Feedback đŸ…± Barbarian skills need more style & customization

Barbarian
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Deciding for a skill can be difficult, but for the wrong reasons

Is there enough reason to choose one skill over another, or one class over another? These are the questions new and seasoned players regularly ask themselves when playing Diablo 4. While numbers are one thing, a poor presentation can seriously affect long-term enjoyment of a class or build.

This season (9), I played Barbarian exclusively and wanted to try something fresh (not played since season 3, HotA is locked). To my surprise, the multiple released aspects and unique items didnt really help me in choosing skills to build around. I remember that this was already a significant class problem 1.5 years ago to me, so
 has the Barbarian class failed to evolve or am I just too picky?

In this thread, I dont want to complain about damage numbers, as those were not the problem for me. Instead, I will share my thoughts on the presentation of skills and why things havent worked for me with the Barbarian class.

Note: the heart symbols arent always the best representation of what is written. The aspect and item links are for reference but may be incomplete.

Chewing on the skill tree :beaver: :beaver: :beaver:


:heart:
A poor introduction to the class: Flay, Frenzy, Bash, Lunging Strike

Not enough identity, hardly any feelable or visual difference. Modifiers are ok.
  1. What stands out in comparison to other classes is the lack of style. These skills need way more visual presentation to arouse player interest. Currently, I see four skills that could be one with 4 modifiers instead.
  2. Unfortunately, there are no exclusive aspects for this branch. Hooves of the Mountain God and Battle Trance are no bad ideas, but their unique powers only support what is there, instead of adding better customization.

:green_heart: :green_heart: :green_heart:
Unique identity: Whirlwind

Good skill base with unique mechanics and visuals. Modifier and item customization could be better.
  1. Whirlwind is a good example of what I mean by the ‘identity’ term: it is a skill like no other in the tree, visually and mechanically. Ideally, this would be the case for every skill.
  2. However, visuals and gameplay of Whirlwind dont change much as a player gets stronger, so it easily can turn bland with its simple gameplay.
  3. I want to see cooler ideas for its modifiers. I am not a fan of the ‘Violent Whirlwind’ being designed solely for other skills, instead of Whirlwind itself, on top of being awkward to execute.
  4. The unique itemÂŽs effect fails to impress against the usual Earthquake and Dust Devil effects - it is very hard to see even without extra effects.

:yellow_heart: :yellow_heart:
Developes well: Hammer of the Ancients

Standard visuals too basic. Develops well with items. Its unique item is nice.
  1. I like that this skill has its own unique + aspect. I wish every skill would have this baseline.
  2. Visuals and mechanic from the aspect ‘of the ancestral force’ should have been the standard for the skill, as otherwise it is just a vertical swing with some dirt. You wouldnt expect this disappointment when reading the powerful skill name first.
  3. Modifiers are pretty strong in numbers. I like the knockdown effect as unique element. The critical strike chance gives a reason to pick the skill in early leveling. The overpower modifier seems more like a support for other skills in late game, which in my opinion is way to advanced and exotic to place it as modifier. I would redesign this one.
  4. Its Unique item is of my liking: Visually we get a lava effect and the seismic line. Mechanically it makes HotA manipulate a different damage source by consuming Earthquakes. This is the kind of unique design I want to see more.

:yellow_heart: :yellow_heart:
Very slow: Upheaval

Attack speed too slow for beginners. Good visuality. Gameplay doesnt evolve.
  1. This skill looks visually pleasing from the beginning. However, its animation is arguably too slow to feel good for new players. I would add at least 50%+ to its base attack speed.
  2. Modifiers are a bit boring. The stun is my favorite as it is most visible in combat, which is important for a skill’s character.’
  3. The Hellhammer’s design is a mixed bag. The unique item supports the modifiers and adds a neat flaming layer to the ground effect. Its power grows with a player’s strength, which I like very much. Still, the bonuses are overall very passive and dont evolve the gameplay.
  4. The aspect ‘of sundered ground’ suffers from its timer limit (5 sec) - it needs a different solution without timer to feel fun.

