Ranger

# Class Features

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This revised version of the Ranger was created by Wizards of the Coast, aimed at addressing the class’s high levels of player dissatisfaction and its ranking as D&D’s weakest class by a significant margin. It greatly increases the power and flexibility of the Ranger class (specifically Beastmasters), and is generally recommended by most players.
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### Hit Points

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* **Hit Dice:** 1d10 per ranger level
* **Hit Points at 1st Level:** 10 + your Constitution modifier
* **Hit Points at Higher Levels:** 1d10 (or 6) + your Constitution modifier per ranger level after 1st.

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### **Proficiencies**

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* **Armor:** Light Armor, Medium Armor, Shields
* **Weapons:** Simple Weapons, Martial Weapons
* **Tools:** None
* **Saving Throws:** Strength, Dexterity
* **Skills:** Choose three from Animal Handling, Athletics, Insight, Investigation, Nature, Perception, Stealth, and Survival.

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### **Equipment**

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You start with the following equipment, in addition to the equipment granted by your background:

* (a) scale mail or (b) leather armor
* (a) two shortswords or (b) two simple melee weapons
* (a) a dungeoneer’s pack or (b) an explorer’s pack
* A longbow and a quiver of 20 arrows

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 Ranger Leveling Table

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## Favored Enemy

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Beginning at 1st level, you have significant experience studying, tracking, hunting, and even talking to a certain type of enemy commonly encountered in the wilds. Choose one type of favored enemy:

* beasts
* fey
* humanoids
* monstrosities
* undead

You gain a +2 bonus to damage rolls with weapon attacks against creatures of the chosen type. Additionally, you have advantage on Wisdom (Survival) checks to track your favored enemies, as well as on Intelligence checks to recall information about them. When you gain this feature, you also learn one language of your choice, typically one spoken by your favored enemy or creatures associated with it. However, you are free to pick any language you wish to learn.

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## Natural Explorer

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At 1st level, you are a master of navigating all of the natural world, and you react with swift and decisive action when attacked. Whenever you are in natural terrain, whether it be a forest or under a natural cave system, it grants you the following benefits:

* You ignore difficult terrain.
* You have advantage on initiative rolls.
* On your first turn during combat, you have advantage on attack rolls against creatures that have not yet acted.

In addition, you are skilled at navigating the wilderness. You gain the following benefits when traveling for an hour or more:

* Difficult terrain doesn’t slow your group’s travel.
* Your group can’t become lost except by magical means.
* Even when you are engaged in another activity while traveling (such as foraging, navigating, or tracking), you remain alert to danger.
* If you are traveling alone, you can move stealthily at a normal pace.
* When you forage, you find twice as much food as you normally would.
* While tracking other creatures, you also learn their exact number, their sizes, and how long ago they passed through the area.

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## Fighting Style

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At 2nd level, you adopt a particular style of fighting as your specialty. Choose one of the following options. You can’t take a Fighting Style option more than once, even if you later get to choose again.

* **Archery**. You gain a +2 bonus to attack rolls you make with ranged weapons.
* **Defense**. While you are wearing armor, you gain a +1 bonus to AC.
* **Dueling**. When you are wielding a melee weapon in one hand and no other weapons, you gain a +2 bonus to damage rolls with that weapon.
* **Two-Weapon Fighting**. When you engage in two-weapon fighting, you can add your ability modifier to the damage of the second attack.
* **Close Quarters Shooter**(UA: Light Dark Underdark!): You are trained in making ranged attack at close quarters. When making a ranged attack while you are within 5 feet of a hostile creature, you do not have disadvantage on the attack roll. Your ranged attacks ignore half cover and three-quarters cover against targets within 30 feet of you. Finally, you have a +1 bonus to attack rolls on ranged attacks.
* **Tunnel Fighter** (UA: Light Dark Underdark!): You excel at defending narrow passages, doorways, and other tight spaces. As a bonus action, you can enter a defensive stance that lasts until the start of your next turn. While in your defensive stance, you can make opportunity attacks without using your reaction, and you can use your reaction to make a melee attack against a creature that moves more than 5 feet while within your reach.

