What's the purpose of a Ranger?

[Trelaboon]

I was thinking about this today, and realized, I don't have a clue why anyone would want to play one of these? If AA's were in game, it would make sense, but what purpose do Rangers serve in regular groups and raiding at this stage of the game...I don't get it? I actually think they look fun, but don't see what purpose they serve...

[Juugox2]

about only thing they got on other classes is able to track a bigger distant

[Wotsirb401]

Track bots! And paper tanks , plus anyone who plays a ranger supplies comic relief

[Aadill]

supplies comic relief

Sup it's all in the sigs.

Post Yendor, post!


Good dog.

[Nytewind TP]

Give me the option and I'd roll an Iksar Ranger right now! :)

[Ektar]

the obvious answer is so there's someone to take DTs.


But really it's for people who like rangers and want to be a ranger.

[regatta]

To eat DT's.

[Kope]

Honest answer - Rangers are filler. They don't do anything really well except for track.

They CAN snare, pull incredibly well outdoors (harmo) do decent dps (have a pure melee offense skill cap) and be an offtank.

Not a bad class but doesn't fill any role incredibly well except for random utility.

[stormlord]

It's not as bad as you think.

We have:
Dual Wield
Double Attack
Parry
Dodge
Riposte
Kick

Check: a bard doesn't have double attack or kick or 2handed weapon skills.
Check: our dual wield is higher than a warrior at cap (260, versus 245)
Check: our riposte and parry cap is higher than a bard
Check: we get a 30% attack bonus, but i'm not sure if this is the case on p1999 yet.

We get damage shields (unresistable) which help to make up for losses in hp/defense. We get snare and bow criticals and summoned arrows (tolan bracer), which helps us to kite (if needed). We get dots and direct damage spells that augment our dps in all situations.

We have track for outdoor zones. It allows you to really be in your element. The track list shows you the con of hte creature so you can hunt down creatures that will give you experience. You can track by distance or con or other things. You can also find special creatures that drop valuable loot or craftables.

I've used track quite a few times to check for dangerous creatures so I can avoid them. On pvp servers, it gives you forewarning as well.

Our regenerating mana augments our HP because we can cast healing spells on ourselves. In a solo situation this is especially important. It's like having two or more hitpoint bars.

We get a invisibility spell so don't have to purchase cloudy potions. Good for convenience. We also get sneak; useful to sell/buy from/to hostile vendors. Hide is very useful when you're afk and might not be back for a while. This is because invisibility spells can break early, but hide won't.

Our root/snare line allows us to control a couple adds. It requires a lot of attention, but if you play it right it's very effective. It's all about timing and not losing focus. Typically, rangers lose focus when they start to do too many things at once: dps, cc, tank, etc. If they focus on cc they're effective.

We have outdoor-only harmony so it's easy to pull in a controlled fashion. Powerful.

We can tank, kite, cc, dps, etc. We don't specialize. We're best in a small group where our skills can be used rather than needlessly repeated and made redundant or ineffective in large groups.l

Last but not least, animals won't attack you when you sit down (most of them) :)

If you like the idea of bieng a lone wolf or adventuring with a partner or two, is a nice choice.

[deakolt]

ranger bow kiting? doesn't that take like 30 minutes a mob?

[Dr4z3r]

In an outdoor zone, I'd take a ranger over a monk. Better pulling (Harmony + SoW), comparable offense, ability to CC (root, snare), and acceptable mitigation in case they need to off-tank (better than a bard).

[bakkily]

depends on what arrows you are using, i play one myself, but are we the only class that can get fletching/archery the highest?

but bow soloing we do great, but the thing is this, it depends on your archery skill and arrows being used, well bow of course as well, but a good bow is easy to get, at lvl 34 soloing in kunark, and i usally stick to rhinos, since they are the easiest to kill, and yield same exp as a db cactus, will take me 5 mins to solo, i've done a yellow cockatrice once, and took me about 20 mins to finish the guy, with half my health left and 20% mana, did a red lioness and that took me over 30 mins, near the end i was being seriously raped by it, and would've died if a druid didnt stop by and heal me a few times

but soloing with a ranger, almost all out door zones we do great in, usally no matter what at lvls 1-20 you'll find a group, 20-30 we do very well in lake, because for one goblins near the river are great exp with a 22 ranger i grouped from lvls 21-24, and we do well pulling the sarnak fort, great exp 24-30, even soloing in unrest is great exp at lvl 30-35, though i left the area due to basement or fr camped, and people bitching if i took singles from areas they're not even killing

in doors we do not so bad, after a pulls made, snare everything so the clerics/mezzer feels safe

[bakkily]

yea sadly rangers dont get sow till lvl 39, all the time i get asked to sow someone

[JenJen]

surprised yendor hasnt piped up yet with his usual excellent blog on ranger skills ;)

I'd say the best reason to choose a ranger is......all the best class-specific armor you can EAT.

