Diablo 4: Lord of Hatred - Everything You Need to Know
26.04.2026 - 09:43:38
Diablo 4 , Game Guides
Blizzard just dropped a bombshell live stream showcasing the things that are coming in Diablo 4: Lord of Hatred. This upcoming expansion seems to be the game’s best one yet, packed with a lot of goodies that will surely keep you glued to your seats for weeks on end!
What are some of the things that are included in the expansion? Well, there are the new War Plans that help consolidate all your favorite activities into one cohesive playlist. Next, you will see the return of the Horadric Cube, which can potentially make amazing D4 items just by using the things that you loot from regular enemies.
If you are interested in knowing the biggest content and features that are coming to the game, then read further. This is everything you need to know about Diablo 4: Lord of Hatred.
Diablo 4: Lord of Hatred—Release Date
You don’t have to wait that long for the expansion to drop! Diablo 4: Lord of Hatred will launch on April 27 at 4 PM PDT. Despite that, however, you can actually download the massive patch 3.0.1 now, exclusive to Battle.net, as well as the PlayStation and Xbox versions of the game.
Those on the Steam version of Diablo 4 will have to wait until April 27 to be able to download the update. Be that as it may, I think that Blizzard has servers that are ready for when that moment comes.
By the way, Season 13 (aka Season of Reckoning) will also begin at the same time the Lord of Hatred expansion drops. Expect new reliquaries and unlockables to collect!
Lord of Hatred Campaign: Seasonal vs. Eternal Realms
Returning players who have not touched Diablo 4 in a while are asking one question: should they begin from scratch, or can they continue where they left off? Fortunately, Blizzard has given players the power to choose.
When Diablo 4: Lord of Hatred launches on April 27, players can choose either the Seasonal or Eternal Realms. Here is a brief rundown of the things that one can expect from each realm:
| Category | LoH Seasonal Realm | LoH Eternal Realm |
| Starting Point | Start from scratch to get that “zero-to-hero” experience. | Begin where you left off. You can begin the Lord of Hatred expansion immediately if you desire. |
| Progression | Resets every 3 to 4 months (Depends on how long Season 13 will be). | Progress remains the same and never resets. |
| Loot and Rewards | Items collected during the Season of Reckoning will be removed once the season is over. New limited-time features and temporary mechanics can be enjoyed. | Gear, Paragon, and items will remain even when Season 13 is over. However, you don’t have any access to new seasonal content. |
| Best for | +Those who want a fresh start. +Players who want to enjoy seasonal content. +Those who are completionists and would like to seek out new experiences. | +Players who don’t want to waste time. +Those who want to preserve their progress even when the season is over. +Save the best items without fear of being erased |
| Additional Information | Players have the option to start entirely from scratch. However, those who have completed the campaign in the base game and the Vessel of Hatred expansion can choose to start the Lord of Hatred campaign right away. | The same as the Seasonal Realm, except that you have the option to choose one of your fully decked-out characters (from your roster) to finish the LoH campaign. |
New Classes—Paladin and Warlock
Diablo 4: Lord of Hatred is a massive expansion, so it comes as no surprise that there are new classes that you can use to fight Mephisto himself. If you’ve already pre-ordered the LoH expansion, you can play as the “Warrior of Light,” aka the Paladin. This class specializes in “Oaths” that define what builds you can play.
The other class, which will only be available on April 27 onward, is the Warlock. Unlike the Paladin, who is a class that is a symbol of light, the Warlock is the complete opposite. The Warlock is not shy of using the Dark Arts if it means that they can defeat those who oppose them.
For a deeper dive on these two classes, you can refer to our D4 Warlock vs. Paladin guide.
Skill Tree Changes and Level Cap Increase
In case you don’t know, the level cap is increased in Diablo 4: Lord of Hatred. Whereas the max level right now is only 60, that number is bumped by 10, totaling to Level 70. In line with this change is a massive overhaul to the skill trees of each of the eight playable classes in the game.
At the time of writing, however, Blizzard has only revealed skill tree changes for the Druid and Necromancer. These are:
Druid Skill Tree
- Many Druid Skills can now be tweaked to allow you to choose which form you want to lean on. This includes Human, Werebear, and Werewolf.
- Storm Skills can now be used in Human or Werewolf Forms.
- It is not possible to shift into Human Form if you’re using skills that are native only to the Werebear or Werewolf.
Necromancer Skill Tree
- Raise Skeletons have now been split into Skeletal Mages and Skeletal Warriors. The former are summoned manually by spending Essence, while the latter are summoned passively through nearby corpses.
