Building a DnD Ranger isn’t complicated, but a few tips will help you succeed. Focus on Dexterity, and use your spells to support your weapon use and skills. Also, Animal Handling is a bad skill.
#dnd #ranger #howtoplay
Show More Show Less View Video Transcript
0:00
Rangers can be a great first D and D
0:02
character. So, let's talk about how to
0:03
build your first D and D ranger.
0:05
Dexterity is usually going to be your
0:07
most important ability score.
0:08
Strength-based builds are possible, but
0:10
very difficult, so I don't recommend it.
0:12
Wisdom based builds can also work, but
0:14
they're a little complicated for your
0:16
first character, so maybe save that for
0:17
another time. Beyond dexterity, you want
0:19
high constitution for hit points and
0:21
wisdom for skills and spells. But
0:23
remember, you are not primarily a
0:24
spellcaster, so you are not going to
0:26
worry too much about your spell DC.
0:29
Rangers generally split between melee
0:31
builds and range builds. If you're
0:33
building for range, you probably want to
0:35
use weapon mastery for either long bow
0:37
or short bow, depending on your
0:38
preference. If you're building for
0:39
melee, you're going to go for two weapon
0:41
fighting almost every time. Try not to
0:43
fall into the trap of two identical
0:45
weapons. I know it looks cooler. I
0:48
totally get it. But mechanically, it's
0:49
much better to have like a a regular
0:51
primary weapon like a shortsord or
0:53
something, and then your off-hand weapon
0:55
is going to be something with the nick
0:56
mastery like a scimitar. Rangers
0:58
typically take a space in the party
1:00
filled by a rogue. And rangers don't get
1:02
quite as many skills as rogues do, but
1:04
they do still get expertise, so you
1:06
still can be really good at one thing,
1:08
like stealth or perception. If you want
1:10
extra skills, consider a species that
1:12
gives you extra skills, like taci or
1:14
human or coravar. Your spells are mostly
1:17
going to be useful for utility,
1:18
occasionally for area control, and buffs
1:21
for yourself. Once you get high enough
1:23
level, you're going to get a ton of
1:24
value out of buffs like elemental weapon
1:26
and magic weapon. In combat, your job is
1:29
primarily to do a ton of damage to
1:31
single targets at a time. You get
1:33
favored foe, which lets you cast
1:35
hunter's mark repeatedly, like without
1:37
spending a spell slot, so you get some
1:39
extra castings there. And hunter's mark
1:41
can be a huge damage boost if you're
1:42
making several attacks. So, two up and
1:44
fighting is a very popular strategy for
1:46
rangers. But, it also monopolizes your
1:48
concentration, which can limit your
1:50
spell casting options. So, A lot of
1:52
rangers end up casting Hunter's Mark and
1:54
then magic weapon. And really, those are
1:56
your two most important spells. And
1:57
those are going to get you a ton of
1:59
damage output. Outside of combat, you've
2:01
got high dexterity and wisdom, which
2:03
supports some of the most important
2:04
skills of the in the game like stealth,
2:06
slight of hand for picking locks and
2:08
disarming traps, and of course,
2:09
perception for noticing problems before
2:11
they become problems. So, while rangers
2:14
can always kind of fall into a few very
2:16
small niches, they are very, very useful
2:19
and they're very good at what they do
2:21
and they can really be a ton of fun to
2:23
Bye.