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## Spellcasting

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By the time you reach 2nd level, you have learned to use the magical essence of nature to cast spells, much as a druid does. See PHB chapter 10 for the general rules of spellcasting and chapter 11 for the [Spells|ranger spell list].

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### Spell Slots

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The Ranger table shows how many spell slots you have to cast your spells of 1st level and higher. To cast one of these spells, you must expend a slot of the spell’s level or higher. You regain all expended spell slots when you finish a long rest. For example, if you know the 1st-level spell animal friendship and have a 1st-level and a 2nd level spell slot available, you can cast animal friendship using either slot.

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### Spells Known

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You know two 1st-level spells of your choice from the ranger spell list. The Spells Known column of the Ranger table shows when you learn more ranger spells of your choice. Each of these spells must be of a level for which you have spell slots. For instance, when you reach 5th level in this class, you can learn one new spell of 1st or 2nd level. Additionally, when you gain a level in this class, you can choose one of the ranger spells you know and replace it with another spell from the ranger spell list, which also must be of a level for which you have spell slots.

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### Spellcasting Ability

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Wisdom is your spellcasting ability for your ranger spells, since your magic draws on your attunement to nature. You use your Wisdom whenever a spell refers to your spellcasting ability. In addition, you use your Wisdom modifier when setting the saving throw DC for a ranger spell you cast and when making an attack roll with one.

* **Spell save DC:** 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Wisdom modifier
* **Spell attack modifier:** your proficiency bonus + your Wisdom modifier

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## Primeval Awareness

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Beginning at 3rd level, your mastery of ranger lore allows you to establish a powerful link to beasts and to the land around you. You have an innate ability to communicate with beasts, and they recognize you as a kindred spirit. Through sounds and gestures, you can communicate simple ideas to a beast as an action, and can read its basic mood and intent. You learn its emotional state, whether it is affected by magic of any sort, its short-term needs (such as food or safety), and actions you can take (if any) to persuade it to not attack. You cannot use this ability against a creature that you have attacked within the past 10 minutes.

Additionally, you can attune your senses to determine if any of your favored enemies lurk nearby. By spending 1 uninterrupted minute in concentration (as if you were concentrating on a spell), you can sense whether any of your favored enemies are present within 5 miles of you. This feature reveals which of your favored enemies are present, their numbers, and the creatures’ general direction and distance (in miles) from you. If there are multiple groups of your favored enemies within range, you learn this information for each group.

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## Ranger Conclave

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At 3rd level, you choose to emulate the ideals and training of a ranger conclave: the Beast Conclave, the Hunter Conclave, or the Stalker Conclave, all detailed at the end of the class description. Your choice grants you features at 3rd level and again at 5th, 7th, 11th, and 15th level.

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## Ability Score Improvement

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When you reach 4th level, and again at 8th, 12th, 16th, and 19th level, you can increase one ability score of your choice by 2, or you can increase two ability scores of your choice by 1. As normal, you can’t increase an ability score above 20 using this feature. Alternately you can take a [[1]] in place of your Ability Score Improvement.

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## Greater Favored Enemy

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At 6th level, you are ready to hunt even deadlier game. Choose a type of greater favored enemy:

* aberrations
* celestials
* constructs
* dragons
* elementals
* fiends
* giants

You gain all the benefits against this chosen enemy that you normally gain against your favored enemy, including an additional language. Your bonus to damage rolls against all your favored enemies increases to +4. Additionally, you have advantage on saving throws against the spells and abilities used by a greater favored enemy

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## Fleet of Foot

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Beginning at 8th level, you can use the Dash action as a bonus action on your turn.

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## Hide in Plain Sight

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Starting at 10th level, you can remain perfectly still for long periods of time to set up ambushes. When you attempt to hide on your turn, you can opt to not move on that turn. If you avoid moving, creatures that attempt to detect you take a -10 penalty to their Wisdom (Perception) checks until the start of your next turn. You lose this benefit if you move or fall prone, either voluntarily or because of some external effect. You are still automatically detected if any effect or action causes you to no longer be hidden. If you are still hidden on your next turn, you can continue to remain motionless and gain this benefit until you are detected.

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## Vanish

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Starting at 14th level, you can use the Hide action as a bonus action on your turn. Also, you can’t be tracked by nonmagical means, unless you choose to leave a trail.

