Reckless Attack: A Guide for Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition

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Are you thinking of playing a barbarian character in D&D 5e but want to know more about class features like Reckless Attack? Reckless Attack is easily one of the barbarian class’s most important features, giving barbarians an edge on the battlefield and a greater chance of landing attacks, even against the toughest foes. Read on for a detailed overview of the Reckless Attack feature, including tips on how to use it in-game!

Things You Should Know

Reckless Attack is a level 2 barbarian class feature. For one turn, barbarians can make all Strength-based melee attacks with advantage.
When a barbarian uses Reckless Attack, enemies have advantage on attack rolls against them until the barbarian’s next turn.
Use Reckless Attack to increase your chances of landing critical hits. Beyond that, use it to cancel out disadvantage on attack rolls (so you can roll normally).

What is Reckless Attack in D&D 5e?

Reckless Attack is a powerful barbarian class feature. Starting at level 2, your barbarian can use Reckless Attack and essentially throw caution to the wind, making all Strength-based melee attacks in a turn with advantage. Since the attack is “reckless,” enemies also have advantage on attack rolls against your barbarian until their next turn. Advantage simply means rolling a d20 twice (instead of once) and taking the higher result. So, if you roll with advantage on an attack, that means you have a higher chance of rolling well and hitting an enemy. Similarly, enemies that roll with advantage against your PC (player character) have a higher chance of hitting them.

How does Reckless Attack work?

Choose to do a Reckless Attack while making the first attack of your turn. When you decide to use Reckless Attack, announce it before making your first attack. Then, roll that attack (and additional attacks, if you have the Extra Attack feature) with advantage. Barbarians get an extra attack at level 5—so after that, they can make 2 Reckless Attacks per action. Reckless Attack doesn’t require a bonus action or have a limit on how many times you can use it. So, if you wanted to use Reckless Attack every single turn in combat, you could! Reckless Attack applies to all attacks you make in a single turn—even attacks made on a bonus action if your PC is a dual-wielder.

Reckless Attack with any weapon that uses your Strength modifier. You can’t use Reckless Attack without a melee weapon (meaning it’s used in close-quarters, generally against enemies within 5 feet of you) that’s Strength-based. So, equip weapons that rely on your Strength (STR) modifier—including longswords, greatswords, greataxes, glaives, and halberds. Keep in mind that finesse weapons (including rapiers, scimitars, whips, and daggers) also satisfy this requirement. That’s because can choose between using your PC’s STR and Dexterity (DEX) when wielding finesse weapons. However, ranged or thrown weapons like crossbows, longbows, handaxes, and javelins won’t work with Reckless Attack since it only allows melee attacks.

You can’t use Reckless Attack after making an attack roll. According to the rules of Reckless Attack, you must declare whether you’re using the feature before rolling an attack. If you roll an attack and miss, you can’t retroactively decide to make the attack Reckless—so plan ahead and decide before it’s time for your PC’s turn! Some DMs may let you attack recklessly if your first attack doesn’t hit. Still, that’s a house rule—not an official 5e rule. Since all Reckless Attacks must be made on your PC’s turn, you can’t make reckless attacks of opportunity. Attacks of opportunity are reactions—meaning they don’t take place on your PC’s turn and thus can’t be reckless.

You can trigger sneak attacks by using Reckless Attack. Sneak attacking is a rogue feature; when a rogue has advantage on an attack, they can add extra Sneak Attack damage if they hit. So, if you’re a barbarian and rogue combination, you can use both features together to land more hits and deal more damage to enemies. However, keep in mind that you must wield a finesse weapon to Sneak Attack, but use your STR modifier for a Reckless Attack. Reckless Attack also works with unarmed attacks—since striking with your fists still counts as a melee attack. So, if your PC is a monk and barbarian multiclass, you can use this feature to get advantage on many of your unarmed strikes.

How to Use Reckless Attack

Increase your PC’s chances of scoring a critical hit. The most obvious benefit of Reckless Attack is its increased damage output. With a higher chance to hit enemies, you also have a higher chance of dealing damage on your turn—and a higher chance of making a critical hit, which doubles all of your dice damage for that attack. In other words, Reckless Attack can turn your barbarian into a powerhouse warrior who rarely misses a strike!

Counter disadvantage with Reckless Attack to make a regular roll. Sometimes, the DM might tell you to roll an attack with disadvantage (which means rolling 2d20 and taking the lower result). If you’d rather not deal with that, use Reckless Attack. Advantage and disadvantage cancel each other out—so you’d be able to make a normal attack roll. When you attack with disadvantage, your chances of landing a successful hit go down. Thus, using Reckless Attack can help you level the playing field! For example, say an enemy obscures your barbarian’s vision with a Fog Cloud spell. Normally, obscured vision would mean having disadvantage on attacks—but Reckless Attack can cancel out the disadvantage.

Draw enemy attacks to protect the rest of your PC’s party. You might think that giving enemies advantage against you is a liability—but it can be a benefit! Try positioning your barbarian to be as noticeable as possible on the battlefield, perhaps even blocking enemies from getting to other party members. Then, use Reckless Attack to draw enemy fire away from your allies. Consider this: most enemies need a target to attack, so isn’t it better if they focus on the tough barbarian and not a more delicate class like sorcerer or wizard? In short, Reckless Attack can actually turn your barbarian into the perfect distraction. By making your barbarian an appealing target, you can buy party members time to cast spells or line up their next attacks uninterrupted.

Is Reckless Attack good?

Reckless Attack is super effective, even if it leaves your PC vulnerable. It works especially well with Rage (another essential barbarian class feature). Rage makes your barbarian resistant to damage, while Reckless Attack gives their attacks a better chance of landing. Use those features together, and your barbarian can be a juggernaut on the battlefield. Don’t worry too much about the fact that Reckless Attack gives enemies advantage against your barbarian. Ultimately, it’s a small price to pay for the benefits that come with Reckless Attack. Besides, one of the barbarian class’s defining qualities is its toughness. Barbarians are designed to withstand tons of damage! So, don’t hesitate to use Reckless Attack in battle—especially if there’s a healer close to cast Cure Wounds on your PC.