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Barbarians have always been one of the better tank classes inDungeons & Dragons, but they’ve always suffered from one problem: they can’t force enemies to attack them. While paladins have the Compelled Duel spell and Battle Master fighters can force themselves into harm’s way, barbarians couldn’t compel enemies to strike their resistant hides.
And neither can barbarians that follow the Path of the Ancestral Guardian, but what they can do is make attacking the rest of your party less inviting than attacking you. If you want your barbarian to be the one tanking for the team, read on to discover the Path of the Ancestral Guardian.
Path of the Ancestral Guardian Barbarian Features
Barbarians that follow this path revere their ancestors, and in return, those ancestors protect their companions. At third level,Ancestral Protectorsappear when you rage to hinder the attacks made against your friends. Until the start of your next turn, the first creature you hit with an attack has disadvantage on any attack rolls made against any target that isn’t you. If that creature hits any target besides yourself, that target has resistance to the damage dealt.
At level six,Spirit Shieldallows your guardians to directly aid your companions. While raging, you may use your reaction to reduce the damage dealt to another creature you can see within 30 feet by 2d6. This damage reduction increases as you level up.
At level 10,Consult the Spiritslets you cast either theAuguryorClairvoyancespells without using spell slots or material components once every short or long rest. Wisdom is your spell-save DC for these spells.
And finally,Vengeful Ancestorsat level 14 improves your Spirit Shield ability to also retaliate against attacks made to your friends. In addition to reducing the damage dealt, the attacking creature takes damage equal to the damage prevented.
Best Species For A Path Of The Ancestral Guardian Barbarian
As with any D&D class, feel free to play any species as your barbarian. However,certain species lend themselves to being a tankmore than others. Here are a few suggestions.
Astral Elf
You’re not likely to get much use out ofSacred Flame, soDancing LightsorLightwill be your cantrip of choice.Darkvision,charm resistance, andperceptionproficiency are all good, but the real draw isStarlight Step,which lets you teleport 30 feet as a bonus action.
Bugbear
You don’t get any bonus actions as a bugbear, but you do get anextra five feet of reach,which can be absolutely game-changing for a melee character. Best dual wield with a bugbear to get use out of that bonus action.SneakyandSurprise Attackare also great on any martial character.
Eladrin
Fey Stepcan charm or frighten enemies you teleport to or get your friends out of trouble, making this the better teleportation class.Darkvision,charm resistance, andperceptionare all good too.
Goblin
Being small means being unable to wield a heavy weapon, but if you want dual-wield or be a tank, you can’t go wrong with Goblin.Fury of the Small,charm resistance,Darksvision, andbonus actions to disengageare all great features.
Goliath
A traditional choice for barbarians,cold resistance, andStone’s Endurancemake goliaths incredibly durable.Athleticsis a nice skill to have, too.
Hadozee
Spirit Shield lets you use your reaction to prevent damage to others, but what about yourself?Hadozee Dodgegives you damage mitigation when enemies target you. No bonus action, so consider this as a potential dual-wielding species.
Half-Orc
Another traditional barbarian species for good reason.Relentless Endurancekeeps you fighting when everyone else has bled out, whileSavage Attacksmakes your critical hits even more ludicrous.Darkvisionis nice to have, althoughintimidationproficiency isn’t going to make you a face.
Harengon
Rabbit Hopcan get you into or out of combat using your bonus action, andLucky Footworkcombines with Danger Sense to make you all but immune to Dexterity saving throws against traps and spells.Bonus initiativeis nice to have, as isperceptionproficiency.
Hobgoblin
Hobgoblin might bethe perfect pair for a Path of the Ancestral Guardian barbarian. Your reactions protect your friends, and the hobgoblin’sFey Giftlets you use your bonus action to help your friends even more with either extra movement, temporary hit points, or enemies with disadvantage.Fortune of the Manymakes your attacks more consistent, andFey Ancestryprotects you from being charmed.
Human
If you want to be a dual wielder,go variant humanandtake the Dual Wielder featfrom the start. You could also takeGreat Weapon Masteryor any of the other feats listed later on.
Leonin
Daunting Roarfrightens nearby enemies using your bonus action, and your Claws deal damage based on your Strength.Five extra feetof movement, askill proficiency, andDarkvisionround out this excellent barbarian species.
