At first, I was like "Ok so he's gonna explain a more convoluted Ranger or something that could be a Ranger subclass" but in the end, I like the class quite much. It feels distinct enough to call it a class and have some very unique traits.

This looks awesome! I've got an NPC temporary companion/advisor from previous campaigns who we're about to play with as a younger character and this is perfect for him. Thanks!

I can't believe some of the responses here- I think this is a solid class that covers a role that's much broader than what one might expect. I remember in your previous videos where you covered how the Monster Hunter works, and how the Monster Slayer Ranger leans more into the magical side as opposed to the true grittiness that famous monster hunters thrive in. (If you really want magic, just multiclass friends) That might've been why so many others didn't gel so well with it either- you're more like a mage slayer, not a MONSTER slayer. I do miss Grave Strike just being part of the MH's arsenal, but Studied Response is just as good- probably better in terms of balance. Makes it so it's not just "Rogue, but tanky." We need more martial-focused classes in general, and I think this is well on its way to being a great one to play.

The idea of an intelligence based martial class is a stroke of genius. Most of the time in D&D (and other RPGs) Martial classes are defined either by strength or agility - a great weapon or rapier approach to combat. In either case, intelligence is a popular dump stat with players of Martial classes, so you often end up with either a strong meathead or a graceful idiot, but that doesn't fit with the imagery surrounding a monster hunter who will often find themselves fighting alone, or as part of a small group, against creatures that severely outclass them in terms of raw physical potency. If such a hunter is going to consistently survive and triumph against such odds then they will have to fight with their wits at least as much as their muscles and reflexes. The notion of an expert monster hunter - who knows the behaviours, habitats, strengths and weaknesses of the creatures they specialise in hunting - offers a truly appealing class fantasy. The idea of the precision of a master hunter who plans out how to tackle their chosen mark in meticulous detail, who has made a study of the creatures they hunt and laid the ground work for victory ahead of time by arming themselves with knowledge as much as weapons, offers all kinds of options for story telling and role playing. The obvious (though still ridiculously awesome) Geralt of Rivia type characters being one route you could take with a character, but you can just as readily have the grizzled veteran hunter who has seen it all and knows that, since they are no longer as young as they once were, they must find other ways of levelling the playing field. The obsessive, 'Captain Ahab' type hunter who is absolutely driven by their desire for vengeance or need to wipe a particular type of hated creature from the face of the Realm, but who is not so lost in their lust for revenge that they lack the ability to hone their knowledge and skill to better their odds of achieving the goals they seek (they might even have their own 'White Whale' in a particularly dangerous beast they have been hunting for years but have yet to bring down). The hard bitten professional monster hunter for whom monsters are both a scourge that needs to be eliminated but also each represent a bounty that is part of their way of life, or maybe they primarily see their prey as simply a source of alchemical indigents that can be sold for a handsome profit to alchemists and mages - straight forward supply and demand with no aspirations to any higher calling. The Professor Van Helsing type man of learning who has been forced to turn his hand to monster hunting by circumstance and now leverages the knowledge he has gained from a life spent in pursuit of academia the better to rid the world of the vile creatures that haunt its shadowed places. There really is no end to the possibilities I also like the idea of possibly multiclassing a Monster Hunter who specialises in using gadgets to bring down their prey with an Artificer (another intelligence based class that seems likely to pair well with the Monster Hunter) to really bring the power of innovation and new technologies to the hunt.

YEEEEEEAH! Now I can finally play my Plasmoid Blob as a Devourer! 🔥

Oh hoh man this would be great to play Van Helsing as portrayed by Hugh Jackman

I like this class. The expert strike fearure is cool but i still think multiattack is necessary for a marital. I liked the original version with grave strike where you could forgo multiattack for a single attack that does more damage. I get lots of things combo with expert strike but the loss of multiattack gets rid of lots of martial utility especially in limiting you to only being able to attack one creature a round. The reaction strike is decent but still uses the reaction. I personally think the option to use multiattack or expert strike was a good feature and allows for deciosions eavh round that make you feel good for picking the right option for the circumstances of the round

Will this class be added to DND beyond?

Any news on Aetherial Expense setting. I pre-ordered the pdf in December and I'm wondering when it will be avaible for download . I have the same question for Sunken Islands. I haven't bought that yet but I'm interested. Thank you

Theres a monster slayer ranger, mate and theres blood hunter, this better be good.

