The Ranger As It Was First Published In The Strategic Review 1975

I thought it would be of interest to see the first published version of this D&D class. Obviously the author, TSR and I presume WotC are the copyright holders. I am presenting this out of historic interest and sometimes DMs like to retro up the classes a bit or barrow ideas from older rule sets. 

RANGERS I

AN EXCITING NEW DUNGEONS & DRAGONS CLASS

By Joe Fischer

Rangers are a sub-class of Fighting Men, similar in many ways to

the new sub-class Paladins, for they must always remain Lawful or lose all the benefits they gained (except, of course, experience as a fighter). Strength is their Prime Requisite, but they must also have both Intelli- gence and Wisdom scores of at least 12 each, and a Constitution of at least 15. The statistics regarding Rangers are:

Rangers                        Experience Points           Hit Dice*          SpelI Ability**

Ru n n e r                           0                                     2                   Nil

Strider                              2500                                 3                   Nil

Scout                                5000                                 4                   Nil

Guide                              12000                                5                   Nil

Pathfinder                       25000                                6                   Nil

Warder                            50000                                7                   Nil

Guardian                        100000                               8                  Nil

Ranger-Knight               175000                               9                  Cleric, 1st Level

Ranger-Lord                   275000                             10                  +Magic-User, 1st Level

Ranger-Lord, 10th          550000                             10+2              +Cleric 2nd Level

Ranger-Lord, 11th          825000                             10+4               +Magic-User 2nd Level

Ranger-Lord, 12th         1100000                            10+6              +Cleric 3rd Level

Ranger-Lord, 13th        1375000                             10+8               +Magic-User 3rd Level

*either with the standard system or the alternate system which allows fighters 8-sided dice

**spell progression is as follows: when only 1st Level are usable, then only one spell is usable, when 2nd Level spells can be taken then the R-L gets 2 1st Level and 1 2nd Level, and at 3rd Level it is 3, 2 and 1 respectively.

Until they attain the 8th level (Ranger-Knight) characters in the Ranger class are relatively weak, for they have a number of restrictions placed upon them, These restrictions are:

- They may own only that which they can carry with them, and excess treasure or goods must be donated to a worthy cause.

- They may not hire any men-at-arms or other servants or aides of any kind whatsoever.

- Only two of the class may operate together.

Advantages which accrue to low-level Rangers are:

+They receive no regular bonuses for advancement due to ability, but they automatically gain 4 experience points for every 3 earned.

+They have the ability to track the path of most creatures when out- doors, and even in dungeons they are often able to follow:

Monster’s Action                        Regular Needs to Track

goes down a normal passage             01-65

goes through a normal door               01-55

goes through a trap door                    01-50

goes up/down a chimney                   01-40

goes through a secret door                 01-30

The ranger so tracking must have observed the monster no more than six turns previously when in dungeon situations. On the outdoor he has a basic 90% chance of following a trail, with a 10% reduction for every day old the signs are.

Because of their ability to track Rangers also are difficult to surprise, requiring a roll of 1 instead of 1 or 2.

All Rangers gain a special advantage when fighting against monsters of the Giant Class (Kobolds - Giants). For each level they have gained they add +1 to their damage die against these creatures, so a 1st Level Ranger adds +1, a 2nd Level +2, and so on.

Upon reaching the 8th and higher levels, Rangers begin to accrue a number of advantages besides the use of spelIs already indicated.

+From 2-24 followers will join the character as soon as 9th level is attained by him. These followers are detailed later.

+Ranger-Knights are able to employ magic items which heal or cure disease, including scrolls.

+Ranger-Lords are able to employ all devices which deal with Clairvoyance, Clairaudience, ESP, Telepathy, Telekenesis, and Tele- portation, including scrolls.

Drawbacks which apply to the 8th and higher levels are:

-The 4 experience points for every 3 earned bonus is lost.

- Followers who are killed cannot be replaced, although regular mercenaries can be.

-As already mentioned, if a Ranger turns Neutral or Chaotic he loses all benefits of the class, becoming an ordinary Fighting Man. Special Followers: For each of the 2-24 followers the Ranger gains a dice roll must be made to determine what the follower is. Further dice rolls to determine type, class, and/or level will also be necessary.

Type

01-60 Man

61 - 75 Elf or Half-Elf

76 - 90 Dwarf

91-99 2 Hobbits

00 Extraordinary (see below)

Class (Men Only)

01 - 50 Fighter

51 - 75 Cleric

75 - 95 Magic-User 

95-00 Thief

Multi-Class (Elves Only)

01 - 50 Fighter

51 - 75 Fighter/Magic-User

76 - 90 Magic-User

91 -00 Fighter/Magic-User/Thief

Level of Ability (Roll for each)

01 - 50 2nd Level 

51 - 65 3rd Level 

66 - 80 4th Level 

81 - 90 5th Level 

91 - 99 6th Level

00 7th Level

Extraordinary Followers

01 - 20 Ranger, 3rd - 7th Level 

21 - 40 Lawful Werebear

41 - 55 2 Unicorns

65 - 70 Pegasus

71 -80 Hill Giant

81 - 90 Stone Giant

91 - 99 Golden Dragon

00 Take two rolls ignoring any 00’s which might come up.

Where not otherwise specified Rangers perform as Fighting Men. They may build strongholds. In all cases the Ranger will prefer Lawful to Neutral types.