This has grown out of the thread in Technology & Warfare about Rangers.

This is the fan club for all the things Ranger, real life, fiction, modern, or historical. Texas Rangers. LotR Rangers. LotR Ranger knock-offs. Army Rangers. You name it. (I'm not sure there will be many who are big fans of the baseball team though.)

What are your favorite Rangers? Why? What makes Rangers so awesome?

I think my favorites are the Dunedain because they live a long time, have an interesting history, etc.

I really like Rangers because they are so interesting, diverse, intuitive, independent and as a rule good fighters.

Ditto, Lycanis. The Dunedain are my favorite as well.

(Do Robin Hood's men count? Hehe. )

Rangers are awesome because of their skill in fighting, tracking. There's just this sense of confidence and independence about them.

I'm torn between Dunedain and Ranger's Apprentice.

I like rangers (and have used them in my book) because of their ability to strike from a distance (hence the name), stand strong in a toe-to-toe fight, and move without being observed.

Oh, with more thought on the topic...

I really like their free, loose, way of life--sure they often have responsibilities, but they travel over the land until they know it as if it were their own yard. I think it'd be fun to be like that here on Earth.

My sentiment exactly...

Mine too.

I agree with what y'all have mentioned, especially their independent lifestyle.

One of my visions of my Rangers in action is an all but invisible army slinking through the forest, spread out but tightly knit, leaving hardly an imprint on the environment--until, of course, they encounter the enemy.

Awesome.

Then they disappear again, right? Leaving nothing but arrows and the fallen enemy behind?

Yes exactly.

And another thing about them- they can move in large numbers without having to pack very many provisions because they can live off the land. Therefore even if they could be tracked (they can't, unless I invent something that somehow can), they will be moving faster than their pursuers.

Would that be true? Wouldn't they lose their advantage because they would have to take more time to look for food? Whereas the other army would simply have to eat the food they already had.

In some cases, maybe. In their own environment they would know how and where to glean, and even be able to do so without stopping at all (they have a higher endurance than normal humans as well, and don't need to eat as much to keep going). But even if they did all need to stop and look for food, that would be a lot quicker than setting up a chuckwagon (or whatever) and serving everyone food, or whatever.

The Rangers know what to look for, they could forage while moving, and eat at the same time.

If they don't forage, armies usually have to stop and eat. Plus carrying food, unless they're on horseback like Texas Rangers, weighs more so they travel slower.

Exactly.

The Texas Rangers are my favorite.

For the fans of Ranger's Apprentice, the "One Riot, One Ranger" phrase originated with the Texas Rangers. (I'll have to leave for the orthodontist soon, but I'll recount the story soon.)

There was another instance when 5 Rangers and a few deputies (I think. The number escapes me.) arrested 85 men at once, most of whom were armed. No shots were fired, and nobody was injured.

Wow, that's awesome!

Yeah, it is.

Granted, the Texas Rangers were far from perfect. They didn't always follow the system of due course, and would find Mexicans guilty because they were nearby and Mexican. Leander McNelly and his Ranger unit were known for what today would be known as advanced interrogation techniques.

Hmm, that is interesting. We should bring this up on the other ranger thread--"What faults do your rangers have?"

I was obsessed with Rangers as a child, and I had no idea what they were. I spent many years trying to figure it out and I never did. Now I'm trying to squeeze them into one of my novels and decided they're more trouble than they're worth...

They're cool, though. I remember being quite fond of them. I thought Texas Rangers were romantic because of the Lone Ranger, and I've always just loved the sound of the word.

Me too, actually. I think that was the first thing about Rangers that I liked-the sound and shape of the word.

That would be a good thing to bring up.

Texas Rangers aren't that romantic. Most of them couldn't read or write, and those that could, couldn't spell. That's one of the hard parts I've run into about doing research for my Living History project.

Ranger is a good word.

It would have to be the Lotr Rangers for me.

Why's that?

Er....Probably because I've never really heard of any of the others. Although I have heard of the Lone Ranger a couple of times, but not enough to know much about him/them.

The Lone Ranger is an old Western character who was the last of his Ranger team because the rest were killed. He wears a mask, fights for justice, and deliberately does not kill anyone. (According to the tv show, at least.)

Aah! Now I know what you mean, my Dad used to watch them when he was younger.

Yep. The Lone Ranger was/is pretty popular.