Aren't....ALL D and D characters by definition Monster Hunters? Huh. You had me at the 3 first examples. New favorite.

I'd certainly want to play a Devourer, but I wonder if it would be possible to spec towards eating only specific monsters that would give specific bonuses; for example, if I was a Human Devourer that just consumed insects or insect monsters (such as Ankhegs, Thri-keen, Umberhulks, etc.), would I gain a hard carapace? Could my eyes morph into compound eyes to increase perception? Would two antennae sprout out of my head to give me a buff to darkvision? Sounds quite exact I know, but damn would it make for some awesome combinations =)

LFG! Been waiting for this. So exicted to give it a play test.

Grim Hollow is such a cool vibe! Can't wait to see more:)

When I finally get my hands on my copy of the Citadel of the Unseen Sun adventure, I plan on having my party meet a Tiefling Monster Hunter that will help them on their quest to escape from the Ostoyan Necropolis. He has the Carver Guild Subclass and uses a broadsword in battle, you might have a good idea on who he's based off of.

If they're not going to get a second attack, gaining an additional reaction a little later makes sense. If they're proficient in the monster type that they're fighting then I think giving them an additional reaction would be really cool. They already know how to react to monsters but these specific monsters they know in and out. This would also allow them to use some of their other reactions if needed. Overall it seems like a really fun class. Good job!

Should studied response read when an enemy takes the attack action instead of a weapon attack? Would that exclude natural weapons like claws or unarmed attack like a giant stomping.

I have a subclass that I've been homebrewing and I think this will be perfect for it cause it'll be like a van helsing werewolf class. Plus I've been trying to find a intelligence based martial class for this sub class.

Yes! Been waiting for an update since that first playtest.

Question about the Lair Sense feature. Does it need to rewritten (eventually) to account for the fact that WotC are writing Legendary Actions out of the game? Mordenkeinen's has been replacing them with additional Reactions.

For the second level ability. If it’s weapon attacks then it will mostly trigger from other humanoids and not monsters

I literally made a monster hunter for our current GH game, my dm just sent me this, I'm SO excited to see this and (hopefully) get to try it out

Me when I take a Monster Hunter Dip on my Rogue and sneak attack anything that looks art me funny

Study response sounds like it would be good if you had wait a turn to actually study the creature then I think it would be great at second level

I'm working on a feywild setting where all the PCs are children lost in the feywild and meet and fight against fables and the monster hunter could be such a good class for a kid that was obsessed with fairytales and is now a fountain on knowledge for the rest of the party since they are in the realm where those fairytales are, in fact, real!

Been hearing a lot about these ruffians. May have to do some studying later...

This is thematically the hunter ranger, including studied response as a reactive hunter’s mark and the monster grimoire favored enemy list, but if the mechanics already there don’t do the job you want, make new mechanics, right? I wonder if some ways you’ve done it might be more fun than how the ranger did it.

So how long until the final version is released?

This is pretty awesome. Have you considered that Studied Response makes this an awesome 2-3 level dip for rogues?

Wow, at level 5th Monster hunters can add their STR or DEX modifier, AND their intelligenge modifier? 😲

Studied Response heavily incentivizes using ranged weapons. I don’t know if that’s intentional, given the vampire hunter (or Diablo 3 demon hunter) iconically using a crossbow, but it’s going to make most other fighting style choices a mistake. Studied Response also heavily rewards a Rogue multiclass - rather, it rewards Rogues for taking two levels of Monster Hunter. You’ve created the equivalent of a Hexblade dip for rogues in that this would be virtually mandatory if it was official. First level feature is basically just a ribbon? Is it just that and a fighting style? There really should be some combat power there. Doesn’t need to be huge. Maybe add proficiency bonus to damage against studied types, though that may scale out of control. I like Knowledgable Defense, that’s a cool idea. So if I was trying to break a game with this, and I didn’t multiclass with rogue, I would be using crossbow expert and sharpshooter, I’d be adding my intelligence to the attack roll which, combined with archery fighting style, should negate the sharpshooter hit penalty. Eventually with Grave Strike in t4 I’ll be able to crit on 18-20 rolls, making at least two attacks per turn (xbow expert, hand xbow) and potentially (studied response) dealing 10+dex+int+2d6+magic bonuses, forcing a save or die against a DC of that total if the creature type is in my Grimoire. And that’s without multiclassing for a sneak attack. There are cool ideas here, but the second a character one-shots a big enemy with that feature my DM is going to ban the class.

