Do you remember the feeling of first entering Nahantu in Diablo 4 over a year ago? This mysterious jungle region and Spiritborn residing there brought you the exciting and engaging Vessel of Hatred expansion experience.
Originally, the development team planned to release one DLC per year, but to ensure the quality of the expansion, the release date of the second expansion was postponed to 2026.
After nearly a year of waiting and anticipation, Diablo 4 finally released information about its second DLC, Lord of Hatred, at TGA at the end of 2025! So what content will this expansion include and when will it be released? We will introduce it to you.
Lord Of Hatred Release Date
Currently, the expansion is tentatively scheduled for release on April 28, 2026. However, considering Diablo 4's frequent changes to season release dates, this date may also change - perhaps to further refine the game or avoid conflicts with other game updates, who knows?
New Class: Paladin And An Unknown Class
Paladin previously appeared in Diablo 2, and a similar class, Crusader, was in Diablo 3. As the seventh Diablo 4 class, Paladin is still the familiar melee type, with the following main characteristics:
- Resource: Faith
- Damage Types: Holy, Fire, Physical
- Class-specific Mechanic: Oaths (4 types of power)
- Available Weapon Types: Swords, Maces, Axes, Flails, Shields
In addition, Diablo 4 has added a large number of Paladin-specific unique items and legendary items, although currently there are no dedicated drop channels for them. Existing class-agnostic gear is still applicable to Paladin.
As for the other new class, the developers have not yet released any relevant information; the only thing visible is a black silhouette, leading the player community to speculate that it might be a Witch or Warlock - hopefully not another melee class!
New Region: Skovos
After Vessel of Hatred introduced Nahantu as a new region, Lord of Hatred will bring Skovos, which will be the setting for the new story and is also closely related to the new class.
Unlike the purely jungle landscape of Nahantu, Skovos is a region with diverse terrain and landscapes. You can find volcanoes, oceans, forests, and temples and towns related to human activity.
The new dungeons and bosses expected to be added in the expansion will also appear in Skovos, where you can earn Diablo 4 gold or other items to help improve your character through combat.
New Campaign: Main Story Update
Diablo 4's main story unfolds based on the demon factions Lilith and Mephisto, and the angelic faction Inarius, later introducing more human characters, such as the young girl Neyrelle.
In Vessel of Hatred, you and others rescued Neyrelle, who was almost corrupted by Mephisto, but Mephisto escaped in the final battle and possessed Akarat's body to continue his schemes, all of which are expected to culminate in Lord of Hatred.
While we know that good usually triumphs over evil in most stories, whether this battle for humanity to defend Sanctuary ends here or continues into a third DLC or even Diablo 5 remains unknown.
Endgame And Gameplay Experience Optimization
In addition to the new additions, this expansion will also optimize the endgame and gameplay experience through overall mechanics.
War Plans
This new endgame feature allows you to customize your personal progression path through your favorite Diablo 4 events and add modifiers to increase the difficulty of events for more rewards.
Echoing Hatred
In this endgame event, you will encounter endless waves of increasingly dangerous demons, and only by surviving to the end can you unlock the ultimate rewards. You can also use this opportunity to test the builds you want to try.
Skill Tree Rework
Currently, all Diablo 4 classes except Paladin only have two upgrade paths, limiting the gameplay experience. The new DLC will open up more skill upgrade options, allowing players of any class to have a brand new experience.
Other New Features
Horadric Cube, which appeared in Diablo 2, will return in this expansion, introducing new ways to craft items. There will also be a new casual fishing activity and a loot filtering system to improve quality of life.
Pre-Order To Unlock More Content!
Although you still have to wait nearly half a year for Lord of Hatred, if you pre-order it, you can play one of the new classes, Paladin, in Season 11 now! And it will also unlock the first DLC simultaneously, if you don't already have it.
The entire Lord of Hatred expansion and Paladin class are included with the pre-order of Standard Edition. If you pre-order a higher edition, you'll receive additional rewards.
Deluxe Edition:
- All Standard Edition content
- Mini Chimera Pet Skorch
- Skartaran Basilisk Mount Bundle
- High Heavens Guard Cosmetic Bundle
- Premium Battle Pass Bundle
Ultimate Edition:
- All Standard + Deluxe Edition content
- Umbral Knights Armor Bundle (6 class sets)
- 3,000 Platinum
- Steed of the Shining Realm Bundle
- Tymn, Echo of the Spire Back Trophy
- Ascent of the Just Town Portal Skin
If you want to get ahead of other Diablo 4 players next year, pre-order now! At least based on the performance of Vessel of Hatred, Lord of Hatred shouldn't disappoint you!