[P99Millertime]

Bind spots?

[Dantes]

To eat DT's.

This is correct.

[Jerin]

I played a ranger for 10 years on live, and for some reason i have a ranger main here that i play casually.

Here is what rangers do, if your not lazy: If no monk or bard...pull, if no Chanter and multiple mobs get pulled ..CC with root, if your in a zone with some good drops ...constantly check track for pops.

Archery is pointless except for shooting at mobs your trying to pull (which is just a small time saver) till trueshot/AM/EQ and all the various bow AAs youll not see here. Bow kiting? Only if your a boob.

Oh and in the event there is not a SK/Pally in your group, and you have even a slightly decent weapon set up...Your gonna tank since warrior hate in this era is shit.

Lets not forget forage.

[Vondra]

In reality, the best reason to be a ranger is to take advantage of the cheaper ranger gear that is available as well as the low competition for looting the various NO TRADE Ranger items from raids etc.

I still don't invite them unless I have to though.

[Duie]

I played a ranger for 10 years on live, and for some reason i have a ranger main here that i play casually.

Here is what rangers do, if your not lazy: If no monk or bard...pull, if no Chanter and multiple mobs get pulled ..CC with root, if your in a zone with some good drops ...constantly check track for pops.

Archery is pointless except for shooting at mobs your trying to pull (which is just a small time saver) till trueshot/AM/EQ and all the various bow AAs youll not see here. Bow kiting? Only if your a boob.

Oh and in the event there is not a SK/Pally in your group, and you have even a slightly decent weapon set up...Your gonna tank since warrior hate in this era ishit.s

Lets not forget forage.

lets also not forget that warriors love rangers who will root and do what they can to help Mr Warrior look good.

It isnt just one thing that makes the ranger class shine and if you wanna be able to do all the above at the cost of not specalizing in anythign.... well you really only have once choice.

[BobSmith]

...and acceptable mitigation in case they need to off-tank (better than a bard).

What gives them better mitigation than a bard? Or a cleric for that matter? I thought they had a lower AC soft cap? Aren't they considered a "chain" class?

From http://forums.station.sony.com/eq/posts/list.m?topic_id=160153


Soft Caps:

Cloth..........= ~75 worn AC (yes its really that low)
Leather......= ~100 worn AC
Monk..........= ~120 worn AC (if they are under 15 stone wieght)
Chain.........= ~200 worn AC
Plate .........= ~300 worn AC

AC returns after the soft cap has been reached:

45%: Warrior (from Devs)
33%: Knight (from Devs), Monk (reportedly equal to Knight? via Zajeer?)
23%: Cleric, Bard (via L2), BZR (rough estimate based off of parsing)
17%: BST, Ranger (BST is ~1/2 of the monk, ranger hearsay)
6%: Druid, Enc, Mag, Nec, Wiz (~1/3 of BST -- Druid was quoted as "lowest")
Rogue, Shaman? Probably they are close to cleric returns.

[YendorLootmonkey]

Fine, I'll take the bait.

Most of it has been said already, but I think Bubbles put it best in a different thread (and also mentioned by stormlord above) when he said that if you're filling out your group with 5-6 people, you're probably going to want the "specialists". If you've only got a duo or trio, grab a ranger since they are so versatile that they can fill multiple roles as needed.

One of the clutch roles stormlord neglected was that we can also slow mobs with a Swarmcaller proc (and later, one of our epics). It's not reliable, but it sure helps the healer conserve mana over time.

My view is... for the person playing the ranger, the versatility makes the class fun and interesting. The problem is the people looking for people to fill out their 5- or 6-man groups don't give a rat's ass about your versatility. In raid scenarios, I tend to play crowd control first (snare/kite shit until your chanters get it under control, peel a mob off a chanter after a failed resist, etc) because I like having that situational awareness, then revert to DPS once everything is under control, but that's just my personal playstyle.

It's a rough road to take. There is a reason there's not many active 55+ rangers on the server. It's not for everyone. You either love the class and all the crap that comes with it, or you don't and it makes you want to /wrist during your 7th hour LFG.

[JenJen]

Can we now have this thread stickied?

[YendorLootmonkey]

Can we now have this thread stickied?

Can we now have JenJen stickied?

[Dantes]

Oh, almost forgot. Comic relief.

[Deadmantis]

I have a friend still playing on Live as a 90 ranger. He took alot of crap in the military so he was well prepared for it. I am thinking they might have brainwashed him...

