Barbrarian Speculation

[Rechan]

Yes, I misspelled barbarian. Namely because I thought of 'Marian the Barbarian' and that made me rock back and forth cackling.

Anyhow, we have been told that the Barbarian is coming out at the beginning of October. Anyone want to speculate on how many days from the 1st (tomorrow) it comes out?

Also, anyone want to call what the role of the Barb will be? How about how the mechanics work? What sort of Build we'll get?

 

[Fallen Seraph]

I am saying around October 7th-14th!

Role: Striker or Controller
Mechanics: I'd say he will be based around self-buffs (summoning/being possessed by totemic spirits) and lots of building-up attacks. I could see Powers that combine together almost like combos to give a sorta battle-frenzy feel.
Builds:
Berserker: More martial oriented and built around smashing enemies into tiny-bits.
Channeller: More primal oriented and built around self-buffing and the Primal effects that his totem abilities bring.

 

[Majoru Oakheart]

I agree, it likely won't be coming out until the 2nd week of October, mostly because they need to finish the couple of outstanding articles from September.

I still think that Striker and Defender are the most likely roles for the Barbarian. Whenever I think of Barbarian I think of hitting really hard with the biggest weapon you can find while toughing out blows that would kill an elephant.

It's possible that if the Druid is really going to be dual role that the Barbarian will as well and be a combo Defender/Striker. I don't think they'll be Controllers as I've heard some designers refer to melee and Controller not really working together at all. Swordmage is pretty much a Controller in melee already and they have a strong reason to have bursts and blasts(which are the hallmark of the Controller). I don't see any fluff reason for Barbarians to hit everyone in a Blast 3.

If we go by what was said in the preview books, then they are going very much for a Primal Fighter(of course, a lot of things from the preview books changed, so we can't entirely rely on that). If it is true, then I certainly see Striker being the most likely. They'll likely get something like "Lion Leap" where they charge an enemy, leap onto them and tear them apart. Or the ability to run really fast by summoning the spirit of the Cheetah or whatever. Mobility and damage seems like a Striker to me.

But then again, Barbarians have been associated with the Defender role in the past. They used to get d12s for hitpoints, get full BAB, and often stood on the front lines side by side with the Fighters and Paladins. If they decided to concentrate on this side of the Barbarian I could see their powers focusing more on getting the toughness of a Rhino and getting Damage Resistance, using the speed of animals to avoid blows, while still doing some good damage output. The only problem with this build that I can see is that I can't think of good fluff for a power that lets them Mark enemies using a Primal, Barbarian theme. Other than simply saying, "You are big, strong and dangerous, you use this power and your enemies recognize this and go after you first."

Still, I see them as a Hide wearing, Strength based Striker with a secondary stat in either Dex or Con. They will have more hitpoints or healing surges than most other Strikers and will have a couple more damage absorbing abilities(to be closer to a Defender than the other Strikers), but in exchange their abilities will apply less conditions and modifiers to the enemies. They will be slightly more "mindless" in that you will primarily be about absorbing and dealing damage without worrying about tripping, maneuvering, hindering, or other such tactics.

 

[Shroomy]

I'm going to go with primal striker shading into defender (kind of like how the paladin is a defender that shades into leader). I'm thinking that the "rage" mechanic will translate into how the barbarian deals extra damage on a hit, like a warlock's curse or a ranger's hunter's quarry. I also think that alot of his attack powers will depend on charges with after-effect movements (like after you charge, you can shift 1, etc), while the utility powers will be kind of like a fighter's (allow you to heal yourself or regenerate, etc.).

 

[Irda Ranger]

I'm hoping for Defender. I need a non-Paladin Defender for my Ravenloft and Dark Sun games.

 

[knightofround]

Yeah I have a hunch that its going to be a striker with a shade of defender as well. Some "defender-y" bits might be gaining temporary hitpoints (or damage reduction) while bloodied, after dropping a foe, taking damage, scoring a critical hit...etc.

I could see the barbarian's damage ability working similar to sneak attack, but instead of requiring combat advantage it requires that you attack the closest foe to you at the beginning of your turn. (Or the foe who last damaged you) It would have to be a bit weaker than sneak attack due to the fact that Barbs won't be restricted to light blades.

I would like to see that their powers, when they connect, actually enhance the barbarian itself in future rounds...rather than say the rogue approach, which in addition to dealing massive damage inflicts debilitating effects on the enemy. I would also like to see powers that deal a lot of damage on a hit, but on a miss somehow weaken the barbarian in some way (like grant combat advantage or something)

The builds I would like see are a massive 2handed "brute strength" build that utilizes both strength and constitution to enhance dps, and an "endurance" build that would allow the barbarian to enhance the extra cookies they they get from their powers.

 

[Jack99]

Striker and we will have it on the 3rd or the 6th of October.

 

[doctorhook]

Defender (with a touch of Striker); first week of October.

 

[vagabundo]

Primal Controller and last week of OCT...

 

[Shroomy]

Set me down for the 3rd.