Berserker (Tales from Thedas)

"[incoherent screaming]*"*

— berserker motto

The dwarven culture is in decline, and many dwarves have turned to the surface, bringing their customs and battle traditions with them. Eventually, dwarves taught these skills to others, and now berserkers can be found amongst all races. Anger is only part of being a berserker. Anyone can fly into a rage, but only a berserker can channel that anger into brutal hits that cleave through armor, flesh, and bone. Those who follow the path are many: the bloodthirsty Chasind wilder, the fierce Tevinter gladiator, the ruthless Antivan corsair—any warrior that eschews the burden of heavy armor in order to better strike at their foes. The best defense, after all…

Adapted from the base D&D 5E Barbarian.

(back to Character Creation)

* **Hit Dice:** 1d12
* **Saving Throws**: Strength, Constitution
* **Proficiencies:** Light armor, medium armor, shields, simple weapons, martial weapons
* **Skills:** Choose two from Animal Handling, Athletics, Intimidation, Nature, Perception, and Survival

### **Equipment**

* (a) a greataxe or (b) any martial melee weapon
* (a) two handaxes or (b) any simple weapon
* An explorer's pack

## **Rage**

In battle, you fight with primal ferocity. On your turn, you can enter a rage as a bonus action.

While raging, you gain the following benefits if you aren't wearing heavy armor:

* You have advantage on Strength checks and Strength saving throws.
* When you make a melee weapon attack using Strength, you gain a bonus to the damage roll that increases as you gain levels as a barbarian, as shown in the Rage Damage column of the Barbarian table.
* You have resistance to bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage.

If you are able to cast spells, you can't cast them or concentrate on them while raging.

Your rage lasts for 1 minute. It ends early if you are knocked unconscious or if your turn ends and you haven't attacked a hostile creature since your last turn or taken damage since then. You can also end your rage on your turn as a bonus action. Once you have raged the number of times shown for your barbarian level in the Rages column of the Barbarian table, you must finish a long rest before you can rage again.

## **Unarmored Defense**

While you are not wearing any armor, your armor class equals 10 + your Dexterity modifier + your Constitution modifier. You can use a shield and still gain this benefit.

## **Features**

### **Danger Sense**

At 2nd level, you gain an uncanny sense of when things nearby aren't as they should be, giving you an edge when you dodge away from danger. You have advantage on Dexterity saving throws against effects that you can see, such as traps and spells. To gain this benefit, you can't be blinded, deafened, or incapacitated.

### **Reckless Attack**

Starting at 2nd level, you can throw aside all concern for defense to attack with fierce desperation. When you make your first attack on your turn, you can decide to attack recklessly. Doing so gives you advantage on melee weapon attack rolls using Strength during this turn, but attack rolls against you have advantage until your next turn.

### **Frenzy**

Starting at 3rd level, you can go into a frenzy when you rage. If you do so, for the duration of your rage you can make a single melee weapon attack as a bonus action on each of your turns after this one. When your rage ends, you roll a CON saving throw at DC 12. On a fail, suffer one level of exhaustion.

### **Ability Score Improvement**

When you reach 4th level, and again at 8th, 12th, 16th, and 19th level, you can increase one ability score of your choice by 2, or you can increase two ability scores of your choice by 1. As normal, you can't increase an ability score above 20 using this feature.

### **Extra Attack**

Beginning at 5th level, you can attack twice, instead of once, whenever you take the Attack action on your turn.

### **Fast Movement**

Starting at 5th level, your speed increases by 10 feet while you aren't wearing heavy armor.

### **Mindless Rage**

Beginning at 6th level, you can't be charmed or frightened while raging. If you are charmed or frightened when you enter your rage, the effect is suspended for the duration of the rage.

### **Feral Instinct**

By 7th level, your instincts are so honed that you have advantage on initiative rolls.

Additionally, if you are surprised at the beginning of combat and aren't incapacitated, you can act normally on your first turn, but only if you enter your rage before doing anything else on that turn.

### **Brutal Critical**

Beginning at 9th level, you can roll one additional weapon damage die when determining the extra damage for a critical hit with a melee attack. This increases to two additional dice at 13th level and three additional dice at 17th level.

### **Intimidating Presence**

Beginning at 10th level, you can use your action to frighten someone with your menacing presence. When you do so, choose one creature that you can see within 30 feet of you. If the creature can see or hear you, it must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw (DC equal to 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Charisma modifier) or be frightened of you until the end of your next turn. On subsequent turns, you can use your action to extend the duration of this effect on the frightened creature until the end of your next turn. This effect ends if the creature ends its turn out of line of sight or more than 60 feet away from you.

If the creature succeeds on its saving throw, you can't use this feature on that creature again for 24 hours.

### **Relentless Rage**

Starting at 11th level, your rage can keep you fighting despite grievous wounds. If you drop to 0 hit points while you're raging and don't die outright, you can make a DC 10 Constitution saving throw. If you succeed, you drop to 1 hit point instead.

Each time you use this feature after the first, the DC increases by 5. When you finish a short or long rest, the DC resets to 10.

### **Retaliation**

Starting at 14th level, when you take damage from a creature that is within 5 feet of you, you can use your reaction to make a melee weapon attack against that creature.

### **Persistent Rage**

Beginning at 15th level, your rage is so fierce that it ends early only if you fall unconscious or if you choose to end it.

### **Indomitable Might**

Beginning at 18th level, if your total for a Strength check is less than your Strength score, you can use that score in place of the total.

### **Primal Champion**

At 20th level, you embody the power of the wilds. Your Strength and Constitution scores increase by 4. Your maximum for those scores is now 24.