[Troy]

It's a rough road to take. There is a reason there's not many active 55+ rangers on the server. It's not for everyone. You either love the class and all the crap that comes with it, or you don't and it makes you want to /wrist during your 7th hour LFG.

More like your 700th hour LFG.

I once accidentally left myself /lfg and not /afk hiding in KC for roughly 24 hours. When I came back the next day I had received -zero- tells.

The purpose of a ranger is to sit LFG and pretend like you want to play EQ, but really you need to get other stuff done at home so you pick a class that has zero danger of ever being invited to a group.

[Safon]

Can we now have JenJen stickied?

Visage has this covered

[Jerin]

I have a friend still playing on Live as a 90 ranger. He took alot of crap in the military so he was well prepared for it. I am thinking they might have brainwashed him...

No need for thick skin now, Ranger dps on live > ....everything

[Kobias]

Being the only class that can port themselves to LFaydark with Trak BP? Oh yeah, and DTs. I wouldn't even associate them with tracking so much, since I'd be happy with a druid or bard anyway. Tracking Range is rarely an issue unless we're talking Quillmane.

Would be so much easier to be a druid. Better buffs, more income potential, more desired groupability, and no crazy 40% Hybrid XP Penalty. Rangers didn't start getting their own niche until Luclin AAs imo.

[Taketz]

They're there to make everyone else feel better about their class.

[YendorLootmonkey]

I once accidentally left myself /lfg and not /afk hiding in KC for roughly 24 hours. When I came back the next day I had received -zero- tells.


Because I know the first person I wanna shoot a /tell for a group is the person I've seen AFKing in the zone for 2+ hours! :)

[Kryptyde]

I amuse myself reading all the troll comments on this board...but the bottom line is that EQ is a game and its meant to be fun. Rangers are a lot of fun to play if you enjoy a melee that has a lot of versatility.

[Snaggles]

If you're a keyboard faceroll group member hybrids are watered down classes. If you don't suck they an be downright impressive. All hybrids really. In Velious one ranger brings Predator to all raid members which adds up.

With their buffs almost closing the gap on offensive skills they get close to melee with a warrior (who can aggro dump). With a chanter and cleric they bring quite a few attack buffs to every melee plus thorns. Tracking is very helpful again if they are trying.

I soloed my sk on and off to 65 even kiting Tantor to death for bragging rights. With a ranger and different tactics I'm sure the same could be done. That also means solo quests and impressing the Hell out of group members (root park anyone?).

This isn't a balancing war where every class can dps, tank, and heal depending on builds. This is a cruel harsh world of pre-sellout mmorpgs. Versatility gives you options an a chance when sometimes otherwise you would be looting your corpse or looking for a rez/summon.

[Troy]

Because I know the first person I wanna shoot a /tell for a group is the person I've seen AFKing in the zone for 2+ hours! :)

I don't know too many people who keep see invis up in KC.

[Randy]

I played a Ranger on Live and I remember snare being more important. Maybe, everyone killed slower or its later on in the game i'm thinking of (all my eq time blurs together) but snare used to always be a somewhat important part of a group from what I remember. So I didn't wait for groups any longer than other dps...

Anyway, its a fun class to play and who really cares about being the 'best, most efficient and efficient' class anyway? Its 'Role-playing' game. Its about fun not end game.

[vinx]

iirc it was because,
a snared mob was considered moving, so bow did max dmg
and when mob was rooted, bow did crappy dmg

[Daldaen]

Fine, I'll take the bait.

Most of it has been said already, but I think Bubbles put it best in a different thread (and also mentioned by stormlord above) when he said that if you're filling out your group with 5-6 people, you're probably going to want the "specialists". If you've only got a duo or trio, grab a ranger since they are so versatile that they can fill multiple roles as needed.

One of the clutch roles stormlord neglected was that we can also slow mobs with a Swarmcaller proc (and later, one of our epics). It's not reliable, but it sure helps the healer conserve mana over time.

My view is... for the person playing the ranger, the versatility makes the class fun and interesting. The problem is the people looking for people to fill out their 5- or 6-man groups don't give a rat's ass about your versatility. In raid scenarios, I tend to play crowd control first (snare/kite shit until your chanters get it under control, peel a mob off a chanter after a failed resist, etc) because I like having that situational awareness, then revert to DPS once everything is under control, but that's just my personal playstyle.

It's a rough road to take. There is a reason there's not many active 55+ rangers on the server. It's not for everyone. You either love the class and all the crap that comes with it, or you don't and it makes you want to /wrist during your 7th hour LFG.

