Seismic Slam Barbarian Speed Farming Variation

Last updated on Oct 21, 2024 at 09:00 by Deadset 39 comments
Build Variations Updated for Season 33, Patch 2.7.8 Main Build Solo Greater Rift Progression Nephalem Rift Farming
1.

Might of the Earth Seismic Slam Barbarian Speed Farming Variation

The Seismic Slam Barbarian can deal reasonably well with Normal Rift farming all the way through the highest Torment difficulties. The build variation suffers from minor inconveniences compared to top tier speed farming builds (conflicting bracers, competing belts), but otherwise handles the task with ease. We have solo speed GR rankings and solo speed T16 rankings if you want to know more about which builds are best for speed farming.

Within the limited scope of regular difficulties, the necessary damage and toughness to triumph over the enemy is significantly smaller. Thus, your best course of action is to improve utility and speed.

Active Skills
Left Mouse Button Seismic Slam Icon Seismic Slam Permafrost Permafrost Right Mouse Button Leap Icon Leap Death from Above Death from Above 1 Battle Rage Icon Battle Rage Ferocity Ferocity 2 War Cry Icon War Cry Impunity Impunity 3 Wrath of the Berserker Icon Wrath of the Berserker Insanity Insanity 4 Call of the Ancients Icon Call of the Ancients Ancients' Fury Ancients' Fury
Passive Skills
2.

Adapting Rotation

When you are speed farming regular rifts, parts of your playstyle will adapt to the lowered challenge and focus more on speed and utility.

Similarly to the GR progression base build, Seismic Slam Barbs will maintain both Wrath of the Berserker Wrath of the Berserker and Call of the Ancients Call of the Ancients at all times during speed farming — in standard rifts however, you will be relying on In-geom In-geom resets, so prioritize elite hunting overall. Buffs like Battle Rage Battle Rage and War Cry War Cry should be cast at regular intervals, mostly to maintain their speed buffs — from Ferocity Ferocity and Chilanik's Chain Chilanik's Chain respectively. Naturally, you will decimate your foes with Seismic Slam Seismic Slams and reposition around the rifts with Leap Leap.

3.

Adapting Skills and Passives

Parts of the skill and passive selection will overlap with the base Greater Rift progression build, but others will have to change according to the task at hand. Ability to cross over great distances faster and more efficiently take precedence.

  • Your main damage dealer remains Seismic Slam Seismic Slam, with its strongest rune — Permafrost Permafrost.
  • Your movement tool is still Leap Leap, as it ties into the set too neatly to be ignored. The rune of choice is still Death from Above Death from Above.
  • You should exchange the damage-oriented Bloodshed Bloodshed rune of Battle Rage Battle Rage, which is better suited to the damage demands of GR pushing, for the speed buff of the Ferocity Ferocity rune.
  • War Cry War Cry Veteran's Warning Veteran's Warning is also present in the speed farming version of the build, and aside from its survivability value, it adds a movement speed buff angle via the equipped Chilanik's Chain Chilanik's Chain.
  • Call of the Ancients Call of the Ancients remains on your skill bar, but due to the loss of Fury of the Ancients Fury of the Ancients in the Cube, you will have to slot the Ancients' Fury Ancients' Fury rune on your bar.
  • Wrath of the Berserker Wrath of the Berserker Insanity Insanity is an omnipresent self-buff in both versions of the build.
  • Rampage Rampage, Ruthless Ruthless and Boon of Bul-Kathos Boon of Bul-Kathos are still a solid foundation of your passive selection.
  • In your passives, you can optionally replace No Escape No Escape with the globe-fueled movement speed bonuses of Pound of Flesh Pound of Flesh.
4.

Adapting Gear

Most of the gear from the Greater Rift progression build will still make sense for speed farming, but a few variations will be necessary in order to maximize your productivity and momentum during regular Rift clears.

You are still relying on the Might of the Earth 6-piece set bonus, and unlike the GR progression main build, it will not be necessary to mix in the Cpt. Crmison set — allowing you to equip all 6 MotE pieces and free up the Cube for other jewelry.

Both the balancing act of the Endless Walk set and the sustain attack-based cooldown resets of Obsidian Ring of the Zodiac Obsidian Ring of the Zodiac greatly diminish in usefulness during Normal Rift farming. That progresion-oriented jewelry will be better replaced by a split between a Cold damage Stone of Jordan Stone of Jordan (for the permanent damage increase) and an Avarice Band Avarice Band (for the synergy with Boon of the Hoarder Boon of the Hoarder).

