Barbarian King!!!

[Kiassic91]

Ok so my friend is starting a campaign that, pretty much, we are the first heroes. theres no civilization, just like tribes and crap. i want to create a barb king that will try to conquer everything. Anyone have any fun idea of how i could do that? i'm thinking of have CN alignment and pretty much threaten people to join my camp or die. maybe like a fun prestige class? i was thinking bear warrior. also i plan on taking leadership feat. any other good feats for a barb? we can use pretty much any book. i could probably get away with a well made homebrew feat even :) Thanks guys!!

[Cikomyr]

Well.. there's quite a few classes that offer leadership potential. One of my favourite is the "Outcast Warrior", from Races of Destiny. Meant to be champions of those without a homeland (half-elfs or half-orcs), you could easily have it work as a rallying figure for tribes.


I once played in a Native American-era akin to the Great plains, and I was a Tribe Leader. we made up the "Politician" class, which was basically taking the Bard class and turning its alignment around. You HAD to be Lawful or Neutral, instead of "Bardic Knowledge" I had "Societal Knowledge" (to better mingle/know details about society/know who was important). If you take your "Perform" to be stuff like "Oratory", "Weapon Drill" and the likes, you can end up being quite the leader of men and still manage to come across as a badass.

[Slipperychicken]

i want to create a barb king that will try to conquer everything. Anyone have any fun idea of how i could do that?

This sort of thing is pretty much entirely GM-dependent. So you're going to make the GM like you. Then conquering the world will be easy.

Read the campaign setting, roleplay a lot, write a 5-page backstory, and make a character your GM thinks is cool. Also have really big social skills, but don't roll them too often: Nothing makes the GM angry like using skills to make him do stuff (whether it's making NPCs do something he doesn't want them to do, or making him tell you things he doesn't want you to know).

If your social and knowledge skills are too good, your GM will surely come up with some way to invalidate them (i.e. "No, everyone in the village is perfectly loyal to their master and covers their ears while shouting whenever you open your mouth, so your Diplomacy fails" or "You can't roll Knowledge because nobody's never seen or heard of a wolf before" or "They're special homebrew wolves so nobody has ever seen or heard of them, even though they've lived less than a mile outside the city gates for generations").

[Metahuman1]

I like Warblade for this myself, Smige of Stone Power, liberal application of white Raven, then add a smaller does of Iron Heart or Tiger Claw to taste.

A dip in Spirit Lion Totem Barbarian, or two levels to nab wolf totem, maybe with whirling frenzy, wouldn't go amiss either. Neither would a level or two of Bard for some skills and some optimized inspire courage key'd off preform oratory or weapons drill.

[OverdrivePrime]

Straight-up barbarian, all the way through.

Strength > Constitution > Charisma = Dexterity = Wisdom > Intelligence

Try not to dump Int below 8. You're going to need some of those skill points for cross-class ranks in diplomacy and sense motive. Or just have a Savage Bard (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/classes/variantCharacterClasses.htm) handle social for you when you grab leadership. Regardless, if you want to be a bad-mofo barbarian king, you need Charisma. You want to crush your enemies, see them driven before you, and hear the exultation of their women.

[Cikomyr]

Just because you are a "Barbarian King" doesn't mean you have to be a barbarian, ya know?

"Barbarian" means something in the cadre of a Medieval Fantasy world where you have developped societies and more savage societies. But in a world where there is no real developped political system, anyone is a "Barbarian".

Just see yourself as a pioneer. Kind of the Gilgamesh, the Jason or the Ulysses of your time.

[Metahuman1]

Besides, the Barbarian class stops giving you things worth getting, at most with AFC's, at level 4, and that's being generous.

Even then, there are things it should be giving you but isn't. (Tumble! YUNO class skill?!)

A level or two of Bard get's you some cool and useful stuff, including access to inspire courage which you can optimize to really help the leader angle and pay for using a feat like power attack and/or stone power.

And warblade get's you something useful at darn near every level.

[OverdrivePrime]

Besides, the Barbarian class stops giving you things worth getting, at most with AFC's, at level 4, and that's being generous.

Even then, there are things it should be giving you but isn't. (Tumble! YUNO class skill?!)

A level or two of Bard get's you some cool and useful stuff, including access to inspire courage which you can optimize to really help the leader angle and pay for using a feat like power attack and/or stone power.

And warblade get's you something useful at darn near every level.

True. If you're comfortable just being thematically a barbarian and mechanically awesome, then Warblade is definitely your best best. Take plenty of Iron Heart, a little Diamond Mind and White raven and liberal amounts of Tiger Claw, but just for the visually awesome jump maneuvers like Death From Above or Feral Death Blow; and avoid the two-weapon maneuvers altogether.

[Metahuman1]

If your actually gonna have troops, I'm inclined to say liberal White Raven, a smidgen of Iron Heart or Tiger Claw depending on preference, and just a tiny Dash of Stone Dragon, avoid Diamond Mind for such a build.


If no army, a smidgen of White Rave, Focus on Iron Heart, MAYBE a dash of Tiger Claw, and a dash of stone dragon that's probably a dip for Mountain Hammer and that's it.

[Cikomyr]

I'd still go with a Bard myself :smallbiggrin:

Get to meet privately with tribe chieftain, and use Charm Person or your Bardic Music - Suggestion (Oratory) on them to join up. Or use these power on rival chieftain's right-hand men so they try to take power.

