The Diablo 4 Abattoir of Zir wants to see your best builds, pushing them to their limits with even more powerful rewards for those players capable of overcoming the challenges within. Revealed at Blizzcon 2023 alongside the first Diablo IV expansion Vessel of Hatred, we get an extensive look at what to expect from this new D4 endgame challenge coming in early December courtesy of a special campfire chat with the dev team.
We won’t get to play the Diablo 4 Vessel of Hatred DLC until late 2024, but there’s still a whole lot of new content coming to the current season of Diablo 4. While the base campaign offering has been one of the best RPG games of 2023, there’s been a lot of calls for more endgame content to keep the game feeling fresh and interesting for the long-term.
Diablo 4 Season 2 is currently underway, and has made some big steps in that direction with the inclusion of five new endgame bosses that can be farmed to get your hands on some of the best gear, including those elusive Diablo 4 unique items and even the previously unheard-of ‘uber uniques.’
The Diablo 4 Abattoir of Zir is Blizzard’s next offering in that department. “Itemization and endgame are the two things we’re laser-focused on right now,” game director Joe Shely says during the live campfire chat on stage at Blizzcon. “We want to add some more endgame, and then some more, and then some more.”
This includes “permanent and evergreen endgame challenges,” he explains, which will extend your gameplay options both during the grind from level 50 to 100 through the higher Diablo 4 world tiers, and also when you hit level 100. The first of these is the Abattoir of Zir, which won’t unlock until you complete the season journey.
At this point, you’ll gain access to the first tier of the Abattoir, a special set of dungeons that will push you to the limits. Shely remarks that while you’re going to need skills, you’re also going to need the best Diablo 4 builds to succeed, and that not everything will be viable. This is a true endgame challenge, after all.
The rewards for success in the Abattoir of Zir are plenty, however. Firstly, you’ll gain a huge boost to paragon glyph experience with each completed dungeon, helping you to max out your board’s effectiveness. There’s also a new, unique glyph – Tears of Blood.
This incredibly potent tool can be leveled all the way to 200, awarding 2% multiplicative damage for every five core stats unlocked within its range, and a big bonus to all rare nodes that increases as the glyph levels. It also boasts a bigger radius than standard glyphs, meaning those bonuses have the potential to grow even larger.
There are 25 tiers to the Abattoir of Zir, and Shely notes that the step-up in challenge between them go beyond what you’d expect from each subsequent tier of Diablo 4 nightmare dungeons. “Each tier is much more difficult than the one before,” he remarks. Hopefully that’s the case, and this gives people something extra challenging to work towards, along with offering special rewards to those able to pull it off.
The Abattoir of Zir arrives with Diablo 4 patch 1.2.3 on Tuesday December 5. Also landing alongside it is an update allowing you to see what your potential reroll options are at the occultist before you commit, and following it on Tuesday December 12 is the Midwinter Blight holiday event, which will include special quests and new monsters to hunt.
Until then, be sure to stay tuned to PCGamesN where we’ll be sure to let you know when we find out more about the next addition to the roster of Diablo 4 classes. We’ve also rounded up the best games like Diablo, in case you just can’t get enough of hunting for that sweet loot.