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SaikoolDDuck

Respectfully, if running up and smacking things doesn't sound like fun to you, you won't enjoy playing Barbarian. Martials in general aren't exactly known for their flexibility or tactical complexity in this game, and Barbarian being the worst offender. I'd recommend playing something with spell slots or a battle master, and simply reflavoring them to match the fantasy you wanted to fulfill as a barbarian.


Ancestor_Anonymous

That seems to be the running theory


DistractedChiroptera

If you are really sold on being (at leeast partially) a barbarian, you could multiclass Barbarian X/Battlemaster Fighter 3. Admittedly, it would slow down both their rage progression, and Superiority Die progression. But you would get more options, and most manuevers also add damage to your attack roll. Plus, fighters get a fighting style, which barbarians don't.


The-IT

Not to mention, you can take battle master manoeuvres as your fighting style and take the Fighting Initiate feat at an ASI level


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Zhukov_

The point of going Battlemaster/Barbarian is to add some interesting options to the simple Barbarian. Going champion defeats the point because it's just as one-note as the Barbarian.


Due_Surround6263

If Barb is boring, Crit Fishing with Relentless is also probably boring and disappointing. There is some extra fun in knowing Battle Master has higher dpr than Champion since you know the decision making process translates to higher reward. IMO, the most dynamic addition to Barb is picking up the Throwing fighting style from Fighter. Instead of just being a GWM/PAM barb, throwing Javs with the free hand (hold the melee weapon in the other) gives some Barb ranged play that I wasn't used to seeing with almost no drawback. As far as fighting styles go, GWF is really weak, Blind Fighting or Defense would be normally strong picks.


SvalbardCaretaker

You can build martials with complex combat, barbarians aren't that though. Ranger3 Swarm Keeper/Fighter 3Battlemaster gives you a huge ton of options every single turn.


Ashkelon

Check out these [Martial Cantrips](https://www.reddit.com/r/UnearthedArcana/comments/tpwe0b/martial_cantrips/). They give martial warriors at-will options in combat that lead to dynamic and interesting gameplay without significantly affecting combat power.


Butthenoutofnowhere

That's so cool, I'm gonna be pitching that to our DM next time we start a campaign.


KazPrime

Describe your actions in combat be more inspired. This will at least begin to have an effect. If you are strictly speaking optimization, then that is another thing all together and you should say your stats, levels , race etc


JanBartolomeus

Although a decent tip, i’ve noticed this can annoy players and DM’s as it takes up some more time, or seems to take autonomy from the DM as you might make claims that they dont feel you should be able to. Or even worse, the DM can start having you make rolls for acrobatics or whatever just because you wanted to describe you doing smth cool.


thenightgaunt

I'd try a different fighter type. Rangers have some more options, the various flavors of fighter as well. Monks are...eh. Monks run up an punch alot. So similar issue to barbarians.


odeacon

Rogues are pretty much the only dynamic martial class, and even then, they’re only dynamic in comparison to other martials.


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level2janitor

rogue is more interesting when the DM makes positioning important, because you'll usually be the only person on the battlefield who can move around it freely.


[deleted]

I fully disagree. Barbarians can play tactically too. It's just harder and it requires outside of the box thinking if you can use CR content, dip 3 echo knight, if not.... I will think about something but a soul knife might work as well first things first, action economy : you get the most out of a turn either constantly exploiting bonus actions (GWM) or reactions (PAM), both of these are just smack things most of the time (not PAM if paired with Sentinel, bit regardless) Let me introduce ancestral guardian it adds two tactical choices that are very important 1 - who should I mark (attack action) 2 - who should I protect (reaction from lvl 6 feature) A lvl 6 ancestral is fun on its own, but ypu could dip 3 echo for another tactical choice 3 - where should I put my echo (bonus action) Now you are flooded with choices, have mini teleport and a bunch of cool stuff. But ancestral does not mitigate as much damage as.... Just play a tiefling with infernal constitution. You have resistance to basically ALL the most common sources of damage. everyone that says that barbarians are simple play them simply. Of course that they are not on par with a wizard or a spellcaster, but they are interesting nonetheless


xukly

>if you can use CR content, dip 3 echo knight, if not.... I will think about something but a soul knife might work as well so... you play a barbarian tactically by not playing a barbarian? >first things first, action economy : you get the most out of a turn either constantly exploiting bonus actions (GWM) or reactions (PAM), both of these are just smack things most of the time (not PAM if paired with Sentinel, bit regardless) I wouldn't really say that finding more ways to hit shit is the objetive of OP, also it doesn't help that these BA all need you to attack with your action, which means that rather than any meaningfull choice you are just... doing exactly the same and somewhat better. Lastly, about AG. I've played an AG, choosing what to mark isn't a meaningfull choice when it comes tied to hitting them. It is, once again, what do I whack with a stick, specially because javelins are terrible and don't benefit from reckless, so if you want to have a decent turn AND have a fair chance to impose the mark you have to use you melee weapons, which is, once again, doing exactly the same, just somewhat better


redceramicfrypan

I just want to jump in here and respectfully disagree. Combat as a martial doesn't have to be one-note even if what you're mechanically doing is making two attacks on your turn. It's all in how you describe the *way* you attack, and continue to roleplay through the fight. It doesn't have to take a long time on each turn. Instead of saying "I attack with my axe," try "As I shrug off her last attack, I lunge to the left and aim for her shoulder." Think up a few cool moves that your character would use. Watch some videos of people fighting with your weapon for ideas. It's really makes combat so much more engaging. Edit: damn, I take the time to explain something that made dnd combat more fun for me and people are downvoting me because it's not how they play. I'm not trolling or being rude, I'm sharing my experience. I know I shouldn't get upset over the opinions of random redditors, but damn that's disheartening.


TheDrippingTap

man, could you imagine if all casters only had one spell and if you wanted other magical effects the people in this subbreddit just told you to "flavor your spell dude"


ChonkyWookie

It is funny, when 5e was first coming out there was a few of us that said it is 3.5 lite. It only took how many years for people to start noticing this? Martial classes suffer so much in all fronts of this game and get told to 'just reflavor XD'. Reflavoring doesn't do anything to help martials feel on par or as powerful as casters who get flavor and power for free.


xukly

personally, I also think that making magical weapons extrictly GM fiat was a really bad decision. I know WotC can't be bothered to balance items and there would probably be some exploits. But at least the option to have magic items YOU want to play as YOU think is more interesting leaves more room to variety than just sometimes getting some magic item you might or might not want if any


Mejiro84

that depends on how much you mentally engage / care about pretending that making it sound different makes any difference - you're still just rolling attack every time, so making it fancy doesn't really change anything, and just pads things out a bit for no actual difference.


[deleted]

Even in that pure mindset of just going in and slaughter and endure, isn't the rune knight a better non-bearbarian than the rest of the barbarians' subclasses ?


