Barrage offers a hybrid between a ranged and melee playstyle that completely changes how the Rogue is played in Diablo 4. It sacrifices mobility for the ability to unleash a torrent of arrows to skewer everything on the screen, assuming they don't blow up from all the Shadow damage.
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The following is designed for clearing out hordes and killing bosses in Diablo 4's Nightmare and early Torment difficulty levels. It isn't as mobile as many of the Rogue's other builds, but it's perfect for players who just want to stand still, hold a button down, a watch as everything gets pelted by arrows.
Skills
Total Points
Fundamental Puncture
3
Advanced Barrage
7
Countering Smoke Grenade
3
Countering Stealth
3
Blended Shadow Imbuement
7
Supreme Shadow Clone
3
In terms of playstyle, players can consider this an evolution of the Flurry build. Both involve fighting in close quarters, and they share many of the same basic principles when it comes to resource management and actual gameplay.
Since Barrage fires in a spread pattern, it deals more damage up close where more arrows can hit the same target per ability cast. Think of it like a shotgun blast-the closer players are, the harder the skill hits. Take Advanced Barrage with Fundamental Puncture for guaranteed arrow bounces and critical hit buffs. If AOE becomes an issue, switch to Improved Barrage.
Smoke Grenade can be a lifesaver when fighting big packs of elites. It also lets players stand still without worrying about much retaliation, allowing them to take advantage of the Inner Calm Aspect and every second of Inner Sight's unlimited Energy window. Pair this with Shadow Imbuement for high AOE damage.
Concealment is this build's panic button. Use it to break stuns and reposition when things get a little too hectic. Its upgrade guarantees a critical strike for the Skill players use to break Stealth, making it great for bursting down an important target.
Shadow Clone basically doubles the player's damage while also granting Unstoppable. Pop it during big fights and watch the demons disappear.
Skills
Points
Sturdy
3
Siphoning Strikes
3
Exploit
3
Malice
3
Shadow Crash
1
Consuming Shadows
3
Weapon Mastery
3
Precision Imbuements
3
Innervation
3
Second Wind
3
Rapid Gambits
1
Trick Attacks
3
This build relies a fair bit on Lucky Hit effects, which is why Second Wind is a welcome addition to the passive setup. Players will be spamming Barrage every chance they get, so they might as well grab the extra Lucky Hit Chance while they're at it.
The other passives here are standard for most ranged Rogue builds. However, Sturdy and Siphoning Strikes are included here since players will be in the thick of things when using Barrage.
Inner Sight is the preferred Specialization since it allows for unlimited arrow spam, though players can swap this out for Preparation for more Shadow Clones. Take Precision as the Key Passive for an absurd amount of empowered critical hits.
Offense
Defense
Utility
Inner Calm
Disobedience
Ravenous
Accelerating
Might
Umbral
Vengeful
Cheat's
The three main offensive Aspects here are Inner Calm, Accelerating, and Vengeful. Branching Volleys and Arrow Storms can help increase the build's AOE damage potential, but the three mentioned earlier should be the ones players prioritize in their gear.
Barrage is a resource-hungry skill, so players will have to use Aspects that generate Energy or increase its regeneration rate. Ravenous and Umbral do this job perfectly, and the latter increases the Energy gained from Puncture as well.
For defenses, players will want as many damage-reduction effects as they can get. The build has a lot of innate healing effects, so having a defensive item that can keep players from getting one-shot is perfect. Disobedience is a must-have, especially in higher difficulties.
Fill in the remaining slots with more damage or defenses as necessary. No Unique items are needed here, but something like Grasp of Shadow or Cowl of the Nameless can help a lot.
Cunning Stratagem is a safe pick for players who want more Core Skill damage and access to the Exploit Glyph's bonus effect. However, this board's Legendary node will not help the build in any way since it doesn't use Combo Points. Slot in the Combat Glyph in the first board's socket as soon as possible.
No Witnesses greatly increases the player's DPS after using their ultimate. Take this first if Exploit doesn't feel necessary. Cheap Shot is also a good option since Daze counts as a Crowd Control effect. From here, grab any DPS or survivability bonus as needed to push harder content.
This build is good for levels 50-70. Changes may be required on higher levels to account for stronger enemies.
Diablo 4 is available for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S.