:heart:
Identity problem: Double Swing

Too basic and no further development. Modifiers are useful. Boring unique item. Dust Devil aspect is awkward.
  1. Double Swing could profit from a major redesign of how it works from the get go, as it is another skill that feels more like a bland weapon swing variation instead of a cool gameplay option.
  2. Also, it should be considered that the multiple hit effect disappears on screen once I turn off combat text as there is no other visual feedback.
  3. Modifiers provide a very useful mix: Vulnerable, Berserker, Ressource. Still, I miss something unique that I only get with Double Swing.
  4. The unique item ‘Twin Strikes’ using a plain damage multiplier with no inventive customization is boring. The ‘windlasher’ aspect, on the other hand, feels awkward in close combat, and works a lot better from being used at a distance.
  5. Here I think it is weird that both exclusive skill upgrades dont support each other, for example with the Dust Devil spawn rate or a damage link.

:heart:
No difference to Flay: Rend

Hardly any item upgrades. Visuals too basic. Modifiers too reliant on Vulnerable.
  1. Here I would like to see major changes being made as the similarity to Flay is striking. Hooves of the Mountain God strips the exclusiveness of cleave from Rend, leaving a skill without own identity.
  2. Visual presentation is bad for a Core skill and doesnt get any cooler with items. The cleave range is very limited from the start, so it has a hard time to shine against skills with 360° ground effects.
  3. Rend’s modifiers are a weird choice as 2/3 of them only start to work once Vulnerable is applied, a prerequisite coming from other sources. Both modifiers should be combined into one modifier to reduce this crippling.
  4. The unique item synergizes Rend and Brawling skills, which is interesting, but since the base skill is so simplistic it is only noticable on enemy life bars.

:heart:
Lame presentation: Ground Stomp

Visuals weak. Strong modifiers. Unique item is improvable.
  1. Ground Stomp’s little effect looks too generic and weak for a cooldown skill. Adding a screen shake could help a bit, but I would prefer a visual upgrade.
  2. The modifiers are pretty interesting. Having ultimate and category effects combined is definitely a plus, as it allows this skill to be a regular guest in the skill bar with good chances to keep that state.
  3. I dont like how the unique item ‘100.000 Steps’ turned out. For some reason it doubles down on the Fury generation modifier. The walking arsenal connection sounds cool, but in the end it feels just like a simple cooldown reduction. I like the Evade affix though.

:yellow_heart: :yellow_heart:
Solid: Iron Skin

Not much to complain. Very helpful. Maybe a bit too passive.
  1. Not an outstanding skill. Other than that, it is difficult to find things that bother me. If I look to other classes, defensive skill design dont need to be that passive.
  2. I like that the skill increases something unusual if leveled up: the barrier generation. It is a lot more interesting to me exploring / leveling such unusual values, instead of damage, damage, damage.
  3. Aspect ‘of the iron warrior’ complements the skill very well. I think having 2 effects combined on each aspect would be a good idea in general.

:yellow_heart: :yellow_heart:
Popular passives: Rallying Cry, War Cry, Challenging Shout

Hard to distinguish. Boring number changers. Modifier & stat choices could be more unique.
  1. I think Shouts are in a tough spot. They are a fitting and characteristic ability for the class, yet their effects are way too generic, which makes them overly useful, but boring at the same time. In this context, I wonder if it is justified to let the class have three of them.
  2. A missed opportunity is granting effects against enemys, like Fear. That also would help with giving better visual identity, as a player can see immediately what happens on enemys, instead of the effect running in the background.
  3. I dont like that there are overlapping effects on modifiers: Fortify generation should be limited to one shout. A modifier that doubles down on the base skill effect is also pretty boring.
  4. The Thorns modifier is great and I really would love to see more “exotic” effects for Shouts, that are able to lead players into certain builds.

:green_heart: :green_heart: :green_heart:
Fun to play with: Kick, Charge, Leap

Good identity. Lack of unique items. Modifiers could be improved.
  1. I like using them, even if it isnt helpful for my damage, because these are arguably the most fun to play skills in the tree.
  2. Therefore I have to criticize the lack of unique items.
  3. Modifiers are not exciting. Kick can be made Core, which is one of the cooler modifiers, but it loses its main attraction in the process: the enemy knock back. A very unfortunate limitation.

:heart:
Needs attention: Death Blow

Too weak for a cooldown reset. No exclusive aspects. Visuals disappoint.
  1. A very unimpressive and neglected skill. Death Blow’s visuals are again what I call autohit-variation. Hard to tell if pressing the button has worked by only looking at my character.
  2. The weak Overkill unique item trys to change that, but only ends up creating another Upheaval cone. A very uncreative choice.
  3. An oversight is that the base damage of Death Blow is lower than most Core skills’. That means the reset mechanic loses its purpose and that there is no reason to have Overkill double down on it (with even lower damage).
  4. I dont like that there are no exclusive aspects for Death Blow.

