Diablo 4: Minions - The Troubled Sidekicks That Need a Serious Upgrade

Minions in Diablo 4 are facing some serious viability issues that are hindering their potential as a strong end game build. In order to address these concerns, a revamp is necessary to make them a more viable option for players.

One of the main issues with minions is their supposed utility, which unfortunately doesn't work as intended. For example, Reapers fail to spawn corpses, which is a crucial mechanic for certain builds. Bone mages provide underwhelming fortify effects, shadow mages don't activate certain abilities, skirmishers deal the same damage as other minions despite sacrificing health, and defenders and bone golems sometimes don't benefit from minions' thorns. Additionally, the functionality of abhorrent decrepify is inconsistent, and spiked armor only gives a fraction of its value to minions. These utility issues greatly hinder the effectiveness of minions in gameplay.

Another major concern is the lack of damage output from minions. Even in fully optimized gear, their damage falls far behind that of other character classes. Minion attack speed is capped at 100%, rendering additional attack speed useless. Multipliers and bonuses that should enhance minion damage only provide a fraction of their intended effect. Skills like Iron Maiden, which are meant to assist thorns builds, are less effective than basic skills. Minions lack a keystone and do not synergize or scale properly, further limiting their damage potential.

Survivability is another area where minions struggle. Armor damage reduction (ADR) is difficult to reach, leaving minions susceptible to one-shot kills. Resistance bonuses exceed the cap and are wasted, while increased minion maximum life actually hampers their damage reduction. Although damage reduction itself is effective, the aspect of hardened bone skill requires a valuable slot on the necromancer's gear. These survival issues make it challenging for minions to withstand the onslaught of end game content.

The AI of minions is also a constant source of frustration. Golems can waste their cooldown if used while still spawning, mages struggle to attack enemies near the edge of the screen, warriors lack focus fire, and minions may attack invulnerable targets or fail to attack destructible obstacles. Additionally, minions' pathing is unreliable, hindering their effectiveness in combat. These AI issues make controlling and utilizing minions effectively a difficult task.

In conclusion, playing a minion build in Diablo 4's end game is currently not a viable option due to numerous issues. From their lack of utility and low damage output to survival struggles and frustrating AI, minions are in desperate need of a revamp. By addressing these concerns and improving the overall functionality and effectiveness of minions, players will have a more enjoyable and viable option for end game builds.

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