By [ad_1]
A Dungeons & Dragons Druid taking Barbarian levels can be absolutely primal — but it takes a careful balance to get things right.
Dungeons & Dragons provides infinite opportunities for clever and innovative character builds, including intriguing multiclass builds that feed incredibly well off one another. Druids often evoke almost primeval imagery, not unlike the Barbarian class. At first glance, the two seem as different as night and day, with one relying on the magic of the natural world and the other on wreaking havoc with brute force.
However, combining these two classes can result in an incredibly powerful character, one with the ability to Wild Shape into primal beasts and Rage attack to deal incredible amounts of damage. There is also amazing potential for building a creative backstory to explain this multiclass, bringing the character to life as their story unfolds.
Start Out as a Druid
When built right, Druids are one of the most powerful classes in the game, which often means multiclassing isn’t feasible. A player will lose some of the best abilities and rewards from higher levels, so it’s important to take that into account.
Druids choose their subclass at level two, and since this Druid will be heavily reliant on Wild Shape coupled with Barbarian Rage, Circle of the Moon is the only way to go. The player will be able to Wild Shape immediately into a powerful creature, like a bear, and after adding a level in Barbarian at level three, that bear will become even more powerful as Rage fuels its every attack.
The Required Stats for a Barbarian Druid
Since the player is starting out as a Druid, Wisdom is the required stat to boost spellcasting abilities. The higher the Wisdom, the more powerful the Druid’s spells. Also, because 5e requires players to have specific stat requirements in order to multiclass, the character will need a Strength stat of at least 13 to take a level in Barbarian. Keep this in mind when creating the character. If using Standard Array, consider adding up to 16 points to Strength to ensure more powerful damage boosts and 16 points to Constitution to guarantee more durability.
Best Racial Choices for a Barbarian Druid
There are a number of options when it comes to choosing a solid race for this multiclass. Humans work well, as they gain an automatic +1 to all of their ability scores, which can come in handy when trying to reach requirements to multiclass. Choosing to play a human with Mark of Handling will automatically grant the player an affinity with beasts that, in time, will allow them to do everything from calm and coax beasts to dominate and awaken them.
Hill Dwarves gain a boost to their Wisdom stat, which will bolster the Druid aspect and allow for a little more focus on the Barbarian requirements. Wood Elves also gain a boost to Wisdom, while having the Mask of the Wild trait and a base walking speed of 35. When choosing a race, search for options that will benefit either the Druid or Barbarian classes, or, in some ways, both.
How to Level a Barbarian Druid
This build focuses primarily on the Druid aspect of the character, so it only needs a level or two in Barbarian to access Rage. Since gaining access to Wild Shape as quickly as possible is a must, start out by taking the first two levels in Druid, and choose Circle of the Moon as the subclass at level two.
Take a level in Barbarian at level three to gain access to the ability to Rage up to two times. Since Druids can Wild Shape twice as an action or bonus action, and Rage is a bonus action, they can start the battle ready to rampage with both features active. Since the player will miss out on important Druid features and magic if they stray too far, maintain levels in Druid after level three to minimize loss of powerful spell slots and abilities.
The Best Feats for a Barbarian Druid
One of the most outstanding feats for this build is Tavern Brawler, which not only increases Strength or Constitution by one, but also grants the ability to use a bonus actions to grapple a target after hitting them with an unarmed strike or improvised weapon. Enemies really won’t want to find themselves grappled by a raging bear.
Mobile is another powerful option, as it grants +10 to the player’s movement speed, meaning they can charge into battle from just about anywhere on the map. If the player chose the Wood Elf race with its 35 feet of movement per turn, this feat would bring that to 45 feet — or even up to 90 feet if they use Dash to speed up their mobility.
About The Author
[ad_2]
