When Do First Diablo 4 Unique Drops Happen?

It is no secret that as an ARPG, Diablo 4 boasts item rarities/qualities for players to find, and there are also bolstered, powerful variants in the form of Sacred and Ancestral items to farm. However, if you've been playing the game for a while, one item quality might be eluding you so far, Diablo 4's Unique items.

In this article, we explain when Diablo 4 Unique items can start dropping based on our 10-day review period experience and talking to other review players who've also gotten some Unique items in their time with the game.

Update on 18 July 2023: We've updated this article with the latest Diablo 4 Season 1 information on when Unique items start dropping.

When Do Unique Items Drop in Diablo 4?

We are just going to pull off the bandaid right now. Diablo 4's Unique items only drop once you hit World Tier 3 (Nightmare) difficulty. To unlock the chance of getting a Unique item drop (still very rare) in Diablo 4, follow the steps outlined below.

• Complete the Diablo 4 Campaign/Story
• Gear up enough to take on and clear the Cathedral of Light Capstone dungeon.
• With World Tier 3 (Nightmare) difficulty unlocked, change to Nightmare and start slaying monsters across Sanctuary.

From here, you can start farming Nightmare Dungeons, Helltides, complete Grim Favors for the Tree of Whispers, and more. It is important to note that you can get Unique items from any activity as long as you are in World Tier 3 difficulty. Yes, you can even get a drop in the open world while interacting with a regular chest, but the chances are astronomically low for this type of activity.

However, there is one exception to the Nightmare difficulty rule, which we discuss in the next section.

First Diablo 4 Unique Item Drop: Mother's Embrace

It is very likely at this point that you will get your first Unique item drop on Veteran (World Tier 2) when you slay Lilith. Our first Unique item drop came from defeating the Mother of Sanctuary, as seen in the image above.

It is called Mother's Embrace, with a power of "If a Core Skill hits 5 or more enemies, 20% of the resource cost is refunded." A bit of lore text about the Mother's Embrace Unique to get the blood flowing.

Every tome, every scroll, every book in this temple produces the same answer. The only being willing to stand against the Eternal Conflict, against the Prime Evils, was Lilith.

After getting our first Unique drop in the form of Mother's Embrace, we spoke to some other players who have completed the campaign. Of three who responded during some Nightmare Dungeon runs, all of them noted that they received the Mother's Embrace Unique as a drop from Lilith on World Tier 2 difficulty.

The next Unique you might get is The Butcher's Cleaver.

Remember, Unique items are exceptionally rare, so even if you meet the requirements for a drop, you might still not see one appear for a long time. The caveat with these items is that you can only have one equipped at a time, so if you have more than one, you must choose which Unique suits your character build best or base a build around it.

While you dream about your first Unique item dropping in Diablo 4, why not check out the game's official launch trailer?

That's everything you need to know about the time/level when Unique item drops will start to occur. If anything changes, we will endeavor to update this article with the latest info on Diablo 4 Unique item drops, when they start to take place and the Mother's Embrace ring!

For more Diablo 4, be sure to check out our dedicated section or some of our Guides & Tutorials just below:

Our section keeps growing, so check for new guides daily! Don't forget to pick up one of the Diablo 4 Editions and join the fight to save Sanctuary soon.