
“ | Kneel before the Lord of Terror.
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Diablo is a Melee Warrior Hero and the main antagonist of the Diablo universe. He has made a few appearances in the StarCraft and Warcraft series as well.
Diablo is able to charge at his opponents, soaking up damage and dealing it back threefold.
Background[]
Known in the ancient tongue as Al'Diabolos, the Prime Evil Reincarnate, the Demon Lord Diablo seeks to claim the world of Sanctuary for the Burning Hells. His victims are innumerable, his schemes unknowable, his gender malleable, with his own occupation as an artist of fear having risen to greater prominence since the character was created in 1996 in the first Diablo game.
Gameplay Summary[]
Diablo is an aggressive Warrior who fulfills both the role of a Tank and a Bruiser, due his unique abilities that make him an excellent duelist and ganker, as well being very resilient. He is unique as his trait, Black Soulstone, allows him to progressively increase his healthpool to massive amounts (reaching over 7000 at level 20 with max souls), with an added effect of greatly decreasing his respawn timer if he dies at the maximum of 100 stacks.
Overall, Diablo has a solid kit suited for ganking-oriented teams, where he can can catch Heroes offguard and interrupt abilities, making him outstanding in maps that require a lot of movement between objectives. He shines in Double Warrior compositions.
Strengths[]
- Massive healthpool once Black Soulstone reaches 100 souls, meaning 40% increased health.
- In addition, dying when at maximum stacks causes him to respawn in 5 seconds.
- Dying with less than 100 souls do not causes him to lose any stacks.
- In addition, dying when at maximum stacks causes him to respawn in 5 seconds.
- Solid ganking kit, with multiple crowd control abilities and interrupts.
- Flexible talent options.
- Devil's Due grants Diablo a massive sustain at 100 souls, with a 35% increased healing from Health Globes and 120% from Healing Wells.
- Devastating Charge can transform Diablo into a situational burst Assassin, and is exceptionally strong against multiple Warrior compositions.
- Shadow Charge is an outstanding gap closer, being an aggressive engaging tool, excellent for starting team fights and putting opponents out of position.
- In addition, Shadow Charge can go through any kind of structure and obstacle.
- Overpower is a powerful follow up to Shadow Charge, allowing for an effective 2 step combo for body blocking foes.
- Fire Stomp is relatively useful for waveclear, and can deal consistent damage at very close range.
- Apocalypse is a global-range Heroic Ability that can completely change the course of teamfights. It's fantastic when used as a follow up or setup to other powerful crowd-control Heroics, such as ETC's Mosh Pit.
- Lightning Breath covers huge range, being a quite strong follow-up when the allied team already features solid crowd control.
- Lord of Terror can save Diablo from tight situations by providing a decent sustain and damage, specially against melee oriented teams.
- Hellgate provides Diablo with a very needed mobility tool, which an added effect of being able to stun opponents. It can also be used alongside Apocalypse to further pressure opponents with stuns.
Weaknesses[]
- Relatively mana intensive.
- Low damage output unless under the right circumstances.
- Poor movement options for escaping if charging too deep into the enemy territory.
- While dying at maximum stacks of Black Soulstone means a 5 second respawn, Diablo has to farm for souls again in order to regain his high healthpool.
- Not very effective on defensive teams, and requires teams that can follow-up his hard engages effectively.
Abilities[]

Mana: 60
Cooldown: 12 seconds
Charge an enemy, knocking them back, dealing 78 (+4% per level) damage and gaining 25 Armor for 2 seconds, reducing damage taken by 25%. If the enemy collides with terrain, they are stunned for 1 second and take an additional 156 (+4% per level) damage.

Mana: 40
Cooldown: 6 seconds
Unleashes fire waves in all directions that deal 54 (+4% per level) damage each. Once they reach maximum range they return, dealing an additional 81 (+4% per level) damage.

Mana: 60
Cooldown: 12 seconds
Grabs the target and slams it behind Diablo, dealing 75.92 (+4% per level) damage and stunning for 0.25 seconds.
Traits[]

Gain 10 Souls per Hero killed and 1 Soul per Minion. For each Soul, gain 0.4% maximum Health. If you have 100 Souls upon dying, you resurrect in 5 seconds and lose 100 Souls. Maximum 100 Souls.
Heroic Abilities[]

Tier 4 (Hero Level 10)
Mana: 100
Cooldown: 100 seconds
Create a demonic rune under each enemy Hero on the battleground. After 1.75 seconds the rune explodes dealing 142.48 (+4% per level) damage and stunning for 1.75 seconds.

