Whirlwind Barbarian Guide
Last Updated:February 12, 2025|Changelog
In this guide we cover the iconic Whirlwind Barbarian, also known as the WW Barb. Though this build is not the fastest for everything, it is very well rounded.
With the main source of our damage being Physical Damage from Whirlwind and Magic Damage coming from Berserk, the majority of the game is unlocked to us.
Common places to farm in with this build are The Chaos Sanctuary, The Pit, or Travincal for the Council Members that drop an abundance of items. There are plenty of gear options for this build, but it is quite item dependent from the start.
The Mercenary is a great asset for this build, breaking Physical Immunity from monsters with Decrepify from The Reaper's Toll.
This build guide assumes you have a Character at Level 75 before transitioning to it. Check out our Barbarian Leveling Guide and our General Leveling Strategies to reach Level 75.
Chill Gameplay ✔
Can Be Very Tanky ✔
Plenty Of Gearing Options ✔
Easy To Learn Difficult To Master ✔
❌ Gear Dependent
❌ Repetitive Gameplay
❌ Can Feel A Bit Clunky
❌ Slow Against Physical Immunes
Sunder Charm Setup
Patch 2.5 introduces a new way of breaking Immunities: Sunder Charms. Any enemy that would be Immune to your damage type is instead reduced to 95% Resistance, before any other Resistance reductions apply. (e.g. Conviction, Lower Resist) The Charm also reduces YOUR Resistance against the sundered damage type! Check out our post on Sunder Charms to learn more about these new Charms. The following setup uses Bone Break, allowing you to farm anywhere you want.
Gear Changes
To optimize this Sunder Charm you need Grim Ward and a source of Decrepify. Equip The Reaper's Toll on your Mercenary.
Counteract the negative effect of Bone Break with Crown of Ages.
Terror Zones
The new Terror Zone mechanic combined with Sunder Charms open up a wide range of farmable areas. The following list highlights the best and worst Terror Zones for this build on the Starter or Budget setup. With the Sunder Charm Setup, more Terror Zones become accessible. Learn more about Terror Zones here and see how they stack up in our Terror Zone Tier List.
Best
✔ Travincal - Quick Access, Council Members
✔ Frigid Highlands - No Immunities, Quick Access, Eldritch
✔ Nihlathak's Temple ONLY - No Immunities, Quick Access, Pindleskin
✔ Pit - No Immunities, Many Elite Groups
✔ Tristram - No Immunities, Quick Access, Many Elite Groups
Worst
❌ The Tower Cellar - Trash Mobility, Immunities
❌ Arcane Sanctuary - Trash Mobility, Immunities
❌ Blood Moor + Den of Evil - Low Density, Few Elite Groups
❌ Burial Grounds + Crypt + Mausoleum - Low Density, Few Elite Groups, Trash Mobility, Slow Access
❌ Act 2 Sewers - Trash Mobility, Few Elite Groups, High Physical Damage
Skills
Put 1 Point into each of the following Skills:
1. finditem
2. Grim Ward
3. Battle Command
4. Battle Cry
5. increasedspeed
6. naturalresistance
7. leap
8. leapattack
Max out the following Skills in this order:
1. Whirlwind
2. blade Mastery
3. Battle Orders
4. Find Potion
5. Berserk
Whirlwind* makes your character spin and deal Physical Damage when phasing through enemies. While this Skill is active it disables some of your abilities like the use of Potions or moving things around in your Inventory.
Berserk* is typically used for Physical Immunes or to speed up the run. It converts some of your damage to Magic Damage, deals additional damage, and Attack Rating. The downside is that it decreases your Defense during your attacks.
* Increased Attack Speed Skills (IAS)
Grim Ward* uses corpses to create a totem that debuffs and Fears enemies within its effective range, increasing you and your party's Physical Damage output with some Crowd Control.
Leap* allows you to jump over and through objects allowing you to clear obstacles you could not pass with walking or running. It also causes a radial Knockback effect, great for keeping monsters stunned. The jump distance scales with Skill Level.
Leap Attack* makes you jump to the location of your cursor and swings your weapon onto an enemy target when landing if one is in range.
