Let me begin with some general goals for the ARPG endgame.
Goals for an ARPG Endgame
- Character and class differentiating and build defining. - I believe during the leveling process characters should be able to experiment with different skills and builds and find what they like the best. At endgame though, the player should be given the opportunity to invest in a specific build and work toward fine-tuning that build. In doing so, characters of the same class should be able to find ways to feel very different from each other beyond which skill layout they pick.
- Lore and story reinforcing. - Whatever endgame system is adopted needs to have a firm rooting in the lore of the game and advance the story in some way. If you think of the mapping system in POE it has a strong world-altering story hook, whereas greater rifts in Diablo 3 didn’t really have anything to do with the main story beats of Diablo 3. If a player thinks their actions are impacting the story in some way, then they are far more likely to persist toward their character building goals as a result.
- Exhaustingly Finite with Diminishing Returns - Reaching level 100 in Diablo 2 was an exhausting feat that had very little player power payoff, but was a very notable accomplishment. Compare this with Paragon systems in Diablo 3 which didn’t end and the rewards they delivered never truly diminished. There should be a target to work toward each season, but if you don’t get there you aren’t truly disadvantaged compared to someone who does. This is especially important for a game that aspires to have some semblance of PVP balance and competitiveness.
- Deterministic Overall with Moments of Random Epicness - The process of advancing through the endgame experience should give players agency in determining how their characters will evolve, with opportunities for random occurrences (both good and bad) that will have a lasting impact on the player’s memory of their experience.
With these goals in mind, this feedback is given in response to your request for community feedback, in particular about the endgame progression system for Diablo IV. I’ve read that you are considering a keyed dungeon approach to endgame and I think this is a wonderful direction to head in and would serve as a great base for the influence system I will describe below.
Endgame Angelic/Demonic/Ancestral Influence System
I think one of your early directions on itemization involving angelic, demonic, and ancestral power has potential when coupled with your design for keyed dungeons.
As you approach level cap you begin having dungeon keys drop with dungeon level, and altered affixes for the dungeon as you’ve proposed in the various community interviews you’ve given. One additional element each key possesses though is an angelic, demonic, or ancestral influence. These influences and their effects on the dungeons are described below.
- Angelic Influence - Dungeons with angelic influence have been invaded by the heavenly hosts with dungeon dwellers imbued with angelic powers - spell echo, certain angelic auras, heavenly wrath upon seeing other dungeon members die, limited immunity to certain damage types etc… The end boss of the dungeon will be an angelically corrupted version of the normal dungeon end boss with access to a wider array of angelic powers.
- Demonic Influence - Dungeons with demonic influence have been corrupted by hellish denizens. Demonic influences stack ailments on the player the more they are hit by members of the dungeon. These ailments are more debilitating than normal game ailments and stack higher. They cannot be cleared unless the end boss is defeated. The end boss of the dungeon is a demonically corrupted version of the normal dungeon end boss whose abilities scale based on the number of stacks of corruption a player obtains traveling through the dungeon.
- Ancestral Influence - Dungeons with ancestral influence have been corrupted by spirits of the deceased. Enemies can resurrect if their comrades stay alive for too long - think the core hound effect in Molten Core in wow. Enemies use totems that have area denial effects, etc… The end boss of the dungeon must be defeated multiple times with each time they resurrect they come back slightly changed with a different set of powers.
Beyond the obvious thematic elements above, the reason a player would be interested in the different key influence types is based on the way they change gear drops and provide you access to and engagement with, the endgame progression system.
Angelic, Demonic, and Ancestral currency - Rarely enemies in these endgame dungeons will drop a currency item specific to that influence. Angelic orbs, demonic sigils, and ancestral totems are currency drops will allow a player to imbue equipment with angelic, demonic, or ancestral power.
Influence crafting - The power items gain from influence currency is 1:1. One angelic orb = +1 angelic power on an item. (You could have orbs drop in +5, +10, +20 denominations). The most any item can have is +100 of a single power type. Items cannot obtain more than one influence type. There are three things that can happen when you influence craft an item:
- The power transfers normally and the item receives the power amount total as expected. (Most likely outcome).
- The power imbued overwhelms the item and has a small chance to remove an affix (non-legendary) on the item. Affixes removed in this way cannot be later added back onto the item. Essentially, you permanently lose an affix slot.
- The power imbued immediately sets the item to +100 of the influence type and triggers a special distinction - divine (angelic influence), chaotic (demonic influence),tribal (ancestral influence). This should be a very small chance of occurring and the ultimate goal of any endgame item crafter.
Divine, Chaotic, Tribal Items
- Divine Items - have +100 angelic power and gain resonance. Resonance doubles all the affixes on a given item for so many seconds after taking damage for the first time in combat. Has an internal cooldown.
