the North are unsettled. Ra ngers a re driven to explore
these lands, searching for fertile soil in which the seeds
of civilization might grow, seeking resources (such as
meta ls) that will benefit settl ed la nds, or rooting out evil
before it can spread. Other rangers spy on enemy troops
or hunt down d a ngerous beasts or crimina ls. Given th a t
so much of th e North is frontier, ra ngers play a critical
role in keepin g communities safe and a re often admired
within them.
HUMAN RANGERS
Human rangers of the Moonshaes are devoted to th e
Earthmother, a nd those that work closely with druid
circles on the mainland often honor th e gods of the
First Circle, but most rangers a mong huma ns favor the
goddess Mielikki. Howeve r, they consider the goddess
to o wild a nd primal for the m to pray to directly. Instead,
they pray to Gwaeron Winds trom to bring their words to
the goddess. Gwaeron is said to s leep in a grove of trees
west of the town of Triboa r, and mos t of his followers
travel to that place at least once in their lives as a holy
pilgrimage. Evil human rangers usually honor Malar for
his ferocity a nd hunting skill.
ELF RANGERS
Elf rangers are us ually associated with a particular
community such as Evereska or the tribes in the Misty
Forest. Rather than being wandering explorers, elf
rangers typically act as scout s and gua rdia ns of elven
realms. Such elves us ually devote the mselves to Rilli-
fane Rallathil or Solonor The la ndria. Elf rangers driven
to roam might instead favor Fenmarel Mestarine, god of
lone wanderers, or Shevarash, elve n god of vengeance.HALFLING RANGERS
Most halfiings who revere nature and its raw beauty
come from lightfoot stock. Their bands spend at least as
much time on the road and river as in village a nd town,
and the role of a ranger i s a natural fit with the lifestyle
of most lightfoots. Lightfoot rangers tend to favor the
god Brandobaris in his aspect as patron of exploration.
Halfiings more incline d toward natu re itself typically
prefer S heela Peryroyl. Those who devote themselves
more to the protection of settlements or travelers honor
Arvoreen. The few strongheart halfiings who become
rangers tend to favor those latter two deities.DWARF RANGERS
Most dwarves prefer to hunker down under a mountain,
rather than roam the wilderness of the surface or the
Underdark. Most often, a dwarf ranger is either a shield
dwarf cast out of a clanhold or a clanless dwarf seeking
a place in the world. Sometimes dwarf rangers are pros-
pectors who explore the world seeking new veins of ore.
In any case, there are two deities who a ppeal to such
dwarves: Marthammor Duin a nd Dumathoin.Rogues
There are those whose abilities lie not with sword or the
Art, but with quiet motion, dexterous action, and stealth.
S uch talents often lead to ill egal endeavors, which
plague most major cities, but can be placed to good use
in dealing with dangerous monsters a nd lost treasure.
Most large cities in the Realms have a number of
thieves' dens that compete with one a nother. A few
places, s uch as Baldur's Gate, have a n organized group
of rogues that controls all s uch activity. Most thieves'
dens are secret gathering spots, often beneath the ci ty,
and move after they're discovered.
The city of Waterdeep had once been home to the
most powerful guild of thieves in the North: the Shadow
Thieves. T he Lords ofWaterdeep smashed that guild,
forcin g its leaders to flee the city (the group s till oper-
ates out of Arnn). There are still thieves and even assas-
sins in Waterdeep, but they a r e broken into innumerabl e
small groups or operate a lone.
The most common respite for s uch robbers is what
they call the Honest Trade- adventuring, where rogu-
ish abilities may be used without censure and are later
lionized in song and legend. Many thieves take to this
life, adhering to a code that keeps them out of trouble in
civili zed areas but s till keeps them rich; they vow to bur-
glarize ancient tombs and monstrous la irs instead of the
homes a nd bus inesses of the wealthy in civilized la nds.