The Diablo 4 Season 1 Malignancy Has Been Explained

(CTN News) – New story and build options have been introduced to Blizzard’s RPG Diablo 4 Season 1. Character data cannot be transferred, but other progress can be sent over to give your new character a head start.

Check out our Diablo 4 Season 1 breakdown for everything you need to know, including Season of Malignance’s start date, new content, and data transfer.

Date of the first season of Diablo 4

Diablo 4 Season 1 begins on July 20, 2023, and ends around October 20, 2023. As soon as you download the season patch, the non-seasonal changes, such as class tweaks, will appear in your game.

How long is Diablo 4 Season 1?

Each Diablo 4 season will last three months, as Blizzard aims to deliver four seasons per year. Season one will run until Oct. 20, 2023, or thereabouts.

Diablo 4 Season 1: What’s new?

The first season of Diablo 4 introduces a new storyline after the campaign events, which settles the conflict between Lilith and Inarius. Cormond, a former priest at the Cathedral of Light, is a bloodthirsty monster who’s on a quest to rid the world of Malignance.

Diablo 4 Malignant Hearts: How they work

The Malignancy is also behind the season’s new mechanic: Malignant Hearts. Four types of hearts are available – three color-coded Hearts that fit into matching slots on your rings, and a fourth universal Heart.

Your character will receive specific buffs and abilities from Malignant Hearts, according to Blizzard. During the reveal livestream, the team demonstrated a Heart that imbues enemies with electricity when you land a critical strike, which could change your character’s role in multiplayer.

The first season has 32 types of Malignant Hearts, along with multiple types of gear with slots of different colors. As you progress through the season story, you will find stronger Hearts, and you can salvage Hearts you no longer want.

The process of obtaining Malignant Hearts

Getting Malignant Hearts requires facing tough new Elite foes. A Cage of Binding will force an Elite to respawn with new spawns if you defeat them and expose their corrupt hearts. You’ll get their Malignant Heart if you defeat that version.

After completing the season’s story, certain areas will also have Malignant Tunnels. A Malignant Outgrowth appears at the end of these mini-dungeons. With invokers, you can activate the growth’s nodes, spawn an Elite, and receive a Malignant Heart matching the node’s color.

Does my Diablo 4 Season 1 character carry over to Season 1?

For most of Season of the Malignant’s new challenges, you’ll have to start a new character. However, your Eternal Realm character data will carry over.

The data that transfers includes map exploration, regional renown points, and Altars of Lilith. The Codex of Power, XP, and gear will not carry over.

Blizzard recommends you log into your character with the most progress after the season update patch launches on July 18. The progress will be saved to your account and applied to all characters, including those from the Eternal Realm and seasonal characters.

You will automatically have those renown points and map progress unlocked when you log in to your brand-new seasonal character if you have explored Scosglen and maxed out renown there. You also have a Sorcerer who has covered all of the Dry Steppes.

The data from that character will also apply to your new seasonal character, so you will have a significant head start with renown, potions, and skill points.

You can play the campaign again with any new characters you create in the Eternal Realm.

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