Yeah and that would still be much worse than a budget warlock for PVM. That's why I'm saying allow it lol

Maybe in terms of damage spread. But warlock can’t hork. We get double
Loot. I m happy with the barb as is, if they turned him into mosaic sin it wouldn’t be fun.

This post was edited by Anilator(A) on Mar 2 2026 02:29pm

Bro have you tried the setup I showed in the video. It’s really not bad.

Merc is so slow though. Grim Ward is fine but that Merc is dogshit. Grim Ward already has built-in AmpDmg, I don't know why you'd bother with Dreadfang on Merc?

What am I not getting.

It’s not that slow. Amp procs frequently

Also the thing is Grim Ward isn’t always up. When you jump into a fresh pack, especially Harolds, you still need to secure corpses before you can even drop a Ward. That’s where Dreadfang proccing Amp is useful. It helps you get the first kills faster so you can start chaining Grim Ward.

Also, Grim Ward doesn’t work on a lot of undead, so in those situations Amp is still doing real work. And even when Ward is active, it doesn’t “apply” the same way to uniques, champions, or Harolds themselves. You can’t fear them with Howl, and I’m not fully convinced Grim Ward is giving full benefit to those targets.

Amp, on the other hand, can proc directly on the actual boss target. So even if Grim Ward is down or partially effective, Amp is still contributing. It’s not about replacing Grim Ward, it’s about smoothing the gaps when Ward isn’t active or isn’t affecting the main target.

This is why deadfang amp still matters

the increased damage effect from Grim Ward in Diablo 2 Resurrected does not affect unique bosses, super unique monsters, or champions. The skill only applies its physical damage reduction and slowing effects to standard, non-elite monsters. It is entirely ineffective against Act Bosses

Here's the thing: when you can use a Frenzy Merc and you use a Bash Merc instead, nothing you're testing matters.
There is no world in which the juiced up A5 Merc rampaging with full Frenzy stacks is ever beaten by Bash Merc. Period. There is no world where that happens.

If you desperately want that Merc to apply a debuff, use some Decrepify bullshit. You lose corpses but you break immunity.
Otherwise Grief + Last Wish is disgusting on A5 Merc.

There is no world where Dreadfang Bashboi is worth a shit.

I mean just use Dreadfang yourself on the off-set and use Frenzy on bosses.
Go in => Battle Cry to make sure you hit => swing til' Amp.

I don't know man. I don't see a world where Bash Dreadfang does anything relevant clearspeed-wise. Like yeah, it kills things, but at that point you might as well use A2 Merc.

I’m not building around my merc getting kills though, that’s the difference.

If you run Frenzy with Grief and Last Wish, sure, the merc does a ton of damage and you gain Might from Last Wish. That’s solid. But in my case the question isn’t “can my merc kill more,” it’s “what helps me kill faster and more efficiently?”

Amp damage amplifies my damage. And from what I’ve seen, especially when targeting Harolds and uniques, Amp contributes more to overall clear speed than just stacking more raw merc DPS. I’d rather debuff the monsters and let my barb do the work than rely on the merc rampaging.

I also won’t run Reaper’s + Might on an Act 2 merc for a pure hork setup because of the cold damage. Shattered corpses are a non starter.

So no, I’m not saying Frenzy Grief + Last Wish is bad. It’s strong. I just value consistent Amp procs supporting my own damage over squeezing more out of the merc’s sheet DPS. For a pure hork barb, Amp utility outweighs the extra Might stacking in my opinion.

You’re also overlooking what Protector Stone adds to Dreadfang specifically.

It’s not just about damage. Protector Stone gives Fade, even at one percent it procs very easily. Jump into cows and the merc will have Fade up in under a minute. Once that’s active, survivability really isn’t an issue, and Treachery becomes far less necessary.

So it’s not just Bash versus Frenzy. It’s about total utility. Amp support and reliable Fade uptime all together. That matters more to me than just juicing merc damage.

What helps you kill Faster is Might + Pride on A2 Merc, not Amp Damage.
But you do you mate; I'd just have a swap set with Dreadfang on myself (which is what I already do), then I'd swap back to WW as needed.

Dreadfang is dope, but ditching Might/Pride for Amp Dmg when you already have Zerk in your arsenal vs. Phys Immunes + the ability to self-apply AmpDmg is wild.

EDIT: I mean shit you can even use Infinity if you want to reduce enemy defenses to potato and override their Conviction.

This post was edited by Exokek on Mar 3 2026 10:16am