So, I'll be joining a homebrew campaign at 3rd Level. I decided to play as a Shifter(Wildhunt Custom Origin) Ancestral Guardian, as there were no martial classes as well as keeping to the theme of the campaign and being a tank to protect the others. I've seen a lot of suggestions on how to build this class, but I'm not exactly sure about where to go. I'm deciding between using a Greataxe or a Halberd, and I'm not able to afford a shield or decent armor, so I guess I'm just trying to figure out the best start and where to go, as I still have time to make changes before it starts. I'm also not sure about what Feats or ASIs to take and whether or not to Multiclass with FIghter down the line.
Stats are point buy: Str 15, Dex 14, Con 15, Int 8, Wis 10, Cha 10
Great Weapon Master is almost a automatic feat for most Barbarians. Reckless Attack really helps offset the -5 to hit chance. Another option would be Polearm Master to weaponize your Bonus Action after the initial turn of entering your Rage. You really can't go wrong picking either feats for a Barbarian.
Weapon choice would come down to what feat if any you plan to take. If you decide on Polearm Master then you would go with the Halberd, otherwise the Greataxe is a slightly better choice both in terms of average damage and when triggering the Brutal Critical feature of the 9th level Barbarian.
On the topic on multiclassing, Fighter synergizes very well with Barbarian, but I would advise against it until after 5th level and you have picked up Extra Attack.
Great Weapon Master is almost a automatic feat for most Barbarians. Reckless Attack really helps offset the -5 to hit chance. Another option would be Polearm Master to weaponize your Bonus Action after the initial turn of entering your Rage. You really can't go wrong picking either feats for a Barbarian.
Weapon choice would come down to what feat if any you plan to take. If you decide on Polearm Master then you would go with the Halberd, otherwise the Greataxe is a slightly better choice both in terms of average damage and when triggering the Brutal Critical feature of the 9th level Barbarian.
On the topic on multiclassing, Fighter synergizes very well with Barbarian, but I would advise against it until after 5th level and you have picked up Extra Attack.
That makes sense. Right now I'm leaning heavily into Halberd and PAM since I'm also thinking about taking Sentinel down the line. But I'm also wondering about using my Bonus Action for Shifting. I'm not going to use it too often but the times I'm going to, it'd take three turns to use the PAM Bonus Action.
I'm also taking into consideration the Slasher feat for slowing down enemies, which is where I'm thinking about the Greataxe.
I also haven't decided whether I want to go full tank or damage with tanking.
Sentinel is not really a great choice for Ancestral Guardian Barbarians because it competes against the super useful level 6 feature Spirit Shield in requiring your Reaction. Helpful tip you can use Spirit Shield on yourself.
I quite like the Slasher feat too, it is a nice half feat to round up a ability score while giving you a form of battlefield control. In regards to weapon choice with this feat the Halberd also qualifies as it also does slashing damage like the Greataxe.
For Ancestral Guardian, the Mobile feat can be useful. It stacks with your Extra Movement feature to give you a speed of 50 feet. This allows you to hit a target, put your Ancestral Protectors on them, then move away without provoking an opportunity attack. On their turn, they can either stay where they are and attack your allies with disadvantage, or go running after you and provoke opportunity attacks from your allies as they do so, if any are eligible.
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Behind every successful Warlock, there's an angry mob.
As an Ancestral Guardian Barbarian Shifter your bonus action and reaction are already pretty cluttered. So while Polearm Master is a great feat you are better off going Great Weapon Master with a Great Axe at least to start with.
I don't know if it is a play style you are interested in but the Crusher feat offers really good battlefield manipulation.
As an Ancestral Guardian Barbarian Shifter your bonus action and reaction are already pretty cluttered. So while Polearm Master is a great feat you are better off going Great Weapon Master with a Great Axe at least to start with.
Yeah, that's what I was thinking about. More than likely it's gonna be Greataxe with GWM/Slasher so at least I don't clutter my Bonus Action and Reactions. I lose out on consistent damage, but at least I'm not cluttered.
