Blizzard remains tight-lipped about the forthcoming class in Diablo 4’s upcoming expansion, Vessel of Hatred, set to launch in the latter part of next year. Despite their silence, a recent leak from the game’s datamined text provides intriguing insights into what this new class might entail.
Officially, Vessel of Hatred is poised to extend Diablo 4’s narrative, immersing players in the demon-chasing adventures within Nahantu—a region previously known as Torajan in Diablo 2. Here, players will encounter the enigmatic new class, a creation that, according to Blizzard, has never graced the series before.
Contrary to expectations, the new class won’t be a Witch Doctor or a Paladin, as revealed by Diablo 4 Associate Game Director Brent Gibson during an interview with GamesRadar at BlizzCon. The development team aims to introduce a class that offers a fresh experience, unexplored in previous Diablo games.
Enter the Spiritborn—a revelation stemming from an unintentional mistake made by Blizzard in early October. An internal testing version of the game was briefly accessible to former beta testers, who discovered references to the Spiritborn class and its abilities. Despite the accidental exposure, Blizzard has yet to acknowledge the slip-up.
Before BlizzCon, an MMO-Champion forum user leaked details from the same text dump, aligning closely with Blizzard’s official descriptions of Vessel of Hatred’s jungle setting. This coincidence strongly suggests that the leaked build was an early version of the expansion. Notably, Wowhead observed a renaming of an item, the Ivory Horn of Torajan, to the Ivory Horn of Nahantu in the live version of Diablo 4.
While the leaked build doesn’t provide a comprehensive overview of the Spiritborn class, certain details can be inferred from the available text:
- Spiritborn will wield glaives as weapons.
- Employing a dual resource system, the class will eschew mana or fury for skill casting.
- The Spiritborn’s unique mechanic will likely involve “deities.”
- Skill names hint at the presence of pets or minions.
Based on this information, speculation suggests that the Spiritborn might manifest as a magical ranged class, utilizing attacks drawn from the earth and capable of summoning diverse minions from the jungles, such as spiders and bats. While similarities to the Witch Doctor from Diablo 3 are evident, players anticipate and hope for a departure from the challenges associated with revisiting that specific fantasy.
Blizzard maintains its resolve not to disclose further details about the new Diablo 4 class until the summer, but the leaked information provides enthusiasts with a sneak peek into what awaits them.
