Blizzard has released Diablo 4 patch 2.5.2, adding The Tower endgame mode and a Leaderboards system. Both features are launching in Beta. The update also fixes a long list of Paladin bugs and restores Spiritborn balance changes that were accidentally reverted.
Patch 2.5.2 went live January 12 on Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, and PC.
The Tower Opens for Season 11
The Tower is Diablo 4's new competitive endgame activity. Players fight through randomized floors filled with different monster families, racing against a timer. Each run ends with a boss fight that must be completed to finish the attempt.
Getting in requires Rank 2 of Season Rank. After that, players can enter through the Obelisk in Cerrigar on the Seasonal Realm.
Tower Tiers unlock the same way Pit Tiers do, so anyone who's already pushed through The Pit won't need extra grinding. Blizzard is positioning The Tower as the game's competitive mode, with cosmetic rewards instead of power upgrades.
Monster and Boss Tuning
Blizzard made several changes since the Season 11 PTR. Monster populations now provide fairer fights for both ranged and melee builds. Bosses no longer heal themselves or turn invisible, and their health pools now match Pit Boss values.
Pylon Changes
The Pylon system got a major overhaul. There's no longer a delay between breaking a Pylon Cage and activating the Pylon inside. Pylons themselves have less health now, making them faster to destroy. Spawn order has also been adjusted to prevent unlucky rolls.
Individual Pylon changes:
Pylon of Power: Damage multiplier dropped from 4x to 3x.
Pylon of Speed: Grants +50% Attack Speed. Players can also Knockdown enemies they pass through.
Pylon of Channeling and Shrine of Channeling: Now gives resource per second, helping builds that burn through resources and don't benefit from Cost Reduction.
Orb Drops
Orbs drop immediately when monsters die instead of waiting for effects that trigger after death like Fire Enchanted explosions or spider mechanics. If an orb drops near a player, it appears closer to them to cut down on backtracking. Distant orbs still drop at the enemy's corpse.
Quality of Life
Dying no longer respawns players on the previous floor. Exit portals now spawn closer to the player when a run ends.
Leaderboards
Leaderboards launch alongside The Tower, tracking player performance in the new mode. Rankings are based on how well players handle monsters and bosses during their runs.
Each of the seven classes gets its own leaderboard: Paladin, Rogue, Druid, Barbarian, Sorcerer, Necromancer, and Spiritborn. Players compete within their own class rather than against everyone.
Rankings reset every two weeks instead of lasting an entire season. This gives players regular fresh starts while Blizzard works out the kinks during Beta.
The schedule:
- Round 1: January 12, 11:00 a.m. PST to January 26, 11:00 a.m. PST
- Round 2: January 26, 11:00 a.m. PST to February 9, 11:00 a.m. PST
Additional rounds follow the same pattern. After the final round, The Tower and Leaderboards go offline until next season. Everything shuts down the day before Season of the Divine Intervention ends.
Blizzard noted this schedule could change during the Beta period.
Paladin Bug Fixes
Paladins received the largest share of fixes in this patch. Multiple issues have plagued the class since its Vessel of Hatred debut, and 2.5.2 clears up many of them.
Flail Affixes Fixed
A bug prevented Flails from rolling or being enchanted with several key affixes. That's now fixed. Flails can properly drop with:
- Critical Strike Damage
- Damage
- Bonus Damage over Time
- Damage to Vulnerable enemies
- Overpower Damage
- Lucky Hit to Gain Resource
Skill Fixes
Shield Charge now properly hits nearby enemies. Players no longer get stuck when using Advance on right mouse button with March of the Stalwart equipped.
The Rite of Mercy upgrade for Holy Light no longer makes Paladins untargetable by Spiritborn's Toxic Skin Passive in PvP. Falling Star (with Freefall) and Rally (with Words of Sacrifice) now generate Resolve correctly when Aspect of Valiance is equipped. That Aspect can also be imprinted on the right equipment slots now.
Casting Falling Star toward a Fog Wall no longer sends players out of bounds.
