Hey, currently running a level 5 Grung barbarian, eagle totem, with mobile feat.
(Basically im fast and hard to get opportunity attacks against me so i weave in and out of combat quite easily)
Probably take it to 9, maybe 11 before i multiclass.
Current stats are 12*, 16, 16, 10, 8, 13
(* Strength is 19 due to magic item)
Currently dual wielding rapiers but happy to take a shield up for some ac.
...
Current options are fighter, rogue, bard, sorc, warlock.
So far ive though of:
Warlock hexblade for eldritch smite
Rogue for sneak attacks
Fighter for fighting style
Bard for college of whispers
Sorc dosent really do much for rage but could give me some useful stuff outside rage.
..
Now all of these can offer more depending how far in i go and i could do several dips, was thinking 3 bard and rest rogue.
I put sorc which as a spell caster dont offer much to a barb but i dont min max, i like to have fun with my builds and we are not a heavy combat group and stealth and intimidation only you gets so far.
Im open to ideas but please explain why and if you do say mention rogue or fighter, say how many levels and what subclass to go.
I want heavy detail on why
Also whats a good second feat? Mobile was my first, was thinking alert or depending on the path i take asi to pump up dex/con to 18 or even cha a bit.
Fighter seems like too much work for too little, hexblade warlock could be good, as eldritch smite works during cuz it's not a spell, sorcerer doesn't sound like a great option, have you considered monk?, just use STR for unarmed strikes and you can deal good damage with flurry of blows + rage bonus, reckless attack works great with this.
Currently dual wielding rapiers but happy to take a shield up for some ac.
Just a note - you can't do this without the Dual Wielder feat. Weapons must be light to use two weapon fighting without any upgrading feats or features.
Why do you want to stay Barb until 9 or 11? The level 6 feature of Totem is not that great regardless of what you pick, and the earlier you MC the sooner you can take advantage of the features it offers. I'd start immediately assuming you're still level 5.
Eldritch Smite takes 5 levels to come online. If you go Warlock, the spells and invocations you take are going to define your character far more than ES, so I'd look into those when you consider that path.
Likewise, Sneak Attack gets pretty diluted when you only have a few levels of Rogue. I think the options you get from Cunning Action will affect your gameplay more. Although it could be overkill on top of the movement you already have.
I'm not sure what you like about Whispers Bard, but I'm going to assume it's Psychic Blades based on the damage focus of your other choices. Keep in mind that without pumping your CHA you will get a single use of this (at 2d6 damage) per day. Damage-wise it will be strictly worse than your other options - again, it's the other spells and features you get with 3 levels of bard that will have a greater impact on your character.
I guess what I'm saying is that you should look at all these options again and really weigh what they'd give you. You say it's not a heavy combat group and yet you're weighing your choices based on the extra damage you can squeeze from them rather than all the other options they provide. Ultimately a Barb/Bard is going to be a really different character than a Barb/Fighter, so a big part of this choice is deciding what kind of character you want to play.
Fighter seems like too much work for too little, hexblade warlock could be good, as eldritch smite works during cuz it's not a spell, sorcerer doesn't sound like a great option, have you considered monk?, just use STR for unarmed strikes and you can deal good damage with flurry of blows + rage bonus, reckless attack works great with this.
One problem with a barbarian monk. You need high scores (minimum 13) in Dex, Str and Wis as well as likely wanting something good in Constitution too.
Fighter seems like too much work for too little, hexblade warlock could be good, as eldritch smite works during cuz it's not a spell, sorcerer doesn't sound like a great option, have you considered monk?, just use STR for unarmed strikes and you can deal good damage with flurry of blows + rage bonus, reckless attack works great with this.
One problem with a barbarian monk. You need high scores (minimum 13) in Dex, Str and Wis as well as likely wanting something good in Constitution too.
Very good point, I played what I called a "Stronk" (barb 1/ monk 8) a few weeks ago, and it was crazy MAD, it would have never worked had I not started at 9th level.
Also whats a good second feat? Mobile was my first, was thinking alert or depending on the path i take asi to pump up dex/con to 18 or even cha a bit.
Wait, what? How are you dual wielding rapiers without the dual wielder feat???
