D&D Barbarian Guide: How to Build the Best Barbarian

Updated:

01 Jul 2019

If you want to be a Barbarian don’t settle for being just any wild, rage monster. No, you need to be the best Barbarian to ever roam the Forgotten Realms (or wherever your game is being played). This guide will show you how to make your Rage count, and keep you on your feet long after you have slain those that stand before you.

A Barbarian swinging wildly...

Barbarian Basic Skills

First things first, you need to know the basics about Barbarians.

Their signature ability is Rage.

This gives them advantage on Strength checks and Strength saving throws. You gain a bonus to your melee attacks that rely on Strength. And you have resistance to bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage. While you Rage you also cannot cast spells or maintain concentration on spells you have already cast. Your rage will last for 1 minute of in-game time, or until you are knocked unconscious. You may also end your Rage as a bonus action. Your Rage will also end if since your last turn you have not attacked a hostile enemy or taken any damage at the end of your current turn.

Once you pick this class you will also gain access to Unarmored Defense at first level.

Unarmored Defense is an ability which allows you to add your Constitution modifier and Dexterity modifier to your Armor Class (10) while you are not wearing any armor. You can still use a shield and gain this benefit. As a Barbarian you do not gain access to heavy armor, so you will not be lowering your Armor Class all that much if at all by taking advantage of this. Also, at level 5 you will be able to add 10 feet of movement to your character if you are unarmored.

Brutal Critical is also an amazing ability for Barbarians. This feature allows you to roll additional damage dice when you land a critical hit. This ability will get stronger as you level up.
As a Barbarian you will also gain access to Relentless Rage which allows you to make a DC 10 Constitution saving throw when you fall to 0 hit points and if you succeed you will remain at 1 hit point instead. The DC will increase by 5 each time you use this feature, but reset to 10 after a long rest. This is a great way to stay alive and in the fight for much longer. It also gives your healers a chance to heal you up before the death saving throws start piling up.
At level 20 you will increase both your Strength and Constitution by 4, to a total of 24 each. This will make you hit much harder and stay alive much longer. With Unarmored Defense this will also increase your Armor Class. It is a solid capstone ability.

Barbarians always think they are the strongest person in the room, and they are usually right.

Character Information

For your Barbarians race you will want to roll with a Half-Orc. If that is not your style Goliath, Mountain Dwarves, Variant Humans, and even Lizardfolk make good Barbarians. Half-Orc is still your best option though.

Their ability score bonuses pair with the Barbarian well, with a boost to Strength and Constitution. Their racial abilities are also a good match as well, Savage Attacks allows you to roll 1 additional damage die when you land a critical hit, and Relentless Endurance allows you to remain at 1 hit point when you are reduced to 0 hit points, but not killed outright. These are basically the same skills Barbarians have, but either enhanced (Savage Attacks and Brutal Critical) or an additional use (Relentless Endurance and Relentless Rage). Automatic proficiency in the Intimidation skill also frees up your Barbarian to pick up a different skill, I highly recommend Athletics and Perception.

For Background you will want to pick up Outlander.

It makes the most sense thematically, but will also help keep you and your party alive in survival situations, such as being deep in the wilderness where Barbarians thrive. An extra language also never hurts.

For abilities, make Strength and Constitution your highest, with Dexterity a close third.

At level 1 your stats should look like this in order to maximize damage and your survivability:

Strength 15
Dexterity 15
Constitution 15
Intelligence 8
Wisdom 8
Charisma 8

Higher Constitution will keep you alive, and paired with Dexterity and Unarmored Defense it will keep you from taking too much punishment. Strength is for doing as much damage as you can, and hitting as often as you can. Your other abilities are far less important, it does not matter what you do with them. When you get ability score increases, first try to max out Strength and Constitution.

As a Half-Orc at level 20, you should have enough ability score improvements to reach the top of Strength and Constitution and take one feat, or improve your dexterity. I recommend taking the feat Lucky. This will allow you to reroll your bad attack rolls and hit more often.