Passive and Paragon Fixes
The Renewal passive was giving healing instead of Fortify. It now grants Fortify as intended. The Strength node next to the Ironclad Rare node on the Castle Paragon Board was incorrectly tagged as magic instead of normal. That's been corrected.
Other Paladin Fixes
Paladins no longer get stuck while climbing. Screen Reader support now properly reads Paladin Unique Icons on items.
Spiritborn Balance Restored
Spiritborn buffs from Season of Infernal Chaos got accidentally rolled back. Patch 2.5.2 restores them:
Skills:
- Rampant Crushing Hand: Damage bonus up from 3% to 5%, max bonus from 24% to 40%
- The Devourer: Line damage up from 140% to 200%, Spit damage from 40% to 95%
- Harmonious Devourer: Poison bonus doubled from 50% to 100%
Key Passive:
- Vital Strikes: Vulnerable damage bonus up from 80% to 100%
Paragon:
- In Fighter: Damage bonus doubled from 15% to 30%
- Viscous Shield: Stacking bonus up from 1% to 2%
- Bitter Medicine: Poison bonus up from 40% to 60%
- Revealing: Damage bonus up from 15% to 30%, max from 30% to 60%
Spiritborn players can also use the Armory before unlocking Spirit Halls now.
Executioner's Affix Pulled
Blizzard disabled the Executioner's affix due to an audio bug. Players know this one as "the falling swords" affix, and it returns in a later update with some changes.
When it comes back, a one second spawn cooldown will prevent multiple swords from spawning when killing large groups at once. The tracking period is also gone, so swords fall immediately instead of following players.
General Fixes
Dungeons and The Pit
The Hellfire Adherent boss in Hellish Descent can no longer escape the boss arena. An exploit letting players skip minor boss encounters in Capstone Dungeons by quickly leaving the arena has been closed.
Leave Dungeon no longer teleports players to the first floor of Vault of the Crucible instead of outside. Endless enemy spawns on the second floor of Enclave of Darkness have been stopped. World map teleports to Hellish Descent now go to the right location.
Guardian's Lair Portals in The Pit no longer spawn in unreachable spots. Belial can't be damaged before fully spawning anymore. Spinning hazards in parts of Vault of the Crucible have been removed entirely.
Map and Interface
Locked Capstone Dungeons now appear on the map with tooltips explaining unlock requirements. Trying to sanctify an item that can't be sanctified now tells players why.
Essence of Hellfire
Meteors from Essence of Hellfire now only deal damage over time. The instant damage and Stun effects are gone. Blizzard's developer note says this power will be turned back on with the patch release.
Gameplay
Druids can now use the Armory before unlocking Spirit Boons. A bug causing old renown rewards for extra potion charges to stick around has been fixed.
Elite Monsters with Soul Drinker Affix could scale infinitely, growing massive and eventually unkillable. That's fixed now. Mounts breaking through barriers with Spur works more reliably.
UI Fixes
Greater Affixes keep their colored text after Masterworking. The duplicated boss health bar when fighting Entwined Souls in Enclave of Darkness is gone. Toughness displays correctly when comparing items. The Poison Enchanted visual effect no longer lingers after the damage ends.
Accessibility
Screen Reader now properly reads buttons in the Season Rank menu.
Miscellaneous
Controller players no longer accidentally summon Azmodan again when trying to grab loot after killing him. The patch also includes various stability, performance, and visual improvements.
Mother's Blessing Returns
The Mother's Blessing event is live alongside the patch, granting bonus XP and gold for a limited time. Players gearing up for The Tower can use the extra rewards to push their builds.
Beta Feedback
Blizzard wants community input to shape The Tower and Leaderboards. The team is focusing on difficulty tuning, mechanics improvements, monster variety, and new rewards throughout the Beta period.
Feedback and bug reports go to the dedicated Tower and Leaderboards subforum on the official Diablo IV Forums. More features will roll into future seasons as development continues.
What's Next
Diablo 4's next expansion, Lord of Hatred, arrives April 28. A prequel novel, Diablo 4: The Lost Horadrim, launches April 21 and is available for preorder now.
With Mother's Blessing running and Paladin/Spiritborn fixes in place, Season 11 players have a solid window to push builds and compete on the new Leaderboards.
