Diablo 4‘s Vessel of Hatred promises to inject new life into the game when it launches this autumn. Most interesting among the additions coming with this expansion is its new class, a warrior that fights alongside ghostly beasts called a Spiritborn. Now, after waiting for details on exactly how this class will look, play, and fit into Diablo 4’s fiction, Blizzard has provided plenty of new information through today’s Spiritborn reveal stream.
The latest addition to the action RPG game will see Diablo 4 introducing a warrior from the Nahantu region. The Spiritborn reveal stream kicked off with a cinematic that showed the grim process by which children are tested in order to become glaive and quarterstaff wielding, metaphysical Spiritborn warriors. More information was given on the narrative framework for the class as well, including details on their bonds with Spirit Guardian summon creatures, and how they fit into the Diablo universe’s fiction.
We also got a look at how Blizzard approached the Spiritborn’s combat design. In order to communicate the essence of the class, the team referenced martial arts movements, creating a new style of fighting based on various inspirations meant to look fluid and incorporate the influence of the Spirit Guardian animals on the character.
As this might imply, the Spiritborn is a dexterity focused class that incorporates various styles of play, able to close distances quickly and hit hard with an emphasis on speed and aggression. The Spirit Guardians further empower the Spiritborn as they fight, directly or when summoned visibly as ultimate skills. The stream showed off some of these Spirit Guardians, including the jaguar (which focuses on attack speed and kill streaks), the gorilla (tank-like, providing active defence), the eagle (nimble movements, evading, and target prioritization), and the centipede (crowd control through health leeching and damage over time).
Blizzard notes that the class is meant to encourage player experimentation through the Spiritborn’s skill tree and Spirit Hall system, allowing them to lean into one Guardian style or mix them together to create hybrid builds.
Spiritborn will come to Diablo 4 with the launch of its Vessel of Hatred expansion later this year, on October 8.
While you’re waiting to try the Spiritborn class for yourself, check out our guides to the best Diablo 4 builds and best Diablo 4 classes.
You can also follow us on Google News for daily PC games news, reviews, and guides, or grab our PCGN deals tracker to net yourself some bargains.