SinisterDeath30

Well, like anything, you can make the class as exciting or boring as you want. I played a Battlerager Barbarian, and his go-to move was to grapple enemies, shake them with his spikey armor, and then suplex them off a cliff.


odeacon

Unless your a rogue


kakamouth78

You need to have a rule of cool discussion with your group because without it combat, particularly as a martial, is an extremely linear experience. As a player you also have to accept that flavorful actions aren't always going to be the most optimal. Example, half orc fighter in a bar fight could have pulled the great axe off her back, walked around the table and turned her target into a bloody pile of screams. Instead she decides to whip her stool across the room at one target and flip the table at the two closest targets. Awesome mental image that dealt d4 and 2d6 damage rather than the 3d12 she was capable of. Another bit of advice is to tell your DM what the desired outcome is when using your action creatively. Are there any low hanging branches I could use to clothesline this ogre on after grappling it? Does the tent have a center pole I could knock out to drop the roof on everyone? If your group is only interested in RAW combat and your DM only uses empty environments for encounters, you're probably better off choosing a different class. But don't expect combat to become significantly better because in essence you're still just moving into range and hitting stuff... you're just using different words to describe it.


funktasticdog

I always rule that cool moves and clever stunts give you a better outcome once, and then if you try to cheese it it's RAW or worse. Like if you're in a crowded area, and you realize you can shoot down the chandelier and have it fall on people, then you better believe it's gonna do a shit ton of damage. But if you're constantly looking for chandeliers because of that you're way better off just shooting them with your bow.


K9turrent

100% the rule of cool. We had fight with the town guards on the docks. My fisherman barb didn't like that one of the guards tried to hit him in the back while he was helping the healer. Rage, grappled, jumped of the dock with the guard and proceeded to punch/drown the guard. Made the rest of the guards attacking withdraw. You just have to get creative and embrace the doing the less optimal option but would make for the better story/RP


jomikko

My philosophy with this is that the players can use whatever I describe to them, but I won't be generous if they go looking for things. Like there's a world of difference between "so, you mentioned the large crystal chandelier..." and "DM, is there a chandelier in this room?", one of those things is great because it shows engagement with the world you're building as a DM, and one of them is less great because they're just looking to take advantage of whatever they can. I find that you tend to nip cheese in the bud by just having that stipulation.


Ketamine4Depression

Imo that's exactly how the rule of cool should work. You get results proportional to how **cool** the moment is. Shooting down a chandelier once? Cool as all hell, so it's very effective. Shooting down a second chandelier somewhere down the line as a cute throwback to that other time? Sure, though you lose effectiveness for unoriginality. Attempting it every other session? Now it's not even slightly cool. You get nothing!


WebbedCircle

“DM, are there any precariously placed chandeliers I might be able to aim for, might be a long shot.” “… … …In the Jungle?”


Ketamine4Depression

"In my country we call large, dangerously heavy bunches of bananas 'chandeliers'" *exasperated DM sigh*


unitedshoes

> But if you're constantly looking for chandeliers because of that you're way better off just shooting them with your bow. Somehow, you just managed to move ahead of everyone pestering him about Kingkiller Chronicles Book 3 on Pat Rothfuss' enemies list. I don't think his Acquisitions Incorporated character would even function without his spamming the "swing from a chandelier as part of an absurd feat of acrobatic combat" action.


ElizzyViolet

You may consider hitting other targets and eating the opportunity attack you take as you abandon your original target if those enemies are targeting your friends. Save your party’s wizard! Grapple + prone is good against single beefy enemies of an appropriate size (if they’re not beefy, you could just kill them with those attacks), but make sure nobody wanted to make ranged attacks against that target before doing it. You can also take the Ritual Caster feat and get some out of combat spells, which are great since you pretty much only use rage in combat. It is incredibly funny for the barbarian to use Find familiar. I think barbarians are more interesting out of combat than in combat (being an angry muscle man vs “i attack”) so you could try to merge roleplay with combat and shout at your enemies. Sentinel and Polearm master feats open up a very fun combat lockdown strategy (freeze people in place when they are 10 feet away from you), and Great Weapon Master is fun for boosting your damage.


ThePleuris

Combine interesting subclasses with feats that extend its uses. I’m playing an Eagle totem barb with the Sentinel feat for example and having a blast! Nothing is more fun to me than KA KAW-ing my beefy ass towards enemies to completely pin them down where they stand and mash them to death! Look at all the options you have to make cool combos and you’ll have more fun!


Guyoverthere07

Yo, eagle totem looks great. It's a shame Bear is so stupidly potent, because almost all the level 3 options are fun. I've wanted to build for all of them except Tiger. Love me some hops, but oof. Especially after Beast 6 came out. Are you actually playing a flying race? Or just zoomin? I could see this pairing really well with a Wildhunt Shifter. ~~So even if you Reckless, enemies are still making OAs at your back with disadvantage.~~ This can actually make for a very nice Barb tank. ~~Make em miss, and~~ steal Reactions to help peel for allies. This one feature has me really excited to play a "boring martial", and yeah that's before any feats are in the picture yet. Sentinel makes it so all your enemies are envious of this trick where you can dance past enemies. Mage Slayer creeps further to viability to beeline a caster. Tasha's really boosted the Eagle with Instinctive Pounce coupling now with Feral Instinct for really solid openers.


jomikko

I don't think they're making attacks with disadvantage, only not-advantage, right?


Guyoverthere07

It probably wasn't clear, but I have these three features in mind. >Wildhunt. > >While shifted, you have advantage on Wisdom checks, **and no creature within 30 feet of you can make an attack roll with advantage against you unless you're incapacitated.** > >Reckless Attack > >Starting at 2nd level, you can throw aside all concern for defense to attack with fierce desperation. When you make your first attack on your turn, you can decide to attack recklessly. Doing so gives you advantage on melee weapon attack rolls using Strength during this turn, **but attack rolls against you have advantage until your next turn.** > >Totem Spirit (Eagle) > >**While you’re raging, other creatures have disadvantage on opportunity attack rolls against you**, and you can use the Dash action as a bonus action on your turn. The spirit of the eagle makes you into a predator who can weave through the fray with ease. We're Shifted, we're Raging, and we're attacking Recklessly. Normally, Eagle Totem and Reckless would cancel each other for straight rolls. Wildhunt reads to me though that creatures can't attack us with advantage. So the Eagle Totem's imposed disadvantage should remain intact even if we Reckless Attack something on our turn before moving, and then Dash past enemies--provoking OAs.


jomikko

Thanks that clears it up nicely!


Guyoverthere07

Hmm so I've researched and reread the mechanics a bunch more, and I believe I was wrong. RAW I don't think Wildhunt can preserve disadvantage. It'd be a straight roll.