Have to admit, not having multiattack actually makes this class shine in my eyes, it's unique. Maybe not balanced all the way, but I really like the idea. Plus I love giving buffs to my players along the way. So I'll tweak it a bit. Been running Grim hollow for 3 years now, and enjoying every second. Hope to hear about the subclasses soon.

Ah so this is what ranger supposet to be from the start.

Playing as a Dhampir, you can RP Vampire Hunter D 🤌

Hey did Valika clans ever come out? I remember them posting about it and then not much after

Isn't this supposed to be a Ranger sub-class?

Looking forwards to Valikan Clans. Do we have an ETA on the book?

If you look up "Power creep" in the dictionary there's a picture of this class, lol.

I originally bounced off this video, but then when you talked about Studied Response in the Lorecast I had to come back. And boy am I glad I did. This class sounds dope as hell and is immediately being added to my ongoing campaign

Oh I like this. 5 levels Blood hunter and the rest Monster hunter.

I'd be inclined to distill this down to a ranger sub-class. I think the game has plenty of classes already. That's not to so you didn't do a good job designing the class, or that it wouldn't be fun to play. I'm just skeptical of the need for more 20-level classes.

New transformations??? Oh I hope we get Lamias or arachne. What does a transformation into those look like? Ether way I am excited for future Grim hollow.

Excited for a new class, how long is the window to sign in for playtests?

Sounds like a Ranger subclass tbh

Awesome! bring it to roll20!!!!!

When will grim hollow be in fantasy grounds unity 😢

Leave it to the Aussie to basically make Steve Irwin a class. :) The Grim-waaah is he-yaaaa! Looking forward to seeing the final version when it comes out.

I think this is needed to be added. We have the flexible marshals that are the fighter barbarian and rouges that they can pick any RP state and the state set matches that are the ranger and paladin that uses wisdom and charisma so an int one is needed. I don’t count blood hunter as most of the time people use it with wisdom

RAW bloodhunter lol

It needs multiattack on its finished version. Edit: Ignore what i said above. "Slayer's Aid" woud be better as a lv5 ability, like a psuedo multi attack. Lair sense i think lv12 or lv13 is more apropriate

YES, THIS IS GOING TO FURTHER MY HOMEBREW OF A COMBINATION OF CASTLEVANIA THE ANIMATED SERIES MIX THEM WITH SUPERNATURAL AND A SPRINKLING OF WITCHER WORLD I'M CREATING.🎉❤

WHERE'S MY DRAGONATOR (there should be enough people that are fans of both D&D and Monster Hunter that get this joke)

Now I can roleplay as my MHW character... If I had a D&D group. :, (

But monster hunter is already a subclass for ranger...well, monster slayer. But still... this just looks like ranger with extra steps.

Sounds cool, but I think it's repeating the same mistakes from the original ranger. Having mechanics that key off specific monster types means DMs must bend their campaign prep to include such monsters or risk the Monster Hunter player not getting to use their class abilities as often. If you're playing through a prewritten adventure that doesn't include any Aberrations, for example, your Monster Hunter might feel left out if they chose that monster type. You can't solve this by having the DM throw more of those monsters into the campaign because it puts excess work on their shoulders. I don't need to provide sneak attack-able monsters for the rogue, because they can sneak attack anything

This combined with blood hunter oof

Reminds me alot of the Inquisitor or Slayer classes from Pathfinder

im playing the playtest in my current GH game and i was kind of enjoying it. i wasnt hitting the adds/bosses much but when i did it hurt. so there are somethings in this one is nice but i personally prefer the first itteration of this class. im a hunter/killer of foes and beasts that loves trophies and things to show of said kills

bring back the MYSTIC !!!

But can i use the parts of the monster for gear and/or food?

Honestly this seems like it would be insanely fun to multiclass with (especially rogue)

I'm confused will this be in the actual DnD beyond website? Or is this something different.