Definitely grab a level of Rogue. As a Grung Barbarian, your Shoves are upgraded with contact poison, and Rogues love stabbing Prone targets. Make sure you put Expertise on Athletics. I have no idea by what sorcery you're dual wielding rapiers, but you can shove with a foot, so that's not a concern. Your Small size is a concern, so if you don't have a teammate willing to case Enlarge/Reduce on you, Fighter for Eldritch Knight or Rune Knight might be a good way to solve the problem yourself.
I took fighter. I'm 5th level Barb(bear totem) and 3rd level fighter(Echo Knight). I took echo knight because of the way it worked into our campaign. It is actually really fun. I can reckless through the echo and not really worry about being hit myself, as I have the echo in front of me most of the time. You also get an extra attack through the echo, equal to your con modifier(4 times for me). So with action surge, I can get 6 attacks in a round, all at advantage with reckless. With rage/bear totem, the heal I get from 2nd wind is nice as well, as it is essentially doubled because of the half damage I take on just about any attack. Teleporting to your echo also gives you the possibility of a whole lot of shenanigans that can be very useful. It's essentially a misty step, provided the echo is already up. And since the echo can move vertically, it can give you access to a lot of spaces you otherwise wouldn't be able to get to and gives you the potential to fight flying things.
Hexblade would be a terrible barbarian multi-class. LIttle to no synergy there. Yes, you could theoretically Eldritch Smite...after taking 5 levels of hexblade! Whereas you could get Divine Smite for 2 levels of paladin AND get a fighting style. Btw, I don't think there is great synergy between barbarian and paladin either, but at least it's fewer levels of the multi-class for the smite!
Champion fighter or any fighter subclass, has more synergy with barbarian. With 3 levels of champion, you would get second wind, action surge, fighting style and expanded crit rage. Expanded crit range combined with the advantage of reckless attacks and brutal critical has excellent synergy. Throw in a half orc with savage attacks, and you have something imo.
Just a small note. I don't believe you can multiclass Barbarian without a natural strength of 13.
I thought of that right off the bat also. But probably some sort of homebrewing going on here. By RAW you're right, the player wouldn't meet the requirements for multi-classing.
I have to say... I'm playing a Barbarian/Warlock right now, and it's a lot of fun.
I have even toyed around with a Grung Barbarian/Warlock, so this speaks to me... just imagine that he(?)'s a real nasty little bugger. Poison all the time... things like Relentless Hex, cloud of flies, etc... start coming into play all the time. Think along the lines of a Nightcrawler style of combat, and once you've got them prone, then (and only then) do you rage. You'll definitely want proficiency with a poisoner's kit, maybe even double down on the Poisoner feat. There's also feats like Grappler and Mobile to consider...
I have to say... I'm playing a Barbarian/Warlock right now, and it's a lot of fun.
I have even toyed around with a Grung Barbarian/Warlock, so this speaks to me... just imagine that he(?)'s a real nasty little bugger. Poison all the time... things like Relentless Hex, cloud of flies, etc... start coming into play all the time. Think along the lines of a Nightcrawler style of combat, and once you've got them prone, then (and only then) do you rage. You'll definitely want proficiency with a poisoner's kit, maybe even double down on the Poisoner feat. There's also feats like Grappler and Mobile to consider...
Rage becomes just one more weapon in your arsenal, and get's used as such.
For my current Barbarian/Warlock (path of the beast/undead 'lock) I either prep for combat and then rage - AoA, Form of Dread, Rage and go... or if I don't think I'm going to be raging, I add Hex to the mix and go Booming Blade. You can't rage every combat, so it's nice to have the versatility that 'Lock brings.
Warlock is about much more than casting spells - and a lot of the Invocations (which is where you can really customize a warlock) can be used in and out of combat, and don't require spell casting or concentration - like Cloak of Flies (above).
And Path of the Beast Barb is great - especially when mixed with the movement of a Grung.
Most importantly, it's a blast to RP... which is what it's all about in the end, right?
Rage becomes just one more weapon in your arsenal, and get's used as such.
For my current Barbarian/Warlock (path of the beast/undead 'lock) I either prep for combat and then rage - AoA, Form of Dread, Rage and go... or if I don't think I'm going to be raging, I add Hex to the mix and go Booming Blade. You can't rage every combat, so it's nice to have the versatility that 'Lock brings.
