Today’s Diablo 4 developer live stream dives into various exciting topics and endgame systems for the upcoming installment in the Diablo series. Joseph Piepiora, Joe Shely, and Adam Fletcher are joined by content creator Rhykker to discuss the World Tier system, items, Helltides, Nightmare Dungeons, and the Paragon Board. We’re here to recap all the important announcements and talking points from the live stream because, let’s face it, not everyone has the time to sit through these things.
Diablo 4 April 20 Developer Live Stream Recap
World Tier System
- Capstone dungeons are completed to unlock more difficult World Tiers
- Level 50 is the first Capstone dungeon
- World Tiers introduce new monster mechanics and abilities, ‘Champion’ enemies that are faster and more deadly
- World Tier 3 introduces Sacred Items — level 50 to 70 items
- World Tier 4 introduces Ancestral Items
Items & Powers
- Higher world tiers introduce new Legendary Powers
- Unique items are build-defining but incredibly rare
- Sacred items become available in World Tier 3
- Ancestral items become available in World Tier 4
Helltides
- Helltides unlock in Nightmare World Tier
- Helltides are active for one hour, and locations rotate
- Cinders are a Helltide-specific currency used to unlock Helltide Caches
- Caches are in fixed locations and drop items tied to specific slots, allowing for target-farming
- Dying will make you lose Cinders during the Helltide event
- Helltide Roses is a high-tier Helltide-specific crafting material
- The Butcher will occasionally show up to murder you in Helltides
Nightmare Dungeons
- Nightmare Dungeons is an endgame system
- Tougher version of previously visited dungeons; any dungeon can be a nightmare dungeon
- Sigils used to open them drop in World Tier 3 and above
- Sigils can be salvaged and crafted into different ones at the Occultist
- Portal is opened next to the existing dungeon
- Sigils are tied to a level and affixes that affect the dungeon
- Players can fight monsters up to level 150 in Nightmare Dungeons
- Nightmare Dungeons reward experience, as well as Sacred and Ancestral items, and are used to upgrade Glyphs
Paragon Boards & Glyphs
- Paragon Boards are an endgame progression system
- Magic Nodes on the board have rare affixes, like % damage to spells
- Rare Nodes have powerful effects and Bonus Effects if requirements are met
- 10 Rare Nodes or more per board
- Nodes are more expensive to unlock as you progress deeper
- Glyph Socket Nodes allow you to influence other nearby Nodes and can be leveled to increase the influence radius
- Glyphs upgraded in Nightmare Dungeons
Feedback
- Druid and Barbarian feedback taken into account
- Bosses revisited for melee viability
- Lots of feedback translated into changes
- Lower-level crowd control issues are alleviated at higher levels
- Many dungeon changes have been implemented (re: backtracking, objectives)
- Monsters chase you down now for the Den of Evil “kill all monsters” mechanic
- Skills normalized based off Aspect Ratio of monitor (teleport distance, etc.)
- No longer possible to farm Ashava in rapid succession
Q&A
Here’s some information from the live stream’s closing Q&A session:
Question: Clarify the Nightmare Dungeon rotations
Answer: With over 115 dungeons available, a subset will be available each season that can become Nightmare Dungeons. The goal is so players don’t need to worry about mastering all 115 dungeons at a time and can focus on specific dungeons per season.
Question: Changes were made to the skill tree during the beta; was the skill tree designed so it will be expanded upon with new active and passive skills throughout the seasons?
Answer: The skill tree at launch is just the beginning for each class. The team will look for more opportunities to add more skills and passives in the future. These will likely happen during much larger updates.
Question: How do the Altars of Lilith work between seasons?
Answer: Renown resets on a seasonal basis, but the stat gains will not reset. Players can opt to get the Altar of Lilith again as a way to get some more renown each season, but it’s not required for the stat boosts.
Question: Is there any monster-specific loot for item farming?
Answer: Creatures of certain monster families have higher chances (a boost) to drop specific item types.
Question: Why is there no map overlay?
Answer: The goal is to keep the navigation and combat aspects as separated as possible. Feedback is appreciated, and they are working on improving things as time goes on.
Diablo 4 Server Slam Weekend
Diablo 4 Server Slam is an event from May 12 to May 14. The purpose is to overload the servers to help prepare the game for release. It’s also an opportunity to test the new beta changes and earn rewards:
- Initial Casualty Title – reach Kyovashad on a single character
- Early Voyager Title – reach level 20 on a single character
- Beta Wolf Pack Cosmetic – reach level 20 on a single character
- Cry of Ashava Mount Trophy – defeat Ashava with one level 20 character
The Ashava schedule is May 13 at 9 a.m. PDT, every 3 hours after until May 14 at 9 a.m. PDT.
That’s just about everything important we learned from the Diablo 4 developer update live stream on April 20. Make sure to mark your calendar for the Diablo 4 Server Slam weekend on May 12.
