Alright folks, strap in because today I finally got my hands dirty comparing Barbarian and Necromancer for Diablo 4 Season 5. Wanted to see for myself what the hype was about, which one felt better to actually play, not just theorycraft.
Grabbing the Controller and Loading Up
First thing, I fired up the PS5. Coffee in hand (essential), jumped straight into my Seasonal character select. Had one slot ready, so it was decision time: Barb or Necro? Honestly, I stared at the screen for a good five minutes, remembering past seasons where Barb felt slow and Necro minions were dumb as bricks. Heard S5 tweaked both, so figured I needed fresh eyes.
Barbarian First Swing (Literally)
Said “Screw it,” hit ‘Create’ on a Barb. Named him ‘SmashyMcSmash’. Started on World Tier 2, like always. Took the Whirlwind skill path first – old habits die hard. Right away, I felt… sluggish. Swinging that big sword felt heavy, ya know? Early levels are a damn slog. Felt like I was wading through mud, running out of Fury constantly. Died to the first bigger pack of those goatmen bastards because I couldn’t generate Fury fast enough. Swore loudly. Almost swapped classes there and then, but I stuck it out.
Gearing the Big Guy
Around level 25-ish, things started clicking a bit. Found a decent two-handed axe with some Fury-on-Kill. Slapped on some gear that bumped up my basic skill speed. Started playing with Upheaval instead of pure Whirlwind – actually felt good! Big, meaty hits that splattered mobs. Got the Leap and Earthquake skills. Holy crap, jumping into a crowd and slamming down an earthquake felt POWERFUL. Finally felt like the Barbarian fantasy I wanted. Took down my first S5 boss event feeling like a boss myself. Still squishy as heck before shouting, though.
Switching Sides to the Spooky Dude
After getting Smashy to about 40, I made Necro. Named ‘BonesMcGee’. World Tier 2 again. Opted for a Bone Spear build this time – heard it was strong. Holy difference, Batman! Leveling the Necro felt… smooth. Like, scary smooth. Walked into the first cave, pointed my bony finger, and BAM stuff died. Instantly. Bone Spear just deleted things. Didn’t feel nearly as resource-starved as the Barb early on. Corpses exploded nice and easy for more Essence. Skeletons? They were actually useful this time! They tanked stuff while I lobbed spears from the back. Died way less, leveled way faster. Thought, “Damn, this might be the Season 5 winner.”
Pushing Both Toward Endgame
Got both characters pushing into the 60s. This is where the rubber met the road for my Season 5 pick.
- Barbarian: Once geared and spec’d right? Absolute powerhouse. Charge through mobs, Shout for buffs, Leap and stomp everything with Earthquakes. Cleared dungeons FAST solo. Crazy tanky after my shouts went off. But… managing Fury and cooldowns? Busy as hell! Felt frantic sometimes, especially against elites with annoying affixes. Awesome damage, super satisfying WHUMP, but zero chill.
- Necromancer: Bone Spear stayed insanely strong. Sniping elites offscreen? Yes please. Felt super safe standing behind a wall of skeletons and golems. But… started feeling kinda boring honestly. Point, shoot, point, shoot. When things got messy up close? Yeah, melted way faster than the Barb. Those minions? Still occasionally stood in fire like idiots. Great damage, super efficient, but less exciting for me.
The Real Verdict After Playing Both
So, after actually grinding both classes myself? Here’s the tea:
- Want to Level FAST and Melt Faces from Afar? Necromancer (Bone Spear) is your jam. So damn efficient it almost feels cheap sometimes.
- Want to Feel Like a Demigod Tank Smashing Everything in Sight? Barbarian (any shout-based build really) is brutal fun. More buttons to press, more chaos, but way more exciting visceral feedback for my style.
Final thought: There isn’t a “best” class, period. For Season 5, Barbarian feels way better than before, finally strong and impactful. Necro is smooth and powerful as ever. It 100% boils down to whether you wanna be a screaming, leaping meatgrinder (Barb) or a calculated, screen-clearing artillery piece (Necro Bone Spear). I ended up sticking with SmashyMcSmash – the chaotic fun just hooked me harder. But BonesMcGee is chilling on the roster too!