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## Feral Senses

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At 18th level, you gain preternatural senses that help you fight creatures you can’t see. When you attack a creature you can’t see, your inability to see it doesn’t impose disadvantage on your attack rolls against it. You are also aware of the location of any invisible creature within 30 feet of you, provided that the creature isn’t hidden from you and you aren’t blinded or deafened.

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## Foe Slayer

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At 20th level, you become an unparalleled hunter. Once on each of your turns, you can add your Wisdom modifier to the attack roll or the damage roll of an attack you make. You can choose to use this feature before or after the roll, but before any effects of the roll are applied.

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# Ranger Conclaves

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Across the wilds, rangers come together to form conclaves—loose associations whose members share a similar outlook on how best to protect nature from those who would despoil it.

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## Beast Conclave

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Many rangers are more at home in the wilds than in civilization, to the point where animals consider them kin. Rangers of the Beast Conclave develop a close bond with a beast, then further strengthen that bond through the use of magic.

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### Animal Companion

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At 3rd level, you learn to use your magic to create a powerful bond with a creature of the natural world. With 8 hours of work and the expenditure of 50 gp worth of rare herbs and fine food, you call forth an animal from the wilderness to serve as your faithful companion. You normally select your companion from among the following animals:

* ape
* black bear
* boar
* giant badger
* giant weasel
* mule
* panther
* wolf

However, your DM might pick one of these animals for you, based on the surrounding terrain and on what types of creatures would logically be present in the area. At the end of the 8 hours, your animal companion appears and gains all the benefits of your Companion’s Bond ability.

You can have only one animal companion at a time. If your animal companion is ever slain, the magical bond you share allows you to return it to life. With 8 hours of work and the expenditure of 25 gp worth of rare herbs and fine food, you call forth your companion’s spirit and use your magic to create a new body for it. You can return an animal companion to life in this manner even if you do not possess any part of its body. If you use this ability to return a former animal companion to life while you have a current animal companion, your current companion leaves you and is replaced by the restored companion.

> **Expanding Companion Options**
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> Depending on the nature of your campaign, the DM might choose to expand the options for your animal companion. As a rule of thumb, a beast can serve as an animal companion if it is Medium or smaller, has 15 or fewer hit points, and cannot deal more than 8 damage with a single attack. In general, that applies to creatures with a challenge rating of 1/4 or less, but there are exceptions.
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#### Companion’s Bond

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Your animal companion gains a variety of benefits while it is linked to you.

* The animal companion loses its Multi-attack action, if it has one. It's essentially replaced by "Coordinated Attack" and "Storm of Claws and Fangs".
* The companion obeys your commands as best it can.
* It rolls for initiative like any other creature, but you determine its actions, decisions, attitudes, and so on.
* If you are incapacitated or absent, your companion acts on its own.
* When using your Natural Explorer feature, you and your animal companion can both move stealthily at a normal pace.

Your animal companion has abilities and game statistics determined in part by your level. Your companion shares your alignment, and has a personality trait and a flaw that you can roll for or select from the tables below. Your companion shares your ideal, and its bond is always, “The ranger who travels with me is a beloved companion for whom I would gladly give my life.”

* Your companion uses your proficiency bonus rather than its own for attacks and skills which it is proficient in.
* An animal companion also adds its proficiency bonus to its AC and to its damage rolls.
* Your animal companion gains proficiency in two skills of your choice.
* It also becomes proficient with all saving throws.
* For each level you gain after 3rd, your animal companion gains an additional hit die and increases its hit points accordingly.
* Whenever you gain the Ability Score Improvement class feature, your companion’s abilities also improve. Your companion can increase one ability score of your choice by 2, or it can increase two ability scores of your choice by 1. As normal, your companion can’t increase an ability score above 20 using this feature unless its description specifies otherwise.
* Your animal companion gains the benefits of your Favored Enemy feature, and of your Greater Favored Enemy feature when you gain that feature at 6th level. It uses the favored enemies you selected for those features.

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#### Animal Companion Traits & Flaws

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**d6 Trait**

1. I’m dauntless in the face of adversity.
2. Threaten my friends, threaten me.
3. I stay on alert so others can rest.
4. People see an animal and underestimate me. I use that to my advantage.
5. I have a knack for showing up in the nick of time.
6. I put my friends’ needs before my own in all things.

