Mike Mearls Games

Ranger Trail Warden

Added 2024-07-09 14:00:08 +0000 UTC

Trail wardens are rangers who have taken an oath. When they lead others into the wilderness, they swear to bring them back safe and sound. They are not mere bodyguards or tour guides. Trail wardens only lead those that they deem capable of providing the skills and qualities needed to endure the horrid monsters and grinding conditions of an expedition. Far from civilization’s protective grasp, there is no room for dead weight. A single mistake can cost the lives of an entire party.

While their standards are strict, trail wardens are experts at leading groups, sharing their knowledge, and coordinating their party in a fight. Their insights make them ideal combat leaders, and their magic allows them to heal and protect others. Many trail wardens are members of religious orders, and in some regions they command the same respect and reverence as the mightiest paladins or high priests.

Trail wardens are known for their harsh attitude toward others. Some trail wardens believe that they must bring the realities of the wilderness into civilization to prevent anyone without the needed skills to join their expeditions. In the wilds they are completely different people, nurturing, protective, and insightful as they guide their charges safely through dangerous territory.

Evil trail wardens are a deadly threat. They bolster their companions with a false sense of hope and gladly lead even the most helpless travelers into the world. Once isolated from civilization, these foul traitors lead their charges into ambushes and deadly terrain. Once the expedition has met disaster, the trail warden collects treasure and magic items from their victims before moving on to a new area to practice their villainy. Thankfully, few trail wardens turn to evil.

Civilized Demeanor

Trail wardens are notorious for their aloof, sometimes hostile, manner in civilization. They often come across as the stereotypical ranger, sitting in a dark corner of a tavern away from everyone else. How do you act in town, and what drives you to take that posture?

d6 Roll or Choose

Civilized Demeanor

1: You have enemies in civilization owing to an incident in the wilderness. Are you guilty or innocent of some crime? Do you adopt an alias when in town, or do you keep a low profile? What might happen if your enemies catch up to you?

2: Try as you might, you can’t shake the belief that civilization is a temporary, aberrant condition. Sooner or later, the complex systems that provide food, shelter, and protection for cities and towns will decay. You look at a city and see a tragedy waiting to happen.

3: You love civilization and head into the wilds to protect it. You want to ensure that it remains robust and vital. When you are in town, you indulge in drink and are happy to socialize. This joyful attitude shifts when it is time to prepare an expedition. You have seen terrible things, and the joy you feel while drinking in a tavern gives way to the dour outlook of a grizzled veteran.

4: You stay in town only when you must. In the wilderness, everything has a clear role. Prey and predator know their place. Among civilized folk, everything is a question that has no clear answers. Merchants try to swindle you while political enemies jostle over meaningless titles. You’d rather face a pack of dire wolves than deal with it.

5: You love to tell tales of your adventures and the awful monsters that lurk in the wild. In civilized areas, you can’t help but love the attention that your exploits draw. Nothing makes you happier than explaining the mating habits of the cockatrice or the legends surrounding the owlbear. Does your audience love these tales as much as you do? Are you aware of your actual storytelling skills?

6: You keep a strict divide between your life in the wilds and your role in civilization. You speak of your talents only with those you trust or who could make good use of your skills. Otherwise, you pass yourself off as a simple hunter or woodsman. In your mind, civilization and the wilds are two worlds that should be kept separate.

Wilderness Demeanor

In the wilds, you are at home. In that environment, your mood and bearing can change as you adopt a more protective attitude toward your allies. Or do you?

d6 Roll or Choose

Wilderness Demeanor

1: In the wilds, you see yourself as a mother duck and your companions your ducklings. You might come across as condescending or overbearing, but their safety comes before any petty feelings.

2: You try to set the pace and standard for an expedition, modeling behavior that you expect others to follow. If they can keep up, they’ll thrive. If they cannot, you can provide them with a map back to safety.

3: You drive your companions hard so that they are ready to act when disaster strikes, and it always strikes. You get on them about the simplest mistakes they make and watch their every move.

4: While the wilderness is dangerous, it is also a place full of wonder and magic. You are like a tour guide, pointing out interesting sites and providing trivia about everything you come across. You remain aware of threats, but when a troll ambushes the party you can’ t help but comment on its exceptionally long claws.

5: In the wilds, you believe in establishing back up plans to account for anything that could go wrong. You share your knowledge freely, and think ahead to account for potential challenges. You pack extra rations and load your companions down with gear to cover any situation.

6: You have learned that keeping a low profile is the best way to pass through nature without arousing its anger. You urge your companions to keep quiet, and move about as if a hidden enemy is always at hand.

Archetype Features

Archetype Spells

You gain the following spells at the ranger levels listed:

Ranger Level Spells

3rd: Bless, healing word

5th: Misty step, web

9th: Spirit guardians, mass healing word

13th: Dimension door, guardian of faith

17th: Mass cure wounds, teleportation circle

Take Point

Starting at 3rd level, when you make a Strength, Dexterity, or Constitution check, you may use your insight and guidance to make the check easier for others. For the next 5 minutes or until you use this feature again, creatures of your choice that can see and hear you gain a bonus equal to your proficiency bonus when making the same check to achieve the same task.

Ranger Tactics

Beginning at 3rd level you grant your allies special teamwork reactions. At the start of your turn, each ally that can see or hear you within 30 feet of you gains a teamwork reaction that they can use to move up to 10 feet. They lose that reaction at the end of your turn if they do not use it.

Once during your turn when you make a weapon attack against a target that is within 5 feet of one or more creatures that gained a teamwork reaction this turn, you deal an additional die of damage determined by your level. The die uses a damage type of your choice from among your weapon’s types.

Ranger Level Teamwork Die

3rd: d6

11th: d8

17th: d10

Tactical Teamwork

Creatures can use the teamwork reactions you grant to use the Hide action.

Counter Maneuver

Starting at 7th level your ability to direct and coordinate your allies improves. Creatures can now use your teamwork reaction to make an opportunity attack against a creature that attacks during your turn.

Practiced Expertise

Starting at 7th level, when you finish a long rest pick a skill that you are proficient with. Up to five creatures of your choice that can see and hear you gain proficiency with that skill until they finish their next long rest. If a creature gains this benefit before a prior use of it has ended, it picks one of the skills to become proficient with for the duration.

Coordinated Effort

Starting at 11th level, when you roll initiative you may pick up to five willing creatures that can see and hear you. Each creature may choose to exchange its d20 die roll made to roll initiative with another creature chosen for this feature. A creature can take part in one of these trades only once per initiative roll.