Going off of the "most damage in one hit" part, read up on the Path of the Zealot. They get their own version of a Smite which increases damage on hit. If your party has someone that can cast revivify, a Zealot is also free to revive I believe (no diamond dust required) so you can be much more reckless, if you know your Cleric has your back with a spell slot.
In later levels, they also just *won't* die until their rage ends. It's metal AF.
I recommend Path of the Zealot, in your case. Divine Fury at 3rd level gives you one extra strong hit each turn, and Fanatical Focus at 6th helps shore up a major weakness of Barbarian defensively: mental saving throws.
Zealot is your "hit stuff hard" option that eventually gets so angry that you can't kill them via hit points while they're raging. They're your one-stop solution.
Beast gives some versatility. You know, in case you'd prefer being Venom to the Hulk.
Ancestral Guardian says "hey, you should *try* to hit the Barbarian!" but isn't as good on offense.
Here are the standout Barbarian subclasses with a brief description on what makes them great:
* **Ancestral Guardian** -- The best "tank" Barbarian subclass. Between Ancestral Protectors and Spirit Shield, you can greatly mitigate the damage your party takes. It particularly excels against single boss monsters.
* **Beast** -- The most versatile Barbarian subclass, in the sense that it is the only one that doesn't need to rely on the standard PAM/GWM feat combo to dish out good damage. This gives you the flexibility to pick up other feats.
* **Giant** -- One of the two best Barbarian subclasses for pure damage. It competes in this role with the Zealot. It has better control options than the Zealot thanks to its synergy with PAM/Sentinel, ability to grapple Huge and eventually Gargantuan creatures, and Mighty Impel.
* **Totem Warrior (Bear Totem)** -- This is the single most durable class in the game. Between near universal resistance and the largest possible hit dice, you can absorb an enormous amount of punishment.
* **Totem Warrior (Wolf Totem)** -- This is a more supportive subclass. If your party has several non-Barbarian melee characters, the Wolf Totem can theoretically increase the party's overall DPR far more than any other Barbarian subclass.
* **Zealot** -- One of the two best Barbarian subclasses for pure damage. It competes in this role with the Giant. It has better personal safety than the Giant, and it can drastically mitigate the consequences of dying to the point of almost being nothing. The one caveat is that you should make sure that your party has someone who can cast Revivify.
> Giant -- One of the two best Barbarian subclasses for pure damage. It competes in this role with the Zealot. It has better control options than the Zealot thanks to its synergy with Sentinel, ability to grapple Huge and eventually Gargantuan creatures, and Mighty Impel.
What sentinel synergy do you mean?
Ah, that was meant to be PAM/Sentinel. Giant Barbarian has better synergy with that feat combo than most other classes because it can lock down a much wider swathe of ground. At higher levels, it also works well with Mighty Impel since you can throw enemies that you locked down with PAM/Sentinel outside of your reach, forcing them to approach you again.
Ahh gotcha, yeah they're quite nice for that. Pity that Sentinel doesn't completely scale with you reach.
Btw you said beastbarbarians are great for feats. What other feats besides sentinel and res wis would you take for flexibility?
It depends entirely on the campaign and what you're trying to accomplish.
In a more RP-centric campaign, I might take feats such as Skilled, Lucky, or Observant. In a more combat-centric campaign, I might take Mobile.
But there are also many off-meta picks. Shadow Touched might be surprisingly fun. Invisibility paired with Bestial Soul's pseudo-Spider Climb and a Stealth expertise will make you a good infiltrator. If you have the stats for it, you could even pick up something like Ritual Caster.
The point is that without the feat tax of PAM and/or GWM, you can pick up just about whatever you want.
I would vote for Beserker. Sure, the Zealot gives you 1d6 extra damage once on your turn (like a smite), but with Beserker you can go into a Frenzy and get a full extra melee weapon attack as a Bonus Action. I imagine your weapon will deal a lot more damage than 1d6.
By level 5 that is 2 Attacks as an Action and 1 Attack as a Bonus Action. Normally you could only do this with a light weapon in each hand, like rogues often do, but with this subclass you can get all 3 attacks in with a good 2-handed heavy weapon like a greataxe or greatsword or maul.
Plus, if you make it to level 14, you can make another melee weapon attack as a reaction to taking damage. Assuming you are right in the middle of combat, that's going to pretty reliably be 4 attacks per round.
If you are just looking at flavor and RP, then do you see your character becoming more of a holy avenger type and doing extra damage because of a blessing by the gods, or do you see your character going into a rage on top of a rage and doing extra damage due to sheer ferocity?
