Diablo 4's Vessel of Hatred expansion has a lot of strange selling points: it's a continuance of the main story surrounding Mephisto and Neyrelle, it takes players to the historied jungles of Nahantu, it adds a brand new class in the Spiritborn, and it expands the game with a plethora of new items, expanding mechanics, and more. Of course, a lot of eyes are on the Spiritborn because it is the first brand-new mainline Diablo class in a long time (discounting the Tempest in Diablo Immortal).
The Best War Games recently visited the Blizzard Entertainment campus in Irvine, California to check out Diablo 4's Spiritborn class. While we were in Nahantu and completed a few dungeons there, we didn't experience any of the story or enough of the new area to weigh in heavily there. The Spiritborn was our main focus, as we checked out builds with each Spirit Guardian. Lore-wise, Spiritborns are made from a coming-of-age ritual in the Jungle, where only the strong and capable survive the process. The ritual's purpose is to open their "sight" and connect them with the Spirit Realm, shedding their past bodily existences for the belief that they will be reborn, one day, as one of these Spirit Guardians. This translates into a class where each Spirit Guardian is informed by a certain martial art, making the class feel a little like a Monk, but with the added strength of calling on the spirits.
What's clear is how adaptable this class truly is. Whether we used the Jaguar, Gorilla, Centipede, or Eagle as our primary Spirit Guardian, each playstyle stood out from the next. Using the class's Spirit Hall feature allows players to set one Guardian as their primary, which among other effects applies that Guardian's tag to all skills in the Diablo 4 Skill Tree. Then, later on, players will be able to select a second animal for their Spirit Hall for new effects. It's an interesting class structure, and while we were locked at level 30 for the preview, the sheer possibilities were salivating.
Diablo 4's Spiritborn Class: Adaptability is Survival
As a Spiritborn, players are able to call upon four Spirit Guardians to customize their class:
- Jaguar. Uses aggressive/fire attacks repeatedly and ramps up in lethality. Incarnate skill is Ferocity, which is a stacking buff that increases attack speed and provides other benefits like cooldown reduction.
- Gorilla. Excels in defense/physical skills, shrugging off incoming damage and mainly focuses on damage reduction and block. Incarnate skill is Resolve, which can be stockpiled and provide additional damage mitigation.
- Centipede. Focuses on poisons/debuffs, by draining the strength from foes with poisoning damage over time and disruptive crowd controls.
- Eagle. Delivers mobile/lightning-focused impacts against priority targets while speeding around the battlefield. The mechanical focus is movement speed and amplifying evade.
Other features coming with Diablo 4's Spiritborn class include the following:
- Glaives, polearms, and quarterstaffs are the preferred weapons of Spiritborn, allowing them to have an acrobatic playstyle.
- Spirit Hall gives you the freedom to further customize your build with Spirit-based bonuses. Your first choice will grant you a powerful thematic mechanic, while your second choice grants an additional secondary bonus.
- Incarnate Skills are a brand-new skill type coming to Diablo 4 that allows the Spiritborn to take on the traits of the spirits. While the skill is equipped, you will receive a passive effect befitting the spirit’s nature.
- New Legendaries and Uniques associated with the Spiritborn are also coming.
Diablo 4's Spiritborn Impressions: Build Crafters Are Going to Have a Field Day
Our personal favorite of the Diablo 4 Spirit Guardians was the Gorilla. While we faced hordes of new enemies and delved deep into dungeons, we were never faced with the threat of death. The Gorilla Spiritborn is a powerful tank and it fulfills that power fantasy perfectly. Meanwhile, it was the exact opposite with the Jaguar. We were killing enemies faster, but we were also dying faster (such is the nature of the game, after all). We relied more heavily on potions, but the combination of speed and damage felt well-developed. An Eagle Spiritborn is much more mobile than the others, utilizing skills in conjunction with evades, jumping around the battlefield to deal damage, and hitting multiple enemies at once. The Eagle Spiritborn seemed to operate on the notion that it can't be touched if it doesn't stand still, while the Centipede Spiritborn featured more traditional Diablo 4-style crowd control, AoE abilities, and slow-death features. We played each build focused on one Spirit Guardian and had a lot of fun with it, but what's clear is how adaptable it is with the ability to mix and match these abilities.
