Gamescom brought a wealth of new information about Vessel of Hatred and here are the key highlights from some of the interviews!
Disclaimer
The following recap was created based on Immundus‘ Reddit post.
Mercenaries
- Solo Play: Players can have an active mercenary providing perks, like cooldown reduction
- and customizable Reinforcement offering passive support.
- Group Play: Each player can use their Reinforcement setting, crucial for team synergy during challenging activities like the Dark Citadel group dungeon (raid).
- Mercenaries are free to hire, additional mercenaries will become available through quests in Vessel of Hatred.
- Mercenaries have skill trees, but cannot equip gear.
- Their power scales through Rapport levels.
- Mercenaries were adjusted to avoid overshadowing players.
- VoH will have 4 Mercenaries at launch, with more coming in the future.
Difficulty and Progression Overhaul
- A new difficulty system aims to smooth the experience for new players while offering increased challenge for veterans.
- Torment 1 Unlock: Requires clearing levels 15-20 of the Pit, with a reworked level progression system that feels like a fresh experience.
- Nightmare Dungeons, Helltides, and Tree of Whiuspers will be available from the start of the campaign.
- They are redesigning the Paragon system focusing on adding depth to player choices without unnecessary complexity, moving away from the infinite progression.
The Dark Citadel and Kurast Undercity
- Dark Citadel will be available on Torment 1 or higher, this 3-wing dungeon offers scalable rewards, with progress saved after each wing.
- Dark Citadel will have no raid lockout.
- Kurast Undercity is a timed dungeon that unlocks at levels 15-20, where defeating elites extends the clock.
Cosmetics
- Players can earn unique cosmetic rewards outside of the shop, including 13 new cat mount skins.
Group Finder
- A tag-based system that allows players to find like-minded companions without matchmaking is coming in the Vessel of Hatred expansion.
Future Content
- Expect details on itemization, level progression, difficulty, and more on August 29.
- Season 6 promises significant changes with new character slots and an extra stash tab.
- Community feedback continues to shape development with features like armory/loadouts in the works.
- Players will be able to set a teleport location instead of always returning to the nearest city.