Looking for some barbarian advice. (3.5e)

[Nick_mi]

I just started D&D this summer and I'm currently in a campaign where I'm a half orc barbarion level 5.

Current feats

Power Strike
Cleave
Mad Foam Rage(extra feat given by DM)
Reckless Rage
Dirty Fighting(obtained in story from a drunken brawl master)

Stats:
Str+6(23)
Dex+3(17)
Con+4(18)

We're in a decently high power campaign, meaning I'm wielding a MW marquerial great sword with both a frost and fire enchantment(1D6 each). I'm looking for the most ridiculous and overpowered feats I can find, as from what I can tell, this campaign is going to get ridiculous, and I want to go in prepared.

So what I'm looking for is;

Awesome Feats
Good prestige classes
Neat synergies.

Keep in mind that 2 of my feats(reckless and mad foam rage) are not set in stone untill we start playing on monday so I can still mod those.

Lastly, when I level, if I'm raging while leveling, do I get the con modifer to my hp when I level?

Thanks for the help.

[HunterOfJello]

You need to take a look at the Consolidated Barbarian Handbook.


I'd take a special look at the Alternate Class Features. Barbarians have tons of great ones that they can take.


Taking levels of Warblade, Swordsage or Crusader could grant you some very nifty bonus abilities. (Since you're level 5, you'd be able to grab second level maneuvers too.)


As far as prestige classes go, Bear Warrior, Runescarred Berserker, and Frenzied Berserker are usually the top picks. Frenzied Berserker is a bit over the top and probably what you're looking for in a high-powered campaign.


For feats, you might want to take a look at feats related to intimidating during combat like Intimidating Rage mixed with the Never Outnumbered skill trick.

Imperious Command (feat) + Instaneous Rage (feat) + Intimidating rage (feat) + Never Outnumbered (skill trick) = insane barbarian awesomeness

You can find more info in the Combos section of the Handbook.

[Hirax]

Also check out the berserk PrC from Deities and Demigods if you have it, or perhaps the waker of the beast from Dragon #296. The berserk gets you another rage-like ability, and the waker of the beast gets you strength and natural armor bumps, plus at its 5th and final level a permanent non-magical size increase. The catch is the fluff of the waker is pretty...well, you'll see

[FlamingKobold]

You do not gain additional HP when leveling while in a rage.

As for fun things:

1. Knockback + Rampaging bullrush + Leap attack + Power attack + Shocktrooper + 3 mountains style = lots of damage

2. Imperious Command + Instaneous Rage + Intimidating rage + Never Outnumbered = You basically cut off someones action and shut them down for a round making them drop what they were doing. Or charge the opposing force, leap attack into the midst of them then rage while mid-air. Potentially cowering thier whole team.

3. ToB feats/dips. There are a lot of awesome things barbarians can use from ToB.

4. Bear Warrior. What's more badass than having the feral and savage spirit of the mighty bear? Being one of those bears. This thread shall not turn into another stupid bear thread...

5. All or some of the above.

[Kylarra]

Well you do gain additional HP for when your con goes up due to raging, but leveling has nothing to do with it in particular, so yes, if you somehow leveled while raging, your increased HP for the duration of the rage would be based on your increased con, but it would go back to normal when your rage ended. CON changes are applied retroactively to all hit dice.

[Nick_mi]

Can you guys please list what the acryonyms are the first time in a () also where I can find the prestige class for frenzied beserker, and never surrounded.

[herrhauptmann]

As far as prestige classes go, Bear Warrior, Runescarred Berserker, and Frenzied Berserker are usually the top picks. Frenzied Berserker is a bit over the top and probably what you're looking for in a high-powered campaign.

Careful, Frenzied Berserker can be a party killer. Don't recommend taking it unless you make sure beforehand that your fellow party members metagame a bit and have a method of stopping your frenzy.
Wasn't there another guide, titled "Being Bane"?
If you can swing it, throw Combat Brute into your list of tactical feats as well. Momentum swing is pretty nice.
Just also make sure you know how multipliers stack. Doubling something that's already doubled makes it a triple.

