Diablo IV: Vessel of Hatred DLC Review – A Dark Journey Forward

Since the launch of Diablo IV, Blizzard has continued to improve the title with various updates that enhance the player experience. With the arrival of Season 6 and the DLC Vessel of Hatred, the game is now enriched with several valuable enhancements.

Each season brings its own unique theme, and this time, players can enjoy a new class and area, along with a thoroughly revamped gameplay system.

The DLC Vessel of Hatred continues the Diablo IV storyline, this time focusing on Neyrelle’s efforts to trap the Lord of Hatred, Mephisto, in a Soulstone. However, the evil power leaking from the Soulstone begins to haunt Neyrelle, testing our protagonist.

Players must face Mephisto’s tricks while helping Neyrelle find a way to imprison Mephisto forever. As usual, Blizzard succeeds in delivering high-quality cinematic storytelling, including an opening that provides a recap of the previous story to help players understand the new plot.

In this review, we’ll compare the difference in experience between players who own Vessel of Hatred and those who do not, particularly in terms of how the new mechanics of Season 6 change the gameplay. So, is this DLC really worth getting into? Let’s find out.

Diablo IV Base Game vs. Vessel of Hatred DLC

The Diablo series has always centered around seasonal gameplay. With the launch of Vessel of Hatred, Season 6 introduces the “Realmwalkers” theme and a new item called “Seething Opals.”

These Opals provide a 15% EXP bonus and come in various forms offering rewards like equipment, Gold, crafting materials, boss summoning items, and runes, as well as a 30-minute buff.

However, more than just a theme, Season 6 highlights a major system overhaul. Compared to the original version, Diablo IV now undergoes a massive transformation, including updates to the leveling system, difficulty levels, and the Paragon system.

New Content for All Base Game Players:

• New Max Level: 60
• New Difficulty System
• New Max Level for Paragon: 300
• Changes to the Paragon System
• Item Quality Improvements
• 2 New Character Slots
• New Skills and Passives for Each Class
• New Party Finder Function
• New Seasonal Content
• New Seasonal Rewards (Season Journey, Battle Pass, Reputation Board)

Exclusive for Vessel of Hatred DLC Owners:

• Nahantu Region – Includes Dungeon, Stronghold, Side Quests, New Legion Event, and Nahantu Monster Families
• Spiritborn Class
• Vessel of Hatred Campaign
• Nahantu Region Renown
• Runewords
• Dark Citadel
• Mercenaries
• Kurast Undercity
• Item Trading from Vessel of Hatred

Comprehensive System Changes

One of the main changes is the replacement of the “World Tiers” system with “Difficulties,” adding new difficulty levels ranging from 4 to 8, up to Torment IV. The mechanism to unlock difficulty levels has also been streamlined to be more user-friendly, similar to the system in Diablo III.

Now, players only need to complete specific tiers in the Pit to unlock the next Torment level. Higher Torment levels offer a better chance to obtain Legendary and Ancient items. Here are the requirements to unlock Torment levels:

• Level 60: Unlocks access to the Pit and Tier 1-20. Completing Pit Tier 20 unlocks Torment I.
• Pit Tier 35: Unlocks Torment II.
• Pit Tier 50: Unlocks Torment III.
• Pit Tier 65: Unlocks Torment IV.

The character level system has also been overhauled, replacing the original cap of level 100 with 60 base levels and 300 Paragon levels. Players will receive 10 additional skill points and 100 Paragon points, offering more freedom in character builds.

Masterworking materials have been simplified from three types to just one, “Obducite,” which can now be acquired in “Nightmare Dungeons” instead of the Pit.

In Nightmare Dungeons, all types of enemies—from regular monsters to elites—have a chance to drop Obducite, and rewards from “Infernal Hordes” still contain this material. Additionally, it can also be obtained in Vessel of Hatred in “Kurast Undercity.”

The mechanism for upgrading “Glyphs” has been moved from Nightmare Dungeons to the Pit, with the maximum level for glyphs increased from 21 to 100. Rare glyphs that reach level 45 can now be upgraded to Legendary, offering the following benefits:

• Glyph radius increased from 4 to 5.
• Glyph gains an additional affix.

The Paragon Board has also been updated. Each class now has an exclusive Paragon board with unique Legendary Nodes and additional Normal Nodes that increase the radius of glyph effects.

