5 Backstory Ideas for Your Barbarian in Dungeons and Dragons (D&D)

Barbarians are the archetypal tank in D&D. They can take damage all day and they can sure as hell dish it out as well. They’re more likely to serve on the frontlines than sit in the back. Now it’s time to come up with a few quick backstory ideas to help bring your character to life. Here are five intriguing ideas to use in your game, or to build off of to create a unique character you’ll love to play.

#1: The Tribal Warrior

This is the archetype of Barbarians for as long as they’ve been in D&D. The tribal warrior is from the outskirts of civilization, he’s mean and brutal, maybe he doesn’t read very well or speak the common language. This is the Khal Drogo of Barbarians. In earlier editions of D&D barbarians had the Illiteracy feature, in which they couldn’t read and write unless they spent extra skill points to do so. While this is gone in practice, you can still build a character around this idea. Think of what tribe or clan your barbarian may have come from. What job or purpose did they serve when they were a part of the group. Were they always a warrior, or were they a great hunter?

Work with your DM to determine the culture and region your barbarian might be from. It will establish your character in the world, give you family and a tribe to connect to. Why did your character leave? Did he realize that the simple life of the tribe wasn’t for him, or did he want to prove himself against the worst monsters the world had to offer. Maybe the tribe was killed by a neighboring kingdom and he had no choice but to assimilate, or maybe he committed some great crime and was exiled from his tribe until he had atoned.

#2: The Berserker

The center of the Barbarian’s class feature has always been his rage. For the Berserker this rage is a blind bloodlust reminiscent of ancient Viking Warriors. The Berserker flings himself into combat heedless of the consequences, seeing nothing but enemies. In some cases, maybe he knows not friend from foe, swinging into he is tired out or he can be calmed down. The Berserker is a legendary warrior, it fits well into the archetype of the Barbarian. Was your character a soldier who used chanting and natural substances to get into an induced warrior state? Or maybe he’s just a soldier who suffers from PTSD, combat flinging him into a state of kill or be killed action

The Berserker provides the interesting facet of determining what fuels your character’s rage. Even more so than other elements for the barbarian. Maybe the rage is a part of his culture, or maybe he only enters a rage when he sees the creature or people who killed his friends or family. It is up to you to decide what puts him over the edge, truly bringing out the rage within.

#3: The Zealot

This barbarian works well for any character who wants to be a part of a church or monastery. You’ve spent your life in dedication to a higher power, you follow their tenets and traditions, a man of faith. But you are also always prepared to fight for your deity when need be. This gives you options to what god your zealot might be dedicated to, why he left the church, and what causes him reason to pull the sword from his back and fight. You can flavor your rage’s damage resistance as being divine protection or the armor of faith.

Work with your DM on what inspired your zealotry? Maybe you’ve received visions of the future, or your deity might speak to you directly. Maybe after a terrible war or battle, a specific church saved your life, and now you've dedicated your service to them. This backstory also provides you with traditions to follow and contacts to reach out to. You and your party might even have patronage of the church you serve.

#4: The Experiment

Maybe your Barbarian was a product of a wizard or alchemist. Maybe the king or queen is looking to produce the perfect warrior to serve in their armies. Either way, you were given fighting skills beyond normal measure in order to serve another master. This could be an alchemical solution that flows through your veins, or maybe runic magic embedded into your skin. Your rage is an activation of the experiment, pushing you to new heights of skill.

This backstory gives you options to flavor your barbarian abilities in different ways. Either magical abilities or alchemically heightened senses. You can decide if you still serve the one who made you this way, or maybe you defeated them and fled. Maybe you simply escaped and they want you back in their service. The range of possibilities is up to you and your DM.

#5: The Cursed

The most outlandish idea on this list as always saved for last. Perhaps your character is cursed with bouts of rage, this could be by a fey queen, a hag, or they could even be bitten by a lycanthrope (such as a werewolf). Their rages turn them into something awful, the magic causing them to do things they wouldn’t normally. The Beast and Wild Magic archetypes fit this idea perfectly.

Think of who cursed them and why. What did they deserve to be afflicted by such a curse? Did they insult the one that cursed them, or was it random like in the case of a werewolf? In either case, how has your character’s life been affected by the curse? Maybe they were driven out of town due to the damage they caused, or maybe they felt they had to leave before they hurt anyone. Either way, this backstory idea is one that’s sure to create an interesting adventure.

If you like this article or any others I have written, consider liking, subscribing, tipping or pledging here on Vocal as it really helps me continue writing! If you're looking for other articles about Barbarians, check out the links below!

• Feats for Barbarians
• Magic Items for Barbarians
• Best Berserker Barbarian Build
• Best Storm Herald Barbarian Build

If you're looking for Backstory articles for other classes, follow the links below!

• Barbarian
• Bard
• Cleric
• Druid
• Fighter
• Monk
• Paladin
• Ranger
• Rogue
• Sorcerer
• Warlock
• Wizard