Blizzard took to the main stage at BlizzCon on Friday to celebrate the 20th Anniversary of Diablo. During the panel we got a deeper look into both the Anniversary Event, The Darkening of Tristram, coming after the beginning of the year and the Necromancer class coming sometime in 2017.
It’s been 20 years since the original heroes of Sanctuary—the Warrior, Rogue, and Sorcerer—first descended into the labyrinth beneath Tristram’s Cathedral. In the coming year, Diablo III will celebrate its origins with an Anniversary Dungeon that will transport players to the dark and gritty world of the original Diablo.
Darkening of Tristram will bring the original Diablo labyrinth into Diablo III: Reaper of Souls. In it you can relive the grainy, gritty, old school graphics and sounds as you attempt to take down the 4 original bosses.
20th Anniversary Dungeon: The original Diablo labyrinth is back in Diablo III
Nostalgia Can Be Deadly: Recreated the events, monsters, and levels from the original Diablo.
Fresh(ened up) Meat: Original Diablo, The Butcher, Skeleton King, and Lazarus return as epic boss fights.
Presented in Glorious RetroVision™: Special ‘90s-inspired audio and visual filters for that “classic” look.
But wait! There’s more!
During the Anniversary event, you can earn new rewards including portraits reminiscent of Diablo I, banners, sigils, tranmogs, and even pets. Pets such as a tiny Butcher, you know you want to take the murderous bastard home. You can also earn the very first legendary head gem, Soul of Diablo, which will unleash a wave of power when you are no longer able to control the soul within.
In addition to all of that, you get the privilege of playing with the original UI, no run animation, unlock mysteries, and discover easter eggs.
The Darkening of Tristram will be in game for a limited time, so make sure you get everything done while you can. However, it will reappear again next January, and every year after for as long as the game is supported.
The Darkening of Tristram will be on the PTR next week.
NECROMANCER
Next up, the Necromancer class is joining Diablo III the second half of 2017.
- The Necromancer: Wield the power of the dead with Diablo III’s newest playable hero class.
- Master of the Dark Arts: Her magic draws from the power of blood
- The Old Skills and the New: Command an Army of the Dead, control a mighty Blood Golem . . .
. . . and make all the corpses EXPLODE!
- Necromantic Sets and Legendaries: The Necromancer will be able to collect many rare treasures of unearthly power, including new Legendaries and Set items.
- Rise of the Necromancer Pack will include the character, an in-game pet, two character slots, two stash tabs, a portrait frame, pennant, banner and banner sigil. (Pricing TBD)
That’s right, the Necromancer class will not be available as a free addition. Instead you will need to plop down the money to get that sweet, sweet death magic.
However, you may find yourself ask what the differences are between the Necromancer and the Witch Doctor class already in game. They both wield power over the dead, so how can they be that different? Well, it’s all in execution and tone.
The Witch Doctor class has a jungle culture/voodoo theme and, in general, is a very light hearted class, relatively speaking considering this is Diablo. The pets the Witch Doctors command are passive and consist of zombies and creepy crawlies. In addition to that the Witch Doctors rely on mana as a resource, a recourse that renews itself.
Necromancers have none of the silliness the Witch Doctors inherently have, instead they are dark and serious, relying on a very visceral theme of blood and death. In fact, they are considered the darkest class to be introduced thus far into Diablo III. The pets are passive/active meaning they will have a passive ability but you are in control and dictate what your pets attack. No more waiting for that one zombie dog to stop attacking a skeleton at the far coroner of your screen, you can now have all your minions focus fire a specific target. Necromancers also use Essence as a resource, which doesn’t regen over time. However, you can regain Essence by using Siphon Blood which lets you grab both life and Essence from your enemies.
If that isn’t enough, the armor sets will be called Blood, Bone, and Reanimation, which are fairly self explanatory.
For a look at abilities and a comprehensive FAQ, click here.
If all of this isn’t enough, there is still more. Seriously.
ARMORY
A new feature coming soon will be the Armory, which will be a full equipment manager. Save 5 full load outs per character. Each load out contains a full set of armor, all skills (passive & active), and even Kanai’s Cube powers. What it won’t transfer are Paragon Points, but it really doesn’t take that long to reassign them so that isn’t a big deal.
In addition to all of that, it will even upgrade your socketed gems IF you’ve unlocked the next level of gem. Don’t worry, the cost for removing gems is being removed from the game so you won’t suddenly find yourself short on gold.
NEW ZONES
New zones will enter into the game for free, no money required. The new zones will not be part of the main game, instead they will be accessible through Adventure Mode.
- Explore Deadly New Zones: The foul stench of evil continues to spread across Sanctuary.
- Shrouded Moors: This harsh, inhospitable land has been abandoned for centuries. But something stirs within its perpetual fog—as though a dark presence has taken hold.
- Temple of the Firstborn: An ancient monument to the earliest nephalem. The temple is hidden beneath the surface of Sanctuary, where it has escaped the notice of most mortals.
SEASONS
With the beginning of Season 10, the Season Journey, Leaderboards, all rewards, and cosmetics items will come to console.
That’s all there was to learn today. However, there are a few more Diablo panels on Saturday, stay tuned to Geek Girl Authority for more information.
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