Diablo 4 Season 11 is about to break 2 launch day traditions at once

The upcoming season of Diablo 4 may be the most different the game has felt since launch, with major overhauls of several systems planned. Diablo 4 Season 11 reworks the game's equipment upgrade system along with changes to the season journey, notoriety system, and battles. In addition, the season will bring two new additions to Sanctuary that have not been seen since its release Diablo 4 over 2 years ago.

Entitled Season of Divine Intervention, Diablo 4 Season 11 will have players face off against the invading Lesser Evils Andariel, Duriel, Belial and Azmodan, the last of which debuts in the game for the first time. To help players, High Heaven has sent the angel Hadriel to give Divine Gifts and Sanctify players' equipment. Both of these characters are new faces for Diablo 4and are the first of their kind to appear in any post-launch Diablo 4 season.

Two features are getting new content in Season 11 for the first time since the release of Diablo 4

Azmodan is the first new world boss since launch

World Bosses were introduced when Diablo 4 first launched as a large co-op event for groups of players to take on collectively as part of the series' shift towards more MMO-like mechanics. These bosses are incredibly powerful and larger than life, requiring multiple players to fight them simultaneously to have a chance at victory. So far, there have only been three total World Bosses, all of which were available when the game launched in June 2023:

Ashava, the pestilent one
Greed, the gold-touched
Walking dead, death given life

Now, Diablo 4 Season 11 finally breaks this trend and introduces the first new World Boss since launch with the addition of Azmodan, Lord of Sin. Like previous world bosses, Azmodan will be part of the rotation of timed spawns, but unlike other world bosses, players can also summon Azmodan directly from an altar in Hawezar provided they have the necessary materials. Players will also have to face Azmodan as a boss in the Season 11 Rank 5 Capstone Dungeon.

Azmodan will be a permanent addition to the World Boss lineup, meaning players will still be able to face him after Season 11 ends.

Hadriel is the first new angel to appear in the game since launch

Burning Hell's forces aren't the only ones getting a new addition Diablo 4 Season 11. With the introduction of Hadriel, the High Heavens will have their first new in-game representative since Inarius, who debuted in Diablo 4s main campaign. Hadriel's role in Diablo 4 Season 11 is to provide the player with divine gifts to improve their buildings in the fight against the lesser evils. Additionally, Hadriel will allow players to consecrate their gear, which applies a final ability like an upgraded Greater Affix or Legendary power to an item before making it immutable.

It is possible that Hadriel is present Diablo 4 Season 11 is much more significant than it might initially appear. With speculation about it Diablo 4 plans to reveal Expansion 2 at The Game Awards shortly before Season 11 goes live on December 11, there's a chance Hadriel could just be the first of even more angels from the High Heavens to join the game. One of the notes on Mythic Heir of Perdition states that it deals increased damage to demon and angelic enemies, but there are currently no angelic enemies in Diablo 4. Maybe the next one Diablo 4 expansion plans to add angelic enemies to the game, and Hadriel simply heralds the greater return of the host of the High Heavens to Sanctuary.