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 This is the '''Diablo 3 Basics''' page, which is the main '''Fact Sheet''' of known '''Diablo III''' information. This much-anticipated sequel to Diablo and Diablo II was announced at [[Blizzard]]'s [[WWI 2008]] in Paris, during 27-28 June, 2008. Regardless if you just heard that Diablo III is announced, or if you have been following some of the {{wl|[http://started playing diablo.incgamers.com Diablo 3 news]}}or returned after a long vacation to other games,, this page will get you up to speed!

Diablo III, while featured completely in '''3D''' with a 3D environment, will follow follows closely in Diablo II's track by using the classic isometric view, fast gameplay, and randomized content for high replayability. Some changes have been made in order to make the game more welcoming to new players, to ramp up the difficulty more smoothly, and to create a "deep and engaging" combat system. The Diablo III developers took inspiration from previous games in the series, as well as [[World of Warcraft]], and other different games such as ''Zelda'' and ''God of War''.

 Blizzard confirmed that the game would ship with five characters, then introduced them over the first three years of development. They are the [[Barbarian]], [[Demon Hunter]], [[Monk]], [[Witch Doctor]], and [[Wizard]]. All five classes will be playable in male or female versions. The gender difference is purely cosmetic; male and female characters have identical stats and abilities.  The Following classes are very distinct from one another in look and function. All items of armor have a different appearance on each class (there are even some inter-class gender differences, mainly in the chest armor for obvious reasons). The skills are even more different, with around 25 entirely unique [[active skills]] for each class. Many of the [[passive skills]] were shared between classes during development, but over time they all differentiated as well. Though all five classes for Diablo III have been revealed, additional classes will be added in the [[expansion]]s. See the [[Other classes]] article for Blizzard quotes on their additional character ideas.diablo 3:

The [[skills]] and their presentation evolved greatly during When just starting the game's development, with the largest change coming late in the beta testyou have a basic attack, shortly before release. See the which is a [[primary skill tree]] article for a full history. Characters can use up to six skills at onceThe next level will unlock another skill, and may cycle between them with only minimal [[cooldown]]sso on. The biggest change from Diablo 2 comes from the At level 6, you unlock [[runestoneskill runes]] system, which enables every skill to be modified into five different forms, most of which are radically different in function from alter the base skillway skills work. This creates For example, a vast number of possible builds, and with the easy [[respecWizard]]'s basic fire [[Hydra]] system, players can try out all of the skills and rune effects, and switch between them as needed. Each class has around 25 unique skills, which are unlocked at the rate of about one per level, from level 1 until level 30. Each use a skill has five rune effects which are unlocked every 5 turning it into a frost or 6 levels, thus granting at least one and often three of four new abilities to try out every level up until the maximum level 60lightning hydra. [[Passive skills]] are also unique to each class, and starting at level Each 10, they are unlocked one every few levels, all the way up to level 60. Characters can have up to 3 passive skills active30, adding an additional you unlock a [[passive skill slot]] at level 10slot, 20, and 30.  ==== Skill Tree Respecs/Resets ====In Diablo II prior to v1which change the way your character functions.13For example, there is a character was unable to change their skills and stats once they were allocated. If you made any mistake, the only solution was to [[rerollBarbarian]]passive that makes it so instead of losing fury over time, you regenerate it. This is changed in Diablo III, and characters can change around their All basic skills as desiredare unlocked by level 30, with only minimal cooldowns but it takes until level 60 for your character to prevent this being done exploitativelyreach full potential. 

====Stats/Attributes====The biggest change to Diablo III [[attributes]] is their change to an automatically-allocated system. Players Skills can not set their skill points, and instead gain 1 or 2 points in the four attributes with every level up. The Diablo III developers felt the stat allocation in Diablo II was a poor way to provide character customization since players either experimented and "ruined' their character with sub-optimal choices, or else followed a [[cookie cutter]] style of [[build]]. (This is less of a problem after v1.13 added stat and skill respecs to Diablo II.) In the early days of Diablo III, an inventory-like game system called the [[Talisman]] was stocked with items called [[charms]], which added large bonuses to stats, but that system was shelved during development. Another system to add specific attributes was the [[enchants]] provided by the [[Mystic]], but that system and the Mystic were also removed during development. As a result, players can only modify their stats with equipment bonuses, including those from [[socket]]ed [[gems]]. The names and function of the stats be changed several times during development as wellat your convenience. (See the [[attributes]] article for details.) IronicallyAt level 60, after experimentation with up to five attributes, including a system where each attribute granted more or less identical bonuses to each class, the developers returned to the classic four attributes of [[Strength]], [[Vitality]], [[Dexterity]], and changing skills makes you loose [[IntelligenceNephalem Valor]]. The bonuses provided by these four differ considerably from their Diablo II form.  ==== Skill Runes ==== [[File:Runes-hydra-all.jpg|thumb|350px|Hydra runestone effects.]]Another system that underwent numerous changes during development; skill runes were items for most of Diablo III's development. These runes were small objects that were placed in skills, each of which had one socket. Once seated, the runestones When changed the function of the skills, always improving them, in five different ways. Those runestones were called [[crimson]]town, [[alabaster]], [[indigo]], [[golden]], and [[obsidian]]. Though the skill rune effects remained, the item-based runestone system was entirely removed during the beta, and replaced with a system where all of the rune effects there are built into skills. They are thus part of the interface, and are "unlocked" one at a time, usually around 5-9 levels apart. Thus a base skill such as the [[Demon Hunter]]'s [[Vault]] is unlocked at level 12, and the rune effects become available one at a time at levels 23, 31, 40, 48, and 53. (Figures subject to yet further changeno cooldowns.)

