Diablo 4 Classes Explained: Which one to choose and why (2024)

In this guide, we break down each of the six classes in Diablo 4 and what they offer when compared to each other, so you can choose your favorite to start with!

Diablo 4 currently has six different classes: Barbarian, Druid, Necromancer, Rogue, Spiritborn and Sorcerer. Each of these classes has different advantages and disadvantages, which unless we’re sold on a specific fantasy, can make it quite the proposition to choose a class to main.

We will break down the advantages and disadvantages of each class and why we might want to consider each. We’ll be talking about their power levels in various areas as well as covering their class mechanics before giving them a quick summary. Finally, we’ll go into further depth and give insight as to which classes are better for new players or a fresh start.

The Barbarian

The Barbarian is predominately a melee class, which makes them inherently slower. While they do get some solid early AoE options in many of the Core Skill choices, they’ll often still feel a bit lackluster due to their slow animations. Though overall they have many advantages for a new player.

Power Scaling

Barbarians are a class that is definitely a slow starter. This slower start to how they play isn’t a bad thing, especially for beginners. We’re more able to focus on what is right in front of us with fewer worries about any upcoming encounters much easier. They end up slowly ramping into their end-game state, which makes the process much smoother and more comfortable overall.

Their strong AoE options either, like Hammer of the Ancients and Whirlwind to help with AoE clearing. Due to reliable access to Bleed from Flay and Rend, as well as faster single-target attacks like Frenzy and Double Swing, we won’t be hurting for options to take down Elites or bosses either.

While most other classes get mobility options starting around level 10, the Barbarian will be left waiting until around level 20 before they can even consider a mobility option. However, Leap is easily one of the strongest mobility options among all mobility skills offered by all classes, falling just behind Sorcerer’s Teleport.

Barbarians get some of the best options for reducing incoming damage, which includes an inherent damage reduction that we get from level one. That’s not even accounting for skills like Iron Skin providing Barrier, or Challenging Shout providing 40% damage reduction.

Combined with other aspects and effects and the Barbarian is easily the most durable of the classes available without relying heavily on just avoiding damage. They can take just as much of a beating as they can dish out.

Class Mechanic – Arsenal

Unlike other classes though, the Barbarians get their Class Mechanics, Arsenal, much earlier than most classes and get it right at Level 5. This helps balance out their early power fairly well, making them much more reliable when used well.

Their Arsenal is broken down into seven categories of weapon: Polearms as well as the One-Handed and Two-Handed variations of Axes, Maces, and Swords. Each of the weapon categories grants different bonuses that also level up over time as we use a weapon type.

This also allows us to Assign skills to use a specific weapon in our Arsenal, rather than the strongest equipped weapon. Doing so allows us to control both what Expertise we level, but also which Expertise bonus is applied to each skill. This gives them a lot of additional power that scales with them.

Summary

If we’re the type that like the in-your-face brawler type of class, the Barbarian will definitely give us just that. We’ll be one of the most durable and arguably easiest classes to pilot in the end game for most content.

Being a pure melee class and a bulky one at that, we’ll be a bit on the slower side to start. However, once we get access to our mobility skills around level 15 or so, we’ll have access to one of the stronger mobility options available, Leap.

That said, we won’t lack any late-game power or have any shortage of power fantasy options as we get deeper into the game. The Barbarian scales incredibly well into late game with plenty of build options.

If the Barbarian sounds like a fantasy to get behind, check out our Barbarian Leveling Build Guide. After the campaign, we can switch to our Endgame Berserking Barbarian Build to try something extremely powerful and fun.

The Druid

The Druid is a hybrid magic and melee class, having solid options for both styles that allow for a fair degree of mix-and-match that makes them fairly versatile. We’ll want to take advantage of this versatility to have fun with this class.

Power Scaling

Much like the Barbarian, the Druid is another class that is a slow starter. However, unlike the Barbarian, we have more options to deal damage at range as needed. With skills allowing us to shapeshift into a Werebear or Werewolf for high melee potential, as well as Earth-based and Storm-based magics to deal damage or offer additional protection.

As for their general power curve, Druids will likely steadily rise in power until they get access to most of their boons from Spirit Animals, their class mechanic. Once they have access to those, as well as aspects, they’ll be able to quickly spike their power up relative to the build used. Aspects will still play a part in their early power but become truly powerful when paired with their boons.

Much of their early power will ultimately come from their Companion Skills which they’ll get around level 15, which offer a great amount of additional damage. Not only do companions offer additional passive damage, but they all have active skills that can be used to dish out heavy damage

While they lack mobility in general, the high AoE potential from Companion Skills like Ravens or Storm Magic like Tornado make up for that by allowing us to just demolish groups of enemies faster compared to classes like the Barbarian who may still have some struggles depending on build.

