Diablo 4 S1 World Tier Difficulty Changes: Monster Level Scaling, XP & Bonuses

Ushering in Diablo 4 Season 1 is the mammoth Update 1.1 patch notes that not everyone is happy about. There are changes that could affect power leveling in groups, for example, such as monster level scaling in Nightmare and Torment difficulty levels, experience bonus changes, and more.

In this article, we outline all the important difficulty level changes, so Nephalem knows exactly what they are getting into with Diablo 4 Season 1 and figure out the best way to get to level 100.

Diablo 4 World Tier 2 Bonuses Changed

The first part of the World Tier difficulty changes is quite a simple one. In Diablo 4 Season 1 (update 1.1), both on the Eternal Realm and the Seasonal Realm, World Tier 2 (Veteran) difficulty has seen the following bonus increases.

• Bonus Gold: Increased from 15% to 20%.
• Monsters now drop 15% more items.

The developers noted that:

We like where World Tier II has landed overall but are increasing its reward pace to better align with its difficulty.

Right, that was the most straightforward part. Now, onto the monster level scaling section, followed by experience (XP) adjustments.

Diablo 4 Monster Level Scaling in World Tier 3 & 4

Blizzard has adjusted the level scaling of monsters in the world of Sanctuary, and dungeons, in World Tier 3 (Nightmare) and World Tier 4 (Torment). With the Diablo 4 Season 1 update, monsters will start trailing behind players in level at a certain point. Blizzard explains:

Developer’s Note: We want to give players a better sense of their power progression and mastery over the world while still challenging themselves with structured End Game activities.

It is important to note that monsters can be a maximum of five (5) levels behind a player, and that this change does not affect Fields of Hatred, Helltides, Nightmare Dungeons, Legion events or World Bosses. To explain it better, the developers provided examples of monster scaling in Diablo 4 Season 1 in World Tier 3 and World Tier 4 difficulty levels.

Diablo 4 World Tier 3 Monster Scaling Example:

• If the the player's Level is below 55, the monster's Level is 55.
• If the player’s Level is 56-60, the monster's Level is 55.
• If the player’s Level is 61, the monster's Level is 56.
• If the player’s Level is 62, the monster's Level is 57, etc. (from this point the monsters will always be -5 until World Tier III's max monster Level of 70).

Diablo 4 World Tier 4 Monster Scaling Example:

• If the player’s Level is below 75, the monster's Level is 75.
• If the player’s Level is 76-80, the monster's Level is 75.
• If the player’s Level is 81, the monster's Level is 76.
• If the player’s Level is 82, the monster's Level is 77, etc. (from this point the monsters will always be -5).

Not everyone is happy with all these changes, but that might be more due to the bonus XP changes related to fighting monsters who are higher level than you.

Bonus XP Adjustments Per Higher Monster Level

According to the Diablo 4 patch notes for update 1.1, Blizzard has found that the experience bonus for killing higher-level monsters escalated too quickly. The developer explains:

We have observed that the experience bonus rewarded for killing higher level monsters escalates too fast when compared to the relative challenge involved. We still want to reward players for taking on this challenge by encouraging them to participate in powerleveling together instead of one player killing enemies while another member of their Party waits at the dungeon’s entrance.

So what does that mean exactly for the experience changes to monsters of a higher level? Well, you can read the examples of pre and post-patch bonus XP below.

• We are adjusting bonus experience rewards for killing monsters that are a higher Level than the player.
  • Pre-Season of the Malignant bonuses:
    • 1 Level higher: +15%.
    • 2 Levels higher: +20%.
    • 3+ Levels higher: +25%.
  • Post-Season of the Malignant:
    • 1.5% bonus per Level up to 10 Levels.
      • Ex:
        • +1 level: +1.5%.
        • +2 levels: +3%.
        • +10 levels: +15%.
• We are also adjusting experience rewards for monster Level offsets for higher World Tiers.
  • Current World Tier Level offsets
    • World Tier II: Up to +3.
    • World Tier III: Up to +10.
    • World Tier IV: Up to +100.
  • We are changing this to
    • World Tier II: Up to +3 (Unchanged).
    • World Tier III: Up to +6.
    • World Tier IV: Up to +10.
  • For Example:
    • You are Level 1. Your friends bring you to World Tier IV and leave you at the entrance of a dungeon. They start killing Level 100 monsters.
      • Prior to Season of the Malignant, you get:
        • (Level 100 Monster XP) * (1 + 25%)
      • After Season of the Malignant, you get:
        • (Level 11 Monster XP) * (1 + 15%)

We do have some good news for those who love doing Grim Favors for the Tree of Whispers. Completing a Whispers in World Tier 3 and 4 will reward "significantly" more experience...

In case you missed it, check out the official Diablo 4 Season 1 gameplay trailer featuring DiEoxidE below to learn about Malignant Hearts, enemies, Tunnels, and even a glimpse at the new boss!

So there you have it, all the detailed World Tier difficulty changes, monster scaling, bonus XP adjustments, and more in Diablo 4 Season 1. If Blizzard decides to change any of these numbers via a hotfix update during the season, we will endeavor to update this article quickly.

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.