Minotaur
Hornsuse your Strength score, which is usually high, andGoring Rushgives you an outlet for your bonus action after a dash.Hammering Hornsis nice to have, but you generally won’t want to push enemies away from you.Survival proficiencyis nice, but hardly crucial.
Orc
Adrenaline Rushlets you dash as a bonus action, whileRelentless Endurancekeeps you in the fight even after dropping to zero hit points.Darkvisionis nice, as is having aPowerful Build.
Best Ability Scores For A Path Of The Ancestral Guardian Barbarian
You’ve gotthree optionsfor a Path of the Ancestral Guardian. Yourfirst optionis to go thetraditional barbarian route and focus on Strength and Constitutiontowield the biggest two-handed weaponyou can find while having the largest health pool. That’s perfectly valid and effective as a Path of the Ancestral Guardian.
Yoursecond optionis tobe a dual-wielder. Since your subclass doesn’t use its bonus action, you’re able to wield another weapon in your off-hand to try to get a bit more damage out and fulfill those berserker fantasies. This build will stillfocus on Strength and Constitutionbut throws ina bit of Dexterityto improve your armor class.
Yourthird optionis tofocus entirely on being the party’s tankby wielding asword and a shield. This build forgoes damage by focusing onDexterity and Constitution at the expense of Strength.
A Path of the Ancestral Guardian barbarianbenefits slightly from a higher Wisdom scorewhen casting either Augury or Clairvoyance,butIntelligence and Charisma can be entirely ignored.
If you’re focusing ondual-wielding or using a two-handed weapon, the below is a decent starting ability score. You’ll want to pushStrength and Constitution as your primary attributesto give yourself higher damage and hit points.
16(+3)
14(+2)
8(-1)
12(+1)
And if you want to be theultimate tankwith a sword and shield, try something that looks like this. You’ll want to pushDexterity and Constitution as your primary attributesto give yourself maximum armor class thanks to Unarmored Defense.
Best Starting Equipment For A Path Of The Ancestral Guardian Barbarian
Just as you have options in your starting ability score, you’ve also gotsome options in your starting equipment.
If you’re going for maximum damage as an all-Strength character, get agreatswordor agreatmaulas your martial weapon. A greataxe deals 1d12 damage, while the greatsword or the greatmaul does 2d6, offering more consistent damage while still being a two-handed heavy weapon.
Once you reach level nine and learn Brutal Critical, you might want to go back to using a greataxe. Brutal Critical means adding one additional die roll for each crit, and rolling an extra d12 is better than a d6.
If you’re dual-wielding,two handaxesare a fine choice here. If you decided to start as a variant human and grabbed theDual Wielderfeat, then alongsword or battleaxe is best as your martial weapon, and ahandaxe, spear, or quarterstaff can be your simple weapon.
If you’re going down the all-tank Dex-based route, then pick arapier as your martial weaponand then two handaxes, but expect to trade those in for ashieldas soon as you’re able to.
Anexplorer’s packprovides you with some supplies to start your adventure, andfour javelinsgive you some ranged attacks so long as you can keep track of where those javelins land.
Best Feats For A Path Of The Ancestral Guardian Barbarian
There are a few feats that most barbarians will have their eye on, but there are also a fewfeats that specifically appeal to a Path of the Ancestral Guardian barbarian. Here are some suggestions.
Chef
With Chef, you can make little snacks that you can eat as abonus action to gain temporary hit points. This is a great way to use your bonus action if you’re not dual wielding, and it also improves your short rests too.
Dual Wielder
An almostessential feat for anyone dual-wielding weapons. This lets you use longswords or battleaxes, vastly improving your damage output while also increasing your armor class.
Great Weapon Master
A classic for a reason. You either get abonus attack or you can deal more damageto low-AC foes.
Gift of the Chromatic Dragon
Being able toadd a damage type that your target is vulnerableto is a huge boon, as isresisting the type of damage not resisted by raging.
Slasher
Besides increasing your Strength and Dexterity, Slasher follows the Path of the Ancestral Guardian’s theme of ensuring creatures focus on you rather than your friends byreducing their movement speed after being struck.
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