Some more twisted vanilla: Ranger, Paladin, Witch/Druid

After doing the fighter, thief and wizard last post, I'll share the ranger, paladin and witch classes I made as well. These have been quite fun to work on, and I hope to expand the organisations/classes based on some ideas I still have lying around somewhere as well as based on input from my students on what they want to play.

Wilderness Warden

The natural order is under constant threat. It is up to us to maintain it and root out the chaos that would undo it.

Gear: Hunting bow, quiver of 20 arrows, a waterproof cloak, a fishing rod, and a hunting knife.
Duty: You must present a trophy of a chaotic being you got rid of at each Equinox Moot.  
Stipulation: You are not allowed to upset the natural order under any circumstance.
Rituals: When you take up the responsibility of the Wardens of the Wilds you are inducted in one of the following rituals to aid you in your duty. Those who make a major contribution to the efforts of the Wardens are allowed to participate in a ritual they haven’t yet experienced.

Track Tasting: Participants spend the day sampling various entrees in the Palette of Traces, describing the notes, mouthfeel and associations to one another in great detail. 

From now on you can learn one fact about a creature for each different kind of track you have tasted from it (think footprints, tufts of hair, droppings, claw marks, etc.).
However, you seem to have forgotten how to eat in a civilised manner. The way you eat is disgusting to people, causing them to react accordingly.

Root Tapper: Each participant has their head buried underground inside a ring of mushrooms until they have learned the name of each individual fruit.

From now on you can listen in on messages sent on the root network of an area as long as you touch the roots of two different plants. Plants use this network primarily for warning each other against potential dangers and petty gossip.
However, somehow everyone knows you ‘talk to plants’ and most people find you appropriately strange because of it.

Feral Bond: Each participant makes a nest, den, burrow, etc. to attract the creature of their choice and exchange a meal with them in this newly made abode.

From now on you are bonded to a wild animal of your choice, linking your senses and emotions. Over time, the two of you take on more and more traits of one another.
However, your animalistic traits cause most strangers to consider you to be dangerous and unpredictable. (stolen from here)

One with Nature: Participants chase a swift creature native to the wilderness they are close to for an entire day and are neither allowed to catch it, nor lose sight of it.

From now on you feel strangely familiar in any area you spend the night, allowing you to easily find common plants and animals, as well as various locations frequented by wildlife (e.g. watering holes).
However, you are unable to feel at ease whenever you are cooped up inside for more than a day

Joyous Knight

This world is a sad and dark place, full of suffering and despair. We must protect the few sparks of joy that are left in it and nurture them into roaring flames.

Gear: Sword and shield, armour, billowing cape, toothbrush.
Duty: Each moon you need to perform a significant charitable act.
Stipulation: You may only cause sadness if doing so brings about more happiness.
Rituals: Those who join the order of the Knights of Burning Joy get to join in on one of the following rituals. Acts of exceptional charity allow Knights to join into rituals they haven’t yet experienced.

Contagious Laughter: Participants each tell in turn: the most boring joke, the saddest story and the most infuriating fact they know and all participants laugh throughout.

From now on those who can hear your laugh will involuntarily start laughing at the same intensity as you.
However, you cannot stop smiling, no matter the situation you are in or how you actually feel.

Inspiring Positivity: Participants together chant from the Book of Affirmations while going from door to door to hand out baskets of food.

From now on your positive visage is an inspiration to your allies, allowing them to more easily push through pain and overcome fear as long as they know you're near.
However, strangers will not believe your struggles or pain, seeing you as an indomitable beacon of positivity.

Sense Emotion: The Draught of Darkness takes away participants’ senses, after which they cross a room of anxious vipers using only their empathy to guide them.

From now on you can sense the emotions of others. The stronger the emotion, the further its reach.
However, being around negative emotions fatigues you over time and makes you unable to rest.

Eradicate Sadness: Participants dig deep to find the sadness within. When their tears have soaked a kerchief, they throw it in the Flame of Joy and burn away the sadness.

From now on any attacks on those who are sad have increased effectiveness as you exterminate sadness from the world.
However, your righteous sword is unable to hurt creatures who currently experience joy.

Hidden Witch

They'd hunt us for the crime of helping the common folk and our good sense not to serve some pompous ass. Well, let them try and see how that goes.

Gear: Broom, cauldron, a bag of medicinal herbs, yarn.
Duty: You must tend to the common folk that are under your care and see to their needs.
Stipulation: You must not draw too much attention to yourself or the coven through uncareful use of your gifts.
Rituals: When you seek refuge with the Hidden Coven you are invited to participate in one of the following rituals. Those who have proven their loyalty will be invited to another ritual they haven't participated in yet.

Animal Form: Participants walk in a procession wearing wooden animal masks, becoming like their animal of choice as the procession progresses.

From now on you can turn into a cat or similarly sized creature at will. In this form you retain your power of speech, but are in every other respect just an animal.
However, in human form you are stiff as a board. Running, jumping, climbing and other feats of agility are arduous for you to perform.

Object Jockey: Each participant brings an object that has been cared for for at least three generations. They then wrestle the object for dominance during a full moon from dusk till dawn.

From now on you can animate an object for as long as you sit on it and ride it as a mount. The larger it is, the slower it moves, person-sized objects are able to fly.
However, you become light enough that a stormy wind could blow you far and wide. This has all the benefits and especially all the drawbacks that would logically follow. (stolen from here)

Charm Weaving: Participants are painted with sigils in elder moss and fall into a trance. During their trance they are cocooned in yarn. Once the trance is over they emerge, born anew.

From now on you can dream in a trancelike state about a variety of pragmatic spells. You can weave exceptions from your dreams into charms. But, you can only have one version of each charm ever.
However, you are uncomfortable whenever you are around a large group of people for too long. The bigger the crowd, the more quickly it becomes intolerable.

Diagnostic Intuition: Participants dance around a fire during full moon, moving in perfect synchronicity with the movements of the flames until the fire dies down.

From now on you can intuit what is wrong at a glance. Common ailments and disturbances you’ll know for a fact, rare ones will require you to convene with your coven to guarantee and
However, you become incredibly dry, making you exceptionally flammable. Once you catch fire, it is difficult to put out the flames.

Final Thoughts

The kids seemed to like both these as well as the previous three classes. The combination of weird and useful seems to speak to them, which is nice because I also really like where this is going. It would have been perfectly fine had they not liked these at all, but this allows me to playtest these a lot sooner as I'm rather lazy in setting up regular groups and have become so even more now that I can run weekly games for my students. 

As I flesh out the world they play in and build procedures to accomodate the intended playstyle (they have a communal castle ruin to clear out, rebuild and pimp), I'll try to keep sharing these on the blog.