If you play a Demon Hunter solo after playing a Barbarian or a Monk you’ll be quick to note how much moving around you need to do. Depending on the way you gear your Demon Hunter you’re not really going to want to stand there and allow yourself to be hit (except maybe in Normal difficulty). This means that you’ll almost always be kiting enemies. This build gives you a good balance of damage, mobility, survival and energy regeneration. It’s not exactly a hardcore build but you could possibly use it as a basis for one.

Here is the build I’ve come up with: http://us.battle.net/d3/en/calculator/demon-hunter#beYdTl!eVb!bbaaZZ

Primary

Entangling Shot is used to help kite enemies. If you’re really good with Entangling Shot you might not need Caltrops later. I use the Heavy Burden skill rune to extend the time they are slowed. This is really useful when you have a crazed enemy charging at you but it is not the best damage dealing ability for those scenarios where you’ve ran out of hatred. If you’re looking for damage for a boss fight you might want to switch to Hungering Arrow.

Secondary

Instead of using Elemental Arrow or Rapid Fire, using Chakram will allow you to move more and aim less. Rapid Fire encourages you to hold still while you unload on one enemy. Chakram, with Razor Disk, lets you launch a single shot at an enemy and hit the whole group around it. It’s a kick ass on-the-move AoE ability.

Defensive

Caltrops is good for choke points and ‘oh shits’ which are when you run into a situation you didn’t mean to run into. Depending on the difficulty of the content, Hooked Spines increases the slow down while Jagged Spikes down a little bit of damage.

Vault

I still use Vault because it gives me a quick way out of combat and helps kiting. Other people might use elective mode or drop Vault for a bat Companion or Marked for Death. Action Shot throws a little bit more damage into the mix. Be careful not to use Vault too much when you’re just running around otherwise you might find yourself in the middle of a group you’re not ready for.

Devices

This is a good place to use elective mode and grab a bat companion, elemental arrow or any other ability you haven’t seen me use yet. Otherwise, Sentry is an easy and quick solution. Drop it down and it will do the rest for you. Spitfire turret works fine, but it’s still not a lot of damage. A Bat Companion will give you additional hatred regen helping you do more damage in long boss fights. It also does the same amount of damage as a Sentry. Spider Companion will help you slow enemies.

Archery

A favorite of mine is Rain of Vengeance with Beastly Bombs. It does a high amount of damage to everyone in the vicinity of the battle. It’s a great way to help finish off a large # of mobs or to do extra damage to a boss.

Passives

I adjust my passives really often, but more often than not I’m using Archery for added damage output, Numbing Traps to reduce the damage enemies do who hit my Caltrops (obviously don’t use this if you don’t use Caltrops) and Vengeance. Vengeance is a favorite of mine because I run out of Hatred and Discipline often, especially during boss fights, so I can just vault to the nearest health globe to build more up. This might not be the best idea in big coop situations where tanks need health globes.

Stats and gear

I played a long time with a 2:1 ratio of Dexterity to Vitality but honestly that’s just not enough Vitality. I’m now using something closer to a 3:2 ratio of Dex:Vitality. So if you have 600 dexterity you should have at least 400 vitality. If you have a lot of gold to spend you can probably bring this ratio more towards 1:1. Working towards 1:1 is a good goal. Shit hits really hard in the latter difficulties of the game.

Important: Many of the strategies and tips I share here were originally inspired by the people at the Diablo 3 Gold Secrets Forum. If you're serious about making the big bucks in Diablo 3, or just being the best players, you need to signup ASAP.