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DIABLO 4 HARDCORE TIPS

D4 HARDCORE 10 TIPS

If you are new to hardcore or a seasoned hardcore player, these tips will help you have a successful start to Diablo 4. The biggest difference between Hardcore and Softcore is the order you prioritize survivability, mobility, and damage. Take your time, don’t be over aggressive and keep these ten tips in mind.

TIP # 1

Start your Diablo 4 Hardcore play on World Tier 1, Adventurer Difficulty. Starting out on World Tier 1 will give you the advantage when learning new fights or exploring new areas. Take your time and enjoy the ride!

You will only need to go to World Tier 2 to complete the capstone Dungeon which is a level 50 dungeon that allows access to World Tier 3 once completed. World Tier 2 does not give enough of a bonus experience overall to make up for the tougher mobs and boss fights.

TIP # 2

Take Defensive skills early. We all love taking offensive skills to do more damage. Glass cannons are fun but are not very useful in hardcore. Save the big damage builds for later in the game when you have the gear to keep you alive.   The Hardcore Build Guides for each class focus on survivability early game, check them out for a safe leveling experience.

d4 pulverize druid build

TIP # 3

Get Unstoppable from a skill as soon as possible. Many of the early Hardcore deaths will be due to CC like being frozen. Having Unstoppable at the touch of a button will be very important for CC situations. At least have it as a passive from an aspect like Eluding Aspect.

TIP # 4

It is a good idea to take ranged skills early on as well as movement skills.  Once you are geared, you can take melee or close combat skills and focus more on clear speed.

Having a ranged option early on will help you keep from getting surrounded. If you are surrounded, some type of movement or mobility skill will help survive to fight another day. Character positioning is extremely important in any hardcore situation. Try to have all the mobs grouped and on one side of you. Try to never find yourself in the middle of a group of mobs. Being completely surrounded is never a good thing early on.

TIP # 5

Codex Aspects will be very important early game. These aspects can be earned from completing content like the campaign or dungeons.  Some Codex Aspects that will help with survival for every class are: 

Aspect of the Deflecting Barrier
Aspect of the Deflecting Barrier
Defensive
While you have a Barrier active, there is a 7-13% chance to ignore incoming direct damage from Distant enemies.
Unlocked by completing Lost Keep in Hawezar
Every class

Aspect of Might
Aspect of Might
Offensive
Basic Skills grant 20% Damage Reduction for 2-6 seconds.
Progress Campaign in Dry Steppes to unlock
Unlocked by completing Dark Ravine in Dry Steppes
Every class

Aspect of the Protector
Aspect of the Protector
Defensive
Damaging an Elite enemy grants you a Barrier absorbing up to x damage for 10 seconds. This effect can only happen once every 30 seconds.
Unlocked by completing Lost Archives in Fractured Peaks
Every class

Aspect of Retribution
Aspect of Retribution
Offensive
Distant enemies have a 8% chance to be Stunned for 2 seconds when they hit you. You deal 10-20% increased damage to Stunned enemies.
Unlocked by completing Abandoned Mineworks in Kehjistan
Every class

Aspect of Disobedience
Aspect of Disobedience
Defensive
You gain .25-.50% increased Armor for 4 seconds when you deal any form of damage, stacking up to 15-30%.
Unlocked by completing Halls of the Damned in Kehjistan
Every class

Aspect of Shared Misery
Aspect of Shared Misery
Utility
Lucky Hit: When you hit a Crowd Controlled enemy, there is up to a 30-50% chance for that Crowd Control effect to spread to another unaffected enemy.
Unlocked by completing Oblivion in Hawezar
Every class

Eluding Aspect
Eluding Aspect
Utility
Becoming Injured while Crowd Controlled grants you Unstoppable for 4 seconds. This effect has a 40-20 second Cooldown.
Unlocked by completing Caldera Gate in Fractured Peaks
Every class

Ghostwalker Aspect
Ghostwalker Aspect
Mobility
While Unstoppable and for 4 seconds after, you gain 10-25% increased Movement Speed and move freely through enemies.
Progress Campaign in Scosglen
Unlocked by completing Broken Bulwark in Scosglen
Every class

Check out my Hardcore Codex Aspect Guide for more details.

TIP # 6

The Scroll of Escape is an item that allows the player to teleport out of trouble to town almost instantly. It is also designed to be automatically used if the player disconnects so that there aren’t as many deaths to disconnections. The Scroll of Escape can drop from mobs, chests, or even breaking objects after your character is level 20. It does have a pretty rare drop rate.

Hang on to Scroll of Escapes and try to have one when you go into a new boss fight. Hang on to them but don’t be afraid to use them. It will be more important to stay alive and fight another day than to make sure you have one available. 

You may be in a boss fight and realize you should go get some new gear before attempting the boss fight. Thats a perfect time for the scroll of escape. Of course, you will also want it when you are in a close to death situation and out of potions.

MAKE SURE YOU HAVE A SCROLL OF ESCAPE WHEN ATTEMPTING THE CAPSTONE DUNGEON.

D4 Whirlwind Barbarian Build

TIP # 7

Take advantage of the Elixir of Death Evasion. This magic potion is active for 30 minutes and it prevents death once and you become immune for 2 seconds. Once it takes place, you cannot benefit from it again for 5 minutes. This will be useful when engaging in really tough fights that you aren’t confident going in to. Having one of these and a Scroll of Escape will be great in a pinch.

TIP # 8

Do not be afraid to level up beyond 50 before attempting the Capstone Dungeon. The Capstone Dungeon mobs remain at level 50 even if you are a few levels higher. So take your time and make sure you have good gear, all your aspects you want, and the level you want to be at before going in to the Capstone Dungeon.

TIP # 9

Upgrade your potions at the Alchemist. Upgrading your potions will increase the life recovered when using healing potions. This will be extremely important to have upgraded potions going into boss fights. Potion upgrades start at level 10 and occur at level 20, 30, 45, 60, 70m, 80 and 90.

This is going to seem obvious but is going to be really important. If your health is not full and you are running by a health potion… use a health potion and grab the one on the floor. Many HC deaths happen because people get too comfortable and complacent. Always have your pots full when you can and have your life at full when running around. Do not be lazy with your potions.

D4 Leveling Guide

TIP # 10

Take advantage of the shared stash! You will die and you will have to start over. It is a completely different experience when you start over with some gear you can use versus starting completely over every time you die.

Before you salvage or sell everything… think to yourself, would this item help me if I had to start over? Or maybe it will help you start a different class.

Lastly, have fun and take your time. Everyone dies on Hardcore and that is part of the experience. It feels so good having a high level character and playing in a tight community. Take your time and don’t rush into packs of mobs or elites that you are not ready for. Do your research on boss fights and make sure your equipment is ready for your next fight. If you do happen to lose your character, try a new class from time to time to not get burnt out on starting over.

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