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Heh, Favored Enemy is the only reason I get my PCs/NPCs to take 1 level of Ranger.
I hate the fact that you HAVE to be an archer or 2-Weapon Fighter. Archer, sure, but if you want to be a melee Ranger you should be able to trade the stupid stinking "Can I Be Drizzit?" concept.
Anyway, maybe trade Favored Enemy for Smite Evil. Smite Evil is a wee bit better than Favored Enemy but it ought not to be too bad.
I'll post my Ranger Build when I get some time (probably tomorrow). It's a no-magic Ranger that's more like Scout and Archer-Ranger. There's no Favored Enemy.
Honestly, i've always been keen on the idea that a Ranger could have access to a diminished version of Sneak Attack. It seems very "in-concept" to me. What if he got a lower-damage version of the sneak attack, but the max range was increased? I mean, if any class should be your optimal sniper, it should be the ranger, right?
Then again, if you go in this direction, you're beginning to merge two very iconic (and separate) class roles.
Heh, Favored Enemy is the only reason I get my PCs/NPCs to take 1 level of Ranger.
I hate the fact that you HAVE to be an archer or 2-Weapon Fighter. Archer, sure, but if you want to be a melee Ranger you should be able to trade the stupid stinking "Can I Be Drizzit?" concept.
Anyway, maybe trade Favored Enemy for Smite Evil. Smite Evil is a wee bit better than Favored Enemy but it ought not to be too bad.
I'll post my Ranger Build when I get some time (probably tomorrow). It's a no-magic Ranger that's more like Scout and Archer-Ranger. There's no Favored Enemy.
Actually, that's fairly easy. Be a switch hitter!
In other words, take the archery abilities, but fighter feats. Grab quick draw, and you start off a battle with bow slinging, then drop it and draw your blade when they get close. Like a classic ranger! :D
Rangers are my favorite class to play, and I've always considered Favored Enemy/Foe a staple of the concept. I think it's worded poorly though, I know several players who didn't really understand it until we changed up the flavor text a little.
Favored Enemy doesn't necessarily mean a "hated enemy" or anything like that, it's supposed to reflect upon the kind of prey that particular Ranger is adept at tracking, hunting, and bringing down. A lot of players see Favored Enemy/Foe/whatever and think that the Ranger has some sort of built in racism/specism for that kind of foe, which doesn't have to be the case. If my Ranger has Favored Enemy: Animals, that doesn't mean he absolutely despises animals and kills all he sees; it simply means that's what he is the most used to hunting and knows a lot about. Don't forget, that Favored Enemy bonus applies to other skills when interacting with them, not just damage. I had a Half-Dragon Ranger once who had favored Enemy: Dragons; he didn't hate or seek to kill dragons, it was an easy mechanic to help the character when interacting with or tracking dragons in general. The added damage was just a nod to knowing a bit about his own kind and how to hit where it hurts.
I don't know if that helps the OP at all, but I wouldn't see a problem swapping Favored Enemy with another class ability, such as Trapfinding or Fast Movement.
Scout is a good option. Maybe enhanced movement features like a scout?
I spent a lot of time trying to come up with some kind of Fighter/Rogue or Fighter/Scout just to avoid favored enemy. Finally, my DM showed me the Rangers Revealed pdf (I ended up buying it) and it has a option called Favored Animal Companion (I think). It allows you to have an animal companion from lvl 1 by giving up favored enemy. After that I just switched to ranger and was done with it. It also has options for feat bonuses other than TWF and archery.
I haven't played a high level campaign yet, so I could be way off, but it would take some heavy persuading to get me to play a ranger with favored enemy.
I spent a lot of time trying to come up with some kind of Fighter/Rogue or Fighter/Scout just to avoid favored enemy. Finally, my DM showed me the Rangers Revealed pdf (I ended up buying it) and it has a option called Favored Animal Companion (I think). It allows you to have an animal companion from lvl 1 by giving up favored enemy. After that I just switched to ranger and was done with it. It also has options for feat bonuses other than TWF and archery.
I haven't played a high level campaign yet, so I could be way off, but it would take some heavy persuading to get me to play a ranger with favored enemy.
