Diablo 4 PTR patch notes are here as Blizzard lifts the lid on its Season 15 update, and the developer is giving mythic rarity yet another shakeup in a move that will make the rarest items in the game vastly easier to get – albeit in a slightly nerfed form. The 3.2.0 PTR introduces a new set of socketables called ‘Soul Splinters,’ a first taste of ‘challenge dungeons,’ and random ambushes in the overworld. Alongside that comes promised crafting redesigns, more mythic uniques, and the return of Diablo 3’s rebirth feature to bring old characters into the latest seasonal reset. However, it seems Blizzard is keeping some secrets up its sleeve for now.
There’s a whole lot of new stuff to dig into in the Diablo 4 Season 15 PTR, but I want to start with the changes to the RPG’s highest loot rarity tier. “We’ve heard your feedback, and we’re making further improvements to mythic uniques and iconic mythics,” Blizzard explains. It states that it’s looking to “make the system simpler, offer more crafting choices, and give you far more control over that one major piece you’ll need to carry your build into the highest levels.”
The most striking change is that iconic mythics will now have unique versions that will be much easier to find earlier on. This elite, ultra-rare set of items such as the Harlequin’s Crest and Melted Heart of Selig, which made up the original mythic rarity before it was expanded to include high-power versions of every unique in the game, have basically been defined by how hard they were to get, making them the ultimate ‘chase items.’ Now everyone should be able to snag a few with much less effort, albeit in presumably powered-down forms.
Mythic crafting has been overhauled too. The ‘upgrade to mythic’ option in the Horadric Cube will now directly convert the item you input into a matching mythic version, complete with its affixes and crafted modifications; “The random factors are gone.” The big restriction worth noting is that you can’t use this feature to upgrade an item that’s unmodifiable, so don’t go transfiguring something if you’re planning to bump it up to the purple tier later.
There’s one other caveat. Items you upgrade using this direct method will bear a ‘crafted’ tag, and you can only wear one gear piece with that marker. Meanwhile, the Jeweler’s Rune Crafting recipe lets you combine Resplendent Sparks and Runes into a random, class-specific mythic unique for the slot of your choice. These will not be marked with the crafted tag, and Blizzard promises “plenty of created options” that won’t have the restriction either, such as those from the Blacksmith’s Mythic Cache pool, “so there are still many options for multiple mythics.”
Nine ‘legacy uniques’ are making their debut in D4 that come from Diablo, D2, and D3. Sixteen new unique Charms are being introduced “based on current uniques that have not been represented up until now.” This will include variants for eight of the legacy uniques. Charms can now roll at mythic rarity, granting them max-rolls on their stats with a “significantly buffed” unique modifier. You’ll have to rely on your luck for these, though: “There is no crafting method for mythic unique charms, and like regular unique charms, there isn’t a specific method for target farming.” They will be available to test in the PTR, however.
Another frequent request that Blizzard has finally fulfilled is the introduction of Rebirth. This lets you convert an old eternal-realm character into a seasonal one, essentially letting you restart with your favorites, keeping their name, appearance, and cosmetic loadout. Choosing to do this will reset them to level one for the seasonal restart, and you’ll need to either stash or destroy all items they were carrying on the eternal realm before confirming the rebirth.
As for the new content being tested in the 3.2.0 PTR, the big feature is Soul Splinters. These are “unique socketables which provide power with a bite,” feeling much like our latest twist on Diablo 3’s legendary gems. They come in eight different varieties across the five rarities except for mythic, provide stats and resistances along with their signature effect, and can be upgraded via the Horadric Cube.
Challenge dungeons are a new mechanic that will cause portals to open randomly in the overworld. Jump into them during the PTR and you’ll face a random boss, with the option to crank the difficulty up to three torment tiers higher than your current rank. Again, this feels a little reminiscent of D3’s Visions of Enmity, but Blizzard teases that “the encounters you experience here are built specifically to test the underlying system, and the final Season 15 experience will feature different content.”
The last new feature for now is ‘overland ambush,’ which causes you to be randomly hunted by a demon while out in the overworld. “You’ll be warned you’re about to become prey and have 30 seconds to flee or fight,” Blizzard explains. It suggests that these are designed to make you cautious: “This encounter will test the mettle of Sanctuary’s strongest warriors. This is a difficult encounter.”
Alongside all of this comes plenty of class balance changes, which you can dig through down at the bottom of the extended patch notes. If the reveals feel a little light, it sounds like that’s by design: “We have more to share at Blizzcon,” Blizzard reveals, “and we didn’t want all that’s coming with Season 15 to be available before we get a chance to talk more about it.” Hopefully that means we’ve got some exciting additions to look forward to, because despite its rarity shakeup, Season 14 has felt a lot like business as usual, and I don’t think a third consecutive season of that will enthrall many people.
The Diablo 4 3.2.0 PTR will run from Tuesday August 4 at 10am PT / 1pm ET / 6pm BST / 7pm CEST until Tuesday August 11 at 10am PT / 1pm ET / 6pm BST / 7pm CEST. Access is typically limited to players on the Battlenet launcher, so keep that in mind, and you’ll need to manually switch over to the PTR build to take part.