Summary
While the new Spiritborn class introduced withDiablo 4’s Vessel of Hatred’s expansionhas impressed with its unprecedented versatility and raw power, it’s ultimately just another stepping stone toward a bigger and better ARPG experience. AsDiablo 4continues to move forward into its future, more expansions are likely on the way, along with even more new classes that will hopefully give the Spiritborn some friendly competition. The only question is what those classes might be.
Asthe pool of RPG classescontinues to increase in size, with many developers now looking for creative ways to evolve the genre’s core classes, there is plenty of potential forDiablo 4’s future regarding new playable characters. That being said, as far as its immediate future and next expansion goes, there is one clear route it can take that would not only provide players with a class that has been missing from the game but also serve as a complement to the continued story ofDiablo 4.
A Holy Knight Class Would Complement Diablo 4’s Continued Story
Vessel of Hatred Ended With Mephisto’s Corruption of Akarat’s Mortal Body
Vessel of Hatred’s story has been divisive due to its open-ended conclusion and anticlimactic plot points, but it has nonetheless left the game’s story with a clear direction moving forward. At the end of Vessel of Hatred’s narrative, the mortal body ofAkarat, the Shepherd of Light, is handed over to Mephisto by Eru and is later consumed by Mephisto’s corruption to become the Lord of Hatred’s new vessel.
Ultimately, this symbolizes the downfall of the light and establishes the motif forDiablo 4’s next expansion, which will presumably feature a world bathed in an overwhelming sense of doom and hopelessness, as Akarat himself, the formerly incorruptible one, has been claimed by Mephisto. However, Akarat still lives on in some form, as confirmed in his promise to Neyrelle that she would see him again, and with the end ofVessel of Hatred’s storyteasing the return of Tyrael, it could mean big things for the next expansion’s new class.
Diablo 4’s Next Class Being a Holy Knight Would Be Fitting
Unlike its predecessors,Diablo 4has been missing a classic “sword and board” class since launch. Despite many requests that Blizzard add one to the game, the developer has doubled down on its decision to exclude one, inferring that it prefers to introduce more complex classes than simple, traditional classes. Even so, that doesn’t necessarily mean that a holy knight type of class is off the table, especially in light of the current direction ofDiablo 4’s overarching narrativeand classes the series has featured in the past.
Akarat still lives on in some form, and the end of Vessel of Hatred’s story teasing the return of Tyrael could mean big things for the next expansion’s class.
Diablo 2andDiablo 3, for instance, both featured a holy knight class of some sort, withDiablo 2offering a Paladin class andDiablo 3eventually implementing a Crusader class. In other words, the blueprint is there.Diablo 4just needs to reinvent it now according to Blizzard’s new class standards. Furthermore, with Vessel of Hatred’s story teasing the return of Tyrael and a holy knight class arguably being exactly what is needed to fend off Mephisto, it would make sense forDiablo 4’s next class to be a Paladin or Crusader-type class, but with a unique characteristic like the unmatched versatility ofVessel of Hatred’s new Spiritborn class.
It’s too soon to tell whereDiablo 4’s storywill go from here, but the facts as they stand suggest a holy knight class like a Paladin or Crusader could be on the way. The only hope is that Blizzard will devise a way to make it just as special as the Spiritborn class, if not more so.
Diablo 4
WHERE TO PLAY
Diablo® IV is the ultimate action RPG experience with endless evil to slaughter, countless abilities to master, nightmarish dungeons, and legendary loot. Embark on the campaign solo or with friends, meeting memorable characters through beautifully dark settings and a gripping story, or explore an expansive end game and shared world where players can meet in towns to trade, team up to battle world bosses, or descend into PVP zones to test their skills against other players – no lobbies necessary – with cross-play, cross-progression, and couch co-op on Xbox.This is only the beginning for Diablo® IV, with new events, stories, seasons, rewards, and more looming on the horizon.
