The Brotherhood of Rangers is an all-ranger campaign: The player characters are all gestalt-rangers (i.e. cleric-rangers, fighter-rangers, wizard-rangers, etc.) created using the gestalt character rules from Unearthed Arcana. They are members of the Brotherhood of Rangers who operate from Castle Faramir against the evil forces infiltrating the Homeless Hills.
The rules used will be core 3.5 D&D, with a few campaign-specific changes. In addition to the gestalt rules, the character creation rules will allow relatively generous attributes, the familiar and animal companion rules have changes to keep their number down to one per character, and most of the higher level “travel” spells have been taken out. (Teleportation, for example is now an artifact-level or plot-device effect, rather than a mid-to-high level spell.)
To determine ability scores, roll 3d6 six times, recording the scores in order for Strength, Dexterity, Constitution, Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma. This sets the minimum value for each of the attribute scores (before racial adjustments). After rolling and recording the scores, increase any or all of them to any value up to 18, as desired, until their sum total reaches 85. (This gives an average of 14⅙ for each ability score.)
If the five highest of the six ability scores rolled add up to 65 or more, then you may choose to roll a new set of minimum scores. If the six scores rolled add up to more than 85, you may either roll another set or else reduce the scores rolled until the total reaches 85.
Racial modifiers are applied after doing this, and may result in scores above 18, or below the number originally rolled.
Boosts to ability scores will normally have only half-effect above a score of 20. For example, once a wizard reaches Int 20, a +6 headband of intellect will only increase his score to Int 23.
Player-characters may be one of the standard Players Handbook races: Humans, dwarves, elves, half-elves, half-orcs, gnomes, and halflings. PCs of other races will be allowed only with special DM permission, and only if the PC is (a) half-human, and (b) has a +0 LA.
All player-characters must be gestalt rangers, with the other class in the gestalt being one of the other Player Handbook classes: Barbarian, bard, cleric, druid, monk, paladin, rogue, sorcerer, or wizard. The advancement limits for monks and paladins will be ignored. Wizards may not be specialist wizards. Player-characters may not multiclass or take prestige classes.
Clerics-rangers are limited to the domains given in the Players Handbook (except for the Travel domain, which does not exist in this game). The deities used will be the default ones listed in the Players Handbook, but PC clerics may not follow Wee Jas or any of the Evil deities. Clerics must channel positive energy (to turn undead, rather than rebuking or controlling them.)
Player characters will start at 2nd level, with 900 gp worth of equipment and 2000 XP (halfway between 2nd and 3rd level). Player characters may not be of Evil alignment. Players are encouraged to consult and coordinate with each other when creating their characters.
Spells and feats from sources other than the Players Handbook will be allowed on a case-by-case basis. In general, however, new spells will be disallowed. New feats, on the other hand, are encouraged as a way to customize your character.
Wizards get Spell Mastery as a free bonus feat at first level, applying to read magic, detect magic, arcane mark, and identify (in that order, up to the limit of their Int bonus).
In order to cut down on the number of animal companions in the party, characters can take a bonus feat instead of an animal companion at 4th level. If a character already has an animal companion or a familiar, then he must take a feat instead.
Similarly, a druid-ranger, sorcerer-ranger or wizard-ranger may take a bonus feat instead of an animal companion or a familiar at 1st level. (Note that a sorcerer-ranger or wizard-ranger may then use that feat to take the Natural Bond feat, thus gaining an animal companion instead of a familiar.)
Finally, a paladin-ranger may take a bonus feat at 5th level instead of a paladin’s mount, and must do so if he already has an animal companion.
Characters are thus limited to one animal companion, familiar or paladin’s mount each, and may choose not to have any companion creature.
As they apply to the “Brotherhood of Rangers” campaign
A “gestalt” character combines the abilities of two classes as follows:
Hit Dice: Choose the larger Hit Die. A sorcerer/ranger would use d8 as her Hit Die and have 8 hit points (plus Constitution modifier) at 1st level, for example.
Base Attack Bonus: Choose the better progression from the two classes.
