Grave Warden
The Wardens of Eternal Rest search out and destroy the unnatural forces that seek to despoil the land. They are on the front lines of the battle against undead and fiends of all types.
Known as Grave Wardens to most, they are found throughout the world wherever the dead are sleepless or where the lower planes have come into contact with our own.
Grave Warden Magic
Grave Warden Spells
| Ranger Level | Spells |
|---|---|
| 3rd | protection from evil and good, sanctuary |
| 5th | see invisibility, gentle repose |
| 9th | beacon of hope, remove curse |
| 13th | banishment, guardian of faith |
| 17th | greater restoration, dispel evil and good |
Sense the Unnatural
At 3rd level you have become accustomed to the dark; you gain darkvision out to a range of 60 feet. If you already have darkvision from your race its range increases by 30 feet.
Additionally, you are able to sense any undead or fiends within 15 feet, even if they are invisible or ethereal. If they are invisible or ethereal you are aware of their presence but not the number or location. Your detection ability increases to 30 feet at 7th level and 60 feet at 14th level.
Searing Strike
Also at 3rd level you gain the ability to infuse your weapon attacks with life energy.
Your Eye for Weakness feature may deal radiant damage instead of weapon type damage, your choice, and gains the following condition:
- Your target has the undead or fiend creature type.
Calloused Flesh
By 7th level, your body has toughened through many trials and you are able to resist the debilitating effects of many undead and fiendish attacks.
You gain resistance to necrotic and poison damage. You also gain advantage on saving throws against poison.
Bane of the Unnatural
At 11th level your Searing Strikes can halt foes and temporarily disrupt the dark energies that allow undead to function and empower fiends.
When an enemy you can see and have hit with your Eye for Weakness feature attempts to cast a spell or use a special ability, you may use your reaction to instead force your foe to make a Wisdom saving throw against your spell save DC. Undead and fiends have disadvantage on the save.
On a success, the foe may finish casting or use the special ability. On a failure, the creature is stunned until the end of their next turn and their spell or ability is wasted.
Once you use this feature, you cannot use it again until you finish a short or long rest.
Nature's Protection
Nature itself has begun to protect you from the foul magic of fiends and undead.
Beginning at 15th level, undead and fiends have disadvantage on attack rolls against you. In addition, you have advantage on saving throws against being charmed, frightened, or possessed.
Many Wardens carry a charm made from the remains of a foe they have slain. A scrimshawed skeleton bone, a zombie leather gris-gris, a ghoul scalp, even a vampire fang medallion. Very few such charms remain animated.
Monster Slayers
This subclass is intended to fill the role of a "Monster Slayer" described as "specialized in specific monsters/monster features/favored enemies, Witcher" in the Community Ranger votes. I don't think all "Monster Slayers" will look the same so have created this as a template that can be modified to focus on other creature types instead of undead / fiends.
As an example, I have indicated what would change below for one different set of creature types. The example uses Aberrations and Monstrosities but the changes include general suggestions for any creature type. Feature names have not been changed but should be updated as applicable.
Example: Monstrosity Hunter
Focus: Aberrations and Monstrosities
Spells
- Spells should be useful and useful to help defeat or limit the creature types you are targeting or they should help you recover or defend yourself from them.
- I don't think most of these should be direct damage spells, that's not how rangers deal damage.
- I think at least a few of the spells should be spells you probably would not have selected if you had the original ranger spell lists and restrictions. Variety is good.
- Change the spells to spells that work with the creature types you are looking at. Maybe instead of beacon of hope you want fear.
Sense the Unnatural
- Darkvision is a valuable property for any adventurer. Unless this doesn't match the theme you want at all, this can probably be left alone.
- Change "sense undead or fiends" to "sense aberrations and monstrosities".
- Sensing "invisible or ethereal" monsters may not be suitable for all creature types; consider increasing the ranges of the sense ability to compensate.
- Change "you are able to sense any undead or fiends within 15 feet, even if they are invisible or ethereal" to "You have advantage to detect hidden aberrations and monstrosities within 60 feet" and remove the 7th and 14th level bonuses since this already goes to full range.
Searing Strike
- Searing Strike is intended to boost your damage to mostly your target enemies and get around some of their common damage resistances. Choose a type that makes sense, maybe something that a lot of them are vulnerable to.
- Change "radiant damage" to "fire damage" and add a Focus Die to "aberrations and monstrosities" instead of "undead and fiends". (A quick scan of the MM only shows slaad and remhoraz as having damage resistance to fire from the aberrations and monstrosities that I saw.)
Calloused Flesh
- Calloused Flesh is to help you overcome your favored foes common attacks, determine what special damage types are common and include that instead.
- This should NOT include bludgeoning, slashing, or piercing weapons.
- Change "resistance to necrotic and poison damage" to "resistance to acid and psychic damage". Damage types taken from ankheg (monstrosity) and aboleth (aberration).
Bane of the Unnatural
- This feature is really meant to target creatures with a variety of special abilities. If your chosen type of creature doesn't have spells or special abilities beyond some edge cases, this whole feature may need more significant changes. It should still include a reaction as a defensive or offensive trait.
- Change "undead" and "fiends" to "aberrations" and "monstrosities."
Nature's Protection
- More protection from your targeted foes.
- Change creature types to "aberrations and monstrosities" for disadvantage.
- Choose one or two common examples of your targeted foes and counter their abilities. Should not be a whole ability though (Wisdom saves is too broad, saves versus "beholder's 6th eyestalk ability" would be too narrow.)
- Change "charmed", "frightened", and "possessed" to "petrified", "frightened", and "charmed". These are some of the special attacks of the aboleth (aberration), basilisk (monstrosity), and beholder (aberration).