The Fallen Ones of Diablo II (you can read more about them on Diablofans.Com Wiki) have returned for Diablo III! I'm sure many, if not all of you are familiar with the impish little devils - running away the instant one of their comrades have fallen. And I'm sure we can all recall fighting their leader in Act I, Rakanishu, whose name they chant incessantly, and probably having been slain, ourselves, at some point by his Lightning Enchantment.
Well, as per a post in our Dev Tracker, the creatures have made their official comeback:
Quote: Originally Posted by Bashiok "The Diablo III bestiary has been updated with a demon family you may recognize - The Fallen Ones!
"When unleashed upon our realm by their master, Azmodan, these impish terrors display a tendency to swarm like flesh-hungry locusts, and they have been known to tear apart a sleeping village in minutes. Small of stature and simian in appearance, these creatures possess surprising strength and unnatural agility. Other than feasting on human flesh, the only act that gives these unspeakable horrors pleasure is breeding; hence the tendency to encounter them in large packs."
Visit http://www.Diablo3.com for the full bestiary update, including concept art, screen shots, and video!" There are now 5 different kinds of Fallen Ones:
Imps - These are the commonest of the fallen family of demons. They are the stereotypical fallen ones in look and behavior: small, red, swarming, bloodthirsty, and cowardly.
Shaman - Fallen shaman priests lead camps of fallen. I have also heard it rumored that they possess the ability to raise imps from the dead!
Lunatic - These enraged, oversized fallen creatures are bloated seemingly to the point of bursting, an impression buttressed by the fact that these insane demons rush their intended victims and then stab themselves until they explode. A more fitting name could not be found for these maniacal beings.
Overseer - The fallen overseer drives his smaller impish charges into a frenzy with his ape-like leaping and growling. An overseer among a group of fallen is a dangerous thing, as the cowardice that usually characterizes them is overwhelmed by fear of their much larger brethren.
Hounds - These slobbering abominations are commonly found among groups of the fallen and are utilized as guard animals, beasts of burden, or even food by their demonic masters. These beasts are loyal to a fault, regardless of the abuse heaped upon them.
You can see their glorious new page on the official Diablo III site here: http://www.blizzard.com/diablo3/worl.....;/thefallen.xml. There's tons of new artwork and lore crammed in there- I'd encourage everyone to check it out!
How does everyone feel about these things returning in the world of Diablo again? It does make sense since there were so many of them in Diablo II. I'd wager they'll probably multiply like bunnies. Thoughts? Comments?
Today, Blizzard has recently posted on the online client for Diablo II a blatant charge against cheaters and hackers of all types and sizes, promising higher standards and a scrutiny to out-do what in years past has been nothing but a laughable, vague shell of enforcement:
Quote: Originally Posted by Blizzard Wednesday, May 20, 2009 Blizzard Entertainment feels very strongly about cheating over Battle.net. We Believe that multiplayer cheats and hacks undermine the basic rules of fair play and weaken ansy sense of true competition and online gaming enjoyment. We would like to remind everybody that the use of any third-party software in conjunction with the game to modify Battle.net and/or change game play may result in account closures and a possible suspension of access to Battle.net. Third-party software may include, but is not limited to any program that allows you to run multiple instances of the game at the same time, cheats, hacks, and/or bots. To continue our agressive stance on cheats/hacks, we will be monitoring Custom games as well as Ladder games on Battle.net.
Some important questions arise from this. In light of the recent announcement of patch 1.13 for Diablo II and the fact that one of the main focuses of the patch is player input, something on the top of every player's mind is Battle.net cheating, hacking, and security. For many years, most of us have done nothing but laugh at Battle.net and Blizzard's meager attempts at establishing any form of control over their free internet play client. Now, it seems, things may be taking a turn for the better.
Does anyone believe that this may, in fact, be something more than an announcement in light of current goings-on? Could something of value in this respect be coming with the impending patch 1.13?
It would make a lot of sense, seeing as Blizzard has announced also that the patch would be tested on a private testing realm:
Quote: Originally Posted by Bashiok Some exciting news - and it also may be some comfort - due to the types of changes we're making we will be offering the Diablo II 1.13 patch for testing and feedback on a test realm before its release. We'll have more information about how you'll be able to help test it in the coming weeks. (Source: http://www.diablofans.com/forums/showthread.php?t=18744.)