I think you should swap the 2nd and 5th level feature and reworked the subclasses accordingly for two major reasons: 1. This would make the Intelligence attribute for the class more useful, more quickly. 2. Why would anyone take more levels in this class after gaining Studied Response, if you could take levels in rogue instead to have two sneak attacks per round of combat? As a side note: The investigator class in Valda's Spire of Secrets is quite similar to this class, but not quite the same. There is still some design space to explore.

So what's their signature weapon? A great sword? A longsword? The allmighty SnS? A glaive with an insect familiar attached to it?

Mechanically, very cool and distinct idea. A true INT based martial is something I'd love seeing. Thematically, it kinda seems to be stepping on the toes of Ranger too much. If you want to see this more as a compliment, this is a welcomed variant to what a Ranger could be.

Wow monster Hunter class I want to try 😊

I feel like Grave Strike might be too OP. I’m just imagining a monster hunter doing a Vecna module who has undead in his grimoire one-shotting the campaign baddie with a lucky roll of 18. Leads to a very unsatisfying final fight. I think a better compromise would be if you roll an 18-20 crit, the feature doubles your damage and Grave Strike doubles your crit. So if you rolled 60 crit damage, you just did 120 damage with that one roll. It’s still amazing, but you’re not going to end the boss fight in the first round.

This is the exact kind of class I want hell yeah

Laios time

AAAAAAAAAAAAA!

I have a player that chose the route of a monster hunter. This player is a Ranger - Monster Slayer subclass. To fit the role, I created a new skill called Macabre which covers the same thing your tome does. He also got a free Feat to start with and we use Feats quite a bit as options while leveling. I gave him a little more flexibility in his favored enemy ability and with just some tweaks in narrative flavor, voilla...we have a Monster Hunter. No new class needed.

Too MAD. Str for attacks, 14 Dex for AC, Con for HP and Int for class features. Wtf.

So where is the playtest free monster hunter?

I get what they were going for but I am not a fan. I like the concept but it should be on the Ranger or Fighter... Having it as a class on its own really infringes on the roles for both the fighter and ranger. Lastly the chance for a Multi-Class abuse is enormous. As an example a multi-class Rogue with 2 levels of this class can suddenly strike with their sneak attack every time they are attacked.

Class sounds fun. Having 2 of these in a party with the same favored foe sounds like a DM nightmare. Rofl! I feel like this will lead to the dm balancing by avoiding the favored foes of the MH. I could be wrong. Instead of choosing a favored foe Id like to see a chart of some sort with a list of requirements to add the monster to their favored foe list in the gremoir. Adding an almost pokemon element of finding and studying them all. They would have to identify foodprints, identify carcase or remains of food eaten by goe, find claw marks, find the lair, and finally witness it using an attack. One they do each of these and pass an intelligence check to mark these off the list they unlock the benefit of favored foe and maybe even buff some of that to compensate or whatever. Really give it that MH World scout flies tracking treatment.

this comment was made pre watching vid but first thought is ranger clone.

Love that this isn't as magical as the ranger or blood hunter and lets you actually just be a monster hunter that studies monsters. The other classes feel too singularly focused on creature types or have abilities that just don't work well in combat.

This seems like it will have the same problem as ranger, the dm can ruin it easy by changing the main enemy type for example, going from fighting mainly undead to abominations this will be similar to the main problem that rangers have of going into different biome types like going from a forest to a mountain.

I ordered a book bundle a few months ago and I haven't gotten any not even an email response for there customer support, I use to really like these guys now I don't think I can continue supporting anything they do sadly.

This is literally what rangers were supposed to be

Another ranger ?

I’m a fan of your company’s work. And I will gladly purchase a good product from you. But I will not pay you for the “privilege” of playtesting your WIP and providing you with valuable data. Every other company releases play test pdfs for free. I’m not supporting the precedent of paid playtests. No thank you. I know it’s only a $1. But things like this start small. What happens when WotC gets it in their head that people will pay to playtest WIP content? I’d rather not find out. Also: put Hunter’s Sense back in. Or make it a INT/WIS half-feat. It sounds awesome.

So ranger got it.

im sorry blood hunter already exists not for me

So blood hunters step brother??? Literally almost the same thing

It's a shameless clickbait. If u gonna make video about homebrew class at least have decency to mention it in the title and description.

Dumb. All classes are monster hunters.

This isn't an official class. This is low quality homebrew clickbait.