Battle Cry* is an Area Of Effect (AOE) Skill used to reduce the Defense and Damage of your foes.
Teleport* lets you cover large distances over almost any gap and wall on the maps.
blade Mastery* increases your effectiveness with swords. It increases your damage, Attack Rating, and Chance to Critical Hit.
Shout* increases the Defense of all party members by a percentage of their current Defense.
Battle Orders* is one of the most iconic Skills that originates from the Barbarian. This Buff grants you and your party a percentage based amount of Life, Mana, and Stamina. This is one of the best buffs in the entire game!
Battle Command* is a buff that gives you and your party +1 to All Skills.
Find Item* gives you a chance to find additional drops from slain monsters if the corpse is not consumed by other effects.
Find Potion* gives you a chance to find additional poitions from slain monsters if the corpse is not consumed by other effects. This Skill is maxed to help increase Grim Ward Damage.
Howl* is an Area Of Effect (AOE) Skill used to scatter your enemies in fear.
Taunt* can call over specific targeted enemies to focus on you, breaking attention on whatever they were doing previously. This does not affect Elite or Boss monsters.
Increased Speed* is a Passive Skill that increases your overall run and walking speed.
Natural Resistance* is a Passive Skill that increases your Resistances to all Elements and Poison.
* Increased Attack Speed Skills (IAS)
* Faster Cast Rate Skills (FCR)
* Skills that do NOT utilize either FCR or IAS
Attributes
Note: This section provides you with the standard Stat Point allocation. Build Variants can require a different allocation!
Strength
Allocate enough Stat Points into Strength to equip all of your gear. Take into account how much Strength your gear provides when equipped.
Dexterity
Allocate enough Stat Points into Dexterity to equip all of your gear. Take into account how much Dexterity your gear provides when equipped.
Vitality
Allocate any remaining Stat Points into Vitality after meeting Strength, Dexterity and Energy requirements.
Energy
Do not allocate any Stat Points into Energy. Mana costs are covered by “x% Mana Stolen per Hit” or “+x Mana after each Kill” on gear.
Essentials
While every Stat in the Desirable Stats column is useful for this build, we highlighted the Priority Stats in Teal so you can easily identify the Most Important Stats on them.
Hover over any Item to see a pop-out with the full Item description.
Gear/Base Notes: Any Items with specialized or niche uses have a superscript that refers here.
1) Immortal King's Will, Immortal King's Soul Cage, and Immortal King's Pillar are typically used with the complete Set or as placeholders with fewer set pieces.
| Slot | Item Options | Desirable Stats |
| Weapon | Beast Berserker Axe Grief Phase Blade Last Wish Phase Blade Breath of the Dying War Pike Obedience Thresher Unbending Will Phase Blade Immortal King's Stone Crusher Rare Thunder Maul | Level x X Aura When Equipped +x to Combat Skills (Barbarian Only) +x% Increased Attack Speed +x% Enhanced Damage Damage +x Ignore Target's Defense -x% Target Defense x% Bonus to Attack Rating +x to Attack Rating +x Maximum Damage +x% Mana stolen per hit +x% Life stolen per hit x% Chance of Crushing Blow x% Deadly Strike +x to Attribute All Resistances +x x% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items Repairs x durability in x seconds Ethereal, Socketed [x] |
