Blizzard Quote [source]

Behold! Two epic new bonus items have just been spotted in the mortal realms, both of which will be granted in the future to anyone who pre-purchases the Reaper of Souls™ expansion digitally on Battle.net, or anyone who redeems a Reaper of Souls retail game key on or before March 31, 2014. 

Check them out below:

Wings of Valor: Summon the radiant wings of the Archangel of Valor for your characters in Diablo III.

Valla the Demon Hunter: Unlock Valla the Demon Hunter in Heroes of the Storm—our upcoming free-to-play online team brawler featuring iconic Blizzard characters, fast-paced combat, and epic battlegrounds. 

If you've already digitally pre-purchased the Reaper of Souls expansion, either as the standard edition or the Digital Deluxe Edition, then you're all set! These bonus items will be granted to your Battle.net account as follows:

• The Wings of Valor will be automatically sent to your existing and any newly created Diablo III characters via an in-game notification starting March 20, 2014.
• Valla the Demon Hunter will be available once Heroes of the Storm has been officially released. Note that Heroes of the Storm is still deep in development and does not have an announced release date, but you can stay tuned to the official game site for future updates. Note also that pre-purchasing Reaper of Souls does not guarantee a spot in the eventual Heroes of the Storm alpha or beta tests.

If you pre-order Reaper of Souls at a retail store—either a physical standard edition or physical Collector's Edition—be sure to redeem your Reaper of Souls game key via your Battle.net account on or before 11:59 PM PST on March 31, 2014. If you redeem your game key after that date, your pre-order loot will be consumed by the fires of the Burning Hells and lost forever. While you have six days from the time the expansion launches on March 25 to the time you must enter your code, to be safe, you should secure your preorder today and be ready to input your game key on launch day.

For more information on the upcoming March 25 launch of Reaper of Souls, be sure to check out the official expansion website, and keep your demon-weary eyes glued to www.diablo3.com for the latest news on the game.

Until then, slay well, Nephalem.

- The Diablo III Team

Blizzard Quote [source]

In preparation for the launch of patch 2.0.1, the Reaper of Souls™ Beta and Patch 2.0.1 PTR servers will be brought offline this evening at 5:00 p.m. PT. At that time, players will no longer be able to log in to the Beta or PTR client, all Beta and PTR accounts (including character information) will be reset, and both our Beta forums and PTR forums will be marked as read-only.

We'd like to thank everyone who has participated in the Reaper of Souls Beta and Patch 2.0.1 PTR. You've done an amazing job of testing, and we greatly appreciate all of the feedback you provided during this critical phase of development.

We look forward to releasing patch 2.0.1 to public shortly and encourage everyone to stay tuned to this website for exciting news and updates regarding the upcoming launch of Reaper of Souls!

Blizzard Quote [source]

Patch 2.0.1 will introduce our updated Paragon leveling system (often referred to as "Paragon 2.0"), adding even more end-game character advancement and replayability. This update will affect all Diablo III accounts across all regions as the patch is implemented, and is currently available for testing on the Patch 2.0.1 PTR and Reaper of Souls Closed Beta.

For those of you who haven't yet experimented with this new system, here's a first look.

What's Changing?

The initial implementation of the Paragon system introduced in patch 1.0.4 was designed to provide players with additional end-game progression, offering bonuses for experience gained past the standard level cap. This system was created to accompany and complement the more innate item-based progression in Diablo III, which is all about finding powerful artifacts and putting them to use against the demonic legions of the Burning Hells.

While the original version of the Paragon leveling system achieved its many goals, with time players would max out at level 100 and no longer feel rewarded for vanquishing evil. With patch 2.0.1, we're making three big changes to the Paragon system that are aimed at giving you greater control over your hero, promoting variety in build options, and offering more character customization than ever before.

 Change #1: Goodbye Level Cap

The first change we’re making with Paragon 2.0 is removing the level cap, so you will always be able to earn Paragon experience once you've reached max level. Play as much as you like—you'll always be able to earn more Paragon levels!

 Change #2: Shared Paragon Levels

The second change is that Paragon levels are now account-wide per game mode (i.e. Normal and Hardcore). All Normal heroes on an account will share a Paragon level. Similarly, all Hardcore heroes on an account will share a Paragon level. After patch 2.0.1 goes live, any Paragon experience you gain on your Normal or Hardcore heroees will contribute to your account's Normal Shared Paragon level or Hardcore Shared Paragon level, respectively.

