The Barbarian's Upheaval Skill is great for clearing out swathes of demons in Diablo 4, but players may find it hard to bring this ability into the late game, where everything is so much harder to kill.
Unlike Whirlwind or Hammer of the Ancients, Upheaval doesn't as hard. It doesn't have any unique Aspects apart from one that got heavily nerfed on Diablo 4's launch. However, this doesn't make this skill bad, and players can still find a ton of value for it if they know what to do. Here's a guide featuring Upheaval that can easily clear endgame content, including low-tier Nightmare Dungeons.
Diablo 4 players looking for the best endgame Upheaval Barbarian Build guide remains relevant after the 1.0.3 update released on June 27, 2023.
Diablo 4: Upheaval Barbarian Build (Level 70+)
Skill | Total Points |
Combat Frenzy | 3 |
Furious Upheaval | 7 |
Strategic Ground Stomp | 5 |
Power Charge | 5 |
Warrior's Death Blow | 7 |
Supreme Wrath of the Berserker | 3 |
Upheaval doesn't hit as hard as it used to back in the beta, but it's still strong against groups of weaker enemies. Its damage is miserable against single targets, which is why Death Blow will play a major part in this build.
Use Frenzy to increase Upheaval's damage, then use it to wipe weak monsters off the face of Sanctuary. Execute survivors with Death Blow, which will then make the Barbarian go Berserk. Keep the ball rolling with this rotation.
Instead of the usual Challenging Shout and Rallying Cry combo, this build switches things up a bit by using Ground Stomp and Charge. They can keep enemies stunned, preventing them from doing damage while also boosting the player's damage via item stats, passives, and Aspects.
Cap the build-off with Wrath of the Berserker for more damage and five whole seconds of the Unstoppable buff.
Passives
Skills | Points |
Swiftness | 3 |
Quick Impulses | 3 |
Hamstring | 1 |
Heavy Handed | 3 |
Tempered Fury | 1 |
Furious Impulse | 3 |
Invigorating Fury | 3 |
Walking Arsenal | 1 |
Players have some leeway when it comes to the passive skill setup due to the Arsenal system. Nodes should benefit either the player's Two-Handed Bludgeoning or Slashing weapon, depending on which one they use with Death Blow. Take points into Wallop if using large maces. If not, spend those points on Quick Impulses to reduce the duration of incoming Crowd Control effects.
Likewise, the choice of Expertise Technique depends on what weapons players are using to trigger their abilities. Just bear in mind that Two-Handed Sword's on-hit bleed is generally the most useful since it activates Hamstring, which allows players to take advantage of several extra damage bonus buckets.
Players can pick either Walking Arsenal or Unconstrained as their Key Passive here. The former offers a bigger damage boost in total, while the latter gives longer and stronger Berserk buffs that can be easily maintained as long as Death Blow keeps scoring kills.
Unbridled Rage does not affect Death Blow, and in most cases, its bonus isn't enough to make Upheaval excel against single targets.
Gear and Aspects
Offense | Defense | Utility |
Encroaching Wrath | Might | Umbral |
Edgemaster | Protector | Bear Clan Berserker |
Retribution | ||
Expectant | ||
Inner Calm |
The offensive Aspects listed here massively increase the player's damage when they hit a stunned target while at full Fury. Stun a pack of monsters with Ground Stomp and smash them with the rotation described above for maximum effect.
Defense-wise, Combat Frenzy complements the Aspects above by giving players up to 24% more damage reduction while at full stacks (40% if using the Battle Trance Unique amulet).
Without Challenging Shout, this build won't be able to stay in the middle of an elite pack for too long. Players will have to manage Ground Stomp and Charge's cooldowns so they don't get stunned and burst down themselves. Any item or effect that reduces the cooldowns of these abilities is required.
Paragon Boards
Begin by slotting in Exploit in the Starting Board, then take the Weapons Master board for its bonuses to weapon swapping, raw Physical Damage, and damage versus elites. Insert a Strength Glyph of choice like Might in the second board.
Blood Rage and Carnage are good alternate Paragon Board options for players who want to get more Berserking bonuses. Otherwise, stick with Warbringer for its extra Fury effects.
Generally, players will want to use Glyphs that increase the damage of two-handed weapons. Mortal Draw is a great choice since this build swaps weapons a lot, but players will have to fit it into a Dexterity-centric board for it to work completely.
Diablo 4 is available for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.