Barbarians in Baldur’s Gate 3 are about one thing — dealing damage. That makes them an easy class to build for since everything should feed into that one goal. Still, there are a lot of Feats in Baldur’s Gate 3 that can help increase your damage, so choosing just three to focus on can be a challenge.
The Best Feats for Barbarians in Baldur’s Gate 3
It would be wise to spend one of your Feats on Ability Improvement with Barbarian. Other classes might be able to do without it in favor of more situational Feats. For Barbarians, though, getting another +1 bonus to your Strength modifier means you hit harder and more often. An easy pick.
Still, making a solid damage dealer is about more than just pumping up your stats. For your other Feats, you have more room to customize how your Barbarian plays. Here are the ones worth trying.
- Great Weapon Master – Barbarians are at their best with a massive weapon in their hands. Great Weapon Master makes the most of that, letting you take a -5 attack roll penalty in exchange for +10 damage with heavy weapons. If you land a critical hit or lower a target’s HP to 0 in melee, you can also use your bonus action to make another attack.
- Savage Attacker – Savage Attacker is a no-brainer for Barbarians. Ideally, you’ll be rolling weapon damage at least once per turn, and this Feat gives you advantage on every one of those rolls. Especially when you factor in extra attacks, the bonus damage can stack up quickly.
- Weapon Master – Baldur’s Gate 3 is packed with weapons that give their wielders helpful effects. Taking Weapon Master gives you proficiency in four additional weapons and increases your Strength by 1. That can help ensure you’re able to use the best weapons in the game and increase your damage at the same time.
- Martial Adept – One downside to Barbarians is their limited tool set. Doing damage is great, but they don’t have many utility options. Martial Adept lets you take two maneuvers from the Fighter’s Battle Master subclass, which can grant you fancy effects like disarming enemies, forcing them to attack you, or even giving your allies extra attacks.
A standard but totally effective Barbarian build would use Ability Improvement to increase Strength, then add Great Weapon Master and Savage Attacker to boost damage. If you want more weapon options, you could replace Great Weapon Master with Weapon Master, or take Martial Adept instead to add some crowd-control potential.
There are plenty of non-standard ways to build a Barbarian. For a more specialized strategy, some of these Feats could be a better fit:
- Charger – Charger isn’t the best Barbarian Feat, but you could make an argument that it’s the most fun. This Feat grants you two new abilities that let you dash across the battlefield and either attack or shove enemies. It can be a lifesaver when you need a little extra distance to make an attack and maintain your Rage. But more importantly, charging through combat like a bull with a battleaxe is a lot of fun.
- Sentinel – Like other frontline fighters, Barbarians can use Sentinel to keep allies safe since it stops enemies in their tracks when you land an opportunity attack (which you’ll also get advantage on). In addition, Sentinel lets you use your reaction to attack any enemy who strikes an ally in melee range.
- Polearm Master – Polearms are a great choice for Barbarians, as they have a longer range than other melee weapons, meaning you’re less likely to end your Rage early by running out of targets. Polearm Master gives you a bonus action attack and lets you take an opportunity attack when an enemy enters melee range. Those are both useful skills, but since you can already get bonus actions and reactions from Barbarian subclasses and other Feats, you should only take Polearm Master if you’re sure you need it.
- Tavern Brawler – This one is deeply niche, but building your entire character around Tavern Brawler can be a good time. This Feat doubles your Strength modifier on attack and damage rolls when you’re unarmed, using an improvised weapon, or throwing things. Combined with the throw attack from the Berserker subclass, you can build a character that specializes in causing a ruckus even without a weapon equipped.
