I will admit, I was skeptical of how Diablo 4 Season 11 would follow up the fantastic experience that was Season 10. After Chaos Armor completely changed the way builds could be approached, Diablo 4 had big shoes to fill, and the preview of the season on the PTR leading up to release didn’t do the game any favors. However, the shadow drop of the Paladin class with the launch of Diablo 4 Season 11 catapulted the season beyond my expectations, but it’s been Sanctification that has surprised me the most with how much of a difference it has made in the game.
What keeps me coming back to Diablo 4 season after season is the innovative ways the game approaches builds with each seasonal mechanic. Buildcrafting is one of my favorite things to do in RPGs, and ARPGs like Diablo 4 are a particular treat to try and optimize for the most efficient way to slay enemies in the Pit or tackle Lair Bosses. The permanent rework to Diablo 4‘s gear upgrade system in Season 11 is a huge improvement on this front already, but Sanctification is really the icing on the cake, and I will be sad to see it go when the season ends.
Diablo 4 Season 11’s Sanctification Mechanic is Everything I Wanted, But Not What I Expected
Going into Season 11, my biggest hopes for Diablo 4‘s gear upgrading system were:
- Remove so much dependency on RNG
- Make upgrades feel meaningful
- Limit the chances of an item being bricked
Overall, I think the changes made to Tempering and Masterworking with Diablo 4‘s Season 11 update fulfill the majority of these criteria. I like being able to choose a Temper with unlimited re-rolls via Scrolls of Restoration, especially since it makes getting a god roll in Diablo 4 easier than ever. I wasn’t quite sure what to make of the Masterworking changes at first, but I ended up appreciating how quick and easy it is to fully Masterwork an item, with the ability to re-roll the final upgrade for little cost.
I Was Originally Skeptical of Sanctification Going into Diablo 4 Season 11
Sanctification was the major question mark I had before the start of Diablo 4 Season 11. Reports from the PTR were not kind to the mechanic leading up to the start of the season, as there was a potential for an item to be bricked during Sanctification if an Affix on an Ancestral Unique or Mythic was replaced in the process. This would have made Sanctification a gamble barely worth taking, and when the majority of Diablo 4 players wanted Tempering and Masterworking to cut down the RNG elements, it felt counterintuitive.
Now That I’ve Experienced It, I Don’t Want Sanctification to Go the Way of Chaos Armor
Thankfully, the changes made to Sanctification after the PTR feedback vastly improved the mechanic. There is no longer a possibility of Sanctification replacing an existing Ancestral Unique or Mythic Affix, the value ranges for Sanctified Affixes have been increased, and more potential Legendary and even Mythic Affixes were added to the potential outcomes. These elements combine to create a feature that adds a fun gamble to gearing up for the endgame, instead of more RNG headaches. There’s no better feeling than getting very lucky and rolling a Mythic Affix when Sanctifying an item, but not hitting this roll doesn’t feel like a punishment since all Sanctification outcomes can be useful.
Just when I’ve come to love the build variation Sanctification brings, Diablo 4 will lose the seasonal mechanic when Season 11 ends. This feeling is all too familiar to me and many other Diablo 4 players, as it was the same situation last season when Chaos Armor was removed at the end of the season. There is still hope that Sanctification will return or be made into a permanent mechanic, as the Diablo 4 team seems to be constantly looking for what features click with players. However, with no confirmation that Sanctification will ever be made permanent, it’s likely fans will have to hope that Season 12’s new mechanic will be just as impactful.
- Released
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June 5, 2023
- ESRB
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Mature 17+ / Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Language, In-Game Purchases, Users Interact
