The ranger is a special breed of warrior whose history dates back to the ancient danarin kingdoms and their mastery of the forests and nature. A ranger is a warrior whose purpose is to protect the innocent and defend against injustice, but more importantly to defend nature itself, which is most sacred to them. Oftentimes they are called the Avengers of Gaea and are considered the military branch of the last major religion on Aquilar, the druidic worship of Gaea. Although a good number of rangers work very closely with the druids and are themselves followers of Gaea, a ranger can be from any culture or society as long as they have respect for nature and the wild lands of the world.

Rangers are woodsman above all else and are most at peace in the lands they protect, away from civilization, greed, and corruption. They shun great hordes of wealth and use money only as a means to an end, such as providing food to a starving community or to pay a ransom to save an important figure. They use only what they need and disregard material wealth as unnecessary for their well-being. They live off the land whenever possible and consider themselves to have the greatest treasure of all, which is their fruitfulness of the land.

Rangers train extensively in the arts of warfare and guerilla tactics, using the land as a weapon against their opponents. They have learned to move silently across their chosen terrain and use their skills at tracking to locate any man or creature that walks in their woods. Rangers love animals and have a special relationship with the animals of their chosen terrain, able to soothe them and know their feelings and reactions.

A ranger can be from any type of terrain, including desserts and tundra and their terrain-based skills are based on the type of terrain that they must choose at character creation. The ‘classic’ ranger hails from the deep, temperate forests and many danarai are trained as rangers instead of warriors. Rangers must also choose a Totem Animal any time after 5th level, which is an animal that they feel they embody or would like to represent. This animal must be an animal that lives in the chosen terrain and will always respond to Animal Empathy, Speak to Animals, and Call of the Wild automatically. This Totem Animal works with the Kindred Spirit ability, described further in the Players Guide.

Rangers must follow some form of good philosophy to retain their ranger status or they will be shunned from any communities of their peers and all druids. Rangers may choose from any available skill set and may cast spells although the cost is double the points needed for the Spell Mastery skill and they may only cast spells from the domain of Balance. It is assumed that the ranger has basic knowledge of the wilderness, plants and animals in his region.

• Temperate Forest, Mountains, Plains
  
• Tundra Forest, Mountains, Plains
  
• Dessert, Oasis, Mountains, open dessert
  
• Tropical Jungle, Mountains, Plains
  
• Swamps and Marshes, Wetlands, Grasslands, coastal waters
  
• Badlands Scrubs, Steppes, Grasslands
  

• Each level, the ranger gains +3 to his OR and +3 to his DR
  
• Each level, the ranger gains 2 Mana.
  
• Every 3 levels the ranger gains a level of mastery in the Alertness skill. When 10th level mastery is reached, he may choose Tracking, Move Silently – Wilderness, or Hide - Terrain.
  

• Weapon Skill, your choice
  
• Alertness
  
• Tracking
  
• Move Silently, Wilderness
  
• Hide, Terrain
  
• Knowledge, Animals
  

• Animal Empathy: a ranger can use his training and knowledge of animals to soothe or calm them from an agitated state or attempt to understand the animal’s thoughts and feelings. This can be done as many times as needed, but a roll against the rangers’ Wisdom score is needed to succeed. This does not give the ranger the ability to speak to the animal or ask it questions.
  
• At 3rd level the ranger may choose any special ability from the Warrior Class of abilities.
  
• Speak to Animals: At 5th level the ranger gains this ability that functions like the spell, but costs the ranger 5 mana to use. The ranger must concentrate on the animal before him and attempt to join with its’ mind in a sense to establish a telepathic connection. There is no roll to succeed. The animals may be any that the ranger is familiar with in his Terrain. If the ranger does not know the creature, he may attempt it, but must successfully complete a Wisdom roll to succeed.
  
• At 7th level the ranger may choose any special ability from the Warrior Class of abilities.
  
• Call of the Wild: At 9th level the ranger may summon creatures of the wilderness to his aid using a special call learned during his career. The amount of creatures ranges from 1-10 (1d10) and are always ‘common’ or ‘uncommon’ creatures of the land, determined by the GM. The creatures will respond to the ranger as if the land itself were in danger and respond in kind against the rangers’ enemies, even unto death. The power wears off after combat or after 1 day if used for other purposes and the animals will then return to their homes. The animals will respond to simple commands from the ranger only and must be told who is friend and foe. This ability costs 15 mana to use and may be used once per day. Note: the GM may rule that the terrain has no animals to respond to the call, or that the number rolled is insufficient due to the terrain (such as a desolate area).
  

More special abilities available in the Players Guide, available soon! Check back for more updates and details.

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