Play Your Next 5E D&D Game as an Extreme Brawler

Over at Nerdarchy the YouTube channel Nerdarchists Dave and Ted knuckle down to punch up a fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons character. One of the Fighting Styles in Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything creates an opportunity to explore a popular concept and one we think is really fun and cool and now it’s got mechanical support — no reflavoring necessary! Woe be to the unfortunate enemy squaring off
against the Extreme Brawler character whose fists become deadly weapons. These 5E D&D brawlers are tough enough to stay in the fight no matter the odds. Let’s get into it.

Behind the CBG — Extreme Brawler

Every CBG we create considers the journey as much as the final outcome. We aim to present a guide suitable for any level of 5E D&D play whether you’re pursuing an epic campaign from start to finish, starting beyond 1st level or choosing a character for a one shot. Then we take those concepts and develop an NPC or creature version of the character build for DMs to incorporate into their games. All of this gets packaged up and laid out in a PDF you can find over at Dungeon Master’s Guild. We’ve got dozens of pay what you want products at DMG, many of them best sellers so if you want to check those out start with the Extreme Brawler here.

All about the character story

Each CBG starts with a character concept sticking to a particular schtick, from the Mind Breaker’s psyche crushing smites to the Extreme Brawler’s narrative journey to fisticuffs superiority. Sometimes puns and pop culture references instigate the creation of a CBG too. The mechanics of the Extreme Brawler aren’t too complex so the story seed for the character became a focal point for decision making along the way. By the time we got to the end we felt like we had a strong understanding of this character’s identity as an individual.

For us it’s important to consider who these characters are as individuals and why they follow these particular paths. One special thing to note with this CBG is while we always aim to make the journey to 20th level as practical as possible — none of these characters “come online” after an awkward slog through many levels — the Extreme Brawler hits the mark for the core concept at 1st level. By 10th level their bare knuckled repertoire of combat tricks makes them a force to be reckoned with and fulfills our goal for the character very strongly. At higher levels and against foes with special defenses against mundane attacks they may need an assist from an ally or they can put their Strength and skill towards locking an enemy down for others to unload upon. Externally a Eldritch Claw Tattoo would go a long way for the Extreme Brawler as well but magic items like this typically aren’t a player choice.

Extreme Brawler NPC for 5E D&D

Full disclosure — the NPCs and creatures we make in CBGs are some of my favorite bits of 5E D&D content to create. We step back and look at the character build to find the standout features that feel like signature abilities. The juice! From there we consider what sort of person or people would possess or gain these abilities and build a stat block around them. More often than not the section of a CBG For Dungeon Masters presents a generic creature.

We liked the narrative reasons for our choices more than anything else and these had a tremendous impact on our reasoning. This character was born to brawl and their background gives them compelling reasons for why and how. From there the story is yours to discover in your own 5E D&D games. When it came time to create the NPC creature version it really illustrates how versatile the concept can be. To us the Extreme Brawler at the core is a bare fisted warrior. Whether they put this to use in a fighting pit arena or as the champion of their people is up to them.

Pit Champion. The extreme brawler may not make designs on world domination or other malfeasance as a campaign villain but any of the rough and tumble establishments adventurers visit during their quest might boast a local champion. No magic and no holds barred brawls test even the mightiest adventurers in a fight.

“Multiattack. The extreme brawler makes three attacks from among Jab, Cross, Hook and Uppercut in any combination.”

If your next 5E D&D game needs a character who can go the distance with their grit, determination and bare knuckle superiority — whether you’re the DM or a player — check out the Extreme Brawler Character Build Guide here.

*Featured image — A Battle Brawler from Magic: The Gathering’s Fate Reforged expansion looks ready to throw down in a bare knuckled brawl with any contender. This also serves as a good reminder that just because your 5E D&D character is really good at something they can still keep their options open like this orc warrior who may prefer fisticuffs but they’ve still got a sword at their side! [Art by Karl Kopinski]

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