What's the purpose of a Ranger?

[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) [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

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