Known for being great and fierce warriors of their land and tribe, sheer adrenaline runs through their veins. Their experience and prowess in battle, mixed with the fury within them, makes them excellent combatants.
General Information about barbarian builds
In the world of Dungeons and Dragons 5e, the barbarian class is well-known for its capabilities to rage, its brute strength, and fierce combat skills. They are typically portrayed as nomadic or tribal warriors.
By the third level, barbarians can choose their subclass, which is better known as their “path.” There are several paths to consider, such as the Path of the Totem Warrior, which grants the barbarian animal totem powers, and the Path of the Zealot, which focuses on religious fervor and divine power.
Advantages and Drawbacks
Advantages
- Rage: This intense fury that surges into the barbarian grants benefits for them in combat, such as bonus damage, increased resistance to damage, and advantage on Strength checks and saving throws.
- High health points: With a d12 hit die, the barbarian class has more hit points than any other class at 1st level found in Dungeons and Dragons, making them great tanks.
- High damage dealers: With the right build, barbarians make a great combat class as they are able to consistently deal significant amounts of damage.
Disadvantages
- Lack of spells: As a barbarian, the main focus of this class is to utilize physical prowess. Spells can only be attained when choosing a subclass that offers it, but it is very limited compared to other classes.
Barbarian Builds
Pure Builds
Damage Dealer
Many choose the barbarian for their brute strength. So, if you choose to put more focus on being a great damage dealer in battle, the Path of the Totem Warrior barbarian is something you may want to consider adopting. The Path of the Totem Warrior barbarian, at level 3, unlocks the ability to choose a totem spirit animal (bear, eagle, or wolf) that grants you various abilities to benefit you in battle.
Tank
As a tank, your role in the party is to be their meat shield in battle, soaking up all the potential damage that can really take a hit to other party members. The Path of the Ancestral Guardian barbarian is a good option if you want to focus on this aspect of combat. This path allows you to protect your allies and draw enemy attention away from them. It also grants you resistance to damage while raging.
Crowd Control
If you want to control the battlefield and limit enemy movement, consider the Path of the Storm Herald barbarian. This path allows you to create an aura around you that deals damage to enemies and reduces their movement speed. You can also choose different types of storms that grant you additional abilities. Through this, you are able to bring the enemies’ focus to you as a frontline, as you would be more than capable of subduing more than one enemy at a time.
Multiclass Builds
Barbarian/Fighter
Both melee-based classes, the barbarian and fighter classes make for a great combination for characters focused on combat. Taking levels in fighter can give you access to extra attacks, as well as the Action Surge ability, which lets you take an additional action on your turn. What’s more, by dipping into the fighter class, players have another option to take a Fighting Style. This synergizes well with the barbarian class as they complement each other.
Barbarian/Cleric
Combining the cleric class and barbarian might initially seem unusual, but it can be very effective when creating a character focused on supporting your party members. Taking levels in cleric can give you access to healing spells and powerful buff spells. You can choose a deity that aligns with your character’s personality and use their spells to support your allies in battle. The Path of the Ancestral Guardian barbarian would work well with this build as it offers features that can help your party.
Suggested Races
Half-Orc
Being a half-orc offers a lot of benefits befitting a great warrior. With their physical build, they are able to benefit from features such as Relentless Endurance and Savage Attacks. Relentless Endurance allows half-orcs to not be killed outright and remain with 1 hit point even if their hit points were reduced to 0.
While Savage Attacks grant an additional weapon roll on a successful critical roll. In addition to these features, they have proficiency in intimidation, which makes for a great addition to roleplay. The Goliath is also a very good option
Human Variant
Humans are a versatile race, especially the Human Variant subrace as it gives you plenty of choices when creating your character. With that, they can make great barbarians due to their ability to choose a feat at level 1, as well as a choice on where they want to increase their ability scores by one and a skill where they want to be proficient in. This means you can start with a feat like Great Weapon Master or Polearm Master to increase your damage output.
Advice and Final Thoughts
The barbarian class is a fun and powerful role to play in the world of Dungeons and Dragons. Some would say that they are easy to play given the simplicity of the actions that can be utilized. However, this class should not be underestimated as it does require some strategy to play effectively.
When creating a character, it is important to choose your race and subclass carefully as it can affect your playstyle and how you choose to bring your character forward. Along with that, try to give more personality to your barbarian to give them more depth than being a fierce warrior. It is just as important to not neglect your non-combat skills to make your character well-rounded. Most importantly, work with your party. Barbarians can be great frontline fighters, but they can also benefit from support from other party members.
Overall, barbarians are a great choice for players who want to play a character that excels in melee combat and can soak up a lot of damage. They can be a bit one-dimensional at times, but their sheer power and ferocity make them a formidable force on the battlefield.
Overall, barbarians are a great choice for players who want to play a character that excels in melee combat and can soak up a lot of damage. They can be a bit one-dimensional at times, but their sheer power and ferocity make them a formidable force on the battlefield.