Ello there an before we begin Id just like ta welcome ya to Elanthia , hopefully you'll enjoy our lands an come ta love it as many of us already do . An fer those o ya already involved in the lands and are just lookin fer a halfway decent ranger guide you dont need no welcome but thanks for takin a peek at my ideas on the subject . now I dont claim to know everything bout bein a ranger but ive been one for bout three years at this point and i jus figgerd id share my thoughts with ya about it. Now not everything im gonna tell ya is the way you have to do it but its learnin that ive acquired over the years and seems to work for many a ranger I know some much older than meself an some younger .

Let me just say first thing that its my opinion that rangers need to be a happy balance of sword swingin warrior and finger wigglin wizard.In the beginning you may chose to either concentrate on your sword arm or your spells. ive always been of the mind that a good offense and defense will keep ya alive longer than learnin a spell . but we ll get into all that in a few minutes. I think the first thing we ll talk about is statistic placement .Statistics placement is important because it determines how strong your ranger will be,how fast he/she learns and how much he/she can train in with each new level.now just for the sake of variety we'll go over a couple possible ways to place yer stats and what'll happen in each case.

When you first roll your ranger your going to see a bunch of numbers these are going to be your statistics or stats these numbers need to be distributed among your characteristics.

(CO) Constitution
(DE) Dexterity
(DI) Discipline
(LO) Logic
(IN) Intelligence
(ST) Strength
(RE) Reflexes
(CH) Charisma
(WI) Wisdom
(AU) Aura

When choosing which roll to use for your stats be careful! you want a high roll so that you will be able to train in everything you need to train in to be a successful ranger in the lands. ive seen that a good number to try and get once you've added all the numbers together is most anything above 630, now some folks keep trying to get higher and some wont quit til they get close to a 660 to start with, in which case you will have a superb ranger as long as your individual numbers are placed right.

A 660 may be hard to come by though and may take a great deal of time to get especially if your rolling the old fashioned way so anything above a 630 will do just fine , again as long as these numbers are placed correctly .Over the years ive heard a few different ways to place your stats one of the ways is for your run of the mill standard ranger with a nice mix of magic and swinging power the stat placement in this case from highest to lowest should be as follows. AUR, DIS, WIS, STR, REF, INT, CON, DEX, LOG, CHA. this placement should insure that ya get a good number of training points, Hit Point, or blood, a decent starting strength to help keep ya alive, a good number of mana each training(hopefully 3) and a decent number of spirit (used mostly for things you'll learn about during your travels) .at the end of this lil guide ill show ya a couple different options for Stat placement as well as different ways you can train your rangers to be useful in different ways.

Now, how you train and what you train in is almost as important as placing your stats the right way. Ive spoken to many folks over the years and yad be surprised how many folks disagree on the right and the wrong way to train a ranger, ive also found that traing your ranger when they're young also differs somewhat when ya tend to get a bit older and start actually gettin good at certain things. Some things remain the same though no matter who you talk to, if they know anything about bein a ranger at all they all agree that certain things must be done every training period of yer life to thrive in dese lands.With a minimum of 630 you should have enough points ta train in da following things every training:

Armor- once per train til brig(120 or 30 trains) Training in armor makes it easier for you to wear heavier armors, such as Double leather Full leather and Brigandine. Double and full are easy to train to and will never have a spell hindrance because they are made of leather. Brig takes a long time to train up to but is much better protection... it also has a spell hindrance because it is metal as well as leather. there will always be a chance that the spell your casting will fail while wearing brig so the choice is yours on weather you want to train in armor high enough to wear brig.

Shield- once per train for life , unless you have the points to spare to train twice
Shield training helps your defense or DS do it at least once per training

Combat Maneuvers-once per train for life
Also known as CM increases your fighting skill or AS

Edged Weapon- Twice per train
There are many different weapons styles to choose from in the lands, blunt ranged two handed Ect.but ive always found that the largest variety and most widely used is OHE or one handed edged

Climbing and or Swimming-once per train , switching off between the two every other training til each is about 60 or higher
These two skills come in handy 60 -70 in each is good enough but more definitely cant hurt and they're cheap

Perception- once per train til you feel comfortable( I never feel comfortable so I always train in it at least once)
Helps you find hidden stuff and people, nuff said

Stalking and Hiding-once per train, unless you have the extra points for more
This is a very important skill for a ranger , you cant ambush to your full extent if you cant hide.
Mana Share-once per train til 102% at least
Emapths love a ranger with a big share ::grin:: comes in handy when tipping an empath for healing or for sending mana to someone in return for spells

Item and or Scroll use- pick one and stick with it til about 75% then switch and do the other if you are so inclined
Item use lets you use wands or rods or any other magical ITEM, hence the name, scroll use lets you read scrolls and use them

