Diablo III: Reaper of Souls Paragon 2.0 Changes Explained

Blizzard Entertainment isn’t just revamping the loot system in Diablo III with the introduction of Reaper of Souls, but they’ll also be making significant changes to the Paragon level system, as well. And to provide us with some more details on exactly what to expect, they’ve penned this “first look” blog entry:

Change #1: Goodbye Level Cap

The first change we’re making with Paragon 2.0 is removing the level cap, so you will always be able to earn Paragon experience once you’ve reached max level. Play as much as you like you’ll always be able to earn more Paragon levels!

Change #2: Shared Paragon Levels

The second change is that Paragon levels are now account-wide per game mode (i.e. Normal and Hardcore). All Normal heroes on an account will share a Paragon level. Similarly, all Hardcore heroes on an account will share a Paragon level. After patch 2.0.1 goes live, any Paragon experience you gain on your Normal or Hardcore heroees will contribute to your account’s Normal Shared Paragon level or Hardcore Shared Paragon level, respectively. We made this change so players wouldn’t feel obligated to continue playing the same hero over and over again in order to maximize their farming efficiency. We want players to have fun with the game, to experiment with different classes, and to feel rewarded for their time investment, regardless of what hero they’re playing. We also want everyone to fully enjoy the new content coming in Reaper of Souls including the Crusader class without feeling as though they’ve “wasted Paragon levels” on a previous hero. While only max-level heroes can earn shared Paragon experience and contribute to your account’s shared Paragon level, all heroes (regardless of level) will be eligible to receive Paragon Points our third major change to the Paragon leveling system.

Change #3: Paragon Points

As noted, the third change is that the rewards for gaining Paragon levels have drastically changed. In Patch 2.0.1, the static Magic Find, Gold Find, and class stat bonuses awarded for each Paragon level are being replaced by spendable Paragon Points.

In the new system, whenever you gain a Paragon level, you will receive a Paragon Point to allocate at your discretion. Paragon Points are earned in four separate categories: Core, Offense, Defense, and Utility, and the Paragon level you earn will determine the category in which that Paragon Point can be spent. Paragon level 1 will give you a point to spend in a Core stat, Paragon level 2 will give you a point in Offense, Paragon level 3 will give you a point to spend in Defense, and Paragon level 4 will give you a point to spend in Utility. Paragon Point progression for all future levels will follow this same pattern (sometimes referred to as round-robin).

In addition, each category also four different attributes. Spending points in these attributes will provide specific bonuses for your hero.