What is a Brutal Critical in D&D?
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A Brutal Critical is a potent class feature exclusive to the Barbarian in Dungeons & Dragons (5th Edition). It enhances the devastating impact of a critical hit. Specifically, when a Barbarian scores a critical hit with a melee weapon attack, they roll additional weapon damage dice beyond the standard crit damage. The number of these extra dice scales with the Barbarian’s level, making them increasingly formidable in combat as they progress. Unlike some similar features, Brutal Critical’s extra dice are not doubled during the crit calculation itself.
In essence, Brutal Critical is a passive damage booster specifically designed for critical hits that rewards a Barbarian’s aggressive melee combat style. It encourages players to aim for those exciting, high-stakes moments, transforming a successful critical hit into a truly devastating attack.
How Brutal Critical Works
Here’s a more detailed breakdown of the Brutal Critical mechanic:
- Trigger: The feature activates when a Barbarian scores a critical hit with a melee weapon attack. A critical hit occurs when the player rolls a natural 20 on their attack roll, and it automatically hits the target.
- Additional Damage Dice: The Barbarian rolls one or more additional weapon damage dice, determined by their level, on top of the normal damage dice for a critical hit.
- 9th Level: The Barbarian rolls one additional weapon damage die.
- 13th Level: The Barbarian rolls two additional weapon damage dice.
- 17th Level: The Barbarian rolls three additional weapon damage dice.
- Not Doubled: It’s essential to note that these extra damage dice from Brutal Critical are not doubled as part of the critical hit’s usual doubling of damage dice. They are simply added to the doubled damage dice for the weapon.
- Melee Weapon Attack: The crucial limitation here is that the Brutal Critical only works with melee weapon attacks. Ranged attacks or spell attacks do not benefit from this feature.
Example of Brutal Critical in Action
Let’s consider a 13th-level Barbarian wielding a greatsword (2d6 damage) and scores a critical hit:
- Normal Critical Hit: Instead of rolling 2d6 once, they roll it twice: (2d6) + (2d6).
- Brutal Critical: At 13th level, they get to add two additional weapon damage dice: (2d6) + (2d6) + (2d6).
- Total Damage: The Barbarian rolls 6d6 plus any relevant ability modifiers or other damage bonuses, dealing an impressive amount of damage.
Brutal Critical FAQs
To further clarify the intricacies of Brutal Critical and its interaction with other rules in D&D, here are some frequently asked questions:
What is a critical hit in D&D?
A critical hit occurs when a player rolls a natural 20 on their attack roll with a d20. This roll always hits the target regardless of their AC. The damage dice associated with the attack are usually doubled. This makes critical hits powerful damage spikes.
How does the game decide what gets doubled on a critical hit?
When you score a crit, you typically double the damage dice that you roll. Other non-dice damage bonuses such as ability score modifiers, flat damage, and the like are not doubled, they’re applied only once. This is true for spells and weapons.
Does Brutal Critical get doubled on a critical hit?
No. The additional damage dice granted by the Brutal Critical feature are not themselves doubled. They are added to the doubled damage dice rolled from the normal attack.
Is Brutal Critical the same as Savage Attacks?
No, these are separate features. Brutal Critical is exclusive to the Barbarian class. Savage Attacks is a racial trait of Half-Orcs which provides one additional weapon damage die on a crit. Savage Attacks also does not have its extra die doubled during the crit calculation either.
Can you have both Savage Attacks and Brutal Critical?
Yes. A Half-Orc Barbarian can indeed have both features, allowing them to roll extra damage dice on a critical hit, with Savage Attacks adding one die and Brutal Critical adding one, two, or three (depending on Barbarian level). Both the Savage Attack die and the Brutal Critical dice are added to the doubled damage dice from the weapon.
Does a critical hit automatically hit?
Yes, a critical hit, triggered by rolling a natural 20 on an attack roll, will always hit regardless of the target’s Armor Class (AC).
Can spells crit in D&D 5e?
Yes, spells that require an attack roll can crit, just like weapon attacks. Spells that require saving throws do not crit. For spells that do crit, the usual rules for crit damage applies (double damage dice, add non-die damage only once.)
What happens on a critical failure (nat 1) in D&D?
When making an attack roll in D&D, rolling a natural 1 is a critical failure and automatically misses, regardless of any attack bonuses. It also does not apply to any other type of roll.
Does Great Weapon Fighting affect a brutal critical?
Great Weapon Fighting allows a character to reroll the damage dice of a melee weapon attack made with a heavy weapon. When used on a crit, the dice from the attack, and dice from Brutal Critical, may be rerolled, but you use the new results, regardless of whether it was higher or lower. You cannot reroll the dice a second time.
What is the 65% rule in D&D?
The 65% rule is a rough guideline suggesting that characters should have roughly a 65% chance to hit their intended targets for balanced gameplay. It is not a hard and fast rule. It is rather used to determine how effective the character is compared to what the game expects.
What is the Golden Rule of D&D?
The Golden Rule of D&D is that the Dungeon Master (DM) has the final say on any matter related to rules or gameplay. They can interpret rules as they see fit and even change them to enhance the fun of the game.
What is Sage Advice in D&D?
Sage Advice is a collection of official rulings, clarifications, and answers to rules questions provided by the developers of D&D 5e. It’s an official reference point for settling rules disputes.
What happens if you have over 100% crit chance in a game?
While D&D doesn’t use a percentage-based crit chance system, some other games do. Typically if your crit chance exceeds 100%, you will have a guaranteed critical hit and will then calculate the remaining crit percent as a chance to deal additional crit damage.
What does the 5-foot rule mean in D&D?
The term refers to the method of moving 5 feet in the middle of a movement to avoid an attack of opportunity. It is not an official rule, rather it’s a common interpretation of the rules. An actual 5-foot step isn’t a thing. You may move up to your full movement speed and then stop and be out of the threatened range.
What is the Take 20 rule in D&D?
The Take 20 rule is an optional rule allowing players to spend a significant amount of time performing a skill, and then be assumed to have succeeded by attempting the skill repeatedly. This is only when you are allowed to have repeated attempts. It is typically used for mundane skills.