Complement these rings either with the Hellfire Amulet of Strength Hellfire Amulet of Strength from the base build, or with a Squirt's Necklace Squirt's Necklace for another massive damage multiplier (make a point to swap Bane of the Powerful Bane of the Powerful for Molten Wildebeest's Gizzard Molten Wildebeest's Gizzard if you opt for the latter). The former favorite for the amulet slot, The Flavor of Time The Flavor of Time, is not recommended in solo play simply because it can be worn by the follower and emanated onto you — but should be worn during group play.

When doing runs in the Torment difficulties, the toughness and damage from the Cpt. Crimson set will be overkill, so you can easily replace the belt with either Chilanik's Chain Chilanik's Chain (for the extra movement speed when you use War Cry War Cry) or Goldwrap Goldwrap (its combo with Boon of the Hoarder Boon of the Hoarder and a cubed Avarice Band Avarice Band can render you practically immortal as long as you pick up gold).

During speed farming, you will be better off using the utility-driven combo of In-geom In-geom and Fjord Cutter Fjord Cutter. The former will ensure an unbroken chain of Wrath of the Berserker Wrath of the Berserker activations despite the lesser Seismic Slam spam in standard rifts, while the latter will reward you for it with a massive damage bonus to your main damage skill.

Slot Pieces Stat Priority
Head
  1. Strength
  2. Socket
  3. Crit Chance
  4. Seismic Slam %
  5. Physical or Lightning Resistance (Secondary Stat)
  6. Pickup Radius (Secondary Stat)
Shoulders
  1. Strength
  2. Area Damage
  3. Cooldown Reduction
  4. All Resistance
  5. Health Globe Healing Bonus (Secondary Stat)
Torso
  1. Strength
  2. 3 Sockets
  3. Vitality
  4. Reduced Damage from Elites
  5. Physical or Lightning Resistance (Secondary Stat)
  6. Melee or Missile Damage Reduction (Secondary Stat)
Wrists
  1. Strength
  2. Critical Hit Chance
  3. Cold Damage
  4. Vitality
  5. Melee or Missile Damage Reduction (Secondary Stat)
Hands
  1. Strength (replaced by Area Damage at High Paragons)
  2. Critical Hit Chance
  3. Critical Hit Damage
  4. Cooldown Reduction
Waist
  1. Strength
  2. Vitality
  3. All Resistance
  4. Life %
  5. Life per Kill (Secondary Stat)
  6. Pickup Radius (Secondary Stat)
Legs
  1. Strength
  2. 2 Sockets
  3. Vitality
  4. All Resistance
  5. Life per Kill (Secondary Stat)
  6. Pickup Radius (Secondary Stat)
Feet
  1. Strength
  2. Seismic Slam %
  3. Vitality
  4. All Resistance
  5. Pickup Radius (Secondary Stat)
  6. Health Globe Healing Bonus (Secondary Stat)
Amulet
  1. Socket
  2. Critical Hit Damage
  3. Critical Hit Chance
  4. Cold Damage
  5. Physical or Lightning Resistance (Secondary Stat)
  6. Melee or Missile Damage Reduction (Secondary Stat)
Ring #1
  1. Socket
  2. Critical Hit Chance
  3. Critical Hit Damage
  4. Area Damage
  5. Cooldown Reduction (on Obsidian Ring of the Zodiac Obsidian Ring of the Zodiac)
  6. Resource Cost Reduction (on Obsidian Ring of the Zodiac Obsidian Ring of the Zodiac)
Ring #2
  1. Socket
  2. Critical Hit Chance
  3. Critical Hit Damage
  4. Area Damage
  5. Cooldown Reduction (on Obsidian Ring of the Zodiac Obsidian Ring of the Zodiac)
  6. Resource Cost Reduction (on Obsidian Ring of the Zodiac Obsidian Ring of the Zodiac)
Weapon #1
  1. Socket (preferably from Ramaladni's Gift Ramaladni's Gift)
  2. High Weapon Damage
  3. Strength
  4. Life per Hit
  5. Area Damage
Weapon #2
  1. Socket (preferably from Ramaladni's Gift Ramaladni's Gift)
  2. High Weapon Damage
  3. Strength
  4. Life per Hit
  5. Area Damage

To help you with farming the gear you need for your builds, we have two very useful guides that you can access by clicking the links below: a Salvage Guide to help you quickly check whether or not you can safely salvage a piece of gear and a Legendary Farming Guide to help you efficiently farm legendaries and set items.

4.1.

