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October 22 2010

As expected, Blizzard revealed the newest Diablo III class at Blizzcon yesterday.  Though not entirely unique, the Demon Hunter still appears to be a very interesting part of the Diablo lore.

From Diablo III’s Demon Hunter page:

I have just returned from my travels on the edge of the frozen wasteland known as the Dreadlands, a once-beautiful place forever changed by some great calamity in its history. Now, only ruined cities and bleak landscapes remain, no place for any living thing. I was headed for the village of Bronn for the night, but when I arrived, I found a scene of devastation such as I had never seen before. I should have fled at the first sign of danger, but my curiosity drove me forward. Most of the town’s buildings had been burnt to their foundations, and a few charred timbers were the only sign of where they had once stood. Ash choked my lungs. There were bodies strewn everywhere, many dismembered and some even half consumed. The city was abandoned.

Or so I thought.

From the husk of the inn, one of the few buildings still standing, monstrous, gray-skinned creatures burst forth, shouting in some infernal tongue. They were masses of misshapen flesh, of sinewy muscle made for battle. Helpless, I stood frozen as they drew close. The one in the lead seized me by the front of my cloak and lifted me from the ground, its claws tearing through fabric and skin. Its breath was hot on my face, and I was assaulted by the putrid smell of rotten flesh. Its mouth yawned wide, and I saw rows of sharpened teeth, yellowed and stained with blood. I thought only of the shame that my voice would be silenced, never to illuminate another of the wonders of our world for you, my loyal readers.

A sharp sound whistled by my ear, and a crossbow bolt sprouted from the eye of the beast before me, spraying my face with its burning blood. It howled an inhuman cry of pain and threw me to the ground, grabbing at the quarrel. The other creatures scanned for this unseen attacker, and I was forgotten for the moment. From the ground at their feet, I tore my head around to see where the bolt had come from.

That was when I saw a demon hunter for the first time.

The girl could have been no more than twenty. She emerged from the shadows cast by the setting sun and wasted no time in dispatching the rest of my attackers. Her hands worked twin crossbows, launching a glowing arc of flaming bolts over my head, blanketing the hulking monsters. Every shot found its mark in one of the horned beasts, felling the lot of them. From the corner of my eye, I saw more of the savage brutes sneaking up on her from behind. My voice froze in my throat as I tried to scream a warning. I needn’t have worried: she was not unaware. The hunter reached into her belt and rolled a trio of strange metal spheres into their path. The monsters looked down just as the contraptions exploded into light and flame, stunning them. It gave her enough time to round on them, her crossbows dispatching them one by one.

With a last look over the town, apparently satisfied that no danger remained for her, she came forward, shaking her head sadly. There was a look of profound disappointment on her face as she returned the crossbows to her sides, hidden by the folds of her cloak.

“No survivors,” she said bitterly.

They call themselves the demon hunters, a group of fanatical warriors sworn to a single purpose: the destruction of the creatures of the Burning Hells. The demon hunters number in the hundreds and make their home in the Dreadlands so that they can live and train without the interference of any nation that would worry over having such a fearsome group camped within its borders (though at any time over half are dispatched across the world like this girl, seeking hellspawn). There is something in all demon hunters that gives them the strength to resist the demonic corruption that would drive lesser men to madness. They hone this power, for their resistance to this taint enables them to use the demons’ power as a weapon. But their mission and their power are not all that bind them together.

That night, the girl told me of her life, about how, as a child, the demons had descended upon her town. She had watched as demons destroyed her home, setting her village to the torch. They murdered everyone she knew and stole from her everyone she loved. She should have died with them, but she fled, hiding from the hellspawn for days until she was found by a demon hunter who saw the strength in her and took her in as one of their own. Each and every demon hunter, she told me, has a story like this.

They are the survivors, and they are searching for vengeance.

