The second playable class coming in Diablo 4’s Lord of Hatred expansion looks to have leaked, revealing a new spellcaster class never-before-seen in the series.
A datamine of the Diablo 4 Season 12 public test realm (via Reddit) has revealed files that make reference to a Warlock class. Complementing those file names is also datamined artwork that shows a dark spellcaster class alongside Lord of Hatred’s other (already playable) class, the Paladin.
Not much else is known about the Warlock, but the leaked artwork shows a man holding a sinister-looking sword and harnessing some evil-looking-red magic to conjure a massive demonic fist. Assuming Warlock is the new class, it will join a growing roster of recent classes that have never been featured in a previous Diablo game. Previous new additions include the Vessel of Hatred expansion’s Spiritborn class and classes like the Blood Knight and Tempest from Blizzard’s free-to-play mobile spin-off Diablo Immortal.
Blizzard has not yet commented on the leak, but the Warlock will likely be shown on February 11 as part of a Diablo 30th Anniversary Spotlight presentation. Blizzard has already confirmed the showcase will reveal new information about Lord of Hatred, including its second class, skill tree revamp, and endgame overhaul.
The showcase will also include information about “major” updates for Diablo 2: Resurrected and Diablo Immortal. Some fans believed Blizzard teased new Diablo 2 content last year in a tweet coinciding with the game’s 25th anniversary, one that stated “If you think you’ve seen and done it all, just wait for the chaos we’ve yet to unleash.”
Lord of Hatred releases on April 28, but before the next expansion arrives, players will be able to take Season 12 for a spin. The shorter-than-normal season will begin March 10 and run until Lord of Hatred’s launch. Season 12 will bring back the killstreak mechanic from Diablo 3, rewarding players for chaining kills together with bonus XP and reputation and even adding new Bloodied items that will interact with killstreaks in various ways.