Tier 4 (Hero Level 10)
Mana: 80
Cooldown: 60 seconds
Become Unstoppable while channeling lightning that deals 50 (+4% per level) damage over 4 seconds. The direction of the Lightning changes with your mouse cursor position.
Talents[]
Tier 1, Hero Level 1[]

Tier 1 (Hero Level 1)
Increases the duration of Armor granted by Shadow Charge from 2 seconds to 4 seconds.

Tier 1 (Hero Level 1)
Black Soulstone increases the effects of Regeneration Globes and Healing Fountains by 2% per Soul.

Tier 1 (Hero Level 1)
Basic Attacks against enemy Heroes deal bonus damage equal to 1% of the Hero's maximum Health and heal you for the same amount.
Tier 2, Hero Level 4[]

Tier 2 (Hero Level 4)
Being Stunned or Rooted increases Diablo's Movement Speed by 30% for 5 seconds.

Tier 2 (Hero Level 4)
Once Overpower's stun expires, the target is slowed by 30% for 3 seconds.
Tier 3, Hero Level 7[]

Tier 3 (Hero Level 7)
Black Soulstone increases Diablo's Health Regeneration by 0.4 per second per Soul.

Tier 3 (Hero Level 7)
Black Soulstone grants Diablo 0.25 Spell Armor per soul, reducing Ability Damage taken by 0.25% per Soul.

Tier 3 (Hero Level 7)
Basic Attacks reduce the cooldown of Overpower and Shadow Charge by 1.5 seconds.
Tier 4, Hero Level 10[]

Tier 4 (Hero Level 10)
Mana: 100
Cooldown: 100 seconds
Create a demonic rune under each enemy Hero on the battleground. After 1.75 seconds the rune explodes dealing 142.48 (+4% per level) damage and stunning for 1.75 seconds.

Tier 4 (Hero Level 10)
Mana: 80
Cooldown: 60 seconds
Become Unstoppable while channeling lightning that deals 50 (+4% per level) damage over 4 seconds. The direction of the Lightning changes with your mouse cursor position.
Tier 5, Hero Level 13[]

Tier 5 (Hero Level 13)
Shadow Charge's terrain collision against Heroes deals an additional 5% of the target's maximum life. Quest: Each time an enemy Hero takes terrain collision damage, increase the maximum life damage by 2%, to a maximum of 10% bonus.

Tier 5 (Hero Level 13)
Fire Stomp increases Diablo's Basic Attack damage by 20% and surrounds Diablo in flames that deal 20 (+4% per level) damage every second. Lasts 6 seconds.

Tier 5 (Hero Level 13)
Each enemy Hero hit by Fire Stomp increases the damage of the next Fire Stomp by 12%, up to 120%.
Tier 6, Hero Level 16[]

Tier 6 (Hero Level 16)
Enemy Heroes hit by Fire Stomp are slowed by 15% for 2 seconds, up to 30%.

Tier 6 (Hero Level 16)
Activate to reduce the damage dealt by nearby enemy Heroes by 30% for 3 seconds.
Passive: Heroes and Summons that attack Diablo have their Attack Speed slowed by 20% for 2.5 seconds.
Tier 7, Hero Level 20[]

Tier 7 (Hero Level 20)
Apocalypse's cooldown is reduced by 20 seconds and is cast for free when you die.

Tier 7 (Hero Level 20)
Cooldown: 60 seconds
Activate to steal 10% of the maximum Health of nearby enemy Heroes.

