Regarding skills for rangers at the guild, I have long been of the opinion that of all the professions, Rangers should be the ones who can survive easiest without ever going to town. It is with that though that I offer the following.

I have broken down in my mind several skills that generally fall under three categories: utility, crafting, and role play.

For utility, I suggest the guild skill of building a camp/fire building. Camps, based on the skill level (and likely tied to a reasonable amount of survival ranks), that a novice could create (basic camp/camp fire), an intermediate (fire to scare off creatures; think Major Sanctuary), and advanced (fire, concealed from visible eye, sanctuary and a node). I play with the ideas with the lesser two, but an advanced ranger creating a node in the wilds seems like something great. Perhaps the node aspect is tied to Spiritual Lore (blessing?). Certain areas wouldn’t be conducive to all camps, but a basic campfire could go just about anywhere. Forage for sticks, anyone?

A second to this is a type of foraging bushcraft that allows us to forage for things like “tasty grub worms” and “fat beetles” that could act similar to the food that replenishes stamina, spirit, or both.

Lastly, I propose the ability to track. I think the mechanics for a ranger to track any given player would be inhibiting, but rather to send our animal companions (probably feline, canine, and rodent) to find someone and then we TRACK COMPANION to get directions to them.

As for crafting, I’m completely in the camp of fletching but also bow making. The same with snares and traps. I think we should also be able to craft “ranger rolls” of a blanket with an outer shell tarp. Those could be requirements for establishing camps. There could also be fire starters.

Lastly, and I’ve posted about this before, for role playing is the ability to learn another language. If a certain ranger spends the majority of his time in Icemule and training at that guild, he could learn the halfling language. It could require a certain amount of time in a geographic area, training at that guild, possibly citizenship? I use Icemule only as an example.

I think general whittling skills could be entertaining as well.

As an aside, I’d love to see movement across long distances at a fast pace require stamina. This would drive Lich users mad, but I don’t care. One shouldn’t be able to travel from Wehnimer‘s to Icemule in 45 seconds.

Just some thoughts I have had for some time now.