As I write this, the latest playtest packet for D&D Next has been out only a few days, so I haven’t had a lot of time to dissect it. However, I wanted to do a quick comparison, so I statted out a 1st-level human barbarian (we’ll name him Hrothgar), and then I advanced him to 20th level and compared the two. Here is my (albeit hasty and amateur) analysis…
Hrothgar began his adventuring career with the standard array of ability scores (16, 14, 13, 12, 10, 8). As a human, he got to raise them all by 1. As a barbarian, he had a d12 for Hit Dice, so his beginning hit points were 14, with 1 Hit Die to spend during a short rest. To make things easier, I went with the recommended background (Guide) and equipment packages (one for his class and one for his background), then spent his remaining money on items I thought he’d need for his first foray. When all was said and done, here was Hrothgar at 1st level.
Hrothgar, Male Human Level 1 Barbarian
HP 14 (1d12 HD)
AC 16 (scale mail)
Speed 30’
Traits
Fields of Lore: Cultural Lore (orcs) and Natural Lore.
Guide: Proficient with navigator’s tools.
Proficiency: Riding.
Rage: 2/day; +2 to melee damage.
Wanderer: Remember landmarks; automatic foraging.
Actions
Maul: Melee (one creature); +4 to hit; 2d6+3 bludgeoning damage.
Handaxe: Melee/Ranged 20’/60’ (one creature); +4 to hit; 1d6+3 slashing damage.
Javelin: Melee/Ranged 30’/120’ (one creature); +4 to hit; 1d6+3 piercing damage.
Alignment Chaotic Good
Languages Common, Orc
Str 17 (+3), Dex 14 (+2), Con 15 (+2), Int 11 (+0), Wis 13 (+1), Cha 9 (-1)
Equipment scale mail armor, maul, handaxes (2), javelins (4), backpack, bedroll, climber’s kit, hempen rope (50’), navigator’s tools, potions of healing (2), rations (8 days), tent, tinderbox, torches (10), traveler’s clothes, waterskin, winter blanket, 4 gp, 9 sp
I found it interesting that he started with all his weapons but I had to buy his armor, and he only had some of the components of an adventurer’s kit – I had to buy the rations and torches. Also, he started with a climber’s kit (which is useless to him, as he’s not proficient with it, and it doesn’t provide a bonus to climb checks), but I had to buy the navigator’s kit, with which he gained proficiency by taking the Guide background.
All his weapons use his Strength modifier for attack and damage, so when raging he has advantage on attack rolls whether fighting in melee or ranged, but his rage damage bonus only applies to melee attacks. I liked that his three weapons covered the three main types of weapon damage – bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing. I didn’t have to blow the majority of his money on potions of healing, but I figured they couldn’t hurt, given that he’d always be at the center of any conflict.
With skills out of the picture, I was at a loss to explain how Hrothgar was proficient at riding due to being a barbarian; if a class isn’t proficient at riding, does that mean they can’t ride? Riding is listed as a DC 10 Dexterity check in the DM Guidelines document, but I couldn’t find how being proficient at it is any benefit.
Fields of lore were a puzzling addition as well. I had to choose a specific culture for Cultural Lore, so if Hrothgar needed to make an Intelligence check involving orcs, he got a +10 bonus. The same applied to Intelligence checks involving nature. A +10 bonus seems a huge boost from simply having advantage, as the sample DCs range from 10 to 30; at 1st level, Hrothgar had the potential to know everything in those two fields right off the bat.
Fast forward a few levels, and Hrothgar started to flesh out as a barbarian. At 4th level, he could choose to improve one or more ability scores or pick a feat. Since ability score improvement topped out at 20, he pumped up his Strength. He chose the Path of the Totem Warrior, so he added the following class features to his repertoire:
Feral Instinct: Advantage on initiative.
Totem Spirit (Bear): Add Constitution modifier twice when expending a Hit Die to heal.
Reckless Attack: Advantage on attack rolls when not raging, but opponents gain advantage on attacks.
