The Ranger so far...

Well, I have to tell you that I am really enjoying my Ranger so far.  He's not quite as squishy as I originally thought, and in fact, seems to be faster at taking down a mob with his blades than he is with the bow.  By a lot.
Now I'm not going to sit here and blow smoke up your rear ends and tell you that the Ranger is able to tank, because he can't.  Nope.  Uh-uh.  It ain't going to happen.
  
I will tell you, however, that he's actually a bit tougher than some folks gave him credit for.

Now, I'm not saying that I'm ready to ditch the bow and arrows in favor of dual wielding swords any time soon when it comes to my opening attack, but I sure do enjoy going "Ginsu" on mobs when the need arises .  One nice thing that helps a lot, is that he still has his Surprise Attack ability from his scout days.  Dodge an attack, stun opponent and then slip behind them for the big hit. 


Kiting is still the preferred method for encounters involving mobs without any ranged attacks at their disposal, especially if given enough room to kite comfortably.  You can do it in close confines just as effectively, but it's always nice to have room for mistakes or quick breaking snares, especially if low on health.


Dealing with a caster at these levels, on the other hand, requires a different approach.  The ranged attack is not the best course of action in this case as their missiles often hit a lot harder than the Rangers do and they will eventually out damage and kill you in a shootout.  Fortunately, casters are pretty squishy and particularly susceptible to a stealthy blade. I've found that it's best to sneak in close, get that backstab in and then quickly dispatch them in close quarters combat.  They rarely get more than two or three spells off which shouldn't be anything to worry about.  Give those finger wigglers much time though, and it will most likely end badly for you.  This strategy may change once I get my silencing and sleep shots but for now this seems to work out rather nicely.

Anyway, the run from 16 to 18 has been fun, so much so that I'd like to keep playing Mojeaux, but I think it's time I showed my other characters a little love.  Question is, which one?