General hints, tips and tricks for players just getting started Diablo Immortal.
There’s a lot to see and do in Sanctuary, and while there are virtues to carving your own path through the hordes of demons and undead that infest the land, there are a few pitfalls, time-wasters and suboptimal ways of progressing. If you wish to get the most out of your time, seek truth in the words of adventurers who have gone before you, and pray the same corruption that has perverted the Worldstone hasn’t also afflicted the memory from which this advice was derived…
Focus on the Story¶
While it may be tempting to get distracted by various events that pop up and dungeons you’ll stumble across, you’re better off focusing on the main questline until you reach Westmarch, at the very least. As you progress through the game you’ll unlock access to various activities, resources and merchants. The sooner you have access to them, the better, and in the case of some resources - like the Bestiary - progress is not retroactive. Unfortunately the Battle Pass doesn’t help much in this regard, as it will suggest events and activities that can be fairly far afield, and in the case of Dungeons, you’ll have to do them again in the main questline, anyways… although completing Dungeons repeatedly will earn you extra XP, loot and Battle Points via Battle Pass, so there’s no real harm in clearing them repeatedly…
Do Your Dailies and Complete Battle Pass Objectives¶
At first, leveling is a breeze in Diablo Immortal, but after you reach around level 35+, leveling up takes increasingly more effort. While you can continue leveling by just running around zones and killing monsters, this is one of the slowest ways to accumulate XP by the mid-to-late-game. Completing Battle Pass objectives and your daily allotment of Bounties (not to mention clearing other Codex objectives) will earn you significantly more XP than killing monsters will.
Upgrade Your Gear¶
Worried that you’ll burn resources upgrading a low-level rare? Don’t be. When you find new arms and armor you’ll almost certainly be prompted to transfer equipped gems and ranks to the new equipment, free of charge. View upgrading arms and armor as upgrading that item slot (helmet, chest armor, etc.) rather than upgrading a specific item, for that’s more or less how it’ll function… assuming you’re not downgrading in quality (i.e. going from a rare item to a magic item).
Salvage Regularly¶
You have limited inventory space, and inferior gear isn’t doing anything but taking up space. Make periodic trips to the Blacksmith to Salvage excess gear - the resources this generates can be used to upgrade the gear you’re actually wearing.
Turn Auto Pick Up On¶
There is no such thing as junk in Diablo Immortal. Every bit of gear that drops can be salvaged for scrap, which in turn can be used to upgrade the equipment you actually use. That being the case, you might as well save yourself a lot of clicks by just going into the Settings - General menu, scrolling down to find the “Auto Pick Up” option, and just selecting to auto pick up normal, magical and rare items.
Use the Armory to Customize Loadouts¶
Sometimes the best gear for one situation isn’t the best for another, and the tools you’ll bring along to clear a Rift won’t be the same equipment you’ll use for PvP. Enter the Armory, where you can save and swap between custom loadouts as you please, making it easy to ensure you’ve got your best kit for the situation at hand.
Check the Bounty Board¶
While it may be busy-work, it’s lucrative busy-work. Check the Bounty Board in Westmarch daily and complete the bounties posted there for loot and XP.
Use the Map and Pick Your Battles¶
Not all enemies are created equal, and many trash mobs are… well, it’s all in the name, isn’t it? After a while smashing the same Fallen pack into demonic goblin paste just isn’t worth your time. Use your map to navigate, ignore the fodder, and if you see blue or yellow icons on your map, that indicates rare mobs that may be more worthy targets. This is especially useful in Elder Rifts and Challenge Rifts, where unique mobs net your far, far greater progress than normal enemies. At the very least, try to advance and let lesser foes chase you and accumulate, and when there’s a sufficient number to warrant your attention, take them out with AoEs.
Fast Travel and Auto-Navigate¶
You can place custom markers on the map and, in many cases, choose to auto-navigate to these markers. You can also often fast travel to various quests, events and activities simply by clicking on the description for them on the left-hand side of the screen. There’s a lot of filler out there, and it’s not all worth your time - bypassing redundant areas or letting the game walk you to your destination are great quality of life features you should exploit. Just be wary when using auto-navigate - the pathfinding isn’t flawless and enemies and terrain can get in your way, forcing you to manually intervene. Still, it’s better than having to tediously backtrack through the same dunes, swamp or cemetery for the umpteenth time.
Enemy Heavy Attacks and Dodging¶
Always keep a dodge (or other damage mitigation) skill equipped. Some enemies have particularly powerful attacks they’ll use, and dodging these is imperative, as they inflict heavy damage and can stun you. These attacks are usually indicated by an area-of-effect overlay. Unique mobs can also create various effects that cause damage spikes which you’d do well to mitigate your exposure to. Using a dodge to avoid heavy attacks or create distance between yourself and the nasty effects of unique mobs goes from being helpful early on, to essential later in the game.
Manage Your Potions¶
You have access to three Healing Potions in Diablo Immortal. There’s a cooldown between uses of these potions, their effects heal over time, rather than instantaneously, and their charges replenish as you engage in combat. All these factors add a bit of strategy to the normally mundane task of keeping your HP full, and while it’s generally sufficient (provided you’re not woefully underpowered and you don’t whiff on dodging a damage spike) to just pop a Healing Potion when the screen turns red (the low health indicator for when you’re reduced to around 25% of your maximum HP), later on you may want to heal more preemptively, rather than just in a case of emergencies. Got half your health and three Healing Potions and you’re staring down a mob of enemies? Heal up early and during the fight the cooldown and charges will recover, preventing you from ending up under-supplied when tougher enemies appear.
Experiment with New Skills¶
It can be comforting to rely on tried-and-true skills, but you should always equip and try out new skills to gauge their effectiveness and consider how they fit into your playstyle. The first four skills that unlock probably aren’t the best four skills for your class, especially when legendary items start dropping that alter how these skills function. Worst case scenario, you don’t like the new skill and you can switch back. On the other hand, the last four skills that unlocked probably aren’t the best combination, either, so keep your options open and equip what works for your personal playstyle and the gear RNG has blessed you with.
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