Rare Nodes have been optimized for more practical use. Now, players can only use a maximum of 5 Paragon boards, including the starting board.

To encourage group play, Blizzard introduced the “Party Finder” feature. Data shows that 85% of players prefer to play solo, but this new feature makes it easier for them to find companions for co-op content.

This function is particularly useful for farming Endgame Bosses, where players can share summoning items and take turns summoning bosses, improving farming efficiency.

Exclusive Features of Vessel of Hatred

In addition to the new storyline, class, and map, Vessel of Hatred introduces several new systems, including Runes, Dark Citadel, Mercenaries, and Kurast Undercity.

The “Dark Citadel” is a co-op challenge that requires team cooperation to complete. However, the rewards are considered underwhelming and may not be as engaging as the main content.

The Kurast Undercity uses a survival mode with a time limit, where players must defeat monsters to earn Attunement and get better rewards.

At the same time, players need to kill Demons to extend the timer and ultimately defeat the boss. Players can gather “offerings” throughout Sanctuary and Kurast Undercity to customize and lock rewards, including Unique items or boss summoning materials.

The “Rune” system adds a new strategic element, allowing players to enhance abilities from other classes through rune contributions. Each build can only use two rune skills that cannot overlap. For example, the Spiritborn class, which relies on “barriers,” can benefit from the “Earthen Bulwark rune” from the Druid class for additional protection. Players can activate rune effects by using resources, adding more variety to gameplay.

The “Mercenary” system provides companions for solo players, with four types of Mercenaries offering unique abilities like support or damage boosts.

Mercenaries will fight alongside players and can appear in co-op mode as backline support. Their skills have short cooldowns, allowing frequent use.

Players can also build relationships with Mercenaries, increasing the bond level up to 10, unlocking exclusive rewards at each level. When players complete the final task, they will earn “Pale Marks” that can be exchanged for rare items in the “Lair.”

Balance of the New Spiritborn Class and Other Classes

Spiritborn is a new class introduced in the Diablo series. It is a melee character that stands out with an agile fighting style using a “glaive” or “quarterstaff” as the primary weapon. This class allows players to choose from four different “Spirit Guardians,” each offering a unique ability:

• Jaguar, which increases damage through continuous attacks.
• Gorilla, which offers crowd control and durability with “barriers.”
• Eagle, which excels in medium-range attacks with electric strikes.
• Centipede, which provides continuous poison damage.

Main builds for Spiritborn include “Quill Volley Eagle,” “Crushing Hand Gorilla,” “Touch of Death Centipede,” and “Evade Eagle Spiritborn.” Among all, the Quill Volley Eagle build is known for high damage despite lacking mobility. In contrast, other builds focus more on agility, offering a smooth experience when fighting hordes of demons and monsters.

For example, to try the Tier 150 challenge in the Pit, the Quill Volley Eagle build is often the preferred choice. Blizzard may have intentionally wanted to attract players to this new DLC.

At the start of Season 6, Spiritborn became dominant with very high damage potential, allowing players to easily reach Torment IV even with random gear.

In contrast, a friend of mine who chose the Rogue class, despite having better gear, still struggled to consistently finish Torment III. This highlights the power gap between classes at the start of the game.

However, every class now receives a new skill and five additional passive skills. Personally, I’m particularly fond of the new Rogue skill, “Dance of Knives,” where the character spins while attacking.

It’s perfect for players like me who prefer to press a single button to defeat their enemies! Thankfully, the recent mid-season update not only avoided nerfing Spiritborn but also buffed other classes, resulting in better overall class balance.

Loot Grinding Process During Season

As soon as you log in, start by checking the “The Tree of Whispers” quest on the map. If you already have good enough gear and can easily defeat the bosses, look out for the two PvP areas on the map to see if there’s a “Seething Abomination” quest.

If the quest is available, and the boss can be defeated within about one minute, proceed to complete it. After defeating them, collect “Seeds of Hatred” and go to a nearby area to cleanse them. This process takes about 50 seconds. Overall, you can quickly earn 8 “Whispers of the Dead” through this step.

Next, head to Helltide to complete the “Whispers” quest. The Tree of Whispers will give you many materials and Gold, which are important resources in the game.