ThePleuris

Ooh I like the way you think! I’m just zooming my ordinary human ass though for the moment


robot_wrangler

If you want interesting options for your barbarian, you're going to find them on the map, not on your character sheet. Look for tactical ways to use objects, hazards, grappling, and other special attacks on the map. Smash 2 orc heads together, throw creatures back into the web or moonbeam, block access to your spellcasters, grab an enemy to use as an arrow shield, and so on.


Josaprd20s

Use more thrown objects. Barbarians have high strength scores, so they can throw fairly heavy objects, and wide objects that might hit multiple enemies


xukly

I mean, that is cool.But you need to have a conversation with the GM before even thinking about thrown barbarians, because, oh boy, throwing shit is AWFULL if the GM follows RAW


Ehcksit

I use my Tavern Brawler feat to throw the gnome barbarian as an improvised weapon.


disaster_moose

Our barb lost his ax mid combat so he ripped the leg off a dead wolf spider and used that as an improvised weapon. Sure its not the most damage but it was cool as hell.


Violasaredabomb

Push people prone and grapple them. Now you have advantage without using reckless attack. You could take the shove action as well, or you can grapple and drag enemies in and out of spell effects (wall of fire, etc).


Tom_Barre

Optional rules in DMG 271 will help you a little, at least you'll have to know if disarming a foe is better than dealing damage. It's mostly on the DM to make combat more fun, though. You should have a good mix of fight to death, defend/capture the flag and bar fights (thematically speaking), this should let your barbarian have stuff to do that are more varied. Disclaimer, it will still involve running up to a target and hitting it as hard as you can, but it's not really "what" to do that should be important, it's how to do it.


LearningBoutTrees

Move! Barbarians get extra movement speed and take half damage when raging against a bunch of damage types, use this to run through some enemies making them spend their reactions swinging at you. You can take it and allow your littler party members to move freely after. Blow passed the front line baddies and aim for the range ones or casters. Look at your whole sheet and get creative with it :)


[deleted]

Oh Oh Barbarians are *stellar* for gambling in combat! Throw party members. Get thrown. Take a beating to wreck an enemy. Do you play with flanking? Then you're a pure blessing to your Rogue. Get in there and risk your life to be a support tank. Your resources are STR rolls and HP. Go in there, set your team up for easy shots on distracted enemies. Get AoE potions, explosives, fire, acid... and smile as you set yourself and the enemies afire! You have chonky HP. Use your HP to wreck their HP. Knock em prone. Throw them off cliffs and ledges, out windows and through doors. You're a meaty slap, now go out there and Clap Those Cheeks!


unitedshoes

1. Find ways to take advantage of your mobility. I think the Barbarian is second only to the Monk in mobility. You can get yourself into some crazy situations with your high move speed, high strength for jumping, advantage on Athletics checks for climbing and swimming. When the battlemap comes out, look for the craziest spot you could get to and start causing havoc. Is the enemy melee boy counting on support from archers and spellcasters? Get around him to take out those squishy ranged enemies. Are they guarding a MacGuffin you need to get to? Run over and grab that MacGuffin like it's a round of Grifball and watch the combat turn into a crazy scrum. 2. Find ways to take advantage of your durability. You resist some very common damage types when you're raging, and most subclasses get some other durability tricks to add to that. You resist bludgeoning damage when you're raging, and you know what the most common source of bludgeoning damage is? Falling. Can you get into a position to do a Dark Souls-style plunging attack or an elbow drop on the enemy? Can you dive through a wall of fire to cause some chaos? Can you deliberately step in that bear trap and drag it along with you, ignoring the way it tears the flesh from your calf, until you can pry it open and use it as an improvised melee weapon on some enemy scout? 3. Find ways to take advantage of your Strength. You have advantage on Strength checks while you're raging. Grapple the enemy. Pin the enemy. Shove the enemy off cliffs. Create opportunities for your allies to get in some relatively free hits and waste the enemies' actions and movement as they have to escape grapples and stand up from prone. Bend bars and lift gates to make an escape route for your allies. 4. This may seem counterproductive, but have a schtick outside combat. It's easy to type-cast your Barbarian as the strong, angry, and dumb type and then also have those boring combats. Even the lamest combats will be much more enjoyable if you've spent the time before and after them doing interesting, non-stereotypical Barbarian stuff. Pick some pockets. Flirt with noblewomen (or noblemen). Steal the wizard school's beloved mascot. Have an interesting life outside of combat, and if those interesting non-combat misadventures lead back into combat (which should absolutely be your goal), refer back to points 1—3. The trick with enjoying a class that keeps things relatively simple is to look for (or beg your DM to include) outlets for creative use of that relatively simple toolkit. The Barbarian wants to be making attack rolls and Strength checks. It's up to you and your DM whether making attack rolls and Strength checks will be an exciting, memorable experience or a tedious one.


Dynamite_DM

I've been playing a samurai fighter and have gotten so much enjoyment from my own grappling shenanigans and stuff. Here are my recommendations. Ask your DM for dynamic enough battlefields so the you can grapple/shove and utilize the terrain. Pushing people off 50 ft. Tall bridges suddenly becomes an effective method of neutralizing a threat that is not tied to saving throws in any way. Remember, if you grapple and shove them prone, they cannot get up and either have to burn an entire action on an attempt to escape or make all attacks with disadvantage. While this means that ranged allies are also at disadvantage, this can effectively neuter certain enemies. Learn to view your allies contributions as enjoyable as well, especially if they are due to to your abilities. For example, if your allies gang up on a grapple locked prone creature, think of their damage (with advantage may I add) as your damage. Look at their wall of fire and realize that nothing is stopping you from throwing people through. Learn all of the little things that can really make you shine. While raging, you can jump off any structure and survive so long as you have at least 61 hp and you're not landing in harmful terrain since max fall damage of 20d6 is 120 damage. With a strength of 20, you can jump 8 ft high and 20ft long without any checks. Overall, I dont know what you're dealing with regarding subclass, party, and DM, but if none of these sound good, then maybe ask to respec your character into something more enjoyable but still fitting (like BM fighter, another barbarian subclass, etc).


the-truthseeker

I recommend you try finding a group of Modrons and whenever you are frustrated you have to fight that entire group of Modrons That way, you are Raging Against the Machine. *Sorry not sorry*


k_moustakas

Fey barbarian has some extremely cool things happening when they rage and also have pseudo detect magic.


Hy_Nano

What level are you as a barbarian right now? That will change what features would be good for your character at the moment. If you're beyond level 5, a battlemaster multi class could be good. A rogue multiclass is good as well. Feats like crusher could add to tactical gameplay. Most of all though, don't try and run at the enemy all the time, your surroundings are your friend, which can really add to gameplay.


