So far, Blizzard has stayed quiet about the Diablo IV season which will go live alongside the Vessel of Hatred expansion, but that has now changed with the unveiling of Hatred Rising on the latest pre-launch developer update live stream.
The background story is that Mephisto’s unbridled hatred has made manifest the Realmwalkers, colossal monsters that were so far just the subject of tavern tales. Upon spawning, Realmwalkers can threaten an entire region, spewing nightmares born of hatred from the portal fused into their bodies. Once charged, they will begin stalking the Region for sacred ground. Realmwalkers are invulnerable during this phase, but fearsome Bloodbound Guardians will rush to protect them during their wandering phase. Diablo IV players must kill them to remove chunks of the Realmwalker’s health. When the Realmwalkers arrive at the ritual site, they’ll slam into the ground, creating three Hatred Spires around him. Dismantle these quickly and make the Realmwalkers vulnerable before they gain too much power.
Blizzard has shared the spawning schedule, too. A Realmwalker will spawn in a region every 15 minutes, alternating locations each time. Once every hour, a second Realmwalker will spawn in Nahantu (the region of Vessel of Hatred), in addition to spawning somewhere in Estuar. Moreover, the first Realmwalker spawned each hour in Estuar will be a Whisper. Every three hours, the Realmwalker spawned in Nahantu will be a Whisper.
Upon defeating a Realmwalker, Diablo IV players will have to go on the offensive, leaping into the portal to the so-called Seething Realm. These are dungeons filled with monsters to slay and treasures to claim. Players must go through the dungeon to find the Realm Gate. Once there, they’ll be presented with a choice of materials to offer. Select the Seething Opal you wish to receive as a reward for the dungeon’s completion.
A Seething Opal is a new type of elixir that provides a 15% experience boost and other bonuses for 30 minutes. There are a total of 5 Seething Opals:
Seething Opal of Equipment: 25 Murmuring Obols
Swirling Opal of Materials: 5 Murmuring Obols
Swirling Opal of Torment: 200 Sigil Powder
Swirling Opal of Gold: 1 lump of iron
Swirling Opal of Socketables: 3 Angel Breath
Note that the Seething Opal of Torment can only be obtained when playing on Torment Difficulty I or higher. Moreover, the Seething Opal of Socketables cannot be acquired unless you own the Vessel of Hatred expansion and play on Penitent Difficulty or higher in a Nahantu-based Seething Realm dungeon.
The Hatred Rising season of Diablo IV introduces a new quest from the Zakarum Remnants. Players can visit Crusader Damond in Zarbinzet, Hawezar, to start the Creeping Hatred quest, where they’ll learn how to annihilate Realmwalkers and harness the arcane power of the Seething Realms to acquire useful Seething Opals. To begin this quest, players must have either completed the final quest in the base game’s campaign—Legacy of the Horadrim—or opted to skip the base game’s main questline. The Zakarum Remnants are also tied to a new Reputation system. Defeating Realmwalkers will help you improve your Reputation with this faction to get useful rewards.
With any new Diablo IV season, there’s also a season journey and Battle Pass. This one starts on October 7 at 4 PM Pacific Time and hosts 90 Reward Tiers (28 Free Tiers and 62 Premium Tiers). The Smoldering Ashes earned from the Free Tiers can be spent on Season Blessings, which provide helpful bonuses in fighting back the armies of Hell. There are three new Blessings for Season of Hatred Rising:
- Urn of Opals: Increases the chance of receiving an additional Seething Opal reward after completing a Seething Realm.
- Urn of Remnants: Increase the rate at which you gain reputation from the Zakarum Remnant.
- Urn of Curiosities: Increase the chance of receiving a second item when purchasing from the Purveyor of Curiosities.
Getting the Premium Battle Pass will not only provide the rewards of the Free Tiers, but Soul Drinker’s Armor Set, Platinum, and more also await purchasers, including the Steed of Viz-Jun Present Mount, Curse of Viz-Jun Present Mount, and Ravenous Soul Mount Trophy, which unlocks at Tier 90. The Accelerated Seasonal Battle Pass also contains 20 Tier Skips and the Creeping Hollows Emote.
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