New content, new mechanics, new systems — get prepared for all new action in Diablo IV with our handy overview. Plus, a list of all Governing and Tuning Stones!
Another Season dawns on Diablo IV, and with it, we're ready to get back into the fray of slaying thousands of demons and breaking pinatas filled with legendary loot. Let's go over what we can expect in the Season of the Construct in Diablo IV.
Diablo IV Season 3 Start Date
The official start date of the Season 3 is January 23rd, 10 AM Pacific Time. That's Tuesday morning, US morning time, so it will be evening in Europe and just about midnight in Asian regions. This seems to be a change from the previous Friday starts, but it follows the typical reset-Tuesday from Blizzard.
New feature: Seneschal Companion pet
In this season, you'll be able to recruit a personal combat pet and customize it with various runes. As magical constructs are the theme of this season, your robo-arcane friend will offer support for your character in a variety of ways. You can acquire it by doing the new seasonal questline, so simply follow the objectives (marked with that green leaf denoting a seasonal activity).
The pet scales with your player stats, however, you can also customize it with Governing and Tuning Stones. You can find those by completing Vaults (new dungeons), or crafting Caches that have random rewards. When you get identical ones, you can funnel them to increase the level of the skills attached to them.
Scroll to the bottom of the article for a list of all the effects.
Season World Event: Arcane Tremors
During these, you can earn upgrades for your Companion. You'll be doing various objectives, like disarming traps, earning Shattered Stones (upgrades for your Governing and Tuning Stones) and Pearls of Warding (those create Vault Sigils or Vault rewards).,
These most likely will be open world events similar to the Blood Harvests in Season of Blood.
Additional Diablo IV Season 3 Features
There's a host of improvements coming in this season to Diablo IV:
- Leaderboards, which include Hall of the Ancients who will be the top players from every Season
- Weekly Challenge Dungeon, The Gauntlet
- New Boss Battle: Malphas
- New Battle Pass and Season Journey, which includes a few more new Seasonal Blessings
- Various gameplay improvements, which include: additional Unique items and Legendary Aspects, class balancing, persisting Helltides, WSAD movement on PC, better Skill Respeccing, additional Stash Tab, improved Gold Trading UI, and higher item scaling in World Tier 4.
Governing and Turing Stone List in Diablo IV
Governing Stones:
- Autodefense: The Seneschal Construct activates an antimaterial field around itself shooting down enemy projectiles. Can not shoot down Boss or Player projectiles.
- Bushwhack: Quickly ambush dealing damage to each target. May strike the same target multiple times.
- Firefly: Deploy a small construct that lands on the target and explodes 3 times, dealing damage.
- Focus Fire: The Seneschal Construct channels a ray of fire onto targets dealing damage to each over time.
- Gyrate: The Seneschal Construct whirls its legs around quickly dealing damage to all surrounding enemies.
- Impale: Perform a line attack to all enemies in front of the Seneschal Construct dealing damage.
- Lightning Bolt: Launch a bolt of Lightning at the target dealing damage. Arcs to other targets dealing a portion of the original damage.
- Protect: The Seneschal Construct materializes a protective Barrier on the player for a portion of their Maximum Life.
- Reconstruct: The Seneschal Construct channels a reconstruction beam Healing the player for a portion of their Maximum Life over time.
- Slash: Pummel enemies in front of the Seneschal Construct dealing damage.
- Tempest: Electrically charge an enemy causing it to deal damage to themselves and additional each second over time. If the enemy is killed, Tempest spreads to another enemy gaining for additional time and bonus damage. These bonuses are also applied if Tempest is reapplied onto the same enemy.
Tuning Stone Abilities:
- Voluminous Support: The supported skill's effect size is increased.
- Swift Support: The supported Skill gains an Attack Speed bonus.
- Breaking Support: Damage from the supported Skill instantly destroys enemy Barrier effects. In addition, there is a chance to make enemies Vulnerable for 2 seconds.
- Tactical Support: Decrease the cooldown of the supported Skill.
- Efficiency Support: When the supporting skill deals damage, you gain Critical Strike Chance to the same targets hit.
- Devastation Support: Supported Skill gains a Critical Strike Damage bonus.
- Safeguard Support: When used, the supported Skill grants Damage Reduction to you.
- Frigid Support: A portion of the supported Skill's damage dealt is applied as Cold damage over time and applies Chill.
- Burning Support: A portion of he supported Skill's damage is applied as Burning damage over time. Burning enemies take bonus Critical Strike Damage from the Seneschal Construct.
- Electrocution Support: A portion of the supported skill's damage dealt is applied as Lightning damage over time and has a chance to Stun enemies.
- Bleeding Support: A portion of the supported skill's damage dealt is applied as Bleeding damage over time. Enemies take bonus Bleeding damage from all sources while moving.
- Poison Support: A portion of the supported skill's damage dealt is applied as Poison damage over time. This poison has a chance each second to spread all Poison damage to an additional enemy.
- Dusk Support: A portion of the supported Skill's damage dealt is applied as Shadow damage over time. Afflicted enemies who attack have a chance for their attacks to be interrupted. Does not interrupt Bosses.
- Duration Support: Supported Skills have their durations increased.
- Fortify Support: When the Seneschal Construct uses the supported Skill, you gain Fortify. Skills with slower attack speeds or skills with cooldowns will increase the amount of Fortify granted.
- Resource Support: Player gains an amount of Primary Resource when the supporting Skill first deals damage.
- Initiative Support: The supported Skill will cause the Seneschal Construct to teleport to the target if out of range. Can only occur once every so often seconds.
- Arcing Support: The supported Skill can hit additional enemies.
- Multishot Support: Supported Projectile skills launch additional projectiles.
- Piercing Support: The supported Projectile Skill will pierce multiple enemies.
- Gripping Support: Damage and effects done by the supporting Skill to Distant enemies pulls them towards the Seneschal Construct. Can only occur once every so often per enemy.
- Registered Damage Support: Any damage caused from the supported Skill is registered. The registered damage explodes at effectiveness when the target dies as Fire damage.
- Seeking Support: The supported Projectile Skill will auto-seek enemies for a limited duration.
- Slowing Support: Damage from the supported Skill Slows enemy movement speed for a limited duration. The closer the enemy is to the Seneschal Construct, the greater the Slow amount. Enemies may be slowed up to a maximum amount.
- Mockery Support: Damage done by the supporting Skill Taunts enemies hit for a limited duration of time. This can only occur once every so often per enemy. Does not work on bosses.
The Blizzard blog mentions two additional mysterious Stones, but we do know what they currently do.
Evernight: ??? Genesis: ???
Diablo IV Season 4 Starting Date
It appears that the Diablo IV Season 4 start date is April 26th, 2024, which is the end date of Season 3. Blizzard has shown the end of the Season 3, and as we now, that will be the start of the next Season. Note that day is a Friday, which may be better schedule-wise for many of us.