Rangers are master hunters and defenders of the wild. They know every trail and every beast in their homeland, and they are masters of bows. This lore description of the rangers makes them sound incredible to play but due to them being the most niche of classes, some consider them to be the worst class in the game. The 2014 version relied on being in their chosen environment for buffs and a small list of “favoured enemies” that you gain certain advantages against. The 2024 version replaces these niche characteristics with some more general but weaker abilities. You can have fun playing the ranger, especially when gaining a subclass but be warned many do not find enjoyment in this class.
The Following are Ranger subclasses
- Beast Master: Summon an animal companion that can change it form at the end of long rest to match its environment so it can aid you better in combat. (Player Handbook 2024)
- Drakewarden: Gain a Draconic companion known as a Drake that grows alongside you and eventually allows you to ride it. (Fizban’s Treasury of Dragons)
- Fey Wanderer: The Fey magic you learned/gained helps fortify your party mental reliance while enhancing your attack. (Players Handbook 2024)
- Gloom Stalker: With the use of shadow magic, you can get into combat much faster, enhance your attacks, and make it harder to find and hit you. (Players Handbook 2024)
- Green Reaper: Coat your weapons with a special poisons that can be enhance by spell slots to give more side effects. (Grim Hallow: player’s guide)
- Horizon Walker: Your time guarding against Planar foes has allowed you to gain the ability to enhance you and your allies with the energy between realms, as well as allow you to teleport at later levels. (Xanathar’s guide to everything)
- Hunter: Basically Ranger plus. This subclass enhances all your core class features. (Players Handbook 2024)
- Monster Slayer: You can focus all your energy on one opponent to hinder them in battle. (Xanathar’s guide to everything)
- Primordial Archer: With the use of an herbalism kit, elemental energy, and ancient secrets you can enhance you and your arrows with elemental power. (Grim Hallow: player’s guide)
- Rocborne: You gain ancient knowledge from wind spirits; The wind comes to you aids in battle. (The Griffon’s saddlebag: Book two)
- Swarmkeeper: You gain the aid of flying swarm creatures during combat. (Tasha’s Cauldron of everything)
- Vermin Lord: Command an army of mice and rats to aid you in battle (Grim Hallow: player’s guide)
- Winter Walker: Your time in mountains or frozen tundra has turned you into a formidable foe that brings the wrath of ice. (Forgotten realms: heroes of Faerûn)
*Corrupted Ranger: The curse that has caused you to fall ill has also impowered your combat abilities, the more your power grows, the more your body begins to fail you. (Obojima: Tales from the Tall Grass)
