Diablo 3's first expansion pack, Reaper of Souls, does not have a release date yet, but that hasn't stopped developer Blizzard from discussing details about the expansion. Recently, at the the company's two-day extravaganza Blizzcon, senior game designer Andrew Chambers explained the new class of character and the new artisan being added to the game.
As IGN reported, Chambers talked about the origin story of the new character class, the Crusader, and how the class fits into the story of Diablo 3:
"He comes from a long line of Crusaders that work their way back to the Paladin order...They come from a similar starting point, being part of the Zakarum church, but ages ago, they broke off. They're this elite group of Paladins that were never affected by the fall of the Paladin order or the Zakarum church. Now they're back in Sanctuary and they're going to cleanse the living heck out of it."
The senior game designer also explained the different items that make the Crusader unique and how they will work in terms of gameplay:
"He can use all of the armor and weapons that everyone else has, except for the class-specific stuff...He has two class-specific items that are brand new for Reaper of Souls. The Crusader shield, which tends to be this massive, towering thing, almost as big as him, this sort of thing that can hold off demons just by planting it in the ground and he goes off and has a tankard of ale or something. And he also has flails. One-handed and two-handed versions of that. The great thing about the flail with the Crusader is that it has this very nasty element to it. There are these morning stars on a chain, you know? He can sweep them. It really speaks well to his mid-range ability, having this thing that can scourge and reap through enemies."
Finally, Chambers explained how the new Mystic artisan will be used in Reaper of Souls and what her responsibilities will be:
"For the Mystic, we're introducing enchanting...With this system, say you're a Barbarian, and you get a ring, and it has 'increased life on hit' on it. But all your other items are stacked with 'increased life on hit.' You don't actually need more of that. So you take it to Myriam, you give it to her, and for a fee, of course, because nothing's free, she will allow you to re-roll that into one of a set of others. You can maybe turn that into 'resist all.' That gives you the ability to customize your items as you're getting them. It's really potent."
It looks as though the Crusader and Mystic will add another big layer to the Diablo 3 experience and change the way veteran players approach the game whenever it is released.