Diablo 4 Season 4 PTR patch notes: All changes, how to install, more

❘ Updated: 2024-03-28T18:17:57

Blizzard Entertainment

The Diablo 4 Public Test Realm (PTR) is going to be available to players from April 2, and Blizzard have released patch notes for the first one. So, here is everything you need to know about the Diablo 4 PTR, including how to offer your feedback.

The Diablo 4 PTR will be available for players to play from April 2 to April 9, 2024. This is meant to serve as an opportunity for players to test out new features the devs want to put in the game, but aren’t available as of yet.

The point of the PTR is to give feedback to the developers to try and make things work well before they are officially released in Diablo 4. So, here are all the Diablo 4 PTR patch notes and the changes coming in the first session, as well as how you can give your feedback.

How to install Diablo 4 PTR
Where is the Diablo 4 PTR available?
How to give feedback after using Diablo 4 PTR
Diablo 4 PTR patch notes

How to install Diablo 4 PTR

Diablo 4 players can install the PTR through the Battle.net app by installing the PTR client through the ‘Play’ menu.

The Pit is one of the features coming in the PTR.

Step by step, here is what you need to do to install the Diablo 4 PTR:

Open the Blizzard Battle.net App and select Diablo 4.
In the selector above the Play button, there is a game version drop down menu.
Select the option ‘Public Test Realm’.
Click Install to Install the PTR client.
Click Play to log in to the PTR, and select any of the available Test Servers.
Create a new test character.

After you have followed these steps, you should be able to enter the PTR and test it out!

Where is the Diablo 4 PTR available?

The Diablo 4 PTR will be available to play on servers in North America, Europe, Korea, Japan, South-East Asia, and Australia.

Once you log in, your account will carry over most of the progress you have already made. Since a lot of the updates are end-game changes, there will be a few features available to make sure you can access them.

These features include instantly boosting your character to Level 100, a variety of endgame items, and Fog of War will be completely cleared.

How to give feedback from Diablo 4 PTR

Diablo 4 players can provide feedback from the PTR by using the in-game feedback tool or the Diablo 4 PTR forums.

Helltides will see some major changes in the PTR.

Pressing the ‘Esc’ button while in-game will bring up the menu where you can navigate to the ‘Report a Bug’ option. Select the dropdown filter, and then select the ‘in-game feedback’ tool to give your feedback without leaving the game.

If you want to wait until you’re done playing to give feedback, then you can head to the Diab lo 4 PTR forums and send it over that way.

Diablo 4 PTR patch notes & changes

There are many updates coming to the Diablo 4 PTR, including changes to Helltides, the addition of the Pit, and Itemization changes.

The patch notes for the PTR are significant, so here are all the major changes and additions you can expect:

Itemization

Basic Item Updates

Reduced number of affixes: now 3 on Legendary items, and 2 on Rare items.
Smaller pool of more potent affixes.
More relevant affixes (eg: ranks of a single Core Skill).
Only Sacred items in World Tier 3, only Ancestral items in World Tier 4.
Affix values are tuned up to be punchier; we want you (and the fiends of Sanctuary) to really feel them!
New affixes and positioning of affixes:
- Resource per Second
- Resource on Kill
- Lucky Hit: Apply Vulnerable
- Life per Hit
- Basic Skill Ranks

Miscellaneous Updates

Legendary items dropped from enemy level 95+ are always 925 item power.
Gems are simpler, more useful, and have a much longer crafting tail.
- Gems now have Core stats, and the more conditional bonuses have been simplified.
Salvage, crafting, and rewards have all been tuned.
- Significantly reduced item drop rates (less time sorting, more time slaying!)
- Item rerolling gold cost capped when Enchanting.
- Material removal and consolidation.
- Forgotten Souls can now be obtained from Whispers and are now a global rare drop from Elites.
Uniques appear earlier.
- Some Uniques now dropping starting in World Tier I and II.
- All Uniques can now drop in World Tier III.
- Uber Uniques can start dropping from monster level 55, drops at 925 item power.

New crafting system: Tempering

This new system will allow you to add affixes to your items at the Blacksmith through a new reusable item that can drop from most content in-game, called Temper Manuals!
These are categorized like the Codex of Power (eg: Resource, Mobility, etc)
- Once gained, you retain these for unlimited use!
Each manual contains a handful of affixes; you are able to attach one at a time.
Affixes can be rerolled up to the item’s Temper Reroll limit.
Ancestral items can have two Tempered affixes from different categories.

Greater Affixes

Only appearing on Ancestral Legendary and Unique items, these are more powerful versions of normal affixes, with a 1.5x multiplier on the affix’s maximum roll.
An item with a Greater Affix will be immediately obvious, with a unique audio cue, as well as a I up to a IV next to the item name indicating how many affixes are Greater.
- eg: Helm (Ancestral) – II
Each affix on an item has a chance to be Greater in World Tier III & IV.
Players cannot Enchant into a Greater affix – they can only be found!

