Editing Diablo II (section)

==Gameplay==
<!--Please note: There are only FOUR acts in the original ''Diablo II'', the fifth is added in the [[Diablo II: Lord of Destruction|''Lord of Destruction'']] expansion pack. Act V will only be briefly mentioned here, full details will be found on the LOD expansion page. -->

''Diablo II''{{'}}s storyline progresses through four chapters or "acts". Each act follows a predetermined path, but the wilderness and dungeons between key areas are randomly generated. The player progresses through the story by completing a series of quests within each act, while there are also optional side dungeons for extra monsters and experience. In contrast to the first ''Diablo'', whose levels consisted of descending deeper and deeper into a [[Gothic architecture|Gothic-themed]] dungeon and Hell, ''Diablo II''{{'}}s environments are much more varied. Act I is similar to the original ''Diablo''; the Rogue Encampment is a simple palisade fort, with plains and [[Taiga|boreal forests]] making up the wilderness area, and the Monastery resembles the typical medieval fortress. Act II mimics Ancient [[Egypt]]'s desert and tombs; Lut Gholein resembles a Middle Eastern city and palace during the Crusades. Act III is supposedly based on the [[Central America]]n jungles; Kurast is inspired by the lost [[Mayan civilization]]. Act IV takes place in Hell and is the shortest, with just three quests compared to the other Acts that have six.

The ''Lord of Destruction'' expansion adds the fifth chapter Act V which continues the story where Act IV left off. Act V's style is mainly mountainous as the player ascends Mount Arreat, with [[Alpine climate|alpine plateaus]] and icy tunnels and caverns. Occasional portals can take the player to dungeons in Hell (seen in Act IV) for extra monsters and experience. After reaching the summit of Arreat, the player gains access to the Worldstone Keep.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://classic.battle.net/diablo2exp/quests/ |title=The Arreat Summit - Quests |website=Classic.battle.net |access-date=September 15, 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130927031511/http://classic.battle.net/diablo2exp/quests/ |archive-date=September 27, 2013 }}</ref>

In addition to the acts, there are three sequential difficulty levels: Normal, Nightmare, and Hell; completing the game (four Acts in the original or five Acts in the expansion) on a difficulty setting will open up the next level. On higher difficulties, monsters are more varied, stronger, and may be resistant or immune to an element or physical damage; experience is penalized on dying, and the player's resistances are handicapped. However, better items are rewarded to players as they go through higher difficulties. A character retains all abilities and items between difficulties and may return to a lower difficulty at any time, albeit it is not possible to replay the quests that are already completed.

Players can create a hardcore character. In normal mode, the player can resurrect their character if killed and resume playing, while a hardcore character has only one life. If killed, the character is [[permadeath|permanently dead]] and unplayable. In addition, all items and equipment on that character will be lost unless another friendly character has the "loot" icon checked. Standard and hardcore characters play on separate online channels; as such a hardcore player can never appear in the same game session as a standard player.

===Item system===
''Diablo II'' uses a system of randomly generated equipment similar to the [[Diablo (video game)#Items|original ''Diablo'']], but more complicated. Weapons and armor are divided into several quality levels: normal, magical, set, rare, and unique. Normal quality items are base items with a fixed set of basic properties, such as attribute requirements, maximum durability, armor rating (on armor), block chance (on shields), damage, and attack speed (on weapons). Magical quality items have blue names and one or two randomly selected bonuses, such as bonuses attributes, skills, or damage, indicated by a prefix or suffix. Rare quality items have randomly generated yellow names and 2 to 6 random properties. Unique items have fixed names in gold text, and instead of randomized properties, they have a set of 3 to 8 preselected properties. Green-named set items have fixed names and preselected properties like unique items, and belong to specifically named sets of 2 to 6 items. Additional properties known as set bonuses are activated by equipping multiple or all items from the same set. These are themed on individuals, like Civerb's cudgel, shield, and amulet, each of which provides individual bonuses which are enhanced if two or more of the items are used to equip a character. It is unusual to encounter more than one item from a set in a single playthrough of the game, so collectors need to play the game many times to accumulate all items from a set or purchase them online from other players who possess them but do not need them. Additionally, items can possess sockets, which can be used to upgrade items by adding gems for various bonuses.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://classic.battle.net/diablo2exp/items/|title=The Arreat Summit - Items|website=classic.battle.net|access-date=March 27, 2018|archive-date=March 27, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140327182654/http://classic.battle.net/diablo2exp/items/|url-status=live}}</ref>

''Diablo II'' includes an item crafting system. An item called the Horadric Cube is used to combine two or more items to create a new item. For example, three identical lower-quality gems can be combined to create a single higher-quality gem, and three small rejuvenation potions can be combined to create a single, more powerful rejuvenation potion.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://classic.battle.net/diablo2exp/items/cube.shtml|title=The Arreat Summit - Items: The Horadric Cube|website=classic.battle.net|access-date=March 27, 2018|archive-date=May 15, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130515133227/http://classic.battle.net/diablo2exp/items/cube.shtml|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Character classes===
[[File:Diablo II characters.jpg|thumb|300px|The five character classes in ''Diablo II'' as seen during the opening selection animation. From left to right: the Amazon, Necromancer, Barbarian, Sorceress, and Paladin.]]

