Diablo 4 have revealed the official launch date for the much-anticipated Season 1 - called Season of the Malignant. It will be available to everyone for free on July 20!
During the developer livestream, Diablo 4 team has also shared tons of details regarding the upcoming Seasonal update. They talked about the new gameplay mechanics, items, changes to the progress systems, and much much more.
On this page you will find all the info regarding the upcoming Diablo 4 Season 1 - Season of the Malignant. Make sure to also check out the dev stream VOD here, and the dedicated official Season 1 new website here.
Theme and Mechanic
A new form of Lilith’s corruption has spread throughout Sanctuary, creating Malignant Monsters that roam the land overtaken with this infectious turmoil, minds lost and killing at random. Only you can fight back and harness the power of this twisted corruption to uncover the source of the Malignance and put it to an end.
Once the player have finished the main story, the new Seasonal questline and its corresponding features will become available.
Cormond is the new character that will be introduced into the Season of the Malignant story. He is a former priest of the Cathedral of Light that fights to stop the spread of the Malignant. You will be fighting the bloodthristy infected monsters alongside him, reaping all kinds of rewards and growing stronger with the special powers they grant.
Any Elite can spawn as a powerful "Malignant" monster - kill it for a chance to drop a special type of item called Malignant Heart. These can be socketed into any Jewellery gear instead of regular Gems, and they grant you special abilities that can't be found on any other type of item.
There are a total of 32 different Malignant powers associated with the Malignant Hearts, and in terms of power they will be balanced similarly to Aspects. The developers promised that they will either significantly improve existing builds, or will lead to creative new paths for some classes.
Malignant Hearts can be insterted into special Malignant sockets on your jewellery that come in three colors. Each Malignant Heart requires a specific color of the socket. Jewellery items can drop with Malignant sockets right away, or you can add them at the Jeweller.
If you're not interested in using a particular Malignant Heart, you can disenchant it. Resulting "heart powder" is a resource that will allow you to craft Invokers. Those are special items you can use you to summon a Malignant Tunnel.
Malignant Tunnels are new dungeon areas where players will be able to target-farm Malignant Hearts of specific types and colors. They have a chance to contain a new Boss encounter - an epic fight against Varshan the Consumed.
Season Journey
Diablo 4 Season 1 will introduce a brand new progression system called Season Journey. It will allow you to track your achievements and earn rewards as you play your Seasonal characters.
To participate in a new Season, a new character must be made on the Season of the Malignant Realm. You do not need to purchase a Battle Pass or any add-ons to play the Seasonal content, but you must have completed the campaign on either the Eternal or Seasonal Realm with at least one character. Once you have completed the Campaign, any Seasonal character will start the game with:
- The option to skip the Campaign.
- Your Mount available immediately.
- All previously discovered Altars of Lilith unlocked, and the corresponding Renown for them.
- All previously discovered areas of the map revealed, and the corresponding renown for them.
Once the Season has ended, the character you made and its progress will be transferred to the Eternal Realm. All items you collected, including in your Seasonal stash, will be transferred too. You can take this character into Sanctuary whenever you please, but Season-specific features such as Malignant Hearts will no longer be accessible.
As you progress through the Season of the Malignant, you’ll earn rewards from the Season Journey.
The Season Journey is broken into Chapters with tasks to complete. They will reward Legendary Aspects, Titles, and a new type of item called Scroll of Amnesia, which provides a free Skill Tree and Paragon Board reset.
The Journey also provides Favor - the resource used to climb through the Battle Pass - which is also earned naturally by playing the game.
Battle Pass
The Season of the Malignant Battle Pass begins on July 20, 10 a.m. PDT and has a total of 90 tiers: 27 Free tiers and 63 Premium tiers.
Smoldering Ashes are earned from the Free tiers, which can be spent on Season Blessings. These are special Seasonal boosts that provide you with a bonus to earning experience, Gold, or Obols. The bonuses gained from Season Blessings only last until Season of the Malignant ends.
If you get the Premium Battle Pass, you'll be able to earn exclusive Seasonal cosmetics, but also raw currency - Platinum.
Remember that if you've purchased Digital Deluxe or Ultimate Edition of Diablo 4, you have Season of the Malignant Battle Pass included! Simply navigate to the Seasons section of the Shop and select the option to activate your Battle Pass.
Players also have the option to skip Tiers by spending Platinum at a cost of 200 Platinum per Tier skip. Keep in mind that even if you unlock Smoldering Ashes, you must still meet certain Character Level requirements to claim them!
That's everything we know so far about the upcoming Diablo 4 Season 1 - Season of the Malignant! It's coming in exactly two weeks and it is looking pretty exciting!
What do you think about the Seasonal mechanic and the Seasonal Journey? Do you feel inspired to create a new character and conquer the power of Malignant Hearts? Let us know in the Discord, and stay tuned for more news!