At 5th level, Hrothgar’s speed increased as long as he was wearing medium or lighter armor (or no armor). At 8th level, he could make two attacks with a single action. At 11th level, he had a chance to avoid dropping to 0 hit points. At 14th level, he gained advantage on all Wisdom checks and saving throws, and hidden threats lost advantage against him. At 16th level, Hrothgar granted damage bonuses and “damage reduction” to allies, and at 20th level, he couldn’t fall unconscious while raging. Of course, there were other class features along the way, and he chose to raise his Constitution and Dexterity scores as well, but those were the highlights. At 20th level, this is what Hrothgar had to offer.
Hrothgar, Male Human Level 20 Barbarian
HP 193 (20d12 HD)
AC 17 (mithril shirt, ring of protection)
Speed 40’
Traits
Brutal Critical: Roll one additional damage die on a critical hit.
Death-Defying Rage: Cannot fall unconscious while raging.
Fast Movement
Feral Instinct
Feral Reflexes: Act when surprised if raging first.
Fields of Lore
Furious Resilience: Saving throws have advantage.
Guardian Totem: Death saving throws have advantage.
Guiding Totem: Wisdom checks and saving throws have advantage.
Incite Rage: Grant damage bonuses and “damage reduction” to allies.
Primal Might: Minimum on Strength checks and saving throws equals Strength score.
Proficiency: Riding.
Rage: Unlimited times per day; +4 melee damage.
Reckless Attack
Relentless Rage: Chance to not drop to 0 hit points.
Ring of Protection: +1 to saving throws.
Simmering Rage: Less chance for rage to end.
Skill Proficiency
Spirit Rage (Bear): Expend two Hit Dice when raging to heal.
Spirit Vitality: Selective regeneration.
Totem Spirit (Bear)
Two Attacks
Wanderer
Actions
Hammer of Thunderbolts: Melee (one or two creatures); +11/+11 to hit; 2d6+7 bludgeoning damage (+3d6 vs. giant or dragon).
Hammer of Thunderbolts: Ranged 50’/120’ (one creature); +11 to hit; 2d6+7 bludgeoning damage (+3d6 vs. giant or dragon), plus 3d6 thunder damage and deafened 1 hour (DC 15 Con save for half and not deafened).
Handaxe +1: Melee/Ranged 20’/60’ (one or two creatures); +10/+10 to hit; 1d6+6 slashing damage.
Javelin of Lightning: Melee (one or two creatures); +9/+9 to hit; 1d6+5 piercing damage.
Javelin of Lightning: Ranged 100’ (all creatures in line); +9 to hit; 4d6 lightning damage (DC 13 Dex for half). Usable once per day.
Str 20 (+5), Dex 16 (+3), Con 18 (+4), Int 11 (+0), Wis 13 (+1), Cha 9 (-1)
Alignment Chaotic Good
Languages Common, Orc
Equipment mithril shirt, ring of protection, hammer of thunderbolts, handaxe +1 (2), javelin of lightning, backpack, bedroll, silk rope (50’), navigator’s tools, rations (8 days), tent, tinderbox, torches (10), traveler’s clothes, waterskin, winter blanket, 4 gp, 9 sp
This isn’t a perfect picture of Hrothgar after a lifetime of adventuring, because he’s not amassed the treasure and eclectic hodgepodge of magic items one does during a living, breathing campaign. Rather, I assumed he’d always trade up for the best he could get. The mithril shirt and his battered scale mail from 1st level both give him the exact same AC, but the shirt doesn’t impose disadvantage on stealth checks. The black dragon scale armor of resistance in the Magic Items document doesn’t give any sort of bonus to AC, just acid resistance, and its “once per day” ability duplicates the bludgeoning/piercing/slashing resistance Hrothgar gets every time he rages, so it’s not worth it, in my opinion. The hammer of thunderbolts is a maul +1 when attuned that grants an additional +1 to hit and damage if your Strength is 18 or over. He could get a higher attack and damage bonus with a defender greatsword, but the versatility of the hammer outweighs the defender’s damage and defense bonuses, again in my opinion.