**d6 Flaw**

1. If there’s food left unattended, I’ll eat it.
2. I growl at strangers, and all people except my ranger are strangers to me.
3. Any time is a good time for a belly rub.
4. I’m deathly afraid of water.
5. My idea of hello is a flurry of licks to the face.
6. I jump on creatures to tell them how much I love them.

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### Coordinated Attack

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Beginning at 5th level, you and your animal companion form a more potent fighting team. When you use the Attack action on your turn, if your companion can see you, it can use its reaction to make a melee attack against any creature within range.

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### Beast’s Defense

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At 7th level, while your companion can see you, it has advantage on all saving throws.

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### Storm of Claws and Fangs

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At 11th level, your companion can use its action to make a melee attack against each creature of its choice within 5 feet of it, with a separate attack roll for each target. This does not interfere with Coordinated Attack.

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### Superior Beast’s Defense

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At 15th level, whenever an attacker that your companion can see hits it with an attack, it can use its reaction to halve the attack’s damage against it.

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## Hunter Conclave

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Some rangers seek to master weapons to better protect civilization from the terrors of the wilderness. Members of the Hunter Conclave learn specialized fighting techniques for use against the most dire threats, from rampaging ogres and hordes of orcs to towering giants and terrifying dragons.

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### Hunter’s Prey

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At 3rd level, you gain one of the following features of your choice.

* **Colossus Slayer:** Your tenacity can wear down the most potent foes. When you hit a creature with a weapon attack, the creature takes an extra 1d8 damage if it’s below its hit point maximum. You can deal this extra damage only once per turn.
* **Giant Killer:** When a Large or larger creature within 5 feet of you hits or misses you with an attack, you can use your reaction to attack that creature immediately after its attack, provided that you can see the creature.
* **Horde Breaker:** Once on each of your turns when you make a weapon attack, you can make another attack with the same weapon against a different creature that is within 5 feet of the original target and within range of your weapon.

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### Extra Attack

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Beginning at 5th level, you can attack twice, instead of once, whenever you take the Attack action on your turn.

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### Defensive Tactics

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At 7th level, you gain one of the following features of your choice.

* **Escape the Horde:** Opportunity attacks against you are made with disadvantage.
* **Multi-attack Defense:** When a creature hits you with an attack, you gain a +4 bonus to AC against all subsequent attacks made by that creature for the rest of the turn.
* **Steel Will:** You have advantage on saving throws against being frightened.

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### Multi-attack

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At 11th level, you gain one of the following features of your choice.

* **Volley:** You can use your action to make a ranged attack against any number of creatures within 10 feet of a point you can see within your weapon’s range. You must have ammunition for each target, as normal, and you make a separate attack roll for each target.
* **Whirlwind Attack:** You can use your action to make melee attacks against any number of creatures within 5 feet of you, with a separate attack roll for each target.

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### Superior Hunter’s Defense

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At 15th level, you gain one of the following features of your choice.

* **Evasion:** When you are subjected to an effect, such as a red dragon’s fiery breath or a lightning bolt spell, that allows you to make a Dexterity saving throw to take only half damage, you instead take no damage if you succeed on a saving throw, and only half damage if you fail.
* **Stand Against the Tide:** When a hostile creature misses you with a melee attack, you can use your reaction to force that creature to repeat the same attack against another creature (other than itself) of your choice.
* **Uncanny Dodge:** When an attacker that you can see hits you with an attack, you can use your reaction to halve the attack’s damage against you.

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## Deep Stalker Conclave (UA: Ranger Revised)

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Most folk descend into the depths of the Underdark only under the most pressing conditions, undertaking some desperate quest or following the promise of vast riches. All too often, evil festers beneath the earth unnoticed, and rangers of the Deep Stalker Conclave strive to uncover and defeat such threats before they can reach the surface.

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### Underdark Scout

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At 3rd level, you master the art of the ambush. On your first turn during combat, you gain a +10' bonus to your movement speed, and if you use the Attack action, you can make one additional attack. You are also adept at evading creatures that rely on darkvision. Such creatures gain no benefit when attempting to detect you in dark and dim conditions. Additionally, when the DM determines if you can hide from a creature, that creature gains no benefit from its darkvision.