They also make up for this lack of mobility with plenty of Defensive and Recovery options among their skills. While they’ll be a bit more fragile than the Barbarian until they get access to this category of skill around level 10 like most classes, they still get them early enough to give us that bit of extra safety in combat.

With skills like Cyclone Armor which offers some passive damage reduction and Earthen Bulwark which provides more active shielding, we can be quite durable. What defensive options we end up using will vary from build to build, but can offer a lot of synergies with other aspects of building out a Druid.

Class Mechanic – Spirit Boons

Unlike the Barbarian, it’ll be a while until we get our Class Mechanic having to wait until Level 15, have access to the Scosglen region, and complete the Tul Dulra Stronghold. This isn’t too far off from when most classes get their respective Class mechanics, and doesn’t take too much longer with the current leveling pace.

Once we can get it, this is where a lot of the Druid’s power will come from. We’ll be able to make offerings to Spirit Animals who will offer us powerful boons, with up to a total of five active at the later stages of the game.

With there being a total of five slots and only four Spirit Animals, this means we’ll get to get double the bonuses from a preferred spirit. This will enable a ton of build diversity and synergy with however wewant to build our Druid.

Summary

Overall, the Druid offers a unique mix of Melee and Magic that can be combined to incredibly high potential. If we’re torn between having a pure magic Sorcerer, or pure melee Barbarian, the Druid may just offer the flexibility needed, being able to almost swap on demand. This flexibility gives them plenty of options both early on and later in the game that can make them a force to be reckoned with.

It’s worth keeping in mind that the Druid doesn’t have a ton of mobility, so we’ll need to rely on defensive skills to help us through combat. Thankfully, with plenty of AoE skills to choose from as well as a fair account of crowd control, we’ll be more than fine.

If the Druid sounds like a fantasy to get behind, check out our build guides below.

The Necromancer

Similar to Druids, Necromancers can also be a hybrid between magic and melee, but more predominately focus on magic and their army of skeletons. Being the class that will let us dive into their power fantasy the earliest, it’s no surprise the Necromancer is a fan-favorite.

Power Scaling

Necromancers are a class that, unlike the previous two, has a fairly strong early start. With easy access to multiple AoE Skills like Blood Surge and Corpse Explosion and even potent single-target options like Bone Spear, they’re able to handle most situations exceptionally well early on, despite their relative fragility.

Many of their skills also have exceptionally strong Legendary Aspects, which can really accelerate them into mid and even late-game with ease. This allows them to scale up fairly easily and quickly, should we be lucky enough to find a decent one early on.

While the Necromancer lacks mobility, they have several tools to help them survive. This is everything from becoming immune to damage with Blood Mist, Trapping enemies with Bone Prison, or even weakening them with Decrepify. Additionally, they’ll almost always have some form of minion to draw attention away from themselves.

Minions themselves also heavily contribute to the Necromancer’s ability to scale. Not only do they provide meaningful damage, but they also have several options that grant excellent utility. This includes things like resource recovery, critical chance, damage reduction, and even taunting. It all comes down to how we use their Class Mechanic.

Class Mechanic – Book of the Dead

While we don’t get full access to our Class Mechanic until we get all of our minion types at later levels, we will get access to it at a very basic level from Level 5. The Book of the Dead allows us to adjust how each of our minions handles combat, allowing for a wide array of offensive, defensive, and support options across all of them.

Each of our three summon types has three variations that affect their purpose and utility which alone give us plenty of options. However, we’re also able to sacrifice one of each type of minion (Warrior, Mage, Golem) and instead enhance a solo-caster style as well. These options are where a lot of the Necromancer’s strengths and build-tuning potential are found.

Summary

If the fantasy of just having an army of minions that do most of the work for us, the Necromancer is the best option for that. While Sorcerers may have their Conjuration Skills and Druids have their Companion Skills, neither have the same consistent access to them as the Necromancer.

Necromancers are also able to fill that potent caster fantasy as well, with a variety of Blood, Bone, and Darkness skills. These skills allow them to progress smoothly in the early game and can even accelerate them into mid and late-game with the added damage and protection found within these skills.

If the Necromancer sound like a fantasy to get behind, check out our Necromancer Leveling Build Guide. After we’re done with the campaign, use our Blood Necromancer Build or Bone Necromancer Build to tackle the endgame.

The Rogue

The Rogue is a class that combines Melee and Ranged physical attacks to devastating effect. They are the premiere “glass cannon” class, having both high damage potential but also lower durability.

