How much will the Expansion set cost?
The Diablo II Expansion has an expected street price of around
$35.

Will there be a change in the system requirements for the
Expansion set?
No. If you can play Diablo II on your system, you will be able to
play the Expansion set.

Will you be changing the resolution from 640x480?
Yes. Diablo II Lord of Destruction will support 800x600
resolution.

Will the Expansion set have three difficulty levels?
Yes, we will maintain 3 difficulty levels throughout the Expansion
set, as well. It is important to understand that the Expansion is
fundamentally an extension of the current storyline (Act V),
meaning it will be more difficult than Act IV and will ramp up
accordingly with each difficulty level.

Will there be changes to Nightmare and Hell Difficulty?
We are looking at improving the balance at higher difficulty
levels to offer a greater challenge for high-level characters.

Will the expansion set be more difficult for advanced
players?
Diablo II: Lord of Destruction begins where Act IV left off,
so the difficulty will be greater. For the more diligent Diablo II
player, we have increased the challenges in both Nightmare and
Hell difficulty levels, as well as the rewards that can be gained
there.

Will there be a Beta for the Diablo II Expansion?
Diablo II: Lord of Destruction will be tested internally and
with selected beta testers.

How many new music tracks and cinematic sequences will be in the
Expansion set?
There will be 2 new cinematic sequences, as well as all new music
for Act V. Although we do not have the exact timing of these new
pieces as of yet, we are sure that players will be happy with all
aspects of the Expansion set.

Will players who do not have the Expansion set be able to see
those new classes in their games?
People who only have Diablo II will be able to see the two new
character classes represented in their basic armor, much as the
basic Warrior is used to represent the original Diablo in the chat
room. Expansion and standard characters will not be able to play
in the same game, however, which is similar to the restrictions
between Starcraft and Brood War games.

Will players with the Expansion set be able to play in games with
Diablo II players?
Players will be able to play in either Diablo II or Diablo
II: Lord of Destruction games, as long as they have
characters appropriate for that game type. Basically, Diablo II
characters can only play with other Diablo II characters, and
Diablo II: Lord of Destruction characters can only play with
other Diablo II: Lord of Destruction characters.

How will character conversion work?
A character will be created either as a normal Diablo II character
or as a Diablo II: Lord of Destruction character. Existing
Diablo II characters can also be converted into Diablo II:
Lord of Destruction characters. It is important to remember that
Diablo II: Lord of Destruction characters cannot play in
games or trade with Diablo II characters. Finally, Diablo II
players will not be able to play with the new character classes or
use any of the new items or abilities associated with Diablo
II: Lord of Destruction unless they own the expansion set and
use expansion characters.

When you take your Diablo II character into an Expansion game, is
your character permanently converted?
Yes. Because your character may pick up Expansion-only items, you
cannot interact with characters that do not have access to that
artwork. You will be required to "convert" your character prior to
using him in the Expansion, however, so your choice will be an
informed one.

Will characters that are converted over to the Expansion show up
on the ladder?
No. You will need to create a new Expansion character (after a
certain date) to show up on the Expansion ladder. More details
will be available on www.battle.net when Diablo II: Lord of
Destruction is released.

Will there be new quests, if so how many?
Yes, there will be six (6) new quests in Act V.

Will hirelings be improved in the expansion?
Yes -- we have some great new ideas to make the Hirelings much
more useful. These changes are getting some of the best feedback
from our teams here at Blizzard in the current build. For example,
you can drop a potion on hirelings to heal them.

How big is the new Stash?
The new Stash is currently twice the size of the Diablo II Stash.
We have also increased the amount of Gold you can carry in your
Stash.

Will there be new Shrine types?
No.

Will there be new "recipes" for the Horadric Cube?
Yes. We intend to make the Horadric Cube much more useful
throughout the entire game in the Expansion set.

Will the level limit be increased?
The character level limit of 99 will remain the same for the
expansion.