- Sacrifice has been changed. Sacrifice no longer prevents you from summoning minions (with skill points allocated), but you’ll only be able to summon fewer minions as a result.
According to the company, the class skill trees have been reworked from the ground up, with over 40 reworked skills and 80 new skill options. You also have 83 skill points to spend as you see fit, unlocking new build possibilities for the Lord of Hatred expansion!
New Systems
There are certainly a bunch of new features that are coming in Diablo 4: Lord of Hatred. Here are just some of them:
War Plans
Ever want to focus only on a couple of activities in Diablo 4, leaving out the ones that you don’t like? Well, that is the sole premise of why the War Plans are created! This is a new endgame feature in Diablo 4: Lord of Hatred that allows you to choose your favorite activities and beef up the rewards you are going to get through customization and progression.
Basically, the War Plans are a feature that lets you create a playlist of up to five of your favorite endgame activities in D4, including:
- Helltides
- Nightmare Dungeons
- Lair Bosses
- The Undercity
- The Pit
- Infernal Hordes
Once you have crafted your War Plans, go to the first activity in the chain by interacting with the Command Table located in Temis. Once you have completed the said activity, you will seamlessly be transported to the next one in the chain.
Finishing your War Plans will allow you to claim your just rewards. Go to the War Chest in Temis to do just that!
What’s interesting about the War Plans is that you can actually change certain aspects of a particular activity through the Activity Trees. You will unlock Activity Points simply by completing the activities you have curated into your War Plans.
According to Blizzard, you can earn seven points for each activity, allowing you to tinker with the customizations in the Activity Tree without the heavy grind. As to what those customizations are, I guess we’ll soon find out when the Lord of Hatred expansion drops very soon.
The company is kind enough to tease some customizations, though. For example, “Lair of Runes” is a Lair Boss node that provides a higher chance for Lair Bosses to drop runes in Diablo 4. So, if you still don’t have a Bac Rune for some reason, then improving the Lair Boss Activity Tree is likely the way to go!
Pit Improvements
The Pit in Diablo 4 is one of the most important activities in the game because it not only lets you upgrade your Glyphs, but it also allows you to test how far your current build can go. In the Lord of Hatred expansion, you can expect the following changes to The Pit:
- The Pit now has five levels of depth (instead of two).
- Floor generation has been vastly improved, with the aim of lowering the chances of you getting stuck due to poorly designed layouts.
- Speaking of map layouts, almost every environment in the game can now appear in The Pit. This includes areas in the base game, the Vessel of Hatred, and now the Lord of Hatred expansion.
- Shrines now have relatively the same spawn chance in every Pit run.
- Treasure Goblins can now spawn in The Pit, giving you crazy rewards at higher levels.
- Bosses now spawn directly on top of you (instead of having to go into the boss lair yourself).
- The Pit will now host bosses from The Tower as well, thus providing more variety than ever before.
Talisman
The Talisman is Blizzard’s way of introducing the Set Items System from the previous two installments in the franchise to Diablo 4. That said, the Talisman has two distinct parts, namely:
- Horadric Seal: The foundation of the Talisman. Putting the Seal dictates how many charm slots you can use.
- Charms: The Charms grant the stats and effects. Equip charms of the same set to get set bonuses.
You can find unique and set charms anywhere in Sanctuary just by defeating monsters and opening chests. These are the things that you’ll be farming a lot in the endgame.
Horadric Cube
Of course, a Diablo 4 expansion will not be complete without the return of the iconic Horadric Cube. The Horadric Cube offers recipes that allow you to repurpose the gear that you’ve just found on the ground, giving them powerful affixes and whatnot.
Furthermore, you can utilize the Horadric Cube to break down some D4 unique items into unique charms. For instance, you can have the cube give you a unique charm that’s patterned from the Godslayer Crown.
FAQ
When Will the Lord of Hatred Expansion Be Released?
Diablo 4: Lord of Hatred will launch on April 27 at 4 PM PDT. You can now pre-download the game on your Battle.net client on PC, or from the PlayStation or Xbox Stores for your respective consoles.
What Are War Plans?
The War Plans are an endgame feature that lets you create a playlist of up to five of your favorite activities. Each activity can be customized via the Activity Trees, so you can tailor your experience according to your preferences.
Will Old Builds Still Work?
No. The skill tree received a massive overhaul, which effectively changes the landscape when it comes to D4 builds. This can be considered a good thing because you’ll be able to create a new build that’s even more powerful than ever before!