When does Diablo 4 Season of the Malignant start?

Diablo 4 Season of the Malignant is set to go live soon. The developers had made their post-launch intentions clear even before the popular MMORPG was officially released across different platforms. Based on the same source of information, Blizzard seems to have pretty robust plans for the seasonal content and its different elements.

A vital piece of information remains hidden – the release date of Diablo 4 Season 1. Blizzard has remained tight-lipped about the exact dates of the debut season. Despite lacking a specific date, some predictions can be made based on the original blog post.

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When is Diablo 4 Season of the Malignant expected to release?

The Diablo 4 Season of the Malignant is set to go live on July 20. This is the very first season in the game, and will take place after they've defeated Lilith in the Sanctuary.

The threat for this season is being called Malignance, and is affecting all enemy types in the game. A new member is being introduced. This character is known as Ed Cordmund, and will probably be the NPC in focus during Diablo 4 Season of the Malignant.

As for eligibility, it will be necessary for players to clear the main campaign. Unless all the quests of the primary storyline are completed, the seasonal content won’t be accessible. This is perhaps why Blizzard has decided to begin proceedings in July. This will afford enough time for all players to clear the main campaign before Season 1 commences.

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What can players expect from Diablo 4 Season of the Malignant?

The Diablo 4 Season of the Malignant will have a seasonal storyline that players will drop into the moment the new season goes live. There will be new challenges and powers that will be made available. Every monster, including Elites will be affected with Malignance and will have different powers.

These quests will be intricately linked with the seasonal battle passes. Each pass will have 27 free rewards and 63 premium ones, including Smoldering Ashes, which can be used to get Seasonal Blessings.

Players can choose between a standard Premium and a Platinum Battle Pass. The latter will be the more expensive option, containing tier skips and additional rewards. Blizzard has also promised that Battle Pass rewards won't directly affect a character's power and hence, have no effect on gameplay.

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What will carry over to Diablo 4 Season of the Malignant?

As of now, it's confirmed that your level of world map exploration, along with all the renown gains and the Altar of Lilith bonuses will carry over to the new season. Assuming you've completed Act 4 of the campaign, your mounts will also carry over.

However, you will have to make a new character whenever a new season drops. No, your current character won't be deleted. Once the new season drops, there will be two realms. The character that you currently have, will be available in the Eternal Realm only. Once the new season drops, you will have access to a new realm called the Seasonal Realm. You will have to make a new character for this realm in Diablo 4.

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Can you preload Diablo 4 Season of the Malignant on your device?

Based on the information revealed in the official dev stream, you will be able to preload the new seasonal content on July 18 itself. What's more interesting is that the developers will be adding a fresh set of Uniques in the game too.

While these Uniques are intended to be a part of the Season of the Malignant, they will start dropping for players in the Eternal Realm after the seasonal patch goes live. However, the main seasonal content will go live as intended on July 20.