[4e] Gnome Ranger Build (warning: newbish)

[erikun]

That's easy. Any race with a racial power that (1) sucks, or (2) only works in melee. For example, bullywugs, or minotaurs, or orcs.
Also, surprisingly, a half-elf makes a pretty bad ranger. This is because half-elf is usually taken to add Twin Strike to another class; you don't need half-elf on a class that already has TS.

Odd; I've played a Minotaur Druid with only 12 Strength, and I still found plenty of uses for his racial ability. They only appeared every three or four encounters, but it was still a very handy ability to have during those times.

I'm sure I could find something useful for a Half-Elf Ranger, especially a ranged one that is at least as beneficial as turning invisible once after already receiving damage.