From the origin of the creation of the Barbarians of Diablo with Bul-Kathos, their evolution and their role in Diablo 4 with the complete lore!

The barbarians of Diablo, between duty and sacrifice

Bloodthirsty monsters without faith or laws or ferocious warriors with unshakable convictions

The mighty barbarians… people of born warriors, proud and extremely strong, they are matched only by their ferocity and their martial prowess. Too often associated in Pop culture with merciless bloodthirsty monsters, it is not so. Intrepid and devoted to their cause, they will carry out their mission whatever it costs them, as we will be able to see throughout their stories.

However, it is good to place the word barbarian in its original context. This word, which comes to us from the Greco-Roman era, was a very pejorative term used by these two same peoples to qualify all outsiders who did not speak the same language as them. The very word is actually an onomatopoeia used to describe the unsightly noise these non-Greco-Roman languages ​​made. Not knowing the names of these “foreign” people, they decided to call them barbarians. This word has therefore traveled through centuries and cultures, and is currently still used with the same negative meaning. This image of an uneducated brute is thus the receptacle of this word.
Yet in the Diablo universe, these mighty fighters don the cloak of the vigilante and fight valiantly for the protection of humanity's most prized possession: the World Stone. Obviously, they still have very stereotyped physical markers related to this "barbaric" image, however their role is quite different, as mentioned above.

History of the Barbarians

Much like the Necromancers and Sorcerers, the Proud Barbarians have been around since the beginning of Sanctuary. Their ancestor stood alongside Rathma and Esu, he was called Bul-Kathos or the Immortal King. We owe him the organization of the different barbarian tribes and also the role that every barbarian must take on: guardian of the world stone. To carry out this mission, he shared his plan with his most faithful friend Fiacla-Géar who was also aware of the sacred mission incumbent on them to protect the secrets of Mount Arreat, including La Pierre Monde. However, despite their very strong bond, they did not share the same methods to fulfill their role as guardians. Where Bul-Kathos wanted to unify all the tribes and train them in a strict martial art, Fiacla-Géar wanted him to approach the magical arts, more precisely the druidic arts. Recognizing the merits of both their two different approaches, Bul-Kathos reunited a part of the barbarians, while Fiacal-Géar gathered a small group of followers and retired to the forests bordering the region, known as Scosglen's name. Following this, Bul-Kathos made a sacred vow to protect Mount Arreat and the Stone World. Unfortunately, this wish was soon put to the test...

Indeed, Baal Lord of Destruction, one of the three primordial demons, who had just escaped from his prison in Lut Gholein, headed with a very specific idea in mind in the direction of Mont Arreat. He wanted to corrupt humanity to turn them against themselves. It wasn't long before the primordial demon wreaked havoc and destruction on its way to the sacred mountain. He mercilessly ravaged every barbarian village in his path, letting dark omens creep into the Sanctuary Woods, the cries and sounds of war to the north foreshadowing imminent danger.

Having reached the ramparts of Sescheron, which is the heart of Barbarian civilization, without difficulty, Baal began to lay siege to the city in a bloodbath. The defense of Sescheron was put in place with at its head Kanai, who tried to defend the jewel of Barbarian civilization. Despite this heroic offensive against the demonic armies, she gave way to the endless number of opposing troops. This fall made the entire barbarian people tremble, their bastion, concentration of a large number of their best warriors fell, trying to defend the gates of the city.

Following this, the resistance gradually began to organize itself and it was in the city of Harrogath that shone the last glimmer of hope for this people. In light of the disastrous results of Kanai's defense attempt at Sescheron, the Council of Elders, a respected circle of barbarian sages with druidic powers, took the decision to adopt an entirely different maneuver in order to preserve Harrogath. It will consist of an extremely powerful invocation that will lead to the death of almost all of the elders, except for one who will survive due to his refusal to participate in this defensive maneuver. Following the death of the elders, a protective dome was set up over the city, protecting it from any demonic intrusion. Understanding that a forced passage was impossible, the armies of Baal decided to put the city in a state of siege in order to starve them and take control. Gradually, the defenders of Harrogath realized that this siege was beginning to work against them. It was at this point that the city's general, Kalkek, decided to try to break the siege. The result was final, the breakthrough was a bitter failure.

When all hope seemed lost, the lone survivor of the ancients, Nihlathak, unbeknownst to anyone. To save his people, he negotiated with the Lord of Destruction for a truce of hostilities against safe passage directly into the heart of Arreat, thanks to a relic of the ancients. This item allows its wearer to safely pass through all defense mechanisms, guardians, and entities guarding the mountain. This relic is a right of passage and the key leading to the Stone World. The deal was made, Baal continued his ascent, but the siege was not lifted, the armies remained at the gates of the city.

Arrived at the top Baal undertook to corrupt the Stone World, he was interrupted but unfortunately too late by the adventurers. The World Stone had already been irreversibly altered. Tyraël Archangel of Justice appeared to the adventurers, he understood that the very destiny of humanity was in danger. He made the decision to destroy the Stone World… which resulted in killing him and blowing up Mount Arreat, which in Diablo 3 will be called Arreat Crater.

The destruction of the Stone World, was not without consequence, the explosion of the Stone World and Mount Arreat involved innumerable lives Barbarians with him, it was an unprecedented catastrophe for this civilization. Having thus lost their sacred duty to protect, the barbarian civilization plunged into extremely deep disarray, even driving some to madness or to rising up against their own people. From then on, the Barbarian civilization had to rebuild itself somehow, to rebuild a better future and thus find a new role to occupy within this world which is Sanctuary.

Role and organization of the Barbarians

Let's look at their social structure. As said before, the barbarians are organized in a tribal system so they have lots of small and large tribes around the sacred mountain. Each with their own customs and traditions, but remaining bound to each other by their sacred duty. Regarding their method of recruiting an apprentice, they are in exactly the same boat as the others, they must find an apprentice, train him in the art of combat, so that he in turn does the same and thus perpetuates the cycle of 'learning. Having impressive stature and strength, it is not uncommon to find Barbarians as mercenaries.

It is important to remember that the very epicenter of their civilization was in Sescheron, but after its fall it gave way to Harrogath, which became one of the largest barbarian cities in the North. We must not forget either the region of Scosglen, cradle of the druids that we will have the pleasure of visiting in Diablo 4.

=Scosglen and Harrogath, home of Barbarians and Druids