You sir, just summed up being a druid. - the slow + the back healer, -the being ignored while LFG + the powerlevel/buff/port tells.

[Xanthias]

I agree with one of the tags... this thread again...
Played a ranger til 67 in live (GoD)
have leveled to 50 here on p99 and plan on hitting 60 as well.

Playing a ranger isn't for everyone, you are treated as an afterthought, a joke, a mana sink... so have a think skin.

My biggest thrill is when after a group, someone says, before this I never wanted a ranger in a group, now I do.

Either way, play the class you want, screw what we think and just have fun.

[Tasslehofp99]

ranger bow kiting? doesn't that take like 30 minutes a mob?

lol lets see how many mobs a warrior/rogue can solo in 30 minutes :cool:

[Tasslehofp99]

You sir, just summed up being a druid. - the slow + the back healer, -the being ignored while LFG + the powerlevel/buff/port tells.

hehe druids and rangers are both picked up last out of all classes in game to group with i'd say

[Tasslehofp99]

I played a Ranger on Live and I remember snare being more important. Maybe, everyone killed slower or its later on in the game i'm thinking of (all my eq time blurs together) but snare used to always be a somewhat important part of a group from what I remember. So I didn't wait for groups any longer than other dps...

Anyway, its a fun class to play and who really cares about being the 'best, most efficient and efficient' class anyway? Its 'Role-playing' game. Its about fun not end game.

Snare was a very important thing on live, apparently its not so important here. I remember seb mobs running at like 19% on live, and in other zones as well, this created many problems with adds in certain camps without snare. I tend to see morons rooting mobs who are fleeing instead of just letting druids/rangers/SK's/necros snare them isntead.

[Motec]

Rangers have never served a purpose until attack buffs, and even then mostly to loot ranger only weaps.

Rotting longsword of the glade is heartbreaking.

That said, a well played ranger is better than the hordes of mediocre played SK's and even worse, paladins on this server.

[Motec]

I agree with one of the tags... this thread again...
Played a ranger til 67 in live (GoD)
have leveled to 50 here on p99 and plan on hitting 60 as well.

Playing a ranger isn't for everyone, you are treated as an afterthought, a joke, a mana sink... so have a think skin.

My biggest thrill is when after a group, someone says, before this I never wanted a ranger in a group, now I do.

Either way, play the class you want, screw what we think and just have fun.

Xanthias is a boss of a ranger. All you kids that suck should learn from him...

Grats on 50 man.

[Estu]

Anyway, its a fun class to play and who really cares about being the 'best, most efficient and efficient' class anyway? Its 'Role-playing' game. Its about fun not end game.

This is a noble premise, but one that doesn't work out so well when all the would-be rangers who start playing them to "have fun" can't find any groups in their 20s because of the ranger stigma and EXP penalty, and can't solo for shit (or solo so slowly that it's almost worse than not being able to solo at all, like a man who is starving but is only given one raisin every three hours). I'm not saying it's impossible to get groups as a ranger, of course, and I've definitely invited rangers before, but a lot of people will refuse to on principle, so it makes the class a whole lot less fun. I've especially heard horror stories about this happening towards the end game, when EXP is super-slow already.

[stormlord]

More like your 700th hour LFG.

I once accidentally left myself /lfg and not /afk hiding in KC for roughly 24 hours. When I came back the next day I had received -zero- tells.

The purpose of a ranger is to sit LFG and pretend like you want to play EQ, but really you need to get other stuff done at home so you pick a class that has zero danger of ever being invited to a group.
Underlined: fictionalized, literary fantasy, comical, mischievous
Normal: truthfully, a solo-able class is a good pick for somebody who likes to afk

[Vohl]

Xanthias is a boss of a ranger. All you kids that suck should learn from him...

+1

[stormlord]

depends on what arrows you are using, i play one myself, but are we the only class that can get fletching/archery the highest?

Archery sub-lvl 50 Cap/Cap after 50:
Rogue: 200/255
Warrior: 200/240
Ranger: 240/255

Fletching caps are the same for each class. But we get a dexterity bonus to our archery crits. Dexterity is used in-place of intelligence or wisdom when assessing skill gain, if higher.

but bow soloing we do great, but the thing is this, it depends on your archery skill and arrows being used, well bow of course as well, but a good bow is easy to get, at lvl 34 soloing in kunark, and i usally stick to rhinos, since they are the easiest to kill, and yield same exp as a db cactus, will take me 5 mins to solo, i've done a yellow cockatrice once, and took me about 20 mins to finish the guy, with half my health left and 20% mana, did a red lioness and that took me over 30 mins, near the end i was being seriously raped by it, and would've died if a druid didnt stop by and heal me a few times

but soloing with a ranger, almost all out door zones we do great in, usally no matter what at lvls 1-20 you'll find a group, 20-30 we do very well in lake, because for one goblins near the river are great exp with a 22 ranger i grouped from lvls 21-24, and we do well pulling the sarnak fort, great exp 24-30, even soloing in unrest is great exp at lvl 30-35, though i left the area due to basement or fr camped, and people bitching if i took singles from areas they're not even killing

