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A Diablo IV Guide for Beginners: Start your Quest to Defend Sanctuary on the Right Foot

New to the Diablo series, or back from a long break? Our Diablo IV guide can help you learn the basics.

The Diablo series finally has another full installment with Activision-Blizzard’s latest release in the series, Diablo IV. If you’re returning after a long break, or just getting into the series, there might be a lot you’re unfamiliar with. Diablo IV also brings some exciting new elements to the series like a more varied and branching skill tree system, as well as the ability to actually customize what your character looks like. Our Diablo IV guide can help you get familiar with fighting your way through Sanctuary.

Choosing your Class

Diablo IV guide - Character selection screen

There five different classes, and each class is further customizable by spending points in your skill trees. In this Diablo game, you’ll even get to customize how they look!

Diablo IV - Barbarian
Barbarian
The Barbarian is a brawler, as well as a master of weapons and war-cries
Diablo IV guide - Druid
Druid
The Druid is a flexible class that can be built towards a few different playstyles. They can cast earth, wind, and storm magic, as well as shapeshift into a sturdy werebear or ferocious werewolf.
Diablo IV - Necromancer
Necromancer
The Necromancer is a summoner class that conjures undead allies to aid them.
Diablo IV - Rogue
Rogue
The Rogue is also flexible in their ability to specialize in either ranged or close quarters combat. They are agile and can utilize poisons or shadow magic as well.
Diablo IV - Sorcerer
Sorcerer
The Sorcerer commands the basic elements to cast powerful spells of ice, lightning, or fire.

Class Skill Trees

The cost to experimenting with skill builds is not that high–you can refund if you have regrets. Refunding skills is even free for the first 8 levels. After that, it will cost you some currency, but not so much it’s regularly a barrier to augmenting your build.

You can choose different skills in a few categories: basic, core, defensive, companion, wrath, and ultimate. There are also subtle ways to augment your chosen skills.

We recommend gathering skills from different categories as soon as you can rather than spending all your points upgrading one skill, so you have access to more moves in battle faster. Then you can focus on upgrading your favorites.
diablo IV guide - skill tree example

Managing your Gear

  • Keep your gear current. Especially early on, newer gear will quickly outpace older gear.
  • Only upgrade legendaries or rares. Anything lower in rarity typically has less potential.
  • Balance selling and salvaging for the gear you’re not using or keeping. You’ll need the resources from both.
  • Gear condition degrades when you die, so be careful!

Upgrading your Gear with Gems

diablo IV guide - gem merchantThe gem system is unlocked after you hit level 20 on a character and complete the priority quest to unlock Kratia the gem merchant in Kyovashad.

Get familiar with the gem system, and don’t worry about being unable to recover a valueable gem from a socket. You can pay Kratia some gold to remove a gem from a socket, and if you salvage a piece of gear, the gems that were in it will appear back in your inventory.

Stash your extra gems, as you’ll be able to combine them for more powerful ones.

General Survival Tips

  • Remember your potion upgrades. The ability of your potions to support you will be much greater if you keep them upgraded as you level.
  • Get out of the area of effect (AOE) damage abilities. It does, often, matter. It may be hard to get used to for some folks, but trust us when we say it is worth it in this game to work on your situational awareness and positioning to keep yourself out of some heavy AOE damage abilities enemies and especially bosses will throw at you.
  • Try bumping up the world tier once you’re already having an easy time. When you get the hang of it, you’ll eventually be ready to enjoy a more challenging level of gameplay!

More Diablo IV Guides

For more, check out Blizzard’s Guide to Diablo IV’s Gameplay video series. If you’re looking for more advanced and specific class build guides, check out Icy Veins.

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