After the huge 1.1.2 patch dropped into Diablo IV, let's update the best Barbarian builds for different scenarios and goals in the current meta now! 

Diablo 4 Best Barbarian Builds (1.1.2)  - Top 5 Barb Builds in Season 1

One of the most popular and versatile classes in Diablo 4 Season 1 is the Barbarian, a fierce warrior who can unleash devastating attacks with various weapons and skills. The 1.1.1 patch revises some of the controversial nerfs that the Barbarian class received in the previous patch, and enhances its performance against high-level enemies. Though the big guns have not yet been dethroned, the 1.1.1 patch also adds more build variety and quality of life improvements for the Barbarian class. In this guide, we will show you some of the best Barbarian builds for different scenarios and goals in Season 1, such as endgame, speed farming, hardcore, and PvP. Whether you want to conquer the highest difficulty levels, clear dungeons and rifts as fast as possible, survive the perils of hardcore mode, or dominate other players in competitive matches, we have a build for you. We will also explain the rationale behind each build, the best gear and stats to look for, and some tips and tricks to optimize your performance. 

Top 1 - Whirlwind Bleed Barbarian (Highest DPS, PvP Barb)

The Whirlwind Bleed Build is a popular and powerful Barbarian build in Diablo 4 that uses the Whirlwind skill to spin around and deal damage to enemies while applying bleed effects with the Creeping Death heart and other sources. The build also uses many Shouts to generate Fury, buff allies, and debuff enemies. It does massive amounts of AOE damage and is so good for endgame, speed farming, hardcore, and PvP scenarios, as it has high damage, mobility, survivability, and utility. So we do think it is the most all-around Barbarian build in Diablo 4 so far. 

Pros:

High AOE damage, can learn groups of enemies with ease

Great mobility, can move around the battlefield quickly

Stack bleed against crowd-controlled enemies

Cons:

Fury-dependent and needs to use basic attacks to generate Fury between fights.

Less effective against single targets or bosses.

Vulnerable to CC and needs to avoid getting stunned or frozen.

How To Build Up Whirlwind Bleed Barb:

Skills: use Whirlwind as your main damage dealer, Shout as your main Fury generator and utility skill, and Leap or Charge as your mobility skill. You can also use other skills like Ground Stomp, War Cry, or Battle Rage depending on your preference and situation.

Legendary Aspects: use Creeping Death as your main heart, which makes your Whirlwind apply bleed to enemies and increases your damage against bleeding enemies. You can also use other hearts like Bloodthirst, Savage, or Rampage to boost your damage, healing, or Fury. For your soul, use Berserker Rage, Unstoppable Force, or Relentless to enhance your Whirlwind, Shout, or survivability.

Gems: use gems that increase your damage, bleed chance, or critical hit chance. Some examples are Ruby, Topaz, and Emerald. You can also use gems that boost your defense, Fury, or movement speed like Diamond, Amethyst, or Sapphire.

Paragon Board: focus on the Might and Fury trees, which give you bonuses to your damage, attack speed, critical hit chance, critical hit damage, bleed chance, bleed damage, and Fury generation. You can also invest in the Vitality and Survival trees for more health, armor, resistance, life per hit, life per Fury spent, and damage reduction.

Top 2  - Double Swing Barbarian (Best Endgame Barb)

This build uses the Double Swing skill, which lets the Barbarian attack twice with each weapon. It has high single-target damage and is very beginner-friendly.  Double Swing Barbarian is a core skill that uses physical damage and has a 30% lucky hit rate. After the 1.1.1 update, Double Swing's damage was increased from 40% to 50%, making this skill even more powerful. In addition, this skill can also be upgraded to Enhanced Double Swing, and then choose Furious Double Swing or Violent Double Swing as the final upgrade. These upgrades can provide additional range and AoE damage, as well as increased rage. So now the Double Swing Barb is not only the strongest Barb for endgame but also very viable in Nightmare Dungeon pushing.

Pros

Powerful ultimate booster that can deal with all content

Fast, solid and powerful strikes, utilizing weapon switching system and bleed synergy

Can use various forms of crowd control and roars to increase damage and defense

Can utilize Supreme Wrath of the Berserker for increased damage and Unbridled Rage for increased Double Swing damage and cost 

Cons

Skills and equipment need to be optimized for maximum effectiveness

Need to pay attention to the management of anger value, avoid waste or insufficient

Need to pay attention to the position of the enemy to avoid being surrounded or missing the target

How To Build Up Double Swing Barb:

Skills: Max out Double Swing, Wild Winds, Supreme Wrath of the Berserker, Unbridled Rage and Frenzy. You also want to get some points in Leap, Ground Stomp, War Cry and Fortify.

Arsenal System: use a two-handed weapon as your primary weapon and a one-handed weapon as your secondary weapon. The two-handed weapon should have high damage and attack speed, while the one-handed weapon should have high critical hit chance and damage.

Paragon Board: prioritize Strength, Fury, Critical Hit Chance and Damage. You also want to get some Vitality, Armor, Life per Hit and Cooldown Reduction.

Gameplay: activate Supreme Wrath of the Berserker before engaging enemies and use Double Swing as your main damage dealer. You want to use Leap to close gaps or escape danger, Ground Stomp to stun enemies and generate Fury, War Cry to buff yourself and allies, and Fortify to increase your defense. You want to aim for stunned enemies with Double Swing to refund Fury cost and keep Supreme Wrath of the Berserker active as long as possible.

