Barbarian Path choice

[Darth_Versity]

So I'm in a 5e game and about to hit lvl 3 and still can't decide what Path to take. Berserker is nice, but exhaustion is a big deal so it's feature is only really good for 1 rage/day. Bear totem warrior is amazing though, but the rest of the path is fairly Meh, and is as fitting with the character concept.

Does anyone have experience with this yet? Is exhaustion not as big a deal I think? And is the lvl 3 bear warrior as good as it looks?

[Giant2005]

Exhaustion is extremely deadly, more-so than pretty much any other effect in the game.
Unless you have someone using magic to reduce your exhaustion level (Which comes with a pretty hefty opportunity cost of its own and is no-where near worth it), you can only safely use Frenzy once per long rest on average. You are much better off going with Totem Warrior for your path of choice. I'd go as far as to say that Berserker is undeniably the worst subclass in the game - say what you like about Champions or Beastmasters or whatever, neither of them make you weaker than your generic class like the Berserker does.

[Strill]

Berserker is crap. You're much better off with the Great Weapon Master feat. With exhaustion as the cost, you can only reliably use your frenzy once per day. Getting to use a bonus attack one fight per day is nowhere near good enough to justify an archetype. IMO Frenzy shouldn't even have a cost. The Totem Warrior perks are way more powerful, AND don't cost you anything. I don't see why Berserker's ability should.

Your real choices are between wolf totem and bear totem. Wolf totem gives all nearby allies advantage in melee. This is an absolutely ENORMOUS benefit. As in, it's so good it's on-par with 9th level spells. You can dramatically improve your party's damage with Wolf totem.

If you've got a melee ally or two, get wolf totem. It's just too good. Otherwise get Bear totem.

[Glarnog]

You can pick a different animal for each time at 6th, 10th and 14th.

[silveralen]

Bear is my choice. There are simply better ways to get mileage out of your bonus action than something that exhausts you.

Your best choice is probably polearm master. It gives you the two best aspects of beserker (an extra attack each round and off round attacks). With rage and eventually primal champion, extra attacks go a long way. Then grab GWF later on, as advantage (and eventually the + attack bonus) make activating the bonus damage less risky.

You can skip polearm master and just hope to activate the bonus attack, but even with advantage it won't be coming up often except when swarmed by mooks.

[Yoroichi]

Does anyone have experience with this yet? Is exhaustion not as big a deal I think? And is the lvl 3 bear warrior as good as it looks?


Yes.

I am lvl 6 Barbarian bear totem. The bear barbarian can tank ANYTHING!
You need to pick an appropriate feat though, because i rarely use my bonus action.

However i suggest picking a path that fits the role playing of your character.

Path feature lvl 14 gives you flying speed :P

Berserker doest seem so attractive, lvl3 bear warrior is so good, you pretty much have to pick it.

[Perseus]

I'm pretty disappointed in the Beserker path, but I guess it is a hold out for the guys and gals that loved the Barbarian killing themselves when raged ended.

[WickerNipple]

Berserker is awful.

After that, there's very few choices to make apart from which totems you like.

Whoever wrote that subclass must have written Drow too. And I never ever want to be a player in one of their games.

[Darth_Versity]

I had a sneaky suspicion that would be the case, but I was hoping there was something I was missing about berserker.

I'll just use the totem abilities and fluff the talking to animals thing to be like Krunk from the Emperors New Grove.

[Madfellow]

I'll just use the totem abilities and fluff the talking to animals thing to be like Krunk from the Emperors New Grove.

Yes! I wish I could see that! :smallbiggrin:

[Scirocco]

Berserker is awful.

After that, there's very few choices to make apart from which totems you like.

Whoever wrote that subclass must have written Drow too. And I never ever want to be a player in one of their games.

Sunlight Sensitivity isn't that bad. Dungeons (and the Underdark) are not particularly brightly lit, and even outside it's only on a sunny day that it matters. Cloud cover/fog/etc keep the "direct sunlight" phrase from being applicable.

[Felvion]

Well, when i got into this dilemma i chose totem barbarian and never regret it. First off, you get two really thematic rituals. Additionally, it may not sound that important to you but a bearbarian can tank all the way to hell and back. The commune with nature is also sweat at lvl10.
Personally, i focus too much on the out of combat stuff of the spirit totem path cause i am getting too bored when i don't have something to shove-grapple-hit till death so i have those rituals which is nice...
Grappling is essential to my character and i wouldn't risk the advantage i get on str rolls (cause grappling is one of them) because of 1 level of exhaustion. I wouldn't risk it for much more than the berseker stuff...

[Ardantis]

I have to disagree with the common logic here, for three reasons-

1) a berserker can still rage without entering a frenzy, so he does not waste daily uses of rage by not using frenzy and is still a competent combatant for multiple encounters per day

2) Frenzy is beastly. Attacking with full rage bonus on your action, bonus action, and eventually reaction with advantage with a great weapon is absurd. You do nearly double the damage of a champion fighter at level 20.

3) Vitality potions, in the DMG, reduce exhaustion and should be quested for by any berserker looking to control the side effects of his frenzy

Frenzy is awesome. Save it for the BBEG, sure, but it is awesome and is worth the cost!

[Totema]

When it comes to the Berserker, folks here are of two camps:
1. The exhaustion tax for frenzying is terrible, and thus berserkers aren't even worth consideration.
2. Frenzying can be extremely powerful when used strategically, and the rest of the subclass is pretty decent, so it's not too bad.

I kinda agree with both, honestly. Frenzying can push your DPR to heights that make even an optimized fighter blush. But if you can only use it effectively sometimes, it doesn't compare too well to the Totem subclass. Consider that the 3rd level bear totem ability always turns on when your rage, has no additional tax, and singlehandedly makes you one of the best tanks in the entire game.

So if you're really attracted to the idea of the berserker, ask what your DM thinks about them, and if they too believe they're underpowered, perhaps they have a houserule fix that they like.

[Safety Sword]

Once you have the magic resources in your party to combat the exhaustion then Frenzy turns out to be quite amazing.

Until then, it sucks.

Granting advantage to your allies is a big deal depending on your party make up. It's hard to go wrong with an (effectively) double hit point advantage granting smash machine.

[Wartex1]

Barbearian with Polearm Master is probably better than Frenzy, even with sacrificing an ASI. Plus, that bonus attack can still be used with Great Weapon Master, magical bonuses, and Rage damage, so you don't really lose that much in damage.