First: create a new character and put (BAR) after your name to show that your playing by the Barbarian rules.

Rules for the Barbarian Class:

Barbarians only use normal weapons, shields, armor, and helmets.

Barbarians, being self reliant and distrustful of others handling their weaponry, repair their weapons themselves exclusively. They do not use Grizwald for repairs.

Barbarians fear magic. Because of this, they will not

• use magic or unique items (its evil juju magic)
• cast any spells because spellcasting is for sissies. They walk.

Yes, town portal is a spell.

Barbarians are superstitious. They fear shrines. They will not touch shrines, altars, or magic pools.

Barbarians are illiterate. That means they don't read. So no books or scrolls for barbarians.

Even barbarians recognize the need to use magic potions. They don't like it, but they will use them. Elixirs are another form of potions.

Playing a barbarian means you play a warrior as a warrior, with an emphasis on skill rather than objects. You don't fall back to the cowardly use of magic. You don't rely upon spells to save your butt, or magic armaments to protect you. You rely upon cold steel. A barbarian should provide the same challenge as BNM (BNM's rely entirely upon spells and avoid melee at all costs).

Optional: I've toyed with the idea that not all weapons are created equal and that while some items in Diablo are considered magical, I'll argue that they aren't magical at all, just rare. Take for instance a Fine Sword. It stands to reason that some blacksmiths are better at their craft than others and the quality of their work would be reflected in the weapons properties. Therefore, a Fine Sword isn't magical, just better crafted. Likewise with a Jagged Sword. Along the same argument, a sword with a serrated edge will most certainly do more damage than a straight edged blade. To take the argument even further...who would have a sword of a higher quality than a king? I've come up with the following list of items that may be usable with Barbarians at no penalty. This is purely up to the player, not a rule change. Just on a personal note, I'm going for all the Titles of Barbarians with standard Barbarian weaponry. You know, no blues. Once I do that, I'm going to use the stuff below for Nightmare and Hell diff only. - Woody

Prefixes: Awesome, Bronze, Brutal, Champions, Deadly, Fine, Heavy, Iron, Jagged, King's, Knights, Lords, Massive, Masters, Grand, Mithril, Merciless, Ruthless, Savage, Sharp, Soldiers, Steel, Strong, Sturdy, Valiant, Vicious, Warriors.