| Off-Hand | Beast Berserker Axe Grief Phase Blade Last Wish Phase Blade Breath of the Dying Berserker Axe Unbending Will Phase Blade Phoenix Monarch Stormshield | Level x X Aura When Equipped +x to Combat Skills (Barbarian Only) +x% Increased Attack Speed x% Increased Chance of Blocking +x% Enhanced Damage Damage +x Ignore Target's Defense -x% Target Defense +x to Attack Rating +x% Mana stolen per hit +x% Life stolen per hit x% Chance of Crushing Blow x% Deadly Strike +x to Attribute +x% to Maximum X Resist X Resist +x% Damage Reduced by x% x% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items |
| Weapon-Swap | Heart of the Oak Flail Call to Arms Crystal Sword Wizardspike Echoing Balanced Knife | +x to All Skills +x to Warcries (Barbarian Only) +x% Faster Cast Rate +x to battlecommand +x to battleorders +x to battlecry All Resistances +x |
| Off-Hand-Swap | Heart of the Oak Flail Wizardspike Echoing Balanced Knife | +x to All Skills +x to Warcries (Barbarian Only) +x% Faster Cast Rate All Resistances +x |
| Helmets | Arreat's Face Crown of Ages Vampire Gaze Guillaume's Face Immortal King's Will1 Rare Primal Helmet Wisdom | +x to All Skills +x to Barbarian Skill Levels +x% Faster Hit Recovery x% Bonus to Attack Rating +x% Mana stolen per hit +x% Life stolen per hit x% Chance of Crushing Blow x% Deadly Strike +x to Attribute +x Life X Resist +x% Cannot Be Frozen |
| Body Armor | Chains of Honor Enigma Fortitude Lionheart Duriel's Shell Tyrael's Might Immortal King's Soul Cage1 | +x to All Skills +x% Faster Run/Walk +x to Teleport +x% Life stolen per hit +x to Attribute +x Life X Resist +x% Cannot Be Frozen x% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items |
| Gloves | Chance Guards Laying of Hands Immortal King's Forge1 Blood Crafted Gloves | +x% Damage to Demons +x% Mana stolen per hit +x% Life stolen per hit +x to Attribute +x Life X Resist +x% x% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items |
| Belts | String of Ears Verdungo's Hearty Cord Thundergod's Vigor Trang-Oul's Girth Immortal King's Detail | +x% Faster Cast Rate +x% Life stolen per hit +x to Attribute +x Life X Resist +x% Cannot Be Frozen x% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items |
| Boots | Goblin Toe Gore Rider War Traveler Immortal King's Pillar1 Aldur's Advance | +x% Faster Run/Walk x% Chance of Crushing Blow x% Deadly Strike x% Chance of Open Wounds +x to Attribute +x Life X Resist +x% x% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items |
| Amulets | Mara's Kaleidoscope Highlord's Wrath Metalgrid Telling of Beads Caster Crafted Amulet | +x to All Skills +x to Barbarian Skills +x% Faster Cast Rate +x to Attack Rating x% Deadly Strike +x to Attribute X Resist +x% x% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items |
| Rings | Raven Frost Bul-Kathos' Wedding Band Nagelring Blood Craft Ring Platinum Ring of Maiming | +x to All Skills +x to Maximum Damage +x to Attack Rating +x% Mana stolen per hit +x% Life stolen per hit +x to Attribute X Resist +x% X Absorb x% Cannot Be Frozen x% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items |
| Charms | Grand Charm Large Charm Small Charm | +x to Warcries [Barbarian Only] +x to Combat [Barbarian Only] + x % Faster Run / Walk + x% Faster Hit Recovery +x to Maximum Damage +x to Attack Rating +x to Attribute + Life X Resist +x% x% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items |
| Unique Charms | Gheed's Fortune Hellfiretorch (Barbarian) Annihilus Bone Break | Monster Physical Immunity Is Sundered +x to All Skills +x to Barbarian Skill Levels +x to all Attributes All Resistances +x x% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items Reduces all Vendor Prices x% |
The areas below are efficient farming locations that make use of the build’s strengths. Other farming spots might not be as effective due to immunities or bad layouts. These areas are strong without a Sunder Charm.
Anything that has a ✔ in the "Starter" column can be farmed with the Starter Variant.