Masterworking

A late-game crafting system to upgrade items, using materials gathered from The Pit.
Improves the value of your current affixes.
- There are 12 upgrade ranks.
- Every 4 ranks, a single affix is massively upgraded.
- Other ranks slightly increase the value of all affixes.

Codex of Power updates

All Legendary Aspects now appear in the Codex of Power, so you can focus on chasing great items instead of managing your inventory.
The highest roll Legendary you salvage is stored in your Codex.
Legendary Affix ranged increase based on item tier (Normal, Sacred, Ancestral).
Most Legendary Affix ranges have been increased.
The UI has been revamped, now includes manual and keyword search.
- You can also favorite Legendary Aspects to make them easier to find!

Helltides

Helltide Threat

As you battle through Helltides, you will generate Threat – how much will be determined by the difficulty of monster and how often you’re securing Tortured Gifts within Helltide. Dying will reset your Threat.
There are three Helltide Threat Tiers, with each increasing the danger and frequency of monster ambushes. At Tier 3, you will become Hell-Marked.
- Achieving maximum Threat will initiate a brief ambush frenzy of maximum enemy density. The ambush will end with a final Hellborne spawn, an immensely powerful agent of Hell, resurrected from the tortured souls of Sanctuary’s most powerful champions. There are five variants representing each Class in Diablo IV.
- Upon activating the Hellborn ambush, your Threat will reset.

Accursed Ritual

Baneful Hearts can primarily be earned through opening Tortured Gift chests and can be used at the Accursed Ritual location.
A scene of shocking gore, the Accursed Ritual is the ultimate testament to the disturbing lengths the manic Cultists will go to appease their dark wishes. It is here where you can begin the Accursed Ritual.
Deposit three Baneful Hearts to begin the ritual, and you will be swarmed with a dense demonic ambush. Other players within your subzone will be alerted that the ritual has begun if they wish to join you in your fight.
This ambush will climax with the arrival of the Blood Maiden, an immensely powerful demonic creature who will offer great reward upon her death.

World Tier I and II adjustments

To get players into the thick of Helltides much earlier in their overall Character journey, the PTR will see these upcoming adjustments to help make Helltide more fun and rewarding in World Tier I & II.
- All Tortured Gifts are Mystery Chests.
- No roaming bosses or ambient meteors.
- Less monster density overall compared to World Tier III and IV.

Pit of Artificers

Upon entering World Tier IV, you’ll receive a priority Quest to complete a Tier 46 Nightmare Dungeon. Upon completion, you’ll begin to collect Runeshard during endgame activities. Collect enough Runeshard to ultimately activate the Obelisk in Cerrigar.
Activating the Obelisk will send you to The Pit. Your goal will be to slay enough monsters before a 10-minute timer runs out. Each player death removes time from the clock: first death removes 30 seconds, second death removes 60 seconds, third and subsequent deaths will remove 90 seconds.
If you slay enough monsters, a portal will appear, taking you to the boss’s arena.
Killing the boss before the timer expires will grant you Masterworking materials and unlocks the next tier of The Pit.
- Killing the boss with 4-6 minutes to spare grants you an additional Tier unlock.
- Killing the boss with 6 or more minutes to spare grants you two additional Tier unlocks.
- The Pit has hundreds of Tiers of difficulty.
  - If the Mastery timer expires before you finish running through the Pit you’ll still receive loot, but won’t receive any Masterworking materials.
The Pit can be undertaken with groups up to four, with the player who opened The Pit receiving the lion’s share of materials.
- Only the player who opened The Pit has the chance of receiving the Materials used for summoning Tormented Echoes.

Boss Ladder Updates

The Echo of Andariel joins the ladder in the Season 4 PTR, in the same bracket as her brother Duriel, with the same Uber Unique drop rate. With a mix of Shadow, Fire, Lightning, and her iconic Poison attack, Andariel stands ready to face all who dare fathom her demise.
- Summoning parts can be acquired from Beast in Ice and Lord Zir.
Tormented Echoes of all ladder bosses can be summoned with Stygian Stones, obtained from deep within The Pit.
- Stygian Stones are needed along with an increased amount of summoning materials, but fear not – they also drop more rewards!
- Tormented Echoes will be level 200.
- All items dropped are item level 925.
- Defeating your first Tormented Echo drops one Resplendent Spark as a first-time reward (account bound).

There are plenty more Class changes and patch notes to read through, so if you’d like to check them all out in detail, they’re available on the Blizzard forum.

That’s everything to know about the upcoming Diablo 4 PTR release. If you want to read more about the game in the meantime, you can check out our guides below.