Death is less of an obstacle to success in Diablo III than in previous games in the series. Dead players in Diablo III do not lose equipment or gold. They must wait a mere few seconds before waiting to be resurrected by another player in their party or restarting at the last In [[checkpointsoftcore]] (not [[waypoint]]) they passed over. In addition, a player will lose a set percentage of their [[durability]] upon death (currently is very mild, punished only by 10%) which will durability loss and a need to be repaired either at the run back to where you came from. The task is made much easier by [[Blacksmithcheckpoints]] or an appropriate vendor. , which help with this, and [[Hardcorewaypoints]] mode is an option in the game, and as in Diablo II, dead HC characters stay dead forever. This will not be the case in the Arena, where Hardcore players will be able to duel as much as they like, without having to create softcore characters just to enjoy the arena fullywhich make going places a very simple task.

There are four [[difficulty]] levels in Diablo III, [[Normal difficulty]], [[Nightmare difficulty]], [[Hell difficulty]], and [[Inferno difficulty]]. Each difficulty level repeats the same game content, but with monsters, items, and everything else increased in level to keep scaling up the challenge. Normal is designed to be fairly easy, especially early on, to usher new players into the game and teach them the ropes without too much challenge. Difficulty starts to increase in Nightmare and Hell, and characters should max out at level 60 around the end of Hell. This controversial design choice removes the In addition, there are 10 [[grindingmonster power]] to [[max level]] play system seen in Diablo options that increase loot drops, experience gain, and the life and Diablo IIdamage of your foes.

==End GameThe Auction House== Diablo III was designed with the [[end game]] in mind. The entire Inferno difficulty level is meant as one big PvE end game, with a flat difficulty curve opening up the entire game to high level play. The developers have also considered various systems to reward players for playing normal areas, rather than simply "running" the same few bosses over and over again. While Inferno is meant to be quite challenging, and best played in co-op parties, nothing in Diablo III is being designed to require parties, such as the raid content seen in [[WoW]]. Other end game goodies include special [[Achievements]], crafting recipes and items found only in Inferno, and the possible addition of additional high-end content via patches. As Diablo III will *not* launch with any form of PvP, the long-anticipated [[Arena]] will not serve as an end game activity.

Item quality is similar to that of Diablo II, with item scarcity progressing [[normal]] > [[magical]] > [[rare]] > [[set]] > [[legendary]] (the new name for unique items). There should be more mixing and matching at the highest levels, with rare, set, and legendary items of approximately-equivalent quality, depending on the random mods they spawn with. As there are no [[runes]] to socket into equipment, there are no [[runeword]] items, at least in [[D3v]].  ==The Auction House== One of the biggest changes to items in Diablo III is the inclusion of an [[Auction House]] in the Battle.net system. Players can now very easily buy and sell gear, for gold for [[real money]]. While there was a great deal of controversy over the [[Real Money Trading]] aspect, the Auction House itself was very popular when announced. Despite that propitious introduction, soon after release many players came to believe[http://diablo.incgamers.com/blog/comments/a-scientific-explanation-why-d3-is-less-addictive-than-d2] that the AH was a major detriment to the game experience, since it worked too well.  Early overachievers played very long hours, forcing themselves through Inferno and scoring amazing loot unfindable in other difficulty levels. Those items entered the Auction House, other players bought them and did their own item finding in Inferno, and soon enough any player could farm gold for an hour or two at level 40 or 50, and earn enough to buy an item that would grant vastly higher damage than they'd have ever found on their own, barring weeks of grinding to find it. This seemed great, but many of those players soon grew bored with the game, as all challenge was gone with their great gear, and they had no joy of finding new gear since they already had 1/1,000,000 quality equipment.

** New armor typescompared to Diablo 2: [[pauldrons (item type)|Shoulders]], [[Wrists|bracers]], and [[pants]].** New class-specific armor typescompared to Diablo 2: [[Mighty Belts]] for the Barbarian; [[Cloaks]] for the Demon Hunter; [[Spirit Stones]] (helms) for the Monk; [[Voodoo Masks]] for the Witch Doctor, and [[Wizard Hats]] for the Wizard.

