For this reason, a DEX barbarian Gnome can be considered, especially the Forest Gnome.ĥ/5 Half Elf. I’m not that open-minded Racism aside, the +2 to INT and small size, which weakens the strength of heavy weapons, make gnomes unsuitable for a STR barbarian, despite the usefulness of Gnome Cunning, which covers a good chunk of the weaknesses of this class. The breath can come in handy at low levels and the resistance in pretty useful to a tank class.ġ/5 Any Gnome. The +1 to CHA isn’t super useful, but better than a +1 to INT. The ability to start with Great Weapon Master, Polearm Master or Resilient (WIS/DEX) makes the variant human one of the strongest and most versatile races for any class.Ĥ/5 Dragonborn. Feats are extremely powerful and provide much greater bonuses in 5th edition. Suffers too much from the competition with its variant.ĥ/5 Variant Hu man. Pretty good, however, for DEX: +2 DEX, +1 CON, resistance to poison and the amazing Lucky feat.Ģ/5 Human. For a DEX build it’s better, but let’s not stretch it. See above: worse (2/5) than the woodland elf for DEX because of Sunlight Sensitivity ( Reckless Attack doesn’t work on attacks using DEX).ġ/5 Lightfoot Halfling. On the other hand, it might be taken into consideration for a DEX barbarian, though his wood relative is slightly better thanks to the +1 to WIS.ġ/5 Drow. 2 STR & +2 CON (!), Darkvision, Resistance/Advantage against poison and a bit of flavour: wonderful! The 25 ft of movement isn’t a big deal, as the class gains 10 ft of movement.Ģ/5 Wood Elf. Good only for a DEX Barbarian.ġ/5 High Elf. Useful in case of orophobia.ĥ/5 Mountain Dwarf.

Decent scores together with all other dwarven features. Notably, this damage resistance also reduces physical damage from magical sources.Ĥ/5 Hill Dwarf. The feature the entire class design revolves around: bonus damage, resistance to physical damage, advantage to strength ability checks and saving throws. This feature allows you to do exactly that.ĥ/5 Rage. A Barbarian’s main job is to walk around exposing a hairy chest and smashing things. As for the more common: CON is extremely desirable, while DEX is partially covered by a class feature. STR is probably the most common of the “unlikely” saving throws. The Barbarian has access to every weapon imaginable, from greatsword to two-handed watering can.Ĥ/5 S aving throws: STR, CON. Useful until outscaled by Unarmored Defense, which requires some investment.ĥ/5 Proficiency in all weapons. The highest hit dice in the game is exclusive to the Barbarian, providing an excellent defensive base at any level.Ĥ/5 Proficiency in light armor, medium armor and shields. Disclaimer: Features from Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything (TCoE) are considered optionals, Use them at your DM’s discretion.

Shield of expression 5e