Act 1
| Area | Starter | Rewards | ||
| The Countess | ✔ | Runes Key of Terror | ||
| The Pit | ✔ | All Item Types Max Area Level Leveling | ||
| Andariel | - | Uniques Sets Jewelry | ||
Act 2
| Area | Starter | Rewards | ||
| Stony Tombs | ✔ | All Item Types Max Area Level Leveling | ||
| Summoner | - | Key of Hate | ||
Act 3
| Area | Starter | Rewards | ||
| Temple Runs | - | All Item Types Max Area Level | ||
| Travincal | - | Gearing Runes Charms / Gems / Jewels Gold | ||
| Mephisto | - | Uniques Sets | ||
Act 4
| Area | Starter | Rewards | ||
| City of the Damned | - | All Item Types | ||
| River of Flame | - | All Item Types Max Area Level Leveling | ||
| Chaos Sanctuary | - | All Item Types Max Area Level Leveling | ||
| Diablo | - | Uniques Sets Leveling | ||
Act 5
| Area | Starter | Rewards | ||
| Eldritch the Rectifier | ✔ | Gearing Gold Leveling | ||
| Shenk the Overseer | ✔ | Gearing Gold Leveling | ||
| Pindleskin | - | Gearing Gold Leveling | ||
| Drifter Cavern | - | All Item Types Max Area Level | ||
| Nihlathak | - | Key of Destruction Leveling | ||
| Worldstone Keep / Throne of Destruction | - | All Item Types Max Area Level Leveling | ||
| Baal / Waves | - | Uniques Sets Max Area Level Leveling | ||
Your Mercenary serves an incredibly important role to the overall success of your build. They can be a front line tank, provide a pivotal Aura, and/or deal Physical Damage to kill enemies with Immunity to your Skill set.
Act 2 Desert Mercenary
The Act 2 Desert Mercenary is hired from Greiz.
He can be equipped with a Spear or a Polearm, a Body Armor and a Helmet.
Every Act 2 Mercenary has access to an Aura and uses Jab as his base Attack. The Aura activates once the Mercenary has engaged in combat and remains active between traveling to and from town. The Auras available are based on what difficulty you hire the Mercenary from.
Reaper’s Toll, Might
Use a Desert Mercenary with Might Aura to significantly boost your Physical Damage.
Equip him with The Reaper’s Toll for a 33% Chance to cast Decrepify on striking, slowing down and increasing Physical Damage dealt to enemies. Decrepify can even break some Physical Immunities.
Gear Progression
| Early-Game | Mid-Game | End-Game |
| Insight (any Polearm) | Insight (Elite Polearm) | The Reaper’s Toll (Ethereal) |
| Smoke (Any Body Armor) | Treachery (Any Body Armor) | Fortitude (Body Armor, 700++ Base Defense) |
| Any Helmet with Resistance / Life | Tal Rasha's Horadric Crest | Andariel’s Visage (Ethereal) |
The Mercenary is hard to keep alive until you have the minimum gear recommended in this guide. Remember you can drag Healing Potions onto the portrait, or shift + 1/2/3/4 to directly feed them a Healing Potion from your Belt. The Mercenary also gains bonus Resistances from Thawing Potions and Antidote Potions.
If your Mercenary dies in battle, you can revive them from any of the Mercenary NPCs in each Act. This does come with an increasing cost, capping at 50,000 Gold. Keep that in mind and decide if the Mercenary is currently worth the cost.
General
- At the beginning of each run buff you and your Mercenary by swapping to whichever Weapon Swap that gives you more +x to Warcries and cast Battle Command 2 times, Battle Orders, and Shout. Make sure that these buffs stay active all the time, they are essential to your survivability.
- Leap Attack can be a great way to move from place to place requiring larger distances until Teleport becomes available.
- Use Leap to keep enemies stunned or navigate small obstacles.
- Use Battle Cry against enemies to make the whole fight easier for both you and the Mercenary.
- Pop Grim Wards in tight corridors when the first enemies die to deal additional damage. Know that the Grim Ward does send them running away.
- Against large groups of monsters or Mana Burn monsters you want to cut around the outer edge of the density with long Whirlwind attacks to prevent getting stuck. This also works against dangerous mobs especially when aiming the Whirlwind away from the danger.
- Against fewer targets or single targets you want to move in small triangles with Whirlwind to increase your damage output.
Immunities
Late-Game
- Use Teleport from Enigma to move from place to place, reposition yourself, and reposition your Mercenary. Your Mercenary stands a better chance of staying alive with you in control. Your Mercenary can act as a first line of defense after you Teleport, catching incoming damage you would have taken otherwise.
Breakpoints in Diablo 2 are the minimum values required to reduce the frames of an action. Below are the important breakpoints considered for this build. For more information on the mechanics involved, check out our in-depth Resource: Breakpoints.
