The Evolution of Fantasy Role-Playing Games - Michael J. Tresca [25]
In Dungeons & Dragons the bard is a jack-of-alltrades, possessing traits of the fighter, thief, and magicuser classes. He also has the ability to charm monsters, can use magical musical instruments effectively, and possesses the infamous bardic lore, which allows the bard to dredge up knowledge about practically anything.
The bard underwent a series of transformation across different editions of Dungeons & Dragons. Its official debut in Advanced Dungeons & Dragons was modified so it was more of a prestige class, requiring advancement in fighter and then thief before joining bard. It wasn’t until third edition that the bard was restored as a viable choice for beginning characters, only to be excluded from the fourth edition Player’s Handbook. It was restored in the Player’s Handbook 2.
RANGER • The term “ranger” first appeared in 1388 in reference to a gamekeeper (Ayto 1990:431). It’s derived from the word “range,” the place where a ranger patrols. “Range” is in turn derived from the Old French word “rank.” It was borrowed directly into English as “rank” and later developed into “rang,” from which was derived the verb “rangier,” which means “set in a row.”
In Middle-earth, there are the Rangers of Ithilien, who dress in green and fight with bows, spears, and swords and are led by Faramir of Gondor. There are also the Rangers of the North, a secret society of knights who wear cloaks of green and gray and are armed with sword and spear. They wandered all over Eridaor on foot or horse, passing silently through the land (Day 2001:194). These rangers have keen senses, a kinship with animals, are stalwart warriors and most of all are excellent trackers. Aragorn demonstrates all of these talents in The Lord of the Rings.
Rangers first appeared in Dungeons & Dragons as an article by Joe Fischer in The Strategic Review (1975:4). In that article, the ranger had a tracking ability, was lawfully aligned and could cast minor spells. The ranger could keep only treasure he was able to carry, could not hire men-at-arms or servants of any kind, and no more than two rangers could adventure together. Beyond these rules, little exposition is provided, presuming that the reader is familiar with Aragorn. In fact, few of the restrictions and benefits make sense without knowledge of Middle-earth—the rangers traveled light and were few in number, and intentionally avoided gathering in groups lest they draw attention to themselves. If there is any doubt about the class’s inspiration, the title provided for the second level of the ranger is “Strider” (1975:4).
THIEF • The term “thief” is related to the Lithuanian word “tupeti” which means “to crouch down” (Ayto 1990:527). As mentioned previously, the thief is strongly connected to both hobbits and dwarves. The thief class presents a manner of approach to adventuring “that is basically individualistic and unobserved (as differing from indirect)” (Gygax 1987:29).
Although there have always been thugs, bandits, pirates, and assassins of all stripes in fiction, it is the thief who has been singled out as a hero (if not heroic) fantasy archetype (Aeon 2001). Part of the thief’s appeal is his everyman quality, and it is that same quality that manifests in hobbit thieves. If hobbits are the everyday farmer, the thief is a starving farmer who has to resort to desperate measures to survive. He is us, fallen on hard times.
The thief first appears in Dungeons & Dragons in the Greyhawk supplement. His skills include opening locks, disabling traps, listening for noise behind closed doors, moving quietly, picking pockets, hiding in shadows, striking silently from behind, and climbing