The kit history traces how the Ranger's classes and skills changed. Each step removed skills that did not create real decisions, and kept old saves readable through migrations.
Legacy kit (before 27 October)#
The first prototype had two classes:
- Sentinel: Process Dash, Surveillance Sweep and the Arrival Focus passive.
- Coordinator: Signal Beacon and the Coordinated Response passive.
Claude B's audit (doc 03) found they offered no decision beyond "use on cooldown":
- Dash was a flat travel buff (about ×1.19) that passed through hazards by accident. It became Anchor & Pull.
- Sweep repeated what single-screen rooms already showed. It was removed, and later returned as Survey when rooms gained hidden threats.
- Beacon added about 0.25 work bundles a use. It was replaced by a companion and Direct.
- Arrival Focus taught only "dash at every target" and was removed.
Kit v1 (27 October)#
Each specialisation got a signature button (tap or hold), a passive and one flex slot, like a Hades "aspect plus boons". Six class concepts were tested. Sentinel and Coordinator were starters and Warden the first unlock. Pathfinder merged into the Sentinel, Forager split into Long Reach and the Engulf flex, and Mender became a flex skill.
Kits v2–v3 (27–28 October)#
- Sentinel: Firm Reach (timed reach plus steady Care) and Pull.
- Coordinator: companion and Direct, Steer (Breach visitors only) and Huddle.
- Warden: Hold rings, Brace and Attune.
Kit v4 (29 October)#
Claude B tested the kit against six real-time families and found the Warden had no job in four of them. Each class now owns one verb that every family has:
| Class | Removed | Added |
|---|---|---|
| Sentinel | Firm Reach | Survey, Long Reach (passive) |
| Coordinator | Steer | Swap; a wider Direct |
| Warden | Hold, Brace | Ward, Stand Fast |
Flex Hold became Flex Ward, and Glide was removed from the Sentinel. Upgrades long-tendril, wide-steer and counter-brace were dropped. migrateKit keeps renamed cooldowns.
Kit v5 (31 October, not approved)#
Claude B found the Coordinator dead in a solo start, because all its skills need a companion. Kit v5 let Direct relay requests to support cells, Swap use a short-lived beacon, and Huddle work with any friendly cell. The user decided to keep the Coordinator locked until the first recruit instead. Later the same day the user said kit v5's ideas "can also be integrated after coordinator is unlocked".
Imprint redesign (31 October)#
Lent one-run Imprint skills (a keepsake Ward, Survey or helper) were removed. Imprints became seven passive keepsakes.
The turn kit (1 November)#
Doc 31 re-expressed every skill in rounds and tiles, each tied to an existing animation clip. Doc 31 §13 calls it "kit v6". Movement, action, bonus action and reaction slots replaced the tap and hold buttons, and Composure replaced "startled". When the user chose 24 px tiles, every range was multiplied by 4/3:
| Value | 32 px | 24 px |
|---|---|---|
| Movement | 4 (Fen 5) | 5 (Fen 6) |
| Reach | 2 (Long Reach 3) | 3 (Long Reach 4) |
| Supported ground | 2 (Attune 3) | 3 (Attune 4) |
| Survey radius | 4 | 5 |
| Ward range | 3 | 4 |
| Pull and Glide | 3 | 4 |
Development#
- The lead pinned the passive-Imprint kit into main on 31 October (
vendor/kit). - The alpha installs B's turn catalogue. The real-time
SKILLScatalogue is still shipped beside it for the overworld lab and save migration. - The withdrawn larger Ranger sprite on the board (2 November: "don't make the ranger, pip and mote bigger") changed no rule.
See also#
Sentinel · Warden · Coordinator · Upgrades · Expeditions (real-time prototype)
Sources#
215bfbf88:docs/game-balance/03-audit.md215bfbf88:docs/game-balance/04-classes-and-skills.md215bfbf88:docs/game-balance/20-v3-balance.md215bfbf88:docs/game-balance/22-v4-reassessment.md215bfbf88:docs/ops/agent-messages/2026-10-31-claude-b-solo-skills-helper-income.md215bfbf88:docs/game-balance/31-turn-based-encounters.mdb89f778c2:src/main-game/alpha/public/encounter/src/skills/kit/catalog.jsb3e9e627d:docs/ops/agent-messages/2026-10-31-lead-kit-repin.md