Skilled archers and famed trackers, Rangers are more proactive wilderness-defenders than their Druidic bretheren.  Most common in forests, they can also be found moutains, swamps, or deserts—any place far from civilization.

Type:

Hybrid

Class Skills:

Rangers are best known for their skill with a bow.  Ranger archery is legendary, and this reputation is well-earned.  While other classes might take up bows, only Rangers may use the best bows, and only Rangers have the skill to critically wound their enemies with an arrow.  They can gain proficiency with any form of weapon, though most choose a blade in each hand, and a bow across their backs.

Rangers are also well known for their unmatched ability to follow anything across a great distance, their general knowledge of the outdoors, their ability to move silently, and to survive in the wild by foraging provisions.  They also command a wide variety of woodland magic.

Other Names:

Pathfinder, Outrider, Warder, Forest Stalker

Armor:

Feeling hindered by heavy platemail, Rangers usually choose green or brown colored leathers or light chainmail for armor.

Religion:

Rangers follow one of the two nature-gods, Tunare or Karana.  While some Wood Elves do follow Karana, Faydark's Champions honors Tunare above him.  The Stormreapers of Rivervale exclusively follow The Rainkeeper.  Rangers are generally not divided along religious lines, since the followers of each god largely respect one another.  The Rangers (and Druids) of Surefall Glade pay tribute to both, though they tend to get more Human and Half Elven followers of Karana due to the nearby Temple of Thunder in Qeynos.

Questing:

A Ranger's case of wanderlust rivals that of a Bard, and Rangers can be found all over Norrath, wandering and exploring.  Rangers frequently act as scouts or guides due to their tracking ability and their unequaled knowledge of the lay of the land--any land.  As a rule, though, a Rangers motives are his own.

Culture and Training:

Rangers tend to be frequently solitary due to their wandering lifestyles.  There are a few who have made permanent homes in Surefall Glade or Kelethin or small camps out in the middle of nowhere, and a fellow Ranger would always be welcome to the fire.

Those who are trained as Rangers typically show an affinity for the outdoors from a young age.  They may be children of Rangers themselves or feel a tie to the wild but wish to be more active defending it than a Druid.

Interaction:

Rangers are considered odd at best by most civilized city-folk, who can't imagine someone preferring to sleep out in the wild.  Rangers, for their part, see city life as close, confining, and artificial, Kelethin being a big exception.  Rangers need space, figuratively as well as literally, and don't do well in groups with overly-controlling leaders.  This is not to say the Ranger feels he must be in charge, but if whoever is in charge is not willing to give the Ranger free rein to explore, scout, and generally range out, they will be constantly butting heads.

Alignment:

A Ranger can be of any non-evil alignment, and like Druids, they tend towards neutrality.  Many are discordant, following the whims of nature over artificial laws, and it is a rare Ranger who walks an orderly path.  Overall though, while a Ranger may fight for the greater good, or balance, he does so on his own terms.

Roleplay Tips:

You are most at home in the woods or flat-out spaces with nothing man-made visible in any direction.  You generally keep your own counsel and follow your own rules, and wander where the mood takes you.  You are not limited by paths or roads, and the symbol of your calling is your bow.  You know your strength and do not hesitate to use it in your defense—or the defense of the wild lands you roam.

Quote:

<eyes narrow> "Alright, poacher, I think you've collected enough pelts today..." <draws arrow> "Don't you?" <looses arrow>