Warlock is about much more than casting spells - and a lot of the Invocations (which is where you can really customize a warlock) can be used in and out of combat, and don't require spell casting or concentration - like Cloak of Flies (above).
And Path of the Beast Barb is great - especially when mixed with the movement of a Grung.
Most importantly, it's a blast to RP... which is what it's all about in the end, right?
The problem I see with Hex is that a warlock only has limited spell slots and they are all cast at the same spell level. So...a 3rd level spell slot Hex lasts longer, but only IF you don't have to rage...thus losing your concentration. It also means you have one more ability score dependency, Charisma. I just think that there isn't great synergy between the two classes. I think fighter or rogue make more sense for a multi-class, but play it the way you want to play it. I would be worried about being stretched too thin with ASI's though. But things like Eldritch Blast and Devil's Sight are useful to anybody. Armor of Agathys is great also. There is a lot there to like, just not sure I would take that path.
I think Barbarian/Warlock is a great multiclass if you can get your hands on a STR item or Amulet of Health to solve the MAD nature of it. The sustain of barbarian attacking complements the short rest spell slots of Warlock for extra burst when needed. I'd probably skip Hexblade and go for Fiend or Celestial based on preference. They both add to survivability. You don't need hexblade to be able to smite - only pact of the blade. You really want to be swinging with STR to take advantage of reckless attack.
If you're playing it like a barbarian then try picking up non-combat spells. Most of your slots will be used for smites or utility. As mentioned above, you can use invocations and utility spells to really flavor your character
So far as I know, you can concentrate while raging, you just can't cast. Hex should stay up while raging no problem, and you can choose to target Strength to make it easier to shove and grapple them.
So far as I know, you can concentrate while raging, you just can't cast. Hex should stay up while raging no problem, and you can choose to target Strength to make it easier to shove and grapple them.
Nope - per the PHB -
If you are able to cast spells, you can’t cast them or concentrate on them while raging.
I took fighter. I'm 5th level Barb(bear totem) and 3rd level fighter(Echo Knight). I took echo knight because of the way it worked into our campaign. It is actually really fun. I can reckless through the echo and not really worry about being hit myself, as I have the echo in front of me most of the time. You also get an extra attack through the echo, equal to your con modifier(4 times for me). So with action surge, I can get 6 attacks in a round, all at advantage with reckless. With rage/bear totem, the heal I get from 2nd wind is nice as well, as it is essentially doubled because of the half damage I take on just about any attack. Teleporting to your echo also gives you the possibility of a whole lot of shenanigans that can be very useful. It's essentially a misty step, provided the echo is already up. And since the echo can move vertically, it can give you access to a lot of spaces you otherwise wouldn't be able to get to and gives you the potential to fight flying things.
This also works well with Ancestral Guardians Barb...lots of dmg reduction for party. 8/9 Barb 4 Echo Knight. If you go higher I'd do Cleric or Druid if you have 13 Wisdom or better. I always roll Manual stats...but possible with point buy.
Hey, currently running a level 5 Grung barbarian, eagle totem, with mobile feat.
(Basically im fast and hard to get opportunity attacks against me so i weave in and out of combat quite easily)
Probably take it to 9, maybe 11 before i multiclass.
Current stats are 12*, 16, 16, 10, 8, 13
(* Strength is 19 due to magic item)
Currently dual wielding rapiers but happy to take a shield up for some ac.
...
Current options are fighter, rogue, bard, sorc, warlock.
So far ive though of:
Warlock hexblade for eldritch smite
Rogue for sneak attacks
Fighter for fighting style
Bard for college of whispers
Sorc dosent really do much for rage but could give me some useful stuff outside rage.
..
Now all of these can offer more depending how far in i go and i could do several dips, was thinking 3 bard and rest rogue.
I put sorc which as a spell caster dont offer much to a barb but i dont min max, i like to have fun with my builds and we are not a heavy combat group and stealth and intimidation only you gets so far.
Im open to ideas but please explain why and if you do say mention rogue or fighter, say how many levels and what subclass to go.
