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I'll throw in a favorite ranger build of mine


Human ranger11/paladin5/pioustemplar4

1-ranger1-power attack, weapon focus (diety's favored weapon)
2-ranger2-two weapon fighting
3-paladin1-oversized two weapon fighting (assuming the diety's favored weapon is medium sized like a long sword)
4-paladin2
5-paladin3
6-paladin4-divine might
7-paladin5
8-ranger3
9-ranger4-devoted tracker
10-ranger5
11-ranger6-improved two weapon fighting
12-ranger7-true believer
13-ranger8
14-ranger9
15-pious templar1-extra smite
16-pious templar2
17-pious templar3
18-pious templar4-open feat, open feat
19-ranger10
20-ranger11-greater two weapon fighting



Divine grace with both mettle and evasion, power attack, weapon specialization, and divine might helping out with extra damage, smiting as a 20th level paladin

Antarx wrote:

Builds Wanted

http://forums.gleemax.com/showthread.php?t=941812

:D

Finally, another edition of "PrCs and you: a ranger's guide to not being a ranger:"

- Stonelord (Complete Warrior): while there is some synergy between the two in terms of prerequisites and skills, the stonelord is more useful to characters only dipping in ranger levels as it doesn't continue most iconic ranger features. If that's okay with you, you get a slew situationally useful abilities. Useful for dwarven rangers with high constitution score; consider pairing it with a few deepwarden levels for a high-constitution, low-dexterity build. If the campaign takes place underground, the PrC can be very useful.

Occult Slayer (Complete Warrior): quite useful to any ranger expecting to face more than a few enemies with magical powers, whether from class levels or racial abilities. The PrC boosts the ranger's single weak save (will), gives you a bonus to saves vs spells, and other useful features in detecting, avoiding, or defeating casters. Great for any ranger who wants to be slightly more useful against casters than the usual warrior. Let's face it - ToB or no ToB, casters are likely to be your biggest problem.

Kensai (Complete Warrior): this is a PrC for rangers who want to focus on their martial prowess and on having a really good weapon regardless of what the DM decides the loot for the campaign is. One of the good options for archer rangers, as a bow is a legitimate kensai weapon (and with enhanced arrows you can get a bucketful of enhancements on each shot); TWF rangers can get some good mileage out of it by choosing a double weapon or the SUS feat/monk levels. The power surge and other abilities are nice if you have a few ranks in concentration. Not an incredible PrC, overall, but a useful one. Beats me why it's not full BAB - whatever the flavor text says, it's not overpowered. Lawful only

Justiciar (Complete Warrior): rangers make damn good bounty hunters, and this is, essentially, what this PrC is. The extra damage (if nonlethal) can be quite useful for TWF rangers, as can the crippling strike feature. You also get some nifty grapple-related features, which a strong ranger can make good use of. Overall an interesting PrC which can be useful if your campaign doesn't require you to kill every enemy you come across - or at least not immediately, as an unconscious enemy one round away from coup-de-grace death. You might want to get merciful weapons, though, or enter the PrC as a monk/ranger with ascetic hunter. Lawful only.

Eye of Gruumsh (Complete Warrior): while not a ranger PrC by any means, this can be quite useful to orc or half-orc rangers who want to improve their combat potential. The PrC requires two sub-standard feats for entry imo, but at least TWF ranger can find the orc double axe a versatile weapon. In combat, the rage, extra AC, blinding spittle and blindsight abilities are likely to prove very useful. Orc or half-orc only, requires NE, CE or CN alignment.

Dragonstalker (Draconomicon): the value of this PrC, like that of the darkwood staker, depends on how often a particular enemy group come into play. Against dragons, the PrC is quite decent - especially if you can put that sneak attack to good use. Against any other enemies, it is not very good. Still, it has a good reflex/will save and abilities that foil scent and blindsense or allow you to ignore natural AC a few times per day for a guaranteed shot or (favored) power attack goodness.

