13 things to know before starting Diablo 4

Diablo 4an isometric ARPG about pressing X to fight the hordes of hell is here, and as compact as a certain famous poem about his domain.

After multiple betas and years of teasing, the game is finally available on both consoles and PC. But also if you are familiar with it Diablo 3 or other games in the series, Blizzard has modernized Diablo 4 in some pretty surprising ways, including both MMO and open-world elements.

It can be easy to get lost in all of the game’s systems, even if you’re a veteran. That’s why we have tips for you before you start. Stay a while and listen, will you?

Try all five lessons

Diablo 4 lets you create up to ten characters in five different classes: Barbarian, Necromancer, Druid, Rogue, and Sorcerer. Ideally, you already know which class you want to play, either because you tried them out yourself in the beta, or because you just love a specific kind of fantasy game archetype.

But whichever class you choose, you should consider spending some serious time with the other classes as well. Diablo 4 is a long game and you are going to spend a lot of time perfecting the loot on a single character. Unless you’re stuck with one class, it’s a good idea to spend some time with all of them before you get too far into the game so you can choose and then invest well in your favorite of the five.

Even if you’re sure Barbarian is the only class for you, consider trying the others, just to find out what your co-op friends or random allies from other classes are capable of. And who knows, maybe next season if you need to roll a new character, try a Necromancer or Druid instead.

Change your looting options

Nothing is more important to Diablo than the loot grind. Finding equipment improves your build, allowing you to effortlessly fight your way through even the toughest enemies. But in Diablo 4you may notice that the drops “disappear” from the floor.

By default, item labels fade after being on the floor for 10 seconds, but you can change the display so that it can be toggled. There will be a lot of times when you’ll be fighting enemies and the loot will fall, but the fight will last longer than that measly 10 seconds. You “lose” your stuff, but in reality it’s still on the floor, just not visible. Go to the “gameplay” tab in your settings and scroll down to the item label view to set the settings you want.

You must unlock waypoints manually

Image: Blizzard/Activision via Polygon

You can fast travel to any waypoint you have visited. Thing is, unlike most games, which automatically unlock fast travel spots when you pass them, you have to interact with them manually. The prompt is simple (press “X”, at least on PlayStation) but make sure you do it or you’ll be trapped, cold and alone, in the depths of a dungeon, repeatedly obliterated by a boss who takes you seriously. exceeds.

Use the map’s pin function to get where you’re going

Diablo 4 doesn’t allow you to move while holding your map open – a staple of the genre – which can lead to you spending a lot of time pulling up the map to figure out where you’re going. But there’s an easy solution to all your navigation problems: the pin.

When you pull up your card, you’ll see a pin check prompt (square on PlayStation) at the bottom. Dropping this pin is like making a waypoint, and your mini-map will display a red line leading you wherever you want. This is great for finding the main mission objectives, but it’s especially good for finding the Altars of Lilith scattered around the world of Sanctuary.

Weapons degrade when you die

There aren’t many downsides to dying Diablo 4 (unless you play a Hardcore character); checkpoints are generous and respawns don’t take much time. Still, there’s one repercussion: every time you die, your equipment degrades a bit.

Respect is free – up to a point

There’s no risk in trying skills you’re unsure of, at least in the beginning. You can re-specify classes without consequences up to level 15. It’s an easy way to see if you like certain parts of the skill tree before fully committing. For example, if you’re playing a wizard, switch between ice, fire, and lightning magic at the beginning of builds to see which type of magic you like best.

After level 15 you have to pay some gold. But the cost isn’t so expensive that you can never trade your build for something else if you want to. So experiment early, but don’t worry if you want to experiment a little later too.

Dismantle stuff instead of selling it

You can automatically mark loot as junk (Square on PlayStation). Selling junk in bulk can earn you a decent chunk of loose change, but honestly, of course, you make a lot of gold by defeating enemies and looting chests. It’s better to dismantle your junk stuff at the blacksmith. Each time you dismantle an item for the first time (e.g. an Apprentice’s Wand weapon), you unlock that item in your transmog wardrobe.

The only caveat here is if you know you’re planning to redo your skill tree soon – in which case you can trade to sell your items instead. The beauty of Diablo 4‘s economy is that you can switch between selling and salvaging based on your needs. But if you’re just starting out and want to know which reserves to build up first, you’ll definitely want to start filling your pockets with the magical materials you earn by destroying your gear at the blacksmith.

Don’t sleep on aspects

Aspects are passive abilities that you can add to your loadout to add an effect or modify an existing one. You get them by completing dungeons or extracting them from an item you own (more on that later). These passives can improve your skills, increase your damage, increase your defense, or give your character more utility. Using aspects is necessary to make your characters stronger and improve your build to take down the most powerful enemies with ease.

While Aspects are especially important for endgame builds, there’s nothing wrong with spending some resources to get your character up and running early in the game – before you reach level 50. some bosses and content that might have gotten you into some trouble otherwise.

How to get aspects out of your gear

Image: Blizzard Entertainment via Polygon

If you have a loadout with a passive that you really like, but find a new loadout with better base stats, you can transfer the passive to the new loadout. Go to the Occultist in the northwest corner of Kyovashad and take the passive out of your old gear to receive the aspect (although this will destroy your old gear in the process). You can then push the aspect onto your new gear at the cost of some rare crafting materials you can get by salvaging your unneeded gear.

The side content is definitely worth it

Image: Blizzard Entertainment via Polygon

In every region of Diablo 4, you earn Fame by completing various challenges such as clearing Strongholds, completing side missions, and tracking down Altars of Lilith. After you reach a Fame milestone, you receive rewards for your current character or for all characters in the realm. Some of the rewards include bonus experience and gold, extra skill points, more potions and even Paragon points, which will come in very handy for the late game.

But consider waiting until you unlock your mount

Diablo 4 finally adds mounts to the series, and they greatly speed up your adventure around Sanctuary. Unfortunately, you won’t be able to unlock your horse until you’ve explored the story for a while. Consider ignoring the various side activities until you’re able to get around on the back of your noble steed, which should be when you’re between level 30 and 40.

You can slow down some Fame levels if you wait, but in the long run you’ll seriously reduce your walking time.

Participate in random events on the map

As you explore Sanctuary, you may see an orange circle on your minimap. These circles indicate that an event is taking place in the area. These events can range from protecting civilians, taking out enemies in the area, or escorting a ghostly spirit from one point to another. They may not seem like the most exciting of tasks, but these events are an easy way to get gear. A chest will spawn after you successfully complete each event; this guarantees equipment (or occasionally a unique one).

Play at World Tier 1 (initially)

Enter the world rankings being Diablo 4 difficulty levels, but they are not “easy, medium, hard, and super hard” as they may seem. Each difficulty level gives bonuses to XP and gold, but they also increase the enemy’s health and damage. They are not only designed for ‘good players’, but also for ‘good players with good equipment’.

Even if you’re someone who doesn’t typically like playing games on lower difficulty settings, you should play on World Tier 1 until you land some solid loot. Some classes – Druid and Barbarian in particular – will have a really hard time against some of the campaign bosses on World Tier 2 in the first 30 levels, and you’ll potentially waste a lot of time beating them if you still have bad gear.

The bosses and campaign monsters don’t just fall over on World Tier 1 or something, but you’ll have a much better time if you’re not already decked out in Legendaries.