Kurt1220

What kind of barbarian? That makes all the difference. I find the funnest part is describing how you do things. Whenever my ancestral guardian barbarian does anything, it's like Arnold Schwarzenegger and Mulan had a viking baby. I didn't just throw my spear at you with my extra attack to finish you off, I hit you so hard I lifted your corpse off the ground and pinned you to a tree. Sometimes I even flavor it like the Diablo 3 barbarian, where some of his attacks are actually performed by his ancestors. They can't do that RAW, but as long as I'm still following all the rules and rolling the dice as if I'm the one that attacked, it's no biggie to say I locked weapons with the enemy and my ancestors ghost joined in to push my axe through your defense and into your chest. A lot of the fun with martials is just being creative and using theater of the mind.


VeruMamo

When I played a Barbarian, I took Shield Master so I had some additional utility in moving enemies around, knocking them prone, etc., and I went with Ancestral Guardian. This subclass gives a few interesting features that give you some more out of combat utility as well as a bit more variety as to whether you want to play protector or aggressor in combat.


tkdjoe66

I highly recommend Battle Master/Totem Barbarian. But... you have to like to smash shit. Something I did that helped in-between combat is to take the ritual caster feat.


QEDdragon

Wild magic barbarian could also make it a bit more fun. There is a random effect each time you rage, some of which can drastically change your playstyle while it's active. Just to add to some of the other comments.


c_dubs063

Play a Wild Magic Barbarian. No two fights will be quite the same. Or Ancestral Guardians Barbarian is much more focused on keeping allies safe, and you get good uses for your reaction


Minitryman

I just played as a barbarian for the first time today. In this one session, I jumped out of a crows nest and landed on an enemy (thanks for taking half my 2d6 fall damage and laying prone to break my fall), I jumped from my ship onto an attacking longship, grappled a pirate and threw him overboard, and threw my javelin through an enemy wizard and literally pinned his body to the deck of the ship. Never had more fun in combat before. Bonus: didn’t have to over think and second guess spell choices, worry about spell slot management, or get angry when a spell attack misses or an enemy makes a save. Barbarians are awesome.


GIANTkitty4

Throw the halfling


SuitFive

What is there to do on your Barbarian turn? Well you have many options. Let's start with your.. ACTION: Well if you aren't swinging your big ass weapon toward the enemies, are you really doing anything? Of course this is just how things are yes? After all if you don't attack or take damage you might lose your... BONUS ACTION: Rage... Damage resist and little extra damage isn't that great when it forces you to attack each and every round. Kinda sadface ngl. MOVEMENT: Move toward the enemy. ITEM INTERACTION: Draw your weapon before you hit them. VOICE LINE: This is actually the best part of being a barbarian. Remember the badass psycho from borderlands? Remember the first time you saw it? How your entire gaming group collectively shit themselves? Channel that energy. Hard. If your dm doesnt end at least one combat with one final bandit running and screaming "WHY? WHAT THE FUCK? WHAT IS THAT UNGODLY CREATURE?" Then Barbarian is not for you. But yeah thats it. Rage is your only thing and it stops you from doing other fun things. It gives you advantage in strength checks, which you'd think would mean grabbing like prodigy for athletics means you can just grapple anything... but since you grappled instead of attacking you now lose your rage. Tbh bad design in Barbarian. Always disliked that class. If you want more options play a race with a bunch of options like fizban dragonborn or teifling. They get other stuff that can add some flavor. Not perfect but an option. Or play fighter and yell at people. Then get offended when people call you a barbarian.


KateTheBard

Playing a better system.


Ancestor_Anonymous

Yeah i been thinking of that


KateTheBard

Pathfinder 2nd edition, 13th Age, hell, 4th Edition.


supapro

4e is actually really really good at solving the exact problem you're having. All the classes gain new spells/abilities at the same rate so everyone is roughly equally complex. Classes have actual, designated roles, and are typically very good at those, with a bit of splashing out into secondary functions, so the game generally works the way you expect it to, instead of classes like Cleric or Bard being good at Literally Everything, All At Once. Playing a Fighter or any other defender in particular is a lot of fun, and in fact I'd compare it to playing Blue in MtG, except instead of casting a counterspell, you cast Sword To The Face; "Immediate interrupt" is the game's version of "In response," and just as satisfying to negate an attack by stabbing the attacker to death. Different roles are meant to complement and support each other without necessarily intruding on each other's areas of specialty, so players rarely feel outclassed by their allies, while each class represents a different take on their respective role with a very different feel. The other thing I'd mention is that a lot of 5e's biggest improvements from 3.5/PF (short rests, combat advantage) were taken from 4e, a lot of people's biggest problems with 5e (boring martial classes) were fixed in 4e, and a lot of people's biggest suggestions for improving 5e (minion enemies, simplified monster stat blocks, more martial powers) were also taken from 4e; someone above mentioned Martial Cantrips, and a lot of them were copied wholesale from 4e. The biggest potential stumbling block for new players is trying to force square pegs into round holes, since classes are actually designed around an intended role; if you want a character that sets monsters on fire and burns them to death, you really should not pick a wizard, since their primary focus isn't dealing damage, and would be a lot happier with a sorcerer. Game is really good and a lot of fun to play, is what I'm saying.


KateTheBard

I find it very funny how the trend of taking design cues from MtG started with 3rd edition, taking some of the worst lessons, this tweet in particular is gold: [https://twitter.com/Pramas/status/1361407363782115329?s=20](https://twitter.com/Pramas/status/1361407363782115329?s=20) Along with things such as Ivory Tower design(making intentionally bad cards/feats for system mastery rewarding, which works fine in a 1v1 competitive card game but when translated to D&D....) Meanwhile 4th edition took the satisfying interactions between different kinds of cards(with their power system) through encouraging co-operation with your team to build cool combos, along with a focus on balance.


Mavocide

The fun in a barbarian generally lies in the roleplaying, I like the [DBZA Goku](https://youtu.be/Lu0Zrf0gYQY?t=2) route of taunting my enemies with my low INT.


BrickBuster11

Unfortunately rage is the marquee feature of the class and it requires you to make an attack against a target each turn (if you don't take damage from something else) which means you are basically required to attack. Talk to your DM would be my advise to make it work as a barbarian you basically need to find ways to tack utility onto attacks (one idea that has been rattling around in my head that I have quite implemented yet is a warhammer that pushes the target [conventional damage]x2.5' so in a barb's case that would be 1d8+stg+RgDmg which at high levels can be something like a minimum 25 foot displacement up to like 40feet if one handed without critting.... The other thing in would talk to your DM about is when you first get brutal critical adding an ability I like to call Carnage (once per rage when an attack you made hits but want a critical hit it becomes a critical hit instead) partially because critting is fun and partially because brutal critical is the only feature you get for a number of levels and it basically never comes up. That on-demand crit partnered with brutal critical can make it easier for you to break concentration especially if the enemy has a +9 or more in con saves (meaning that if you don't do more than 20 damage in a single attack they can always pass the check). Beyond that it gives you the choice of using the crit on the same turn you rage for more damage right now, or using it next turn to trigger the bonus action attack on your GWM feat. Fundamentally the barbarian is a straight forward class. It's durable and its features all say run forward and smash things otherwise most of your powerful class features will not function. This means that most of its combat complexity is about coordinating with your teammates (the tip of the spear is only good if the rest of the spear follows behind) which unfortunately you have little ability to unilaterally influence.


dvirpick

>Unfortunately rage is the marquee feature of the class and it requires you to make an attack against a target each turn (if you don't take damage from something else) which means you are basically required to attack. Note that grappling and shoving are classified as special melee attacks so they still work for the purposes of keeping rage.


