Level Up (A5E) The Berserker Rage HP Cap Makes No Sense

[lichmaster]

Polearm Savant is still great too, although I’d avoid the feat tax given the buff to two-weapon fighting.

A5E also has more interesting weapon properties, so the "feat tax" to have the additional attack as bonus action is no longer necessary if you use a weapon with the "defensive" trait.
So you can have a sword and board berserker (historically plausible btw), that either gains +1 on AC, or can attack with the shield as a bonus action. That attack can either do damage (not much) and eventually trigger furious crits, or you can use it to shove/knock prone.

Also, you can have very similar benefits to the old Polearm Master feat by taking appropriate combat maneuvers.
Or you can move away from Polearm Master: going back to the sword and board example before, you could use the Lean Into It maneuver, so each attack forces the enemy to make a Str save or be knocked prone.

 

[nevin]

Just wondering... since the Rage Hitpoints are Hitpoints and not Temporary Hitpoints...
Does this raise the maximum hp you can have?
Can someone heal you up to your sum of hp and rage hp?

I treat em like temporary hit points they can be healed up till they expire.

 

[Distracted DM]

Berserkers are really, really good. But just like 5e, martials have to put their feat selection to good use:

• Powerful Attacker (GWM) got a big buff in A5e. If you have advantage, you can make a straight roll with +10 damage that doubles on a crit. Excellent stuff.
• Two weapon fighting with a double weapon is terrific for a berserker, and doubles your chances of landing a crit and triggering Furious Critical. Polearm Savant is still great too, although I’d avoid the feat tax given the buff to two-weapon fighting.
• Surgical Combatant lets you use Dangerous Strikes as your basic attack, increasing your crit range.
• Zealous Stance adds an expertise die to melee weapon attack rolls, which isn’t quite as good as on-demand advantage but it stacks. Knock ‘em prone (with, say, leaping strike or knockdown assault, or just the basic maneuver) and go to town.
• Furious criticals are not all created equal. Blinding Maneuver, Terrifying Force, and Relentless Attack are clear standouts.

Maybe I’ll write an A5e Berserker guide. The class is pretty bonkers if you ask me.

I'm glad that I'm not the only one that's noticed how cracked out the berserker is. You didn't even mention the heavy armor and rogue evasion :'D
Not to even get into the Tempest archetype...

I treat em like temporary hit points they can be healed up till they expire.

I never considered that angle. Interesting, but that'd be giving berserker yet another buff :'D

 

[Anonymous3]

Berserkers are really over tuned and possibly overpowered. Heavy armor, evasion, elemental resistances, increased armor from mobile cover, precast raging to stack rage hit points, 17-20 crit range potential, and crazy damage.

Crazy damage: Tempest can add lightening and thunder die to there damage and this doubles with crits which is a core feature. Then add 3pp content, like MOAR, and you get these strange multiclass abilities/spells that allow the raging berserker to add additional elemental damage (1d6 fire per spell level, lolwut?! ).

By level 3 the berserker is able to crack out close to 40 damage on a crit. At a table of six players and the berserker accounts for 40% of the table's damage. Complete madness.