Tier 7 (Hero Level 20)
Cooldown: 100 seconds
Teleport and place a demonic rune at target location. After 1.75 seconds the rune explodes dealing 142.48 (+4% per level) damage and stunning enemies for 1.75 seconds.
Talent Builds[]
- Balanced Build: focused on giving Diablo a healthy blend of survivability, damage and utility, allowing him to effectively initiate teamfights and gank isolated foes. Key talents include From the Shadows, which greatly increases the range of Shadow Charge, thus allowing him to surprise and chase his opponents more effectively; Diabolical Momentum, enabling him to use Shadow Charge and Overpower more often by simply Basic Attacking anything (including minions); and Domination, which makes the Shadow Charge > Overpower combo even more powerful, as it allows Diablo to use Shadow Charge again, thus further pushing away his victim from safety. Some talents can be changed depending on the situation, such as Devastating Charge, which is incredibly powerful against Double Warrior compositions and on maps with lots of tight spaces.
Tips[]
- Try not to dive too deep and leave Diablo vulnerable among his enemies, which will give him little chances of escaping.
- Remember to farm for souls again should Diablo die at 100 stacks of Black Soulstone, in order to regain the bonus health lost.
- However, do not prioritize farming over teamfights and objectives. Unlike The Butcher, who has manually collect his Fresh Meat, Diablo gets his Souls naturally by standing nearby Minions and Heroes who perish next to him.
- Consider taking the talent Soul Shield should the enemy team feature two or more "Mage" Assassins (i.e. Azmodan, Chromie, Kael'thas, Ragnaros).
- Shadow Charge > Overpower is Diablo's bread and butter combo to disrupt his opponents; this becomes even more powerful by picking the level 16 talent Domination, effectively allowing for Shadow Charge > Overpower > Shadow Charge.
- Shadow Charge can be used as a disengage tool, as long there are enemy minions away from the enemy team.
- If properly used, the level 13 talent Devastating Charge can turn Diablo into a very potent, yet situational, Burst Assassin. Once completed, this talent deals 15% max health damage if Diablo collides his opponents against walls; if Domination is taken at 16 and the situation is favorable, Diablo can deal a total of 30% of his opponent's max health, plus the flat damage from Shadow Charge damage.
- Be wary of the enviroment and use it in Diablo's favor, to maximize the damage potential by hitting opponents against walls as much as possible.
- The bonus damage from Devastating Charge is also applied when Diablo collides his opponents against ANY kind of collidable object, being not limited only to walls and structures. Some of these includes:
- Nazeebo's Zombie Wall;
- D.Va's MEKA when Self-Destruct is used;
- Sgt. Hammer's Concussive Blast (if Barricade is taken);
- Tassadar's Force Wall;
- Leoric's Entomb;
- Sonya's Leap (if Arreat Crater is taken);
- Kel'Thuzad's Glacial Spike.
- Blaze's Bunker Drop.
- The vase spawned from Garden Terror's Overgrowth.
- The doubloon chests that spawn in Blackheart's Bay.
- The bonus damage from Devastating Charge is also applied when Diablo collides his opponents against ANY kind of collidable object, being not limited only to walls and structures. Some of these includes:
- Be wary of the enviroment and use it in Diablo's favor, to maximize the damage potential by hitting opponents against walls as much as possible.
- Use Fire Stomp to check bushes and suspecting stealthed Heroes nearby.
- Save Apocalypse for moments where the enemy team is about to unleash their own cooldowns, specially those that require stationary channeling (i.e. Junkrat's RIP-Tire and Nazeebo's Ravenous Spirit). It is also very effective to start engages if the allied team has proper ways to follow-up.
- Use Lightning Breath as a follow-up to a chain of crowd control on the enemy team.
- It is great when used in enclosed spaces, such as Mercenary Camps, or when defending static objectives.
Matchups[]
Pairings[]
Diablo is best when paired with Heroes that can reliably follow-up and/or opening chances for him to disrupt the enemy team. Heroes that feature any kind of hard crowd control (such as stuns and roots) have great synergy with all of Diablo's abilities. Because of this, having another Warrior can greatly improve Diablo's performance.
Effective against[]
Diablo shines against opponents with poor mobility, as he can pressure them by simply charging with Shadow Charge. His ability to dive into the backline, combined with his massive bulk, makes him perfect at interrupting the rotations of his enemies, such as channeled cooldowns.
Effective foes[]