''Diablo II'' allows the player to choose between five different character classes: Amazon, Necromancer, Barbarian, Sorceress, and Paladin. Each character has different strengths, weaknesses, and sets of skills to choose from, as well as varying beginning attributes. The maximum level that any character can obtain is level 99.

* '''The Amazon''' hails from the islands of the Twin Seas, near the border of the Great Ocean. The Amazon is akin to the Rogue of ''Diablo'': both primarily use bows and both make equal use of strength and magic but the Amazon can also use javelins and spears. As such, her clan is a rival to the Sisters of the Sightless Eye (also known as Rogues). Many of her defensive skills are passive in nature, especially Dodge, Avoid, and Evade.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://classic.battle.net/diablo2exp/classes/amazonhistory.shtml |title=Amazon History |website=Arreat Summit |access-date=November 24, 2009 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100317140252/http://classic.battle.net/diablo2exp/classes/amazonhistory.shtml |archive-date=March 17, 2010 }}</ref> The Amazon is voiced by [[Jessica Straus (voice actress)|Jessica Straus]].<ref name="credits">{{cite web|url=http://www.gamefaqs.com/computer/doswin/data/197113.html |title=Diablo II: Credits |website=[[GameFAQs]] |access-date=November 24, 2009 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091125104612/http://www.gamefaqs.com/computer/doswin/data/197113.html |archive-date=November 25, 2009 }}</ref>
* '''The Necromancer''' is a versatile death-themed spell caster. Necromancers are the priests of the Cult of Rathma from the Eastern jungles. His Summoning skills allow him to raise skeletons, create golems and resurrect dead monsters to fight alongside him. The Necromancer possesses powerful poison spells, which rapidly drain life from afflicted monsters. He also has "Bone" skills, which directly damage enemies while bypassing most resistances. His Curses also afflict the enemy with debilitating status ailments, sowing confusion and chaos in their ranks.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://classic.battle.net/diablo2exp/classes/necromancerhistory.shtml |title=Necromancer History |website=Arreat Summit |access-date=November 24, 2009 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100310164348/http://classic.battle.net/diablo2exp/classes/necromancerhistory.shtml |archive-date=March 10, 2010 }}</ref> The Necromancer is voiced by [[Michael McConnohie]].<ref name="credits" />
* '''The Barbarian''' is a powerful melee fighter who resides on the steppes of Mount Arreat. The Barbarian is akin to the Warrior of ''Diablo'': both are experts with all weapons for frontline combat and both are able to absorb major punishment. As such, the Barbarian is the only class capable of [[dual wield]]ing weapons. His Combat Masteries allow him to specialize in different types of weapons and also passively increase his resistance, speed, and defense. His Warcries dramatically increase the combat effectiveness of him and his party, as well as afflicting status ailments on enemies. He has a variety of Combat Skills at his command, most of which focus on delivering great force upon a single foe, while some also allow him to leap over chasms and rivers.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://classic.battle.net/diablo2exp/classes/barbarianhistory.shtml |title=Barbarian History |website=Arreat Summit |access-date=November 24, 2009 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100317140737/http://classic.battle.net/diablo2exp/classes/barbarianhistory.shtml |archive-date=March 17, 2010 }}</ref> The Barbarian is voiced by [[David A. Thomas (voice actor)|David Thomas]].<ref name="credits" />
* '''The Sorceress''' hails from a rebellious coven of female witches who have wrested the secrets of magic from the male-dominated mage clans of the East. She can cast lightning, fire and ice spells. Most of the lightning and fire spells are carried over from the original ''Diablo'', the ice spells can freeze enemies solid and bypass resistances while doing less damage than lightning or fire. Nearly all of these skills are offensive in nature by besieging the enemy with elemental calamity. The Sorceress's ''Teleport'' spell allows her to instantly travel to a new destination, allowing her to quickly traverse dungeons as well as making her very difficult to hit. The strength of the Sorceress is her damaging spells and casting speed; her weakness is her relatively low hit points and defense.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://classic.battle.net/diablo2exp/classes/sorceresshistory.shtml |title=Sorceress History |website=Arreat Summit |access-date=November 24, 2009 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100327090651/http://classic.battle.net/diablo2exp/classes/sorceresshistory.shtml |archive-date=March 27, 2010 }}</ref> The Sorceress is voiced by Liana Young.<ref name="credits" />
* '''The Paladin''' is a crusader from the Church of Zakarum, fighting for the glory of the Light. He was part of the forces that defeated King Leoric's army in the first ''Diablo'', although his Order is eventually corrupted by Mephisto, the Lord of Hatred. To reflect his holy nature, the Paladin's combat skills range from fanatical attacks to heavenly thunderbolts. His loadout is split into Combat Skills, Defensive Auras and Offensive Auras. His auras have a range of abilities such as increasing damage, resisting magic attacks or boosting defense. Most auras either affect all party members and allies or all enemies within the area of effect. The Paladin also has specialized skills for eliminating the undead and is highly proficient in the use of a shield, being the only class that can use it as a weapon.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://classic.battle.net/diablo2exp/classes/paladinhistory.shtml |title=Paladin History |website=Arreat Summit |access-date=November 24, 2009 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100317141317/http://classic.battle.net/diablo2exp/classes/paladinhistory.shtml |archive-date=March 17, 2010 }}</ref> The Paladin is voiced by [[Larry B. Scott]].<ref name="credits" />

