Diablo IV – Season Launch Leveling Guide (LoH)

Preparation

Pick a leveling guide before launch and create your Seasonal Character as soon as the season starts (30 minutes after LoH launch – 4:30 PM PDT). Join Discord if you need a group!

Early Game (Campaign Start)

1. Start the Campaign

You must start the new campaign, so select “EXP2 Start” at launch.

2. Difficulty Setup

Start on Normal for efficiency, or switch to Hard if you prefer more challenge.

3. Basic Setup

Equip your Pet (I → Wardrobe) to enable auto pickup (gold + materials).
If available, travel to Nahantu → Den and recruit your Mercenary. This lets you level Merc Rapport, unlock skills + legendary rewards, and gain a second reinforcement.

Campaign Progression

4. Follow Main Story

Follow the Main Quest through Hawezar and sail to Kovos (new zone).
The campaign takes roughly 5–10 hours, with high-quality cutscenes (skippable with ESC).

5. Class Mechanics

At Level 15, your class quest is automatically completed, so make sure to activate your bonus.
If you are a Warlock or a new player, complete the purple class quest manually. If already done in previous seasons, it auto-completes.

Post-Campaign (~Level 45)

6. First Capstone Dungeon

Complete “Vault of the Crucible” (Khejistan) to unlock additional skill points.

7. Helltide Farming (Core Loop)

Play on Normal or Hard, depending on your power, and focus on Whispers + efficient farming.
For best efficiency, group play is recommended.

8. During Helltide Breaks (~5 min)

Use downtime to salvage, optimize gear, and run 1–2 dungeons for key aspects.

9. Continue Farming

Keep spamming Helltides and increase difficulty as you get stronger.

Mid Game (50–70)

10. Second Capstone

At Level 50–60, complete “Hellish Descent” (Scosglen).
Tip: do Strongholds first, as the boss can be difficult at a fresh level 60.

11. Strongholds (Level 60)

Run Strongholds on Normal (same XP as higher difficulties, but faster and safer).

12. The Pit Unlock

After Strongholds, access The Pit and push quickly to Level 70.

Transition to Endgame

13. Getting to Torment 1

At Level 70, switch to Penitent difficulty and fully optimize your gear: Temper, reroll, imprint, equip runes, and gamble Obols.
Run Pit Tier 10 to unlock Torment 1.
Note: The Pit is now available before level 70, and Tier 10 is unlocked immediately.

Endgame Progression

14. Early Endgame (T1)

Farm Helltides, then run Lair Bosses to target Uniques and specific loot tables.
Group play increases chances for Ancestral and Mythic items, but solo is still viable.

15. Capstone Progression

3rd Capstone (Kehjistan) → around Paragon 25
4th Capstone → around Paragon 50 (T4 ready)
5th Capstone → around Paragon 75

16. Scaling Up

Push higher Pit tiers, unlock more Torment levels, and continue optimizing your build.