I'm just not understanding all the Favored Foe hate. To each their own, to be sure, but it just strikes me as odd. I've always considered Favored Enemy/Foe as much of a staple to the Ranger as a Wizard and their spellbook.
Even years before I ever played DnD, my friends and I had a home-brewed game where I had a "Hunter" class, that got bonuses against certain creature types. For me, a Ranger without FE(or without spellcasting for that matter) is just a npc class Tracker/Expert or something. Again, just my opinion. To each their own.
So, help me out, because I truly don't understand(not being sarcastic). What is it about Favored Enemy that some of you guys feel doesn't fit with the Ranger?
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I think some people just don't like how it takes control out of their hands. It's like having the DM decide when your fighter gets to use Weapon Focus and Specialization. The Ranger has no control over when his favored enemies show up, and some DMs either forget to or purposefully don't include the FE, because it's less of a challenge for the party thanks to the Ranger taking them down quickly. So people think it's a frustrating ability due to bad DMing. Me, I like FE: Human, because you always get use out of it.
I think some people just don't like how it takes control out of their hands. It's like having the DM decide when your fighter gets to use Weapon Focus and Specialization. The Ranger has no control over when his favored enemies show up, and some DMs either forget to or purposefully don't include the FE, because it's less of a challenge for the party thanks to the Ranger taking them down quickly. So people think it's a frustrating ability due to bad DMing. Me, I like FE: Human, because you always get use out of it.
That's definitely understandable, I guess I'm just spoiled then. The DM's I've played Rangers under have been generous with dishing out enemies that trigger my FE bonus. That, or I purposely seek out that kind of Enemy. Other options include(though a little less fun) considering the type of campaign you are playing and choose types you'll likely be going against. Underdark campaign? Aberrations all the way, for example. Often times, you can't go wrong with Magical Beast; there's just sooo many kinds of Magical Beasts in the game, at all imaginable CR levels. Unless the DM purposely goes out of their way to avoid them, chances are strong you'll encounter Magical Beasts at a decent enough rate to make the FE feature useful, but not game-breaking or useless.
I guess I never really thought about it as taking control "out of the player's hands", to me, the gamble is part of the fun. If I was dishing out FE bonus damage on everything we fought it'd be ridiculous, so I like having those particular "shine" moments when we do come across my FE, and the unholy butt-whooping I had out in that particular fight. Also makes a fun role-playing component, if as a Ranger I choose a particular kind of Humanoid, and someone in the party just happens to be that kind of Humanoid...
It just annoys me. I don't want to have to guess which creatures I will be good at. I would rather have a ranger be better at bows than to be good at only 5 different creatures. Plus, I don't see what FE has to do with being a woodsy-fighting-tracker guy. That and TWF. I am lost on that one. Spells? Yes. Favored terrain? Yes. Endurance, Camouflage, Quarry.....yes to all. Favored enemy? No clue to why that's there and why I would want to limit myself to 5 critters.
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I guess it really does come down to what your vision of a ranger is. To me, for instance, favored enemy and favored terrain make perfect sense and are very cool abilities - major important abilities that come up quite often.
Rangers and spells on the other hand have never made sense to me ... but that's probably another thread ...
It just annoys me. I don't want to have to guess which creatures I will be good at. I would rather have a ranger be better at bows than to be good at only 5 different creatures. Plus, I don't see what FE has to do with being a woodsy-fighting-tracker guy. That and TWF. I am lost on that one. Spells? Yes. Favored terrain? Yes. Endurance, Camouflage, Quarry.....yes to all. Favored enemy? No clue to why that's there and why I would want to limit myself to 5 critters.
I think this was already answered a couple times, so for posterity, Favored Enemy represents the sort of quarry the Ranger has spent more time hunting, studying, tracking, etc. It's one of the ways a Ranger can find a set of tracks and tell you right away what kind of creature made them.
Rangers with Favored Enemies have the most training for and experience with dealing with those creatures.
My thoughts exactly.
Now as to the spellcasting part of a Ranger, that I will admit I don't really know where it comes from. Maybe it's the games way of showing the Ranger has a deep connection with nature, very similar to a Druid, but more focused on hunting and tracking. Ranger spells are very nature-based, and most involve some sort of hunt.
