Re: Re: (TFT) Super expert Woodsmen Ranger talents.

[pvk@oz.net]

Even an ordinary woodsmen will get to know the areas they are used to very
well, so they know all of the trails, lookouts, hiding spots, plants,
terrain, and animal behavior patterns, and so can run at full speed where
others would have to stumble and bumble, detect others (especially
non-woodsmen) very quickly not just by direct seeing, smelling and hearing
but by noticing unusual animal movements and such (using their acute
senses and their dispersal, by knowning how to observe and interpret
them). They can also tell what has happened recently by observing tracks,
traces, droppings, digging sites, etc.

Finding food, water, and good unoccupied shelter even where others
wouldn't recognize it, are of course other abilties.

They will also be able to do a lot of this in unfamiliar locations, just
because they are used to being observant of and reading such details,
particularly when they are in similar terrain to that which they're used
to, but even elsewhere unless they find it really unnatural and so don't
think to apply it (might depend on the character's personality, culture,
and/or IQ rolls).

For instance, they can probably find animal trails that non-woodsmen
wouldn't notice, recognize the kinds of animals that use them, and so be
able to find otherwise-unnoticable trails, hiding places, lairs, camps,
traps, food, water, dead and wounded animals, etc., even in unfamiliar
territory (but especially in a familiar terrain type). They might be able
to find and lead others into obstacles that they will likely fall and get
stuck in (gullies, nasty rocks, rotten logs, mud pits, quicksand, slipery
holes, puddles, hidden vines across trails, nettles, thorny patches,
rabbit traps, snakes).

They may also be able to intuit the lay of terrain by observing it from
afar for a while, by looking at shapes, plants and animals, and listening
to and smelling the wind. At least, to a far greater degree than
non-woodsmen.

Ability to track others, hide tracks, make false tracks... "super rangers"
might be able to do all those things with great skill without slowing
down.

They can also create traps out of the terrain. This in particular would be
a seperate talent and could get more and more capable with skill, reducing
time and materials required, and increasing deadliness and difficulty to
notice and/or disarm, as well as being able to cause or not cause certain
effects, and target some things but not others. The "super" woodsman might
be able to turn some bushes into a trap that will only catch humans, and
will require 6/DX to spot, 6/DX to avoid, and trip and entangle anyone
walking next to the bushes, all in 20 minutes of work. (Or something.
Clearly, one can start with something plausible, and allow more and more
incredible feats the more players dump EP into their abiltities, to the
degree that the GM wants to be possible at whatever ability level.)

Similarly, tools, shelters, and clothing can be found or created, and this
can start quite limited and reasonable and get more and more
amazing/incredible with skill, as desired.

Making poisons or even potions from natural ingredients and equipment is
another possibility.

Healing, not alarming, and gaining the trust of, or even taming, wild
animals... or stampeding them.

This can be very impressive to non-woodsmen, even for "ordinary" woodsmen.
If you want fantastic levels of ability, you can just get more and more
generous with knowledge given.

Other fantastic abilities include running up into trees; easily finding
good branches and vines to swing from; ability to become essentially
invisible and inaudible even while following right next to alert sentries;
hearing locating and identifying people at a great distance by putting an
ear to the ground; lose close pursuit by stopping beside a tree without
the pursuers realizing they aren't still chasing them; or leading pursuit
into a place where they get charged by a herd of wild boars while the
woodsman leaps into a tree unmolested; ability to make snorkles from reeds
while jumping into swamp water; ability to impersonate animals; etc.

Beyond that, depending on the game world and its magic and its
relationship to nature, all kinds of other abilities can also be handed
out. From the ability to talk to animals and wood spirits, to really
magical things that become more like nature spells: talking to plants;
seeing through plants; seeing through the eyes of animals, bugs, or
plants; controlling animals; making plants move; walking through trees;
soothsaying from animal entrails; making enemies' wooden equipment warp;
finding and entering the faerie realm, etc.

PvK

On Mon, November 28, 2005 6:14 am, dwtulloh61@cox.net wrote:
>> From: "John J Hyland" <johnnyboytmm@juno.com>
>> First, make them so at home in their home environment
>> (forest, desert, swamp, whatever) that they are
>> essentially uncatchable and untrackable.
>
> Maybe 6D to spot when hiding, give them Trailtwister
> for free.
>
>> Second, also in their natural environment, they could
>> have extra sensitivity.  They make a roll and get more
>> information than otherwise.
>
> Maybe a skill like: Area Awareness( Home Terrain )
> 3D6 to notice the infiltration of non-local entities
> within a certain radius (which might get larger as
> their abilities improve)
>
> There's a d20 sourcebook called "Unorthodox Rangers"
> on http://www.rpgnow.com which you might find beneficial.
>
> Dan
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