Base Saving Throw Bonuses: For each save bonus, choose the better progression from the two classes. For example, a 1st-level gestalt wizard/ranger would have base saving throw bonuses of Fortitude +2, Reflex +2, Will +2 – taking the good Fortitude and Reflex saves from the ranger class and the good Will save from the wizard class.
Class Skills: Take the number of skill points gained per level from whichever class grants more skill points, and consider any skill on either class list as a class skill for the gestalt character. For example, a gestalt barbarian/ranger would gain skill points per level equal to 6 + Int modifier (with four times this amount at 1st level), and can purchase skills from both the barbarian and ranger lists as class skills.
Class Features: A gestalt character gains the class features of both classes. A 1st-level gestalt cleric/ranger, for example, gets favored enemy, tracking, wild empathy, 1st-level cleric spells, and the ability to turn undead. Class- and ability-based restrictions (such as arcane spell failure chance and a druid’s prohibition on wearing metal armor) apply normally to a gestalt character, no matter what the other class is.
A gestalt character follows a similar procedure when he attains 2nd and subsequent levels. Each time he gains a new level, he takes the best aspects of each of his two classes and applies them to his characteristics. A few caveats apply, however:
Or rather, the lack of travel spells. Travel spells and the items based on them are disallowed in this campaign in order to keep a more “rangerly” feel at high level and to allow the player characters more scope for independent action. The PCs won’t be able to zip around to wherever they want, but by the same token higher-level NPCs won’t be able to zip in and steal the PCs thunder. Also, getting rid of most travel magic means that the PCs won’t have to worry so much about surprise attacks coming out of nowhere. In particular, no teleportation means no scry-buff-teleport nuclear assassination strikes.
The following spells are disallowed in this campaign:
| Air Walk (see below) | Fly | Plane Shift | Teleportation Circle |
| Astral Projection | Mount | Refuge | Transport via Plants |
| Blink | Overland Flight | Shadow Walk | Tree Stride |
| Dimension Door | Passwall | Teleport | Water Walk |
| Ethereal Jaunt | Phantom Steed | Teleport Object | Wind Walk |
| Etherealness | Phase Door | Teleport, Greater | Word of Recall |
Add the following spell as a replacement for the 4th level Air domain spell air walk
Eye of the Storm Evocation [Air] Creates a protective cylinder around you Level: Air 4, Clr 4, Drd 4 Components: V, S, DF Casting Time: 1 standard action Area: 15 foot radius, and a height of 2 ft per level, centered on you. Duration: 10 min./level(D) Saving Throw: None (see text) Spell Resistance: YesA protective cylinder forms around you with a radius of 15 feet and a height of up to 2 feet per level. Within this cylinder, the windspeed is zero: The effects of both magical and natural wind are negated. In addition, the interior of the cylinder functions as an anti-magic zone against spells and supernatural effects having the Air, Water, or Cold descriptors.
Finally, the cylinder is capped on top with a wind wall effect. This is a horizontal disk of blasting and swirling wind, rather than a vertical curtain, but it has the same effects as the wind wall spell: Flying creatures of small size and smaller are shoved aside and unable to penetrate, as are arrows, bolts, gases, gas-based breath weapons, creatures in gaseous form, and most forms of precipitation. Most other ranged attacks from above have a 30% miss chance. (Boulders flung by giants, siege weapon projectiles, and the like are unaffected.)
Even though the spells fly and overland flight are removed from the campaign, along with the Wondrous Items that allow flight, characters can still fly. They can transform into flying forms via wildshape or other shapechanging magic, or they can fly on flying mounts or constructs.
This is a plot device.
One of the chambers of Castle Faramir is the Room of Blue Fire. This room has a large walk-in fireplace in which burns a weird and wondrous blue fire. The fire provides light and warmth, but does not burn or consume fuel. It also stubbornly refuses attempts to divine its nature; it doesn’t even register as magical.
Every so often, members of the Brotherhood (and their companions) will burst into this blue flame and disappear, reappearing either in the Room of Blue Fire or beside other members of the Brotherhood who are out on some mission.
[Metagame: This is the DM’s handy way of removing PCs whose players are absent from the game session, or to bring in absent PCs when the party is out in the middle of the wilderness.]