** New types of weaponscompared to Diablo 2: [[Fists]], [[Daggers]] (no longer a type of sword).** New class-specific weaponscompared to Diablo 2: [[Mighty Weapons]] for Barbarians; [[Hand Crossbows]] for the Demon Hunter, [[Daibos]] and [[Fist]]s for the Monk, and [[Ceremonial Knives]] for the Witch Doctor.*** Class specific weapons, off-hand only: [[Mojos]] for the Witch Doctor, [[Orbs]] for the Wizard, [[Quiver]]s and [[1 handed Crossbows]] for the Demon Hunter.

* The [[inventory]] is much larger than it was in Diablo II, and after numerous permutations, it's settled on a large grid with all items either 1x1 or 1x2 in size, which allows for many more items than Diablo 2 ever did.* The [[stash]] in town is large (though it shrunk from 5 to 3 pages during beta testing), and is shared between all characters on the same account. (But not HC and normal characters.)You must buy all the stash upgrades to take advantage of the space, though.* All gold and item drops from monsters, chests, quests, etc, are specific to your character. You only see items you can pick up, and do not see items for other characters, nor do they see yoursin party or public games. ** Items dropped by a character are seen by all, and can be picked up unless account bound.

* [[Potion]]s are much less common simpler in variety than in previous Diablo games. There are no mana or rejuvenation potions, just health, and they come with a long cooldown between uses. Potions are intended for emergency use only, and players must learn to survive with life leech, hit point regeneration from equipment, and by using the [[health globes]] that monsters drop. Successful players must be a bit more cautious than they were in previous games of the series.

[[Followers]]: Diablo III's answer to mercenaries from D2, the followers will have their own skillset and inventory rings, amulet and weapon slots that the player you can customize. In addition, you can give them follower specific items, such as the [[Templar Relic]].[[Artisans]]: Are special NPCs who craft items and provide other essential services, as well as much dialogue and information about the game world and quests. They are the [[Blacksmith]] and [[Jeweler]], after the [[Mystic]] was removed during beta testing. She will return in [[Reaper of Souls]].

[[Image:Sanctuary World Map.jpg|thumb|225px|<span style="font-size:90%;">[[world map|Sanctuary world map]], with locations noted.</span>]]The [[world map]] of [[Sanctuary]] was actually released with the second Diablo game's manual, but a new and improved map has been made by Blizzard, outlining the continents and the major [[settlement]]s. Many of these locations will be visited in [[Diablo III]], including [[Tristram]]. Areas close by that were never visited in the previous games will also have a chance, like the [[Leoric Highlands]] and [[Westmarch]], and it's known that much of Act Three takes place in the Barbarian Lands around the [[Arreat Crater]].

We have been shown detailed pictures of [[Skovos]] (the land of the [[Amazon]]s), as well as [[Caldeum]] and Tristram. Skovos is confirmed to be excluded from the game, but the level of detail they are putting into the universe suggests either a big expansion pack, MMOs, or a film. [[Ureh]] is another area that has been shown off by the development team (and was showcased in the original cinematic trailer) which will not be in the release version of Diablo III. Outdoor areas will be less randomized than dungeons, and the terrain will for the most part be static. Instead, a lot of random scripted events will take place, and some will even be really advanced. They can vary from an escort [[quest]], to a moldy tome, or a big, bad [[boss]] monster. You will also find interactive environments with dangerous traps, obstacles, and [[destructible]] elements, such as vases and bookshelves. There will be "numerous" outdoor locations. These portions of the map that are randomised are called [[events]], and can even happen within randomised dungeons. Some are more common than others.

The land is filled with dungeons, as in Diablo II. Dungeons vary widely in size and design, and are promised to offer better randomization and variety than they did in Diablo II. Perhaps more critically, the development team has also stated that there will be many much more varieties of dungeons randomized than what was seen in Diablo IIoutdoors.

===Secret Level?(SPOILER!)===

Players will see small-scale demonic events, as in previous games, but the developers have promised that the scale of some aspects of the game, such as the siege on [[Bastion's Keep]], will be amazingly large; far bigger than anything ever previously seen in the series. Additional information on the story line and specific details can be seen within the [[Black Soulstone Cinematic]]found here:http://www.diablowiki.net/Category:Lore

Unlike the blank cyphers that all characters were in previous games in the series, the individual characters in Diablo III will have personalities. The Wizard is young, brash, and headstrong. The Monk is powerful and quietly confident. The Barbarian is strong and stoic. The Demon Hunter is angry and reckless in her (or his) need for vengeance. And the Witch Doctor is spiritual, mysterious, and misunderstood by the populace at large.

