Charlaquin
Goblin Queen (She/Her/Hers)
A little late, I know, but I had been hoping someone else would start a thread about it first.
So, the PF2 Barbarian looks awesome. I love that Rage is tied to a fatigue mechanic instead of an arbitrarily limited duration and/or number of uses. The short duration is something I wouldn’t have thought of, but I actually really like. It feels more like an angry outburst instead of a full-on Berzerker battle trance. And I really like the sort of cyclical nature of it, where the Barbarian’s performance spikes for a few turns, then dips for a turn, then spikes again. Works nicely with the temp HP you get at the start of the rage, giving you like a little overshield that recovers once every cycle. I like that MC Barbarians who have spells can cast them in rage as long as they don’t require concentrate actions.
Totems are really neat, although based on the description I wonder if there might not be a better term for them. I once played a barbarian in a Conan-like setting who was supposed to be afraid of magic, but it never felt relevant, and ultimately that part of the character’s personality ended up getting discarded. I would have loved something like the Superstition Totem, where she could have got powerful anti-magic abilities as long as she refused to let her spellcasting allies cast buff spells on her. And I love that animal totems sound like they eventually allow the Barbarian to turn into the animal. I’ve toyed around with MC Barbarian/Druids to get that effect, but it never felt satisfying. This seems to resolve that issue. And the Rage totem is a smart way to give players who just want to play a straightforward angry beat stick without Anathema or magical abilities.
Seeing Amiri with a bow really excites me. I’ve long wanted to make a bow-wielding Barbarian, but it has always felt super janky. Here’s hoping this is a sign it will be a viable option in 2e. Also, in the comments it came up that her Giant Totem is what allows her to wield oversized weapons. That also sounds super fun.
So, the PF2 Barbarian looks awesome. I love that Rage is tied to a fatigue mechanic instead of an arbitrarily limited duration and/or number of uses. The short duration is something I wouldn’t have thought of, but I actually really like. It feels more like an angry outburst instead of a full-on Berzerker battle trance. And I really like the sort of cyclical nature of it, where the Barbarian’s performance spikes for a few turns, then dips for a turn, then spikes again. Works nicely with the temp HP you get at the start of the rage, giving you like a little overshield that recovers once every cycle. I like that MC Barbarians who have spells can cast them in rage as long as they don’t require concentrate actions.
Totems are really neat, although based on the description I wonder if there might not be a better term for them. I once played a barbarian in a Conan-like setting who was supposed to be afraid of magic, but it never felt relevant, and ultimately that part of the character’s personality ended up getting discarded. I would have loved something like the Superstition Totem, where she could have got powerful anti-magic abilities as long as she refused to let her spellcasting allies cast buff spells on her. And I love that animal totems sound like they eventually allow the Barbarian to turn into the animal. I’ve toyed around with MC Barbarian/Druids to get that effect, but it never felt satisfying. This seems to resolve that issue. And the Rage totem is a smart way to give players who just want to play a straightforward angry beat stick without Anathema or magical abilities.
Seeing Amiri with a bow really excites me. I’ve long wanted to make a bow-wielding Barbarian, but it has always felt super janky. Here’s hoping this is a sign it will be a viable option in 2e. Also, in the comments it came up that her Giant Totem is what allows her to wield oversized weapons. That also sounds super fun.
