Season 1 looms, and the hunt begins: sharpen your builds, prune the grind, and prep for world-shaking changes Blizzard just teased before the season drops.
Complete the campaign
Finish all main quests and side content from the campaign before Season 1 launches. This clears your save file for seasonal characters, letting you jump straight into new content without baggage. Bosses like Uber Lilith drop key items only once per character, so claim them now for permanent use across seasons. Wrap it up to avoid roadblocks later.
The most important thing for you to do in Diablo 4 before season 1: Complete the campaign. If you’ve unlocked the Tree of Whispers and seen the credits, you’re in good shape. If not, get back in there and finish up the story before July 20.
There are a couple reasons for this. First, you literally need to complete the campaign in order to access any of the new seasonal content in Season of the Malignant or any future seasons. Second, and almost as important, is that the story for this season takes place after the main campaign. And while Blizzard has confirmed that seasons will just be side stories, there will likely be spoilers for Lilith and Inarius’ lovers quarrel.
Finally, finishing the campaign once on any character will give you the ability to instantly skip the campaign on all subsequent characters. That includes seasonal characters, so you can jump right into the new stuff at level 1 when Season of the Malignant starts.
Unlock your horse
To free your horse in Diablo 4’s season 1, complete the main campaign or skip it via the world map option if you qualify. Head to the stable master in Kyovashad, located near the central waypoint. Speak to him and select the horse release prompt to claim your mount right away, letting you gallop across Sanctuary without delay.
If you’ve finished the Diablo 4 campaign, chances are you already have the horse and can bypass this section. But while you do get the horse quest from the campaign, unlocking your steed is technically a side quest, and you can miss it if you aren’t paying close enough attention.
Much like the campaign, unlocking your horse on one character will allow you to use the horse at level 1 on all subsequent characters. You’re going to need a fast way around Sanctuary when you’re leveling up in season 1, and the horse is easily the best way to travel in Diablo 4.
Uncover the entire map
Before the season begins, make sure you’ve revealed every corner of the map. Having all waypoints, strongholds, and towns accessible saves time during leveling and seasonal events. Completing the map not only improves travel speed but also grants renown rewards that boost skill points and potion capacity-advantages that can give you a smoother start once the new content drops.
Blizzard made some big changes to its original plans when it comes to the region-wide Renown system, and some aspects of your Diablo world will actually carry over from the Eternal Realm (the non-seasonal part of the game) and seasons.
The biggest and most important thing here is the map. When you first start Diablo 4, you have to spend a bunch of time riding around the map and uncovering every area in order to make your map functional and collect a bunch of Renown.
Starting in Season of the Malignant, your map progress will carry over to your seasonal characters. So if you’re missing a few spots on your map, that’s something you can fix now to make navigation a little more convenient and give yourself a significant bump to your Renown on July 20.
Grab every Altar of Lilith
Tackle every Altar of Lilith to secure rare rewards, refine your build, and fuel your season journey with new power as you progress through Diablo 4’s launch content.
In a similar vein to the map, any Altars of Lilith you find will carry over into the following season. This is another pretty significant change from Blizzard, as originally the permanent buffs to stats from the altars would propagate to your entire account, but the Renown would not.
Starting in season 1, however, all Altars of Lilith will remain unlocked when starting a new character. This means that you can find all of them now to ensure that you start out with a massive chunk of Renown for your seasonal character on day one.
These are absolute must-have collectibles for any serious Diablo 4 players, as they actually do increase your character’s power. Consult our guides if you need help finding the Altars of Lilith in the Fractured Peaks, Scosglen, the Dry Steppes, Kehjistan, or Hawezar.
Pick a class
Each Diablo 4 class offers a different playstyle, so choose one that fits how you like to fight. Barbarians deliver raw melee power, Sorcerers rain elemental destruction from afar, and Rogues strike fast with precision and traps. Necromancers command undead armies, while Druids blend shapeshifting with nature’s wrath. Test a few builds early, keep your playtime goals in mind, and pick a class that keeps the game fun throughout the season.
This is something you won’t be able to do in-game, but is equally important as everything else on this list.
One of the best parts about the seasonal reset and making a new character every three months is the opportunity to check out a different class or playstyle. Maybe you played Barbarian at launch, and now you want to mix it up as a spell caster like the Sorcerer. Maybe you’re sick of being a squishy Rogue and want to get dangerous with the shapeshifting Druid. It’s good to have an idea of what you want to play before July 20 rolls around so you’re not stuck with class choice indecision on the big day.
Of course there’s absolutely nothing wrong with sticking to the same class every season. If that’s what you’re all about, it might be a fun idea to theory craft some different builds you’d like to try on your character just to shake up your experience as much as you can.
How to complete Diablo 4 Season 1 questline fast
Complete Diablo 4’s Season 1 questline, centered on the Malignant theme and Cormond’s storyline, in about 1-2 hours by prioritizing efficiency and skipping optional content. Focus on the main chain starting after creating your seasonal character and speaking to Cormond near the Tree of Whispers in Hawezar.
Starting the Questline
Head directly to Cormond outside Orbei Monastery in Hawezar after the intro cutscene-skip campaign if previously completed on Eternal Realm for instant access to Malignant mechanics. Craft your first Brutal Malignant Invoker at his workbench using a Malignant Heart from any enemy or outgrowth, then defeat the ambush and enter the Crypts of Orbei to kill Varshan the Consumed.
Key Quest Steps
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Collect Crusader Missives, Paladin Prayer Book, and Tithe Ledger near Zarbinzet landmarks (Crusader’s Monument, Eriman’s Pyre, Zakarum Belfry).
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Meet Cormond at Zakarum Ruins, perform the Sign of the Light ritual at statues, clear Karamat’s Reach, and slay spirits.
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Finish at Velkhova Church Undercroft: defend the ritual, kill Varshan again, and capture his heart for the Invoker recipe.
Speed Tips
Combine with Season Journey Chapter 1 and 2 progress (e.g., dungeons, events, Malignant Tunnels) by grouping nearby objectives like Helltides or world events during travel. Use a mobile class like Rogue for quick clears, elixirs for XP boosts, and waypoints for fast repositioning-avoid side content unless it overlaps.
Chapter 1 Season Journey objectives
Diablo 4 Season 1’s Chapter 1 of the Season Journey requires completing 7 out of 9 objectives to unlock rewards and progress. These focus on early-game activities like gathering, exploration, and basic crafting.
Objectives List
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Kind Stranger: Complete 5 priority or side quests.
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The Hangman’s Garden: Collect 15 Gallowvine, found nearly anywhere in the world.
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Trouble in the Wilds: Complete a World Event marked on your map.
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Waste Not: Salvage 10 Normal items at the Blacksmith.
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What Lurks Below: Complete 1 Cellar.
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Den of Evil: Complete any Dungeon.
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Heart of Corruption: Collect 1 Malignant Heart (unlocks after campaign or skip).
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Lighting the Way: Interact with 10 waypoints.
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A Warrior of Taste: Change gear appearance 5 times at the Wardrobe.
Completion Tips
Prioritize overlapping tasks like dungeons and cellars during leveling, as they count toward multiple goals. Skip gathering if needed, since only 7 are required. Rewards include a First Journey Cache, class-specific Aspects (e.g., Ancestral Charge for Barbarian), and Favor for Battle Pass progress.