I want heavy detail on why
Also whats a good second feat? Mobile was my first, was thinking alert or depending on the path i take asi to pump up dex/con to 18 or even cha a bit.
Any help/advice is greatly appreciated
Martial classes work best with barbarians. I suggest the fighter or the rogue primarily.
Feat suggestions include Savage Attacker, Tough or Alert. You can't go wrong with Lucky either.
Fighting Initiate is a great substitute for taking a fighter level if that's all you want from that class.
Chilling kinda vibe.
Fighter seems like too much work for too little, hexblade warlock could be good, as eldritch smite works during cuz it's not a spell, sorcerer doesn't sound like a great option, have you considered monk?, just use STR for unarmed strikes and you can deal good damage with flurry of blows + rage bonus, reckless attack works great with this.
Mystic v3 should be official, nuff said.
Just a note - you can't do this without the Dual Wielder feat. Weapons must be light to use two weapon fighting without any upgrading feats or features.
Why do you want to stay Barb until 9 or 11? The level 6 feature of Totem is not that great regardless of what you pick, and the earlier you MC the sooner you can take advantage of the features it offers. I'd start immediately assuming you're still level 5.
Eldritch Smite takes 5 levels to come online. If you go Warlock, the spells and invocations you take are going to define your character far more than ES, so I'd look into those when you consider that path.
Likewise, Sneak Attack gets pretty diluted when you only have a few levels of Rogue. I think the options you get from Cunning Action will affect your gameplay more. Although it could be overkill on top of the movement you already have.
I'm not sure what you like about Whispers Bard, but I'm going to assume it's Psychic Blades based on the damage focus of your other choices. Keep in mind that without pumping your CHA you will get a single use of this (at 2d6 damage) per day. Damage-wise it will be strictly worse than your other options - again, it's the other spells and features you get with 3 levels of bard that will have a greater impact on your character.
I guess what I'm saying is that you should look at all these options again and really weigh what they'd give you. You say it's not a heavy combat group and yet you're weighing your choices based on the extra damage you can squeeze from them rather than all the other options they provide. Ultimately a Barb/Bard is going to be a really different character than a Barb/Fighter, so a big part of this choice is deciding what kind of character you want to play.
My homebrew subclasses (full list here)
(Artificer) Swordmage | Glasswright | (Barbarian) Path of the Savage Embrace
(Bard) College of Dance | (Fighter) Warlord | Cannoneer
(Monk) Way of the Elements | (Ranger) Blade Dancer
(Rogue) DaggerMaster | Inquisitor | (Sorcerer) Riftwalker | Spellfist
(Warlock) The Swarm
One problem with a barbarian monk. You need high scores (minimum 13) in Dex, Str and Wis as well as likely wanting something good in Constitution too.
Chilling kinda vibe.
Very good point, I played what I called a "Stronk" (barb 1/ monk 8) a few weeks ago, and it was crazy MAD, it would have never worked had I not started at 9th level.
Mystic v3 should be official, nuff said.
Wait, what? How are you dual wielding rapiers without the dual wielder feat???
Definitely grab a level of Rogue. As a Grung Barbarian, your Shoves are upgraded with contact poison, and Rogues love stabbing Prone targets. Make sure you put Expertise on Athletics. I have no idea by what sorcery you're dual wielding rapiers, but you can shove with a foot, so that's not a concern. Your Small size is a concern, so if you don't have a teammate willing to case Enlarge/Reduce on you, Fighter for Eldritch Knight or Rune Knight might be a good way to solve the problem yourself.
I took fighter. I'm 5th level Barb(bear totem) and 3rd level fighter(Echo Knight). I took echo knight because of the way it worked into our campaign. It is actually really fun. I can reckless through the echo and not really worry about being hit myself, as I have the echo in front of me most of the time. You also get an extra attack through the echo, equal to your con modifier(4 times for me). So with action surge, I can get 6 attacks in a round, all at advantage with reckless. With rage/bear totem, the heal I get from 2nd wind is nice as well, as it is essentially doubled because of the half damage I take on just about any attack. Teleporting to your echo also gives you the possibility of a whole lot of shenanigans that can be very useful. It's essentially a misty step, provided the echo is already up. And since the echo can move vertically, it can give you access to a lot of spaces you otherwise wouldn't be able to get to and gives you the potential to fight flying things.
