Goliath 5e: The Complete Species Guide

Goliaths are large, gray-skinned, mountain-dwelling people who look like the rest of us tried and failed to be rocks. They're competitive, driven, and pragmatic. They live in harsh environments. They judge everyone (including themselves) by their contributions to the group.

Mechanically, Goliaths are a Strength-focused species with best-in-class damage reduction and environmental resistance.

Base Goliath Traits

Goliaths get:

• +2 Strength, +1 Constitution.
• Age: Similar to Human.
• Size: Medium (but tall: often 7+ feet).
• Speed: 30 feet.
• Natural Athlete: Proficiency in Athletics.
• Stone's Endurance: Reaction to reduce damage by 1d12 + Con mod. Once per short rest.
• Powerful Build: Count as one size larger for carrying, pushing, pulling, and lifting.
• Mountain Born: Acclimated to high altitude and cold.
• Languages: Common + Giant.

Stone's Endurance

Reaction, reduce incoming damage by 1d12 + Con mod. Once per short rest.

At level 1 with Con 14, you reduce damage by 1d12+2 on average. That's 8.5 damage reduction per use. At level 5 with Con 16, 1d12+3 = 9.5. At level 11 with Con 20, 1d12+5 = 11.5.

This is a reactive damage reduction that works against any damage type. Fire damage? Reduce it. Psychic damage? Reduce it. Big physical hit? Reduce it. All of them.

Combined with Barbarian's Rage resistance, a Goliath Barbarian effectively halves damage and then reduces the remainder by Stone's Endurance. Very hard to hurt.

Powerful Build

You carry as a Large creature. Your weapon options don't change (still restricted to Medium-sized weapons), but push/pull/lift/grapple bonuses are significant. You can grapple creatures up to Large (normally Medium's limit would be Small).

This is great for grappler builds. A Goliath Fighter with Grappler or Expertise in Athletics can grapple giants.

Class Combos

Goliath + Barbarian. The textbook pair. +2 Str + 1 Con + Powerful Build + Stone's Endurance turns a Barbarian into a walking fortress. Path of the Totem Warrior (Bear, if available) with Goliath is one of the toughest builds in the game.

Goliath + Fighter. +2 Str + Con + damage reduction. Champion or Battle Master both work.

Goliath + Paladin. Strength + Con, though we lose some Cha. Still a viable heavy-hitter build.

Goliath + Ranger. Strength-based Ranger for two-handed weapons. Less common but works.

Goliath in Solo Play

Goliaths are S-tier solo, especially for melee characters:

Strengths:

• Stone's Endurance. A guaranteed damage reduction per short rest.
• +2 Strength. Perfect for martial classes.
• Powerful Build. Grappling larger enemies is an often-overlooked combat advantage.
• Natural Athlete. Free skill proficiency.

Weaknesses:

• No Darkvision. Surprising miss for a mountain-dwelling species. Get a light source.

Solo Goliath is about damage resilience. Stone's Endurance once per short rest is another "survive a big hit" button.

For more, see our classes ranked for solo play.

Final Verdict

Goliath is one of the strongest Strength-based species in the game. Best pair: Goliath Barbarian with a greatsword.

Start a Goliath on The Endlessness, pick Barbarian, and see how many hits you can reduce to nothing.

For more, see our character creation guide.