Faster Cast Rate (FCR)
Faster Cast Rate speeds up your casting animation for spells. Aim for at least the 63% FCR Breakpoint. Note: FCR only controls the animation speed of the Character, and not any internal Cooldowns spells have.
| Frames | 13 | 12 | 11 | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 |
| FCR | 0 | 9 | 20 | 37 | 63 | 105 | 200 |
Increased Attack Speed (IAS)
Increased Attack Speed speeds up your attack animations. Weapon bases have different IAS breakpoints. Values for recommended weapon options provided below. Consult the d2planner for other bases.
Grief Phase Blade
| Frames | 6 | 4 |
| Whirlwind Gear IAS | 0 | 4 |
Faster Hit Recovery (FHR)
Faster Hit Recovery increases survivability. Aim for at least the 27% FHR Breakpoint.
| Frames | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 |
| FHR | 0 | 7 | 15 | 27 | 48 | 86 | 200 |
This build can become Hardcore viable with key changes to the Skills, Stat Point allocation, and items. Review the changes below before building this character, as they may differ significantly from the normal build. Also see the "Hardcore" Variant below in the Build Variants section.
Stat Point Changes
- We put enough Strength in to wear gear as well as enough points into Dexterity to maintain 75% Chance to Block with Stormshield. Everything else just goes into Vitality.
Item Changes
- Be sure to keep your Resistances over capped against enemies with Conviction Aura
- Crown of Ages
- Stormshield
- Verdungo's Hearty Cord or Thundergod's Vigor
- Dwarf Star or Wisp Projector
Build Variants
Setup
The Whirlwind Barbarian relies heavily on Physical Damage and Attack Rating. Every increase in these stats you can manage is going to help. The most important thing is the Weapon. Obedience is a strong Runeword that is easily farmed, as well as the new Unbending Will Phase Blade.
A source of % Mana stolen per hit makes this build a lot more comfortable to play. In addition, Increased Attack Speed, Damage, Attack Rating, and Resistances are important. Make sure to cap out your Resistances because you are taking hits when spinning through packs of enemies. Smoke helps you in that task.
Mercenary
To keep your Mercenary alive, equip him with a Body Armor and Helmet with Resistances and Life. Insight is a pretty easy Runeword to find and farm that gives a great amount of damage and Quality of Life with Meditation. Hire the Might Aura Mercenary, to gain extra Physical Damage.
Skills
The Weapon Mastery depends on the Weapon used. In this example, we use Polearm Mastery for Obedience.
Put 1 Point into each of the following Skills:
1. finditem
2. Grim Ward
3. increasedspeed
4. naturalresistance
5. leap
6. leapattack
Max out the following Skills in this order:
1. Whirlwind
2. Polearm Mastery (Depends on your Weapon)
3. Battle Orders
4. Berserk
Attributes
Allocate enough Stat Points into Strength and Dexterity to equip your gear. Put remaining Stat Points into Vitality.
Setup
The Standard variant of the Whirlwind Barbarian uses dual Grief Phase Blade providing up to +800 Damage. Absolutely nothing comes close for raw damage with these weapons.
Using Fortitude over Enigma is an option to increase your damage, sacrificing the mobility of Teleport. Highlord's Wrath and Gore Rider are great for additional x% Deadly Strike, increasing your chance of critical strikes, while Laying of Hands are great for the +x% Damage to Demons. Use Bone Break instead of Sharp Grand Charm of Maiming to enable farming of any monster.
Mercenary
Might Aura Desert Mercenary provides us with a significant boost to our Physical Damage attacks.
The Reaper’s Toll has a chance to cast Decrepify on striking, which slows your enemies down, increases any Physical Damage dealt to them, and even breaks Physical Immunities. Andariel's Visage and Fortitude Sacred Armor fill in everything else he needs, from damage to survivability.
Skills
The Weapon Mastery always depends on the Weapon used. In this case we use blade Mastery:
Put 1 Point into each of the following Skills:
1. finditem
2. Grim Ward
3. Battle Command
4. Battle Cry
5. increasedspeed
6. naturalresistance
7. leap
8. leapattack
Max out the following Skills in this order:
1. Whirlwind
2. blade Mastery
3. Battle Orders
4. Find Potion
5. Berserk
Attributes
Allocate enough Stat Points into Strength and Dexterity to equip your gear. Put remaining Stat Points into Vitality.
Setup
With this variant you are using a 2 Handed Weapon with massive damage like Breath of the Dying War Pike.
Using Fortitude over Enigma is an option to increase your damage, sacrificing the mobility of Teleport. Highlord's Wrath and Gore Rider are great for additional x% Deadly Strike, increasing your chance of critical strikes, while Laying of Hands are great for the +x% Damage to Demons. Use Bone Break instead of Sharp Grand Charm of Maiming to enable farming of any monster.
Mercenary
Might Aura Desert Mercenary provides us with a significant boost to our Physical Damage attacks.
The Reaper’s Toll has a chance to cast Decrepify on striking, which slows your enemies down, increases any Physical Damage dealt to them, and even breaks Physical Immunities. Andariel's Visage and Fortitude Sacred Armor fill in everything else he needs, from damage to survivability.
Skills
Weapon Mastery always depends on the Weapon used. In this case, we use Spear Mastery:
Put 1 Point into each of the following Skills:
1. finditem
2. Grim Ward
3. Battle Command
4. Battle Cry
5. increasedspeed
6. naturalresistance
7. leap
8. leapattack
Max out the following Skills in this order:
1. Whirlwind
2. Spear Mastery
3. Battle Orders
4. Find Potion
5. Berserk
Attributes
Allocate enough Stat Points into Strength and Dexterity to equip your gear. Put remaining Stat Points into Vitality.
Setup
Magic Find Whirlwind Barbarian uses Grief Phase Blade for damage and Last Wish Phase Blade with x% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items (MF) among its other solid stats. This is capable of most content with its damage and survivability.
Note: If you need to get back to town, we use the Scroll of Town Portal on the Belt. Use Fine Small Charm of Good Luck to increase your Magic Find even further.
Mercenary
For this variant we use the Act 5 Mercenary because we already have Might from Last Wish Phase Blade. The advantage is his fast Attack Speed that allows him to proc Decrepify from Lawbringer Phase Blade and x% Chance of Crushing Blow from Guillaume's Face. Survivability mainly comes from Fade provided by Treachery Sacred Armor.
Skills
This Skill Tree works the same as the Standard Weapon Mastery always depends on the Weapon used. In this case we use blade Mastery:
Put 1 Point into each of the following Skills:
1. finditem
2. Grim Ward
3. Battle Command
4. Battle Cry
5. increasedspeed
6. naturalresistance
7. leap
8. leapattack
Max out the following Skills in this order:
1. Whirlwind
2. blade Mastery
3. Battle Orders
4. Find Potion
5. Berserk
Attributes
Allocate enough Stat Points into Strength and Dexterity to equip your gear. Put remaining Stat Points into Vitality.
Setup
The Elite Set Immortal King has been used for Whirlwind Barbs for ages. It is fairly cheap with the most expensive items being Immortal King's Soul Cage.
It is not the best setup out there but it is very well rounded and your character glows, what more could you ask for! We have a decent amount of damage, + to Skills, and survivability with everything that the full set grants us. Use Bone Break instead of Sharp Grand Charm of Maiming to enable farming of any monster.
Mercenary
Might Aura Desert Mercenary provides us with a significant boost to our Physical Damage attacks.
The Reaper’s Toll has a chance to cast Decrepify on striking, which slows your enemies down, increases any Physical Damage dealt to them, and even breaks Physical Immunities. Andariel's Visage and Fortitude Sacred Armor fill in everything else he needs, from damage to survivability.
Skills
The Skill Tree has some changes to it with the main Weapon Mastery always depends on the Weapon used. In this case, we use Mace Mastery:
Put 1 Point into each of the following Skills:
1. finditem
2. Grim Ward
3. Battle Command
4. Battle Cry
5. increasedspeed
6. naturalresistance
7. leap
8. leapattack
Max out the following Skills in this order:
1. Whirlwind
2. Mace Mastery
3. Battle Orders
4. Find Potion
5. Berserk
Attributes
Allocate enough Stat Points into Strength and Dexterity to equip your gear. Put remaining Stat Points into Vitality.
