Best Races for Ranger 5e
by Prince Phantom
The Ranger is a half-caster that mixes spellcasting and weapon attacks much more evenly than the Paladin (or at least it should, cast more spells Ranger players! And not just Hunter’s Mark!). This means that there’s a lot of things a Ranger might want from their race. Gloom Stalkers might want to further push their amazing damage potential, Swarmkeepers might want more utility and control to mesh with their many options, Beast Masters and Drakewardens want stuff that synergizes with a companion, and Horizon Walkers/Monster Slayers want a different subclass! Truth be told, there isn’t a race to fill each of these niches, and the fact that many Rangers want to grab Crossbow Expert and Sharpshooter ASAP means that we are already heavily inclined to pick a race that grants a feat at level one. This basically means we have to really want the features of a race to select it, as the option of Crossbow Expert at level one is a power level that’s hard to best. I’ll also exclude flying races, though those are definitely instances where I would consider them over a feat at level one. Being able to safely attack from the air with a bow is very strong.
Best Races for Damage
Bugbear: The Bugbear Gloom Stalker is a tried and true build for extreme nova damage on round one. Pick up Crossbow Expert and Sharpshooter, multiclass to Fighter at level 6 for Action Surge, then either Battle Master for more accuracy with Precision Attack or Echo Knight for yet another attack on round one, then grab a few Rogue levels for Assassinate eventually. This is a really simple build that can output around 200+ damage on round one at mid levels. This lets you delete the most threatening enemy from the field before they ever get to act, making combats much easier.
Grung: I wager that most Rangers are archers of some kind, making them perfect candidates to take advantage of the Grung’s extra poison damage each time they hit. We do need to find a method of immersing ourselves in water each day, but that shouldn’t be too tough to do for many reasons I outlined in the Grung review. The poison immunity and jump bonuses are also very nice to have, making this a great option all around.
Best Races for Defense
Vedalkin: While Rangers typically have a decent Wisdom, they don’t get proficiency in the save, meaning they will likely struggle with wisdom saves just as much as other martials. Vedalkin is the best race in the game for shoring up mental saves, and a great selection for any Ranger.
Githzerai: Access to the Shield spell means we can push our AC up well into the 20s when we need to, and gives a great use for our level one spell slots when we reach higher levels. We get some other goodies too, but Shield is honestly enough on its own.
Shadar-Kai: Rangers don’t get Misty Step, so a bonus action teleport is already a big deal for us. That same teleport also granting resistance to all damage until our next turn is big game, allowing us to either teleport into danger to draw attacks for our friends or get out of there and still take less damage from any ranged attacks or spells. We also get all the other benefits of being an elf, so there’s a lot to love here.
I wish I could recommend more than these, but the fact is that you have to be a really good race for me to even give you a second look over Variant Human. That being said, there are a few options that can really take a build in a different direction than your typical Ranger, and I definitely think these all have an argument to be on your sheet.
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