Will the Battle.net interface look different than in Diablo
II?
The interface may undergo some cosmetic changes, but we expect the
functionality to remain consistent.

Will the Diablo II Expansion be on separate servers?
Characters for Diablo II: Lord of Destruction will use the
same database structure and will share space on the existing
Realms. Diablo II characters will not be able to play with the two
new character classes, however, or with original Diablo II
character classes who have been created as Diablo II: Lord of
Destruction characters.

Will the ladder system be changed or updated for the
Expansion?
We will have specific ladders for Diablo II: Lord of
Destruction characters.

Will the Expansion set introduce trading in the chat rooms?
We are not going to support chat room trading between characters.
While it would be a great feature, a host of problems and design
challenges occur (such as what if you don't have enough space)
that actually make trading within the game the easiest means to
exchange items.

Will there be Guild Halls in the Expansion set?
We made a decision not to include in-game Guild Halls in the
Expansion, but at the same time we wanted to include what we
thought were the greatest benefits from the original Guild Hall
concept. This includes a bigger stash size and a few other things
that we want to make available to ALL players of Diablo II, and
not just those core gamers who seek out Guild affiliations. We
know that guilds are an important part of our community and we are
not dismissing their importance. We are instead trying to reach as
many Diablo II players as possible with the widest amount of fun
new content as we can. The goal of the Expansion is to make it a
great addition for new and experienced players as well.

Will the Expansion include Arenas?
At this time Arenas are not a part of the Expansion set.

Will there be any additions to Acts I-IV, such as new caves or
dungeons?
Although Diablo II: Lord of Destruction will not alter the
terrain of Acts I - IV, it will have both new wilderness and
interior areas in Act V.

Can you expand on the enhancements being made to Acts I-IV?
The two new characters start in Act I, so they will have a whole
game's worth of new skills. For the other character types, there
will be new class-specific items; socketable rare, magic, and
Unique items; new Sets; new Horadric Cube recipes; new Jewels and
Runes; and hundreds of new magic properties that combine to make
thousands of new items.

Will I have to play through the game again to access the new
Expansion Act?
No, you can take your existing character directly to Act V if you
have already defeated Diablo. This is true for each difficulty
level you have completed.

What is the process for entering Act V?
After you kill Diablo, Tyreal will appear and, after setting the
stage for the continuing storyline, will open a Portal for your
character.

How big is Act V in comparison to the rest of the game?
The fifth act is roughly the size of Act I or II (but not as big
as Act III or as small as Act IV) from Diablo II.

Will there be new Hirelings in Act V?
Yes -- you will be able to hire Barbarians.

Will the Vendors in Act V sell new items?
While we are not creating any new basic item classes, the vendors
in Act V will sell the best equipment from Act III and IV.

Will Mana potions or rejuvenation potions be sold by the Act V
vendors?
No.

Will there be falling snow in Act V?
Yes.

Will Natalya be an NPC in Act V?
Although Natalya herself will not be an NPC in the game, we
thought it would be nice to show you that Assassins existed in our
world concept even when Diablo II came out.

Will you be required to complete Act V before moving onto the
Nightmare difficulty level? Will converted characters still
move onto Nightmare after Act IV, or will they now need to
complete Act V?
Characters that can already adventure in Nightmare or Hell
difficulties will still be able to do so after converting to
expansion characters. Any characters that are originally created
as Diablo II: Lord of Destruction characters (regardless of
class) will need to complete Act V before moving on to the higher
difficulty levels.

What happens when I use the Act V Quest Reward "Personalize"?
Personalize adds your character name to any item, such as
"Stormchaser's Frostburn Gauntlets"

Does Baal look the same in game as he does in the Teaser
cinematic?
Yes and No. Baal is undergoing a metamorphosis, much as the
Wanderer did in Diablo II, and this is represented in his evolving
look in the cinematic sequences and the game.