Whenever you finish a long rest, you may choose to prepare for the trials ahead. Leading the preparations, pick one of the benefits below to bestow upon yourself and up to 5 other allies resting with you:

Beginning at 1st level, you are a meticulous and prepared planner. When other adventurers would rest and take it slow, you go over the plans again, spar and drill and work sore muscles.

If you prepared with the Perseverance camping preparation, and you take damage from one of your favored enemies, you may choose to reduce the damage taken by the value of one of your pre-rolled dice. Doing so spends the die.

If you prepared with the Coordination camping preparation, and you fight one of your favored enemies, you may choose to also spend your pre-rolled dice on attack rolls you make against that enemy.

Each archetype has a list of favored terrains. When you make camping preparations in one of your favored terrains, you and your allies will always be effected by the Diligence camping preparation. If you choose another camping preparation, you will be effected by both.

If you gain an archetype spell that doesn't appear on the ranger spell list, the spell is nonetheless a ranger spell for you.

Each archetype has a list of associated spells. You learn these spells at the levels specified in the archetype description. Archetype spells don't count against the number of ranger spells you know.

At 3rd level, you choose an archetype that you strive to emulate: Hunter or Beast Master both detailed at the end of the class description. Your choice grants you features at 3rd level and again at 7th, 11th, and 15th level.

When you use this feature with a spell slot of 3rd or 4th level, the effect last for 8 hours as if you were concentrating on a spell. If you use a 5th level or higher slot, it lasts for 24 hours as if you were concentrating on a spell.

Starting at 2nd level, you may spend a bonus action to choose a creature you can see within 90 feet and speak a mystical charm to mark it as your quarry. For one hour, as if your were concentrating on a spell, you deal an extra 1d6 damage to the target whenever you hit it with a weapon attack, and you have advantage on any Wisdom (Perception) or Wisdom (Survival) check you make to find it. If the target drops to 0 hit points before this effect ends, you can use a bonus action on a subsequent turn of yours to mark a new creature.

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.

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

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.

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.

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.

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 chapter 10 for the general rules of spellcasting and chapter 11 for the ranger spell list.

When you engage in two-weapon fighting, you can add your ability modifier to the damage of the second attack.

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.

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.

The benefit from your preparations last until your next long rest. Any character may be under the benefit of only one preparation at a time.

At 20th level your foresight lets you plan for every outcome. When you roll dice as part of your camping preparations, you may roll a number of dice equal to twice your wisdom modifier.

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.

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.

In order to pick a routine from the expanded list, you must have already picked all other routines corresponding to that camping preparation. So for instance, in order to pick the Untiring veteran camping routine, you must first know both the Focus and Swiftness camping routines, as these routines all improve the Coordination camping preparation.

At 10th level you gain an expanded list of routines to choose from. When you pick a routine, you will always benefit from that routine when you perform the corresponding camping preparation.

In addition, you have advantage on saving throws against plants that are magically created or manipulated to impede movement, such those created by the entangle spell.

Starting at 8th level, moving through nonmagical difficult terrain in costs you no extra movement. You can also pass through nonmagical plants without being slowed by them and without taking damage from them if they have thorns, spines, or a similar hazard.

Additionally, whenever you gain a level in this class you can choose one of the routines you know and replace it with another routine.

When you gain certain ranger levels, you gain additional routines of your choice, as shown in the Routines Known column of the Ranger table.

Also at 6th level you may pick 2 camping routines from the options below. Routines are improvements to your regular camping preparations. When you pick a routine, you will always benefit from that routine when you perform the corresponding camping preparation.

Beginning at 6th level, you are always one step ahead, and can improvise new plans on the fly. Whenever you finish a short rest, you may re-roll up to 2 spent camping preparation dice.

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

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.

If you prepared with the Diligence camping preparation, whenever you make a skill check related to your favored enemy, you may replace the number rolled with one of your pre-rolled dice, even if you are not proficient in the skill.

Your companion rolls its own initiative in combat, but you determine its actions, decisions, attitudes and so on. If you are incapacitated or absent, your companion acts on its own.

At 3rd level, you can summon a beast companion that accompanies you on your adventures and is trained to fight alongside you. Choose a medium CR 1/4 beast that you have seen before. You may spend a 1st level spell slot to summon this creature to your side as an action. The beast is friendly to you and obeys your commands as best it can.

