Barbarian

A Barbarian warrior in battle is a fearsome enough sight. They cover their bodies with strange markings and the fire in their eyes can be seen from across a battlefield. Early in his training a warrior must learn how to tap the primal energies around him and utter a howl in battle-a bellow so fierce that it will send even the battalions of the Burning Hells running in fear.

Effect: Frightens monsters into retreating.

Player vs Player - This will not work on other Players.

Barbarian warriors are born to command in battle. When a warrior learns this skill he can raise his voice above the din of combat to shout warnings of impending blows to his comrades in arms. This will alert them in time to allow them to guard against the incoming attack.

Effect: Increases the defense of friendly units.

Pinpointing an opponent's physical weakness is not the only talent a warrior of the Steppes possesses. He can often ascertain what emotional weakness might allow the barbarian to goad an opponent into a fight. A Barbarian taunting an opponent into a blind rage hopes to capitalize on the mistakes enemies may make while so angered. It is this ability that causes Barbarians to have a poor reputation as drinking partners.

Effect: Taunts a monster to walk to you and engage in melee range combat with you. Useful against spell casters and archer types.

Player vs Player - This will not work on other Players.

Gifted Barbarian warriors can benefit from their connection to their totem animals to exploit the primal fears of their opponents. Once a Barbarian unleashes the Battle Cry, even the legions of the dead will become so distracted that they falter in their quest for victory. This permits the warrior an easy kill.

Effect: Frightens nearby enemies, lowers their defense, and damage.

This skill allows the Barbarian to fashion a totem out of the carcass of his slain enemies. The resulting talisman serves as a grave warning to all of the minions of the Prime Evils. The mere sight of the Totem causes monsters to flee in terror. With additional training the warrior can increase the potency of the ward.

Effect: Turns a corpse into a fetish that will frighten monsters away.

Player vs Player - This will not work on other Players.

Grim Ward is a more strategic spell, used to permanently block off areas so that monsters will not attack you from that side. They can also be used to channel monsters into specific areas so that the Barbarian can deal with them in an easier fashion. Basically, it has a specific use that is effective and different from any other spell.

Grim Ward will not work against Super Unique Monsters and Bosses, or some monsters like Ghosts.

Summoning the ancient powers known to his people, a Barbarian warrior can call on his spirit animal and lash out at his enemies with a cry that halts them in their tracks-a powerful anguish rising to burn the depths of their being. It is this skill that gives rise to the legends of Barbarians being able to sap the life from a creature with a single word.

Effect: Damages and stuns your enemies.

Using this skill a Barbarian can examine the abilities of his companions and, during battle, determine how best the group should apply their various skills. It is this skill as well as their natural abilities as leaders that are gradually shedding the long held stereotype that the Barbarian people are merely ignorant savages.

Passive Effect: Temporarily increases the skills of party members by 1.

Although there are many gifts from the Great and Ancient King Bul-Kathos, the greatest of these is the secret of steel. Raw iron is hardened and made resilient, forged into weapons of honor and power. Most mortal swords are patterned after the blade first wielded by Bul-Kathos himself. Balancing offense with defense, it is the perfect weapon for the defense of Mount Arreat in the coming apocalypse. All Barbarian warriors learn the secrets of steel at an early age, yet few truly master the deadly elegance of the sword. Those few who do often disdain all other weapons.

Passive Effect: Increased damage and Attack Rating when using swords.

Barbarian warriors of the Shadow Wolf Tribe are masters of the axe. Through the axe, they sought to match the swiping claws and the biting teeth of the wolves with which they lived and fought beside. These first axes were but crude stones mounted on wooden hafts, and after learning the secret of steel and swords from Bul-Kathos, the axe soon fell into disfavor. Recently, however, warriors and smiths from the Steppes have perfected the axe as a weapon equal to or greater than the sword. The Wolf Tribe once again teaches the swift and terrible power of the axe to those who wish to learn how to cull the weak from the herd and to protect their pack from the legions of Hell.

Passive Effect: Increased damage and Attack Rating when using axes.

