At gamescom 2024, Blizzard announced additional features for Vessel of Hatred, the first expansion to Diablo 4. And with it comes a feature that fans of group activities in particular have been asking for.
In a press release, Blizzard announced new features for Vessel of Hatred. The expansion will launch on October 8, 2024 and will bring new content for the endgame in Diablo 4, but also changes to the base game. There will also be a new area and a new class – the Spiritborn to Sanctuary.
What endgame content feature is coming to Diablo 4? Fans of group activities will probably be particularly pleased about the new group search feature. In various Blizzard live streams and on social media, people have been asking for new group features since the release of Diablo 4.
In a post on Reddit about the new co-op activity “Dark Citadel,” users also wrote: Diablo 4 needs a kind of group search. And according to the press release, Vessel of Hatred is apparently introducing a feature that allows you to both search for and create a party.
The new mercenaries coming to Diablo 4 with Vessel of Hatred were presented in a trailer at gamescom 2024:
Diablo 4: Vessel of Hatred shows mercenaries in gameplay trailer
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Group search for endgame activities
What is the feature for? According to Blizzard, the group search gives you the opportunity to create a party and find a suitable party for you. An image from the press release also shows various activities based on their symbols, which include the group search:
In the YouTube livestream on August 21, 2024, the developers note that the feature will be permanently included in Diablo 4. A screenshot also shows that you can also use the group search feature for bosses and for the new endgame co-op activity, the “Dark Citadel.”
You can also refine your search. In the example, you can see that a party uses tags like “Farming,” “Voice Chat Preferred,” and “Competitive.” This way, you can find or create a group that suits your preferences – depending on whether you prefer relaxed farming or competitive grinding.
New co-op activity and mercenaries with their own skill trees
What other features are coming with Vessel of Hatred? At the “Opening Night Live” show at gamescom 2024, Blizzard presented a new trailer showing the mercenaries you can hire in Diablo 4 as soon as the expansion launches. A press release announced further details about the features coming to Diablo 4 in October.
Each of the four mercenaries is unique and has their own skill tree. You can customize your companions to take on a support or combat-oriented role – or both. The mercenaries collect “rapport” when they accompany you. Rapport allows you to trade with the mercenaries and receive powerful loot.
There will be a new co-op activity called the Dark Citadel. There, you’ll solve cooperative puzzles and fight bosses and other dungeon enemies in groups of two to four players. You can also earn weekly rewards consisting of cosmetics and loot.
In addition, the “Undercity of Kurast” is a new “time attack dungeon” with several phases and new bosses in which you can level up and loot. You can influence the type and quality of the loot with special keys, the “spirit tributes”.
On top of that, your player characters’ progression system will be updated, which also represents a permanent change to the base game.
With Vessel of Hatred, the first new class comes into play – the Spiritborn. In a major event in July 2024, Blizzard invited various Diablo 4 experts from all over the world to their homes. MeinMMO editor Benedict Grothaus was also able to test the spiritborn from Vessel of Hatred for the first time before the official reveal. You can read more about it here: Diablo 4: I was at Blizzard and played the new class from Vessel of Hatred – This is what the Spiritborn can do