Diablo III- Skills Article XXXII: The Barbarian, Theorycraft Four: Just Some Thoughts

As you can see, the Barbarian has a lot of varied potential.  While it’s simply not as good at darting around the battlefield as the Monk or the Demon Hunter, the class can dish out damage all over the battlefield with little effort.  At the same time, it’s quite possible to construct your Barbarian to sit in one place and pull in large numbers of enemy to crush them in a central location.  Which set of skills you use should depend entirely on what you do when you play.  While the Barbarian’s toolbox is rather limited in terms of variety of effects, its focus is on dealing damage, holding things still so the party can deal more damage, putting things nearby so they can be hit more, and making itself (and to a lesser extent, allies) more capable of withstanding damage.

Certain skills in a given slot are more obviously useful (Leap versus Sprint, for instance), but that doesn’t necessarily mean that they’re a better choice for the build.  The Barbarian’s mobility toolbox, in particular, is varied and interesting- and involves a lot of spreading damage around through movement.  On the other hand, it’s equally possible to focus more on moving the enemy into the damage and focusing on a smaller area instead.

Pay attention to what you find yourself doing.  If you spend a lot of time on the verge of death, self-healing effects and Relentless are available.  If you spend a lot of time wishing your enemies were closer, you should see what you can drop for Leap, Sprint, Furious Charge, Ancient Spear, Wrenching Smash or Weapon Throw.  If your damage isn’t high enough, start with Weapon Mastery and build from there.  If you have full Fury all the time, swap out your Secondary skill for something more expensive like Seismic Slam, or pick up Dread Bomb.

You should also consider the allies you usually adventure with.  If you’re accompanied by the Enchantress, consider ‘pulling’ effects like Ancient Spear, Wrenching Smash, and Call of Arreat to put things together for her area-of-effect attacks.  When you wander with the Templar, skills that increase his impressive durability like War Cry are good choices.  The Rogue isn’t so hot defensively and wants to stay at range- so Demoralize might be a prime pick.

If you party with players, pay attention to your friends’ builds.  Some Wizards will love it when enemies are clustered up- others won’t care.  Many Demon Hunters just don’t mind Knockback like a Monk would, and if your Witch Doctor friend is littering the battlefield with summons, you can use Call of the Ancients to join in on the fun and make things even harder on the mobs.

While every Barbarian is going to want some investment into durability and crowd management, your runes will give you more than enough options for that- so pick your skills based on what you like and what benefits those who party with you.