What you need to know about Diablo 4 Season 10: Season of Infernal Chaos, now live!

Diablo 4 Season 10 is now live! Dubbed the Season of Infernal Chaos, I think the chaos ratings on the season theme are on the low side — but don’t let my pithy comments discourage you, because this looks like the best season we’ve seen in a while. Every new season is a very similar song and dance, with a new character to level and a new selection of powers (Chaos Perks) to collect. Season 10 follows this same pattern, but adds some class-specific powers to the seasonal Chaos Perks (giving you more interesting play options) and has new unique Chaos Armor to collect, which will offer power from existing unique items, but in different armor slots… that will unlock new ways to combine gear and create completely new builds, which will make season 10 feel different than the seasons that have come before. And that, I think, is what makes seasons worth playing.

If you’ve been out of the Diablo 4 grind for a while (or you haven’t been keeping up with the latest season), here’s what you need to know about season 10.

What’s in Diablo 4 Season 10?

• Chaos Perks: You can earn these seasonal powers by playing the seasonal quest and advancing the seasonal reputation and fighting the seasonal boss, Bartuc. As always, you’ll earn currency to level these powers as you play, so you can keep powering up as the season progresses. There are over 800 combinations of powers you can equip, including class-specific powers, something we haven’t seen in previous seasons. Here’s a list all of the Chaos Perks available.
• Chaos Armor: This rare drop armor copies unique armor powers and puts them on different armor slots. You won’t be able to double up on their powers if you equip two pieces, but this will unlock all sorts of neat new combinations. Chaos Armor is a rare drop from just about anything (with a high chance to drop off Bartuc), and will always be a max roll unique.
• Chaos Rifts: These rifts will spawn in Helltides and Nightmare Dungeons, spewing out demons. Kill the demons and seal the rifts to earn seasonal reputation and currency, which you can use to upgrade your Chaos Perks.
• Infernal Hordes updates: This game mode has received a glow-up. Infernal Offerings have been rebalanced to make the offerings balanced, so all of them feel rewarding. One new possibility is a Chaos Offering, which will launch a wave of randomized, rule-breaking enemies to fight and change up the typical Infernal Horde experience. These waves are significantly more difficult, but reward “far more” Aether. Chaos Monsters can also spawn in waves, providing Shrine-like buffs to players when killed.
• Bartuc, Lord of Chaos: At the end of your Infernal Hordes run, you can either fight the Fell Council as usual or you can fight Bartuc, the Lord of Chaos.

Where do I get Chaos Armor?

It’s a little unclear as to where or how Chaos Armor will drop — and I’ll update this post after I’ve gotten more playtime in and can hopefully give you a more definitive answer. Blizzard has made various comments on Chaos Armor, and it’s possible it has a rare chance to drop from absolutely anything. That would mean there’s always a chance to get it and you can play whatever you want, but it will be hard to farm for. Still, a chance is a chance.

However, we know for sure that Bartuc has a high chance of dropping Chaos Armor on Torment levels. On Torment 1 and 2 there’s a good chance, and on Torment 3 and 4 there’s a guaranteed chance. You won’t be able to target farm specific pieces, but killing Bartuc will always give you a shot at some Chaos Armor. It’s possible that Bartuc is the only source of Chaos Armor, but maybe he’s just a good source of Chaos Armor.

We’ll have to see how rare Chaos Armor actually turns out to be. If it’s especially rare, it may not shake up the season as much as we’d like.

What should I play in Season 10?

Play whatever you find fun. Every class is viable for pushing into the end-game, and getting the right gear for your build matters more than playing an imagined “best” class. You’re here to have fun, right? So play what you want to play.

But if you want to play the flavor of the month, Druids are topping most of the tier lists right now, though they’re a little slower to level than the rest of the pack. I am typically a Necromancer, but I may give Druid a go this season, because it feels like the class is really coming into its own recently. (Though because Druid companion builds have been improving, that may just mean trading a skeleton army for a wolf and raven army.)

Maxroll has tier lists rating different classes and builds for different kinds of content, so if you want to find the best build for your play style, start there. Maxroll also has guides for every possible build, so if you’re lost in the combination of talents, gear, affixes, paragon points, and seasonal powers, look up a build guide to help you out. I tend to wing it when I start playing a Diablo 4 season, but when I hit higher level content and start struggling, I look to a build. These can really help you find all of the possible synergies between gear, abilities, and paragon options, and that’s an edge you may need when you’re trying to finish up the last steps of the season journey.

What difficulty should I play on?

Speed is key for leveling in Diablo, and if you want to maximize your XP earnings, you should play on the highest difficulty you can manage without deaths. Start on Normal and if it feels easy and you aren’t dying, bump the difficulty up to Hard for increased XP. Move up whenever the content feels easy. If you hit a point where you’re moving slowly or dying frequently, you should drop down a difficulty tier, because the extra XP won’t be worth the slower progress.

Once you get into paragon levels, you’ll want to play in the highest Torment tier you can manage for the increased rewards to help you collect the gear you need to flesh out your build. Here you may want to push to higher tiers even if you find yourself dying, because the extra gear you’ll earn will really up your power levels and help you advance.

TLDR: Set the difficulty as high as you can play without trouble.

What are the rewards in Season 10?

There are four new Reliquaries full of rewards to unlock this season: Infernal Chaos (free), Weapons (200 platinum), Beasts (500 platinum), and Armor (800 platinum). The season’s armor set is the Red Gryphon armor, which has a bold red and gold color scheme, and it’s unlocked by completing all of the other Reliquaries. The weapons reliquary has a range of options that match it, while the armor reliquary includes the Dark Horseman armor that definitely won’t match it, with a version for each class featuring blues and purples with silver armor and gold accents. As usual, the beasts reliquary is the one I’m most excited about: it includes a black gryphon covered in fiery runes, a terrifying silvery horse without eyes, and an absolutely adorable golden retriever pet that seems completely (suspiciously) ordinary.

To get any of the reliquary rewards, you’ll need to purchase the associated reliquary and then play the game to earn favor tokens and unlock each reward in that reliquary individually. The rewards don’t unlock in any specific order: you choose what to unlock when you earn sufficient favor. However, you’ll have to unlock every item in every reliquary to pick up all pieces of the Red Gryphon armor.

If you want multiple reliquaries, it’s better to buy the Premium Battle Pass Bundle for 1000 platinum (or approximately $10). It includes all three of the pay-for Reliquaries at a significant discount, and after you buy a single Reliquary individually you will no longer be able to buy the Battle Pass. There’s also the Deluxe Battle Pass Bundle (2800 platinum) which includes all the Reliquaries and unlocks the Red Gryphon armor set immediately, with an additional set of glowing red wings and the Angiris the Brave pet, a black dog with a golden armor set that matches the Red Gryphon set. The Deluxe pass is the only way to get those extra items, but it’s a big upsell.

If you don’t want to spend, you still get the selection of rewards from the seasonal Infernal Chaos Reliquary, and there’s a new pet reward in the Season Journey: Pandora, an ultra fluffy red fox. This super adorable pet appears to be wearing armor made out of a rib cage (probably someone else’s rib cage, but it’s Sanctuary so you can’t be sure). You can get Pandora by completing the Champion tier of the Season Journey, which will require some dedication.

How long will Season 10 last?

Diablo 4 seasons typically last around three months, so expect the Season of Infernal Chaos to wrap up in December.

If you have other questions about Season 10, please ask them in the comments and I’ll attempt to find the answer and add it to the post! Until then, I’ll see you in Sanctuary.