Inferno currently is extremely hard for barbarians, mainly because they are the most gear dependant class in the game, it won’t be a huge issue in the future, but for now it basically means we are stuck with this Tank Barbarian Build, which farms inferno great, but isn’t the most fun.

Here is an awesome post which I found on the Diablo 3 forums by Zrave

Tank Barbarian:

us.battle.net/d3/en/calculator/barbarian#WVSRXk!beV!accZac

This build is very versatile. It can kill most elite packs, all bosses, and skip through zones. It’s designed to get 5 stacks of Nephalem Valor, reach bosses and then kill them for the bonus loot.

Frenzy(Sidearm): I brought this skill because I wanted to have good single target damage for boss encounters. The Sidearm rune was chosen because it has the highest single target dps (considerably higher than Maniac in this build), while simultaneously providing a little bit of aoe damage, since the thrown axes can hit multiple enemies.

Revenge(Provocation): This skill provides the staying power when you’re fighting groups of enemies. I chose the Provocation rune to make the heal consistent, which is important because this build depends on it to stay alive.

Ignore Pain(Iron Hide): An amazing panic button, it has saved my life more times than I can count. It has a decent duration and short enough cooldown that I can depend on it to get me out of tricky situations, such as getting frozen on top of aoe damage. Also, for especially challenging encounters, you can dps while it’s up and kite while it refreshes.

Leap/Iron Impact: Leap is a fantastic skill. It gives the build much needed mobility since you’ll often be blocked by groups of enemies. Furthermore, the Iron Impact rune allows you to rotate defensive cooldowns (Leap/Ignore Pain/Leap). With my gear, the 300% armor increase means I take 60% less damage!

War Cry(Impunity): This is here mostly for the Impunity rune, since I stack resists and adding 50% to that is very effective. With my current gear, having this shout up reduces incoming damage by 33%!

Furious Charge(Dreadnought): This skill has two purposes. First, it complements the mobility provided by Leap, and if you use both in succession it is possible to deaggro packs that are chasing you. The second purpose is for the heal, which can be used as a backup if you get unlucky with Revenge, and also for miscellaneous healing when you are trying to kite and not enough enemies are around you for a Revenge heal.

Passives: Nerves of Steel, Tough as Nails, Superstition.

I chose the three passives that further reduce incoming damage. I highly recommend the first two.

The idea of this build is to maximize effective health, and then take advantage of the percentage based heals from Revenge and Furious Charge becoming large compared to the incoming hits.

When fighting challenging enemies relative to your gear, I find it most effective to do damage while rotating Leap/Ignore Pain/Leap and then kiting with Furious charge until I can do it again.

I’ve made a series of videos showcasing the gameplay and my farming route for each Act:

Act 1: www.youtube.com/watch?v=H9U8YkFJLb0

Act 2: www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Ygb4NS4JXw

Act 3: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ak6mhFXmDSc

Act 4: www.youtube.com/watch?v=XSxwug0mkdg

Whimsyshire: coming soon!

I’ve also used this build to solo diablo, but I did it in over 30 minutes so I couldn’t take advantage of my 5 stacks of Nephalem Valor

The downside of this build is that the dps is very low. I make up for this whenever I can by farming with npc assistance, but I expect to be able to increase the offensive aspect as I get more gear. Once I can kill act 4 elite packs without dying too much, I’ll transition into offensive stats while keeping survivability constant.

Stat Priority:

Resist All
Vitality
% Life
Life on hit (in the hundreds)
Armor
Physical or Fire Resistance (Desecrate, Molten, Fire Chains are all fire and problematic)
Strength
Life regeneration (Always nice for when you’re kiting, especially during boss fights)

Furthermore it’s important to maximize your block chance. I currently have 49% with a Storm shield, Justice Lantern, and Helm of Command, but I realize that not everyone will have access to that. Block % is the most important statistic on your shield and often overlooked. Also, try to have at least 3k blocked amount, which can outright negate most hits if you have high armor and resists.

Other desireable legendaries are the String of Ears belt to reduce melee damage taken (as high percentage as you can afford each point is better than the previous one), and the Band of Fallen Heroes has nice Vitality and Resist all on a ring slot.

Bring the Enchantress companion for her Powered Armor buff, it makes a huge difference. I also currently spec mine with Charm, Erosion, and Mass Control. Since I can’t outfit her to do acceptable dps just yet (I expect it to be possible at some point since she gets a 2.5 multiplier on intelligence from items), I gave her a staff with a % chance to stun enemies.

Hope this helps! Feel free to ask questions

EDIT: I wanted to mention a trick I discovered:

By using Furious Charge or Leap at the correct time, it’s possible to avoid getting frozen. You still take damage, but it can be a lifesaver.

Demonstration: www.youtube.com/watch?v=jX-0i91C-VM