Ambush- this is a biggie, never miss this no matter what ! once per train for life .
Since you can only train in this once and considering its almost essential to the way all rangers hunt never miss training in this , cuz you cant make it up later

First Aid-once per train til comfortable
Helps alot with skinning critters and for bandaging yourself and others up when theres no empaths around to heal you

Physical Training- once per train til maxxed
training in this gives you more Hit Points or Blood as we like to call it this will max out somewhere about the time you title if you train in it once per train

(optional) Brawling- once per train
helps your shieldless DS and lets you punch things harder ::grin::


When you reach title, maybe a little after, you'll start to max certain things out and that will be when your training changes some. The first thing you'll max out prolly will be physical training this should happen around the time you Title (level 20) mana share will be next if you train in it from level 0 til about 21, as you should be doing.Your armor training should prolly be done by now too if your only going for double or full leather. item or scroll maybe be done as well and if you dont feel that you need or want to train in the other then that's fine. All of these things free up training points for you , which should allow you to now easily get a spell every level from now on . you may have to skip a training in first aid now and then or stop training in it all together but that's OK you ve reached a high enough level where you've trained enough in that as well. you may find that you need to alter some things in your normal training as well you may not be able to double in perception or hiding every train but that's OK you need the spells more at this point , but you should at least continue to single train in these two things for a bit longer at least .

Along with all this training you ll need to train in spells as well, now depending on your training points you may be able to get a spell every other training or you may get a spell three trains in a row then have to skip one , or you may be lucky and be able to get a spell every training from birth.Either way don't worry too much about it you will get them all eventually. Rangers can choose between two circles of spells either the ranger circle(600s) or the Minor Spirit circle(100s) most of the spells in both of these circles will be useful to you even though some of them have yet to be implemented.The best course for spell training for most rangers ive seen so far is to train from 601-614 then to switch over and train from 101-107 then back to 615-620 and then again over to 108-120, then back over and finish the 600s to 625 and then working you way up through the 100s . (again there is an optional training section for spells as well at the end of this guide )




The ranger circle is your principle circle and includes 50 (at this moment anyway spells for you to train in

601-Natural Colors-Duration; 15 sec.per lev.- this spell is self cast only and adds plus 10 to your DS by blending you in with the surrounding enviroment better
602-Resist Elements-Duration; 60 sec. -per lev. this spell protects the caster and those that it is cast at from the harsher elements ( wind water lightning) wether they are attacks or not
603-Foraging-Duration; 15 sec. per lev.- this spell helps the caster to find herbs or other plant life that may not usually be found
604-Skinning- Duration; 60 seconds- makes the caster more dexterous and helps with skinning critters
605-Tracking-not implemented;Note, this spell will be replaced with whisper willow(curently 615)
606-Phoens Strength-Duration; 30 sec.per lv.-makes you stronger.+10AS can only be cast outside
607-sounds-Duration; 2 sec.per lv.-creates distracting sounds around opponent -20 to opponents DS
608-Ambush-Duration; instantaneous- adds 30 to casters AS for one swing while ambushing a target .can only be cast outside
609-Sunburst-Duration; instantaneous- Reveals things and people that are hidden .also shows caster whoever is invisible in the room but does not make that person visible to anyone
610-Tangleweed-Duration; varies- creates a vine that will drag target to the ground thus making the target easier to hit
611-Mass Colors-Duration; 30 sec per lv.-allows a ranger to cast 601 on larger groups for a longer time
612-Breeze-Duration; 3 sec. per lev.- creates a strong breeze that disperses clouds or any other dangerous air carried spell .NOTE may also pick up smaller objects and blow them out of the area
613-Self-Control-Duration; 60 sec. per lv.-Adds 25 to casters DS . at spell ranking 35 a +5 is added to the 25 and at rank 50 another +5 is added to DS and TD
614-Imbue-Duration; instantaneous- turns sticks into imbeddable wands at first and into rods when older
615-Whispering Willow-Duration; 30 sec.per lv.- allows a person to whisper to someone that is not in the same room as them as long as both parties are outside and within a certain radius. can only be cast outside;Note this spell will be moved to 605, and replaced with a new spell.
616-Spike Thorn-Duration; instantaneous- caster creates large thorns that sprout up through the ground and strike target . can be a very powerful spell when one gets older .can be cast inside but is far more effective in an area with vegetation
617-Sneaking-Duration; 15 sec. per lv.-gives the caster a greater ability to sneak around with out being noticed
618-Mobility-Duration; 30 sec. per lv.- makes the person it is cast upon far more dexterous and helps them with things like climbing and dodging certain attacks
619-Mass Calm-Duration; varies- calms all critters in the room at the time of casting . a very hard spell to ward off
620-Killer Weed-Duration; varies- similar to the tangle weed spell except that this vine causes damage to target
621-624-Not Implemented
625-Natures Touch-Duration; 15 sec. per lv.(5 minute max) allows caster to cast all ranger spells indoors as if they were being cast outside . plus at every spell rank after 25 caster receives a +1 to TD so that at spell rank 50 it also has a bonus of +25 to TD
626-629-Not implemented
630-animal companion; spell is still in the design phase, so it remains not implemented.
650-Not implemented; 650 will be a spell, but it is undecided on what it shall be.