Personally, I would have liked something more original (they even borrowed the name from their Warcraft series, though we’ve seen this before with classes from both IPs).  The Demon Hunter is essentially a reskinned Amazon from Diablo II, without the javelin.  She can use grenades in addition to her crossbows, giving her some D2 Assassin abilities (the Assassin’s traps served a lot of the same functions which the Demon Hunter’s grenades appear to have).

She’ll also have an AoE borrowed directly from World of Warcraft’s Rogue class; Fan of Knives.

Her other abilities (as of now) are; Molten Arrow, Bola and Entangling Shot.

It may sound as though I’m complaining about the class, however that’s actually the furthest thing from the truth.  Certainly, I would have liked a truly original class, however it doesn’t appear as though we will get that from any of the classes.  Even the Witch Doctor borrows from many of the Necromancer’s abilities from D2.

That said, the Demon Hunter appears to be gathering many abilities which suit the class quite nicely.  There are enough abilities that will keep you moving forward, versus always having to back-step during combat (which we do see her doing on several of the abilities videos).  That’s the Achilles heel of any ranged class, wherein you have to constantly cast CC (crowd control) abilities and then back up as you finish off the mobs.  The downside of this type of combat is that you are constantly pushing forward, then back during combat, and then finally forward again.  It slows gameplay, as for every two steps forward you take, you must take one back.

I prefer my dungeon crawlers to be exceptionally fast, and nearly always forward-moving.  Between the grenades and Fan of Knives, you’ll be able to do a lot of AoE (Area of Effect) damage while right in the middle of the fray.  What’s more, if you start your combat out with a Molten Arrow or two to thin the herd, you’ll then be able to go toe-to-toe with the survivors without much concern.

I used to love playing an Amazon in Diablo II, and from what I’m seeing here, the borrowed abilities will round out the Demon Hunter class quite nicely and create a fast and agile force to be reckoned with.

I won’t lie, I was hoping for more, though that’s not to say that I’m disappointed.  At this point, I’d say this is probably my favorite class, and that’s saying a lot.

- EDIT -

I’ve found the following information regarding more skills that the Demon Hunter will have from DiabloFans.

—The Skills-
Currently, the Demon Hunter has traps & gadgets, shadow magic, and various bow skills at her disposal. We’ve been shown several skills so far, and here they are.

Molten Arrow
The Demon Hunter shoots a crossbow bolt infused with flame which passes through enemies, and leaves behind a flaming wake, dealing damage to all enemies to try to cross it. Essentially, it’s a fire wall that you can shoot.

Grenade
Seems to function similarily to the Witch Doctor’s Skull of Flame. The video shows the Demon Hunter throwing out 3 small globes, which bounce briefly, then explode, dealing AOE to all nearby enemies. It was also shown to break a shield skeletons shield, which suggests AOE damage dealt from behind the shield can disarm them, giving this skill a spot as a sort of “combat utility” skill.

Bola
This skill allows the Demon Hunter to shoot a bola arrow, which wraps around whatever it hits. The enemies are not slowed however, but several seconds after being hit they exploded. AOE damage was dealt to everything nearby.

Vault
The obligatory movement skill. The Demon Hunter performs an acrobatic roll to reach new locations, or to escape from enemies. I can definitely see this skill being combined with Molten Arrow, allowing the Demon Hunter to quickly set up a wall, and retreat behind it before being in the line of fire.

Spike Trap
Taking a hint from the Assassin, the Demon Hunter sets up a trap that lies in wait for enemies. Upon being walked over, the trap opens up and enemies above it.

Fan of Knives
The Demon Hunter twirls in place, sending knives in all directions around her. AOE damage is dealt to all nearby enemies. This skill was shown being used with Vault, the Demon Hunter would roll into position, and release knives directly into a mob of enemies.

Entangling Shot
The Demon Hunter shoots out an arrow that bounces between several enemies, linking them with a blackish purplish line, slowing each down. The linking seemed to have to affect, though perhaps the slowing affect is made more serious based on how many enemies are linked to the same arrow?

Screenshots

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