So there you have it, two ends of the spectrum that is the D&D Next barbarian. What stands out to you? Does the development look appealing as the character gains levels? Let me know what you think in the comments below.
Hrothgar began his adventuring career with the standard array of ability scores (16, 14, 13, 12, 10, 8). As a human, he got to raise them all by 1. As a barbarian, he had a d12 for Hit Dice, so his beginning hit points were 14, with 1 Hit Die to spend during a short rest. To make things easier, I went with the recommended background (Guide) and equipment packages (one for his class and one for his background), then spent his remaining money on items I thought he’d need for his first foray. When all was said and done, here was Hrothgar at 1st level.
Hrothgar, Male Human Level 1 Barbarian
HP 14 (1d12 HD)
AC 16 (scale mail)
Speed 30’
Traits
Fields of Lore: Cultural Lore (orcs) and Natural Lore.
Guide: Proficient with navigator’s tools.
Proficiency: Riding.
Rage: 2/day; +2 to melee damage.
Wanderer: Remember landmarks; automatic foraging.
Actions
Maul: Melee (one creature); +4 to hit; 2d6+3 bludgeoning damage.
Handaxe: Melee/Ranged 20’/60’ (one creature); +4 to hit; 1d6+3 slashing damage.
Javelin: Melee/Ranged 30’/120’ (one creature); +4 to hit; 1d6+3 piercing damage.
Alignment Chaotic Good
Languages Common, Orc
Str 17 (+3), Dex 14 (+2), Con 15 (+2), Int 11 (+0), Wis 13 (+1), Cha 9 (-1)
Equipment scale mail armor, maul, handaxes (2), javelins (4), backpack, bedroll, climber’s kit, hempen rope (50’), navigator’s tools, potions of healing (2), rations (8 days), tent, tinderbox, torches (10), traveler’s clothes, waterskin, winter blanket, 4 gp, 9 sp
I found it interesting that he started with all his weapons but I had to buy his armor, and he only had some of the components of an adventurer’s kit – I had to buy the rations and torches. Also, he started with a climber’s kit (which is useless to him, as he’s not proficient with it, and it doesn’t provide a bonus to climb checks), but I had to buy the navigator’s kit, with which he gained proficiency by taking the Guide background.
All his weapons use his Strength modifier for attack and damage, so when raging he has advantage on attack rolls whether fighting in melee or ranged, but his rage damage bonus only applies to melee attacks. I liked that his three weapons covered the three main types of weapon damage – bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing. I didn’t have to blow the majority of his money on potions of healing, but I figured they couldn’t hurt, given that he’d always be at the center of any conflict.
With skills out of the picture, I was at a loss to explain how Hrothgar was proficient at riding due to being a barbarian; if a class isn’t proficient at riding, does that mean they can’t ride? Riding is listed as a DC 10 Dexterity check in the DM Guidelines document, but I couldn’t find how being proficient at it is any benefit.
Fields of lore were a puzzling addition as well. I had to choose a specific culture for Cultural Lore, so if Hrothgar needed to make an Intelligence check involving orcs, he got a +10 bonus. The same applied to Intelligence checks involving nature. A +10 bonus seems a huge boost from simply having advantage, as the sample DCs range from 10 to 30; at 1st level, Hrothgar had the potential to know everything in those two fields right off the bat.
Fast forward a few levels, and Hrothgar started to flesh out as a barbarian. At 4th level, he could choose to improve one or more ability scores or pick a feat. Since ability score improvement topped out at 20, he pumped up his Strength. He chose the Path of the Totem Warrior, so he added the following class features to his repertoire:
Feral Instinct: Advantage on initiative.
Totem Spirit (Bear): Add Constitution modifier twice when expending a Hit Die to heal.
Reckless Attack: Advantage on attack rolls when not raging, but opponents gain advantage on attacks.
