With “Vessel of Hatred,” the first expansion for Diablo 4 will be released at the end of 2024. Details are expected to be announced in the summer – a sequence of numbers now suggests a completed beta.
What is “Vessel of Hatred”? Vessel of Hatred is the first expansion of Diablo 4, scheduled for release at the end of 2024. The expansion will introduce a new class, which has not been seen in Diablo before. Production Director Tiffany Wat has revealed some hints about the new class to MeinMMO editor Benedict Grothaus in an interview.
According to wowhead, the version of Vessel of Hatred has been changed on the server that Blizzard uses for internal testing. This could indicate an upcoming beta.
Here you can see a trailer for the first expansion for Diablo 4:
Changed version suggests beta
What is known about the beta? So far, it is only known that the version of the expansion has changed on the CDN (content distribution network) for internal testing from 2.0.0alpha.49443 to 2.0.103.52888. According to wowhead, this could indicate that the alpha version of Vessel of Hatred has transitioned into beta.
However, we have no information yet on when Blizzard will release the expansion from the internal testing phase for the Diablo 4 community.
Speculations about the new class and possible companions
Are there further speculations and leaks? A few months ago, there was a major data mine that garnered a lot of attention in the community. Diablo expert Rob2628 revisited the list and sorted out which pieces of information could be particularly interesting.
The new class might be the “Spiritborn,” a nature-related class that appears to be a glaive-wielding figure with wings who fights one-handed, using shields and other one-handed weapons. Rob2628 also suspects that new companions, called “Mercenaries,” will be introduced into the game.
It is already certain that the expansion will have the jungles around the city of Kurast as its theme.
When is “Vessel of Hatred” coming? According to Blizzard, the first expansion for Diablo 4 is set to be released at the end of 2024. An announcement regarding the expansion is expected to come this summer. It remains to be seen how the delayed Season 4 will impact Blizzard’s planning.
Season 4 is all about the Iron Wolves – and they come from Kurast. Kurast will also be the focal point of the first expansion, Vessel of Hatred. How this will unfold, we will likely learn in the summer. You can read more about the setting of the expansion here: Vessel of Hatred is said to be a “step forward” – here’s how it will continue