:green_heart: :green_heart: :green_heart:
Much to offer: Rupture

Packed with utility. Nice visual effects. Unique item could be more unique.
  1. Quite interesting. Rupture has concentrated a lot of useful utility. It naturally helps a lot while leveling. One modifier even grows along with the Strength stat. Overall very impressive in comparison to other Barbarian skills.
  2. The Fields of Crimson unique is ok. I like the blood pool. I dont like that it is just a passive buff. Overall I feel like the unique is missing something exciting.

:yellow_heart: :yellow_heart:
Too soft: Mighty Throw

Good skill idea. Overly soft animations. Unique buff icon is hard to track.
  1. Good idea, but the overly slow & soft animations need a redesign. It is quite the opposite with Steel Grasp, where the animation is almost too fast. Both can make the impact feel less powerful.
  2. In this context, I dont like that the fixed 12 second cooldown of Bane of Ahjad-den pops such a simple fire circle visual.

:green_heart: :green_heart: :green_heart:
Valuable skill: Steel Grasp

Fun and useful. Mixed customization options.
  1. A nice skill idea with great potential for customization. I am a fan of the chain visuals.
  2. The modifiers are useful, but not exactly unique. I still wonder what the two additional charges can do for me.
  3. The unique Ancients Oath has powerful cooldown reduction, but other than that, it doesnt offer interesting changes to the skill.

:yellow_heart: :yellow_heart:
Fine but chaotic: Call of the Ancients

Good identity. Almost too cramped with effects. Skill duration is too short.
  1. I like the idea, but I find the skill a bit too chaotic in its execution.
  2. Perhaps it would look a lot better and feel a lot more powerful if each of the ancient summonings engages in combat one after another with intensified attacks, instead of all at once.
  3. The skill’s duration of 6 seconds feels too short and not satisfying without cooldown reduction.

:green_heart: :green_heart: :green_heart:
Awesome visuals: Iron Maelstrom

Fun to use. Very unique design. Could synergize better.
  1. My favorite ultimate skill. Great looking and good base for upgrades. I feel like the skill would be fitting for a blood theme.
  2. I like the weapon swaps and that it helps with some aspects or Walking Arsenal key passive.
  3. Synergizing with Steel Grasp through Unbroken Chain is nice, however, the granted cooldown reduction for Iron Maelstrom is a weak choice. Iron Maelstrom is very easy to make spamable without the item.

:heart:
Another Shout: Wrath of the Berserker

Lacks visual feedback. Duration can be difficult to track.
  1. Wrath of the Berserker feels like another Shout skill. It is very passive in its effect as visuals are lacking and the stat buffs run in the background. A better active presentation would be nice.
  2. Thats one reason why I find it difficult to track the duration. Another certainly is that the duration is displayed as buff icon instead of being on the skill bar. Other classes do this better with their long-duration-ultimates.

Conclusion: Fifty Shades of Meh

In its current state, I believe the Barbarian is the class that would benefit most from a skill tree rework.

Arguably half of the tree is packed with skills so bare‑bones in visuals and customization that they feel more like simple weapon‑swing variations or number‑tweaking placeholders than exciting gameplay options. The worst offenders: Flay, Frenzy, Bash, Lunging Strike, Rend, Double Swing, Death Blow.

To encourage players to mix different skills in the action bar, there need to be enough competitive synergies. Yet from my Season 9 experiments and even after consulting guides, I noticed that most Barbarian builds funnel into the same Shouts and Earthquake picks. In the end, it is neither rewarding nor fun to try exploring own ideas.

Ideally, every skill would start with a distinct & satisfying visual presentation that also highlights its mechanical identity, at level 1, even without items or aspects equipped. That doesnt have to mean extra magic projectiles or more shapes of static ground effects. If I recall correctly, the devs have said they want to focus more on the melee style going forward.

Either way, thats no bad idea. Since I really like the tree’s Brawling branch, I would suggest emphasizing character movement (for example: a skill with some forward steps), incorporating lots of non‑repetitive animations across all skills, and by adding visuals to the weapon swing frames instead of its impact frames.

Thanks for reading.

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