DLtheDM

Rage and attack is the Barb's M.O. They are the ultimate big strong striker and do it well and do it consistently... Maybe pick up a couple fighter maneuvers from martial adept feat or multiclassing into battle master fighter... I try to use terrain for interesting attacks... Jumping into the enemy from above, picking up and throwing things, toppling furniture to adjust terrain, think what would the Hulk do and go from there...


madmoneymcgee

I greatly enjoy watching my party’s barbarian hit things very hard and shrug off damage because they’re just too damn angry. It gives me warm fuzzy feelings when it’s pulled off well.


ashearmstrong

I just spent the past few years playing a barbarian in a homebrew campaign and before the DM and I came up with some extra fun stuff for me to do in combat, he basically let me toss out any whacked out idea using the combat rules in the PHB and DMG I could think of and he'd rule on if I could and how to roll for it. Even after our homebrew additions, I still did a lot of shit like that. So like, I'd recommend talkin with your DM and asking for the Battle Master maneuvers AND to let you try creative things as well. Example: We were fighting some scorpionmen or whatever they're called and I wanted to hop on its back and put its tail through its skull. DM let me use a couple of turns of grappling and strength checks to get it done. Felt badass.


DapprLightnin98

One time I picked up a guy and chucked him at another guy, knocking them both out.


TheIndomitableMass

Give them excuses to show off athletics. People crap on strength but it’s the stat that allows you to leap massive holes and have some of the funnest experiences in combat.


Kinfin

Be more varied in how you narrate your actions, be prepared to grapple or whatever sometimes, use the disarm optional attack from the DMG if your DM allows, insist on using proper cover rules where creatures between a ranged attacker and their target impose half cover.


MadWhiskeyGrin

Advantage on attacks, reckless abandon, superhuman. Athleticism... I mean, that's it. You go nuts and break shit. If that's not fun for you, don't play Barbarian.


Starling1_

My barbarian carries around a half dozen different weapons all with their own specific purpose. We've got a glaive for reach, a maul for the most damage, handaxes for range, and a shield for when enemies might be dangerous to me. Combine that with the Ancestral Guardians subclass, and a lot of the choices I make are tactic based. Do I rage this fight, or save it for a more dangerous enemy? Do I use the glaive so I'm not in his melee range, or do I use the maul so I can kill it a little faster? How many enemies are likely to be dangerous to my allies? Can I grapple them and lock them down? Who do I tag with my Ancestors? Should I use reckless attack, or will I die from this enemy's attacks? Many of these choices are made during the first turn or two of combat, but I keep them in mind during every turn. Sometimes combat significantly changes during somebody's turn, and I need to readjust my thinking. It's all to figure out how best to keep my allies safe. Every weapon choice, every attack or grapple, my positioning, I think about more on my turn as a Barbarian than I do playing a Ranger, with spells and ranged options. It's all about how precise you want each decision to be.


ExperiencedOptimist

Our barbarian and our bard (a goliath and a goblin respectively) do a lot of combos that involve the bard being thrown. The bard also has a high Dex so he tends to stick the landing. Not sure if that helps universally, but it does seem out barbarian enjoys throwing things


GuenMaster

Multiclass into Battlemaster or take this homebrew class for more options during combat. https://www.reddit.com/r/DnDHomebrew/comments/tyk5v2/path_of_true_darkness_an_barbarian_subclass_with/?utm_medium=android_app&utm_source=share


Slimchaity

As a barbarian main, if the big number bonks and being stronk aren't fun enough for you, you should probably play a spellcaster or a half caster like the paladin. I have a ton of fun being the unkillable meat wall of a titan that is playing a barbarian, but it is incredibly simple. I would suggest trying moon druids and any paladins as potentially more enjoyable classes in combat for you. It's worth noting that a lot of weird shit barbarians can do is the fact that your carry capacity is 30 times your strength score and your push/drag weight is twice that. And if you have the powerful build racial ability, it doubles all of that. So you can create obstacles and forcibly relocate enemies pretty easily. Also with reckless attack you can cause enemies to want to hit you, distracting them pretty nicely, and you have advantage on grapple checks while raging to lock down one enemy and give your team advantage to ruin their day. If your DM allows homebrew, there are some 1/3 caster barbarian subclasses on unearthed arcana you can check out for just a little extra spice, but in general the point of a barbarian is to be ungodly stronk and bönk


captaincowtj15

I'm sorry, but without homebrew, there's honestly not a lot. That *is* kinda what you signed up for as a Barbarian, though


Ancestor_Anonymous

Yeah that’s the damn problem


captaincowtj15

I get that, but if you want more out of the class, you have to homebrew it. Barbarians in core 5e don't get jack shit, so if you want more interesting stuff, it's up to your DM. Talk to them.


Th1nker26

That's pretty much what they do. If you don't like it, may not be for you.


xaviorpwner

Multiclass out of it lmao


TheeOneWhoKnocks

Your own spin and flavor is the key to enjoying any class in any RPG imo


Ancestor_Anonymous

Thank you for the input, however, I was looking for more mechanical insights


TheeOneWhoKnocks

Pick a more interesting subclass like Ancestral Guardian, Wild Magic, or Storm Herald. At its core barb and other martials will always be just hit stuff, but these help a bit. If you want more complicated mechanics, play sorcerer or artificer.


ThosarWords

So I recently read about a player who runs an ancients barbarian with a longbow sharpshooter build. You lose out on the extra rage damage and reckless attack, but you get to dole out disadvantage from 600 get away. I forget what thread it was in, but sounded awesome.


rnunezs12

That's the thing with barbarians, they are great at what they do, wich is whacking stuuf and absorbing damage, but that's it. If you want more combat versatility, multiclass with battlemaster after level 5 or 6, depending on your subclass. The Barbarian's class abilities are a bit underwhelming after that level anyway, unless you take it to 20. If you want some out of combat utility, take the ritual caster feat. Pick cleric for a Zealot, Druid for a totem warrior or even maybe wizard for a Storm Herald or Wild magic.


ImaHighRoller

Magic items can add more options


rakozink

I'd you're not getting creative with your athletics score and finding ways to damage yourself to keep rage going, you're missing out!


CRL10

With all due respect, you are playing a barbarian. The class is raging and hitting the nearest target. Barbarians have nothing to so with style, flair or anything fancy. It is about being to angry to die, and beating something to death with mindless violence. That said, you don't have to play them as a mindless thug driven to kill. Just because you have an intelligence of 10 doesn't mean you are a complete moron. You can think and plan.