"Join me or be crushed" still works. You don't have to necessarily be the one doing the crushing.

[Shining Wrath]

I take exception to CN alignment for a world conqueror. You will need a horde, loyal minions, and to be able to have minions running small parts of the empire on your behalf. In general, a CN ruler rules as far as he can see and not much more. A bureaucracy to support a world (or continent) spanning empire requires a hierarchy. Hierarchy requires at least a little Law.

For your class, I normally love Warblade, but if it's a new world, where do all these Disciplines with schools to teach them come from? Maybe your character is the founder of the Iron Heart or White Raven school!

Can you get a sidekick? You need protection from assassins.

[Metahuman1]

Simple, it's not "schools of special secret moves." it's "I fight good!" and the maneuvers are just fluffed with "describe awesome thing you do." followed by "here's the mechanics as a separate matter.". Just like casters are allowed free reign to describe being awesome and then do there mechanics separately.

[Sartharina]

Besides, the Barbarian class stops giving you things worth getting, at most with AFC's, at level 4, and that's being generous.

Even then, there are things it should be giving you but isn't. (Tumble! YUNO class skill?!)

A level or two of Bard get's you some cool and useful stuff, including access to inspire courage which you can optimize to really help the leader angle and pay for using a feat like power attack and/or stone power.

And warblade get's you something useful at darn near every level.Eh, I'd say the Barbarian stops giving you things at level 5, though you can get that thing at level 5 earlier if you MC into Scout or Warblade after 2. Inability to be flanked is awesome if you're the type to wade into combat and devastate foes with your great cleavage.

If you're using Champions of Valor, you don't need more than a 10 in CHA - you can grab the feat that gives you STR to Leadership to make for a more traditional Barbarian King archetype. Reputation subsystems can also be used to offset low Charisma as a leader, if those are used. Have people follow you for your deeds, not your words.

A Bardblade also works, but I have no idea how a Bardbarianblade would work.

[Gildedragon]

Warrior Skald (RoF) to get bardic music sans bardness, using Perform (weapon drill)

A focus on intimidate skill options? Imperious Command, Never Outnumbered among other fearsome thingamabobs. Menacing Brute (feat) has a couple of interesting options in it

[Diovid]

Go for something like Desert Half-Orc (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/races/environmentalRacialVariants.htm#desertHalfOrcs) Barbarian 1 / Half-Orc Paragon (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/races/racialParagonClasses.htm#halfOrcParagon) 2 / Warchief 3 / Legendary Leader 5 / Orc Warlord (https://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/ex/20030301a) 3 / Warchief +6

Legendary Leader is from Heroes of Battle and Warchief is from the Miniatures Handbook.

You could use Skilled City-Dweller (https://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/we/20070228a) for several of those classes to trade Handle Animal and Survival for Gather Information and Sense Motive.

Feats I'd look at would be the [Leader] feats from Heroes of Battle, the leadership feats in Dragon Magazine #346, the feat Venerable Elder and its related feats in Dragon Magazine #334 and feats that deal with intimidation (http://www.minmaxboards.com/index.php?topic=8759.0).

[Metahuman1]

Eh, I'd say the Barbarian stops giving you things at level 5, though you can get that thing at level 5 earlier if you MC into Scout or Warblade after 2. Inability to be flanked is awesome if you're the type to wade into combat and devastate foes with your great cleavage.

If you're using Champions of Valor, you don't need more than a 10 in CHA - you can grab the feat that gives you STR to Leadership to make for a more traditional Barbarian King archetype. Reputation subsystems can also be used to offset low Charisma as a leader, if those are used. Have people follow you for your deeds, not your words.

A Bardblade also works, but I have no idea how a Bardbarianblade would work.

Take enough Warblade levels, you'll get it anyway if a bit later.

That said, it would work like a Bardblade that delayed his Inspire Courage by one or two levels and his iniator level by at most 1 level. No real appreciable difference otherwise.

[Optimator]

Runescarred Berserker is also super cool.

[Gildedragon]

Take enough Warblade levels, you'll get it anyway if a bit later.

That said, it would work like a Bardblade that delayed his Inspire Courage by one or two levels and his iniator level by at most 1 level. No real appreciable difference otherwise.

With Warrior Skald you need only loose 1 level of Warblade to get all the modes of bardic music. The prereqs are low: Power Attack, Cleave, Concentration and Perform (poetry) with only the last one presenting any challenge or investment

[Warlocknthewind]

Unholy Rage from Exemplars of Evil seems to fit the barbarian leader theme. Lets you smite once every rage! Dip a level of marshal to get the to-hit boosting aura to help your Power Attacking masses hit the barn broadside!

Maybe I just like smites too much, but at least it's thematic!

[Deaxsa]

This sort of thing is pretty much entirely GM-dependent. So you're going to make the GM like you. Then conquering the world will be easy.


...can i ...can i sig this? this is SO spot-on. (or at least, it's inverse is COMPLETELY accurate). i may edit some more to get to the good part (drop the first sentence?), point is, being friendly is good. being not friendly, or easy to not like, is bad.

[Slipperychicken]

...can i ...can i sig this? this is SO spot-on. (or at least, it's inverse is COMPLETELY accurate). i may edit some more to get to the good part (drop the first sentence?), point is, being friendly is good. being not friendly, or easy to not like, is bad.

Sure thing. Go for it :smallbiggrin: