The natural support abilities from the Barbarian in Diablo 2: Resurrected are so strong that they carried over to Diablo 3. The class is widely regarded as the best support in the game and anybody who plays him differently can be sure to receive a sidewise glance or two from their party members.
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But this isn't fair. The book isn't written on the Barbarian, who has plenty of offensive and defensive capabilities that, when combined, can beat all five acts of Diablo 2: Resurrected with the Whirlwind build. Putting it together can be complicated, but once it is in place, party members won't look at him sideways (or even make eye contact with him) ever again.
Skills
| Howl | 1 |
| Taunt | 1 |
| Battle Cry | 1 |
| Shout | 20 |
| Battle Orders | 20 |
| Sword Mastery | 20 |
| Iron Skin | 11 |
| Natural Resistance | 11 |
| Leap | 1 |
| Leap Attack | 1 |
| Bash | 1 |
| Stun | 1 |
| Concentrate | 1 |
| Whirlwind | 20 |
There are two maxed-out warcries in this build. Even though these are ordinarily used for support, they also have some of the best skills of any class during the endgame. This build is perhaps the only one in the game that can survive taking group damage without a shield, but it requires Shout and Battle Orders to do so.
Attributes
| Strength | 185 |
| Dexterity | 136 |
| Vitality | All the rest |
| Energy | None |
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The Phase Sword is the ideal base for the Grief Runeword and thankfully, its strength requirement is even less than what a Barbarian starts with, though players will need 185 strength for the Steelrend Ogre Gauntlets. The dexterity requirement is moderately high for the Phase Sword, so put 136 points into it. Like most Barbarian builds, energy is functionally meaningless. Go ahead and pour almost everything into vitality to survive the blows the Whirlwind Barbarian needs to weather.
Equipment
| Weapon | Grief |
| Offhand | Grief |
| Head | Arreat's Face |
| Body | Enigma |
| Hands | Steelrend |
| Feet | Gore Rider |
| Waist | Verdungo's Hearty Cord |
| Neck | Highlord's Wrath |
| Finger 1 | Raven Frost |
| Finger 2 | Wraith Hold |
| Unique Charms | Gheed's Fortune, Hellfire Torch, Annihilus |
| Grand Charms | Fanatic Grand Charms of Vita |
| Small Charms | Shimmering/Stalwart Small Charms of Vita |
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The Whirlwind Barbarian is and always will be a niche build because of how many different statistics it must focus on. Thankfully, some of the best Runewords and gear in the game help out with exactly what the Barbarian needs. Barbarians need defense, attack rating, and life in spades if they can survive running into the center of combat to use their Whirlwind skill without a shield. Make sure to get enough Shimmering Small Charms until magic resistances hit 75% (Natural Resistance should help with this).
Mercenary
| Mercenary | Act 2 Offensive Desert Mercenary |
| Weapon | The Reaper's Toll |
| Head | Andariel's Visage |
| Body | Fortitude |
Because the Offensive Desert Mercenary in Act 2 will provide a Might Aura, there's no other option for getting the most out of the character's mercenary. With some appropriate gear, it will act as a second Barbarian alongside the player's Barbarian, benefitting from the warcries and stats that the Whirlwind Barbarian provides.
Diablo 2: Resurrected was released on September 23rd, 2021, and is available on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.