August 21, 2017

Eclipse Conclave

Ranger Conclave
Notes from the Finger: So I'm getting up early to drive to the exact center path of the Great American Solar Eclipse. Anyone else doing the same?

Eclipse Conclave

Hunters of all sorts make it their mission to rid the world of their quarry, systematically eliminating dangerous aberrations, dragons, giants, and other such monsters that pose a threat to the innocent. Rangers who align themselves with the Eclipse Conclave, however, track and kill more insidious monsters -- those which hide in plain sight. Shapechangers, such as vampires, dopplegangers and lycanthropes, might escape the reach of the authorities and other rangers for a time, but the Eclipse Conclave always hunts them, finds them, and exposes them as creatures of the night hiding in broad daylight, before striking them down.

Starting at 3rd level, your keen vision assists you in hunting creatures of the night. You can see in dim light within 60 feet of you as if it were bright light, and in darkness as if it were dim light. You can’t discern color in darkness, only shades of gray. If you already have darkvision, its range increases by 60 feet.
     Starting at 7th level, you can see in magical, as well as nonmagical darkness.

Mark of the Moon
At 3rd level, you learn the hunter's mark spell, or, if you already know it, another ranger spell of your choice. You deal an additional 1d10 damage, rather than 1d6, when you hit the target of hunter's mark with a weapon attack, and the target can't take reactions until the beginning of your next turn. If you mark a creature that has the shapechanger subtype, you see it as outlined in a radiant corona.
     You can cast hunter’s mark without using a spell slot twice, and regain all expended uses when you finish a long rest.

Extra Attack

At 7th level, you learn the darkness spell, which counts as a ranger spell for you. You can cast this spell once without using a spell slot or spell components. Once you do so, you can't do so again until you finish a long rest.

Vengeance of the Moon
At 11th level, when a creature you have targeted with hunter's mark makes an attack or casts a spell, you can use your reaction to make one weapon attack targeting it. Alternatively, you can use your reaction when a marked creature moves to move 10 feet without provoking opportunity attacks.

Ring of Revelation
By 15th level, you can use your action to reveal that which is hidden. If a creature within 10 feet of you is invisible, disguised using illusion magic, or transformed, that effect is suspended until the beginning of your next turn and the creature's original form can be seen, as a bright corona traces it. You can use this ability a number of times equal to your Wisdom modifier, and regain all expended uses when you take a long rest.

8/21/17: Dakrvision: Improves to see through magical darkness at 7th level
Mark of the Moon: Reworked to use hunter's mark
Penumbra: Darkvision removed
8/22/17: Mark of the Moon: If you already know hunter's mark, you can learn another ranger spell


  1. Hey all! I'm commenting down here to let everyone know that this hasn't gotten a lot of proofreading or criticism yet, so I'm very interesting in getting feedback to make it stand out a little more. In particular, I'm not happy with leaving 5th level as Extra Attack (sure, it works, but there's more interesting things that we can do with it, I'm sure), and I'm considering rewriting Mark of the Moon (which is currently based on the Warden's Mark) to instead be based off of the hunter's mark spell. There's a few reasons I did it this way, but I'd like to hear what you all think as you read it.

    1. I'd agree change Mark of the Moon to learning hunter's mark if not known and then modifying it if targeted shapechanger

      Also keep extra attack, gives it a slayery (is that a word?) feel and its in line w/ other conclave 5th level features

    2. I will say with the changes, a level 5 dual wielder hunter with handaxes and +3 strength is still dealing 18(HM)+9(STR)+12(HA's) coming out to average 39 damage to the target with very little cost given the extra uses of hunter's mark Mark of the Moon gives. This is not including the increased odd's of a crit that dual wielding gives which also is a factor with thing's like hunter's mark.

  2. I feel mark of the moon is super cool, but pretty weak. Maybe tie it to Hunter's Mark, giving the spell for free and adding additional effects. I'd say making it a d10 instead of a d6 and giving the corona effect. Maybe even letting them cast it for free all day. As is, that's still worse than colossus slayer from Hunter. Do you think removing the bonus action requirement from Fan The Hammer makes a suitable replacement for Extra Attack? Penumbra is flavorful but Mechanically boring. And ring of revelation is only useful to reveal things, go figure. You don't get to utilize the time a shapechanger spends unchanged which feels like a waste. That said it's usually a defensive ability then anyway, so works out I suppose.

    1. I assumed it was weak because it was unlimited and could be used with hunter's Mark

  3. Im staying up just to see it! Seattle please no clouds!

  4. I love the flavor of this, but as a character choice the concept runs a bit into the trope of Crippling Overspecialization. DMs use shapechangers to provide a dramatic twist, and this spoils that, which means a DM is less likely to use a shapechanger, which means that most of this subclass will be useless.

    Switching some more features that are additive instead of reactive might help. For example, "reveal nearby shapechangers" is purely a reaction to thinking there's a nearby shapechanger, it doesn't add anything new to the game. But something else like giving the ranger a mimic beast companion adds new possibilities to the game...but strays farther away from the eclipse flavor. Hm. New mimic-based ranger subclass when?

    Also, please give this ranger a version of Devil's Sight, because the idea of this subclass not seeing through its own Darkness is squicky.

  5. So reading the intro flavor was it meant to say singular ranger near the end."authorities and other ranger for a time, but the Eclipse Conclave always hunts them, finds them, "

    1. That should be plural - I'll fix it as soon as possible.

  6. My only thought would be that the class should gain a different Ranger spell if they already know Hunter's Mark. Most player's already know what archtype/conclave they'll use at the start of the game (assuming a 1st or 2nd level start). You kind of force those players to go without Hunter's Mark for level 2 if they want that free extra spell (which is always good for versatility)

  7. I feel that the improved Hunter's Mark should deal cold damage as it is thematically tied to the moon and "slows" creatures.

    Also, any subclass hunting shapechangers (especially lycanthropes) should ideally have a ribbon bypassing the damage resistance of said lycanthropes.

    "Also at 5th level, your weapons absorb the residue of your magic. As an action or during a short rest, you can perform a cyclical lunar ritual and attune to a number of weapons equal to your Wisdom modifier. These weapons count as silvered for the purposes of overcoming damage resistances/immunities."