calculating attack dice for Brawler / Barbarian with Brawler Rage power

[Corragh Bearson]

I'm sure someone must have asked this already but it's not coming up in search. Barbarian's get a rage power called "Brawler" that bumps unarmed damage while raging for a normal sized barb with improved unarmed strike from 1d3 to 1d6. It doesn't account for cases where the character is climbing the Monk/Brawler unarmed damage tree and are already doing d6 or higher since you can't multiclass monk and barbarian and the Brawler class didn't exist yet when the Brawler rage power was written.

Since the Brawler Rage power effect is to bump unarmed damage by one step when raging, it should have the same effect on a Brawler/Barbarian who happens to have started up higher up the chain. Right? So a 2 Brawler/2 Barbarian with the Brawler rage power who starts at 1d6 unarmed would go to 1d8 while raging.

Is this legit? Or does the Brawler Rage power simply have no impact on a pc with Brawler class levels?

An errata on this would be awesome.

[blahpers]

RAW, the brawler rage power would actually reduce your unarmed strike damage at sufficiently high levels. Avoid it.

[Mystic Lemur]

Corragh Bearson wrote:

Since the Brawler Rage power effect is to bump unarmed damage by one step when raging, it should have the same effect on a Brawler/Barbarian who happens to have started up higher up the chain. Right?

No. The power does exactly what it says it does, give you IUS or 1d6 damage if you already have IUS. It doesn't say anything about increasing the damage you normally deal, if higher.

[Imbicatus]

The brawler power sets unarmed damage to 1d6. Period. If your unarmed strike damage was already 1d6, it does nothing. If your unarmed strike damage was 1d8 or more, it actually lowers it.

You are better off with a different rage power.