At 5th level, Hrothgar’s speed increased as long as he was wearing medium or lighter armor (or no armor). At 8th level, he could make two attacks with a single action. At 11th level, he had a chance to avoid dropping to 0 hit points. At 14th level, he gained advantage on all Wisdom checks and saving throws, and hidden threats lost advantage against him. At 16th level, Hrothgar granted damage bonuses and “damage reduction” to allies, and at 20th level, he couldn’t fall unconscious while raging. Of course, there were other class features along the way, and he chose to raise his Constitution and Dexterity scores as well, but those were the highlights. At 20th level, this is what Hrothgar had to offer.
Hrothgar, Male Human Level 20 Barbarian
HP 193 (20d12 HD)
AC 17 (mithril shirt, ring of protection)
Speed 40’
Traits
Brutal Critical: Roll one additional damage die on a critical hit.
Death-Defying Rage: Cannot fall unconscious while raging.
Fast Movement
Feral Instinct
Feral Reflexes: Act when surprised if raging first.
Fields of Lore
Furious Resilience: Saving throws have advantage.
Guardian Totem: Death saving throws have advantage.
Guiding Totem: Wisdom checks and saving throws have advantage.
Incite Rage: Grant damage bonuses and “damage reduction” to allies.
Primal Might: Minimum on Strength checks and saving throws equals Strength score.
Proficiency: Riding.
Rage: Unlimited times per day; +4 melee damage.
Reckless Attack
Relentless Rage: Chance to not drop to 0 hit points.
Ring of Protection: +1 to saving throws.
Simmering Rage: Less chance for rage to end.
Skill Proficiency
Spirit Rage (Bear): Expend two Hit Dice when raging to heal.
Spirit Vitality: Selective regeneration.
Totem Spirit (Bear)
Two Attacks
Wanderer
Actions
Hammer of Thunderbolts: Melee (one or two creatures); +11/+11 to hit; 2d6+7 bludgeoning damage (+3d6 vs. giant or dragon).
Hammer of Thunderbolts: Ranged 50’/120’ (one creature); +11 to hit; 2d6+7 bludgeoning damage (+3d6 vs. giant or dragon), plus 3d6 thunder damage and deafened 1 hour (DC 15 Con save for half and not deafened).
Handaxe +1: Melee/Ranged 20’/60’ (one or two creatures); +10/+10 to hit; 1d6+6 slashing damage.
Javelin of Lightning: Melee (one or two creatures); +9/+9 to hit; 1d6+5 piercing damage.
Javelin of Lightning: Ranged 100’ (all creatures in line); +9 to hit; 4d6 lightning damage (DC 13 Dex for half). Usable once per day.
Str 20 (+5), Dex 16 (+3), Con 18 (+4), Int 11 (+0), Wis 13 (+1), Cha 9 (-1)
Alignment Chaotic Good
Languages Common, Orc
Equipment mithril shirt, ring of protection, hammer of thunderbolts, handaxe +1 (2), javelin of lightning, backpack, bedroll, silk rope (50’), navigator’s tools, rations (8 days), tent, tinderbox, torches (10), traveler’s clothes, waterskin, winter blanket, 4 gp, 9 sp
This isn’t a perfect picture of Hrothgar after a lifetime of adventuring, because he’s not amassed the treasure and eclectic hodgepodge of magic items one does during a living, breathing campaign. Rather, I assumed he’d always trade up for the best he could get. The mithril shirt and his battered scale mail from 1st level both give him the exact same AC, but the shirt doesn’t impose disadvantage on stealth checks. The black dragon scale armor of resistance in the Magic Items document doesn’t give any sort of bonus to AC, just acid resistance, and its “once per day” ability duplicates the bludgeoning/piercing/slashing resistance Hrothgar gets every time he rages, so it’s not worth it, in my opinion. The hammer of thunderbolts is a maul +1 when attuned that grants an additional +1 to hit and damage if your Strength is 18 or over. He could get a higher attack and damage bonus with a defender greatsword, but the versatility of the hammer outweighs the defender’s damage and defense bonuses, again in my opinion.
So there you have it, two ends of the spectrum that is the D&D Next barbarian. What stands out to you? Does the development look appealing as the character gains levels? Let me know what you think in the comments below.