Power Scaling

Unlike all of the other classes in Diablo 4, Rogues tend to have the least stable power curve as they progress. This is due to their lack of defenses making them generally more fragile than other classes as well as their Apsects and Class Mechanic spiking their power so easily.

All of that in combination with many powerful skills and high mobility makes them relatively strong and dominant in the early game. While they primarily focus on single-target damage, which would make them feel like a slower start, they also have a few strong AoE options, which is what gives them a lot of early-game power.

While they have high damage potential with their skills, many of their skills rely on positioning to line things up just right. Many of their skills that deal AoE damage also require us to group or line enemies up in just the right way for maximum effect. This can make them tricky to play at times.

Rouges are also limited by their lack of defensive options, with Dark Shroud being their premiere and most reliable defensive option for most builds. Outside of this, they have to rely on their mobility to avoid damage which inherently makes them harder to play for a new player.

Class Mechanic – Specializations

Their Class Mechanic, Specializations, come in the form of additional abilities that they unlock as they level. These powerful passive abilities add a ton of power to many of their skills, and can very easily enable builds to just deal insane burst damage or give periods of high sustained damage that is practically unmatched by most classes.

Currently, Rogues have three Specializations that are unlocked starting at Level 15 and completing the Rogue’s “True Potential” quest. This unlocks the Combo Points Specialization, with the remaining two unlocking at level 20 (Inner Sight) and level 30 (Preperation) respectively.

Each of these provides various effects to the Rogue. Combo Points allow the Rogue to empower their Core Skills by using their Basic Skill. Inner Sight grants a meter that grants them infinite Energy for a short duration after it fills. The effects of Preparation are currently unknown at this time.

Summary

If the quick and flashy assassin style of play is preferred, we’ll be right at home on Rogue. While we recommend against playing it if new to Diablo or the ARPG genre in general, the Rogue is quite a powerful early-game class that can still make it exceptionally fun to play.

While quick and flashy, the Rogue is also incredibly fragile. This fragility is offset by their mobility, which they also need to utilize to maximize their damage potential

If this sounds like a fantasy to get behind, check out our Rogue Leveling Build Guide. When we’re done with the campaign, our Endgame Imbuement Rogue Build is waiting!

The Spiritborn

The Spiriborn was added with the Vessel of Hatred Expansion and requires the you to own the expansion to be available for character creation.

The Spiritborn is a Melee fighter that utilizes the power of animal spirits for combat, giving them a very diverse and flexible kit to work with. They’re very well-rounded, having access to plenty of damage, but not quite being the glass cannon that the Rogue tends to be.

Power Scaling

The Spiritborn scales incredibly well. Their flexibility between damage and defensive options lets them focus on either, with neither side being too weak. With the diverse playstyles offered by their full kit, there are a number of ways to build them and get satisfying results.

Class Mechanic – Spirit Hall

These four Animal Spirit don’t just dictate their skills, but their Class Mechanic as well. The Spirit Hall allows us to choose a Primary and Secondary spirit for different effects based on the Spirits chosen.

The Jaguar Spirit as the Primary Spirit amps our burst potential, by adding a burst of damage after several hits, based on the damage dealt in a short window before it triggers. Additionally, all Skills are considered Jaguar Skills. As a Secondary Spirit the Jaguar grants an additional Maximum stack to Ferocity and grants one stack each time an enemy is defeated or a Boss is struck by a skill.

The Eagle Spirit as the Primary Spirit grants the Movement Speed bonus of Storm Feathers when casting any Eagle Skill. Evading while this buff is active will fling Storm Feathers out dealing Lightning Damage and applying Vulnerable. Additionally, all Skills are considered Eagle Skills. As a Secondary Spirit, the Eagle grants Critical Strike chance each time we move a set distance that resets after dealing a Critical Strike.

The Gorilla Spirit as the Primary Spirit adds 100% of our Thorns damage to enemies hit by Gorilla skills and generates Barrier based on our Maximum Life. Additionally, all skills are considered Gorilla Skills. As a Secondary Spirit, the Gorilla increases Maximum Resolve and grants Unstoppable while we have at least 5 stacks of Resolve.

The Centipede Spirit as the Primary Spirit will apply a stacking debuff on enemies hit by Centipede Skills, reducing their damage dealt and slowing them. Additionally, all skills are considered Centipede Skills. As a Secondary Spirit, the Centipede will heal us for each nearby enemy that was poisoned recently.

