Editing Complete Book Series (section)

===The Complete Barbarian's Handbook===
Whilst the [[Barbarian]] is iconic to [[Dungeons & Dragons]] in the modern era, the truth is that the raging, near-naked warrior with a big axe of 3e was almost as much a 3rd edition invention as the [[Sorcerer (Dungeons & Dragons)|Sorcerer]]. There was a "Barbarian" class in AD&D, but it differed in some very marked ways from its 3e progeny - called the "Barbarian Fighter", it was a warrior class with enhanced mobility and some baked-in cultural assumptions, but completely lacking the now-iconic Rage mechanics.

The AD&D concept of a Barbarian was strictly tied to [[Conan the Barbarian]]: a "primitive" warrior hero from a rugged region whose dominant culture was pre-Iron Age. Thus, this book is a double-duty book, covering variant [[fighter]]s and [[cleric]]s hailing from those "savage" cultures that rely on hunter-gathering lifestyles and have no capacity for blacksmithing. It has acquired a certain... [[/pol/|unsavory cast in modern times]].

The first chapter is Character Creation. Here, were presented with the Barbarian class (a variant [[fighter]]) and the Shaman class (a variant [[cleric]]). They are hardier and more mobile than their mainstay counterparts, and possess a knack for wilderness survival, but lack access to armor outside of the leather & hide group, whilst shamans have restricted spellcasting and turn undead capabilities.

Chapter 2 is Special Characteristics, which examines the underlying socio-cultural elements used to define "barbarians", such as a cultural aversion to magic, examples of "talismans" (the shamanic version of holy symbols), interaction with the concept of money, language, strongholds, followers, and general behavioral quirks.

Chapter 3 is the inevitable [[kits]] chapter, divided into Fighter Kits and Cleric Kits. It also addresses the idea of demi-barbarians - barbarians of the [[dwarf]] or [[elf]] races - and rules for dual & multiclassed barbarians. Barbarians & shamans can only dual-class or multiclass into each other
* Brushrunner: A plains barbarian fighter specialized in hunting food by running it down, making him incredibly fast even by barbarian standards, but restricting his armor usage.
* Brute: The most savage and low-cultured of the barbarian fighters, this is your standard pulpy caveman type.
* Forest Lord: A barbarian fighter with a totemic allegiance to a specific kind of animal, giving him some minor druidic abilities. Basically, this is the kit for if you want to play [[Tarzan]].
* Islander: A barbarian fighter hailing from an aquatic culture, who is thus used to surviving and fighting on boats or in the water. More magical than some, he has innate shapechanging abilities and the ability to create his own magical weapon.
* Plainsrider: A barbarian fighter from the plains and deserts specialized in mounted warfare and archery.
* Ravager: The most stereotypical of barbarian fighters, a muscular behemoth whose berserk fury is his deadliest weapon.
* Wizard Slayer: A barbarian fighter specially raised and trained to combat wizards and other practitioners of dark magic.
* Dreamwalker: A barbarian shaman specialized in the spiritual world, which is touched upon by dreams.
* Flamespeaker: A barbarian shaman who has a unique relationship with fire.
* Medicine (Wo)Man: A barbarian shaman specialized in healing and counselling others.
* Seer: A barbarian shaman specialized in divination and omen-reading.
* Spiritist: A barbarian shaman specialized in communing with and currying favor with the animistic spirits of the world.
* Witch(wo)man: A barbarian shaman based on your standard pulp fantasy voodoo priest.

Chapter 4 is an examination of proficiencies, listing all of the old ones that barbarians can access or which may need special rules, as well as a number of new proficiencies.

Chapter 5 is all about weapons and equipment, starting with answering the question of "so, why doesn't my barbarian want to learn how to use the more durable and sharper iron axe instead of his old flint axe?"

Chapter 6 looks at Barbarian Cultures in more detail, aiming to provide players & DMs with a better guide to fleshing out the societies from which barbarian PCs and NPCs come from.

Chapter 7 looks at how to roleplay a barbarian, including just why your "primitive" character is running around with more advanced cultural characters.