D&D General Has D&D abandoned the "martial barbarian"?

[le Redoutable]

nope, Blue is Happiness
while Green is Health

 

[Neonchameleon]

Same. I'd go ahead and throw Monk, Paladin, and Ranger on that pile, too.

To me it depends a lot on how the class structure works. Other than monks; they're more a rogue subclass; they're all about mobility and dexterity, mostly replacing stealth with flurry.

The AD&D anti-magic barbarian should never have existed because it was anti-cohesion while the 3.X bard was hacked out of the fighter archetypes and basically defined things you couldn't do with feats. Meanwhile the 4e barbarian was definitely a class. 5e? I think it has just about enough inspiration there to justify itself.

The Paladin again. The pre-4e Paladin should never have existed and even if it did should have been a fighter subclass. But the oaths are inspiring in a way that wouldn't be for a fighter subclass. I wouldn't have made it but do think it's worth keeping.

Ranger I'll agree with; some of the subclasses are cool but none of them really feel necessary. The Hunter, Monster Slayer, and Horizon Walker all feel like Ranger+; they're just a little more rangery than normal rangers. The Beastmaster and Swarmkeeper both have pets. Which leaves the gloom stalker and fey wanderer who are basically leaning in to the rogue side. But the ranger shouldn't just be a fighter subclass but a rogue one as well.

I'll up the ante and throw in bard as well.

Merlin was a bard - and Gandalf behaved more like one than a wizard.

If you want to see raising the ante then wizards should be a subclass of bards - and clerics a subclass of warlocks.

 

[Neonchameleon]

Hmm... now I come to think of it the Druid's on the list of classes that should become subclasses.

 

[Faolyn]

nope, Blue is Happiness
while Green is Health

Could you explain what this means? In relation to barbarians, at least?

 

[CleverNickName]

Hmm... now I come to think of it the Druid's on the list of classes that should become subclasses.

I agree. I think Druid could be a subclass of Cleric. (See also: Paladin.)

 

[Faolyn]

Hmm... now I come to think of it the Druid's on the list of classes that should become subclasses.

Perhaps with warlocks, as a type of cleric?

Cleric Types:
God/Ideal/Philosophy: Priest
Nature/Element: Druid
Something that isn't a full god: Warlock

 

[Tales and Chronicles]

Hmm... now I come to think of it the Druid's on the list of classes that should become subclasses.

Nature Cleric + has access to the druid list instead of the cleric?
Make Shapeshift and Elemental form druid's spells.

I dont think they need the heavy armor prof, so switch it for something else.

 

[le Redoutable]

Could you explain what this means? In relation to barbarians, at least?

Green is for Druids ==> Food ( like in Latin plants and Animals )
Blue is for Bards ===> Music heals Unhappyness

 

[le Redoutable]

à propos, do you know the Game " Dungeons of Dreadmor " ===> to heal wounds you gotta eat food ...

 

[mrpopstar]

If you want to see raising the ante then wizards should be a subclass of bards - and clerics a subclass of warlocks.

That's not an upped ante, that's a reshuffled deck!