Hexblade would be a terrible barbarian multi-class. LIttle to no synergy there. Yes, you could theoretically Eldritch Smite...after taking 5 levels of hexblade! Whereas you could get Divine Smite for 2 levels of paladin AND get a fighting style. Btw, I don't think there is great synergy between barbarian and paladin either, but at least it's fewer levels of the multi-class for the smite!
Champion fighter or any fighter subclass, has more synergy with barbarian. With 3 levels of champion, you would get second wind, action surge, fighting style and expanded crit rage. Expanded crit range combined with the advantage of reckless attacks and brutal critical has excellent synergy. Throw in a half orc with savage attacks, and you have something imo.
Just a small note. I don't believe you can multiclass Barbarian without a natural strength of 13.
I thought of that right off the bat also. But probably some sort of homebrewing going on here. By RAW you're right, the player wouldn't meet the requirements for multi-classing.
I have to say... I'm playing a Barbarian/Warlock right now, and it's a lot of fun.
I have even toyed around with a Grung Barbarian/Warlock, so this speaks to me... just imagine that he(?)'s a real nasty little bugger. Poison all the time... things like Relentless Hex, cloud of flies, etc... start coming into play all the time. Think along the lines of a Nightcrawler style of combat, and once you've got them prone, then (and only then) do you rage. You'll definitely want proficiency with a poisoner's kit, maybe even double down on the Poisoner feat. There's also feats like Grappler and Mobile to consider...
Check out Apple Grapple here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=My2iNgnNehE&t=403s
There's also a Path of the Beast version at the end... or you could combine the two...
How do you keep Hex up when it's a concentration spell and you can't concentrate during rage?
Obviously, you don't.
Rage becomes just one more weapon in your arsenal, and get's used as such.
For my current Barbarian/Warlock (path of the beast/undead 'lock) I either prep for combat and then rage - AoA, Form of Dread, Rage and go... or if I don't think I'm going to be raging, I add Hex to the mix and go Booming Blade. You can't rage every combat, so it's nice to have the versatility that 'Lock brings.
Warlock is about much more than casting spells - and a lot of the Invocations (which is where you can really customize a warlock) can be used in and out of combat, and don't require spell casting or concentration - like Cloak of Flies (above).
And Path of the Beast Barb is great - especially when mixed with the movement of a Grung.
Most importantly, it's a blast to RP... which is what it's all about in the end, right?
The problem I see with Hex is that a warlock only has limited spell slots and they are all cast at the same spell level. So...a 3rd level spell slot Hex lasts longer, but only IF you don't have to rage...thus losing your concentration. It also means you have one more ability score dependency, Charisma. I just think that there isn't great synergy between the two classes. I think fighter or rogue make more sense for a multi-class, but play it the way you want to play it. I would be worried about being stretched too thin with ASI's though. But things like Eldritch Blast and Devil's Sight are useful to anybody. Armor of Agathys is great also. There is a lot there to like, just not sure I would take that path.
I think Barbarian/Warlock is a great multiclass if you can get your hands on a STR item or Amulet of Health to solve the MAD nature of it. The sustain of barbarian attacking complements the short rest spell slots of Warlock for extra burst when needed. I'd probably skip Hexblade and go for Fiend or Celestial based on preference. They both add to survivability. You don't need hexblade to be able to smite - only pact of the blade. You really want to be swinging with STR to take advantage of reckless attack.
If you're playing it like a barbarian then try picking up non-combat spells. Most of your slots will be used for smites or utility. As mentioned above, you can use invocations and utility spells to really flavor your character
So far as I know, you can concentrate while raging, you just can't cast. Hex should stay up while raging no problem, and you can choose to target Strength to make it easier to shove and grapple them.
Nope - per the PHB -
If you are able to cast spells, you can’t cast them or concentrate on them while raging.
This also works well with Ancestral Guardians Barb...lots of dmg reduction for party. 8/9 Barb 4 Echo Knight. If you go higher I'd do Cleric or Druid if you have 13 Wisdom or better. I always roll Manual stats...but possible with point buy.