With Diablo 4's beta period in the rearview mirror, fans have had time to reflect on the performance (or underperformance) of the five in-game classes. The consensus was that Druid, along with Barbarian, were among the worst options available in Diablo 4, with either Necromancer or Sorcerer sitting at the top of the competition as the best. No matter which class you play, you should buy diablo 4 gold for fast leveling.
Whether due to its pitiful survivability or lackluster damage, players like Asmongold have criticized the Druid for its poor early game state. While the Druid has been speculated to be a late-game character expected to fight early in Diablo 4, fans aren't happy with the explanation. Fortunately, whatever the case for the Druid, Diablo 4 players should expect the class to benefit from general balance changes before the game starts.
Melee builders struggled in the Diablo 4 beta
Druid wasn't alone in its underperformance during Diablo 4's beta. Back in closed beta - before Druid and Necromancer were even available - fans noted that Barbarian was by far the weakest class of the three choices, and Blizzard was pretty quick to admit that Barbarian needed to be buffed. Druid should receive similar treatment with almost exactly the same diagnosis. Despite being touted as a bulky, durable class, the Druid has serious survivability issues in practice.
There's no question that certain Druid builds and item combinations can put the Druid in a pretty good place, but its built-in problems reveal themselves when going up against Diablo 4's bosses. Without a reliable source of potions, the druid dies faster than almost any other class. Even the Rogue, which you might expect to deal more damage but is comparatively paler, outperforms the Druid due to its evasion and evasion mechanics.
Most Druid builds rely on being in melee range, which means that unless a player is extremely diligent, they will soak up a lot of damage. The same goes for the Barbarian, and is the primary issue with their underperformance in the beta. Late game melee classes should have their health pool increased to the point where their durability becomes more apparent, but early game melee classes fall to the bottom of the Diablo 4 list.
Druid's Spirit Boons were not available during the beta
With Druid and Barbarian being the consensus worst performers in the beta, it makes sense to look for factors affecting both Druid and Barbarian classes in Diablo 4. A huge factor that has often been overlooked in criticism of these classes is that they both have one class component locked behind an unreachable quest. While Rogue's upgrades were partially locked behind level caps, they were still able to unlock one of three specializations, which was a huge boost to damage for important abilities.
The Necromancer's counterpart, the Book of the Dead, is responsible for unlocking the Necromancer's army of summonable skeletons - arguably the class's strongest attribute. With players unable to access the Druids' Spirit Boon component, it's hard to argue that the class ever saw its true potential, even in early game scenarios. In full release, Druid players should be able to complete the required quest at level 15 and unlock Spirit Boons, which greatly increases the effectiveness of the class.
With a few minor buffs and the full availability of their abilities, druids will probably be on par with other classes. Their underperformance in beta was undeniable, but most of their problems are relatively easy to fix.