- Chaotic Items - have +100 demonic power and gain carnage. Carnage is a multiplier that increases the affixes on an item based on the number of successive enemies defeated within a certain time frame. This also has an internal cooldown.
- Tribal Items - have +100 ancestral power and gain ethereal. Ethereal items are indestructible, cannot have their affixes altered by further crafting and grant a permanent 10% increase to affixes.
So essentially your endgame crafting will be a way to give items a higher affix contribution either in a big chunk at the beginning of combat, or progressively as you kill more things, or a permanent increase to contributions, but at an overall smaller level than what is possible with divine or chaotic items. In addition, if you are in an angelic influence dungeon, divine items can very rarely drop. In a demonic influence dungeon, chaotic items can very rarely drop, and so on. This strikes a nice balance between deterministically trying to turn a piece of found gear into divine status, versus stumbling upon an already divine item that may or may not have exactly the itemization you are wanting.
Why Angelic, Demonic, Ancestral Power Matters
I’ve yet to discuss the role of the +100 angelic, demonic, or ancestral power on your gear. The accumulated power totals on your gear grant you access to a 4 tiered progression system in each influence type. The tiers, bonuses for tiers and progression are described in the table below.
There is a maximum of 1200 influence power any character can have based on having +100 power collected in each slot. Characters can split their influence, i.e. +500 demonic and +700 angelic, but they will miss out on the best traits each influence provides for doing so.
Angelic Influence Progression
Tier 1. Must have at least 200 power in this influence type.
Your critical strikes during resonance windows have a change to summon an angelic minion to your side. The angelic minion provides you with immunity for a brief time after being summoned and smites your foes with aoe holy damage.
Tier 2. Must have at least 400 power in this influence type.
The resonance bonus will now triple your affixes for a short time.
Tier 3. Must have at least 600 power in this influence type.
You are immune to holy damage.
Tier 4. Must have at least 800 power in this influence type.
Aura of justice - You are granted a divine aura that grants you and your party members a %max health increase as a holy energy shield, that while active causes enemies which hit you to be dealt holy fire damage.
Tier 5. Must have at least 1000 power in this influence type.
The resonance bonus will now quadruple your affixes for a short time.
Tier 6. Must have at least 1200 power in this influence type.
Spell Echo - Your spells and attacks have a 5% chance to instantly repeat (at no cost) with a greater effect.
Demonic Influence Progression
Tier 1. Must have at least 200 power in this influence type.
Your critical strikes while at maximum carnage bonuses have a chance to execute monsters.
Tier 2. Must have at least 400 power in this influence type.
The carnage bonus will accumulate 50% faster.
Tier 3. Must have at least 600 power in this influence type.
You are immune to shadow damage.
Tier 4. Must have at least 800 power in this influence type.
Aura of chaos - You are granted a swirling aura of chaos that causes your attacks to place a stacking dot on the target. You have increased attack speed for each stack of the dot on the target.
Tier 5. Must have at least 1000 power in this influence type.
The carnage bonus will accumulate 100% faster and stack 50% higher.
Tier 6. Must have at least 1200 power in this influence type.
You may subjugate the demon of your choice to act as your familiar. Different demons grant different boons to their master.
Ancestral Influence Progression
Tier 1. Must have at least 200 power in this influence type.
Enemies that die from critical strikes cannot be resurrected to fight against you.
Tier 2. Must have at least 400 power in this influence type.
Ethereal items have a permanent 20% increase to affixes.
Tier 3. Must have at least 600 power in this influence type.
You are immune to cold damage.
Tier 4. Must have at least 800 power in this influence type.
Aura of domination - You are granted a debilitating aura that slows the movement, casting, and attack speeds of nearby enemies by x% and gives you a chance to dominate an enemy - causing it to fight for you for short time.
Tier 5. Must have at least 1000 power in this influence type.
Ethereal items have a permanent 30% increase to affixes.
Tier 6. Must have at least 1200 power in this influence type.
Rebirth - Upon being killed you explode and are brought back to life. After being reborn in this way your senses are heightened and your attack and defense are greatly increased for the next x seconds. You can only be reborn once every (so many minutes).
This is a very thematic way of aligning with one of the three great powers in the diablo universe - the heavenly host, the demonic horde, or the ancestry of the nephilim and the deceased spirits of sanctuary. Some players may find interesting build possibilities by splitting up their allegiances. Perhaps there would be certain vendors or certain items, etc… that are only available to players with a specific influence level.
This system allows players to change their influence type, but not without a significant reinvestment into running different dungeon types and crafting different influence powers on their items. Since items cannot have more than one influence type on them players would have to also farm new gear. For players that invest a ton of time into the game they could eventually gain enough gear and enough power to mix and match their gear and influences to take on specific challenges.
Thanks for reading!