Barbarians who have quested with the mighty Bear Tribe are masters of the Mace. From simple wooden clubs to the contemporary, armor-defeating flanged mace, warrior masters wield these weapons to devastating effect. As the Bear shaman, Koth, said to those who favor the sword and axe, "When you are beset by hordes of the walking dead, do not come weeping to me if you have turned away from the wisdom of Bear."

Passive Effect: Increased damage and Attack Rating when using maces.

Members of the Crane Tribe value distance, grace and a single overwhelming blow over the close grappling form advocated by the Bear Tribe. Though the two clans were wary of one another for many generations, recently the nomadic peoples have commingled and now share their powerful techniques with all that would learn. Crane warriors evolved their pole arm technique from dealing with mounted raiders and fighting in the shallow river waters found in the steppe. A master of the pole arm avoids physical contact with his opponent until he can land a single killing blow.

Passive Effect: Increased damage and Attack Rating when using pole arms.

Although not as well known for their use of bows and other such ranged weapons, hunters from the Steppes have practiced the use of thrown weapons since earliest times. The open grasslands of their native soil are well suited for taking down game with swift and accurate blows from a hurled blade. It seems a natural evolution and a simple matter for them to have transferred this skill to combat.

Passive Effect: Increased damage and Attack Rating when throwing a weapon.

Warriors of the Snake Tribe, who favor the spear and are known for their cold eyes and sibilant battle chants. Only seasoned warriors may apply to the spear the techniques of the Snake-a patient teacher that reminds us that all foes can be defeated in time. These are lessons learned from the many dangerous pit vipers that breed among the steppes surrounding Mount Arreat.

Passive Effect: Increased damage and Attack Rating when using spears.

The harsh grasslands of their homeland offer the Barbarian people little refuge from the elements. Constant prolonged exposure to the sun, wind, rain and other elements has toughened their skin to the resilience of natural leather.

Passive Effect: Improves overall defense.

It is a fatal assumption that the Barbarian warrior is slow and ponderous. His great bulk belies a very agile individual. A lifetime of patrolling the vast plains of his native soil, where it is often necessary to cover great distances in very little time, has empowered the Barbarian warriors with the ability to walk and run at surprising rates of speed.

Passive Effect: Increases your walk and run speeds.

In order to survive the unforgiving lands of the north, the people of the Barbarian tribes have developed hardy resistances to the common elements. Heat and cold alike are something they endure often. Since food is scarce while foraging, they have learned to consume species of plants that would slay normal men. Through additional training, a warrior can further fortify himself against these dangers, allowing him to better survive while traveling to unfamiliar lands and battling unknown foes.

Passive Effect: Increases resistances to elemental damage.

Natural Resistance gives Resistances to Lightning, Fire, Cold, and Poison but does not include Magic Resistance.

The immense physical strength of the Barbarian people is widely known, so it should come as no surprise that this is one of the first skills that they develop as a warrior. Summoning up their renowned brute strength a Barbarian can deliver a powerful and painful blow that staggers an enemy from its feet, knocking them back.

Effect: A powerful smashing blow that knocks the target back.

A Barbarian warrior learns to fight with a weapon in each hand, for after all, are not two weapons better than one? A young Barbarian learns to use both hands independently of each other, striking simultaneous blows at separate targets. As his talent grows in this skill, he attacks with increasing control and accuracy.

Effect: A quick double attack that can damage two nearby enemies.

The stats listed below for mana cost are the true values and does not represent what is shown in-game.

Because of his great strength, a trained barbarian warrior is able to perform great leaps. These jumps are noteworthy, enabling the Barbarian to spring free of dangerous swarms of enemies, and landing with an impact that sends them reeling.

Effect: Barbarian jumps and knocks back enemies where he lands.

Leap is great for it's low cost in mana. Leap also causes Knockback on all the monsters around the area where the Barbarian lands. This is very handy for getting your body back after dying. Leap is good for getting yourself out of danger when surrounded. It's quite possible for monsters to surround you making it impossible to get away, but Leap can allow you to escape. Leap can be used to jump over other party members that get in the way in tight dungeon corridors such as the Sewers, and Maggot Lair in Act II. The only similar spells are Leap Attack (scroll down), Assassin Dragon Flight, and Sorceress Teleport, which although is somewhat superior, is much more costly in mana, and is only available at a higher level (Character Level 18). Leap is useful for leading Monsters to obstacles then jumping over them. Leap is great for crossing rivers without a bridge, and jumping whatever things are in the way to make your trip shorter. At only 2 Mana, it's quite a deal. You'll find it useful to place a few points into Leap to jump further distances but there comes a point where it's a waste to put additional points into Leap.