Having one of the largest health pools in the game, Diablo is naturally countered by Heroes that can deal direct damage to health percentage. In addition, solid and defensive backlines capable of negating his Shadow Charge > Overpower combo can make extremely difficult for Diablo to make his job properly.
Skins[]
- Lord of Terror (base)
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Lord of Terror | Visceral | Onyx | Toxic ![]() |
- Kaijo
100
- The scientists of Tristram Labs had grown overconfident. They believed the power of the atom was finally under their control. They were wrong.
- This skin is related to the Mechas VS Kaijos themed-skins.
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Kaijo | Tyrant | Crimson |
- Iron Diablo
100
- The heroes foolishly believed shattering his soulstone upon the Hellforge would end his reign. Now, adorned with the Hellforge's remnants, he would shatter every bone in their bodies in return.
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Hell | Soul | Fell-iron* |
*Though the spelling is fel in World of Warcraft, fell is the spelling used for demonic magic/power in Diablo.
- Lurkablo
400
- It is with hushed whispers the fishermen of Stormwind speak of the Lord of the Depths. His very name an eternal curse upon any angler foolish enough to speak it aloud: Lurkablo.
This skin is related to the Warcraft themed-skins. Features altered voice-over.
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Lurkablo | Luminescent | Cave Dweller |
- El Chamuco
600
- The terrifying El Chamuco is well-known as the muscle of the "Hell's Screamer" tag-team alongside El Jefe. Rumors circle that he actually is a demon, born in the pits of the burning hells, but that can't be possible. Can it?
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El Chamuco | Hell's Screamer | Underworld |
Features altered voice-over and themed abilities.
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Archangel | Toxic | Twilight | Skyborne ![]() |
- Prime Evil Diablo
1600
- After twenty years, all seven essences swirled within the Black Soulstone. With Adria's final betrayal, the seven were combined into one, giving rise to a reborn Diablo... The Prime Evil.
Features replaced voice-over.
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Prime Evil | Nightmare | Toxic |
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Horrific ![]() |
Timeless ![]() |
Notes[]
- Samwise Didier likes to joke that Lurkablo is the offspring of Diablo and a murloc.[1]
- A mini-figure of Diablo based on his appearance in the game was released in May 2015.[2]
Development[]
Diablo was conceived within the first two years of the game's development.[3]
In a 2011 build of the game, Diablo was considered as a boss for the now canceled Tristram map.[4] By April 2012, it appeared that Diablo had become a playable character.[5]
As of BlizzCon 2015, the development team is looking to give Artanis a death animation more fitting of his lore.[6]
Patch changes[]
(Patch July 11, 2017) Note: Skyborne Archangel Diablo, Horrific Prime Evil Diablo, Timeless Prime Evil Diablo skins added.
(Patch June 13, 2017) Note: Prime Evil Diablo’s model while no longer freeze in place during its victory animation.
(Patch April 25, 2017) Note: Prime Evil skin added.; Fixed an issue preventing Diablo from using Basic Attacks against his Overpower target if Overpower was interrupted by Zeratul’s Void Prison.
(Patch January 24, 2017) Note: Fixed a visual issue affecting Diablo's tail during certain animations.
(Patch December 20, 2016) Note: Base Maximum Health reduced from 2647 to 2567; Health Regen reduced from 5.52 to 5.35.
(Patch December 14, 2016) Note: Received updated visual effects and talent icon color tints.
(Patch December 6, 2016) Note: Diablo's Basic Attack has received responsiveness improvements.
(Patch October 18, 2016) Note: Diablo has received additional idle animation polish.; Received custom Hearthstone animations.
(Patch September 27, 2016) Note: Diablo’s prices have been reduced to $3.49 USD and 2,000 Gold.
(Patch August 18, 2015) Note: Diablo III and Diablo III: Reaper of Souls players who log in to Heroes during the three weeks following the release of today's patch will permanently receive Diablo in Heroes of the Storm.
References[]
- ↑ 2013-11-10, Blizzcon 2013: Heroes of the Storm - Overview. YouTube, accessed on 2013-12-09
- ↑ 2015-02-19, Pre-Order FUNKO Heroes of the Storm Mystery Minis Mini-Figures. Blizzplanet, accessed on 2015-02-20
- ↑ 2016-11-21, BlizzCon 2016 Heroes of the Storm Deep Dive Panel Transcript. Blizzplanet, accessed on 2016-11-21
- ↑ 2013-11-11, Heroes of the Storm: Sixen Interviews Dustin Browder. YouTube, accessed on 2013-12-01
- ↑ 2014-05-21, Blizzard set out to make a StarCraft mod, and instead reinvented gaming's most popular genre. Polygon, accessed on 2014-05-22
- ↑ 2015-11-06, Heroes of the Storm – Hero Deep Dive | Summary. Blizzplanet, accessed on 2015-11-09