In addition you learn the Sylvan language, beasts can understand your speech, and you gain the ability to decipher their noises and motions. Most beasts lack the intelligence to convey or understand sophisticated concepts, but a friendly beast could relay what it has seen or heard in the recent past. This ability doesn’t grant you friendship with beasts, though you can combine this ability with gifts to curry favor with them as you would with any nonplayer character.

Your favored terrain is whichever terrain your animal companion is native to. See for example the "Learning Beast Shapes" section p. 24 in Xanathar's Guide to Everything.

The Beast Master archetype draws upon the animalistic energies of nature, and manifests it in an animal companion. United in focus, beast and ranger work as one to fight the monstrous foes that threaten civilization and the wilderness alike. Emulating the Beast Master archetype means committing yourself to this ideal, working in partnership with an animal as its companion and friend.

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.

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.

Evasion You can nimbly dodge out of the way of certain area effects, such as a red dragon's fiery breath or a lightning bolt spell. When you are subjected to an effect that allows you to make a Dexterity saving throw to take only half damage, you instead take no damage if you succeed on the saving throw, and only half damage if you fail.

Starting at 11th level, you guard the wilderness from any foe, natural or unnatural. While a target is effected by your hunter's mark, it is a favored enemy to you, even if it is not on your list of favored enemies.

Starting at 7th level, you have become measured and deliberate in your spellcasting, and can better use the energies of nature to cast your spells for you. You can cast a ranger spell as a ritual if it has the ritual tag, and if it is of a level you have spell slots. You do not need to know the spell, however it must be on the Ranger spell list.

Starting at level 3, you are a master huntsman, and excel at hitting your quarry where it counts. The damage of your hunter's mark increases to 1d10.

The Hunter archetype hails from the wilderness, accustomed to hostile fauna and the uncivilized races. As you walk the Hunter's path, you learn specialized techniques for fighting, trapping or blending in with the threats you face, from rampaging mammoths and hordes of orcs to towering monstrosities.

Therefore one of the biggest homebrew changes to the core class in this document, is the Camping preparations class feature, which lets the ranger support the rest of the party. This supporting role is not a role easily embodied by the PHB ranger (except perhaps for when casting Pass Without a Trace), but I think it fits the fantasy archetype well enough.

I think part of the problem with the ranger, is the focus on making this aspect - the rugged individualist survivor - core to the ranger class. The ranger fantasy may involve a character that can head alone into the wilderness and thrive for 10 years, but that does not make a good D&D character or campaign. The class should not fit the character that heads into the woods alone for 10 years, but the character that has just returned from 10 years in the woods, who uses their unique experience and skills to help the party forwards.

The Fantasy archetype of the ranger involves a rugged individualist who is at home with nature. Being a warrior-survivalist, the ranger combines a martial chassis with a skill monkey trim - A fantastic archer who can also sneak with the best of them, and live off the land.

This document is yet another fan having yet another go at trying to "fix" the ranger, whatever that may mean.

The ranger is often discussed on various internet places where 5th edition D&D is the focus. Wizards of the Coast have remarked that it ranks the lowest in terms of class satisfaction, and its individual class features were also rated low. This caused Wizards to release a "Revised Ranger", to try and address the problem, and create a character class that more people would have more fun playing.

At 15th level, When your animal companion spends one of your spell slots to gain temporary hit points after taking damage, it also gains resistance to that damage.

Beginning at 11th level, When you hit the target of your Hunter's Mark, if your companion can see you, it can use its reaction to make a melee attack against that target. If the attack hits, the companion may use one of your spell slots to knock the target prone.

Beginning at 7th level, you gain access to the Synergy camping preparation. When you prepare with the Synergy preparation, your companion and its bond is strengthened further

The connection between you and your companion is fundamentally mystical, and by strengthening your bond you may strengthen your companion. You gain the following abilities to strengthen your animal companion:

As you gain levels in this class, you may spend higher level spell slots to summon stronger companions, as detailed in the table below.

If your companion dies, you may resummon it using a 1st level spell slot. You may only ever have one companion at a time.

Maintaining the bond with your companion is taxing, and requires investment of your spell slots. When you finish a long rest, you do not regain the spell slot used to summon your animal companion if it is still alive. Furthermore, your animal companion can only attack a creature that you have marked with your Hunter's Mark.

