Ranger Archetype: Wrangler
While many rangers trek through the wilderness, clearing a path for their allies through the thick underbrush, a few rangers prefer to protect the open plains, guarding and shepherding livestock. These wranglers develop the skills necessary to immobilize these animals for their own good, and can easily adapt their talents to deal with less savory creatures.
Roper (Ex): At 1st level, a wrangler gains Exotic Weapon Proficiency (lasso) as a bonus feat. The DC to escape a wrangler’s lasso is either 15 or 10 + ½ the wrangler’s level + his Wisdom modifier, whichever is greater. This ability replaces wild empathy.
Lasso Expert (Ex): At 3rd level, a wrangler may turn any rope he is holding into a lasso as a standard action, and can slide a tightened lasso back open as a swift action. This ability replaces endurance.
Hogtie (Ex): At 7th level, a wrangler’s control over his quarry is supreme. He may perform a drag or trip combat maneuver against any foe he has entangled in his lasso, even if he is not adjacent to the creature. When grappling a creature he has entangled in his lasso, he takes no penalty for grappling one-handed when holding the lasso, and can use the lasso’s rope to tie his pinned opponent. This ability replaces woodland stride.
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Thoughts? I always thought that the ranger could make a very effective "cowboy" character, and thought an archetype based around lassoing your foes would be neat. I explicitly made sure it could combine with Horse Lord, and I'm pretty sure Ultimate Combat is going to give us a firearms combat style for the ranger, so there you go!
So, what do you all think?
I am actually in the process of developing the Wrangler archetype for the Ranger as well, for a product called "Westbound" (currently on Kickstarter), a steampunk wild west supplement to the Pure Steam Campaign Setting.
The approach I am taking with the Wrangler, though, is more of a generic cowboy(girl), that may choose a lasso/whip combat style, with a new line of lasso feats.
My Wrangler is more of a mix between the ranger and the gunslinger, that gets a mount in place of an animal companion, and grit/deeds/skirmisher tricks in place of spells.
In terms of lasso feats, this is what I have so far (still in development):
Lasso Mastery (Combat)
Prerequisite: Proficiency with the lasso, Weapon Focus (lasso), +2 BAB
Benefit: You treat the lasso as having a 15-foot range increment and you no longer provoke attacks of opportunity when attacking with a lasso. You may make melee attacks with a lasso that deals nonlethal bludgeoning damage (1d3 Small, 1d4 Medium), and you threaten creatures as if you had up to a 15-foot reach. You cannot use a lasso to attack in this way while it is entangling a foe. Further, you treat the lasso as if it had the disarm, and trip properties, in addition to being able to entangle opponents, and you can use the Weapon Finesse feat to apply your Dexterity modifier instead of your Strength modifier to attack rolls with a lasso, even though it isn't a light weapon. Lastly, you can loosen the knot of a lasso as a move action.
Normal: Loosening the knot of a tightened lasso is a standard action and the typical range increment of a thrown object is 10 feet.
Improved Lasso Mastery (Combat)
Prerequisite: Proficiency with the lasso, Weapon Focus (lasso), Lasso Mastery, +5 BAB
Benefit: The Escape Artist DC to escape your lasso is equal to either 10 + your CMB or 15, whichever is higher. Any bonuses you have to attack rolls made with a lasso also apply to this DC. Further, you gain the ability to grapple using your lasso, instead of using it to entangle a creature. To do so, use the normal grapple rules with the following changes.
Attack: You cannot use your lasso to attack while you are using it to grapple an opponent.
Escaping the Grapple: In addition to the normal rules for escaping a grapple, a creature grappled by a lasso can also escape the grapple by breaking the lasso with a Strength check or by damaging the lasso directly.
Bind: When you initiate a grapple with a lasso, you can choose to target a large creatures mouth or jaws, with a -5 penalty to your check. If you successfully grapple a creature with your lasso in this way, you bind the creature’s mouth shut, preventing it from taking actions such as attacking with a bite attack or using a breath weapon.
Damage: When dealing damage to your grappled opponent, you deal your lasso’s weapon damage rather than your unarmed strike damage.
Free Hands: You take no penalty on your combat maneuver check for having fewer than two hands free when you use your lasso to grapple.
Reach: Rather than pulling your grappled opponent adjacent to you when you successfully grapple and when you move the grapple, you must keep him within 15 feet minus his own reach to maintain the grapple. If the difference in reach is less than 0, such as is the case for a Medium lasso wielder and a Gargantuan creature, you cannot grapple that opponent with your lasso. If you have to pull a creature adjacent to you to grapple it with your lasso, you still provoke an attack of opportunity from that opponent unless you have the Improved Grapple feat.
Tie Up: While adjacent to your opponent, you can attempt to use your lasso to tie him up. If you do so to an opponent you have grappled rather than pinned, you take only a –5 penalty on the combat maneuver check rather than the normal –10.
Greater Lasso Mastery (Combat)
Prerequisite: Proficiency with the lasso, Weapon Focus (lasso), Improved Lasso Mastery, Lasso Mastery, +8 BAB
Benefit: You can deal lethal damage with a lasso, although you can still deal nonlethal damage when you want. Further, you are so quick with your lasso that you never drop it due to a failed disarm or trip combat maneuver attempt, and you can loosen the knot of a lasso as a swift action, instead of a move or standard action. Lastly, you can use a lasso as if it were a grappling hook, subject to GM discretion. When you or a nearby creature is falling (from a failed Climb check or otherwise), you can throw a held lasso as an immediate action, maintaining a grip on one end. If you are falling, this is treated as an attempt to catch yourself while falling made with a +10 bonus, but there must be some sort of solid anchor available for your lasso to grasp. When attempting this check on another creature, treat it as a ranged touch attack as normal. If the weight of the creature exceeds twice your heavy load limit (your own equipment does not count against this maximum), you are pulled after it.
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I do like your idea of being able to create a lasso out of a rope, I'll try to incorporate that into the feat chain.
The archetype itself is still in development, but if your interested, I can post a summary of what it will feature.
Feedback is always appreciated.