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The best Diablo 4 Druid build for solo play

The best Druid build in Diablo 4 only comes into its own at higher levels, but once it does, you end up with a versatile attacker who can debilitiate enemies and dish out a surprising amount of damage.

Josh Broadwell

March 25, 2023 5:00 PM

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The best Druid build in Diablo 4 only comes into its own at higher levels. Once it does, you end up with a versatile attacker who can debilitiate enemies and dish out a surprising amount of damage. The only downside is that there aren’t many viable skill paths for an effective Druid.

What is the best Druid build in Diablo 4?

Settling on a best build or even a particularly good one for the Druid is more difficult than it is with Diablo 4’s other classes. On paper, the Druid has access to a broad range of abilities, including some elemental magic and the option to change into a werewolf and were-bear for powerful melee attacks. In practice, these skills just don’t work as well as they should, at least in the beta. 

The Druid is underpowered until its higher tiers in most cases, but with the right skill combination, you can still make it through Fractured Peaks on your own.

The best Druid build for solo play

We’ve opted for a mix of single-target and area-of-effect skills to help manage most threats effectively, with passives to keep your Druid healthy for longer.

Basic skills: Maul (Enhanced) and Earth Spike (Wild)

Maul is a strong attack that hits enemies in front of you, though its area-of-effect is a bit random thanks to how the attack animation unfolds. Earth Spike is more reliable for AoE and ranged attacks.

Enhanced Maul and Wild Earth Spike fortify you, which adds an extra bit of health to your pool. Fortify is important for Druids, since they don’t have the same crowd control effectiveness as other classes and can get overwhelmed easily.

Core skill: Shred (Primal)

Shred unleashes a three-hit combo attack as a werewolf, where each successive hit deals more damage than the previous. The Primal form recovers some health as you attack, which is particularly useful in battles against Elites and bosses.

Core passive: Heart of the Wild and Abundance

Heart of the Wild increases your Spirit pool’s max limit, and Abundance makes your basic skills replenish more Spirit. These are essential passives.

Defensive skill: Debilitating Roar (Preserving)

Debilitating Roar is an excellent skill. The base version reduces nearby enemy physical defense by 50 percent, while the Enhanced upgrade fortifies you, and the Preserving tier restores health for each second the skill is active.

Defensive passive: Skip

There’s only one passive in this branch, and it isn’t very useful.

Companions skill: Ravens (Ferocious)

Ravens summons aerial support in the form of a flock of ravens who attack every few seconds. At the Ferocious level, their attacks make enemies vulnerable.

Companions passive: Call of the Wild

This skill is another essential one, as it increases the amount of damage your companion skill deals.

Wrath skill: Hurricane (Enhanced)

Hurricane summons a raging whirlwind that deals heavy damage and slows foes. Unlike Tornado, you can actually control who this skill damages, since the vortex spawns around your Druid.

If you have some spare skill points, we also recommend Rabies at the Enhanced level. Rabies inflicts poison and makes afflicted enemies spread it to nearby foes.

Wrath passive: Neurotoxin and Envenom

If you opt for Rabies, these skills are excellent complements. Neurotoxin slows poisoned enemies, and Envenom increases the critical hit damage poisoned enemies take.

Ultimate skill: Lacerate (Supreme)

Lacerate turns you into a wolf and has you dash around dealing exceptionally heavy damage to nearby foes. The Supreme version guarantees the first hit as a critical strike and buffs its damage by 200 percent.

Ultimate passive: Defensive Posture

If you have any points left, drop a few into Defensive Posture. It increases the amount of Fortify you receive from any Fortify-granting skill.

If you’re looking for tips on what skills to choose for your Diablo 4 hero of another class, check out our Rogue build, and  Sorcerer build guides.

Josh Broadwell

Contributing Editor

Josh is a freelance writer and reporter who specializes in guides, reviews, and whatever else he can convince someone to commission. You may have seen him on NPR, IGN, Polygon, or VG 24/7 or on Twitter, shouting about Trails. When he isn’t working, you’ll likely find him outside with his Belgian Malinois and Australian Shepherd or curled up with an RPG of some description.