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Upcoming Beta & PTR Patch

A new patch is bringing several changes to the RoS Closed Beta and PTR.

Originally Posted by Blizzard (Blue Tracker/ Official Forums)

In order to help resolve some critical bugs and implement class tuning changes, we will be pushing out a new Beta and PTR patch later today. This patch will be relatively small, and a miniature patch note update will be provided once the patch is live.

As a result of some testing that will accompany this patch, character progress on the Beta/PTR may be affected. See the below list for details.

• Later this week (after the Beta/PTR patch goes live), we will be performing some tests on our storage system that maintains inactive Diablo III accounts. 
  
  • This may result in the loss of up to 24 hours' worth of progress on the Beta or PTR for some players.
  • We anticipate the number of affected Beta/PTR accounts will be extremely low, and should only impact those who play within a very small window of time.

In addition, shortly after testing has completed, we will be adding an additional wave of new players to the Closed Beta. Keep an eye on your inbox for an invite if you've opted in!
We apologize for any inconvenience and thank you for your continued participation in the Closed Beta and 2.0.1 PTR!

If You Notice A Change NOT In The Patch Notes - Ask

Nevalistis invited anyone who feels like a change was made and not described in the Patch notes, to just go ahead and ask about it on the official forums. Some of the "ninja" changes are bugs, others are really simply missed.

Originally Posted by Blizzard (Blue Tracker/ Official Forums)

- Kriedershot now doesn't generate hatred.

This actually is a bug. We're aware of it, and it should be fixed for the 2.0.1 patch.

- Profane Pauldresn affix straight up removed (ditto the similar bracers). How exactly was this OP?

This wasn't a case of the affix being OP so much that it was a duplicate bonus that landed on the wrong item. It was meant to be a bonus on only the Reaper's Wraps (which also had an issue that was then hot fixed, as noted in our current hotfix list). The Legendaries that suddenly had 4/1 Primary/Secondary stats are a PTR/Beta artifact of making these bug fixes. New versions of these items should properly roll 4/2.

Also bear in mind that not all Legendaries are meant to come with an "orange text" affix. The exchange is that some have higher overall stat roll possibilities, the ability to roll a stat not normally found in that slot, or a guaranteed stat roll that is often at a higher value than normally attainable. Sometimes, it’s a combination of those qualities.

Many other legendaries were given significant internal cooldowns or proc rate reductions.

There were a slew of items that were missing internal cooldowns or had internal cooldowns that weren't functioning at all. 

The majority of these "stealth nerfs" were actually bug fixes, and because there are so, so many of them that happen each patch, some of them get missed in the patch note process – at least for beta. I know that sounds super tinfoil hat-inducing, and that’s not at all the intent. I'm grateful for the opportunity to clarify these things though, and I appreciate the patience while I track down the stray information. We've already made some adjustments to internal communication regarding these kinds of changes for beta notes, which should result in fuller, more robust beta patch notes in the future. =) I’ll also make sure that these fixes are added to the current notes. 

If something doesn't sound or look right, or wasn't in the patch notes, just ask! That's what we're here for. We all pay very close attention to your experiences with each new patch, and if something's not right, we'll make sure the appropriate folks are notified and look into it. As a favor, though, I’d like to request less conclusion-leaping and more “Is this intended?” asking. ;P

Clans and Communities Direction and Parallels With D2

Originally Posted by Blizzard (Blue Tracker/ Official Forums)

Then we only need the old lobby system back so it's actually an online game and not just a mission game with a co-op feature.

Well, the future Clans and Communities feature should offer many of the social elements that some people say they are missing from the old Diablo II lobby system. The Clans and Communities feature will make it much easier for people to come together and form groups based on shared interests and preferred gameplay.

The game market has changed, the number of players has changed, the way they play has changed, there are new concepts, etc. It has been 15 years, things are different now than back then.

This is very true.

This is about the actual game, some ideas from the top of my head:

While I don't really have any comments on your ideas in particular, I do want to thank you for sharing them.
People are more than welcome to post their thoughts on the kind of gameplay they think could be cool to have Diablo III, because such posts often lead to really good discussions with a lot of interesting feedback that we can forward to the developers :-)

Problem with new Clans and Communities is exactly pointed in its name. You have to actually be in that clan or community to see players heroes, roster etc.

I think chat system should be enlarged so that if you are in menus and in said chat channel its full screen and you can see players, interact with their heroes more and have ability to create particular games. Options: monster slaying, brawling, keywarden are very limited and not enough to create full social experience.

Sure, you will need to join a clan and/or communities with other like-minded people with the same interests as you if you want to have easy access to hero rosters and such, which I am sure will require some getting used to for some people, but clans and communities are intended to make it much easier to find and join groups of players that share your interests. For an example, if you are interested in brawling, you will be able to join or create a community focused on that, and everyone who are a part of that community will share a dedicated chat channel and they will have access to tools that will help facilitate and organise brawling groups.

Your feedback on the size of the chat channels is also perfectly valid of course, so if you or anyone else for that matter would like to share your "quality of life woes" with the chat system in general, then please feel free to post more about why it is a "quality of life woe" for you and what you would like to be different if things could be improved upon. We are always looking for "quality of life" feedback :-)

Blizzard Gear Store Grand (Re)Opening!

Originally Posted by Blizzard (Blue Tracker/ Official Forums)

We've recently (re)opened the Blizzard Gear store, and you're invited to shop 'til you drop!

The Blizzard Gear store is the place to go if you're looking for official Diablo, Hearthstone, StarCaft, or World of Warcraft merchandise. We've got tons of cool stuff for sale including official artwork, books and comics, toys and statues, apparel and accessories, and even collectibles from past BlizzCons. Perhaps you're looking for a skateboard branded by the Lord of Terror himself? Well, we've got those right here. 

To celebrate our grand (re)opening, we're offering one hell of a promotion. All you need to do is spend $50 in the Blizzard Gear store and you'll get free standard shipping. . .world-wide!

But wait -- there's more.

A number of select items in the Blizzard Gear store have also been discounted for a limited time. You'll find special prices all over the store, including nice savings on the Alliance t-shirt, the Horde t-shirt, theDiablo III Reaper of Souls backpack, and the Steelseries World of Warcraft wireless MMO gaming mouse. 

  

Portals close soon, and all of our grand (re)opening promotions are set to end on February 17, 2014 at 11:59 p.m. PST.