Path of the Black Swordsman

Barbarians of the Path of the Black Swordsman follow the legendary Black Swordsman, a warrior who bore a curse, and honed his rage to fight off the demons, devils and apostles who pursued his blood.

 

They follow in the path he carved with his greatsword, the Dragonslayer, and his incredible endurance and rage while he donned his iconic Bersker Armor. Driven by pure rage and a lust for revenge, they never rest, and are always in pursuit of their dream.

 

Many barbarians follow in the Black Swordsman’s path of simply being a lone traveler, one who fights for no man other than himself.

Restless Rage

At 3rd level, you now regain Rage back on a short rest rather than a long rest.

The Black Swordsman was well known for the curse which inhibited many horrors upon him. Among these horrors include being pursued by demons at night, and being cursed with nightmares. As such, he would only sleep during the day, and would never sleep for long hours. Barbarians who follow in his path try to practice the same minimal-rest lifestyle as the Black Swordsman.

One-Armed Warrior

At 3rd level, you also gain the ability to wield any weapon with the two-handed property with one hand now. Additionally, if you are a small creature, you can now wield weapons with the heavy property without having disadvantage on attack rolls.

During one of the Black Swordsman’s brutal battles, he unfortunately lost his left arm. However, this did not prove to hinder his combat ability. The Black Swordsman instead trained to be able to wield his greatsword with simply one hand while in combat, a feat which would appear to be impossible for most. 

Berserker Armor

At 6th level, while raging and not wearing armor, your skin morphs into magical, draconic scales which form a black armor. The properties of this armor include:

• Base AC increases to 13 plus Dexterity and Constitution
• You become immune to the conditions blinded, charmed, deafened, frightened, grappled, incapacitated, paralyzed, prone, stunned, unconscious and exhausted
• You gain disadvantage on all saving throws

The Black Swordsman was famous for his Berserker Armor, once worn by an ancient king. While wearing the armor, the Black Swordsman felt no pain, allowing him to use his rage to its fullest extent. Ironically, the armor provided him with much more offensive capabilities than defensive capabilities.

Astral Weapon

At 10th level, you can choose a weapon that you are proficient in, and your attacks with it become magical.

It was believed that during his time, the Black Swordsman slayed so many astral beings that his greatsword became magical, and he was able to cut through the flesh of almighty apostles with powerful resistances in the same manner as enemy soldiers he used to cut down in battle.

Astral Slayer

Also at 10th level, you choose a type of creature of your choice: fiends, undead or celestials. When you begin a combat encounter against an enemy of your type, you gain the following features:

• You have advantage on attack rolls against the creature or creatures of that type
• Creatures of your type have disadvantage on making saving throws against your effects

These effects are only active for the first round of combat. Additionally, when you choose a type of creature, you can automatically sense when that creature has entered within 30 feet of you, and if the creature is using a disguise to appear as a different type of creature, you instantly see through it.

The Black Swordsman spent much of his life hunting for various powerful beings. During his time, he became quite skilled in quickly and efficiently slaying these beings. Additionally, his sacrificial brand also let him sense the presence of these beings who wished to feast on his flesh.

Vengeful Rage

At 14th level, you pick an additional type of creature listed in the Astral Slayer ability to gain the same perks against that type of creature. Additionally, you retain the perks listed beyond the first round of combat as long as you are raging.

The Black Swordsman dedicated his very existence to slaying a particular being: The King of Longing. As such, his dedication to slaying such a being was persistent beyond simply first laying eyes upon him, and consumed him while he was raging.

Mastered Berserker Armor

Also at 14th level, you gain the ability to summon the Berserk Armor on yourself while you are not raging. While you have it on, your base AC increases to 13 plus Dexterity and Constitution. You do not have disadvantage on saving throws or condition immunities, but you do gain these properties when you enter a rage. However, when you have the Berserker Armor on while you rage at this level, you do gain these additional benefits:

• Your movement speed doubles
• Enemies have disadvantage when making opportunity attacks against you
• You gain an extra attack

Much of the Black Swordsman’s struggle revolved around his inability to properly hone his rage without hurting himself and others. By the end of his journey, he could properly wield the Berserker Armor while calm, and became considerably more dexterous and mobile while wearing the armor.