Can you guys please list what the acryonyms are the first time in a () also where I can find the prestige class for frenzied beserker, and never surrounded.

Frenzied Berserker is in Complete Warrior CW or CWar, it has been the subject of revisions (they're online). Never outnumbered, sounds like it's from Complete Scoundrel CS.

[Nick_mi]

Oh wow, I need a 15 cha for imperious command. I'm rocking an awesome 6.

[FlamingKobold]

I was going to recommend FB, but it has a nasty rep of being a party killer. You say the campaign will be tough and while a FB would be really awesome at killing all of that stuff, it'll also be spectacular at killing your allies.

That said, I once made a FB/monk type character that had an absurdly high will save. I think it was somewhere in the mid 30s by 12th level or so.

[Nick_mi]

Looking for more good multiclasses. I'm thinking I'll go bear warrior, which means I have another 2 levels before I can take a level of bear, and now that I realise you get extra attacks when you prestige class and hit 6/11/16 etc, I'm looking to bounce out of barbarian.

Also, what are stances, and maneuvers? Are they important/strong?

[Keld Denar]

Stances and Manevuers are a newish mechanic introduced in the book Tome of Battle: Book of Nine Swords. Its a great tool for increasing the combat versatility of a melee fighter type.

If you do end up dipping Bear Warrior, head directly into Warshaper. These 2 PrCs were pretty much made for each other. Bear Warrior turns you into a BEAR while raging which counts as changing shape, and Warshaper gives you some pretty massive combat bonuses like immunity to precision damage/crits, +4 Str/Con, REACH, fast healing, and increased weapon damage, when you are shapeshifted. Solid 5 levels (1 BW + 4 WS).

[Nick_mi]

What's a PrC and where can I find warshaper?

[Keld Denar]

lol? PrC is short for Prestige Class. If you ever don't understand an acronym, there is a handy thread in the first link at the top of this forum that has pretty much EVERY D&D acronym ever. Also, generally if you want to find out where a class, feat, spell, or ability is printed, you can generally find it faster by typing it into google (along with D&D or similar prefix). That generally gets an answer right way. If it doesn't, then ask.



Warshaper is in Complete Warrior.

[Nick_mi]

Ok, I think I'll take 3 levels in warshaper. I don't feel the 3rd and 4th level are worth it. Also, the 5 foot bonus, is that going to give me reach and free AoO in bear form?

[Lev]

Acronym Tutorial

What's your barb's intelligence and wisdom? Even Conan needs to know when to step in and out.

Advancing your barbarian on a powerhouse route may be more fun for you and it may result in "winning" more, but really if you want to write a story which is what DnD really is, then perhaps some character depth would be a good idea, otherwise you might want to convince your friends to maybe spend more time on the vidya games.

[Nick_mi]

12 wis and 12 int. I had a 10 int, and then after numerous politics and what not he said that my orc had grown wiser and gave me a +2, so it's plausible to get a small stat boost in the future, especially cha which is a 6 since I'm constantly doing diplomatic stuff and building an army.

[Lev]

12 wis and 12 int. I had a 10 int, and then after numerous politics and what not he said that my orc had grown wiser and gave me a +2, so it's plausible to get a small stat boost in the future, especially cha which is a 6 since I'm constantly doing diplomatic stuff and building an army.

Funny that he said that about int and not wis, but perhaps he wants you to be a bit craftier in approach which is why he gave you the freebee.

[bobspldbckwrds]

i'm noticing a distinct lack of shock trooper recommendations, which is a shame because it rocks. shock trooper allows you to trade the penalty to hit from power attack, and put that penalty on your ac. it's prerequisite is improved bullrush, which is a nice tactical feat.

also, leap attack is nice, but needs a good jump check.

and i believe being bane was mentioned?

learn well, and break small people who scream gibberish, and flail around wildly in a fight.