I know it’s been a minute since this topic was expanded on, but just a neat thing to note for big boss battles. Because a big boss is generally a giant, singular target (like a dragon for example) with a lot of hit points, the encounter lasts a lot longer. With the ancestral guardian feature as well as the wild hunt shifter feature, you can force the boss to have disadvantage against every other party member, and still only have normal attacks against yourself even when using reckless attack. Throw a few levels into champion fighter for increased crit chance or battle master for extra battle maneuvers, coupled with GWM, you can still do some decent damage!
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So, I'll be joining a homebrew campaign at 3rd Level. I decided to play as a Shifter(Wildhunt Custom Origin) Ancestral Guardian, as there were no martial classes as well as keeping to the theme of the campaign and being a tank to protect the others. I've seen a lot of suggestions on how to build this class, but I'm not exactly sure about where to go. I'm deciding between using a Greataxe or a Halberd, and I'm not able to afford a shield or decent armor, so I guess I'm just trying to figure out the best start and where to go, as I still have time to make changes before it starts. I'm also not sure about what Feats or ASIs to take and whether or not to Multiclass with FIghter down the line.
Stats are point buy: Str 15, Dex 14, Con 15, Int 8, Wis 10, Cha 10
Great Weapon Master is almost a automatic feat for most Barbarians. Reckless Attack really helps offset the -5 to hit chance. Another option would be Polearm Master to weaponize your Bonus Action after the initial turn of entering your Rage. You really can't go wrong picking either feats for a Barbarian.
Weapon choice would come down to what feat if any you plan to take. If you decide on Polearm Master then you would go with the Halberd, otherwise the Greataxe is a slightly better choice both in terms of average damage and when triggering the Brutal Critical feature of the 9th level Barbarian.
On the topic on multiclassing, Fighter synergizes very well with Barbarian, but I would advise against it until after 5th level and you have picked up Extra Attack.
That makes sense. Right now I'm leaning heavily into Halberd and PAM since I'm also thinking about taking Sentinel down the line. But I'm also wondering about using my Bonus Action for Shifting. I'm not going to use it too often but the times I'm going to, it'd take three turns to use the PAM Bonus Action.
I'm also taking into consideration the Slasher feat for slowing down enemies, which is where I'm thinking about the Greataxe.
I also haven't decided whether I want to go full tank or damage with tanking.
Sentinel is not really a great choice for Ancestral Guardian Barbarians because it competes against the super useful level 6 feature Spirit Shield in requiring your Reaction. Helpful tip you can use Spirit Shield on yourself.
I quite like the Slasher feat too, it is a nice half feat to round up a ability score while giving you a form of battlefield control. In regards to weapon choice with this feat the Halberd also qualifies as it also does slashing damage like the Greataxe.
For Ancestral Guardian, the Mobile feat can be useful. It stacks with your Extra Movement feature to give you a speed of 50 feet. This allows you to hit a target, put your Ancestral Protectors on them, then move away without provoking an opportunity attack. On their turn, they can either stay where they are and attack your allies with disadvantage, or go running after you and provoke opportunity attacks from your allies as they do so, if any are eligible.
Behind every successful Warlock, there's an angry mob.
As an Ancestral Guardian Barbarian Shifter your bonus action and reaction are already pretty cluttered. So while Polearm Master is a great feat you are better off going Great Weapon Master with a Great Axe at least to start with.
I don't know if it is a play style you are interested in but the Crusher feat offers really good battlefield manipulation.
Yeah, that's what I was thinking about. More than likely it's gonna be Greataxe with GWM/Slasher so at least I don't clutter my Bonus Action and Reactions. I lose out on consistent damage, but at least I'm not cluttered.
I know it’s been a minute since this topic was expanded on, but just a neat thing to note for big boss battles. Because a big boss is generally a giant, singular target (like a dragon for example) with a lot of hit points, the encounter lasts a lot longer. With the ancestral guardian feature as well as the wild hunt shifter feature, you can force the boss to have disadvantage against every other party member, and still only have normal attacks against yourself even when using reckless attack. Throw a few levels into champion fighter for increased crit chance or battle master for extra battle maneuvers, coupled with GWM, you can still do some decent damage!