With demoness Lilith returning to the world she created with Archangel Inarius, Sanctuary is once again put in peril inDiablo 4. Moreover, the arrival of the Reign of Enmity plunged Sanctuary’s remaining nations into continuous wars, which places players in a world not only rife with demonic incursions but also war among remnants of humanity.
Armed once again with the powers of the Nephalem, players ofDiablo 4may want to fast-track their way into discovering their character’s roles in the fate of Sanctuary, especially when the game’s new open-world environment will now allow them to encounter other adventurers in a persistent multiplayer setting. ForDiablofans who want to sink their teeth into the title’s endgame content, what process should they follow?
Updated on June 24, 2025, by Rhenn Taguiam:With the release of Season 4: Loot Reborn practically reworking Diablo 4’s major gear mechanics, fans of the ARPG will likely experience changes totheir favorite Classesthat may drastically affect the way they contribute to the overall meta. However, before fans are even able to test meta builds, they have to make sure their characters are able to maximize their potential - be it through earning enough Skill Points, Paragon Points, and especially new gear. In this regard, new characters need to progress through the game’s campaign and higher difficulties as fast as possible. Some tips to do so include starting at a higher difficulty, teaming up with friends for boosts, repeating specific instances, and ensuring they drink a certain consumable for the guaranteed Experience buff.
Skip World Tier 1 And Start At World Tier 2 For The XP Boost
Process
Upon creating a character, start the game at World Tier 2 (Veteran)
Effect
This difficulty gives +20% Experience and +15% Gold for killing mobs
When players createtheirDiablo 4character, they can start at World Tier 1 (Adventurer) and World Tier 2 (Veteran). While players new to theDiablofranchise are advised to start at World Tier 1, players who want to level up quickly to enjoy theDiablo 4endgame should consider going for World Tier 2 at the onset - especially since the game will amp up difficulty at higher Tiers anyway. Granted, this difficulty might be merciless for new players, but this will ensure players start studying telegraphed attacks and master their mobility to prepare them for tougher challenges.
Mechanically speaking, starting at World Tier 2 doesn’t seem as practical as only mobs give +20% Experience. However, withDiablo 4’s gameplay almost always forcing players to kill many monsters anyway, the extra XP can help gamers make progress much faster.
Get More Experience With Friends Or By Being Near Another Player
Make progress through the game either with friends or a nearby player
Get +5% Experience when fighting near another player, and +10% Experience when near another party member
UnlikeotherDiablogames,Diablo 4gameplay adds a multiplayer twist to the isometric ARPG by allowing players to explore an open world and encounter other characters in real-time. They can also fight the same monsters in the open world as other players or even team up with friends to tackle dungeons and other threats. This multiplayer component is incentivized by the game, as this offers valuable experience boosts to players who want to level up quickly.
At its core, just sticking close to another random player will grant +5% more Experience to both gamers. However, if both players are in the same party, this +5% becomes +10% more Experience, which might seem small at first but can become significant during longer playthroughs. Unfortunately, these bonuses don’t necessarily stack, which means it remains practical for players to stay in groups given the overall difficulty of the game’s dungeons and bosses.
Maximize Renown In Each Zone To Maximize Benefits
Each Zone has 5 Renown Levels that need a total of 900 Renown to complete
Each Renown Level per Zone unlocks a permanent boost for both the current and all characters in the game:
DespiteDiablo 4gameplay still dividing its main story across different Zones, theDiablosequel now offers a Renown system for each Zone that fills up whenever players complete activities while staying in these areas. Players earn rewards for both their character and all characters in their account on a realm, making Renown a must-complete for players who want to maximize earning XP as soon as possible.
Moreover, while Renown 4 and Renown 5 are only unlockable once players open World Tier 3 (Nightmare), reaching Renown 3 and earning Skill Point bonuses can help characters become much closer to their desired builds. When completing Renown across all five Zones, players can get as much as +5 Extra Potion Charges and +10 Skill Points for both the character in question and all characters after them.
After defeating the Stronghold boss, leave the game.
Reloading the character from the Main Menu will bring players to the entrance of the Stronghold, where enemies will be reset.
When the former Archangel of Death, Malthael, forced the purging of humanity throughout Sanctuary,Diablolorepositioned Strongholds as abandoned locations now overrun by demons. Players can visit these locations in theirDiablo 4gameplay, where each includes story, bosses, and even unique mechanics. When cleared, these are one-off events that may transform the Stronghold into a friendly town or quest hub, reveal a Waypoint, or even unlock dungeons and other events.
However, players who want to optimize their leveling experience should farm Strongholds. Doing so requires progressing through a chosen Stronghold until one defeats a boss, only to exit to the main menu and reload their character afterward. This reloads players outside the Stronghold with all enemies respawned and available for another run. Should players want to rush to Level 45 quickly, the Temple of Rot Stronghold should be an ideal farming target.
