barb build advice

[tdf]

I am a new player to DDO and went straight to barb, due to my past gaming experience, and so far I am very happy.
There is a lot to learn with this game and I am trying to read as much as possible but seem to be overwhelmed by the sheer volume of information and I find a lot of it to be several years old.

So for this build, I really just want a hack and slash barb, I don't want to have to worry about clicking on the action bar to activate skills, I would prefer as many passive skills as possible while I learn my way around.

I originally just wanted pure barb, but recently saw a discussion about adding in a couple levels of fighter but never the exact reasons.

Anyway my point is, I would love a few pointers, just some simple advice if that is possible.

As I learn this game I am sure I will get more into the deeper parts of the game.

Thank you so much.

[unbongwah]

Caveat: Turbine is planning some significant balance changes which will rejigger the best DPS options. They're also planning to nerf Blood Strength, which is the primary source of barbs' self-healing right now. So the best barb build today might not be the best barb build next update, particularly in epic levels.

For now, though, Zoda is your best option for a first-life pure barb. Don't let the tomes and gear throw you off; all you really need is max STR, at least 10 pts of CON, with the remaining stat pts spread where you like. [Zoda puts it into DEX for higher Reflex saves.] Human works best for the extra feat and racial Damage Boost, but any race is fine. I might suggest using slashing weapons (greataxes & falchions) for heroic leveling, then switch to mauls in epics; what makes mauls desirable in epic lvls is that Crit Rage and Pulverizer stack, but without that bonus, other weapons are as good or better.

[UurlockYgmeov]

Caveat: Turbine is planning some significant balance changes which will rejigger the best DPS options. They're also planning to nerf Blood Strength, which is the primary source of barbs' self-healing right now. So the best barb build today might not be the best barb build next update, particularly in epic levels.

For now, though, Zoda is your best option for a first-life pure barb. Don't let the tomes and gear throw you off; all you really need is max STR, at least 10 pts of CON, with the remaining stat pts spread where you like. [Zoda puts it into DEX for higher Reflex saves.] Human works best for the extra feat and racial Damage Boost, but any race is fine. I might suggest using slashing weapons (greataxes & falchions) for heroic leveling, then switch to mauls in epics; what makes mauls desirable in epic lvls is that Crit Rage and Pulverizer stack, but without that bonus, other weapons are as good or better.

^^^ yep this.

[tdf]

Thank you. Very straightforward sound advice.

It appears I was not far off of the Zoda build on my enhancements.

You mentioned using a maul, would being a dwarf and taking dwarven weapon training be helpful or not enough to stray from the path set out by Zoda.

Thanks again, extremely helpful and much appreciated.

[unbongwah]

You mentioned using a maul, would being a dwarf and taking dwarven weapon training be helpful or not enough to stray from the path set out by Zoda.

No: Zoda spends almost all of his APs on Ravager and Frenzied Berserker, which provides the best combination of DPS and self-healing. Unfortunately, this leaves only 1 or 2 APs to spend in your racial PrE (or Occult Slayer); which means you want the race with the most free perks and that's human.

For dwarf fans who don't mind a bit of gimpiness for flavor, there are a couple of CON-based dwarf barb builds out there, designed to take advantage of Throw Your Weight Around (TYWA) which subs CON for STR to dmg with dwarven weapons; plus OS capstone which provides Spell Resistance (SR) equal to your CON score. They're lower DPS than Zoda (or Redsonja), but the OS capstone is perhaps the only way to hit endgame-worthy SR; and if Blood Strength gets nerfed, One Spirit becomes a more attractive alternative.

https://www.ddo.com/forums/showthrea...arbarian-Build
https://www.ddo.com/forums/showthrea...rven-Barbarian