The New 2024 Path of the Berserker Barbarian (DnD 5e Subclass Deep Dive)
August 15, 2024
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Tapping into the power of pure unbridled Rage, the Path of the Berserker is the quintessential subclass for the DnD 5e Barbarian. It’s also one that’s been completely untouched since it was first introduced in the 2014, despite the fact that the game mechanics and player expectations of the Barbarian have changed over the past decade.
Now, these aggro adventurers are getting a major overhaul in the pages of the 2024 Player’s Handbook. This includes a number of key enhancements, including upgrades to their Frenzy and Intimidating Presence abilities, as well as a few minor tweaks to other core features.
So is the Path of the Berserker still a fast and furious subclass option for Barbarian fans? Below, we hack apart all the details.
What’s changed in the new 2024 Path of the Berserker Barbarian?
Below are all the changes to the 2024 Path of the Berserker in DnD 5e. For ease of reference we’ve included the level and whether the feature has changed from 2014. It’s important to note that both the old and the new version of the subclass still fall under the DnD 5e core rules.
| Path of the Berserker Feature | Level | Changed from 2014? | Changes to the 2024 Path of the Berserker Barbarian |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frenzy | 3 | Yes | Frenzy now deals extra damage instead of giving extra attacks and no longer providesExhaustion. |
| Mindless Rage | 6 | Yes | If you have the Frightened or Charmed condition it ends when you enter a Mindless Rage (in the 2014 version these conditions were only suspended until your Mindless Rage ended). |
| Retaliation | 10 | Yes | In the 2014 version, this feature was available at Level 14. You can now also use your Reaction to attack using either a melee weapon or an Unarmed Strike (in the 2014 version, you could only use a melee weapon). |
| Intimidating Presence | 14 | Yes | In the 2014 version, this feature was available at Level 10. It also now lasts for 1 minute (in the 2014 version it lasted only a single turn). The target’s Wisdom saving throw DC is also now equal to to 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Strength modifier (the 2014 version added your Charisma modifier instead of Strength). Additionally, the target creature can now try and save on subsequent rounds (in the 2014 version, you could only attempt to extend the effect again on your next turn). Finally, you can use this once every Long Rest (in the 2014 version it could only be used once every 24 hours). |
What are the Path of the Berserker features for 2024 DnD 5e?
Below are the full list of all the features using the new 2024 core rules. Where applicable we have called out details to the changes that have been made from the 2014 Path of the Berserker.
Level 3: Frenzy
If you use Reckless Attack while your Rage is active, you deal extra damage to the first target you hit on your turn with a Strength-based attack. To determine the extra damage, roll a number of d6s equal to your Rage Damage bonus, and add them together. The damage has the same type as the weapon or Unarmed Strike used for the attack.
Notably, the 2014 version of Frenzy allowed you to can make a single melee weapon attack as a bonus action on each of your turns while raging, granting one level of exhaustion when your rage ended.
Level 6: Mindless Rage
You have Immunity to the Charmed and Frightened conditions while your Rage is active. If you’re Charmed or Frightened when you enter your Rage, the condition ends on you.
In the 2014 version of this Feature, your Charmed and Frightened condition was only temporarily suspended for the duration of your rage.
Level 10: Retaliation
When you take damage from a creature that is within 5 feet of you, you can take a Reaction to make one melee attack against that creature, using a weapon or an Unarmed Strike.
Notably, in the 2014 version you could only use your Reaction to make a melee attack. Also, this Feature was previously available at Level 14.
Level 14: Intimidating Presence
As a Bonus Action, you can strike terror into others with your menacing presence and primal power. When you do so, each creature of your choice in a 30-foot Emanation originating from you must make a Wisdom saving throw (DC 8 plus your Strength modifier and Proficiency Bonus). On a failed save, a creature has the Frightened condition for 1 minute. At the end of each of the Frightened creature’s turns, the creature repeats the save, ending the effect on itself on a success. Once you use this feature, you can’t use it again until you finish a Long Rest unless you expend a use of your Rage (no action required) to restore your use of it.
In the 2014 version, this Feature was available at Level 10. It also used your Charisma modifier rather than your Strength modifier when determining the Wisdom DC for the target. It also only lasted a single turn (although it could be extended with an action in the next turn) and it only recharged once every 24 hours, rather than on a Long Rest.
Is the New 2024 Path of the Berserker Barbarian worth playing?
The Path of the Berserker is one of the most iconic subclasses and it’s great to see it continue to exist for the new 2024 Barbarian. The changes that Wizards of the Coast have rolled out fo the Berserker seem solid, with a few minor quality-of-life enhancements to Mindless Rage and Retaliation, and some more significant enhancements to Frenzy and Intimidating Presence that legitimately make both features far more useful and impactful.
You can find the complete rules for the new Path of the Berserker Barbarian in the 2024 Player’s Handbook, which is available now onD&D BeyondandAmazon.
Below is also a video from the official Dungeons & Dragons YouTube channel, with DnD lead designer Jeremy Crawford offering details on the rationale behind the changes to to the subclass.
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