Ok now as promised earlier the optional stuff . now jes cuz yer gonna be a ranger doesnt mean you wanna be yer average ranger you may choose to be a ranger that is mostly magic based or you may wanna be a ranger that is a pro at ambushin an killin , or you may choose to be a more warrior based ranger or a jack of all trades . All these things are possible but if you choose to go any of these routes yer gonna have to choose to give up some stuff along the way and as long as thas ok wit ya then by all means try one of these little changes and enjoy !

First we'll start out with the magic based ranger for this you need to place your highest numbers into Aura DISC WIS INT and LOG yer next highest stat should prolly be placed in STR and CON to help with yer defense and then REF DEX and finally CHA . This will ensure that yer Mana and training points are high so you can get a spell every training with prolly some points left over to train in Item and scroll use and still be able to train in shields and edged at least once. your gonna have to sacrifice your sword arm and a higher defense with this option but it could be interesting to try .As for training in spells id have to suggest that you get 601and 602 then switch over to the 100s til about 120 or so then go back and finish the 600s to 625 then back to the 100s til 150 then finish off the 600s

Next up is the ambush/assassin option this is gonna require that yer higher stats be placed in STR CON REF DEX Aura DISC WIS first followed by INT LOG and CHA. this will ensure that ya have a powerful swing along with a decent defense and the higher numbers in Aura DISC and WIS should help you with spirit and training points. your training will be more along the lines of a rogue though if you go this road with concentration being on armor shield double in edged and CM with as much hiding/ stalking and perception as you can do along with brawling and some climbing and swimming thrown in .this option doesnt leave much room for spells ya may not get but a spell every three or four trains with this option.


Now a warrior based ranger although similar to a ambush /killer is actually a lil different yer stats should be placed the same as te ambush /killer but your traing will be a bit different you can choose edged with this option or possibly two weapons style or ranged or even two handed weapon i spose almost any weapons style would be ok for this option, but whichever weapon you choose you train in it as much as you can each train as well as max train in armor (til brig ) and shields and CM each train your also gonna double in brawling if you can to help your defense without a shield. you may also throw in some climbing and swimming so that you can get to certain places to hunt also hidng and ambush if you can afford it .This style will make your ranger very strong very fast but also keep him pretty barren of spells for quite awhile .

The Jack of all trades rangers stats can be placed like the ones that i went over in the beginning of this guide so that he has a decent amount of spirit and mana as well as an ok swing and defense .His training will differ a little from the training outlined in the beginning, maybe skipping a spell or two early on so that he can be have a stronger swing or max out his physical training faster maybe or have a smattering of disarming locks and picking locks thrown in for good measure this option makes your ranger truly a little more well rounded and he will eventually end up with all the strength and spells that he would have gotten as the first type I talked about it just will take him a little longer to get there is all.

Now for the last kit we ll talk about a Voln ranger, a ranger that hunts primarily undead. this type of ranger should place his stats the same way as mentioned in the beginning, Aura DISC WIS STR REF INT CON DEX LOG CHA, and should train basically the same way, with this type youll wanna try an get a spell every train or every other at least .The only major difference being that this type should train primarily in the 100s. Get 601 and 602, but then switch back and get all the spells in the 100s that are going to help your DS and TD then when you get to about 120 or so you can switch back to the 600s for a bit. This ranger type is going to be hunting mostly undead for a good chunk of his/her life so your going to want to be prepared to ward off alot of spells. The one thing that is essential for a voln ranger is that he train in brawling as much as possible so that some of voln techniques he will learn will be more effective.


Welps ifn im right I think tha about covers a lil about everyting it takes ta be a ranger in da lands of Elanthia I d like to thank ya fer yer time and hearin my opinion out an at least givin it a thought I hope that the info ya jes read has helped ya in some way at least and good luck to ya in all yer travels an wanderins.



Lord Duoncon Izehammer


P.S. Id also like ta thank Lords Roelon, Ankroson and Kryspyn fer there information that is included in these pages ...wether they know it or not ::grin::