Setup
The Uber Variant has lots of Damage Reduction (50%), Resistances, and Life. Prior to entering any of the Uber fights we proc Fade by standing in the fire next to the River of Flame Waypoint.
Use Whirlwind in small triangles to dish out the most DPS. The most impactful items for this build are Arreat's Face, Thundergod's Vigor for Absorb, Stormshield, and Blood Crafted Ring to fill the rest. Dracul’s Grasp and Last Wish allows you to cast Life Tap on striking, adding another layer of Life recovery. Use Bone Break instead of Sharp Grand Charm of Maiming to enable farming of any monster.
Mercenary
For this variant we use the Act 5 Mercenary because we already have Might from Last Wish Phase Blade. The advantage here is that his fast Attack Speed allows him to proc Decrepify from Lawbringer Phase Blade and x% Chance of Crushing Blow from Guillaume's Face. Survivability mainly comes from Fade provided by Treachery Sacred Armor. DON'T expect your Mercenary to survive Uber Tristram!
Skills
Weapon Mastery always depends on the Weapon used. In this case we use blade Mastery:
Put 1 Point into each of the following Skills:
1. finditem
2. Grim Ward
3. Battle Command
4. increasedspeed
5. naturalresistance
6. leap
7. leapattack
Max out the following Skills in this order:
1. Whirlwind
2. blade Mastery
3. Battle Orders
4. Battle Cry
5. Berserk
Attributes
Allocate enough Stat Points into Strength and Dexterity to equip your gear. Put remaining Stat Points into Vitality.
Setup
This variant is what you want for survivability. We focus on having the maximum amount of Damage Reduction (50%) while stacking over capped resistances and Life. We also aim for 75% Chance to Block by adding enough Dexterity to reach this.
The most impactful items for this setup are Stormshield, Crown of Ages, Thundergod's Vigor and sometimes Verdungo's Hearty Cord. Dwarf Star or Wisp Projector can also be used for more Absorb. Don’t go too overboard with Defenses though. We all know Offense is the best Defense. Use Bone Break instead of Sharp Grand Charm of Maiming to enable farming of any monster.
Mercenary
We recommend the Might Aura Desert Mercenary as it provides us with a significant boost to our Physical Damage attacks.
The Reaper’s Toll has a chance to cast Decrepify on striking, which slows your enemies down, increases any Physical Damage dealt to them, and even breaks Physical Immunities. Andariel's Visage and Fortitude Sacred Armor fill in everything else he needs, from damage to survivability.
Skills
Weapon Mastery always depends on the Weapon used. In this case we use blade Mastery:
Put 1 Point into each of the following Skills:
1. finditem
2. Grim Ward
3. Battle Command
4. Battle Cry
5. increasedspeed
6. naturalresistance
7. leap
8. leapattack
Max out the following Skills in this order:
1. Whirlwind
2. blade Mastery
3. Battle Orders
4. Find Potion
5. Berserk
Attributes
Put enough Stat Points into Strength to wear your gear, Dexterity to reach 75% Chance to Block, and the remaining Stat Points into Vitality.
Summary
- Put enough Stat Points into Strength and Dexterity to wear gear and any remaining Stat Points into Vitality.
- Keep your Battle Command, Battle Orders, and Shout buffs up at all times.
- Use Teleport and Leap Attack to move around obstacles.
- Utilize Grim Ward in confined areas to deal additional damage.
- Position yourself well during combat staying and beware of Mana Burn monsters, dangerous amounts of mobs, enemy movements Auras.
- Small triangles for big single target DPS and large sweeping movements against danger.
- Always remember that you CANNOT use Potions while spinning!
- Have fun!
We hope you enjoy the build! We also hope that you are immune to being dizzy because this build is all about spinning to win! It can be very satisfying to both phase in and out of mobs while dealing damage to them.
Good luck!
Credits
Reviewed and Updated by Teo1904
Original Author BTNeandertha1