Thread by @NeverSinkDev

I want to talk about the #Diablo4 druid and also sum up my experiences with all classes and potentially rank them.

I've played the beta extensively and I did enjoy it quite a bit, even if the game has some glaring issues that I hope will be resolved until release!

1/n

First of all: all classes have been played on veteran 2 and I've reached level 20-25 on all classes except druid, where I've stuck to level 17.

Also do note that this experience is purely the beta one, I can't tell how things play out in the edgame or the release

2/n

First of all I'd like to start with the positives.

The druid is really cool. The skills are conceptually really fun, the were-bear/wolf forms feel nice and I particularly enjoyed the werewolf gameplay.

That being said, numberwise the druid seems to be the weakest class.

3/n

So lets list some of his issues:

1) The class is very reliant on resource (spirit) generation, but doesn't have strong utilities to generate it.

All other classes either have regeneration or strong passives/abilities to generate their resource.

2/n

The druid wolf howl does generate a decent amount of spirit and there seem to be some solid ultimate passive options, but overall it seems way weaker in that regard.

Additionally the generators have less utility attached to them compared to other classes.

3/n

AOE - the druid struggles with AOE on many builds.

If you focus on a werewolf path - your clear is very very limited. You get some choices to improve clear, but these come at the cost of other important choices.

Additionally rabies - the WW AOE CD skill is remarkably weak.

4/n

For instance shred is a really fun skill, but it's your core ability and you need to choose between the 'dash on all 3 stages', which feels mandatory to feel good or the AOE improvement.

Other classes skills feel way more solid and fleshed out by default.

5/n

Summons - the druidic summons are very weak compared to the companions of the necromancers.

The necromancer companions provide powerful passives and deal significantly more damage.

This would be somewhat OK, since the druid has active abilities on his summons, buuuut...

6/n

The active summon abilities are not instant. That means you spend a ~1secondish cast time to activate some damage or CC ability and it just feels REALLY off. These should be instant imo.

7/n

Also most abilities just feel really weak numerically.

It feels that the AOE, CD, damage, resource costs are all in need of improvements compared to other classes.

8/n

My final issue with the druid are the aspects.

These seem significantly weaker compared to the aspects of the other classes (my go to comparison is sorc/rogue).

9/n

Important: the druid does not get his passive specialization in the beta - this might change the equation.

That said: most issues I've had with the druid mostly felt like a numeric issue - unlike the necromancer (that was way stronger):

the druid was FUN!

10/n

I hope the druid will get a bunch of numeric tweaks, instant minion skills and improved aspects.

It feels like a really cool concept and it really inherits the feel of the D2 class!

11/n

Now lets talk about the class ranking overall:

From worst to best I'd put them like that:

Druid
Barb
Necro/Rogue*
Sorc

There's a lot to note on the rogue/necro ranking, so please keep reading.

12/n

Sorc right now is the best class - strong utility, passive resource generation, powerful hydras, lots of defense and lots of viable choices.

Also definitely the best clear.

I think rogue or necro might have a bit more damage, but overall I'll likely start sorc on release

13/n

Necro and Rogue are kind of in a tier.

Necro lacks movement abilities and imho has weaker defenses and utilities compared to rogue.

However, necro has some insane AOE clearing, the minions boast good passives and the single target damage is very solid, potentially best!

14/n

I also think necro is conceptually very boring and slow to play, but that's just me.

(Note I'm not taking the Necro's blood mist aspect into consideration a near perma-invul aspect will likely get nerfed/reworked)

15/n

Rogue is an amazing class.

Right now it feels a bit like a 1-trick pony:
Flurry is the best skill for the rogue.

That being said, overall the class performs really well, is super mobile and comes with a ton of utility.

Also the general feel of the class was great!

16/n

Barb with upheaval or rend is really fun to play.

However, energy generation is a bit of an issue and ironically the class felt much squishier than anything else (including druid).

They might be the strongest class in the engame, due to the additional item slots, but..

17/n

During the beta, they certainly felt more limited than the previous 3 options.

However, they feature solid AOE clear and there's a lot of strong utility. Also some fun aspects!

18/n

Finally, as already mentioned before - the druid was a bit of a numeric disappointed and fell quite short.

I really hope this will be taken to consideration by blizz and they'll rebalance the poor guy.

19/n

Thanks for reading!

Please share your thoughts on the classes, I'd love to see how much these match my experiences!

20/n