Equipment

When it comes to equipment, Barbarians travel surprisingly light.

As stated earlier, Unarmored Defense will require you to not need to worry about what armor you need to have or find. As a Barbarian you should never be wearing any armor.
For weapons the best option would be a Greataxe. The greataxe is the only melee weapon that deals 1d12 damage within 5 feet, and that is why you need to pick this weapon.

This is because of the critical hits you will be landing as a Barbarian. They allow you to roll 1 extra damage die, but if you choose a maul or greatsword, this is only 1d6, because they are 2d6 damage. So when you land a critical hit, you will only do 3d6 to start. This isn’t so bad, but it does not compare to 2d12. At worst you do 3 damage with a greatsword, and 2 with a greataxe. But at best, you will deal 18 damage with a greatsword compared to 24 with a greataxe. I’m no mathematician, but that seems pretty obvious to me which is the better option. For ranged options, any thrown weapons that do not need to be loaded are good options. Handaxes would be your best option as they deal more damage, but you should always be right in front of your enemy if possible. Ranged should only ever be a last resort.

Later, when you start getting magic weapons I highly encourage you to get any enchanted greataxes. A Giantslayer greataxe would be a good option, but any greataxes that have a bonus would serve you well. As stated before, you should never be wearing armor, so do not worry about what the best armor you can wear should be. Your impressive physique is the best armor you can get!

A Holy Barbarian readies her blade against a horde of zombies.

Barbarian subclass

This is where the class really comes together. You have some good options as a Barbarian.

The best choice for you would be Path of the Zealot found in Xanathars Guide to Everything.

This class will quite literally keep you on your feet and fighting while you are at 0 hit points. You will also gain some extra damage choosing this subclass, and there is some supporting skills built into it as well.

When you choose this subclass you will gain access to two abilities, Divine Fury and Warrior of the Gods.

Divine Fury allows you to add 1d6 plus half of your barbarian level (rounded up) to your melee attacks. Extra damage is always a welcome addition, plus the damage is either radiant or necrotic. I would recommend radiant as very few if any creatures resist that.

Warrior of the Gods allows your teammates to revive you without having to track down the material components for spells that can bring you back to life. No practical uses inside of combat, but it could literally keep your character in the game.

Later you will gain access to Fanatical Focus, which allows you to reroll failed saving throws once. You must use the new roll, and this can only be done once per Rage, but it could come in handy in a pinch.
At 10th level you will learn Zealous Presence, which allows you to use a bonus action to inspire up to ten creatures within 60 feet that can hear you.

This inspiration will give them advantage on all of their attack rolls and saving throws until the start of your next turn. This is a great buff to use early in a fight in order to stack the odds heavily in your favor.

Finally, the last ability this subclass grants you is Rage beyond Death. This allows you keep fighting after being reduced to 0 hit points, but not killed outright.

You must still make death saving throws, and any hits that land will result in failed throws, but as long as you are still raging, you will not die until your Rage ends. And even then, you will only die if your Rage ends and you still have 0 hit points. If you had three failed death saves, but the someone casts Cure Wounds on you right before the fight is over, you will still be alive. This all but ensures that as long as there is not a total party kill, your character should never die.

Roleplaying your Barbarian

Play up the tribal, outlander tropes. Barbarians live off the land, and are hardy survivors.

For roleplay purposes Barbarians are most comfortable in the wilderness, where good instincts and raw power is all they need to survive. They are usually part of larger tribes, but they see civilized society as a weakness. They do not like being confined inside town walls. Barbarians also feel most alive when in the heat of combat. So you should play up those factors in roleplay scenarios, that will make your Barbarian feel authentic.

Conclusion

So to conclude this lesson in Barbarian badassery, roll up a Half-Orc, pick the Outlander background, skip the armor and use a greataxe for your weapon, and choose the Path of the Zealot subclass and you will be doing crazy damage while basically never dying. Play this and you will be the Barbarian that is always killing and never dying.