The Barbarian is the strongest
class in straightforward melee combat. His weapon mastery skills
supplement this method of warfare nicely. His Warcries add
strength, as well as aiding his allies, making him an effective
member of the party as well. Additionally, his Combat Skills aid
his natural proclivity to melee combat, particularly his ability
to wield two weapons and his abilities in leaping.
The Barbarians characteristics
can be confusing. Certainly adding to his damage by developing
his prodigious strength is always a temptation. Energy would
seem to be less of a concern. However, he needs enough energy to
use the skills he requires, and it is the least developed of his
characteristics. Dexterity is necessary for his attack rating,
as well as supplementing his defense rating. He has a strong
vitality, but developing it further extends his ability to
remain in combat and strengthens his stamina.
When looking for items, the
Barbarian enjoys a greater flexibility than the other character
classes. Starting with a higher strength makes armament less of
an immediate problem. As for weaponry, the only weapon he
requires is the one for which he has developed skill. Here the
only choices are to do more damage with a two handed weapon,
retain a shield for magical resistance, or use two weapons.
Warcries:
Defensive Warcries
are shared with any friendly party members that are inside the
Warcry radius the Warcry is activated. Offensive Warcries will
hit monsters within the radius of the Warcry when cast.
Generally, Warcries increase in radius with additional skill
points.
Different defensive Warcries
can be stacked, but only one offensive Warcry can be used on a
monster at a time. If you cast Taunt and Howl, the last one cast
will be the one that is active on the monster.
There are three Warcries that
can give bonuses to yourself and other members of your Party.
Shout increases Defense. Battle Orders, a party favorite,
increases the max health, Mana, and stamina of the Barbarian and
his party members. Battle Commands increases the Barbarian and
party members' skill levels by 1. These three Warcries can also
be stacked, or active on yourself and party members at the same
time. The animation will rotate among these three Warcries to
indicate all three are active.
Once Battle Commands is
available, cast it first, before casting Battle Orders or Shout.
Battle Commands will raise Shout and Battle Orders by one skill
point and will increase their effectiveness and lengthen their
duration. By casting Battle Commands first, instead of after
these Warcries, characters benefit from a free skill point for
Shout and Battle Orders.
Battle Orders is a favorite of
Mana-hungry classes such as the Necromancer and Sorceress for
the increase in total Mana and all classes for the increase Life
and Stamina for running longer distances.
Whirlwind:
The Whirlwind-focused Barbarian uses Whirlwind as his main skill
and sometimes uses Leap Attack. Times can be hard until level 30
for the Whirlwinder. Until level 30, find a good weapon and use
Bash, Stun, and Leap Attack. Once the first skill point is
distributed into Whirlwind at level 30, it will be smooth
sailing. Watch out for Horror Mages that cast Iron Maiden. If
you're Cursed with Iron Maiden, stop fighting until it wears off
or have it healed. You can touch a shrine to remove the curse.
You may want to avoid the Chaos Sanctuary for fear of Iron
Maiden at higher levels and difficulty levels. Leap Attack is
considered a ranged attack so you can use it without fear even
when cursed with Iron Maiden. Also beware of Mana Burn Unique
Monsters.
Skills
Suggested skills are Whirlwind (20), Weapon Mastery of your
Choice (20), Howl (1), Shout (1 or more), Battle Orders (5+),
Battle Command (5+), Find Potion (1), Find Item (1), Increased
Stamina (1 or more), Increased Speed (1-4 or more), Iron Skin
(10-20), Natural Resistance (3-7), Bash (1), Leap (1), Leap
Attack (1), Stun (1), Concentrate (1). If you have extra points,
spend them in Iron Skin, or one of the "or more"
skills.
Barbarians have a Critical Hit
that is based on the Mastery Skill Level, so it is important to
maximize masteries.
Strategies
Build up 170 Strength to wear Ornate Plates. Build up Dexterity
to the necessary level to use the best weapon of choice. Place
every other point into Vitality. It is not wise to place points
in Energy because the Barbarian receives one Mana per Energy
point. Find items that give +Mana instead.
Assign Leap Attack on the left
Action Button and Whirlwind on the Right Action Button. Try to
lead monsters into a tight pack, click beyond them using
Whirlwind. Avoid stopping right in the middle of the packs of
monsters which can cause instant death. Use Leap Attack on
dangerous Uniques, and Shamans or other threats that need to be
taken care of right away. Use Leap Attack to move around, jump
over Rivers or get where you want to go quickly.
Equipment
Collect enough % Life Steal to keep healed while you fight and
enough % Mana Steal so that Mana does not deplete while
fighting. Beyond that, try to maximize your Resistances
(especially Lightning, Fire, Cold), and try to increase Defense
as much as possible.
Look for at least one item that
adds Cold Damage. This will chill monsters and some of them will
shatter leaving no corpse for other monsters to raise.
Weapons
The weapons of choice vary from Barbarian to Barbarian, but the
War Pike is the best choice for Whirlwinders. War Pikes have the
potential to do the most damage and have a range of 5. Some
people choose to use two Swords, a Maul, Polearms, or Spears.
Keep in mind that Polearms, and Spears offer the best range, so
when Whirlwinding, you'll be able to hit target's from further
away. Try to find Mana/Life Steal on those weapons, +Skills is
also nice but Damage is probably the most important stat. You
may also find -Monster Defense Per Hit to also be useful on a
weapon since it strips away their Defense making them easier to
hit. This is highly effective on bosses and other high hit point
monsters.
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