Hey Guys, I have a friend who's rolling a ranger at level 4 and decided on beast master. She loves the idea of having a pet bear. And the DM even allowed her the fluff of a "platybear" so she's extra excited. But the problem is she feels that the beast can be a little weak in comparison. She chose a boar for the crunch stats so it's got some decent HP and attacks for+5 to attack and 1d6+3 for damage(this is with her current proficiency added to damage. She's looking in comparison to other more damaging rolls and the other side of the fence of ranger specs and she's starting to regret going beast master and isnt having as much fun.
What i'd like is can someone kind of show me the usefulness of beast masters? and exceptional qualities and instances that make them shine. I need some stuff that raises morale and makes her go Yay platybear! Maybe beast master isnt as damaging, but maybe it's a better role for controlling the battlefield? Does the acceptable challenge rating go up over time? so for now she gets a creature thats 1/4 but maybe later at lvl 11 or something she gets a 1/2 creature? and later a full 1?
Just seems like at level 17 a 1d6+7 is a bit weaker?
Yeh, We actually have both of those instances. I'm running a barbarian with great weapon mastery and smacking things for 1d12+17 with a +2 attack roll. Then she does like 1d8+3 and a 1d6+3 and she feels pretty off put. And we have a warlock and sorcerer dropping bombs all around us. So i'm thinking maybe beast master isnt about combat, but excels in out combat things? traveling stealthily, And other non combat scenarious? I'm not sure what ranger spells she gets off the top of my head.
i'd hate to have to tell her ... "yup, public concensus is your class sucks"
RobertCoxLV wrote:
I've always thought the size and CR restrictions on Beastmaster are what make it so damned lackluster. Moon Druids get alot more power and versatility out of better animal forms, so I think simply allowing access to Bears as companions would help immensely. I mean, paladins can summon a powerful warhorse that has better stats with a spell slot! Good 'ol Brown Bear with the Hold Breath (or whatever it's called) feature to make it more Platypi-like and you got a winner!
Pumping up the beast itself will greatly help, that's very true. The big draw of Beastmaster is having an animal companion. I'm not saying to give her a personal Moon Druid, but giving her access to something better than what the book says will greatly help. Don't punish the other players and nerf them down to her level, you have to elevate her. Perhaps create a custom magic item that'll empower her animal companion as a way to explain it. Try to avoid saying, "Hey, I really pity you. Your class sucks. So here's a pity buff". Try to not do that. Instead, perhaps have her meet a mentor, a legendary ranger (If you bring Drizz't into it, your players have the right to slap you), or a powerful druid that will "empower" the bear.
FabulousRex wrote:
Ashur420 wrote:
So it seems thats the general concensus is to convince DM to allow for growing size/cr restrictions based on ranger level. Otherwise Hunter is generally favored?
There's some disagreement about how many actions it takes to control your pet. A fairly lenient interpretation, which helps to bring up the beast-master, is that you only have to spend one action to give the pet the command to attack, and after that it will keep attacking automatically on subsequent turns. (The alternative view is that you need to give up your action on every turn that you want the pet to be able to attack.)
You'll also shine against greater numbers of smaller enemies. Against a goblin, the barbarian is going to be losing a lot of damage through overkill, but your pet still has a decent chance of taking one down in a single hit.
Also, I don't know if you've been using it, but try to keep Hunter's Mark going during any tough fight. That's a major source of damage for a ranger. You may also want to check the specific wording, but it's possible that your pet could also benefit from the Hunter's Mark.
RobertCoxLV wrote:
Some fixes I've seen people give are increasing the HP per level for the pet (sometimes half HP gain when multiclassing), allowing death saves for it, and allowing it to regain HP during rests. As well as allowing it to dodge for free when not commanded, use its skills... And make it easier to get a new one of the same kind. As you can see, there's lots of problems with the beast... The access to other pets could help as well.
Hmmm Got it... I think i'll take this information to her and the DM and see what we can do to come up with. Thanks everyone!
Glad to help! Another thing that might help is allowing Magic Armor (Barding) and amulets of Natural Attack to give your beast a bit more Ooomph. Currently, the best option for Beastmaster is for a Small PC to ride their pet, particularly when it's a Pteradon that can fly! GO EBBERON HALFLINGS! 