D&D 5.5E: Barbarian Reveal – Better Berserkers, new Subclass, and More
WotC unleashed a brand new Barbarian today. Rage gets buffed, Berserkers flex, and we see a whole new subclass.
Unleash your Barbaric yawp. WotC has revealed the new 5.5E in all its glory. With minor changes to Rage, major changes to some of the higher-level class features, and a host of revised subclasses, the 5.5E Barbarian is in really good shape.
The new Barbarian is still very much like the old one, focused on raging, hitting hard, and being resistant to damage all the while. But with some new options, they gain more flexibility of playstyle. How, you ask? Well, let’s take a look.
5.5E Barbarian – Rage and Strength unlock New Features
First things first, the overall big changes. Rage is now a renewable resource. We saw this in their last playtest, and WotC kept it, which is great. Barbarians regain one use of Rage after a short rest, so you’ll always be able to make sure you have one handy if you know you need it. Rage can also be maintained by taking a bonus action to stay focused on it or by making someone make a saving throw. No more hitting yourself for 1 damage to keep Rage going if you have to take a turn to chase someone down.
But Barbarians do more than just Rage. They get Weapon Mastery as well, unlocking two properties at level 1. Cleave seems like it’ll be a good choice, since it explicitly allows you to add your Rage Damage even on the Cleave attack.
At higher levels, features like Primal Instinct round out the Barbarian’s kit, letting you swap Strength for any ability score when making certain skill checks.
But by far, the biggest change is Brutal Strike, which lets you give up Advantage when making a reckless strike in exchange for dealing 1d10 extra damage and gaining one of two extra effects:
- Forceful Blow: Send your target flying 15 feet away from you, then you can follow up and move half your Speed towards your target without provoking Opportunity Attacks.
- Hamstring Blow: Reduce your target’s Speed by 15 feet until the start of your next turn. Despite (usually) having two hamstrings, a creature can only suffer from one Hamstring Blow at a time.
And you gain even more effects at a higher level. This is a powerful incentive for high-level play. But what about the Subclasses?
Barbarian Subclasses
First up, the Berserker is much more sustainable. Now, instead of getting Exhaustion and a bonus action attack, you just deal 1d6 extra damage on each attack while you Rage. This is probably going to lead to the Berserker as more of a default choice, since people tend to love doing damage.
Path of the Wildheart lets you swap out your primal animal benefits each time you rage, giving you much more flexibility. Rage as a Bear one fight, then as a Wolf the next. It’s just good, clean fun that, honestly, should have been there from the get-go.
Path of the Zealot gets boosted in some ways. Notably, they lose their ability to come back from the dead with no material cost. But in exchange, they gain a pool of healing dice they can spend as a bonus action to stay in the fight.
Finally, the new kid on the block: the World Ttee Barbarian. This subclass is all about giving your allies temporary hit points and shifting your enemies around the battlefield. Tons of fun to be had.
All this in the new 5.5E Barbarian!