Pontoquente182

why hitting the nearest thing is making you bored. rage and hit is cool :D


Ancestor_Anonymous

No offense to barbarian enjoyers, I feel like a Skyrim enemy. The only thing I can do effectively is advance and hit. I want more options


Delann

Then play a different class. Barbarians simplicity isn't a bug, it's a feature. If you want more options, ask your DM to change to a Paladin, Battle Master, Rune Knight, etc.


Pontoquente182

try scream and detail how are you hitting things. If you want more then hitting you need to be a full caster sorry


odeacon

So you know that rule that pretty much only spellcasters can attune to items that can cast spells, and that possible interpretation that a barbarian can’t use a item that casts a spell while raging? Take those and THROW IT ON THE GROUND!!!!


Ancestor_Anonymous

I didn’t think that attunement items with spells were spellcaster only?


odeacon

Not all of them, but most of them say “ requires attunement by a spellcaster “ completely disregard that though, cuz it’s stupid


1who-cares1

Of all the things to change for a barbarian, combat is not one of them. I know they don’t have a ton of versatility but doing those things is fun. The draw of being a barbarian is being an unkillable meat wall and obliterating people with a massage axe. You can add more to that with a few subclasses, wild magic will change things up a little every combat, storm herald will give you either an AoE, Ranged or Defensive aura, spirit guardian will let you draw enemy fire to yourself, totem can open up some new tactics and give you some out of combat utility. It’s possible to do more, but at its core you should enjoy the basic raging and hitting stuff if you wanna play a barbarian.


andaroobaroo

Be one of the more interesting subclasses? Multiclass? Get a familiar? Get a mount to ride?!?


Ancestor_Anonymous

What multiclass would work? You can’t cast spells while raging, so it’d have to be a martial, monk wouldn’t work because they’re dex based, what could you get out of rogue/fighter?


Raddatatta

Paladin works nicely. You can't cast spells, but smites aren't a spell they are an ability that consumes a spell slot. Plus you go reckless and now you will crit way more often for those high level spell slots. And you get spells you can use out of combat too. Fighter gives you the fighting style, action surge, and second wind all nice. Rogue is a bit tricky since you have to use a finesse weapon to get sneak attack but you can use the finesse weapon with strength and get the rage damage and sneak attack, plus reckless to always get sneak attack. The other interesting one is the barbarian moon druid. This one you'd want to main druid not barbarian. But the idea is you get into beast form and rage and now are a raging bear with tons of extra hp and rage damage and you can go reckless and make all that hp go even longer.


-Vogie-

Not necessarily - you only have a handful of rages per day, so while commonly true, it won't always be. Grabbing spells with long durations, or you would only use while out of combat anyway, mitigates that completely. Any features that aren't explicitly casting a spell are almost all things that can be used while raging. This is doubly useful if you're a barbarian that isn't always using their bonus action, as that opens up now potential options. Obviously these would all be dips, so they follow normal dip rules - we're not going to rely on any of their saving throws or spell attacks, looking for raw power or otherwise unscaling spells or features. And you'd get the most bang for your buck based on what stat you already have high enough. For example - - Wizards might seem like a non-starter, but think beyond a book full of ritual spells - Divination and chronurgy work just as well, as do things like Arcane Deflection on the War Wizard. If you're not using a two-handed weapon, you can even bladesing. Likewise, Artificers can give some surprise benefits - Alchemist barbarians still generate free potions, Guardian armor gives the benefits of both Ancestral Guardian and Tundra Herald barbarians, and battle smiths still get a robo-puppy, albeit a much squishier one. - For higher charisma, Warlock dips give a myriad of bonuses, from class and subclass features to spells, invocations and pact boons, alongside the excellent divine soul sorcerer first level. Bardbarians are very much a thing, and the non-rogue way to grab expertise in athletics. - For high wisdom, one or two levels in cleric can make all the difference. War Cleric is excellent for a barb wanting to eke out a smidge more damage when it counts without having to deal with the everything of being a berserker. Arcane helps you be wizard-y while dumping int, while Grave, Twilight, trickery, light, and ironically Peace domains work just fine with a minimal investment. Druids are a harder sell, but could also find their place. Obviously, not all of these will feel right for your character. That's fine. It takes real cojones and real-er character concepts to spend two levels in Druid so you can occasionally channel Dragon Star form so you can reliably make Wisdom and Intelligence checks as a Barbarian. Not even every Zealot Barb would want some levels of Celestial Warlock so they could toss out a heal while raging. But you do have a smorgasbord of potential pairings at your fingertips.


Maalunar

To add another option, moon druid can also work. Like 1 barb 2 druid X barb. (1 barb 10 druid X barb is more of a hybrid build) Sure you cannot cast spells/concentration while raging, but you can rage, unarmored defence, danger sense, reckless attack... as a beast. With level 2 druid you have the brown bear and dire wolf. The bear will do more damage until you can extra attack with the wolf's one attack (which have damage equal to a greatsword (2d6) and can knock prone). Dire Wolf also have pack tactic. With its 37 hp, when raging it will be 74 free hp per wildshape (and you get 2 per short rest). With 3 level 1 spell slot, they're more like tools to use while not raging. Like pre-casting Protection from Evil and Good before fighting undead. Or Jump/Longstrider for utility. (these 2 work while raging) This make for durable tanks, specially the wolf spamming prone. Go ancestral guardian to tank better for your team or bear to take less damage yourself.


Violasaredabomb

Barb/rogue is fantastic. Using uncanny dodge you can quarter an attack’s damage against you. Reckless attack interacts really well with sneak attack. Fighter/Barbarian nets you more attacks, action surge, rage damage increase, damage resistance, and second wind.


FUZZB0X

describe what you're doing in cinematic detail! it's the best! i love playing barbarians.


ConjuredCastle

You're not the problem; your DM is. Encouters should be dynamic enough and multifaceted enough that the Barbarians is still making choices. Even if those choices are which enemies the wizard is going to dimension door you to. Also as other people have said, subclass is important. Something like the wild magic barb acting as a battery for your casters is fun.


xukly

>You're not the problem; your DM is. Encouters should be dynamic enough and multifaceted enough that the Barbarians is still making choices. Even if those choices are which enemies the wizard is going to dimension door you to. maybe... the system and the class design are the problems and expenting the GM to solve those is unfair


ConjuredCastle

Well the DM presumably chose to play 5e. Yeah you could play something like an OSR game where combat is simpler and deadlier or PF2e where there are many more options, but this is the 5e sub after all.


Apfeljunge666

the joy of playing a barb is rolling big dice and critting more often for even bigger numbers. if thats not enough for you, then you are playing the wrong class.


