Diablo 4's Vessel of Hatred Expansion has added the Spiritborn class to the game, and the community is eager to find the best builds. While some, such as the Evade Eagle build, are strong due to unintended interactions, some are powerful by design. One of these, the Endgame Rake Spiritborn, is an excellent choice for players looking for a fast paced AoE build.

To build this Endgame Rake Spiritborn, players will need to prioritize key stats such as Critical Strike Damage, Overpower Damage, and Dodge Chance. Keep reading for a step-by-step guide to which Paragon Glyphs to use, Best in Slot Gear, Ability Point Distribution, and even which Mercenary choices most benefit the build.

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Why This Rake Spiritborn Build Is Strong

What makes the Endgame Rake Spiritborn one of the best Spiritborn builds in the game is its' namesake abiilty, Rake. The Rake Spiritborn relies on two characteristics of this ability: its strong damage numbers and its reduced Vigor cost per stack of Ferocity. Careful itemization and the use of the Duelist's Aspect can make Rake essentially free to cast without compromising on damage. This results is a powerful AoE playstyle ideal for clearing packs and enemy-dense content (such as Infernal Hordes or the Pit).

However, it is worth noting that this build naturally lacks some survivability - the Jaguar's abilities don't have the mobility of the Eagle or the tankiness of the Gorilla. Instead, Defensive Aspects and Elixirs are key to surviving mechanics in the late game. Don't be afraid to adjust them as needed for specific activities.

Ability Point Distribution For The Rake Spiritborn Build

The Ability Point distribution for the Endgame Rake Build is quite straightforward, relying almost exclusively on Jaguar Skills and Passives.

Basic Node

Thrash is the Basic Ability in this build, although hopefully as Vigor generation comes online it will be used infrequently. Put a single point into the ability, and then Enhanced Thrash to unlock the next Skill Node.

Thrash 1/5 Enhanced Thrash

Core Node

The Core Node is where we pick up the build's namesake - Rake.

Rake 5/5 Enhanced Rake Rampant Rake

Vigorous 3/3 Balanced Exertion 3/3 Velocity 3/3

Focus Node

The Focus abilities in this build are Vortex and Ravager. Vortex will be grouping enemies to be hit by Rake, and Ravager will be buffing Rake.

Vortex 1/5 Enhanced Vortex Replenishing Vortex

Ravage 5/5 Enhanced Ravager Replenishing Ravager

Focal Point 1/3

Defensive Node

The only Defensive skill used by this build is Counterattack. To enhance its passive effectiveness, this build stacks dodge chance. However, the active effect of Counterattack is excellent in situations where players need an attack to miss them (such as a one-shot mechanic).

Counter Attack 5/5 Enhanced Counter Attack Reinforced Counter Attack

Endurance 3/3 Perserverence 3/3 Fueled 3/3

Potency Node

No skills from the Potency Node are in this build, but several passives from this cluster are used to increase damage output.

Brilliance 3/3 Acceleration 3/3 Potent 3/3 Furnace 3/3

Ultimate Node

The Ultimate for this build is Hunter. For best results, level all five ranks, and buy the two upgrades.

Hunter 5/5 Harmonious Hunter Exhalted Hunter

Resolution 1/3 Spiritual Attunement 2/3 Supremacy 3/3

Key Passive Node

Finally, there are two possible Key Passives for this build, depending on which Mercenary the player is using. If utilizing Aldkin, this build can make excellent use of Vital Strikes due to Aldkin's Vulnerable spam. However, if using Subo, it is better to select Prodigy's Tempo.

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Spirit Hall Choices For The Rake Spiritborn

Somewhat unsurprisingly, this build benefits from the first Eagle Spirit Bonus, as it improves clear speed through movement buffs, as well as allowing Jaguar Skills to benefit from the Acceleration and Brilliance Passives by making all skills Eagle Skills. Many builds use this Spirit Hall Bonus for the same reason.

In the second Slot, this build uses the Jaguar Spirit. Not only does it allow us to stack Ferocity on kills, but it also increases maximum Ferocity Stacks by 1, and raising that max Ferocity number as high as possible is this build's bread and butter.

Best In Slot Equipment For The Rake Spiritborn Build

This build has one non-negotiable Aspect, and several that can assist players with survivability and enhanced clear speed. However, the build can also benefit from a few Unique items if they are available.

Ideal Unique Items

Three unique Items fit perfectly into the Rake Build:

The Banished Lord's Talisman - Grants ranks in all core skills, and increases the damage of Overpowered and Critically Striking casts - both of which this build has spades of. Mother's Embrace - Mother's Embrace goes a long way to making Rake's uptime infinite due to the Resource refund, as well as granting important stats like Attack Speed, Critical Strike Chance, and base Stats. Peacemonger's Signet - Granting Resolve every time Ferocity is granted is a godsend for this build, which has no other way to generate Resolve. While the build still works without it, players will notice that they survive much more easily after this ring is acquired.

