Diablo 4’s first expansion, Vessel of Hatred, takes players to lush jungles and introduces new class

Diablo 4 sets up a familiar foe for this new expansion.

Image of the Vessel of Hatred teaser image.
Image by Blizzard Entertainment

Following its June 2023 release, Diablo 4 is set to receive its first full-fledged expansion, Vessel of Hatred. This expansion is expected to come out sometime in late 2024, continuing the main storyline of Diablo 4.

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Announced today at BlizzCon 2023, Diablo 4 fans and players were given a brief look into the highly anticipated Vessel of Hatred expansion. This upcoming expansion will see players return to the much-beloved zone previously explored in Diablo 2, the jungles of Nahantu.

Whereas Lilith was the central antagonist of the base game in Diablo 4, it seems like the ancient primordial evil Mephisto will be at the center of Vessel of Hatred. We briefly saw Mephisto in Diablo 4 trapped in a soulstone taken by Neyrelle.

Coming sometime in late 2024, we can likely expect the expansion to drop after the recently announced season three update as well. At time of writing, Season of Blood is still going strong with tons of new bosses, Unique and Legendary items, and Vampiric power mechanics. We likely still have quite a while left battling the Vampire Lord Zir before we venture onto the next season, but even beyond that, Diablo 4 players have an entire expansion to look forward to.

Alongside the Vessel of Hatred announcement, Blizzard also teased a new, unannounced class that will likely be released with the expansion. It has been heavily theorized among players that this new class could be a return of the Crusader from previous Diablo games, although data leaks have hinted that an entirely new class could be introduced as well.

Much is still unknown about Vessel of Hatred, but Blizzard has assured players they can expect plenty of new zones, bosses, and loot to come with the expansion. Likely more about the Diablo 4 expansion will be revealed as we get closer to the expected release date.

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Image of Blaine Polhamus
Blaine Polhamus
Staff Writer for Dot Esports. Avid gamer for two decades and gaming writer for three years. I'm a lover of anything Souls-like since 2011. I cover everything from single-player RPGs to MMOs.