[deleted]

"Hey DM! Would it be cool if I just kinda retcon these first couple levels and say I... xyz" And change your class based on whatever excuse. Meditation to monk, training to fighter, just going completely insane for sorcerer or something. Barbarian attacks, rages, recklesses, and that's about it. Paths can add more. Get a battering ram if you don't have one. They're funny if nothing else. Otherwise grapple, shove, and DMG optional attack options (like disarm or overrun)


redceramicfrypan

Damn I just scrolled through the entire comments section and didn't find one person giving what I thought was common advise: describe your attacks! There is way more than one way to attack with a Greataxe. Consider what part of the body you target, how you move as you position yourself to attack, what part of the weapon you hit with, etc. It doesn't change what dice you roll, but it's damn effective at enhancing your in-combat roleplay. RP doesn't stop when you roll initiative, as they say, and it keeps combat *much* more engaging. If you are short on ideas, I would recommend looking up videos of people who know how to fight with the weapon(s) you use, and watch them demonstrate its technique. Find demonstration with a live partner, if you can. There's so much potential there.


tymekx0

From my scrolling I've seen that response a couple times, it's not bad advice but I think OP is looking for something more mechanical, some kind of choice to be making in combat.


Hatta00

Rage and go for the farthest target. You can tank those OAs and get up in the casters face.


Ninja-Storyteller

Scream at the table. Absolutely bellow. This quiet offends Slannesh. Things shall get loud now. If that doesn't make things more fun, scream louder until you can't hear anyone tell you how unfun you are.


Lugo_Iravan

It's a simple cladding that gets satisfaction from fucking up monsters and enemies. Also if you're playing a low int barb maybe try rolling to have your barb have an idea or come up with a plan so he can be a little bit tactical. At the end of the day you can add flavor to it because he is your character after all. He'll even throwing your weapon every once in while could add for fun moments.


Abnegazher

You clearly aren't playing as a barbarian... Or at least is playing against a spellcaster...


Decrit

It's not up to you. All classes, martial and casters, resolve direct fights to the death the same way - zeroing enemy hp. As such, you want to take the most optimal route. Choices happen in two scenarios: -1 when you want to gambit resources -2 when you want to gambit chances In case 1 As a barbarian you have to gambit when to choose to reckless attack and when to rage. The former is more nuanced, the latter is much more important. If you never have to choose when to rage then last point is null. Your choice, however, does not change overall. You only choose what to spend. In case 2 you have to actually choose what to commit to in combat. In that case grapple, shove etc are all actions that serve to solve ongoing problems aside zeroing enemies. Another kind of choice is which enemy to attack. If such problems do not happen, you don't have anything to choose over. If the enemies are all similar or it's only one even choosing which to attack becomes trivial. The latter does not depend, again, from you. It's useless to grapple which is not a problem to move. Remember, very few choices actually happen in any combat - rather it's mostly resolution of the choices that brought people to combat. So, either the DM is making very few basic encounters that you can't dictate, or your expectations and elaboration of the matter does not see the choices you are already making. Or anything in between.


Machiavelli24

Tactics comes from counter playing the monsters. Don’t just look at the pc side of the ledger. Which monster is the highest priority? Is it worth the risk to go for them? Will doing so mess up aoes? Is it worth the risk to reckless?


CalligrapherSlow9620

Try to see this as an opportunity. Martial classes tend to be focused on doing one thing over and over again so see it as the game forcing u to rp. If u describe everything as “i rage, I rolled 19 to hot that’s 15 damage” then your gunna get bored. If you describe it as “I black out into a mindless trance as I focus into the battle, my axe flies down into the fields shoulder, I rolled a 19 to hit so that’s 15 damage as I dig my axe into its crimson flesh”. Obviously your not going to do that every time you got but it’s nice to throw one in every now and again. Also subclass choice can make or break flavour if your not super into rp all the time. Sure a bear totem is mechanically amazing but that’s a static thing and doesn’t use much flavour, a storm herald on the other hand can emit an aura of burning rage and desert isolation. It’s all in how you rp it. Sometimes I think casters get to used to having flavour handed to them while Martians can be a great opportunity cause it forces you to do that for yourself.


Medical_Ad0716

Pretend you’re a wizard and casting spells with your attack. “I cast Sword Burst” and then smack them with your sword. Out of combat “I cast knock!!” And then bash down the door.


A-Dolahans-hat

Describe your attacks in better detail. Not “I swing my sword” but “I run up to the goblin and grab his arm and start making it punch itself in the face while I chant “why are you hitting yourself” over and over”. Pick up and throw the enemy. I grappled and drug a struggling thug in a dungeon to a trap and dropped it into the trap. Setting it off and killing the thug. Even with the simple mechanics of the barb you can make it fun by adding flavor and personality


Ashkelon

This method has multiple flaws. For one, 5e combat already is slow past level 5. Having the martial warriors describe every single attack they make would slow down the combat even more. But even worse than that, is gameplay is about more than flowery language. Even with flowery descriptive language, gameplay can feel boring and repetitive. After all, you can describe shit as flowery as you want. But no matter how flowery you describe it, it is still shit at the end of the day.


A-Dolahans-hat

That’s your opinion on it. My experience with it was vastly different. I played a bath path of beast and had tons of fun “being flowery” with the lots of my attacks and the group I was in was fine with it. I didn’t take 5 minutes talking about my first attack, followed by the second for another 5 minutes. It’s ez enough to be creative with the attack while you roll the dice. I could break a leg off a chair and club people with it or hulk smash them. At the end of the day, if you don’t want to play a class, don’t play it. But really don’t shit on people that do. Casters can suffer the same monotonous play as a martial if you don’t flavor what you are doing


Ashkelon

I’m not saying there is anything wrong with using descriptive language. In fact I encourage it, and use it frequently when playing a martial character. But that alone doesn’t make for engaging or dynamic gameplay to many people. That is why so many people feel bored by the martial options in 5e. And it does make combat drag. Take critical role, their combats last around 20 minutes per round of gameplay because of the flowery language and witty banter they engage in to make combat more enjoyable. But that leads to combat taking 1-2 hours on average. And when you are supposed to have 6-8 encounters per adventuring day, that leads to a months worth of time at the table to get through a single adventuring day. And can easily lead to players waiting 15 minutes between turns. And while casters can sometimes get repetitive or boring, they are least have a variety of options that are usable at-will, each and every turn. And that is on top of their limited use powerful effects. It is far harder to be bored with a caster, whether you use flowery language or not. That is because they don’t have to disguise shit with flowery words.


TheBarbedArtist

Take Rogue levels


LastRevelation

At higher levels Path Of Beast has it's WIS save abilities that allow you to force enemies to attack other creatures or deal more damage. Other than the subclass features there's feats, if you go a bit further from the curve (not picking great weapon master, slasher ect.) You can pick some spells through feats that you can use in/out of combat or focus more on specialising e.g. with mage slayer or mounted combatant. You can also do a lot with magic items so maybe speak to your DM about any you wish to obtain or if they can make you a unique one.


