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Diablo IV: Vessel of Hatred & Season 6 – Everything We Know So Far
Diablo IV has been actively making headlines ever since its official launch back in 2023. While players have been getting regular content updates and seasonal packages, the Vessel of Hatred is the real spotlight of every news these days. Blizzard Studios began working on this new expansion right after the launch day of the base game and they have been feeding us with micro information all this time.
However, the Diablo IV Season 6 and Vessel of Hatred launch dates are right around the corner now and players are getting restless to know about everything the new DLC will offer. In the meantime, we have been busy collecting pieces of information from trailers, Gamescoms, interviews and forums. Now we are feeling confident enough to discuss everything we know so far about Diablo IV Season 6 and Vessel of Hatred expansion, let's dive in:
Blogs Table Contents
Blogs Diablo IV: Vessel of Hatred
Blizzard Studios released the Vessel of Hatred announcement trailer back in November 2023, right after the launch of Diablo IV. Now, the DLC has been a work-in-progress for about 9 whole months, and they have just announced the official release date last week. This new DLC is a continuation of the main story and features the Prime Evil, Mephisto, as the main antagonist. We expect that the players will be directed to the jungle depths of Nahantu in pursuit of Neyrelle to help her destroy the imprisoned Evil.
Blogs Background
Diablo IV is almost unrecognizable from the base game that we saw back in 2023. The Devs have been introducing new features and gradually improving different game mechanics through regular season updates. It seems that all these changes were basically the foundations for the Vessel of Hatred expansion so that the transition to the new realm doesn't feel strange to current players. The game is currently at the end of season 5, and the players are waiting for a Diablo season 6 update, which is set to be released at the same time as the DLC expansion.
Recently, Blizzard Studios released their official release date trailer and held the longest-ever campfire chat, giving meaningful insights into the development activities. During the chat, they explained how the new boss ladder system works and how it will affect the new Normal, Hard, Expert, and Penitent difficulty settings. The max character level cap has also been raised to level 60, unlocking more skill points that indirectly translate to more ability nodes for each class.
Blogs Continuation to the Story
The new Vessel of Hatred Diablo 4 Expansion is a continuation of the base story. It picks off after Neyrelle left with the Soulstone containing Mephisto to find a way to kill him, thinking she could resist his temptations. We extracted this much information from the base announcement trailers, and now it has been officially revealed on the website as well. If we connect it to the upcoming Diablo season 6, it will probably take place in the jungle depths of Nahantu, where we will follow the footsteps of Neyrelle and fight the main antagonist, Mephisto.
Blogs Return of Mephisto
Players will likely put an end to the Lilith situation and now they will be forced to take down the Prime Evil Mephisto. This also means that our favorite villain from Diablo 2 will be returning after a long gap. We are yet to encounter him as the main boss to learn more about his powers and move sets. However, judging from the announcement trailer, he does have the power to inflict temptations (much like Sauron from LOTR). Lastly, Blizzard Studios has promised a new iteration of this antagonist and that it will make us rethink our favorite villain of the series.
Blogs New Regions
Diablo IV's new expansion takes place in a whole new jungle depths region called Nahantu. Players will likely progress to this new world via quest markers so that the transition feels seamless. Furthermore, this new explorable region brings a plethora of dungeons, strongholds, and, of course, a huge array of new bosses, elites, and demons. Lastly, players can also plunder the Warring Tribes dotted throughout the luscious flora and fauna of the jungle.
Oh, and we are also getting the feeling that Mephisto isn't the only one to return from Diablo II. Instead, we expect to rediscover some common places from the previous game, like the Kurast Docks and Travincal, but 72 years after Diablo II. In other words, Blizzard is joining the two games to give us a bit of nostalgia with a fresh taste.
Blogs A New Class — Spiritborn
Diablo IV: Vessel of Hatred will add tons of new content to keep you busy for several days. Even if you complete the new campaign with your current character build, you will have the option to start anew with the Spiritborn class. Blizzard has just released a gameplay trailer for the new Spiritborn Class, and its combat mechanics and abilities look promising. Basically, Spiritborns are the natives of Nahantu and are experts in jungle warfare. Moreover, they are supported by animal spirits for the following skills:
- Gorilla: Strength
- Jaguar: Speed
- Centipede: Medicinal
- Eagle: Strategy
Much like the Druid class in Diablo IV, Spiritborns can use multiple animal instincts to rule the jungle. You may have heard the saying, "When you are in the jungle, you follow the laws of the jungle." So, we strongly recommend that you discard your current character and start a new one based on this class if you wish to survive the horrors of Nahantu.