Our ability to kite is not as good as a druid or a bard, but it's there. It may not always be the correct choice, but it does allow us to kill high cons that would otherwise kill us in close combat. In a normal experience grind, this is unlikely because we don't normally kill high cons when we grind. But if there's a tougher than normal aggro on you, or a special named creature with good loot that's yellow/red to you, then using our kiting abilities is effective enough to terminate it.

in doors we do not so bad, after a pulls made, snare everything so the clerics/mezzer feels safe

We're not nearly as good indoors, for a number of reasons. :/

[stormlord]

Does anybody know when archery double-damage hits to non-moving and non-rooted creatures took effect?

And was that ranger-only? I recall level 50+ for it, but do not know other conditions.

My guess is luclin since hard to justify using archery this way on a consistent basis.

[deakolt]

like a man who is starving but is only given one raisin every three hours

[Corrodith]

It really doesn't start to get good until 55+ and you have good gear (thanks TMO!) and especially a few key items. Honestly I've never put myself through something as sad and pathetic as leveling a ranger 1-20 being fresh to the server. Just awful. It's still pretty sad even up to 50, although bow kiting allowed me to get through some tough periods (since the nerf a couple patches ago it's not really viable anymore, sadly. I killed so many highkeep guards this way to get through the 30s and make money to start getting out of banded armor).

Key items that turn things around:

Dark Cloak of the Sky - sky quest cloak, 50% clicky spell haste. Makes you infinitely more useful in small group situations with no one casting haste. Combined with a nice haste item and good weapons you can churn out 50-60 dps with only self buffs.

Fayguard Parrying Dagger - one of the best mainhand weapons in the game right now at 9/17. Fairly easy to get and nothing else is better for pure DPS until velious. Procs an AEdd but can be used on most raid encounters without causing agro trouble. Definitely helps to close the DPS gap with rogues.

Swarmcaller - again, makes you very useful in small groups that don't have someone to slow. If you have some good situational dex gear the slow procs can be somewhat reliable. Causes mega agro but you can easily jolt it off. These are very cheap nowadays.

Lupine Dagger - From what I hear they're pretty cool, sadly no one's selling them. Ever.

Tolan's BP - instant banking, you never get stuck anywhere. With an OT hammer you can mobilize yourself around the world pretty well. Look for these popping up in EC soon lol.

200 range bows (Wind Striker or Rain Caller) - with 150 range arrows it allows you to pull dragons without risk of being feared (300 range AE). Once you agro a dragon, it will not find your guild's camp spot for you, though, lol.

Generally having all the high-end gear gives you quite a bit of AC and HP, and brings out the ability to actually main tank and take CHs pretty well in regular exp/loot groups, especially if you're slowing with swarmcaller.

[YendorLootmonkey]

Does anybody know when archery double-damage hits to non-moving and non-rooted creatures took effect?

And was that ranger-only? I recall level 50+ for it, but do not know other conditions.

My guess is luclin since hard to justify using archery this way on a consistent basis.

Ranger only, 50 or 51 and above, Kunark. In now on P99. But your melee DPS is still better.

[Corrodith]

Up until a few weeks ago, archery on non-rooted mobs was coming out to roughly equal to melee DPS, perhaps just slightly less. Before the nerf patch we all realized it was worth it to use on raids even.

After patch we were seeing much higher critical hits, but also lower minimum hits. Sky bow could crit up in the 800s at 45/60! Then they realized that the damage calcs had been altered to be basically constant trueshot disc and damage was cut completely in half in a stealth change. So now bow soloing isn't nearly as viable as it was.

[stormlord]

Ranger only, 50 or 51 and above, Kunark. In now on P99. But your melee DPS is still better.
Thanks for replying.

Reason I ask is sometimes we need to do cc (especially for 2 or more targets). Using a bow in that situation is better than melee because it allows you to measure a situation better (wide angle view).

As I see it, you trade some dps for better situation awareness.

But in a situation like that you'd mostly be focused on keeping snare/root in place.

There may be situations where you need distance and are not within melee range of main target too. For example, if a mob is rooted and it breaks. You want some distance between you and it to reroot. But if being within distance of the main target to use melee requires being too close to your rooted mob(s) then using archery would allow you to keep proper distance and still attack the main target.