The characters will behave accordingly, and inspire different replies and behavior from the NPCs. The [[Followers]] such as the [[Templar]] and [[Enchantress]] each have a distinct personality with a fleshed-out background and will not only banter to the player character, but also to other NPCs (and even to each other within the camp or town). The same holds true for other NPCs, such as [[Leah]], who may on occasion follow the player into the fray during a quest.

[[Quests]] There are a lot more quests in Diablo III are largely similar in form to those of 3 than Diablo II2, at least 10 each act. The changes They are all manditory to greatly increase progress though the number of quests, and to vary them in type and stylegame, and to create a sense although that they were being "played" and not "told about". Numerous smaller [[events]] and adventures are spotted throughout the game, many of them randomly-generated each game, is subject to add color and change up the gameplay. Most large areas of the game, surface and dungeon, will also vary in content and form between games. Though the surface areas are non-random in their overall shape, there are randomized elements within them, which can yield mini-quests, bonus dungeons, or just open space and random monsters, depending on how the spawn works in a given game, which are called either [[adventuresReaper of Souls|expansion]] or [[events]], depending upon their magnitude.

The main focus of Diablo III is co-op [[PvE]] style play. Up to four players (yes, just four) will can join up in a game and play together, and players in the same game are now always friendly and in the same party. There is no non-consensual PvP in Diablo IIIPlayers can, and no way to "go hostile" in a PvE game. (All PvP takes place in the Arenahowever, a feature that will not be ready for use upon Diablo 3's launchdo some [[Brawling]].)

Game creation and group formation will be easier in Diablo III than in the past: it is mostly automated. Diablo III, being on "battle.net 2", is using a match-making system very similar to that which is seen in ladder play in [[StarCraft II]] or the dungeon finder in [[World of WarCraft]]. A player can choose a few options for their game, including whether or not they want it to be private, and , which quest they would like to start on (if they don't wish to simply resume the quest they were last playing), and a tag (Monster Slaying, Key Warden or Brawling). Players can instantly join games in which people on their [[Friends List]] are playing.

Diablo III will take takes place over Battle.net. There is no offline mode: the game is online only. Diablo III is following in Starcraft's footsteps and will does <u>not include LAN support</u>. Though Blizzard always claims that this is a benefit, enabling greater player connectedness, most players regard it as an annoyance implemented as a security feature, since all Diablo III play requires players to possess a Battle.net account and valid cd-key.

* '''[[Chest]]s''' will no longer be not ever spawn in a lockedversion.

** There are no player corpses either, in the sense of lootable objects as they were in Diablo II. Like monsters, dead players are subject to the game's physics and can be blasted aside or out of sight by spells, and will vanish after a few minutes.  ==Release Information== This is a collection of all information available pertaining to the release of Diablo. Including [[release date]], [[system requirements]], [[Beta Test|beta testing]], price/payment methods and age [[rating]].  === Release Date === Diablo III will be released on May 15, 2012. This date was revealed on March 15, 2012, after several delays that pushed the initial release window back from the "second half of 2011" and then "early 2012."  * See the [[release date]] article for full detailsseconds.

The [[Diablo 3 beta]] test began in early September, 2011, and continued through the end of the year and into 2012. The frequency of patches and number of beta testers increased dramatically in early 2012, as the game neared completion and balancing changes grew more frequent. The beta test is expected to continue until a week or two before the release on May 15, 2012.

Naturally, [[Blizzard Entertainment]] are the guys making working Diablo III, but that isn't a surprise. The important people for this production is the relatively new Blizzard employee Diablo III Lead Designer Game Director [[Jay WilsonJosh Mosqueira]], besides the regular team. For fans, you might want to keep a look out for [[BashiokJay Wilson]], the new Diablo Community Manager and [[Leonard Boyarsky]] who is used to be the Lead World Designer for Diablo IIIand Game Director, and head of [[quest]]s & [[lore]] as well as designing the world of [[Sanctuary]].* See the [[D3 Team]] article for info on dozens of Diablo III's developersbut quit. 

[[Mike Morhaime]] said they would like to make '''Diablo III expansions annually'''[http://www.diii.net/blog/comments/diablo-3-will-have-several-expansions], and confirming plans for multiple expansions for the game. So far, [[Reaper of Souls]] has been announced.

==Further InformationReferences== You can follow the links to each specific section for further details on Diablo III development and information. You can also use one of the following links for further information:* {{wl|[http://www.diii.net/news Diablo III news]}} - The most coherent news listing for Diablo III.* [[Media Coverage]] - All Interviews, Previews, Pictures, Videos and Articles from around the web.* [[:Category:Basics|Diablo III Basics]] - A listing of articles with good information if you are new to Diablo III.* [[Diablo III FAQ]] - Frequently Asked Questions* [[Diablo 3 History]] - The history of Diablo III up until the announcement.

 ==References==(more references needed}