Path of the Brawler

Crowds cheer as the rugged pugilist circles his opponent in the ring, landing blow after blow. The enemy chips away and crumbles under the assault, and is sent sprawling to the sands under foot.

A scrappy young woman weathers the relentless beating of a larger opponent, shrugging through the worst of his attacks, dipping away from powerful strikes, only to land a savage hit of her own, lifting him from his feet and throwing him across the room in one blow.

 

The path of the brawler is meant for those who fight with a ferocious savagery in unarmed combat. No path to enlightenment or inner peace are to be found here - only the drive to fight and win with the only weapons you were born carrying. Learn to make your hits count, dealing devastating damage and piercing through enemy defenses. Roll with the punches and shrug off the most brutal of attacks. Lay out opponents in a single crushing knockout blow.

Level 3: Punishing Blows

Starting at 3rd level, you learn to inflict especially punishing blows in unarmed combat. These strikes deal 1d8 Bludgeoning damage, and if you are not using a shield you can deliver an additional punishing blow using your Bonus Action. The damage of these punishing blows increases to 1d10 at level 10, 1d12 at level 14, and 2d10 at level 18.

At 6th level, your Unarmed Strikes and punishing blows count as magical for the purposes of overcoming immunity and resistances.

Level 3: Roll With The Punches

Starting at 3rd level, when an attack roll is equal to your Armor Class, you Roll the attack, reducing its damage by half. If you are raging, you take no damage. In either case, you must still roll any saves related to additional conditions the attack would impose.

Level 6: Adrenaline High

Starting at 6th level, when you land a Critical Hit with an Unarmed Strike or Punishing Blow, you gain Temporary Hit Points equal to your Barbarian level + Con modifier. These temporary hit points expire after 1 minute.

If you are raging, you also gain Resistance to all damage until these temporary hit points are depleted or expire.

Level 10: Shell Defense

Starting at 10th level, you may use your reaction to increase your Armor Class by an amount equal to your Proficiency Bonus until the start of your next turn. You may use this feature a number of times equal to your proficiency bonus per long rest.

Level 14: Knockout Punch

Starting at 14th level, when you make a successful attack against an opponent with half or less of its total Hit Points remaining, you may choose to declare a Knockout Punch. The target takes no damage, but immediately falls prone and gains the unconscious condition. You may use this ability once per long rest.