Two additional character classes, the Druid and Assassin, were added in the expansion ''[[Diablo II: Lord of Destruction]]''.

*'''The Druid''' is a shapeshifter with the ability to transform into a werewolf or werebear form. He can summon wild animals such as ravens or wolves as allies and attack with nature-based vines or elemental magic like wind or fire. The Druid offers a wide versatility of skills and can be built in several different playstyles. The Druid is voiced by [[Michael Bell (actor)|Michael Bell]].
*'''The Assassin''' is a [[martial arts]]-based class from the Viz-Jaq'taar clan who fights with claw blades and supplements her attacks with the use of shadow magic skills and fire or lightning elemental traps, which remain stationary and affect groups of enemies. The Assassin is voiced by Carrie Gordon.

The player can enlist the help of one hireling (computer-controlled [[mercenary|mercenaries]]) from a mercenary captain in the town; Rogue Scouts (archers with Amazon abilities), Desert Mercenaries or Town Guards (melee fighters with Paladin auras), Iron Wolves (elemental spellcasters with occasional melee capability), and Barbarians (melee fighters with [[Tank (video games)|many hitpoints]]), from Acts I, II, III, and V, respectively. In the original release of the game, hirelings would not follow the player through different Acts, nor be revived if killed. The expansion allows players to retain their mercenary throughout the entire game as well as equipping them with armor and weapons, plus hirelings gain experience and attributes like the player although their level cannot surpass that of their master character.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://classic.battle.net/diablo2exp/basics/hirelings.shtml |title=The Arreat Summit - Basics: Hirelings |website=Classic.battle.net |access-date=September 15, 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130715021422/http://classic.battle.net/diablo2exp/basics/hirelings.shtml |archive-date=July 15, 2013 }}</ref> Typically, players choose a hireling that provides something missing from their character class; for instance, the melee-focused Paladin may choose an Iron Wolf for ranged magical support.

In ''[[Heroes of the Storm]]'' (2015), playable characters Cassia and Xul represent the Amazon and the Necromancer classes, respectively.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2017-03-29|title=Cassia, Diablo 2 Javelin Amazon, joining Heroes of the Storm|url=https://blizzardwatch.com/2017/03/29/cassia-diablo-2-javelin-amazon-joining-heroes-storm/|access-date=2020-09-20|website=Blizzard Watch|language=en|archive-date=January 21, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210121024305/https://blizzardwatch.com/2017/03/29/cassia-diablo-2-javelin-amazon-joining-heroes-storm/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|date=2016-01-21|title=Heroes of the Storm gets new Diablo characters — including an old favorite|url=https://venturebeat.com/2016/01/21/heroes-of-the-storm-gets-new-diablo-characters-including-an-old-favorite/|access-date=2020-09-20|website=VentureBeat|language=en-US|archive-date=January 21, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210121090432/https://venturebeat.com/2016/01/21/heroes-of-the-storm-gets-new-diablo-characters-including-an-old-favorite/|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Multiplayer===
''Diablo II'' can be played multiplayer on a [[local area network]] (LAN) or the Blizzard's [[Battle.net]] online service. Unlike the original ''Diablo'', ''Diablo II'' was made specifically with online gaming in mind.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://classic.battle.net/diablo2exp/faq/multiplayer.shtml |title=The Arreat Summit – F.A.Q.: Multiplayer |website=Classic.battle.net |access-date=September 15, 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100826062406/http://classic.battle.net/diablo2exp/faq/multiplayer.shtml |archive-date=August 26, 2010 }}</ref> Several spells (such as auras or war cries) multiply their effectiveness if they are cast within a party, and although dungeons still exist, they were largely replaced by open spaces.