Top 3  - HotA Barb (Best Speedfarming & Hardcore Barb)

This is a powerful build that uses Hammer of the Ancients as the main damage skill, and in Season 1 also benefits from the Barber heart effect that causes enemies to explode when they die, dealing damage to nearby enemies.  It has high damage output with Hammer of the Ancients, which has a low Fury cost and an increased critical hit chance based on your Fury; high mobility with Lunging Strike, which gives you an infinite dash and also generates Fury, high survivability with Rallying Cry and War Cry, which provide Fury generation, movement speed, Berserking and extra damage; high crowd control with Barber heart effect, which causes enemies to explode when they die, dealing damage to nearby enemies. 

Pros:

High single-target and area damage

Good survivability with life per fury spent

Synergizes well with Ancestral Force and Call of the Ancients

Cons:

Requires a lot of fury generation

Low mobility and crowd control

Vulnerable to ranged attacks and elemental damage

How To Build Up the Hammer of the Ancients Build:

Skills: use Hammer of the Ancients as your main damage dealer, and other skills that can generate Fury, buff your damage, or crowd-control enemies. Some examples are Rallying Cry, Leap, Lunging Strike, Call of the Ancients and Whirlwind.

Passives: choose ones that can increase your Hammer of the Ancients damage, core skill damage, critical hit chance, or cooldown reduction. Some examples are Pressure Point, Rupture, Bloodthirst and Relentless.

Aspects: choose ones that can enhance your Hammer of the Ancients skill or your survivability. Some examples are Hammer of the Ancients: Smash, which increases the damage and area of effect of Hammer of the Ancients, or Rallying Cry: Fortify, which grants you a shield and increased damage.

Gear: choose weapons and armor that can boost your Hammer of the Ancients damage, core skill damage, critical hit chance, or critical hit damage. You also want to look for stats like Strength, Vitality, Critical Hit Chance, and Critical Hit Damage. A two-handed mace is recommended for your main hand weapon and two smaller maces for your off-hand weapons1.

Top 4 - Thorns Barbarian Build (Best NM Dungeon Push Tank Barb)

The Thorns Barbarian build is one of the tankiest Barbarian builds in Diablo 4 Season 1. This build uses Thorns damage to reflect damage back to enemies, and also benefits from the Malignant Hearts effect that increases your damage and defense based on the number of enemies around you. It was buffed in the 1.1.1 patch with improved fury generation and unique skill effects2. It is considered a Tier A build for Nightmare Dungeons.

Pros:

Surprisingly consistent damage

High AOE burst

Lots of Elite damage if you have mobs on you

Cons:

Relies on getting hit to do damage

Certain mob types are hard to get hit by

Can struggle against single-target bosses

How To Build Up Thorns Barb:

Skills: use Combat Flay as your main Thorns skill, which deals damage based on your Thorns and applies a bleed effect. You also want to use other skills that can increase your Thorns damage, defense, or utility. Some examples are Mighty Warcry, Death Blow, Call of the Ancients, Whirlwind and Rend.

Passives: choose ones that can boost your Thorns damage, defense, or utility. Some examples are Pressure Point, Rupture, Bloodthirst, Relentless and Thorns.

Aspects: choose ones that can enhance your Thorns skill or your survivability. Some examples are Combat Flay: Thorns, which increases the Thorns damage of Combat Flay, or Mighty Warcry: Fortify, which grants you a shield and increased damage.

Gear: choose weapons and armor that can increase your Thorns damage, defense, or utility. You also want to look for stats like Strength, Vitality, Critical Hit Chance and Critical Hit Damage. A two-handed sword is recommended for your main hand weapon, and two smaller swords for your off-hand weapons.

Top 5 - Rend Barbarian Build (Best Leveling Barb)

Rend Barbarian is still the best Barb build for leveling in Diablo 4 Season 1 because it uses bleed damage to deal high damage to enemies, especially when they are vulnerable or crowd-controlled. This build focuses on using the Rend skill, which deals physical damage and applies a bleed effect to enemies. The bleed effect can stack up to 10 times and deals more damage to enemies that are vulnerable or crowd-controlled.  It also has good survivability and mobility thanks to skills like Bloodthirst, Leap and Whirlwind. 

Pros:

High single-target damage plus bleed

Great even without Aspects

Sustained damage output against Elites and Bosses

Cons:

Not great AoE damage

Limited range

How To Build Up Rend Barbarian:

Skills: use Rend as your main damage dealer, and other skills that can generate Fury, buff your damage, or crowd-control enemies. Some examples are Mighty Warcry, Flay, Death Blow, Whirlwind and Call of the Ancients.

Passives:  Choose ones that can increase your bleed damage, vulnerable damage, core skill damage, or cooldown reduction. Some examples are Pressure Point, Rupture, Bloodthirst and Relentless.

Aspects: Choose ones that can enhance your Rend skill or your survivability. Some examples are Rend: Bloodlust, which increases the bleed duration and damage of Rend, or Mighty Warcry: Fortify, which grants you a shield and increased damage.

Gear: Choose weapons and armor that can boost your Rend damage, bleed damage, vulnerable damage, or core skill damage. You also want to look for stats like Strength, Vitality, Critical Hit Chance and Critical Hit Damage. A two-handed sword is recommended for your main hand weapon, and two smaller swords for your off-hand weapons.