Barbarian / Rogue Tank. Make enemies focus on me.

So I've made a Barbarian 3 / Rogue 3 in our featless game.

My goal is to have enemies focus on me instead of my allies. My damage is not much of a concern. So what's some tactics I can use and how effective will they be?

1. Dual Wield Short Swords and reckless attack. This option offers the most damage output (possibly an incentive to attack me in itself) but I'm afraid the DM may have enemies quickly realize I'm a stonewall (albeit an easy to hit one) and have enemies start focusing on my squishier allies. So I thought about:

2. Short Sword and Shield and don't attack on my turn but instead ready an attack action for when an enemy adjacent to me hits my ally with an attack. With this tactic I offer the DM a choice, you the enemy live longer by attacking me, but if it doesn't then I'm not losing damage. I'm not even sure this would be enough of an incentive. So I thought about:

3. Using a single short sword and grappling the most dangerous enemy on my turn and moving it away from my allies. Then start attacking it and it must first break my grapple and then take an OA to get away from me and attack anyone else.

Is there any tactic I've missed? Which do you think will be the most effective? How effective do you think these will be.

*Note I can easily mix 1 and 3 if desired.

Play as an Ancestor Guardian or Swashbuckler?

For what you're going, for it sure seems like a Bbn-2/Rog-3/Ftr-1 (Protection style) would work a lot better. Then you could reckless sneak attack on your turn with your shortsword, and still have a reaction to use your shield to impose disadvantage on enemy attacking your ally. Enemies will have a lot of incentive to attack you - you're both granting advantage vs yourself, and imposing disadvantage on attacks vs ally, and putting out some damage.

I think readying to attack if enemy attacks your ally is a waste of barbarian ability since it doesn't let you use Reckless - you're not gaining or granting advantage; and you may well not be able to maintain Rage since you didn't attack.

Do you have a primarily melee party?

If so, you may want to knock enemies prone more than grappling them, give everyone advantage.

Or 2 more Barb levels and you can do both. Shove and grapple, enemy is prone and can't move. The enemy attacks at disadvantage too. I'm actually not sure if this tactic makes you prone, but even if it does, reckless attack would let you attack normally.

Edit: upon investigation, I don't believe this makes you prone. Which is both extremely effective and a bit hilarious.

On that note maybe go Barb 4/Rogue 2? Give up some sneak attack but gain an ASI (pretty big here, higher to hit and an athletics of possibly +10 at 6th level) and that much closer to 2 attacks (allows grapple and prone or Grapple/prone + 1 attack)

I really need to read the text better--you said no feats!

I agree with knocking down instead of grappling.

Or go the route of maximizing HP and damage, and minimizing AC. Then always using reckless attacks. The enemy will want to attack you because you'll be easy to hit, but you'll have a big buffer to stop them. Work with your teammates on a way to get you a stream of temp HP.

Mort said:

Do you have a primarily melee party?

If so, you may want to knock enemies prone more than grappling them, give everyone advantage.

Or 2 more Barb levels and you can do both. Shove and grapple, enemy is prone and can't move. The enemy attacks at disadvantage too. I'm actually not sure if this tactic makes you prone, but even if it does, reckless attack would let you attack normally.

On that note maybe go Barb 4/Rogue 2? Give up some sneak attack but gain an ASI (pretty big here, higher to hit and an athletics of possibly +10 at 6th level) and that much closer to 2 attacks (allows grapple and prone or Grapple/prone + 1 attack)

Click to expand...

We have a sorcerer, a wizard a ranger and maybe another ranger.

I haven’t started the character yet so I could easily modify to barbarian 5 rogue 1. We start campaign next week. I’ll consider that.

Whenever possible, hold a choke point with the rest of the party behind you. Dungeons are loaded with them.

Brag about how you're unhittable or unkillable, out of character, or otherwise dare your DM into targeting you.