Also, while in Helltide, gather up to 250 “Aberrant Cinders” and use them to open the “Tortured Gift of Mysteries.”

For players looking to level up quickly, grind EXP in the Pit area. Choose levels between 90-100 and ensure each battle is finished within two minutes for maximum efficiency.

During this process, use potions like “Common Elixirs” (increases EXP by 8%) and “Seasonal Seething Opals” (increases EXP by 15%). Both potions can be combined for better results.

If you need masterworking materials like Obducite, the best area to find them is in Kurast Undercity. However, you will need to use “Tribute of Refinement” to obtain them.

Additionally, Nightmare Dungeons are also a good option because normal and elite monsters there have a high chance of dropping Obducite. You can gather many materials in a single session.

Currently, there’s no specific area that’s particularly good for obtaining “Ancestral Legendary Gear.” If you’re looking to acquire these Ancestral Legendaries directly, head to the Infernal Hordes which is a special dungeon and spend 200 Aether to open gear chests.

The remaining Aether can be exchanged for other materials or Gold. However, each attempt depends on luck, and the results may vary. If you decide to try 10 waves, each session usually takes about 10 minutes.

Finally, if you want to get “Unique Gear” or “Mythic Unique Gear,” sell unwanted gear at the shop. The proceeds from these sales will provide you with enough Gold, making it a quick way to accumulate wealth while hunting for the best gear.

Final Thoughts

As mentioned before, after several full seasons of adjustments and fixes, Diablo IV has now become a solid game that shines in terms of its core gameplay. The “Vessel of Hatred” DLC feels like a major update that capitalizes on this solid foundation.

I really enjoyed Season 6. Unlike previous seasons, where I often stopped playing before the mid-season update or before the season ended, Blizzard has slowly brought in successful mechanics from past Diablo games into Diablo IV, while improving the experience.

For example, the Armory feature—long requested by the community—has finally been confirmed for Season 7. This means players can switch builds with just one click, similar to how it was done in Diablo III. This makes gameplay much easier because manually adjusting builds is not only time-consuming but can also be tedious.

Returning to the main question: Should you buy the “Vessel of Hatred” DLC?

The answer is, compared to Diablo III, without purchasing the DLC, your game will feel like an incomplete version of Diablo IV. Therefore, for players who are already enjoying Diablo IV, I highly recommend getting this DLC.

You won’t want to miss out on important content like Runes, Mercenaries, and much more that enhances the gameplay experience. However, since the exclusive DLC content is still somewhat limited, it’s best to purchase it during a sale.

Coincidentally, there’s an ongoing sale which the DLC is discounted by 25%, making it priced at RM145.50. If you wait for the right time to purchase Diablo IV, you can now get the base game and DLC together with a 35% discount, for just RM216.

For new players, this is the best time to try Diablo IV and experience the streamlined loot-grind action. The game is much better than at launch. For veteran players, you may want to consider returning to play during or after Season 7 to enjoy the revamped Diablo IV experience.

Additionally, there are special rewards for returning players (Returnee Reward), where you can choose one character from the Eternal Realm and receive:

• Increased to Level 50
• Choice of 3 powerful builds for the selected class
• Complete Legendary gear set
• Full Skill Tree based on the chosen build
• All Altars of Lilith unlocked
• 1 million Gold, 1000 Obol, 1 Scroll of Amnesia, and crafting materials

Players who wish to return can head to the tavern in Kyovashad with their chosen character and interact with the Fated Reliquary inside to claim their rewards.

It’s important to note that if your character in the Eternal Realm is already at Level 50, you will still receive Legendary items and the appropriate build choice for that character’s class. Additionally, if you own the “Vessel of Hatred” expansion, this power boost can be applied to two characters in the Eternal Realm.

Diablo IV: Vessel of Hatred is now available on various platforms, including Windows PC via Battle.net and Steam, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, and Xbox Game Pass.

For more information on the game and its DLC, please visit the official website here and for more reviews by us, you can visit here.

Reviewed on PC, code provided by Blizzard Entertainment

Diablo IV

Publisher: Activision Blizzard

Developer: Blizzard Entertainment

Release Date: 2023-06-06

Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S

Diablo IV is an upcoming action role-playing game developed and published by Blizzard Entertainment, and is the fourth main installment in the Diablo series.

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