Something of this nature would be best done in such a way, especially if they are wanting to clean up players' acts on Diablo II and want to effectively cover as much ground as possible to stop hacking and cheating.
What are everyone else's thoughts on this? Could this really be Blizzard taking the first real stance in their fight against cheaters in nearly a decade or is this just another blast of hot air? Will this be something to be implemented in patch 1.13?
Discuss what you think about this new Blizzcast which is supposed to be almost exclusively about Diablo 3.
Here are the four new Diablo 3 images that were included with BlizzCast 8 which primarily showcase the inventory system:
(click any of the above images to enlarge)
I (mockery) particularly like the little details, such as the difference in the stitching around the borders depending on whether you have a bag or a burlap sack selected. The inventory system as a whole looks really sharp if you ask me. What do you think about it?
Note: Thanks Blizzard for updates and Diablofans for compiling all the information.
Blizzard has unveiled a new design for Battle.net complete with new features and functionality. The development of a "new Battle.net" has been hinted at for a long time in anticipation for the upcoming releases of both Starcraft II and Diablo III.
The new Battle.net is an upgrade to all preexisting Blizzard Accounts tied to Starcraft, Diablo 2, and Warcraft 3. Owners of World of Warcraft have an option to merge all of their accounts to the new service.
Be sure to check out the new Battle.net Account FAQ too, as it may answer many of your questions regarding the new system.
Now here's something completely different! Blizzard has just announced a new Theme Park Contest. They want you to design your own ideas of how a Blizzard theme park would look. In addition to some great prizes including a Wacom Cintiq and Starcraft 2 beta keys, some of the best entries will be put on display at BlizzCon 2009!
Quote: "Step right up, and take a ride on Onyxia's Revenge -- a wild, whelp-filled roller coaster through the depths of the nefarious dragon's lair! Head to Koprulu Food Court and grab yourself a Zerger Burger -- then don your Horadric Poncho, and prepare to get soaked in a rain of fire on Diablo's River of Flame!
What thrills would you seek in the Blizzard Entertainment theme park of your dreams? This is your chance to show us.
We're challenging you to design and illustrate your own Blizzard Entertainment Theme Park, including roller coasters, water rides, shows, shopping areas, food courts, game areas, patrons, and whatever fantastic attractions you desire.
Submit your original park design by March 30, 2009, and we'll choose our favorites based on the creativity of the design, artistic technique (including the medium and style), and how your park reflects the lore and spirit of Blizzard Entertainment's games.
You can submit illustrations that look like theme-park maps, compose your park to look like a screenshot from a game, or create whatever kind of park you wish -- the only limit is your imagination. Winning entries will be featured on Blizzard Entertainment websites around the world as well as at BlizzCon 2009, being held in Anaheim, California on August 21 and 22. The park designer who most creatively incorporates the StarCraft, Warcraft, and Diablo universes will receive a Wacom Cintiq 12WX Digitizing Tablet, a pair of StarCraft II beta keys, and more." So what do you think? This is a pretty random contest for them and I definitely can't wait to see the results, but it raises some questions. Is this their way of hinting that we'll maybe see Blizzard's own version of Disneyland some day? After all, BlizzCon is held in Anaheim right near Disneyland. Coincidence? Or perhaps this is for something more along the lines of a new game like RollerCoaster Tycoon? Oh how the mind loves to wonder about such things...
Click here to visit the official Blizzard Theme Park Contest page.
Blizzard has just announced Blizzcon 2009! Here's the Press Release
QUOTE
Blizzard Entertainment® gaming celebration to return to Anaheim Convention Center on August 21-22
Blizzard Entertainment, Inc. today announced plans for its fourth BlizzCon® gaming convention, to be held at the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim, California on Friday, August 21 and Saturday, August 22. BlizzCon is a celebration of the global player communities surrounding Blizzard Entertainment®';s Warcraft®, StarCraft®, and Diablo® universes. In response to the festival's increasing popularity, this year's event has been expanded from three convention halls to four.
"We've been amazed by the incredible response to each of our previous BlizzCon events," said Mike Morhaime, CEO and cofounder of Blizzard Entertainment. "We're pleased to be bringing the convention back to Anaheim this year, and we look forward to this new opportunity to meet Blizzard gamers from around the world."