On Favored Terrain and Favored Enemy I think one of the big misconceptions of the PHB ranger is the Natural Explorer (Providing favored terrain) and favored enemy core class features. These features are essentially ribbons - designed so that even if you are never in your favored terrain, or never fighting your favored enemy, the rest of the class works just fine. The oomph that's supposed to set the ranger apart from other classes is moved to the subclass features and the spellcasting features, with natural explorer and favored enemy serving as flavor fitting the archetype. Unfortunately when most people read the ranger page in the PHB, these two features are the two big core class features that jump out at you, making you expect them to be impactful. They end up being red herrings, distracting readers from the 1/2 caster with greatly impactful subclasses. As such I switched around the ordering of subclasses. Instead of being: Level 1 Mostly Ribbon ("Red Herring")

Level 2 Spellcasting + Fighting Style

Level 3 Subclass with Oomph I changed it to: Level 1 Core class feature with oomph

Level 2 Spellcasting + Fighting Style + Hunter's Mark

Level 3 Subclass with a little oomph + Ribbon In this occasion I also changed Hunter's Mark from being a spell you must select, to a class feature you are given. This is also to provide the first few pages of features with some stand-out workhorses that readers will connect with as being uniquely Ranger features.

On Camping Preparations The core class feature with oomp I came up with were the camping preparations. The Ranger sits around the campfire laying the plans for tomorrow. This makes the ranger a "guide" type character, that parties should want to have along for the useful party-wide buffs and support they bring. Game mechanics wise this is achieved by a mixture of bardic inspiration and diviners portent: The Ranger pre-rolls some dice after the long rest, equal to their wisdom modifier, and may spend those known results when things are important. The intended feeling is "Remember what we planned" when the ranger spends their dice. This hopefully carves out a skill-monkey niche which is unique enough from simply awarding expertise, or from solving all problems with spells. With a couple of dice this almost guarantees a successful skill check or initiative order when it counts, but only once or twice so you must be prudent where you wish to succeed. The timing of when you can use the dice are intended to be "whenever", with no action economy required. Like with bardic inspiration or battlemaster superiority dice, you can roll your skill check, realize it's too low, then substitute in the Ranger's dice. I didn't feel this was too powerful, so I didn't add a clause like the diviner's portent, where you have to call that you are using the feature before you even roll for the check.

On Hunter's Mark As mentioned above, I moved Hunter's Mark to a class feature instead of a spell. This allowed me to play around with it in the subclass features and higher level core features. I personally think this is cool, but I'm not sure whether it's good or bad. At higher levels you may wish to spend your concentration on something else, and it'd be a waste of a class feature if it only does its work for the first ~10 levels, and afterwards becomes useless.

On the Beast Master Another common criticism of the ranger is with the Beast Master subclass. The problem with the beast master lies with the total power of a Ranger subclass. The PHB and XGtE Ranger subclasses give these various combat bonuses at level 3: Hunter (Colossus Slayer): +1d8 damage a round

(Colossus Slayer): +1d8 damage a round Gloom Stalker (Dread Ambusher): +1 attack on the first round, +1d8 damage if it hits.

(Dread Ambusher): +1 attack on the first round, +1d8 damage if it hits. Horizon Walker (Planar Warrior): Bonus action for +1d8 damage on next hit. Damage becomes force damage.

(Planar Warrior): Bonus action for +1d8 damage on next hit. Damage becomes force damage. Monster Hunter (Slayer's Prey): Bonus action once for +1d6 a round targeting the same creature. So if the Beast master is to fit in with the power level of the other ranger subclasses, it should add about +1d8 damage pr. round. The Beast Master fantasy archetype is much more ferocious than this, and so if it was implemented as a subclass feature to the ranger, it would outshine all the other subclasses. The solution to having a strong animal companion, while still being a full-class ranger, is to nerf the ranger if they pick the subclass. The PHB Beast Master requires the ranger to give up most of their attacks in order to let the beast fight. The revised ranger Beast Master has moved the "Extra Attack" feature into a subclass feature, so that the Beast Master never gets it in the first place. All to ensure that the ranger is sufficiently neutered to get a powerful companion. I chose to go a different route: Instead of neutering the Beast Master's damage, I neutered their spell casting. You can have a kick-ass companion, and you can be kick-ass while fighting alongside of it, but it will be expensive on your spell slots, so you can't do it all day. Furthermore you need your Hunter's Mark up, so your concentration will be spoken for. Similar to the Paladin's Divine Smite, you can eat your cake and have it to, but only while you pay for it with your spellcasting.