damage while the escalation die is 3+.
Ranger ex Cathedral
Choose one daily or recharge spell of your level or lower from the cleric class. You can cast this spell as if you were a cleric. You can change your chosen spell each time you take a full heal-up.
You can cast the cleric class feature heal spell once per battle.
You can now choose from cleric at-will spells.
You gain an additional cleric spell of your choice that is your level or lower; a total of two from this talent.
Ranger's Pet
You have a small animal or beast that accompanies you on your adventures. Use the rules from the Wizard's Familiar talent with the following differences:
- The creature is your pet or friend instead of your familiar.
- Your pet is fully natural rather than partially magical.
- Your pet can end up with more abilities, if you choose.
Your pet gains a third ability.
Your pet gains a fourth ability.
Your pet gains a fifth ability.
Ranger's Pet (Familiar Rules)
Your ranger's pet is a tiny or small animal or creature that aids you and provides companionship. It also provides opportunities for improvisation between you and the GM.
Your pet is as intelligent as a normal person. It can communicate with you and will stay close you unless you've chosen abilities that let it roam. Your pet is on your side but it's not perfectly in your control.
If your pet dies, it can come back to you the next time you get a full heal-up. (The method or story used is between you and the GM.) Alternatively, you can get a new pet.
Pets are useless in combat, except as indicated by their abilities. Ordinarily they aren't damaged by enemy attacks and spells unless the story calls for it.
Pet Abilities
Choose two of the following abilities for your pet.
Agile
You gain a +2 bonus to Dexterity skill checks.
Alert, Maybe Even Insightful
You gain a +2 bonus to Wisdom skill checks.
Counter-bite
Each battle, if your pet is close to you, it bites the first enemy that hits you with a melee attack after that attack, dealing 1d4 damage per level (no attack roll) to that enemy.
Flight
Your pet flies as well as a hawk. It doesn't fly that often and usually sticks with you, but it can do so when its other abilities allow.
Mimic
One battle per day, you gain the use of the racial power (without feats) of one nearby ally.
Poisonous
Once per battle, when you hit an enemy engaged with you, you can add 5 ongoing poison damage per tier to the damage roll.
Scout
Once per day, your pet can separate itself from you and make a reconnaissance run of an area or location. Roll an easy skill check for the environment to get your pet to scout unseen.
Tough
You gain a +1 save bonus. Tough counts as two pet abilities.
Talkative
Your pet can talk like a person (but the GM speaks for the pet more than you do).
Tracker
You have the Tracker background at its full possible bonus of +5, without having to spend your normal background points on it. You are an expert wilderness tracker, capable of reading clues from the environment that others can't perceive. Tracking doesn't work well, however, in heavily traveled urban environments.
In addition, you have the terrain stunt power.
Terrain stunt: At the start of each battle in a non-urban environment, roll a d6. Any time after the escalation die reaches that number, you'll be able to use a quick action to execute a terrain stunt. Normally you can only use terrain stunt once per battle, but circumstances, geography, or excellent planning may suggest that you can pull it off more than once.
Terrain stunts are improvisational effects that play off your preternatural understanding of the wilderness and all the diverse forms of the natural world. Things like knocking a hornets nest no one had noticed onto your enemy's head, maneuvering a foe onto a soggy patch of ground that slows them down, shooting the cap off a mushroom spore in a dungeon that erupts on your enemies, getting your enemy's sword wedged into a stalactite, finding the tree branch that lets you vault up to attack the flying demon that thought it was out of axe range, and similar types of actions.
Your grasp of the way the world is put together increases; you now can use terrain stunt in urban environments.
You can track as well in urban areas as you do in the wilderness.
You can track flying creatures and creatures that normally wouldn't be trackable, and there's the possibility that even teleports give you a sense of direction.
Two-Weapon Mastery
You gain a +1 attack bonus when fighting with a one-handed melee weapon in each hand.
When you fight with two one-handed melee weapons, increase the damage you deal with missed attacks by adding your level to it. Most of your basic melee attacks, therefore, will deal double your level as miss damage.
If you fight with two one-handed melee weapons, whenever an enemy makes a melee attack against you and rolls a natural 1, you can make an opportunity attack against that foe as a free action.
One battle per day, increase the damage you deal with missed attacks to triple your level instead of double your level (from Two-Weapon Mastery).