I even had an Ultima Exodus video game for my NES that has Rangers with spellcasting. Maybe someone else here can help as to it's true origins? I really don't know.
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I actually completely disagree with the OP. I actually think Favored Enemy is one of the best (=if not "the" best) ability of a Ranger. And yes, when randomized across multiple campaigns or random modules (such as in organized play), it's pretty weak. But in many structured campaigns, it turns out to be a major bonus (a Rise of the Runelords game had a ranger with F.E. giant, it was pretty close to being totally over powered).
By comparison, I actually think the Combat Mastery options as being pretty weak. In most cases, a Fighter is a better archer or 2-weapon fighter then a Ranger of either build. Treantmonk's guide to Rangers outlines many of the issues with the system.
Instead, I view rangers as a skill-based class, and their drop to 3/4 BAB under PAthfinder seems to confirm this. They end up being a kind of wilderness expert to supplement the bard's urban abilities. Not to mention, they are one of the better classes at shooting a few times while stuck at range before switching to melee (again, see Treantmonk's guide for how to balance this).
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I actually completely disagree with the OP. I actually think Favored Enemy is one of the best (=if not "the" best) ability of a Ranger. And yes, when randomized across multiple campaigns or random modules (such as in organized play), it's pretty weak. But in many structured campaigns, it turns out to be a major bonus (a Rise of the Runelords game had a ranger with F.E. giant, it was pretty close to being totally over powered).
By comparison, I actually think the Combat Mastery options as being pretty weak. In most cases, a Fighter is a better archer or 2-weapon fighter then a Ranger of either build. Treantmonk's guide to Rangers outlines many of the issues with the system.
Instead, I view rangers as a skill-based class, and their drop to 3/4 BAB under PAthfinder seems to confirm this. They end up being a kind of wilderness expert to supplement the bard's urban abilities. Not to mention, they are one of the better classes at shooting a few times while stuck at range before switching to melee (again, see Treantmonk's guide for how to balance this).
Yeah, I agree. In a campaign that follows some sort of theme, the ranger become pretty freaking awesome; I'm running Legacy of Fire and
Okay. I'm trying it. Favored enemy: human in Kingmaker. Then probably fey at level five. Kobold Quarterly #11 variant.
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You might look at the Combat Styles section here.
[off topic]In the rogue section, it says:
"Façade (Ex): Your disguises resist divination spells and abilities. If a divination spell is cast on you while in disguise, the caster must make a Perception check opposed by your Perform check to detect the truth. Otherwise, the divination spell or effect learns information that is consistent with your disguise."
Is that Perception check supposed to be vs. the rogue's Perform check or his Disguise check?[/off topic]
Okay, crow eating post.
First session of Kingmaker, a guy is trying to escape. Range is I think the last increment I can make with a short bow. I roll my attack, calculate all of the minuses, and the DM says, "Unless you can pull one more point out, you just barely miss." I think for a second. "I have favored enemy human!" Booyah!
The typical problem with favored enemy was how hueg the list of potential favored enemies was, and that DMs, afraid of giving spoilers, typically didn't want to tell you what you'd most often be fighting in his games, so you'd end up with bizarro characters like Aragorn the ranger with orcs as a favored enemy stuck in a campaign against aberrations.
B[ut] what should I replace that Favored foe [with]?
One possibility is Sneak Attack. Instead of concentrating on particular foes, you concentrate on hitting a vital spot when attacking with surprise (i.e., sniper) or flanking. You don't have to worry about choosing a particular foe, but it's more situation dependent and there are no skill check bonuses. 1d6 at 1st level, 2d6 at 5th level, 3d6 at 10th level, etc. The slower progression of Sneak Attack dice compared to the rogue balances the faster BAB progression of the ranger.
Instead, I view rangers as a skill-based class, and their drop to 3/4 BAB under PAthfinder seems to confirm this.
Um, Pathfinder RPG rangers retain full BAB. See page 66 of the Core Rulebook.
There's this too.
Why is this withdrawn?