Barbarian

Description

This is not the barbarian of history, but the barbarian of fantasy fiction. He's a powerful warrior from a culture on the fringes of civilization. He's left his home to sell his skills and adventure in the civilized world — perhaps to amass a fortune with which to return home, perhaps to become an important figure in this so-called civilization. He's known for strength, cunning, contempt for the outer world's decadence, and for adhering to his own code of honor.
The barbarian is usually very strong: therefore. the barbarian must have a Strength ablllty score of 15 or more. A character can come from a barbarian tribe and have a lower Strength than that — but he cannot have the Barbarian Kit.

Role

The typical RPG barbarian is a powerful, dangerous figure, as though he were an animal totem in human skin. In a campaign, he's a front-line fighter with some special skills and a very different outlook than the rest of the characters; his player should always play him as someone from a different land, someone whose likes and dislikes and perceptions are based on a different culture. (If you play him as just another warrior from down the street. you lose a lot of the mystique the character has.)
If the PC party has no real leader, he may gravitate to that role; if it has a good enough leader, he'll probably stick to being a specialist in the things he does well.

Weapon Proficiencies

Required

Battle Axe, Bastard Sword, (These are the classical fiction-barbarian weapons; the DM may decide to substitute others more appropriate to his own world.)
Barbarian fighters may specialize in any weapon, but are not likely to encounter unusual weapons (like lances, quarterstaves, flails, peculiar polearms) until they reach the outer world.

Recommended

Bow (any), Sling, Sword (any), War Hammer.

Non-weapon Proficiencies

Bonus Proficiency

Endurance

Recommended

General

Animal Handling, Animal Training, Direction Sense, Fire-Building, Riding, Land Based, Weather Sense

Warrior

Blind-Fighting, Hunting, Mountaineering, Running, Set Snares, Survival, Tracking

Priest

costs twice the listed number of slots if Fighter or Ranger, or just the listed number if Paladin
Herbalism

Rogue

costs double slots
Jumping
The DM is within his rights to insist that the Barbarian character take a proficiency in the tribal specialty (Fishing, Agriculture, whatever) if the DM so wishes.

Equipment

The character, when he spends his starting gold, may not buy armor heavier than splint mail, banded mail, or bronze plate mail.
Outside his tribe, once he has adventured in the outer world, he can use any type of armor without penalty. When he spends his starting gold, he must limit himself to weapons the DM says are appropriate for his tribe — the usual group of weapons includes battle axe, bows (any), club, dagger or dirk, footman's flail, mace, or pick, hand or throwing axe, sling, spear, or sword (any).

Special Benefits

Barbarians are impressive because of sheer strength, intensity, and animal magnetism; this gives them a +3 reaction adjustment bonus in certain situations.
Whenever the barbarian character achieves a reaction roll of 8 or less (including Charisma and racial bonuses), you subtract the modifier. That is, if the reaction is positive at all. it will be even more positive than it otherwise would have been.
Example: Tbrath the Tbranaran is a Barbarian with a Charisma of 15. Encountering a knight who could be friend or foe to him, he speaks with the knight in a friendly fashion. The DM rolls his Encounter Reaction and achieves an 11 on 2d10. On the "Friendly" column or the Encounter Reactions chart from the Dungeon Master's Guide, this is a "Cautious" reaction. But wait — his charisma gives him a +3 bonus. The 11 becomes an 8. still an indifferent reaction. But because he's reached an 8. his Barbarian bonus comes into play, making the final reaction roll a 5: A friendly reaction.

Special Hindrances

All that impressiveness can work against the Barbarian, too. Whenever the barbarian character achieves a reaction roll of 14 or more. he takes an additional -3 modifier. That is, if the reaction is negative at all, it will be even more negative than it otherwise would have been — the barbarian is scary, and the other person overreacts.
Example: Torath next meets a suspicious witch, and is indifferent toward her. On the "Indifferent" column of the Encounter Reactions chart, the DM rolls a 17. Torath's Charisma bonus of 3 reduces the roll to a 14, but it is still enough that his Barbarian penalty just shoots it right back up to a 17 again. The witch becomes Threatening.

Wealth Options

The Barbarian gets the starting gold for a Warrior (5d4x10 gp), but he must spend it all before starting play except three gp or less; he can have some pocket change when he reaches civilization, but must be close to penniless.

Races

Demihuman Barbarians follow the same rules. Dwarves are perhaps the most admirably suited to being Barbarians. The DM will have to decide whether his elves, half-elves and gnomes are brooding and menacing enough to be Barbarians; the question is even harder with the leisure-loving halflings. But if the DM wishes to allow any or all of these demihuman races to have Barbarians among them, he may.

Final Note

Most classic fantasy-fiction barbarians are male. but this Warrior Kit can certainly be taken by female characters, with all the Kit's re quirements, benefits, and hindrances in effect.

[Complete Fighter's Handbook]