Tribal Warrior 5e NPC Stat Block: Pack Tactics and the 2024 Warrior Infantry

This is the Tribal Warrior NPC stat block from the 2014 rules, a CR 1/8 spear fighter with AC 12 (hide armor), 11 hit points and one trait that carries it: Pack Tactics, advantage on attacks against anyone an ally is standing next to. Alone it's barely a threat. In a group of six it hits like something three times its CR. The 2024 rules replace it with the Warrior Infantry: same CR, same Pack Tactics, a chain shirt for AC 13, and 9 hit points.

Table of Contents

• •Tribal Warrior Stat Block (2014)
• •The 2024 Warrior Infantry
• •How Tribal Warriors Fight
• •How Many Warriors for a Low-Level Party?
• •How Players Beat Pack Tactics
• •Encounter Ideas
• •Frequently Asked Questions

Tribal Warrior Stat Block (2014)

The numbers are those of a trained but lightly equipped fighter: Strength 13, a +3 spear that deals 4 one-handed or 5 two-handed, and a 20/60-foot throw. SRD 5.1 describes these warriors as hunters and fishers who live outside cities and follow a chief. Nothing in the stats depends on that background. It's a block for any group that fights in numbers with spears and light armor: a clan's war band, a village militia, a hunting party, a levy called up for one battle.

The 2024 Warrior Infantry

The 2024 SRD drops the "tribal" name and the description that went with it. The Warrior Infantry is written as a generic foot soldier, the low end of a line that continues with the Warrior Veteran (the 2024 version of the veteran). The old name described a culture; the stats only ever described a role. Use either block for any rank-and-file spear fighter.

In play the two are nearly identical. The infantry is a little harder to hit and a little easier to kill.

How Tribal Warriors Fight

Pack Tactics is the whole plan. A warrior gets advantage on an attack if any ally that isn't incapacitated is within 5 feet of the target. Against AC 16, a +3 attack hits on 13 or better:

Six warriors around two characters average about 19 damage a round (6 × 3.2) with 2014 two-handed spears, roughly 10 per target. That's most of a level 2 wizard's hit points every round, from creatures worth 25 XP each.

Pair up. Always move warriors in twos. The first one into melee turns on the second one's advantage. Assign two warriors to each target rather than spreading out.

Throw with advantage. Pack Tactics works on ranged attacks too. A warrior 20 feet back throws its spear at a character who already has an ally of the warrior next to them, and rolls with advantage. Keep the throwers clear of enemies, since a ranged attack with an enemy within 5 feet has disadvantage, and watch angles: a creature between the thrower and the target can give the target half cover (+2 AC).

Break when the line breaks. A war band or militia follows its leader. When the chief, sergeant or veteran falls, have the rest fall back or surrender.

How Many Warriors for a Low-Level Party?

Each warrior is 25 XP. For a party of four, using the 2024 XP budget:

The 2014 Dungeon Master's Guide guidelines (used by our encounter calculator) are much harsher on mobs. Eight warriors are 200 XP × 2.5 = 500, over the 400 XP Deadly line for four level 1 characters. Given the Pack Tactics math above, that warning is fair. Start a level 1 party with four to six.

How Players Beat Pack Tactics

• •Fight in a corridor. In a 5-foot passage only one warrior can stand next to the front-liner, and it has no ally beside the target, so it attacks without advantage. Warriors behind it can still throw spears with advantage (their friend is adjacent to the target), but through that friend's half cover, +2 AC.
• •Kill or drop the partner. Pack Tactics needs an ally within 5 feet of the target who isn't incapacitated. Kill the warrior next to the fighter and the second warrior loses advantage.
• •Area damage. Burning Hands (3d6) kills a 2014 warrior on a failed save half the time and a 2024 infantry about three times in four. Thunderwave (2d8) kills a 9 HP infantry on a failed save a little under half the time (44%).
• •Stand together. A character standing alone gets surrounded. Two characters back to back limit how many warriors reach each of them.
• •Talk to the leader. A militia or war band defending its home has reasons to accept terms. A good offer and a Persuasion check can end this fight.

Encounter Ideas

The border patrol. Six warriors guard a ford their people have held for generations. They're not hostile, but they won't let armed strangers cross without a toll or a reason. A fight here makes enemies of a whole community; a good conversation earns a guide.

The press-ganged levy. A local lord has drafted farmers as infantry and sent them to stop the party. Use the 2024 Warrior Infantry. Their morale is low: drop one or two and the rest throw down their spears.

The hunting party. Eight hunters are tracking the same owlbear the party is. Cooperation splits the reward. Competition turns into a three-way fight when the owlbear shows up.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the tribal warrior called in the 2024 rules?

The 2024 SRD replaces the Tribal Warrior with the Warrior Infantry. It's still CR 1/8 with Pack Tactics, but has AC 13 from a chain shirt and 9 hit points.

How does Pack Tactics work in 5e?

The creature has advantage on an attack roll against a target if at least one of its allies is within 5 feet of that target and the ally isn't incapacitated. It works for melee and ranged attacks.

What CR is a tribal warrior?

CR 1/8 (25 XP). The 2024 Warrior Infantry is also CR 1/8.

How many tribal warriors should I use against level 1 players?

Four to six is a good fight for four level 1 characters. Under the 2024 budget, eight warriors use the Low budget exactly, but Pack Tactics makes large groups hit harder than their XP suggests.

Stat blocks: System Reference Document 5.1 (2014) and 5.2.1 (2024), Wizards of the Coast, CC-BY-4.0. Tactics, encounter math and ideas are Loreify's own.