Summary

The Spiritborn is a flexible Melee class that allows us to use any combination of skills, and not miss out on anything provided by their Spirit Hall choices. The Spirit Hall mechanic is what drives their flexibility, and makes them the strong class that they are.

This allows them to be a versatile and approachable class, but mastering the interactions between our Skill and Spirit Hall choices will allow us to push the Spiritborn to a higher level.

The Sorcerer

The Sorcerer is a class that specializes in magic attacks across the three elements of Fire, Ice, and Lightning. Similar to the Rogue, they can also be a bit of a glass cannon but have better defensive options overall.

Power Scaling

Sorcerers will scale well into the end game, with spikes similar to those of the Rogue, but not quite as strong spikes making them fairly stable overall. They have great defense and mobility options making them solid in the early game where we might otherwise be lacking in those areas.

They have great damage with Ice Skills like Ice Shards and Lightning Skills like Arc Lash and Chain Lightning often carrying their early damage. Fire Skills are a little more touch and go, as while there are decent options, they don’t feel all too powerful early game.

Many of their skills also have AoE, which makes them exceptionally good at clearing packs. They don’t have nearly as many great options for Elites or Bosses, but the few they do have like Chain Lightning are exceptionally powerful.

Similar to the Druid and Necromancer, they also have a good mix of defensive options which helps cover for being otherwise fragile. With options like Barrier-granting Ice Armor, Becoming immune to damage with Flame Shield, or even Chilling and Freezing foes with Ice Skills.

Class Mechanic – Enchantments

The Sorcerer’s Class Mechanic, Enchantments, allows them to use any of their learned spells to enhance their build in various ways. They’ll get access to this at Level 15 after completion of the “Legacy of the Magi” quest and a second slot at level 30.

With the exception of their Ultimate Skills, Sorcerers are able to use any skill that have at least one level. This level can even be provided by the added Skill Level effect found on armors, which can allow us to use a skill as an enchantment without investing a passive point.

The number of options this opens up to the Sorcerer for added damage and utility is pretty insane. We can get everything from a guaranteed Burn, allowing our Conjurations to summon themselves, or even casting skills as we use mana. It makes them incredibly versatile.

Summary

Sorcerers are ultimately one of the more flexible classes available and a great starter class. We’d highly recommend the Sorcerer class to those new to the game or genre looking to play a class that’s fun and flashy, but not super demanding.

Since Sorcerers have great early damage, access to early mobility and defensive options, and are consistent at all stages of the game, they’re good all-rounders. They have the potential to be incredibly flashy, without the same fragility drawbacks of the Rogue.

If the Sorcerer sounds like a fantasy to get behind, check out our Sorcerer Leveling Build Guide and the Endgame Shock Build, which is a variation of the leveling build, but tailored for the post-campaign challenges. Use our Frost Sorcerer Build or Fire Sorcerer Build to tackle Diablo 4’s Endgame.

Which Class Should You Choose

If we’ve played previous Diablo titles, we might recognize these classes from their earlier incarnations. We might already have a favorite in mind or be open to trying something new. So here are our recommendations to help alleviate those pains.

Out of all the reasons we could pick any of the classes, the one that stands above everything else is how much we enjoy them. Their looks, their gameplay, all of that. There’s a high chance that unless we “meta chase”, our enjoyment will matter the most.

That said, the Necromancer is great if we want to immediately get right into the class fantasy. With early access to their Class Mechanic and by extension their minions, the Necromancer can deliver on their fantasy very early on. This can make it very enjoyable if that’s the concept you enjoy the most. As a side bonus, they also have great early-game damage.

If want to chase the meta, there’s a high chance Rogue will be part of that. With their high damage and mobility, Rogues have everything a veteran player would want. They offer some of the highest damage but also have a great deal of skill expression and can be highly demanding.

If Diablo 4 is our first foray into the ARPG Genre or we’re just looking for a class that is simple but can still be rewarding, the Barbarian might be the way to go. While a slower class to start with, the Barbarian is inherently durable which makes it exceptionally new player friendly. It might not be the most exciting class, but they currently have a ton of potential to scale into the endgame.

Don’t prefer Melee classes? Sorcerers are also a great class for new players. Sorcerers are a class that has well-balanced damage and defenses and still has plenty of fun and flashy skills to play with. While on the more fragile side of things like the Rogue, their strong defensive options make them much more accessible.

Finally, there’s the Druid. The Druid is a bit of a hidden gem, offering great damage and durability. Between its class mechanic and Legendary Aspects, it has the potential to go crazy late-game. The main problem is that unless the fantasy of the class is what we’re after, it’ll be a slow process getting there. Once we get there though, we’ll be rewarded for the time spent with a formidable class.