Diablo IVSanctuary guide

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New and returning players

Diablo IV changed more in 2026 than in its first two years. This page covers what you need to know before you play, what each edition unlocks, and which advice you can ignore.

Base gameLord of Hatred

Checked September 29, 2026 · patch 3.2.2 · Season 15

Seen from behind, a hooded adventurer in worn armor walks through snow and mud toward a torch-lit, walled settlement with wooden towers, beneath dark mountains and a distant red glow.

The short version

  • Level cap 70, Torment I to XII. The old cap was 60 and Torment had four steps. The new numbers apply to every player, not only expansion owners. Official
  • Skill trees were rebuilt. Passive nodes left the tree; each active skill has three branches of choices, and many old passives now live on Legendary Aspects and Uniques. Buildcraft guide Official
  • A Loot Filter exists. It hides, shows and recolors gear, and does not touch currency, gems or manuals. Loot Filter guide Official
  • The endgame is War Plans. You chain up to five activities into a playlist. It needs Lord of Hatred. War Plans Official
  • Season 15 is live. Season of Hell's Legacy began on September 15, 2026. Season 15

Which edition unlocks what

Ownership is labeled on every page of this site. This table is the source of those labels.

ContentBase gameVessel of HatredLord of Hatred
Level 70, Torment I to XII, rebuilt skill trees, Loot Filter, Map OverlayYesYesYes
Barbarian, Druid, Necromancer, Rogue, SorcererYesYesYes
Spiritborn, Nahantu, Mercenaries, Kurast UndercityNoYesYes, Lord of Hatred includes it
Paladin, Warlock, Skovos, Temis, the Mephisto campaignNoNoYes
War Plans, Echoing Hatred, Horadric Cube, Talisman, FishingNoNoYes
Third Bonus Skill Variant on each skillNo (two of three open)No (two of three open)Yes
Season 15 questline, Splinters, Waking Nightmares, Legacy UniquesYesYesYes

Sources: Blizzard's Lord of Hatred page and pre-launch overview. About 15% of Season 15's objectives, including some needed for Rank VIII, require Lord of Hatred. Lord of Hatred requires the base game; buying it also unlocks Vessel of Hatred.

Seasonal or Eternal?

Both realms share the campaign, classes and endgame.

Seasonal realm

  • A fresh start each season, with the season's questline and gimmicks.
  • Season Rank, Season Blessings, the Tower and Leaderboards.
  • Season 15 features such as Splinters of Evil and Soul Splinters live here.

Eternal realm

  • Long-term characters that do not reset at a season change.
  • The nine Legacy Uniques and other permanent additions are available.
  • Rebirth lets you convert an Eternal character to Seasonal, resetting it to level 1 while keeping its class, name, appearance and Normal or Hardcore state.

Finishing the Lord of Hatred campaign on one character unlocks Skip Campaign for your other characters, on either realm. War Plans progress is shared between characters in the same partition (Eternal or Seasonal, Hardcore or not, Normal or Solo Self-Found).

Where the story and endgame start

Choose one when you create a character.

  1. Start with Vessel of Hatred

    Begin with the Nahantu campaign if you want the story in order. Vessel of Hatred

  2. Sail to Skovos and face Mephisto. Lord of Hatred

  3. Story complete

    After you finish the Lord of Hatred campaign once, new characters can start with the story done and go straight to endgame. Some challenges stay locked behind Torment difficulties.

World Tiers now run Normal, Hard, Expert, Penitent, then Torment I to XII. Since patch 3.2.1, Expert and Penitent unlock after the Prologue instead of after the campaign. Lair Bosses need Torment I or higher.

The systems, in the order you will meet them

01

Skill tree

Three branches per skill, Bonus Skill Variants, and where old passives went.

Open 02

Loot Filter

Up to 25 rules per filter; hide junk, highlight what you want.

Open 03

Gear and crafting

Tempering, Masterworking, Aspects, Uniques and Mythics.

Open 04

Horadric Cube

The main crafting station in Temis.

Open 05

Talisman

A Seal and six Charm slots with set bonuses.

Open 06

War Plans

Chain endgame activities and earn shared progress.

Open

What old guides get wrong now

A guide written before April 27, 2026 is likely wrong about most of this. The changes below come from Blizzard's own notes.

  • Level cap 60 and four Torment tiers. Now 70 and twelve.
  • Passive and Key Passive nodes in the skill tree. They left the tree; many became Aspect or Unique powers, and some Aspects moved into the tree as variants.
  • Old skill trees and planners. Any planner not updated for Lord of Hatred describes a tree that no longer exists.
  • Sanctification and old crafting. The Horadric Cube's Transfiguration works much like Season 11's Sanctification did.
  • Old gear. Items whose affixes stopped working were converted to a Legacy version (+100 to all stats) that cannot be crafted or used in the Cube.
  • Old Torment loot rates. Blizzard raised Legendary drop rates in Torment I to V in Season 15 and made every Unique droppable from level 1.

Sources: Blizzard's Lord of Hatred overview and the 3.2.1 notes.

Picking a class

Eight are playable now. The Amazon is announced for 2027 and is not in the game.

Fury

Barbarian

Tough, mobile melee that hits hard up close.

Base gameSpirit

Druid

Shapeshifter and nature caster: earth, storm, and companions.

Base gameEssence

Necromancer

Bone, blood and an undead army.

Base gameEnergy

Rogue

Fast, precise, and versatile at range or up close.

Base gameMana

Sorcerer

Fire, lightning and frost, with Enchantments.

Base gameVigor

Spiritborn

Martial artist channeling four spirit guardians.

Vessel of HatredFaith

Paladin

Holy warrior: shield, sword, auras and an Oath.

Lord of HatredWrath and Dominance

Warlock

Command demons and turn Hell against itself.

Lord of HatredAnnounced

Amazon

Announced for the first half of 2027. Not playable today.

Future, not playable

Compare the classes or see builds by class.