16 thoughts on “I have a player who would like to do a Ranger.”

  2. Be a fan of the players.

    In a game with rules mainly to help direct a narrative, there only needs to be limitations for most anything based on what the play group is comfortable with. You, as DM, have the power to make a lizard like companion fit the fiction

    All tabletop RPGs are really like this. The arguments come up when folks focus too much on the wording and forget that they have control. Tournament play is the only place where You really want the RAW to be what you enforce, IMO.

  4. I’d absolutely let the player pick an animal not on the list. I’d probably use exactly the same process for creating it. (I mean, rat’s on the list. A chameleon’s not any less practical than that.)

    Something like camouflage/stealthy/calm for strengths, search/scout for training,  and slow/flighty/stubborn for weaknesses would fit the flavor.

    Unless she wants an attack chameleon the size of a pit bull. Which would also be pretty awesome. Do that.

    Ask questions. Where’d you find a chameleon (giant attack version or otherwise)? How did you tame it? Use the answers.

  7. The asking questions will answer yours for everything.

    How did you get this lizard creature?

    Is it small, and jumpy, or large and ponderous?

    Let the choices be made and fill in details that balance things in your narrative. Small and jumpy might be stealthy and have a nasty bite with poison, large may be more of a combat beast but doesn’t move well, etc.

  10. If you have a Guard training on your AC then it can guard you and warn you of incoming stuff just because you have it crossed on your sheet. Its not only about the bonuses. 

  11. The great thing about moves is that they have to trigger. Your chameleon is sitting on your shoulder in a fight? That’s probably not triggering any of the animal companion bonuses. On the other hand, a rat running up your opponent’s leg at the wrong moment might give you an opening (but finding ways for it to defend are trickier…)

    In general, use other animals as they make sense, but also be up front with the player about what they can and can’t expect from that animal. A chameleon doesn’t sound like a lot of help to me, so I’d talk to the player and make sure we both know what a chameleon is and does in general, and how it might be useful. If it doesn’t seem like a good fit, maybe your Dungeon World has dog-sized chameleons living in it?

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