Warmind (Expanded Psionics Handbook): a ranger wanting to boost his combat potential can find this PrC more than useful, especially if taken after a level or two in a psionic class (I recommend psychic warrior for the extra feats) to get the required skills at a lower cost. The abilities and powers can be great for both TWF and archery-oriented rangers. More than most other PrC presented here, however, the warmind will detract from a ranger's outdoorsman/skillmonkey role. If that's okay and your specialization won't hinder the party, then the PrC is a good option. Requires a lawful character with some PP pool (psionic race/class levels or the wild/hidden talent feat)

Dread Commando (Heroes of Battle): easily one of the better ranger PrCs, all things included. The sudden strike gives you a little more damage in a few situations, and a TWF ranger with weapons having a high critical threat range (i.e. kukri) can make good use of it and the Telling Blow feat. The armored ease and stealthy movement features are both often useful, and the initiative boost is simply great - especially as often applies to your entire party.

Darkrunner (Lords of Madness): unlike most of the PrCs I've discussed so far, this one improves your outdoorsman role (ok, undergroundsdwarf/drow will likely be more appropriate) at the expense of some of your combat potential. Between a serious insight bonus to many skills, abilities to deal better with aberrations, and other very useful abilities, it is almost worth it. If the party can cover for you in combat and spends a lot of time underground, this is easily one of the better options. It requires (and improves) your darkvision and makes good use of a good intelligence score. Ranger/scouts might want to pay particular attention to this PrC, as can characters who want to add a few more levels to a Dark Hunter build.

- Umbral Disciple (Magic of Incarnum): this medium-BAB PrC offers some sneak attack and a selection of interesting abilities to make you a better sneaksman. Abilities such as concealment/HiPS in shadowy environments or blindsight are great for a stealth-oriented ranger, and the prerequisites are easy enough to meet. I'm not sure how good the higher-level abilities are in practice, but on paper they look, well, awesome. Incarnum-wielding rangers should at least consider this prestige class if they're not hell-bent on focusing only on their martial abilities.

Chaotician (Planar Handbook): many of the PrCs in that book can be interesting for a ranger, but this one is probably the most fascinating. Anarchic grace is a great ability if you get in trouble, and babble is simply great if you surprise an enemy who can raise an alarm or, even more importantly, cast spells. The other abilities are also useful, particularly for a character with a decent charisma - chaotic contagion even looks as if it can stack with itself.

Shadowblade (Tome of Magic): despite the medium BAB progression, this PrC should not be overlooked. Both archers and twf rangers can benefit from a good sudden strike progression, although the unseen weapon ability marks this prestige class as melee-oriented (as if the name wasn't a dead giveaway). Ideally, rangers can use unseen weapon with two weapons or at least a double weapon, and some of the abilities aren't half bad, either - from ignoring concealment (which, as you remember, prevents you from dealing precision damage) to resolving attacks as touch attacks. Bonuses to stealth skills and vision help round out the PrC as a sneaksman's choice, but I can't help but think that it, and not the shadowsmith, was supposed to have 6+int sp/level. That would make it even better

Shadowsmith (Tome of Magic): a good mix of combat and support abilities, and a self-sufficiency that ties in well with ranger levels. Like with the shadowblade, a ranger benefits from some good stealth-related features, but the class' main feature is the ability to create items - including weapons, armor, or tools - from shadow. At higher levels, these weapons and armor can be enchanted, allowing you to quickly come up with the perfect item for the situation. You also get an ability that gives you a deflection bonus to AC and a few low-level mysteries per day. All in all, a pretty amazing PrC for rangers who want something different than the PHB class abilities.

- Note: the below are useful for characters with wildshape, such as from the UA wildshaping ranger levels:

- Nature's Warrior (Complete Warrior): between good BAB and a choice of several very good passive abilities for your wildshaped forms, this PrC is great for a ranger using wildshape as his primary attack mode.

- Warshaper (Complete Warrior): this is a very specialized PrC, but a very useful one. Despite the medium BAB, the abilities you get for your wildshaped form are amazing - immunity to stun and precision damage, extra strength and constitution (great before the PHB II polymorph/wildshape nerf), extra reach, healing, and eventually the ability to change shapes in the same use of wildshape.

- Master of Many Forms (Complete Warrior): a great way to bypass the wildshaping restrictions of the UA wildshaping ranger variant; compared to druids, rangers have a lot less to lose from this PrC and bring more skills and better fighting abilities to it. When you start getting all extraordinary abilities of your shifted form, your versatility becomes practically unmatched