Diablo Immortal, the upcoming free-to-play mobile spin-off from the legendary Diablo series, is inching ever closer to release. Despite an initially hostile reception among fans of the series, interest is growing in Blizzard's ambitious mobile MMORPG. Diablo Immortals will feature six playable classes, all returning classics from previous Diablo titles.
One of these classes is the Demon Hunter, which was last seen in 2012's Diablo 3. The theme of the Demon Hunter in Diablo Immortal will be much the same as in the previous title: The agile, ranged class combines dual-crossbows, traps, and shadow magic into a glass-cannon demon-slaying machine.
Diablo Immortal's Demon Hunter Primary Attributes
There are five Primary Attributes in Diablo Immortal, which players can choose to put stat points into. Any stat points that players spend will increase the Offense and Defense rating of their Demon Hunter, but where they spend them can make a big difference.
- Strength: Increases the damage of all the Demon Hunter's attacks. In the absence of an agility or reflex attribute, Strength has become a core attribute for the Demon Hunter in Blizzard's new mobile title.
- Fortitude: Increases both Armor and Armor Penetration. While the Armor Penetration will be very useful against endgame opponents, this stat shouldn't be a priority for the Demon Hunter.
- Vitality: Increases Life Points. While useful for any character, Life Points are less useful for an agile, ranged, and glass-cannon character like Diablo Immortal's Demon Hunter.
- Willpower: Increases Potency and Resistance. These two stats increase the duration of harmful effects that the Demon Hunter inflicts, and decrease the duration of harmful effects they take respectively. While this can be useful for some of the Demon Hunter's skills, it shouldn't be a high priority.
- Intelligence: This final attribute seems to do nothing for the Demon Hunter in Diablo Immortal's current alpha, though we can expect that to change by launch.
Demon Hunter Primary Skills in Diablo Immortal
Like all of the six launch classes in Diablo Immortal, the Demon Hunter will have access to a total of 12 Skills. However, only 5 of these Skills can be active at any one time. These are further divided into 1 Primary Attack and 4 Active Skills.
The Primary Attack is the Demon Hunter's basic attack, and can be spammed freely. It also defines their Ultimate ability, and charges it up in use. The Demon Hunter will have 2 Primary Attacks to choose from in Diablo Immortal:
Crossbow Shot: This is the first Primary Attack that the Demon Hunter has access to, right from Level 1. It's a basic attack that shoots an arrow but slows the Demon Hunter's movement as they fire. The Ultimate ability attached to Crossbow Shot is Volley, which massively increases the ability's rate-of-fire and boosts movement speed for 12 seconds.
Explosive Arrow: The Demon Hunter's second Primary Attack is unlocked at Level 34. Explosive Arrow is similar to Crossbow Shot, except that its arrows cause area-of-effect damage when they hit, and it doesn't come with a movement penalty. Its Ultimate ability is Bola Shot, which both increases damage and adds a knock-back effect to all attacks.
Diablo Immortal Demon Hunter Active Skills Level 1-25
The Demon Hunter has 10 Active Skills to choose from in Diablo Immortal. However, only 2 of them are available right from Level 1:
Knockback Shot (Level 1)
A quick shot with an average length cooldown that deals damage and knocks enemies back. Any enemy that collides with an obstacle will be briefly stunned.
Multishot (Level 1)
A classic Demon Hunter skill from Diablo 3, Multishot fires a fan of arrows that can strike multiple enemies. It can be used three times before it will go on cooldown.
Rain of Vengeance (Level 2)
Fires a volley of arrows into the sky that then rain down for several seconds, dealing damage over a wide area. While it's a good crowd control skill, Rain of Vengeance is hampered by a long cooldown.
Strafe (Level 8)
Strafe causes the Demon Hunter to spin rapidly, firing in all directions while moving at a reduced speed. Rather than a cooldown, Strafe consumes an energy bar that recharges when it's not in use.
Daring Swing (Level 18)
Allows the Demon Hunter to swing across the battlefield, dealing damage to enemies in the way. This is a useful evasion tool, as the Demon Hunter is immune to damage during the swing.
Knife Trap (Level 24)
A unique skill that allows the Demon Hunter to place up to 3 traps. These traps arm after a second, and explode when an enemy gets close, dealing area-of-effect damage.
Diablo Immortal Demon Hunter Active Skills Level 26-50
The popular Demon Hunter class in Diablo Immortal continues gaining Active Skills as they level up, all the way to Level 44.
Sentry (Level 29)
Another interesting skill, Sentry summons a turret for 30 seconds which fires at nearby enemies. This skill has 2 charges, allowing the Demon Hunter to have 2 turrets out at once.
Smoke Screen (Level 38)
Allows the Demon Hunter to deploy a thick smoke cloud at their feet, granting concealment to themselves and any nearby allies for a few seconds.
Spinning Chakram (Level 41)
Launches a Chakram that deals damage to all enemies in its path, then returns to the position it was launched from. Catching the Chakram on its return allows the Demon Hunter to use it again without the 8 second cooldown.
Vengeance (Level 44)
The Demon Hunter's final Active Skill, Vengeance allows Diablo Immortal players to become the physical embodiment of revenge. This grants two extra shots with every Primary attack, as well as a passive movement speed increase for each nearby enemy.
These Active Skills, combined with the Primary Attacks, enable to the Demon Hunter to excel in its role in Diablo Immortal. As a swift, evasive class the Demon Hunter relies on its mobility and high damage to safely clear the demonic hordes.
Diablo Immortal is expected to release on Android and iOS devices later this year.