To a Barbarian, fighting with two weapons is considered a fairly simple feat. Not so simple is mastering the art of throwing two weapons simultaneously and accurately. Many young Barbarians are eager to learn this skill, for they will tell you it is concrete proof that they have risen to greatness as a warrior. In truth, they use this skill in tavern games almost as often as they do in battle, winning wagers from unsuspecting drunkards.

Effect: Throws two weapons.

Only the Barbarian can throw two weapons at once using this skill.

An experienced Barbarian can learn to strike an opponent in areas that promote the maximum effect. By putting enough strength behind a well-placed blow, he can leave an opponent dazed and unable to strike back or flee.

Effect: A successful attack briefly stuns the enemy.

A young treasure hunter once sought his fortune in a raid for Barbarian gold on Mount Arreat. Hearing tales of the Barbarian people's expertise in close combat, he hired a phalanx of mercenary spearmen to accompany him, thinking their long spears would force the Barbarian warriors to fight from a distance. He soon learned his mistake as a single Barbarian warrior was enough to slaughter his entire party. Ambushing the raiding party from a patch of scrub grass, the Barbarian leapt over them, slaying one whilst airborne, and skewering two more as he landed. Before the would-be thief could draw a single breath, all of his hired lancers had been dispatched. It was a long walk home.

Effect: Leaps onto a target and attacks when landing.

Leap Attack is a great skill for picking off targets one by one. It's particularly useful against those pesky Sand Leapers and unique bosses with the ability to Teleport. For those targets, just highlight your target and hold down the mouse button that Leap Attack is assigned to.

Once you get Leap Attack, you will no longer need to use the regular Leap skill. Also, Leap Attack has an extremely long range from the very first point that you put into it so by using it, you're able to get out of sticky situations just as well, if not better, than with the normal Leap skill.

Leap Attack combined with Whirlwind can be an extremely deadly combination for your foes. Leap Attack can be used to get you into a good starting position for Whirlwind and it can also be used to help you escape quickly if Whirlwind is interrupted or if you run out of mana.

Sometimes a series of blows is not nearly as effective as a single, concentrated strike. A Barbarian trained in this skill learns how to focus his strength into a single blow that cuts through the guard of an enemy and slices through their armor. This technique also puts the warrior in a superior defensive position.

Effect: An uninterruptible attack that also temporarily improves your defense.

The main benefit of this attack is that you can swing uninterrupted, giving you the best chance to get your attack off, even in a crowd or against a faster foe. This one is actually a good deal at a cost of 2 Mana, especially if you have a good weapon.

Although a Barbarian is capable of calculated blows and tactical fighting techniques, it is his fierce passion for battle that distinguishes him in battle. While using this skill, a Barbarian drives more and more force into each successive blow as his anger and bloodlust mounts.

Effect: Every successful hit increases your velocity and attack speed.

Select Frenzy, equip two weapons and hit the enemy. When the Barbarian makes a successful hit on the enemy, he will go into a Frenzy. The Barbarian can now in his Frenzy state, move much quicker and swing much faster. You can even combine this skill with other skills, after going into a Frenzy, quickly change to another skill and use it in combination with Frenzy.

Frenzy increases in attack speed as more monsters are hit.

Of the Barbarian people, the Tribe of Thunder was the first to draw upon the primal forces of the weather. Tornadoes would ravage their plains as summer turned to the harvest season. The shaman of the tribe would interpret the tornadoes as an omen of evil during times of peace, and as a harbinger of great victory during wartime. Observing the strength of the whirlwind, these Barbarians learned to emulate the swirling melange of the cyclone in their attacks. As time went on and the tribes intermingled, the ability to attack in the manner of the whirlwind was passed down to all of the Barbarian people.

Effect: A fierce spinning attack.