Reason I bring this up is because I was reading some forum posts somewhere else on the net and a ranger brought up how the luclin-era made viable archery rangers for a while. He commented that this made rangers better at CC because of being able to see the situation from a distance. I think there's some merit.

Can anyone think of other ways that it could be justified? (other than to point out my errors in judgement about what i think are ways that justify its use in specific cases)

[Pringles]

Its already been said, but its to eat DTs.... for real, it is.

[Corrodith]

Thanks for replying.

Reason I ask is sometimes we need to do cc (especially for 2 or more targets). Using a bow in that situation is better than melee because it allows you to measure a situation better (wide angle view).

As I see it, you trade some dps for better situation awareness.

But in a situation like that you'd mostly be focused on keeping snare/root in place.

There may be situations where you need distance and are not within melee range of main target too. For example, if a mob is rooted and it breaks. You want some distance between you and it to reroot. But if being within distance of the main target to use melee requires being too close to your rooted mob(s) then using archery would allow you to keep proper distance and still attack the main target.

Reason I bring this up is because I was reading some forum posts somewhere else on the net and a ranger brought up how the luclin-era made viable archery rangers for a while. He commented that this made rangers better at CC because of being able to see the situation from a distance. I think there's some merit.

Can anyone think of other ways that it could be justified? (other than to point out my errors in judgement about what i think are ways that justify its use in specific cases)

I would strongly advise trying to use bow in an exp group. Bow damage is really laughable and people aren't going to want to group with you if you have a reputation for using bow all the time lol. If you need better "situational awareness" drop into 3rd person.

[Motec]

Dark Cloak of the Sky - sky quest cloak, 50% clicky spell haste. Makes you infinitely more useful in small group situations with no one casting haste. Combined with a nice haste item and good weapons you can churn out 50-60 dps with only self buffs.

VoG. This item is irrelevant for all but moments where it doesnt matter from a dps perspective. Otherwise its fairly cool.

Fayguard Parrying Dagger - one of the best mainhand weapons in the game right now at 9/17. Fairly easy to get and nothing else is better for pure DPS until velious. Procs an AEdd but can be used on most raid encounters without causing agro trouble. Definitely helps to close the DPS gap with rogues.


Lol at close the dps gap. Compared to a rogue, you do nothing. You do laughable damage. hahaha.


Swarmcaller - again, makes you very useful in small groups that don't have someone to slow. If you have some good situational dex gear the slow procs can be somewhat reliable. Causes mega agro but you can easily jolt it off. These are very cheap nowadays.


Truncheon of Doom, Locustlure, etc. So suddenly warriors and rogues are magical slowers too? No. Its a shit idea, a shit slow, and having a rogue instead of you means the mob would die faster than your slow % would reduce DPS*


Lupine Dagger - From what I hear they're pretty cool, sadly no one's selling them. Ever.

What does this comment even mean? A minor atk buff? yay.


Tolan's BP - instant banking, you never get stuck anywhere. With an OT hammer you can mobilize yourself around the world pretty well. Look for these popping up in EC soon lol.

Hey guys clerics are awesome, you get this donals BP when you roll one ands it makes you the most imbalanced class in the game. Oh wait, you're talking dragon loot from a highly contested mob to share amongst 100+ people.


200 range bows (Wind Striker or Rain Caller) - with 150 range arrows it allows you to pull dragons without risk of being feared (300 range AE). Once you agro a dragon, it will not find your guild's camp spot for you, though, lol.

Allows you to kite dragons, until you get lost, loop and have levitate dispelled etc. Otherwise, sound point. Rangers can doi something that bards do infinitely better.


Generally having all the high-end gear gives you quite a bit of AC and HP, and brings out the ability to actually main tank and take CHs pretty well in regular exp/loot groups, especially if you're slowing with swarmcaller.


Yes massivly over gearing your target encounter definitely makes the ranger a viable tank.

Meanwhile lower guk has become easier for everyone else at level 60 in kunark and sky gear.

[Corrodith]

Haters gonna hate I guess.

A good rogue will do somewhere around 100-130 dps or perhaps slightly higher on a raid encounter using disc. A good ranger can do around 50-55 dps straight melee, add in a calefaction cast every 45 seconds and it can approach the 60-70 range. Certainly not laughable or negligible.

[Motec]

laughable imo.

[Swarws]

Rangers are just like any other class, When controlled by a skilled gamer they are extremely good and extremely useful in raid and group settings and can solo. Until Luclin and AAs they are more of a support utility class than straight DPS, but they are really fun to play and you can do some really cool stuff pulling wise and CC wise in Plane of Fear and Hate. Also our rangers with Mistwalkers did the most dps of anyone until kunark came out.