Every Elixir Comes With A 3% Experience Boost
Unlock the Alchemist after completing the quest triggered at Level 10. This unlocks the ability to craft Elixirs
While all Elixirs have different effects, all of them grant a 3% Experience boost for 30 Minutes
Due to the evolving strength of opponents inDiablo 4gameplay, players need all the help they can get when trying to defeat demons across the game’s many difficulties. On top of having the right builds and gear, players also need the right buffs to supplement their gameplay needs. For players still trying to level up to reach theDiabloendgame, this means using consumables to maximize their performance. Thankfully, they can get buffs to their leveling experience as early as Level 10 by unlocking the Alchemist.
Doing so not only allows players to upgrade their Healing Potions and eventually Transmute Uber Uniques with Resplendent Sparks in the endgame. Rather, they can create Elixirs that provide various bonuses for 30 minutes, be it Armor and Thorns, Dodge, Elemental Resistances, Overpower Damage, and even Attack Speed. More importantly, all Elixirs provide a 3% Experience boost for the same duration. Players do have to note that only one Elixir can be active on their character at any time, and their effects persist after death.
Ensure Access To Exclusive Rewards By Joining A Season
In the “Hero Realm” Selection Screen, choose “Seasonal Realm” instead of “Eternal Realm”
Seasons return inDiablo 4gameplay as a way to improve character progression, with the current Season of Blood featuring the Vampire Lord Zir and his campaign against mankind, as well as Vampire Hunter Erys asking players to help stop them. As with other Seasons, this 90-day event gives players access to new questlines, mechanics, and bosses, as well as items that are no longer available after the event.
Starting a Seasonal Charactergives players more opportunities to score better gear and higher EXP rewards with additional events they can engage in throughout their journey. The random Blood Harvest events function similarly to Helltides, this time giving players opportunities to upgrade Season-exclusive Vampiric Powers as well as chances to challenge Bloodseeker bosses for better rewards.
Finish all the Main Story quests as soon as possible
One of the first steps players should take to speed up their progress inDiablo 4gameplay is to fast-track their way throughthe main story. While it’s possible to level up and get better gear by finishing dungeons and side quests across Sanctuary, the main game is theoretically possible to accomplish without them.
When done correctly, players can finish Act 6 at around Level 42 to Level 45 while equipped with enough basic Legendaries and Altars of Lilith buffs. While it’s much easier to defeat bosses by over-leveling them, the more worthwhile gear inDiablo 4can be acquired in the post-campaign’s unlockables.
Finish “Donan’s Favor” Quest in Kyovashad, Act 4
This unlocks Mounts for the current character and all future characters, paving the way for faster travels
Another reason players should finish theDiablo 4main story as soon as possible is tosecure access to Mounts. The game only offers Mounts when players finish “Donan’s Favor” in Act 4’s Kyovashad, which places the game’s main method of exploration around the Act that players may want to venture into dungeons to find better gear.
Aside from being able to explore at a much faster pace, unlocking the Mount for the first character will unlock Mounts for all characters in the player’s account. In turn, players who want to power-level new characters won’t have to walk all the way again to Act 4 just to get faster movement options.
Build Gear After The Main Story
Use the game’s skill system to adjust builds based on the current equipment, as later progression will inevitably lead to the gear grind
Similar to otherDiablotitles, the gear-dependent endgame ofDiablo 4means much of a Class’s recommended builds heavily rely on skill buffs offered by special Legendary sets. However, since Legendary gear often has randomized bonus stats, it’s ideal to farm them in the late game and not while players are speeding up their progression.
In this regard, it’s more practical to settle for current gear they can find andcreate builds around them, even if they’re only able to find Uncommon, Rare, and a few Legendary pieces of equipment. Thanks toDiablo 4skill progression, players can easily adjust builds based on the current best available gear to maximize time. Not only that, the latter stages of power-leveling that includes grinding will likely pave the way for much-desired Legendaries anyway, making it more practical to invest in Legendary-hunting at this stage of the experience.
While theDiablo 4endgame focuses on gettingthe best builds for a Classto maximize devastation on the battlefield, the power level grind can’t do this for players at early levels. Holding off builds to “save up” for powerful plays in the late game can significantly delay players who want to speed up progression. Instead, players should create their initial builds based on the Aspects they’re acquiring in their current playthrough.
Since Aspects are special properties extracted from Legendaries and can be reapplied to existing Rares and other Legendaries, these buffs can dictate the current focus of a character as they try to breeze through the early parts of the game. While builds based on Aspects might not dish out the most damage, they maximize the current buffs players possess and can facilitate the best DPS and survivability available at the moment.