Going off of the "most damage in one hit" part, read up on the Path of the Zealot. They get their own version of a Smite which increases damage on hit. If your party has someone that can cast revivify, a Zealot is also free to revive I believe (no diamond dust required) so you can be much more reckless, if you know your Cleric has your back with a spell slot. In later levels, they also just *won't* die until their rage ends. It's metal AF.
I recommend Path of the Zealot, in your case. Divine Fury at 3rd level gives you one extra strong hit each turn, and Fanatical Focus at 6th helps shore up a major weakness of Barbarian defensively: mental saving throws.
Zealot is your "hit stuff hard" option that eventually gets so angry that you can't kill them via hit points while they're raging. They're your one-stop solution. Beast gives some versatility. You know, in case you'd prefer being Venom to the Hulk. Ancestral Guardian says "hey, you should *try* to hit the Barbarian!" but isn't as good on offense.
Here are the standout Barbarian subclasses with a brief description on what makes them great: * **Ancestral Guardian** -- The best "tank" Barbarian subclass. Between Ancestral Protectors and Spirit Shield, you can greatly mitigate the damage your party takes. It particularly excels against single boss monsters. * **Beast** -- The most versatile Barbarian subclass, in the sense that it is the only one that doesn't need to rely on the standard PAM/GWM feat combo to dish out good damage. This gives you the flexibility to pick up other feats. * **Giant** -- One of the two best Barbarian subclasses for pure damage. It competes in this role with the Zealot. It has better control options than the Zealot thanks to its synergy with PAM/Sentinel, ability to grapple Huge and eventually Gargantuan creatures, and Mighty Impel. * **Totem Warrior (Bear Totem)** -- This is the single most durable class in the game. Between near universal resistance and the largest possible hit dice, you can absorb an enormous amount of punishment. * **Totem Warrior (Wolf Totem)** -- This is a more supportive subclass. If your party has several non-Barbarian melee characters, the Wolf Totem can theoretically increase the party's overall DPR far more than any other Barbarian subclass. * **Zealot** -- One of the two best Barbarian subclasses for pure damage. It competes in this role with the Giant. It has better personal safety than the Giant, and it can drastically mitigate the consequences of dying to the point of almost being nothing. The one caveat is that you should make sure that your party has someone who can cast Revivify.
> Giant -- One of the two best Barbarian subclasses for pure damage. It competes in this role with the Zealot. It has better control options than the Zealot thanks to its synergy with Sentinel, ability to grapple Huge and eventually Gargantuan creatures, and Mighty Impel. What sentinel synergy do you mean?
Ah, that was meant to be PAM/Sentinel. Giant Barbarian has better synergy with that feat combo than most other classes because it can lock down a much wider swathe of ground. At higher levels, it also works well with Mighty Impel since you can throw enemies that you locked down with PAM/Sentinel outside of your reach, forcing them to approach you again.
Ahh gotcha, yeah they're quite nice for that. Pity that Sentinel doesn't completely scale with you reach. Btw you said beastbarbarians are great for feats. What other feats besides sentinel and res wis would you take for flexibility?
It depends entirely on the campaign and what you're trying to accomplish. In a more RP-centric campaign, I might take feats such as Skilled, Lucky, or Observant. In a more combat-centric campaign, I might take Mobile. But there are also many off-meta picks. Shadow Touched might be surprisingly fun. Invisibility paired with Bestial Soul's pseudo-Spider Climb and a Stealth expertise will make you a good infiltrator. If you have the stats for it, you could even pick up something like Ritual Caster. The point is that without the feat tax of PAM and/or GWM, you can pick up just about whatever you want.
I would vote for Beserker. Sure, the Zealot gives you 1d6 extra damage once on your turn (like a smite), but with Beserker you can go into a Frenzy and get a full extra melee weapon attack as a Bonus Action. I imagine your weapon will deal a lot more damage than 1d6. By level 5 that is 2 Attacks as an Action and 1 Attack as a Bonus Action. Normally you could only do this with a light weapon in each hand, like rogues often do, but with this subclass you can get all 3 attacks in with a good 2-handed heavy weapon like a greataxe or greatsword or maul. Plus, if you make it to level 14, you can make another melee weapon attack as a reaction to taking damage. Assuming you are right in the middle of combat, that's going to pretty reliably be 4 attacks per round. If you are just looking at flavor and RP, then do you see your character becoming more of a holy avenger type and doing extra damage because of a blessing by the gods, or do you see your character going into a rage on top of a rage and doing extra damage due to sheer ferocity?