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Barbarian Duel-Wielding
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<blockquote data-quote="Cernor" data-source="post: 6401943" data-attributes="member: 6780066"><p>I know this is entirely up to how you want to play your character, but here are my thoughts on TWF Barbarians. I'm sharing because I was tempted to build a TWF barbarian once, but there were a few things that turned me off of it (and I think most of them have already been mentioned earlier in the thread). </p><p></p><p>First and foremost, since your off-hand attack is a bonus action, you only get it once per turn and it can't be used at the same time as your rage (or frenzy). This is a BIG weakness compared to 2H fighting where you enter rage and get two attacks (with higher average damage) on every turn, as opposed to having to spend a turn taking only two attacks while you rage, and then getting three attacks on subsequent turns. </p><p></p><p>Speaking of three attacks, the Path of the Berserker gives you effectively the same benefit as dual wielding: while raging (at the cost of a bonus action) you can make an extra attack by using a bonus action. Unlike dual wielding, however, you gain your ability modifier to the damage (up to a whopping +7 at 20th level) of that attack, and because you can use it with a two-handed weapon, it deals even more damage! </p><p></p><p>My second big concern with TWF is that you're pretty much required to take the Dual Wielder feat to bring your damage to a point where it can potentially rival that dealt by 2H weapons. If you're dealing 1d6 per attack (before 5th level) your ideal damage each turn is 2d6 + modifier: equal to that of a greatsword, but you have one additional roll to make and therefore one more chance to miss (as well as the aforementioned use of a bonus action). With the Dual Wielder feat, this increases to 2d8 + modifier, and after you get the Extra Attack it increases to 3d8 + 2 * modifier, which is marginally lower than the 4d6 + 2 * modifier dealt by a greatsword (1 point on average). Including rage, the damage dealt by TWF is slightly higher, but you still have the extra attack roll you could potentially miss.</p><p></p><p>So I'm not sure if I'm getting my point across as I mean to, but personally I think that TWF is slightly worse compared to 2H fighting. I admit that this is entirely my personal preference as the differences are minimal (for a Totem Warrior, quite a bit bigger for a Berserker) and the extra chance of getting a critical hit offsets the chance of missing. Oh, and because the mental image I have of a barbarian charging into battle with a massive axe in both hands is ruined a bit by replacing the axe with two daggers. <img src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" class="smilie smilie--sprite smilie--sprite2" alt=";)" title="Wink ;)" loading="lazy" data-shortname=";)" /></p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Cernor, post: 6401943, member: 6780066"] I know this is entirely up to how you want to play your character, but here are my thoughts on TWF Barbarians. I'm sharing because I was tempted to build a TWF barbarian once, but there were a few things that turned me off of it (and I think most of them have already been mentioned earlier in the thread). First and foremost, since your off-hand attack is a bonus action, you only get it once per turn and it can't be used at the same time as your rage (or frenzy). This is a BIG weakness compared to 2H fighting where you enter rage and get two attacks (with higher average damage) on every turn, as opposed to having to spend a turn taking only two attacks while you rage, and then getting three attacks on subsequent turns. Speaking of three attacks, the Path of the Berserker gives you effectively the same benefit as dual wielding: while raging (at the cost of a bonus action) you can make an extra attack by using a bonus action. Unlike dual wielding, however, you gain your ability modifier to the damage (up to a whopping +7 at 20th level) of that attack, and because you can use it with a two-handed weapon, it deals even more damage! My second big concern with TWF is that you're pretty much required to take the Dual Wielder feat to bring your damage to a point where it can potentially rival that dealt by 2H weapons. If you're dealing 1d6 per attack (before 5th level) your ideal damage each turn is 2d6 + modifier: equal to that of a greatsword, but you have one additional roll to make and therefore one more chance to miss (as well as the aforementioned use of a bonus action). With the Dual Wielder feat, this increases to 2d8 + modifier, and after you get the Extra Attack it increases to 3d8 + 2 * modifier, which is marginally lower than the 4d6 + 2 * modifier dealt by a greatsword (1 point on average). Including rage, the damage dealt by TWF is slightly higher, but you still have the extra attack roll you could potentially miss. So I'm not sure if I'm getting my point across as I mean to, but personally I think that TWF is slightly worse compared to 2H fighting. I admit that this is entirely my personal preference as the differences are minimal (for a Totem Warrior, quite a bit bigger for a Berserker) and the extra chance of getting a critical hit offsets the chance of missing. Oh, and because the mental image I have of a barbarian charging into battle with a massive axe in both hands is ruined a bit by replacing the axe with two daggers. ;) [/QUOTE]
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