Battle.net is divided into "Open" and "Closed" realms.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://classic.battle.net/diablo2exp/faq/realms.shtml |title=The Arreat Summit – F.A.Q.: Realms |website=Classic.battle.net |date=June 20, 2001 |access-date=September 15, 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100915142453/http://classic.battle.net/diablo2exp/faq/realms.shtml |archive-date=September 15, 2010 }}</ref> Single-player characters may be played on open realms; only Battle.net characters that are stored on Blizzard's servers may be played on closed realms as a measure against [[cheating in online games|cheating]], where they must be played at least once every 90 days to avoid expiration. Open games are subject to many abuses as the characters are stored on the players' own hard drives. Many cheats that were used on closed realms do not exist or work any longer.<ref>{{cite web|author=clownshoes |url=http://www.gamebanshee.com/news/97610-320000-cheaters-banned-from-battlenet.html |title=320,000 Cheaters Banned From Battle.net |website=Gamebanshee.com |date=April 21, 2010 |access-date=May 8, 2011 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100608012955/http://www.gamebanshee.com/news/97610-320000-cheaters-banned-from-battlenet.html |archive-date=June 8, 2010 }}</ref> Hacks, bots, and programs which allow the player to run multiple instances of the game at the same time are not allowed by Blizzard. They are rarely used anymore. Blizzard cracked down on spambots which advertise sites selling Diablo II's virtual items for real-world currency.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://us.battle.net/forums/en/bnet/topic/20759202929 |title=Diablo 2 Fights Spambots &#124; Video Clip &#124; Game Trailers & Videos |website=GameTrailers.com |date=September 7, 2010 |access-date=May 8, 2011 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110218022240/http://www.gametrailers.com/user-movie/diablo-2-spambots/349513 |archive-date=February 18, 2011 }}</ref>

As the game can be played cooperatively (Players vs. Environment, PvE), groups of players with specific sets of complementary skills can finish some of the game's climactic battles in a matter of seconds, providing strong incentives for party-oriented character builds. Up to eight players can be in one game; they can either unite as a single party, play as individuals, or form multiple opposing parties. Experience gained, monsters' hit points and damage, and the number of items dropped are all increased as more players join a game, though not in a strictly proportional manner. Players are allowed to duel each other with all damage being reduced in player vs player (PvP). The bounty for a successful kill in PvP is a portion of the gold and the "ear" of the defeated player (with the previous owner's name and level at the time of the kill).

The Ladder System is reset at various intervals by Blizzard to allow for all players to start fresh with new characters on an equal footing. Ladder seasons have lasted from as short as six months to over a year. When a ladder season ends, all ladder characters are transferred to the non-ladder population. Certain rare items are available only within ladder games, although they can be traded for and exchanged on non-ladder after the season has ended.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://classic.battle.net/diablo2exp/beta/patchchanges.shtml |title=The Arreat Summit – Diablo II Patch 1.10 Beta |website=Classic.battle.net |access-date=September 15, 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110811224713/http://classic.battle.net/diablo2exp/beta/patchchanges.shtml |archive-date=August 11, 2011 }}</ref>

The game has been patched extensively; the precise number of patches is impossible to determine as Battle.net has the capability of making minor server-side patches to address urgent bugs. {{As of|July 2016}}, the game is in version 1.14d.<ref name="battle2">{{cite web|url=https://us.battle.net/forums/en/bnet/topic/20745244961 |title=Battle.net - English Forums -> Diablo 2 Patch 1.14D is Now Done And Running BUT what about patch notes? |publisher=Blizzard |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160702021743/https://us.battle.net/forums/en/bnet/topic/20745244961 |archive-date=July 2, 2016 |url-status=live |df=mdy }}</ref> Through the patch history, several exploits and bugs such as item duplication have been addressed, as well as major revamps to the game's balance (such as the ability to redo skills and attributes). Not all patches have affected ''Diablo II'' directly, as several were designed to address aspects of the expansion to the game and had minimal effects on ''Diablo II''.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://forums.battle.net/thread.html?topicId=15443288961&sid=3000 |title=Battle.net – English Forums -> Diablo II 1.13 – Tell Us Your #1 Patch Note |website=Forums.battle.net |access-date=September 15, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110726082803/http://forums.battle.net/thread.html?topicId=15443288961&sid=3000 |archive-date=July 26, 2011 |df=mdy-all }}</ref>