This is a very basic guide to gearing your Barbarian to efficiently utilize the Spring Whirlwind Tornado Spec.

THE BUILD:
http://us.battle.net/d3/en/calculator/barbarian#ahURkP!ZeY!YZZYcc

*** Superstition is optional, I am currently using it because my resists are lower than I would prefer. Otherwise, use either of the Armor perks.


BASIC REQUIREMENTS:
- 30% Crit Chance (for your tornado damage to crit frequently enough for your fury generation through the use of Into the Fray, the rune for Battle Rage)
- Moderate amount of Resists. (say, 600-1000 with War Cry)
- Moderate amount of Life on Hit, or Life Steal (when your DPS is above 50k-70k, you can utilize life steal more efficiently than LoH)

WEAPONS:

- MH = high damage, socket, crit damage
- OH = stats (str/vit), ias is nice, crit damage, socket, LL or LoH


ARMOR:

- HELM: Str/Vit/AR/Crit Chance and a socket if you can afford
- SHOULDERS: Str/Vit/AR pretty much. Anything else is a treat. High str preferably, 230+
- GLOVES: Str/Vit/AR/Crit%/CritDMG/IAS; trifecta all duh way, even if you have to sacrifice some resists here.
- PANTS: Str/Vit/AR/2 Sockets; A good alternative to this is strength blackthorne's pants.
- BOOTS: Str/Vit/AR/Movement Speed IMPORTANT
- BRACERS: Str/Vit/AR/Crit%
- AMMY/NECK/RINGS: Go for stats you can't get on armor, such as crit chance, crit dmg, attack speed, and life on hit. So basically to stay cheaper, go for str/vit/crit%/critDMG on neck,, same with rings but w/o vit. Basically different two-stat combos among the good modifier stats.
- BELT: Str/Vit/AR/Life Steal 2.80%+ Very nice to have this LL.

Another thing I like when searching for gear is to try and get an extra on top of str/vit/all resist. This can be any of three options:

1. Another resist (eg. physical, lightning, fire, etc).

2. Extra armor.

3. Life regen.

Best part is that people don't typically charge a premium for these, and you can usually find an item with an extra for the same price as without. They really add up if every item you have has an extra.

Posted by hillsgeo at 09/07/2012 05:47 PM

Another thing I like when searching for gear is to try and get an extra on top of str/vit/all resist. This can be any of three options:

1. Another resist (eg. physical, lightning, fire, etc).

2. Extra armor.

3. Life regen.

Best part is that people don't typically charge a premium for these, and you can usually find an item with an extra for the same price as without. They really add up if every item you have has an extra.

This is very true. Something people don't realize is how good Fire/Physical Resists are for barbarians. Getting these secondary resists is very nice, and life regen is as well. Armor is so insanely underrated in this game, and ultimately is one of the best attributes out there concerning damage reduction.

Good insight, thanks :)

I'm currently trying to make this build.
I found your item guide quite helpful, thanks a lot :)

Posted by MrMalev at 09/12/2012 12:11 AM

I'm currently trying to make this build.
I found your item guide quite helpful, thanks a lot :)

Glad I could help!

@brian2sk8t Nice post, I like to see stuff like this from new members!
Upvoted.

Also a side note, the DPS on the offhand doesn't matter, like 300 will do, as long as it has critDMG, socket, LOH, Str. Tornado damage comes from your main hand only. Main hand preferrably should be a mace/axe/might weapon

@DaDaDom The DPS on the off hand does matter, as it is a key part of the damage formula (See Here ). You can get away with a low dps off hand, though a higher one is the way to go if you can.

Interesting , will try to do this build later.
Need to get my resists up , so i'm off to farming gold ...good gear is expensive. Thanks for the guide!

Thank you, helped a lot ! :D

I want a level 60 barb now:( Especially since Wizzys are going down.:(

You should stress the fact that the DPS on your offhand weapon does not matter. It is only a stat stick... looks solid.

great stuff! it's helped my bard tremendously.

I noticed when first starting inferno, A!/A2 specifically a good shield can help with mitigation and allow you to progress.

I fond one with 60AR, 6crit chance str/vit, and it helped me get through a1/a2 easily.

