Primal Path
Path of the Brawler
Barbarians that follow this path believe that even relying on conventional weapons is a sign of weakness. They prefer to overcome their foes using nothing but their bare hands and incredible grappling prowess. These barbarians can pin down the mightiest of foes and even throw their enemies across the battlefield.
Unarmed Fury
3rd Level Path of the Brawler feature
You gain the Unarmed Fighting fighting style, and you can add your rage damage to the extra damage against grappled targets granted by Unarmed Fighting.
Additionally, when you make a successful unarmed strike against a creature, you may attempt to grapple it as a bonus action.
Foe Thrower
6th Level Path of the Brawler feature
If you are not prone, you may attempt to throw a creature you are grappling.
In place of an unarmed strike, you can make an opposed grapple check against the grappled creature. If you succeed on this check, you can throw the creature a number of feet equal to 5 times your Strength modifier.
For every size category larger than you the creature is, reduce the maximum range of the throw by 5 feet. For every size category smaller than you, increase the maximum range by 5 feet. If the creature hits a solid surface, it takes 1d10 + your Strength modifier bludgeoning damage and lands prone.
If you don't throw the creature outside the reach of your unarmed strikes, you may maintain your grapple, but throw yourself prone as you bodyslam the creature into the ground.
If the thrown creature would hit another creature, the creature being hit must make a Dexterity saving throw with a DC equal to 8 + your proficiency modifier + your Strength modifier. On a failed save, the creature being hit takes bludgeoning damage equal to your Strength modifier and is knocked prone unless it is at least two size categories larger than the creature it was struck with. On a successful save, it takes no damage and is not knocked prone as it dodges out of the way.
If you are raging, apply rage damage to any damage done using this ability.
Rage Infused Fists
6th Level Path of the Brawler feature
Your unarmed attacks and damage you do as a result of grappling or throwing creatures count as magical for the purposes of overcoming damage reduction. You may also grapple incorporeal creatures that would otherwise be immune to the grappled condition.
Colossus Climber
10th Level Path of the Brawler feature
If you are grappling no other creatures, you may attempt to grapple creatures more than one size larger than you. While grappling a creature this way, you may not grapple any other creatures.
A creature grappled this way has its movement speed halved rather than reduced to 0, and when it moves, you move along with it. If you attempt to move the creature on your turn, you must win an opposed Strength check against it.
You may move into any space the grappled creature occupies using your climb speed, and while you are occupying the creature's space, it has disadvantage on attack rolls against you.
Facebreaker
10th Level Path of the Brawler feature
As an action or in place of an attack that is part of an attack action, you may make a single opposed grapple check against two creatures you are grappling in an attempt to smash them against each other. If one of the creatures fails, they both take bludgeoning damage equal to 1d10 + your Strength Modifier. If they both fail, increase the damage by 1d10.
If you are raging, apply rage damage to both creatures.
Unstoppable Grappler
14th Level Path of the Brawler feature
If you win an opposed grapple check by 10 or more against a creature no more than one size larger than you, and you are grappling no other creatures, you may restrain the creature in addition to grappling it.
A creature restrained this way has disadvantage on checks to shove you and on saves against your Foe Thrower feature, and if it attempts to use teleportation or interplanar travel to escape your grapple, it must first make a Charisma saving throw with a DC equal 10 + your proficiency modifier + your Strength modifier. On a success, the creature can use that magic to escape. On a failure, the creature can’t escape and wastes the use of the spell or effect.
Making any other grapple checks ends the restrained condition on the target creature.
Grappling Incorporeal Creatures
The Rage Infused Fists feature states that the barbarian can grapple 'incorporeal' creatures, such as ghosts. This does not include every creature immune to the grappled condition, such as air elementals, as these creatures are not truly incorporeal. Generally, any creature with the Incorporeal Movement feature can be considered incorporeal and therefore grabbable by the barbarian.
Fighting Style
Unarmed Fighting
Your unarmed strikes can deal bludgeoning damage equal to 1d6 + your Strength modifier on hit. If you aren't wielding any weapons or a shield when you make the attack roll, the d6 becomes a d8.
At the start of each of your turns, you can deal 1d4 bludgeoning damage to one creature grappled by you.
Magic Item
At the DM's discretion, the following magic item may become available during a brawler's adventures, allowing for an enhancement of unarmed attacks.
Magic Hand Guards (+1/+2/+3)
Wondrous Item, uncommon (+1), rare (+2), very rare(+3) These items are worn around one's hands and can take the form of straps of cloth or leather, boxing gloves, or even brass knuckles. While wearing them, you gain a bonus to attack and damage rolls made with unarmed strikes. The bonus is determined by the item's rarity.
Art Credit
- Epic Confrontation - Wayne Reynolds, Wizards of the Coast.
- Outmuscle - Viktor Titov, Wizards of the Coast.
1.1.0 Changes
- Unstoppable Grappler now restrains on grapple checks that succeeded by 10 or more rather than requiring another grapple check
- Facebreaker can now be done in place of an attack that's part of an attack action
1.1.1 Changes
- Typo fixes and clean up
1.1.2 Changes
- Add reference to magic item list
1.1.3
- Typo fixes
Referenced Content
- Magic Hand Guards 1.0.0