Feb 19

Feb 19 Equipment Packs - The Barbarian

Many a player fashions his barbarian character on Conan the Barbarian - big sword, loincloth and not much else. Where exactly are they keeping their equipment? Even the barbarians that are from the cold northern lands, who fashion animal pelts into coats and clothing never seem to have a backpack on their person. Also, how would a barbarian keep his backpack on when he’s raging?

The barbarian starts with an explorer’s pack. Let’s take a look at the equipment in the explorer's pack and why it does or does not makes sense.

Backpack - See above
Bedroll - So after the battle with the evil Sahaugin strikeforce, covered in the blood of his fallen victims and need of a rest, do you picture the barbarian carefully rolling out his comfy bedroll and settling down for a nap? Of course not. The barbarian is one with the land, relying on his internal rage and animal instincts to survive. Our barbarian would lie down on the first piece of dirt he or she saw, pulling up a rock as a soft pillow
Mess Kit - Even more ridiculous than the barbarian having a bedroll is he or she having a mess kit.
“Sitting down to eat, Grak the barbarian pulls his 6-inch plate with matching fork and knife set out of his backpack. With the same skill that he uses with his axe, Grak slices through the rabbit with his knife, cutting it up into chewable pieces.”
Nope, not going to happen. If Grak hasn’t already buried his face in the deer that he probably chased down himself and killed with his bare hands, then he surely would be carrying around its leg like a fat person with a turkey leg at the county fair.
Tinderbox and torches - Fire to light your way in the dungeon. I get it, especially when you don’t have dark vision of any sort. But a torch doesn’t give you that much vision, especially not 20 feet. What it does do is illuminate you. The creature 10 feet away is barely visible, but you are completely visible to them.
Once again I’ll ask the question - why always 10 torches? I think it was just a nice round number which made it easy to use and to remember. I’m sure I will be asking the same question every time until I get a satisfactory answer. Players hate having to use any sort of light-producing item, as it limits their ability to use a two-handed weapon or a shield. This being said, they are an important part of the game, especially if your campaign is more of a dungeon dive campaign. If 10 torches are the number that you buy (maybe that’s the only way they sell them in the general store), then the barbarian should be borrowing one from a party member if they need him to carry it. Otherwise, that responsibility should be on a character that isn’t your front line of defense.
Waterskin- The original water bottle. All players need one, even though most DM’s don’t keep track of food or water unless playing an integral role in the campaign. The waterskin provides flavor more than anything, as many a player has had their character, in this case, their barbarian takes a heroic swig of wine from their waterskin before heading into battle.
Rope - It can be argued that every player needs rope eventually. I’m sure they do, but until that happens, it seems silly for more than one party member to be carrying 50 ft. of rope. The barbarian should not be this player. As your front line attacker, he should not have the responsibility for carrying these types of items. The utility character in your party should probably have the rope.

I know I’ve taken a humorous look at most of these items, but I hope you get the underlying point - the barbarian needs few if any of the items listed above. He can chip in some gold for the party member that does buy the needed equipment, but for him to start with an explorer’s pack is silly.

What does our barbarian hero need to start his career with, and how is he going to carry it around? Probably not much, but let’s get serious now and kick our friend Grak, the imposter Conan, to the curb and take a hard look at what realistically a barbarian would need to start with.

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Belt (3 sp. - From 2nd edition PHB) - The may seem like a redundant item to put on the list as it is assumed that most armor would be fashioned with a belt, but this is what we will be hanging most of you items on, so it’s crucial. Depending on what armor they decide to take, it’s a good question to ask your DM. A well-crafted leather belt can hold up 10 pounds, more if you want to spend the money to get yourself a batman utility-style belt. Most reasonable DM’s will have it included with their armor purchases if it makes sense, but if not, 3 silver isn’t a lot to spend.
Satchel (1 gp) - There is no listing that I have found on any equipment table for a satchel, which is odd considering how many of the illustrations have characters wearing. I took the cost of the backpack and halved it, which seems appropriate to me. While smaller than a backpack, the satchel can be attached to a character’s belt, or have a strap so it can be worn over the shoulder (No man purse comments please). This gives quick access to something they may need, eliminating the need to take off the backpack and rummage around till you find it. A satchel can easily be slipped off one’s shoulder right before combat starts too.
Waterskin (2 sp.) or Flask (2cp) - For that heroic swig of wine. A small water skin could easily hang from a belt or could be stored in the satchel
Journeybread (5 gp. each, 2 total in the pack. 4th edition PHB) - I will be using this as a replacement for rations for all of the classes. If you wish to use rations you are welcome to do so, just think about how many a player could carry if they only have a satchel. Journeybread is described as such: This magic bread fills the stomach and provides all necessary nutrients with only a few small bites, so you can carry food for a long journey without weighing yourself down. I know people may have a problem giving the barbarian a “magic” item right off the bat, and once again, if you do, just give them rations. Instead of calling it a magic item, I’d consider it an item that would be created through the use of specialized cooking skills. A nice cooking system can be found here.
I feel that this simplifies the entire food issue in a nice clean way and reduces the space needed to store your meals. They are expensive, but you only need them when exploring a dungeon, as most of the time you can just kill some poor woodland creatures for your dinner, besides you could always call it Lembas bread if you want it to be elfy.
Hunting Knife (2 gp.) - A small dagger, (it would do 1d4 damage if needed in a fight) but primarily used for carving up your dinner. Barbarians have the option of taking a simple weapon, and I’m sure many do. It’s a flavor piece, and what character can’t use another dagger?
Whetstone (1 cp.) - To sharpen that hunting knife and massive battleaxe you carry around

That’s it. The prices listed above are if you bought each item individually, but the Barbarian pack itself would cost 13 gp. which is only 3 more than the Explorer Pack. As your primary front line fighter, the barbarian shouldn’t be tasked with carrying the mundane equipment for the party. Barbarian smash things, not carry things. That’s what you have Bards for right?

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