Diablo 4: best Barbarian build guide
Diablo 4 is very much built for long-range attackers, as many of our boss guides will confirm — getting up close and personal with big beefy bosses is almost always a bad idea. Still, with the right build, Barbarians can get by alright, even becoming quite useful in multiplayer lobbies.
In this guide, we’ll take you through what we think is a pretty solid build for Barbarians in Diablo 4, including the best level-up skills in each skill cluster and more.
Be sure to check out our Diablo 4 tips and tricks for more handy pointers to make your time in Sanctuary a little bit easier, and read our Diablo 4 review if you’re still on the fence about jumping in. If you haven’t settled on a class yet, you can also check out or guide for the best starting class in Diablo 4.
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Diablo 4: best Barbarian skills
The Barbarian is a bit of a strange class, in terms of its skills. Unlike other classes, there aren’t clear “paths”, and players can mix and match between what little path separation there is without too much worry about messing up their build. Having said that, there are still a few skills that are largely necessary, especially since you’ll be up close and personal with the most terrifying bosses the series has seen. We’ve tried to stick to skills that are the most flexible, and the most useful, regardless of which weapons you find, but feel free to swap out skills you’re not keen on if you see something you might enjoy better.
Basic skill - Lunging Strike
Defensive skill - Ground Stomp
Brawling skill - Leap or Charge
Weapon mastery skill - Steel Grasp
Ultimate skill - Call of the Ancients
Key passive - Walking Arsenal
Diablo 4: best Barbarian passive skills
Throughout the skill tree, there are a number of passive skills that are worth picking up, and if you’re waiting to unlock the next branch of the tree, it’s worth picking up some of them to round out your skills a bit.
Here are the passives we suggest picking up when you can, along with brief descriptions:
- Pressure Point - Core skills can make enemies vulnerable
- Tough As Nails - Gain thorns, and your thorns do damage over time with bleeding damage
- Quick Impulses - control impairing effects last for less time
- Swiftness - increases movement speed
- Pit Fighter - deal more damage to close enemies
- Heavy Handed - Higher crit damage with two-handed weapons
- Invigorating Fury - Heal a little bit when you spend 100 Fury
Diablo 4: Barbarian weapons expertise system
The weapons expertise system is pretty simple to wrap your head around. The more you use specific weapons, the more they’ll level up, and they’ll get perks for doing that. For example, leveling up a two-handed axe has you dealing more damage to vulnerable enemies, while leveling up two-handed swords will make you deal bleeding damage. You’ll naturally get stronger as you use more weapons, so use whatever feels best to you and make the most of your weapon expertise bonuses.