Quick Example IB used to break fear and just have rangers kite everything on the west wall till it was broke and at the same time Dpsing with a bow on the assist mob. Or have someone split out the maestro or any other from Hate. Also, While bow dps isnt the greatest its very useful for mobs that have PBAEs to have sustained dps without damage taken. In Vel Trueshot disc is really useful on many fights for this reason.

[Stinkum]

laughable imo.

calm down dude, did you get touched as a child by a man who played a ranger or something

the amount of emotions this topic has brought out of you is "laughable imo"

[Motec]

^racist

[Galacticus]

Rangers are half warrior half druid. You might ask the same of the Shadow knight or the Paladin.

[visage]

Rangers are half warrior half druid. You might ask the same of the Shadow knight or the Paladin.

2/3 war , 1/3 druid.

[visage]

but in reality its more like. 1/3 war , and 1/3 druid and 1/3 what the hell have you done to this class

[Motec]

not one disgruntled ranger took the bait :(

[maverixdamighty]

I'll take a well played ranger in my group anyday.

[YendorLootmonkey]

not one disgruntled ranger took the bait :(

We were busy rolling other classes.

[visage]

We were busy rolling other classes.

Ain't that the truth.

[Tamiah2011]

Rangers pretty much worthless class.Just my thought

[Snaggles]

A good ranger is better than a bad rogue.

Playing a rogue from classic through Velious I don't remember a single time I saved a group from demise. I can remember a ton of hybrids who perfected their game and did though. That's why I maxed out the rogue and never went back after making my SK.

Really you're filling a dps role. It's a simple job. Anyone who sees that as the backbone of an awesome group needs to get their head examined. Every other class makes constant decisions to avoid letting the group wipe...you mash like 3 buttons and wait for the next mob.

That said, if rangers as a whole suck like many of them did back on live I can see the problem.

Autoattack, kick, dot, nuke, aggro, "HEAL MEE!!!"....die.


Edit: I'm recalling the main problem being the hybrid exp penalty. It's something we never knew about on live yet still found a way to level to 60 and beyond. Go figure I remember being grouped with MULTIPLE hybrids and the exp flowed amazingly. Maybe because those groups weren't shit to begin with...

[JenJen]

roll a ranger, get a tolan's bp within 3 months and dont queue for months on end for your epics later down the line. thats the attraction right yendie?

[SwordNboard]

To surpass expectations.

The less people expect from you, the easier it is to impress them.

[Aadill]

A good ranger is better than a bad rogue.

[...]

I can remember a ton of hybrids who perfected their game and did though.

[...]

That said, if rangers as a whole suck like many of them did back on live I can see the problem.

Autoattack, kick, dot, nuke, aggro, "HEAL MEE!!!"....die.

This. All of this. Sure rangers aren't good at really anything but what makes them fun is the OPTIONS you have to still be a viable solution to a problem. There are other games that play on this freeform style of gaming and it's actually very rewarding because you pick and choose exactly how you want to play. As has been said, some rangers simply DPS and still keep up decently with most classes. On higher level mobs rangers do fail because of a lack of offense but that changes in Velious. Others CC more effectively than CC classes in some situations or constantly pull better than pulling classes in certain zones. It's all situational but it requires a larger understanding of multiple skillsets and knowing when to use each. The Ranger Codex isn't a one page manual that says, "Take the DT," and a lot of people don't realize it.

Most classes have a very distinct role. No one cares what rangers do, so we do what we want. It's fun and generally still contributes to a group. It's sad that the majority of the hate comes from old tired jokes or hatred for the XP penalty. Unless you're a bard interaction is the number one concept of this game, something a lot of people forget.

[Buffet]

Theyre a shit load of fun to play.

They only really suffer in that their role is mirrored arguabely better by another class.

They still meat grind mobs pretty well when I buff em up, so they can hang with my fat ass ogre any day

[Trelaboon]

I'm leveling my 40 Shaman at the moment, but one day i'm totally rolling a Ranger, and hope my friend roles a healer and we can level together, and he's not mad. rofl. I think they look like tons of fun to play, I just know i'll regret it later. haha

[superapan]

Rangers just got a whole lot more useful.

[Malev]

Give me the option and I'd roll an Iksar Ranger right now! :)

But... you wouldn't be able to train anything cause you'd be kos to all of your trainers! :confused:

[Cujoy]

I remember seeing a ton of rangers either quit or reroll during Kunark. It was a tough life for a ranger, I think it was the low caps on their defense and even melee that did them in. But the best reason for a ranger is CoP come Velious!