BlizzCon will offer a wide variety of activities throughout the two-day event. In addition to serving as a gathering place for Blizzard Entertainment gaming communities, attendees will be able to enjoy:
• Hands-on play time with upcoming Blizzard Entertainment games • Discussion panels with Blizzard Entertainment developers • Competitive and casual tournaments for players to showcase their talents • Community contests with great prizes • Commemorative merchandise based on Blizzard Entertainment's game universes • A silent auction • More exciting activities and attractions to be announced
Further details, including ticket availability and pricing, will be announced on the official BlizzCon website, http://www.blizzcon.com, as the event draws closer.
To keep pace with the continued growth of World of Warcraft as well as development on other Blizzard Entertainment games, the company is currently hiring for numerous open positions. More information on available career opportunities can be found at http://eu.blizzard.com/en/jobs/.
This video interview with Leonard Boyarsky, provided by Gamestar.de, goes over more in-depth about runes, Battle.net info, and gameplan with Diablo 3, along with additional awesome gameplay footage of Diablo 3. Information provided by gamestar.de
This post is from Diablofans.com. I've really enjoyed how they have been compiling all the latest Diablo 3 information and their latest Wiki pages look awesome. Stop by their site when you can. Below is a post from their forums.
We've really had great success so far on our Wiki! Thank you to everyone who has been involved and has posted something useful! The Diablo 3 Section of the Wiki is full of new delicious information, the total article count for the Wiki is over 630 as of this morning. If you haven't seen it yet be sure and check it out.
We've taken the liberty of breaking down the three new classes, Barbarian, Witch Doctor, and Wizard, in a guide to display some of the currently known information available on them, including available skills, origin information, and newly released graphics. Thanks again to our dedicated users for posting this information! This will probably be info that many of you have already seen, but it will also get you poking around the Wiki a bit, so here it is:
New Classes for Diablo 3:
Barbarian
When Diablo III was announced in Paris on June 28, 2008, it was the Barbarian that starred in the new gameplay demonstration. Showing that the class would still specialize in brute force, the speaker played a video of the Barbarian, dual-wielding weapons and buried in heavy armor, grinding its way through dozens of enemies at a time in the bowels of a dungeon.
Unlike in the previous game, where the Barbarian was a strictly male character, players will be able to choose its sex in the upcoming game. Beyond that, though, not much is known about how similar or different the Barbarian of Diablo III will be than its predecessor.
Witch Doctor
The Witch Doctor seems loosely based on the real-world Voodoo practitioners. The males are depicted as frail old men having a hunched back and always shaking their head due to their physical weakness. However, they possess great spiritual and manipulative powers as seen in the gameplay video. They can be seen easily controlling the minds of their enemies, raising the dead without the use of corpses and lobbing alchemical projectiles at unwary victims.
The female Witch Doctor seems much younger, capable of walking without a hunch. It may be noted that both the male and female Witch Doctors have a distinctly purple color-scheme in their equipment. Although this may be just to show them off during the gameplay video. The male Witch Doctor is also the first shown character showing the new elemental damage type, Arcane. In keeping with his purple color-scheme, he is shown holding a sword imbued with Arcane damage glowing in a purplish glow.
It is also notable that both of them have been shown wearing stereotypical Voodoo masks. It is unknown whether normal helms look like that when equipped on them or if they are class-specific items.
The Wizard Only the female Wizard's backstory has been revealed until now. She has her origins in the Island nation of Xiansai confirming that Xiansai is indeed an Asian civilization by her striking Asian features. The male Wizard's concept art depicts him as wearing some sort of middle-eastern desert attire, which may suggest that he has originated from the sands of Aranoch, the ancestral home of both of his predecessors and the great Vizjerei mage clan.
The female Wizard has been depicted as an uncouth and rebellious figure, always wanting to learn more, be it in ways best left to those that are considered nefarious. She is headstrong and will go to any means to get what she wants. But she does not speak unknowingly. She knows that her innate powers can decimate the opposition, even providing a tough challenge to the Vizjerei Premier, Valthek, who found her in the Ancient Repositories beneath the Yshari Sanctum, the ancient and arcane library of the Mage Clans. She delved deeper into the arcane ways, wielding powers that were not supposed to be wielded, like Arcane magics and Temporal distortion along with the mage favorites of Ice and Lightning with equal ease.
JayOfTeror Diablo III Forums Information 