We made this change so players wouldn't feel obligated to continue playing the same hero over and over again in order to maximize their farming efficiency. We want players to have fun with the game, to experiment with different classes, and to feel rewarded for their time investment, regardless of what hero they’re playing. We also want everyone to fully enjoy the new content coming in Reaper of Souls—including the Crusader class—without feeling as though they’ve "wasted Paragon levels" on a previous hero.

While only max-level heroes can earn shared Paragon experience and contribute to your account's shared Paragon level, all heroes (regardless of level) will be eligible to receive Paragon Points—our third major change to the Paragon leveling system.

As noted, the third change is that the rewards for gaining Paragon levels have drastically changed. In Patch 2.0.1, the static Magic Find, Gold Find, and class stat bonuses awarded for each Paragon level are being replaced by spendable Paragon Points.

In the new system, whenever you gain a Paragon level, you will receive a Paragon Point to allocate at your discretion. Paragon Points are earned in four separate categories: Core, Offense, Defense, and Utility, and the Paragon level you earn will determine the category in which that Paragon Point can be spent. Paragon level 1 will give you a point to spend in a Core stat, Paragon level 2 will give you a point in Offense, Paragon level 3 will give you a point to spend in Defense, and Paragon level 4 will give you a point to spend in Utility. Paragon Point progression for all future levels will follow this same pattern (sometimes referred to as round-robin).

In addition, each category also four different attributes. Spending points in these attributes will provide specific bonuses for your hero.

Core points can be spent on your class's primary stat, Vitality, Movement Speed, or bonus Class Resource.

Offensive points focus on increasing your damage output and efficiency, and include Attack Speed, Cooldown Reduction, Critical Hit Chance, and Critical Hit Damage.

Defensive points include stats that help improve your survivability. Options include bonus Life percentage, bonus Armor, Resist All, and Life Regeneration.

Utility points include more specialized stats that allow players to refine their builds. These points can be spent on boons like Area Damage, Resource Cost Reduction, Life on Hit, and Gold Find.

At present, all attributes in each category other than core stats (Strength, Intelligence, Dexterity, and Vitality) have a cap on the number of points that can be allocated to them, which also means there is a cap to the total number of Paragon Points you can accumulate in three of the four categories. By the time you reach Paragon 800, you will have maxed the number of points that can be allocated to the Offensive, Defensive, and Utility categories and all future Paragon levels you earn going forward will grant you a Paragon Point in the Core stat category instead.

• The new Paragon system is account-wide; all heroes will benefit from the gained bonuses, including your newly created characters!
• Your account's Paragon Point pool is not shared between your heroes. Instead, heroes on your account will each get their own set of Paragon Points to spend independently (e.g. you can spend your Paragon Points differently for each hero). To provide an example, if your account's Normal Shared Paragon level is 100, all Normal heroes on your account will each get 100 Paragon Points to distribute as you see fit.
• All heroes will be able to contribute to Shared Paragon levels equally. There are no bonuses or burdens for Paragon leveling multiple heroes of the same class.
• Be sure to experiment! You can reset your Paragon Points at any time without having to pay a single gold coin. Respecs occur on the hero level, not the account level, so respeccing on one hero will not reset your Paragon Points on other heroes.

To provide an example, here's a new level 1 hero. This hero will begin with a Shared Paragon level of 127 as well as 127 Paragon Points, which can be allocated at will to the four different categories.

Transitioning to the New System

Heroes who have gained Paragon experience under the old system will transition seamlessly to the new system. When Paragon 2.0 goes live with patch 2.0.1, we'll being adding up all the Paragon experience on each of your heroes and then using that combined total (the total amount of Paragon experience you have, not the total number of Paragon levels) to determine your Shared Paragon level. Again, this will be broken down by game type—Normal and Hardcore.

Players can distribute their earned points through the Paragon interface, accessed by clicking the "Paragon" button located in your hero's character sheet.