Altar of Rites

The former Season 28 theme, the Altar of Rites, has been revised and re-added to Diablo 3 as a permanent character progression mechanic. — For virtually all builds and players of all skill levels — from casual to advanced — we recommend progressing through the Altar tree using the path outlined below. The suggested path is geared towards maximum quality of life first, then amplifying damage, and then mopping up the tree with defensive and edge case utility nodes.

Note that while they require reaching them with a Seal, Legendary Potion Powers are not part of the Seal cost system; Potions unlock with a separate resource called Primordial Ashes, obtained from salvaging Legendary or Set items of Primal (red bordered) quality. Upgrade them as soon as possible, and in the order shown below (courtesy of Caleko's Altar of Rites planner).

Altar of Rites Planner

You can read more on the Altar of Rites, Seals and Legendary Potion Powers in our dedicated Altar of Rites Mechanics guide.

5.

Adapting Gems

Bane of the Trapped Bane of the Trapped remains a universally desired damage amplification gem.

In farming content the value of Bane of the Stricken Bane of the Stricken diminishes greatly, and it is best replaced by the speedrun staple Bane of the Powerful Bane of the Powerful for its overall damage and toughness increase. Note that if you opt for Squirt's Necklace Squirt's Necklace as your amulet, you should use the shielding powers of Molten Wildebeest's Gizzard Molten Wildebeest's Gizzard in this slot instead.

During Normal Rift runs, you can also swap Gogok of Swiftness Gogok of Swiftness out for Boon of the Hoarder Boon of the Hoarder to encase yourself in a near-impenetrable layer of defense and speed from the interaction with the (potentially) worn Goldwrap Goldwrap and Avarice Band Avarice Band.

Slot Gems
Jewelry
Helm
Torso and Pants
Weapon

For more information about gems, please refer to our guide on gems.

6.

Adapting Kanai's Cube

Fury of the Vanished Peak Fury of the Vanished Peak is non-negotiable in Seismic Slam builds, since a large part of your damage and resource management stem from its power.

During speed farming, your armor Cube slot is best taken by Nemesis Bracers Nemesis Bracers, since the extra elites spawned by its legendary power feed directly in your In-geom In-geom cooldown resets.

Freed up from the Ring of Royal Grandeur Ring of Royal Grandeur required in the GR build (where it helps to fit both MotE and Cpt. Crimson), the speed farming build is able to take Band of Might Band of Might in its stead for some extra mitigation that fits snugly into your rotation, or adjust to other, quirkier alternatives — i.e. Squirt's Necklace Squirt's Necklace.

In your 4th Kanai's Cube slot in Season 33, you can easily slot Squirt's Necklace Squirt's Necklace and keep Band of Might Band of Might in your regular jewelry slot to enjoy the extra protection.

7.

Follower

The recommended follower for this build during standard rift farming for keys is the Enchantress due to her numerous utility bonuses, allowing you to smooth out your speed runs even further.

For more information regarding followers, we advise you to read our Follower Guide, which contains detailed advice for choosing the skills and the gear of your follower.

8.

Legendary Potion

The preferred potion for this build is Bottomless Potion of the Leech Bottomless Potion of the Leech due to its Life per Hit bonuses, which synergize perfectly for the high attack speed and sustain-through-attacks playstyle of the build.

9.

Changelog

  • 21 Oct. 2024: Added Season 33 advice for 4th Kanai slot.
  • 09 Jul. 2024: Added Season 32 advice for ethereal weapons.
  • 10 Apr. 2024: Guide reviewed for Season 31.
  • 08 Jan. 2024: Revised guide for the permanent addition of the Altar of Rites, and added Season-specific Soul Shard recommendations.
  • 13 Sep. 2023: Added Season 29 Paragon Cap and Gearing recommendations.
  • 22 Feb. 2023: Added Season 28 Altar of Rites recommendations.
  • 26 Aug. 2022: Added Season 27 Angelic Crucible recommendations.
  • 13 Apr. 2022: Guide reviewed for Season 26.
  • 09 Dec. 2021: Added Season 25 Soul Shard recommendations.
  • 22 Jul. 2021: Added S24 Ethereal recommendation.
  • 31 Mar. 2021: Revised gear recommendations and added follower recommendation.
  • 18 Nov. 2020: Added S22 Cube recommendation.
  • 30 Jun. 2020: No changes required for Season 21.
  • 12 Mar. 2020: No changes necessary for Season 20.
  • 19 Nov. 2019: Guide revised and updated for Season 19.
  • 28 Aug. 2019: Fixed diablo3.com build link.
  • 22 Aug. 2019: Item and skill recommendations are revised for Season 18.
  • 13 May 2019: Guide was reviewed and approved for Season 17.
  • 28 Feb. 2018: Added the guide.
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