Diablo II: Resurrected Patch v2.5 Live on the PTR

In a somewhat surprising turn of events, Blizzard Entertainment keeps working on their Diablo II: Resurrected remaster. And as a result, the game’s Public Test Server now allows you to sample the game’s upcoming update v2.5 that’s going to fix some assorted issues and tinker with the game’s balance, but also introduce the so-called Terror Zones.

Here’s what the latter are all about:

TERROR ZONES

The journey to level 99 is a celebrated experience for players and quite the milestone if achieved—a rite of passage, even. We want to offer an alternative to repeatedly farming Baal, Diablo, or Nihlathak. We also want the journey to level 99 to be accessible to a larger population of players, full of variety, and most importantly, challenging—this is where Terror Zones come in. As we get into details, please note that players can choose to opt-out of Terror Zones if desired.

When playing a Terror Zone-enabled game, every hour, the armies of the Burning Hells will focus their demonic might on specific zones, terrorizing them. The monsters in these zones will be at least two levels higher than your current level or their original level, up to a maximum per difficulty. The experience received and the loot dropped by killing a terrorized monster will be based on this new level. In addition, terrorized monsters will also grant additional experience points.

Here are the level details for each monster type per difficulty:

Normal

• Base: +2 levels up to level 45
• Champion: +4 levels up to level 47
• Unique: +5 levels up to level 48

Nightmare

• Base: +2 levels up to level 71
• Champion: +4 levels up to level 73
• Unique: +5 levels up to level 74

Hell

• Base: +2 levels up to level 96
• Champion: +4 levels up to level 98
• Unique: +5 levels up to level 99

The base player level used for the above calculations are taken from the creator of the game. If the host leaves the game, a new player will be selected for the base.

Upon entering a Terror Zone-enabled game, you’ll be informed of the current terrorized areas through a message sent to you via the Chat Box. When the time for new terrorized zones draws near, you will be informed of the impending changes via the Chat Box.

In addition, you will be informed that you’re entering a terrorized area by several indicators:

• Unique iconography next to a terrorized monster’s name
• On-screen text and messaging
• Special audio cue
• In-game text on the auto-map