While players can only have one primary Spirit Guardian, they can mix and match abilities and amplify their builds with their second Spirit Hall. This is where build crafting in Diablo 4 is going to come in full force. We decided to use a mix of Jaguar and Gorilla abilities, and while it worked and seemed viable, it was definitely clunkier than a full Jaguar or full Gorilla build. Some key changes could have made it work, however, especially with Uniques, Legendaries, and more time to construct a build. Another example is combining the Eagle's movement abilities with the Gorilla's thorns through key builds. This adaptability is at the heart of the Spiritborn, and it's clear there's a lot of game-breaking potential in it (in a good way).
The Spiritborn's animations also deserve a good shout. Not only does every move look impressive, but the small details really stand out. When playing as the Centipede Spiritborn, for example, we noticed the form of the centipede following us around at one point, and it really helped deliver on that power fantasy. Another strong element of that is when we called the Spirit Guardian to the field; each acts completely differently. The Gorilla drops down and begins beating the ground around the player, the Jaguar leads to enemies and performs a circular attack, the Eagle flies down on enemies and strikes them with lightning, and the Centipede attacks anything that comes close to it, blocking choke points if used correctly.
What's more, each Diablo 4 Spiritborn ability and fantasy is distinct enough that it'll clearly have a lot of possible builds. Not only are there ways to adjust a solo Spirit Guardian build, but then the various combinations add and complement each other in different ways. It seems like a safe bet that the Spiritborn class will be a build crafter's dream.
Every time a game introduces a new class, there are always a lot of folks who want to try it out (although whether that class is strong enough to pull someone away from their main is always up in the air). Anyone who delves into Diablo 4's Spiritborn is going to find a strong contender for their new main, that much seems like a given, and it'll be interesting to see how it operates at high levels and cements its own identity among Diablo 4's other classes.
Diablo 4
- Released
- June 5, 2023
WHERE TO PLAY
Diablo® IV is the ultimate action-RPG experience with endless evil to slaughter, countless abilities to master, nightmarish dungeons, and legendary loot.
Embark on the epic campaign solo or with friends, meeting memorable characters through a gripping story in a beautifully dark world, or explore an expansive end game: battle iconic bosses for powerful loot, fight back the encroaching onslaught of Hell in Helltides, master the Forge to create your ultimate weapons and progress powerful characters, with cross-play and cross-progression on all available platforms.
Discover the critically acclaimed franchise that defined the Action RPG genre. As the battle between the High Heavens and Burning Hells rages on, hatred devours Sanctuary as evil spreads and a new wave of cultists and worshippers arise to embrace Lilith’s coming. Only a brave few dare to face this threat and bring light to the all-consuming darkness.
Expansive Open WorldForge your own path through the corrupted lands of Sanctuary, an ever-growing, fully explorable world teeming with challenges, quests, enemies, and loot. Join your fellow adventurers, rescue and retake besieged towns, delve into nightmarish dungeons and uncover lost secrets as you fight back evil. The many zones of Sanctuary are yours to explore, and with rotating areas of extreme peril like World Bosses and Helltide, danger lurks at every turn.
Immersive Character DevelopmentCreate and customize your character to face the encroaching darkness. Choose from one of five classes and build your hero with skills, abilities and cosmetics, creating a champion that is uniquely your own. Grow stronger as you progress through powerful Skill Trees and develop even more unique end game specializations with Paragon Boards.
Legendary Gear, Epic BattlesDiscover and experiment with a vast arsenal of powerful weapons, armor and more to fight back against the demons threatening Sanctuary. Explore unique combinations, create your own upgrades and collect a plethora of powerful tools to battle in immersive, action-packed combat against the deadliest of enemies.
Seasons & EventsThe tales of Sanctuary continue to unfold. Create Seasonal Characters and join in fresh adventures - master new mechanics and take on the latest threats in each new Season. Complete harrowing feats of the Season Journey and earn new Battle Pass rewards. Plus, sharpen your swords and get in the spirit of the seasons when Limited-Time Events sweep through Sanctuary.
End Game UndertakingsThere’s even more Diablo® IV to explore as you reach higher levels and more fearsome World Tiers. Face the greatest challenge yet as you take on the most powerful demons in The Pit, steel yourself against Uber Bosses to reap uber unique rewards, fight back overflowing armies of Hell as Helltides emerge across Sanctuary, battle larger-than-life World Bosses, and master the Forge to create the mightiest weapons fit for a hero.
- Developer(s)
- Blizzard
- Publisher(s)
- Blizzard
- Franchise
- Diablo
- Platform(s)
- PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Xbox One, PC
- Genre(s)
- Action RPG, Hack and Slash