[Nick_mi]

It just seems like that path requires 5 or so feats, and I'm too far down the path to devote that many feats into a strat change.

Also, my bad, you're right it was wisdom and not int.
I'm reading the guide posted, and it's talking about getting rid of stuff, such as damage reduction, and trap sense. What does he mena? can you swap it for other stuff or?

[HunterOfJello]

Becoming a Warshaper requires the Shapechanger subtype or have a way in which they can change their shape. A level in Bear Warrior should qualify you for this though.

[herrhauptmann]

Yes, get rid of. They're alternate class features (ACF). Take one of the perks of a class, and swap it out for something else.

[Lev]

Also, my bad, you're right it was wisdom and not int.

Then maybe he wanted you to be more understanding?

[Nick_mi]

Yes, get rid of. They're alternate class features (ACF). Take one of the perks of a class, and swap it out for something else.

Can you elaborate a little bit?

[Keld Denar]

Alternate Class Features are something they introduced in 3.5 to make characters more customizable. Instead of EVERY barbarian being a cookie cutter of every other barbarian, they introduced totem barbarians and spirit totem barbarians. Bear totem barbarians, for example, lose Uncanny Dodge, but they gain Improved Grapple as a bonus feat at the level a normal barbarian would gain Uncanny Dodge (2nd). This makes bear totem barbarians more unique, beyond what normal barbarians get.

Other ACFs are racial. Dwarf fighters, for example, at 1st level gain Axe Focus (weapon focus with ALL axes) and a d12 HD for that level, instead of their normal bonus feat. This is good if you plan on using different axes, since your 1 feat now affects multiple weapons, and you have more HP. Elven Wizards who are generalists, can forever give up their ability to specialize for 1 extra spell slot of their highest level, a sort of mini-specialization. Half-orc paladins can lose the ability to smite and gain a holy wrath style pseudo-rage, embracing their more feral nature. Etc. They are optional, and if you take one, you arne't obligated to take all of them, and you can mix and match ACFs from different sources to get the results you want, so long as you don't try to trade the same feature out twice (example, the PHBII has an ACF that lets Conjurer specialists trade their familiar for the ability to teleport 10 feet as an immediate action, while UA has an ACF that lets Conjurers trade their familiar for the ability to cast summon spells as a standard action instead of a full round action. You can't get both from trading out the same familiar).

Most ACFs are printed in the PHBII, the later Complete books (Mage, Scoundrel, Champion), the various Races of X books, and the environmental books (Frostburn, Sandstorm, Stormwrack, Dungeonscape, Cityscape), and of course, Unearthed Arcana, the mother of all variant rules.

[Nick_mi]

Ended up going 5 barb/2crusader/1bear/2warshaper with my next couple of levels going into war shaper.

[Awnetu]

As far as the Frenzied Berserker class is concerned, it should NEVER be a party killer. Why you ask? Because while frenzied (which is where he would be a risk of killing a party) a bag of marbles says he doesn't stand a chance.

[gartius]

It just seems like that path requires 5 or so feats, and I'm too far down the path to devote that many feats into a strat change.

Dont forget you can retrain your feats if you want to change your focus
(PHB2-players handbook 2 page 93)

[Nick_mi]

As far as the Frenzied Berserker class is concerned, it should NEVER be a party killer. Why you ask? Because while frenzied (which is where he would be a risk of killing a party) a bag of marbles says he doesn't stand a chance.

wait, what?

[Eldariel]

wait, what?

FB can't use Dex-based (among other) skills while Frenzying. You need Balance-checks to move on Marbles. Do the math. Tho he flies tho, it's a bit bigger problem.

[Awnetu]

And after he is knocked prone, the next round all he has to do is make a DC 20 Will save to get out, Steadfast Determination is one easy way to make that save easy, another one is Channeled Rage.