Diablo 2: Resurrected’s Warlock Revolution – Is This a New Era for Blizzard’s Classic?
Nobody could’ve guessed that Diablo 2: Resurrected would receive a surprise expansion with a new class in 2026, but here we are. That also means the 26-year-old game will have to deal with a major shake-up to its meta, with the warlocks taking over as not only the new flavor of the month, but the new, most powerful flavor of the month.
The Warlock’s Impact: A Meta Shift Unlike Any Other
The Diablo 2 remaster has had seasonal meta changes before, but none of them have been as substantial as this one. Warlocks—and some of the new endgame challenges added in the expansion—have given players a ton of new toys to play with in a game whose best practices have been more-or-less set for decades. Early reports from Diablo YouTubers, like Macrobioboi, say the new demon-summoner class is easily one of the best.
Echoing Strike: The Dominant Build
One build in particular sits above all the rest when it comes to crushing the hardest enemies in the game: the Echoing Strike warlock. This build doesn’t even rely on commanding your pet demons around; it’s purely based on the raw power of the Echoing Strike skill, which basically lets you shoot your weapons at enemies like a shotgun.
The ability to bypass elemental immunities with the build’s physical damage is a significant advantage. Unlike many other skills in the game, Echoing Strike allows players to consistently deal damage regardless of enemy resistances.
Leveling and Accessibility: A Warlock for Everyone
The Echoing Strike build seems to have a high gear requirement to get going, so you probably won’t be able to jump right into it when the new ladder season starts. But it won’t take long to get to that point due to the fact that warlocks also happen to have some of the fastest leveling builds as well. Blizzard made a new class that can’t really go wrong with any skill as long as you know what you’re doing.
Warlock vs. The Established Classes: A Surprisingly Close Race
Surprisingly, the gap between warlocks and the older classes isn’t as huge as Diablo 4’s new classes tend to be when they’re fresh out of the oven. Sorceresses and paladins remain competitive, so if being an aged scholar of demons isn’t your thing, you can still blast through the game and see the expansion’s new terror zones and uber boss fight as the other classes. But after 25 years of playing the same stuff, I imagine most people are going to strive the new guy and see how far they can push him.
The Future of Balance: What’s Next for Diablo 2: Resurrected?
Blizzard hasn’t touched warlocks with any balance changes since the launch of the expansion. By the looks of it, there isn’t anything so egregiously broken that needs to be fixed, which is impressive for a class that was designed so long after the others. The most notable quirk is this immortal build by Coooley, but it sacrifices so much damage output for the gimmick that it probably won’t ruin anything.
I’ll be curious to see what kind of balance tweaks Blizzard does eventually build. There’s a world where nothing changes and Diablo 2 players just have to get used to warlocks taking the throne as the top class. I think it’s more likely that Blizzard will knock them down a peg after some of the excitement has died down so it’s not playing whack-a-mole trying to balance a game that wasn’t meant to operate like a live-service joint. Blizzard has said that future expansions aren’t off the table though, so Diablo 2 might be headed for a future where it doesn’t feel so retro after all.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
- What makes the Warlock class unique?
- Warlocks can manipulate demons, imbue weapons with magic damage and utilize a unique passive ability allowing them to wield two-handed weapons alongside offhands like shields and Grimoires.
- What are the three skill trees available to Warlocks?
- The three skill trees are demonic binding, eldritch weapons, and arts of chaos.
- Is the Echoing Strike build beginner-friendly?
- While powerful, the Echoing Strike build requires a significant gear investment to be effective.
Pro Tip: Experiment with different Warlock builds! The class offers versatility, and you might find a playstyle that suits you better than the current meta favorites.
Ready to dive deeper into the world of Diablo 2: Resurrected? Explore more Warlock builds and guides on Icy Veins.
