Diablo 4 Season 1 Season of the Malignant: What Changes To Expect

Discover the changes coming to Diablo IV Season 1, including new Malignant Monsters, Hearts, Malignant Tunnels, QOL updates, and the Battle Pass details.

The Season of the Malignant introduces new challenges to Diablo IV's overworld with the arrival of Malignant Monsters. A new questline featuring Cormond allows players to defeat these enemies and collect their Malignant Hearts. These hearts act as seasonal affixes, introducing a new transmute feature. Players can use the Cage of Binding, a new season item, to turn corrupted creatures fully corrupted, and upon defeating them, obtain Malignant Hearts. These hearts function like gems, socketed into special gear, offering a variety of buffs with 32 different types available. Farming these items will occur in Malignant Tunnels, a type of dungeon populated by Malignant threats and culminating in a boss fight against Varshan the Consumed.

Quality of Life (QOL) changes are also being implemented, with some already live and others arriving at the start of Season 1. These include increasing the Veiled Crystals item cap to 9999, making it easier to store resources for item upgrades. Renown farming is being streamlined, allowing discovered map areas and Altars of Lilith Map Markers to be visible and unlocked for all future seasonal characters, granting them renown rewards automatically. Seasonal characters will also have the option to skip the campaign if it has been completed by another character. Additionally, 7 new Legendary Aspects and 6 new Unique Items are being added to the game.

The Season of the Malignant Battle Pass commences on July 20, at 10 AM PT (1 PM ET, 6 PM BST, 7 PM CEST), featuring 90 Tiers: 27 Free Tiers and 63 Premium Tiers. The premium tiers offer cosmetic rewards such as mounts and class sets. As players progress through the battle pass, free tiers will grant Smoldering Ashes, which unlock account-wide Seasonal Blessings that provide buffs to XP, elixir duration, and more.

While a specific release time for Diablo 4 Season 1 is not explicitly stated, it is expected to go live around the Battle Pass launch on July 20, 10 a.m. PDT.