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### Deep Stalker Magic

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At 3rd level, you gain darkvision out to a range of 90 feet. If you already have darkvision, you increase its range by 30 feet. You also gain access to additional spells at 3rd, 5th, 9th, 13th, and 15th level. Once you gain a deep stalker spell, it counts as a ranger spell for you but doesn’t count against the number of ranger spells you know.

 5th
 9th
 13th
 17th

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### Extra Attack

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Beginning at 5th level, you can attack twice, instead of once, whenever you take the Attack action on your turn.

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### Iron Mind

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At 7th level, you gain proficiency in Wisdom saving throws.

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### Stalker’s Flurry

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Starting at 11th level, once on each of your turns when you miss with an attack, you can make another attack.

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### Stalker’s Dodge

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At 15th level, whenever a creature attacks you and does not have advantage, you can use your reaction to impose disadvantage on the creature’s attack roll against you. You can use this feature before or after the attack roll is made, but it must be used before the outcome of the roll is determined.

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## Horizon Walker Conclave (UA: Ranger & Rogue)

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Rangers of the Horizon Conclave guard the world against threats that originate from other planes. They seek out planar portals and keep watch over them, venturing to the outer and inner planes as needed to defeat threats.

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### Planar Magic

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Starting at 3rd level, you learn an additional spell when you reach certain levels in this class, as shown in the Horizon Walker Spells table. The spell counts as a ranger spell for you, and it doesn’t count against the number of ranger spells you know.

 5th
 9th
 13th
 17th

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### Planar Warrior

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At 3rd level, you learn to draw on the energy of the planes to augment your attacks. As a bonus action, choose one creature you can see within 30 feet of you. Until the end of this turn, your attacks against that creature ignore its damage resistances, and the next time you hit it on this turn, it takes an additional 1d6 force damage.

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### Portal Lore

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At 3rd level, you gain the ability to detect the presence of planar portals. As an action, you detect the distance and direction to any planar portals within 1,000 feet of you. You also sense which plane of existence each portal leads to. However, if magic obscures any details of a portal, this feature doesn’t reveal them. Once you use this feature, you can’t use it again until you finish a short or long rest. Alternatively, you can use the feature again if you expend a spell slot of 2nd level or higher. See the “Planar Travel” section in chapter 2 of the Dungeon Master’s Guide for examples of planar portals.

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### Extra Attack

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Beginning at 5th level, you can attack twice, instead of once, whenever you take the Attack action on your turn.

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### Ethereal Step

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At 7th level, you learn to step through the Ethereal Plane. As a bonus action on your turn, you can cast the etherealness spell with this feature, but the spell ends at the end of the current turn. Once you use this feature, you can’t use it again until you finish a short or long rest.

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### Distant Strike

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At 11th level, you gain the ability to step between the planes in a blink of an eye. When you use the Attack action, you can teleport up to 10 feet before each attack. You must be able to see the destination of the teleportation. If you attack at least two different creatures with the action, you can make one additional attack with it against a third creature.

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### Spectral Defense

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At 15th level, your ability to move between planes becomes even more finely tuned. As a reaction when you take damage, you can halve that damage against you. For a moment, you slip into the planar boundary to lessen the harm.

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## Monster Slayer Conclave (UA: A Trio of Subclasses)

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Rangers of the Slayer Conclave seek out vampires, dragons, evil fey, fiends, and other powerful magical threats. Trained in a variety of arcane and divine techniques to overcome such monsters, slayers are experts at unearthing and defeating mighty foes.

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### Slayer’s Mysticism

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You learn an additional spell when you reach certain levels in this class, as shown in the Slayer Spells table. The spell counts as a ranger spell for you but doesn’t count against the number of ranger spells you know.

 5th
 9th
 13th
 17th

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### Slayer’s Eye

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Starting at 3rd level, you gain the ability to study and unravel a creature’s defenses. As a bonus action, choose one creature you can see within 120 feet of you. You immediately learn the target’s vulnerabilities, immunities, and resistances. You also learn any special effects triggered when the target takes damage, such as fire damage halting its regeneration. In addition, the first time each turn you hit the target with a weapon attack, the target takes an extra 1d6 damage from the weapon. This benefit lasts until you target a different creature with this feature or until you finish a short or long rest.

