While Dungeons & Dragons has a class dedicated to unarmed combat, some players seek out a more brutal option. Although the Monk class is built around using unarmed kicks, punches, and strikes as their primary means of dealing damage, it’s also not a true tank class. While monks get a high AC, they are most effective at flitting around the battlefield with theirplayers to flit around the battlefield with their high movement and disabling opponents with their Stunning Strike ability. Some players want the option of punching their opponents into submission, while still acting as more of a tank for their party.
Luckily, the DMs Guild has a few alternatives for players looking to roll up their sleeves and throw hands. The newly released Path of the Brawler Barbarian subclass by Crit Academy combines a few monk abilities with a fun grappling technique that will keep just about any enemy from escaping. The Path of the Brawler allows players to increase their damage dice while punching, and gives them an extra unarmed attack as a bonus action. At higher levels, the Brawler Barbarian can use their immense strength to grab and drag around their opponents (either moving them into range of their allies, or further away to prevent them from hurting squishier allies) and eventually knock their opponents prone while grappling or using a reaction to re-grapple any opponent that manages to squeeze out of your hold.
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The Pugilist class by Benjamin Huffman is another option for players looking for a more violent means of beating down foes. The Pugilist class (which is featured in Matt Colville’s The Chain webshow) involves a pool of “moxie points” that players can use to boost their HP, make extra attacks, or even rush into (or out of combat) a bit quicker. As a Pugilist increases in level, not only do their punches become even stronger, they also gain resistance to different types of damage and can pick up a subclass that refines their fighting style into that of a dirty fighter, a submission specialist, or even a fighter with a dog companion. The Pugilist is a complex class that offers a lot of flavor for players who are looking to play as someone that can punch a dragon in the snout or just beat up any comers in a bar fight.
Both supplements are available on the DMs Guild. The Path of the Brawler supplement is available for $1.95 and the Pugilist supplement is available for $2.95.
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