Blogs Diablo IV: Mercenaries
The Vessel of Hatred will come with a whole new mercenary system to aid you in the horrific battles. These mercenaries are hirable NPCs that accompany you to battles and support you with their unique skills and abilities. Initially, players can hire one mercenary as their main combatant and a second one as their combat reinforcement. This secondary militant won't actively participate in battles and will only lend their abilities when the player is inflicted by specified debuffs.
Furthermore, players will earn Rapport points or trust by using each type of mercenary. Over time, players can use these points to upgrade their sidekicks to unlock more abilities and even improve their weapon stash. Initially, there will be four mercenaries' classes in the expansion, but we anticipate that more will be joining the party in future updates. Here is a list of all Diablo IV mercenaries and their passives:
- Aldkin: A child who can transform into a demon for a variety of attacks.
- Raheir: A shieldbearer who offers protection against some of the deadliest attacks.
- Subo: A competent archer who can rain arrows on enemies from a safe distance.
Veryana: A melee fighter who gains power by killing enemies in succession.
Blogs Key Gameplay Changes in Vessel of Hatred
The new Diablo 4 Vessel of Hatred isn't all about cosmetic changes and story expansion but is a whole new game in terms of mechanics. Here is a list of a few confirmed gameplay mechanics changes in the Season 6 and expansion bundle:
- The new max level cap has been raised from 50 to level 60, giving you access to more skill points to invest in your build.
- There is a chance that all current character classes will get more abilities and skill nodes to invest your skill points.
- The difficulty settings are now Normal, Hard, Expert, and Penitent and additional 5x Pit Tiers for each standard difficulty settings.
- The Key Drops for Hordes Key drop is also now linked with the Torment levels, i.e., Torment 3 enemies will drop Tier 3 keys.
- The Boss Ladder won't change at Tormented Levels, and the cost for summoning the same boss at different levels won't change either.
- You can now upgrade your Glyphs in the Pit so we can bid farewell to the Nightmare Dungeons systems.
- The Runeword system from Diablo 2 is back and now players can use Runes to create their own spells by using the Rune of Rituals.
- New Skills and Ultimate Abilities for all classes:
- Barbarians: Mighty Throw
- Druids: Stone Burst
- Necromancers: Soulrift
- Rogue: Dance of Knives
- Sorcerer: Familiar
- The Kurast Undercity will be a limited-time endgame dungeons that players can attempt at any standard difficulty.
- Players can also attempt the Dark Citadel, a multiplayer-only dungeon focused on co-op mode players.
- Players can now use the Party Finder option to search for potential groups to attempt the multiplayer dungeon, Uber bosses, and other side activities.
Blogs When will Diablo IV: Vessel of Hatred be Released?
We have just received news that Blizzard Studios plans to launch the Vessel of Hatred expansion on October 8th, 2024. So, players who already own the base game can purchase and enjoy the expansion DLC at midnight local time. Furthermore, the Developers will also release Diablo IV Season 6 at the same time as the expansion, i.e., October 8th 2024. So, you better prepare for the long journey ahead and complete any remaining activities or quests in the current realm.
Similarly, players can also participate in the Diablo 4 2.0 PTR (Public Test Realm) between September 4-11, 2024. These test servers will be made available to all willing players who sign up before September 4th. You can participate in this test to experience new features, skills, and everything else that's coming with the expansion DLC. You can find the details for this PTR on the official Blizzard Forum.
Blogs Conclusion
To sum it up, Diablo IV: Vessel of Hatred is going to be a blast for all our Diablo series fans. This new expansion offers so much more than just cosmetic changes. Moreover, this list is still a work in progress, and we will keep you updated as we receive more information from the developers. Overall, if you are looking for a whole new Diablo game, you should definitely add this expansion to your Wishlist.
Blogs System Requirements
Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system
Blogs PC System Requirement
| Minimum Specifications | |||
OS |
64-bit Windows® 10 version 1909 or newer |
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CPU |
Intel® Core™ i5-2500K or AMD™ FX-8350 |
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RAM |
8 GB RAM |
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Graphics |
NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 660 or Intel® Arc™ A380 or AMD Radeon™ R9 280 |
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DirectX |
Version 12 |
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Network |
Broadband Internet connection |
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Storage |
90 GB available space |
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Additional Notes |
*1080p native resolution / 720p render resolution, low graphics settings, 30fps, SSD Required |
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| Maximum Specifications | |||
OS |
64-bit Windows® 10 version 1909 or newer |
||
CPU |
Intel® Core™ i5-4670K or AMD Ryzen™ 1300X |
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RAM |
16 GB RAM |
||
Graphics |
NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 970 or Intel® Arc™ A750 or AMD Radeon™ RX 470 |
||
DirectX |
Version 12 |
||
Network |
Broadband Internet connection |
||
Storage |
90 GB available space |
||
Additional Notes |
*1080p resolution, medium graphics settings, 60fps, SSD Required |
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