Personally, i dont need any durability really to clear/farm act 3. 35k Hp, 400AR, 1000Loh, +Globes, +7000armor, 45%crit, 400% damage and you end up with 50k dps at least. probably 20-40mill to be able to farm at high speeds.
http://us.battle.net/d3/en/profile/BobTheBuilde-1485/hero/21356957
i can do alk exp run in 10-20min, for 10mill exp.

One note that gets echoed over and over again is, when working on defenses, focus on a 10:1 armor:resist all ratio.

Meaning, to maximize your EHP (effective health pool), you want, for example, 7000 armor for 700 resist all. Coincidentally, that is also the number that I'd recommend to play comfortably in Act 3. I'd also suggest 35k+ health. Once I hit those marks, act 3 went from challenging to cake.

Offensively, one common issue I see is people trying to overstack crit damage, and prioritizing it over strength. Strength brings up your damage similarly, but also offers armor! I traded in my 50-60% crit damage + socket weapons for ones with 250-300 strength and a socket, and my damage skyrocketed. I'm sitting at 75k+ DPS with a mighty weapon, over 90k DPS when I swap out to my similar stat'ed axe, but I prefer the fury generation over extra crit (I'm at 42% or so base, with battle rage active.) So losing 120%+ crit damage and gaining almost 600 strength really goes a long way, both offensively and defensively. Plus, they tend to be cheaper!

Does the Passive buff from Weapons Master using a Mighty Weapon proc from Tornado hits? In other words, do you get 3 fury per hit from Run Like The Wind tornadoes?

It's good to know that I am on the right track!

Any Recommendations on what I should be looking at to upgrade cheaply? ActII Inferno giving me trouble, so I've been farming ActI in order to get upgrades..

http://us.battle.net/d3/en/profile/fermata-1700/hero/19165892

Have amulets to help increase my vit at the expense of Strength, but any other ways to help would be nice!

Posted by fermata at 09/15/2012 02:38 PM

It's good to know that I am on the right track!

Any Recommendations on what I should be looking at to upgrade cheaply? ActII Inferno giving me trouble, so I've been farming ActI in order to get upgrades..

http://us.battle.net/d3/en/profile/fermata-1700/hero/19165892

Have amulets to help increase my vit at the expense of Strength, but any other ways to help would be nice!

You would definitely do well to add on more Vitality and Life on Hit. 934 is good, but at 1100 you're really sitting pretty. I would honestly advise you, as a quick solution, to swap the rubies for amethysts in your chest piece and get yourself some more resiliency.

Posted by fermata at 09/15/2012 02:38 PM

It's good to know that I am on the right track!

Any Recommendations on what I should be looking at to upgrade cheaply? ActII Inferno giving me trouble, so I've been farming ActI in order to get upgrades..

http://us.battle.net/d3/en/profile/fermata-1700/hero/19165892

Have amulets to help increase my vit at the expense of Strength, but any other ways to help would be nice!

you really need more hp. i would say 35k minimum and 40k to be comfortable. however, with the monster damage nerf thats coming up in 1.0.5, you may be able to slide with your current amount if you cant afford to upgrade. also look to invest in a faster offhand (dagger). it helps by making tornados tick a lot more, resulting in you surviving longer and gaining more fury.

Posted by naGoo at 09/15/2012 02:37 PM

Does the Passive buff from Weapons Master using a Mighty Weapon proc from Tornado hits? In other words, do you get 3 fury per hit from Run Like The Wind tornadoes?

Yes you do get fury from WM, but you'll only get 0.6 fury per tornado tick as RLTW has a proc coefficient of 20%

Good post.
Thanks!

Posted by abitjaded at 09/15/2012 07:45 PM

Posted by naGoo at 09/15/2012 02:37 PM

Does the Passive buff from Weapons Master using a Mighty Weapon proc from Tornado hits? In other words, do you get 3 fury per hit from Run Like The Wind tornadoes?

Yes you do get fury from WM, but you'll only get 0.6 fury per tornado tick as RLTW has a proc coefficient of 20%

Same as WW?

Thanks for the advice! I'll look at switching some of my items that have more vitality. I just wanted to see how it was like to have more than 30k dps for once. . . : (

So with weapons, I'm confused. Does the +str on the weapon factor into the damage shown for the weapon? For example, I'm looking at a Blade of the Warlord that does 506-1046, but does that include the +47% damage and 335 strength? Or would that add on top of the damage?