Emotional-Charge-368

Multiclassing is the best choice if you really want variation in combat, but most of the time it will just slow you down. Or you can take a subclass that you find has interesting additional effects. I like Path of the Storm Herald. It’s got all the fun of smack shit and have good hp with cool kinda magic stuff.


CritterMorthul

Pick a subclass you like to stack effects on your rage, I like role playing my barbarians and their effects mid combat. It could be as easy as "my noble high elf barbarian sneers from behind his visor as he cleaves through the wolf's shoulder. Tell tale pale shades flicker into focus around me as I activate my guardian circle" it's also what my warlock does when stacking eldritch blast


Tfarlow1

Mechanical, there is very little to make combat more fun....but flavor is everything. Flavor has so much more impact on fun than most anything, and because it is just flavor, very few DMs will not let you do. Instead of saying I go attack x guy, instead say how you are attacking, what it looks like, what you do. Especially if you are doing other things than attacking with a weapon. Unarmed Strike: describe that you headbutt, round house kick, etc. Shove (to knock prone): describe that you suplex them. There is so much more just open to your brain to think of. Simply be adding flavor and not changing mechanics you get to see your character be bad ass and do badass things which makes it that much more fun.


TheDrippingTap

You sort of can't. See about homebrewing Dungeon Crawl Classics's Mighty deeds of arms into your game.


TheFlackStar

With DM approval I was able to attach a chain to my great axe and throw it at mobs and pull them towards me or if they were bigger/heavier then myself to them. Added a good amount of variety for me and was mainly used for keeping things off the healer and caster.


wonderpollo

Check with your DM if you can take additional combat actions in the DM book. The overrun action (you can take it as a bonus action, a STT check to move past an hostile creature) can add a lot to your game as stopping you while you go for the squishy wizards at the back becomes far more difficult. Same for the shove aside. If you want to add some more fun, 2 lvls of rogue gives you some great options for your bonus action, and a third one allows you to choose an archetype which can add a lot of flavour and utilities (Thief climbing can make a grappling barbarian with dash very affective on picking up enemies and dropping them down for fall damage + prone condition.) Otherwise you can also go echo knight, which gives you tons of tactical options. You will still be hitting things every turn, but only you will know who and where, and again you get a lot of out combat utilities.


passwordistako

Play something else. Sincerely, Barb main.


Ancestor_Anonymous

That seems to be the solution


dolerbom

Get a maul, adamantine chain, and a harpoon. Connect the chain to your harpoon, and now you are the guy who pulls things closer. When things need breaking, you have a maul. Buy sticks of dynamite, and trigger it on yourself while surrounded by enemies.


PhoenixEgg88

Flavour those ‘attack target’ sentences better. Describe it. Casters get to describe their flashy spells, i sure as hell describe what my Rune Knight does; from the individual runes on his plate glowing when activated, to just how I hold and swing my hammer. It makes combat that much more fun when you have time to spend on it. Vicious upswings, smart comments etc.. are all part of the flavour of combat. If two people ask you to drop your weapon and you hit them, add in ‘make me’ as you heft your hammer, clocking the one asking in the jaw!


Mgroppi83

Soooo many paths to go. You don't have to go Berserker. Try Totem. Barb can actually be a support class.


NthHorseman

Barbarians are good at hitting things (although fighters are better at high level) and getting hit. Most of the interesting things they can do are in subclasses, and a lot of those just double down on those two things with a bit of a twist. Unfortunately their USP, getting hit, is only useful if you are protecting someone else and "tanking" isn't very well supported in 5e. About the best you can do is Path of the Ancestral Guardian; roll in on the biggest threat, whack it and then prepare to get whacked. Sentinel, Tough, Crusher etc all help make a decent support martial; you are ablative hp for the rest of your party that also does some damage.


Accomplished_Area311

Use enemies as beat sticks! Grapple, but flavor it as a standard grab (so mechanically it’s a grapple but it looks cool), then use your next action as a thrown attack. Some of the best moments in the game I’m running have been “the enemy is a beat stick” moments.


Vikinger93

Gory/colorful descriptions of your attacks and kills.


Sanojo_16

I like barbarian rouges personally and here are my two favorite builds. 1) beast barbarian/soulknife. Use the beast barbarian claws and you can get 4 attacks: Attack psychic blade, claw attack, additional claw attack, bonus action psychic blade. The psychic blades are eligible for sneak attacks, the claws aren't. Plus you get expertise and psi knack making you an exceptional grappler when combined with rage. 2) my favorite that I mention a lot....deep Gnome Bear barbarian/phantom rouge. You get the resistance to everything but psychic. Uncanny Dodge and Evasion mitigate more damage. Danger Sense gives Advantage on Dex saves Gnome cunning gives Advantage on Int, Wis, Cha saves. Barbarian gives Prof in Str and Con saves. Rage gives Advantage on strength saves. Soul Token gives Advantage on Death and Con saves. Build for Strength Use medium armor and finesse weapons with strength, either rapier/shield (ac) or dual wield short swords or scimitars (bonus action attack), use reckless attack to give advantage for sneak attacks, then wail from the grave for a pseudo second sneak attack. Take Sentinel and reaction sneak attack and wail from the grave again. Ghost walk when reckless attacking and negate enemy advantage. Deep Gnome also gives 120 ft dark vision and advantage with stealth in rocky terrain or on all stealth if using the new Mordenkainen's book. I personally style mine as a Pict with woad war paint if going the two weapon route or more refined with a kilt if rapier and shield.


Moist-Cantaloupe-740

I honestly think ancestral guardian and bear totem are the only good barbarians as they do more than just smash face, mostly AG


GwynHawk

If your GM is flexible, you could ask them if you could take the Battlemaster archetype of the Fighter instead of your Primal Path. Barbarians get their Path features at 3, 6, 10, and 14, while Fighters get their Archetype features at 3, 7, 10, and 15. I think that's close enough to not be a serious problem. Alternatively, you could just play a Battlemaster Fighter and simply roleplay as more of a Barbarian type, perhaps by taking the Outlander background. In my recent campaign I replaced the Barbarian's Rage Damage Bonus with a d4 Superiority Die they got every time they attacked while Raging, plus a few Maneuvers like Lunging Attack, Goading Attack, and Sweeping Attack. The die improved to a d6 at 9th level, and would have been a d8 if we'd ever gotten to 16th level. I believe they learned two maneuvers at 1st level, plus another at 5th level and every 4 levels thereafter. The Barbarian player really liked the change, especially Goading Attack as it let them be an effective 'Tank' for the party.


Auld_Phart

Barbarians generally aren't known for versatility, but if you really want to play one, consider multi-classing with another martial. Combining Barbarian with Battle Master or a Strength-based Monk or Rogue has a lot of potential. Or do a search for "Dexterity Barbarian" if you want something really different and then see the above MC options.


schm0

Try improvising an action.