• Please note that legacy Paragon levels will not convert to Paragon 2.0 levels on a one-to-one ratio, and that the number of Paragon levels is not being totaled, just the amount of Paragon experience.
• The Paragon experience curve has changed with patch 2.0.1 as well. With the transition to Paragon 2.0, your Shared Paragon level will be at least as high as the highest Paragon level hero on your account.
• We have also decided that the valiant deeds of Hardcore heroes who died beyond level 60 deserve commemoration. Dead Hardcore heroes will contribute their cumulated Paragon experience to an account's Hardcore Shared Paragon level total.
• After Paragon 2.0 goes live, if you are level 60 and do not have the Reaper of Souls enabled on your account, you will continue to earn Paragon experience in the new system. This is because you are still technically at the level cap. However, if you are level 60 and decide to enable the expansion on your account, you will stop earning Paragon experience. This is because the expansion increases the level cap to 70. Once you reach level 70, you will start to accrue Paragon experience again from where you left off. (So, basically: Only max-level characters will be able to earn Paragon experience. If you don't have the expansion, max-level = 60. If you have the expansion, max-level = 70.)
• Under Paragon 2.0, if a character dies or is deleted, the amount of Paragon experience it contributed to your Shared Paragon level will not be lost. This is a benefit of having Paragon experience stored at the account level, rather than at the character level.
• Lastly, you will keep the portraits you have already earned in the first version of the Paragon system.

Try Paragon 2.0 on the PTR

You can experience the new Paragon system coming in patch 2.0.1 on the PTR. Check out how your heroes feel with new stats, play around with different stat builds by spending Paragon Points, and check out the new Paragon progression curve. Once you’ve tried it out, visit the PTR forums to leave your feedback—we'd love to hear what you think!

Blizzard Quote [source]

The demonic hordes of the Burning Hells and cold hatred of the Angel of Death are no match against the collective might of the nephalem. So, to help the heroes of Sanctuary rally their allies, we're adding two new social features to Diablo III in patch 2.0.1: Clans and Communities.

With Clans and Communities, we're providing players with easy and practical tools for finding and communicating with like-minded individuals who share a passion for demon slaying, loot hunting, experience farming, as well as other interests.

Both Clans and Communities are still in development and currently available for testing on the Patch 2.0.1 PTR and Reaper of Souls Closed Beta. For those of who haven't yet given them a test drive yet, here's a first look.

First Look: Clans

Clans are designed to provide players who share similar interests, gameplay schedules, or goals the ability to band together and form tight-knit groups. They're a great way to commmunicate with numerous friends at once, organize your play, and generally just keep in touch with those you game with the most.

With a member limit of 120 players, clans are intended to be smaller and invitation only. This means that while you can send a request to join a clan, you will not technically become a member unless you are invited or your request to join the clan is accepted. Also, while anyone can create or join a clan, you can only be a member of one clan at any given time.

How Clans Work:

The Clan window can be opened by clicking the "Communities" button located in the lower right-hand corner of the character selection screen, or by using the customizable hotkey (default Shift + O).

Creating a Clan:
To create a Clan, you will need to provide a Clan Tag (note: this tag will display next to each member's name in-game), a full name for the Clan, and then select a language.

You can also indicate whether or not you are looking for members. Note that if you are not looking for members, your Clan will not be displayed in "Find Clan" search results.

Finding and Joining a Clan:
To find and join a Clan,simply open the Communities tab and click "Find" at the top of the window. This option will only appear if you are not currently part of a Clan. 

When looking for a Clan to join, you will be able to narrow your search by language and word filters. Selecting a language will limit the search to display only Clans in that language. Similarly, if you add a word or series of words to the filter, only clans with that word in the tag or name will display.

First Look: Communities

Communities are designed to be a place where players can come together for any number of reasons, including playing the same class, frequenting the same fan sites, or living in the same geographical area. They're all about fostering relationships between like-minded people, with a keen focus on socialization.

Unlike Clans, Communities are intended to be much larger and more casual. They can be public or private, for example, and support a nearly unlimited number of members. In addition, while you can only join a single Clan, you can be a member of multiple different Communities at the same time.

How Communities Work:

Similar to Clans, the Community window can be accessed by clicking the "Communities" button located in the lower right-hand corner of the character selection screen, or by using the customizable hotkey (default Shift + O).

Creating a Community:
When creating a Community, you will be prompted to pick a language and a category for the Community that best describes it.

Categories include (but aren't limited to):

• Online Communities
• Class Specific
• Streamers/Personalities
• Internet Cafes
• Regional
• Schools
• Companies
• Hardcore    

You will also need to decide if the Community should be public or invite only.

Finding and Joining a Community:
Searching for a Community works much the same way as searching for a Clan; however, since you can be a member of multiple Communities at once, this option will always be available. To browse for Communities, open the Communities tab and click 'Find" at the bottom of the window. 

You can narrow your search by selecting a language, or by adding a word filter so that only Communities with that word in the name will be displayed in your search results.