[akahdrin]

Weaponshield lets them tank VS as I'm pretty sure it's the longest damage avoidance in the game, they just need enough dps to down his 14k hp in that time and enchanters to chain cast rune. I've done it previously on live during Kunark with my ranger there.

Trueshot is no joke for short term dps. In groups they can do things other off tanks can't do. CC with root, snare, pull agro in a hurry off a caster, assist with debuffing via swarm caller or epic once it's in, also helping with downtime healing or spot healing in a pinch. Also they do have fairly potent spells with a fast cast time that allow for burst dps as well. Also a well equipped ranger has 86% haste unbuffed via dark cloak of the sky which actually isn't hard to get if you're in a guild that can do sky.

They're not going to top the charts, but they do bring more to a group other than just dps.

[Rieve]

you had weaponshield during Kunark? that is impressive sir!

Also, the Dark Cloak of Sky is anything but easy to get. Been doing sky for 7 months now and still have yet to see 1 drop...

[akahdrin]

No, just saying when they do get it, VS was horribly difficult until disciplines, we tried a lot of things to do it. Found that rangers worked out pretty well.

[Troy]

Also, the Dark Cloak of Sky is anything but easy to get. Been doing sky for 7 months now and still have yet to see 1 drop...

Yep, my guild has also seen a total of zero velvet cloaks drop ever. It is seriously frustrating.

[SyanideGas]

So the Cleric has someone to rez.

[bakkily]

the rangers a great class to play, and not for everyone, got mine up to a good lvl, and going to take a break, once velious comes out ill start playing him again

but if you're playing a ranger, you better only play this char, because they sure take some time to gear very well, and i dont know how many rangers out there lvl 30+ know how to solo well on them, i mean it isnt that hard, as long as you have your archery skill up to par with lvl, and good arrows, ill say for def want to be able to make 3 dmg 150 ft arrows by lvl 20, helps pulling so much, it may take a lil cash if you know what you're doing right to get to the steel arrows, but are so much worth it, helps me solo db's really fast, and yellows take about 8 mins, or so, and this is soloing in ot

but you guys playing a ranger, keep playing because if you want to get to the raiding areas, the guilds are going to love you, because for one, can always track nameds, and helpful on getting people there seb key

but there has been a few lazy clerics that didnt want to heal me, because they said i was a drain on there mana, this same group, i saved the clerics ass from dying, but left on my own terms

anyways fellow rangers, just keep on shooting your bow, and slashing your weapons at your foes, and keep your chin up while lfg

[Dirtnap]

Some great posts in here. I'm always trying to tell people how Rangers are great.

I've main healed groups. Tanked groups. And even been CC in groups. I even out CCed a chanter AND a bard at the same time. And I'm still only level 20!

On a side note:
Curious if any of you higher level rangers have capped fletching. I could really use the highest damage bow available. Basically to save on arrows so i have to make less trips to make more.

[mitic]

I was thinking about this today, and realized, I don't have a clue why anyone would want to play one of these? If AA's were in game, it would make sense, but what purpose do Rangers serve in regular groups and raiding at this stage of the game...I don't get it? I actually think they look fun, but don't see what purpose they serve...

track? dps? snare/kite adds? harmony pull? get laid cuz rngs are sexy? get all the rng loots cause there is only 1-2 rng per raid? (i have like 2 BP full of weapons, even a spiroc wingblade lawl)

according to my parses before i quit i was under the top 5 mele dpsers on raids right below/inbetween monks/rogues

Also, the Dark Cloak of Sky is anything but easy to get. Been doing sky for 7 months now and still have yet to see 1 drop...

bad luck then..i got the 1.0 version within 2 sky raids :)... DCoS is pure win besides arygydylylylyion! (i got this serverfirst! /flex)

[Obliterator]

Unless you're a necromancer interaction is the number one concept of this game, something a lot of people forget.

[Aadill]

^ I said bard because they cannot actually type and play at the same time. Necros can solo, yes, but they can also talk while they sit with their pet on a mob.

[Lady_Omelia]

calm down dude, did you get touched as a child by a man who played a ranger or something

the amount of emotions this topic has brought out of you is "laughable imo"

lol, that was great.

I love playing a ranger, however post 50 it's quite a bit tougher, and the 40% penalty is depressing solo or grouped, moreso than SK/PAL because even if people accept you, they'll usually gripe about it.

[bakkily]

yea lately ive been seeing more and more people rolling rangers

[YendorLootmonkey]

yea lately ive been seeing more and more people rolling rangers

Guilds need new trackers after the ShowEQ bans :)

[Dirtnap]

Guilds need new trackers after the ShowEQ bans :)

I said this to my guild yesterday. Rangers think alike i guess. lol