Adjusting Rangers and High Elves

[Rich H]

Really like those Falenthal. Consider them all pinched!

[Falenthal]

Really like those Falenthal. Consider them all pinched!

ALL!?

You'll get a discount for the whole bundle, then!
Gain 1 XP.

[zedturtle]

Yeah, that's pretty good stuff. My main point of concern is the Sanctuary rule; since everyone has to take the Open New Sanctuary Undertaking, a party with a Ranger will never be welcome anywhere. I'd rather say that they never benefit from being at a Sanctuary... it counts just the same as if the hero did not return home.

[Falenthal]

I'd rather say that they never benefit from being at a Sanctuary... it counts just the same as if the hero did not return home.

Very good point. I had a sentence in my personal notes that said: "The Ranger/High Elf character is not needed by the rest of the company to open a Sanctuary". But you made me think there are other small issues regarding Sanctuaries that would need to be clarified.

First of all, I think that forcing the Ranger/High Elf to be with the rest of the Company to allow them to Open Sanctuary would deepen and worsen the hindrace. I think no more pain is needed.

In short, I'd consider the Ranger/High Elf a "one man company" regarding opening and staying in Sanctuaries:
during a Fellowship phase, it is acceptable that the Ranger/High Elf character travels to the Thranduil's Halls and does an Open Sanctuary without the rest of the company. This will be his own Sanctuary, not the Company's, and he alone will write it down in the Sanctuaries space in the character sheet.
Meanwhile, in the same Fellowship phase, the rest of the Company can travel to Dale and do their own Open Sanctuary there. Dale won't be added to the Ranger's/High Elf's Sanctuaries list.

[Corvo]

Nice ones Falenthal
Well, I liked even Glorelendil's idea, but I think there is never enough Shadow

And since we are at it, I would partake of a minor tweak I use in my campaign: Endurance of the Ranger doesn't add +3 to Endurance, but +3 to Parry against Melee attacks (like the Beorning's virtue).
I added this 'cause the Rangers are a bit laking in finesse when it comes to "close combat powers"

[Falenthal]

Nice ones Falenthal
Well, I liked even Glorelendil's idea, but I think there is never enough Shadow

Thanks, Corvo!
I still had a bit of a problem explaining why an XP was needed to gain a Hope point. Also the RAW already supports and contemplates gaining a Shadow point for taking a Hope point from the Fellowship pool. It seemed very convenient and appropriate.

And since we are at it, I would partake of a minor tweak I use in my campaign: Endurance of the Ranger doesn't add +3 to Endurance, but +3 to Parry against Melee attacks (like the Beorning's virtue).
I added this 'cause the Rangers are a bit laking in finesse when it comes to "close combat powers"

Good one and totally agree it's a better option than increasing the Endurance.
Personally, I've also changed the Attribute ranges for both cultures and this increase in Parry would be too much. But it's perfect for the original Attributes.

My own changes have been:
Rangers - Body 5-7 / Heart 4-6 / Wits 4-6
High Elves - Body 5-7 / Heart 2-4 / Wits 5-7

[Glorelendil]

Well, I liked even Glorelendil's idea, but I think there is never enough Shadow

Well, Hope is basically the inverse of Shadow, except more expensive. So getting a point of Hope at the price of also getting a point of Shadow is a really good deal. I'm not sure I would *ever* not take from the Fellowship Pool at that price. So, yes, it's a bit of a penalty but it doesn't actually result in hard decision making. (Maybe they'll spend Hope a little less freely, though.)

[Corvo]

By the way, my own version of this same rule was less flashy:

"A Ranger cannot take more than 1 fellowship point per session".
Simple as that.
In fiction, the Ranger stoically abstain from leaning too heavily on the companions.
In practice, the Ranger can "heal" no more than 2 Hope Points per session.

[Southron]

Earendil thanks for moving this over to the house rules section. Secondly, those are some pretty amazing suggestions and more than surpassed my expectations when I originally posted the question.

[Falenthal]

The "penalty" progession about Rangers and Fellowship pool could be as follows, AFAIK. From most demanding to the less:

1) A Ranger cannot recover Hope points from the Fellowship pool (Francesco )
2) A Ranger can recover only 1 Hope point from the Fellowship pool per session (Corvo)
3) A Ranger can recover Hope points from the Fellowship pool at the cost of 1 XP (Glorelendil)
4) A Ranger can recover Hope points from the Fellowship pool at the cost of 1 Shadow point (Falenthal)

Everyone can pick up the one he likes most, depending on how hard he wants to go with the Rangers in his game.

I will add, regarding my own proposed rule, that while gaining Shadow points is not as bad as the other options, it should be combined with the limitation to Open Sanctuaries anywhere. Heal Corruption becomes much more limited, specially if he wants to spend the Fellowship phases with his friends (which suits the Ranger's role perfectly). Also, not every region has elven settlements available (see Rohan or Gondor, for example), and not every Ranger will have Rivendel, Lórien or the Halls of Thranduil available as a Sanctuary from the beginning of a campaign.

But all of them look ok to me.