Paragon System to be released with next Diablo III patch

Blizzard is adding a new way to play Diablo III, in attempts to bring players back and continue to play once they’ve reached level 60.

The new addition is – called the ‘Paragon System’ – which adds 100 additional levels for players to push through once they’ve reached Diablo 3‘s current level max. The addition arrives in update 1.0.4, and all experience gained after level 60 will be placed toward the new system. With each new level obtained in the Paragon system, players will get a boost in core stats such as Dexterity, Strength, Vitality, and Intelligence. As well as a 3% boot in magic and finding gold.

“It can be demoralizing to play for an hour, not get any drops, and also be out a big chunk of gold from repair costs. Your play session may not only end without an upgrade, it can wind up being a net loss,” game director Jay Wilson wrote on the official blog post revealing the changes. “We know that a lot of you out there are level 60 – maybe on multiple characters – and this system provides a way to make progress every time you log in to the game.”

Under the new system, Nephalem Valor bonuses give players a 15% boost in experience toward Paragon levels per stack. In comparison to Diablo 2, Wilson says that reaching the maximum Paragon level approximates the “long-term investment required to get a level 99 character” in the franchise’s previous installment.

The goal with the new Paragon system according to Blizzard, is to have top-tier players slowly “transition away” from their reliance on magic find on items in a way that wouldn’t “flip the entire game end-over end.” Magic find will be capped to 300% before Nephalem Valor, meaning players will hit the cap once they reach Paragon level 100 – which will allow players to slowly remove those items over time.

There is no official word on when the update will launch, however as a player who is stuck at level 60, I can say I am certainly looking forward to returning once again and playing the game.