Mythic Uniques

This build doesn't crave Mythic Uniques to function, but one surprising Mythic Unique is worth substituting in. Despite many players considering it useless, Nesekem the Herald has potential in this build due to the way it stacks Overpower and Critical Strike damage, as well as its attack speed. Players should expect their damage to bosses to skyrocket when using Nesekem with the Rake build. Additionally, none of the build's required aspects are Offensive, so the Legendary slot is no great loss.

Best Aspects

There are three Aspects that players will want to use with this build:

Duelist's Aspect Aspect of the Crowded Sage Aspect of Assimilation

While the Duelist's Aspect grants the biggest damage boost by raising maximum Ferocity to 14 stacks (when overcapped by the ultimate), the other two are key to the build's tankiness. Both increase Dodge Chance, which this build tries to stack up to 50%, and provide benefits upon successful dodges such as Fortify and Healing.

In addition, there are a handful of Aspects players could consider to round out their gear:

Wind Striker's Aspect - Ideal for clearing dungeons Aspect of Wild Claws - Additional casts of Rake on random enemies Blood Boiling Aspect - Overpower guarantee (great for the weapon if not using Nesekem) Aspect of Potent Exchange - Additional way to gain Resolve, but consumes stacks for damage

High Priority Stats

When enchanting and choosing gear, the stats to look for (ordered loosely in priority) are:

Ranks of Rake Ranks of Counterattack Armor to 1000 Resistance to cap Dexterity Dodge Chance Maximum Life Attack Speed Critical Strike Damage Overpower Damage Maximum Vigor Critical Strike Chance

While the native Critical Strike Chance of the Spiritborn is low, possibly leading players to believe they need to stack it, the number tracked by the game is misleading. Jaguar skills have a number of abilities that increase their critical strike chance, none of which are tracked in the stats window.

Tempering Choices

There are a number of powerful Temper choices for this build. Of the greatest importance are the Manuals of Jaguar Innovation and Worldly Endurance, but also keep the Jaguar Finesse and Worldly Finesse in mind.

Players will want the following:

Rake size up to 100% Ravager duration increase on kill to 100% Increased Dodge Chance whenever possible Chance for Rake to trigger an extra time (if not using a Mythic Unique weapon) Jaguar Damage Increase Core Damage Increase

Spare Temper slots can also be used to reach the 1000 Armor cap and increase Max Health, although this is lower priority.

Gems & Runewords

Players looking at which socketables to use should look to the YulXan - Pugilist's Extinction runeword combination, which guarantees Critical Strikes and Overpowers whenever the player uses an ability with a cooldown. Then, fill the remaining Armor sockets with Diamonds. In the jewelry, prioritize capping all resistances, or socket Skulls if Resistances are already capped.

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Paragon Board Choices For The Rake Spiritborn

When arranging Paragon Boards, the optimal combination is:

Start - Fitness In Fighter - Exploit Revealing - Spirit Bitter Medicine - Hone Sapping - Turf

For which node paths to select, see the picture above or the D4 Build Planner's Paragon Section.

Glyph Leveling Order

When leveling glyphs, priority should be the following order to their first radius increase, and then going down the list again to hit max level:

Fitness Spirit Hone Exploit Turf

Mercenary & Reinforcement Choices For the Rake Spiritborn

The Rake Spiritborn has a couple of choices in Mercenary, but the Reinforcement is quite important to the player's survivability.

Mercenary

When choosing a Mercenary to hire, none of the three remaining options are terrible, but players will see the greatest combat buff from either Aldkin or Subo. When selecting Subo, spec into either the Pin Cushion or Bargaining Chip Key passive (depending on preference for Core ability). If selecting Aldkin, Spec through to either the Paranoia Key Passive or the Condemmed Key Passive (both have the same parent ability).

Reinforcement

Raheir is the Reinforcement of choice due to his ability to Taunt enemies and grant damage reduction. In this build, select Provoke, and have it trigger whenever the player becomes Injured.

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9/10

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7.1/10

Diablo 4

Action RPG

Hack and Slash

Systems

OpenCritic Reviews Top Critic Rating: 88/100 Critics Recommend: 93%

Franchise Diablo

Platform(s) PC , Xbox One , Xbox Series X , Xbox Series S , PlayStation 4 , PlayStation 5

Released June 6, 2023

Developer(s) Blizzard

Publisher(s) Blizzard

Multiplayer Online Multiplayer

Engine Proprietary Engine

ESRB m

How Long To Beat 27 Hours

Steam Deck Compatibility Yes, Diablo 4 is playable on the Steam Deck

X|S Optimized Yes

PS Plus Availability N/A

File Size Xbox Series 84 GB (May 2024)

Split Screen Orientation N/A (Shared Screen)

Number of Players 1-2

Local Co-Op Support 1-2 Players

OpenCritic Rating Mighty

Cross Save Yes, Diablo 4 doe support cross-save

Cross-Platform Play PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One & Xbox Series X|S

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