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### Extra Attack

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Beginning at 5th level, you can attack twice, instead of once, whenever you take the Attack action on your turn.

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### Supernatural Defense

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At 7th level, you gain extra resilience against your prey’s assaults on your mind and body. Whenever the target of your Slayer’s Eye forces you to make a saving throw, add 1d6 to your roll.

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### Relentless Slayer

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At 11th level, you gain the ability to foil your foe’s ability to escape. Your study of folklore and arcane knowledge gives you a key insight to keep your prey cornered. If the target of your Slayer’s Eye attempts to teleport, change its shape, travel to another plane of existence, or turn gaseous, you can use your reaction to make a Wisdom check contested by a Wisdom check made by the target. To use this ability, you must be able to see the target and need to be within 30 feet of it. If you succeed, you foil its attempt, causing it to waste the action, bonus action, or reaction it used.

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### Slayer’s Counter

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At 15th level, you gain the ability to counterattack when your prey tries to sabotage you. If the target of your Slayer’s Eye forces you to make a saving throw, you can use your reaction to make one weapon attack against it. You make this attack immediately before making the saving throw. If the attack hits, your save automatically succeeds, in addition to the attack’s normal effects.

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## Primeval Guardian Conclave (UA: Ranger & Rogue)

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Rangers of the Primeval Guardian Conclave follow an ancient tradition rooted in powerful druidic magic. These rangers learn to become one with nature, allowing them to channel the aspects of various beasts and plants in order to overcome their foes. These rangers dwell in the elder forests of the world. They venture out only rarely, as they consider it their sacred duty to protect the druidic groves and ancient trees that saw the earliest days of the world.

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### Guardian Magic

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Starting at 3rd level, you learn an additional spell when you reach certain levels in this class, as shown in the Primeval Guardian Spells table. The spell counts as a ranger spell for you, and it doesn’t count against the number of ranger spells you know.

 5th
 9th
 13th
 17th

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### Guardian Soul

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Starting at 3rd level, you gain the ability to temporarily grow and take on the appearance of a treelike person, covered with leaves and bark. As a bonus action, you assume this guardian form, which lasts until you end it as a bonus action or until you are incapacitated. You undergo the following changes while in your guardian form:

* Your size becomes Large, unless you were larger.
* Any speed you have becomes 5 feet, unless the speed was lower.
* Your reach increases by 5 feet.
* You gain a number of temporary hit points at the start of each of your turns. The number equals half your ranger level. When the form ends, you lose any temporary hit points you have from it.

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### Piercing Thorns

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At 3rd level, your command of primal magic allows you to enhance your attacks with thorns. Once during each of your turns, you can deal an additional 1d6 piercing damage to one creature you hit with a weapon attack.

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### Extra Attack

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Beginning at 5th level, you can attack twice, instead of once, whenever you take the Attack action on your turn.

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### Ancient Fortitude

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At 7th level, you gain the endurance of the ancient forests. Your hit point maximum and current hit points increase by 2 per ranger level when you assume your guardian form. This increase lasts until you leave the form; your hit point maximum then returns to normal, but your current hit points remain the same, unless they must decrease to abide by your hit point maximum.

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### Rooted Defense

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At 11th level, you gain the ability to twist and turn the ground beneath you. While you are in your guardian form, the ground within 30 feet of you is difficult terrain for your enemies.

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### Guardian Aura

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Starting at 15th level, your guardian form emanates a magical aura that fortifies your injured allies. When any ally starts their turn within 30 feet of your guardian form, that ally regains a number of hit points equal to half your ranger level. This aura has no effect on a creature that has half or more of its hit points, and it has no effect on undead and constructs.

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1. ↑ Wizards RPG Team. *Unearthed Arcana: The Ranger, Revised*. Wizards of the Coast.
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Wizards RPG Team. ****Unearthed Arcana: Ranger & Rogue****. Wizards of the Coast.
3. ↑ Wizards RPG Team. '***Unearthed Arcana: A Trio of Subclasses'***. Wizards of the Coast.

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