You can also limit your search to only display Communities based on a specific category, and you have the option to also only show public Communities. 

The Clan & Community Window   

Once you've joined or created a Clan or Community, you will be able to open and browse its respective social window. The Clan and Community window is divided into three tabs: the News, Roster, and Settings.

The News Tab:

The News tab is the first tab you land on. Here you can find the latest information about your Clan or Community, as well as catch up on the recent activity of other members. 

You can filter the news you receive in the News tab to include several different types of information.

For Clans and Communities:

• Message of the Day: Notifies you of changes to the MOTD
• Clan/Community Information: Notifies you of changes to the Clan Information entry
• New Leader: Be among the first to know when Clan or Community Leadership changes hands

For Clans Only:

• Items: Notifies you when a clan member finds a Legendary item and allows you to check out its stats
• Achievements: Notifies you every time a clan member completes an Achievement
• Member Joined:  Notifies you when a new member joins the clan
• Member Left: Notifies you when a member leaves the clan
• Member Promoted: Allows you to track promotions within your clan

From the News tab (depending on your rank and permission level), you can also edit Clan or Community information, create news posts, and set the Message of the Day that Clan or Community members will see when logging into the game. 

The Roster Tab:

In the Roster tab, you will find a list of all Clan or Community members. The roster will show what heroes each member plays, their location in game, rank, and Achievement points. From here, you can also easily inspect member profiles.

The Settings Tab:

The Settings tab is mostly for Clan or Community leaders and officers. From this tab, you can alter the various permissions for each Clan or Community rank, such as the ability to add news, invite members, create the Message of the Day, and join chat channels. You will also be able to change the language of your Clan or Community, whether your Clan is looking for members, or if your Community is public or private. 

In addition to the News, Roster, and Settings tab, players who join a Clan or Community will gain access to a dedicated chat channel for the Clan and each Community. If you are the leader or an officer of a Clan or a Community, you will also gain access to an Officers Chat specific to that Clan or Community.

We hope that the Clans and Communities make it easier for players to have fun with friends—and make new friends!—while playing Diablo III. We look forward to collecting feedback from the brave souls participating in the Reaper of Souls Beta as well as those playing on the PTR for Patch 2.0.1. 

See you in game!

Blizzard Quote [source]

As we announced a little while back, with the upcoming release of patch 2.0.1, your Diablo III launcher will be automatically updated to our new desktop app for Battle.net. You can upgrade now if you like, but if you haven't done so yourself by the time patch day rolls around, here’s a quick heads up about what you can expect.

Download the Battle.net App Now

Step 1: Optimize!

When you start your Diablo III launcher for the first time after Patch 2.0.1 launches, you'll receive a quick tools update, and then you'll be prompted to begin the process of optimizing your Diablo III installation.

It could take a while—anywhere from 15 to 60 minutes, even on a monster machine—but it's an important part of prepping for Patch 2.0.1 and Reaper of Souls.

Step 2: Download!

Next your Diablo III launcher will download the rest of the data you need—you'll see the usual red, yellow, and green data indicator during this process. How much data you'll need to download depends on how much background-downloading you've done already.

Step 3: Click Play and Log in to the Game

Once the Play button lights up, you can click it to enter the game and dive into the new Patch 2.0.1 content! Your launcher won't actually be updated to the desktop app Battle.net until the next time you start it up—so slay as many demons as you want, and then quit only when you've sated your bloodthirst.

Step 4: Start Up Diablo III Again

The next time you launch Diablo III, you'll be greeted with a pop-up screen letting you know your launcher is about to be updated to Battle.net.

Click Start Installation to start the process. 

It shouldn't take too long, but keep in mind you may need to click a Restart Now button at some point during the installation process.

Step 5: Welcome to Battle.net!

When you see the Battle.net login prompt, enter your account information, and click Log In.

Once you see the screen below, you're done!

Click Play from the app's Diablo III screen to get back into the game at any time (you won’t have to log in again), or launch the game from your desktop as usual. For more information on Battle.net, check out the Battle.net web page and Support article.

Heads up for those who've already upgraded their launcher to Battle.net (or who plan to do so before Patch 2.0.1 launches):

On patch day, you will also have to go through a code-optimization process similar to what's outlined Step 1 above. Expect it to take 15 to 60 minutes or so, and keep in mind your computer might run a little slower than usual during the process.

That's it! Happy hunting!

Download the Battle.net App Now