Diablo IV's Season 16 Reworks War Plans, With a Public Test Starting 27 October
Blizzard is reworking War Plans, the endgame system in Diablo IV, and players can try the changes on a public test server from 27 October 2026.
War Plans lets players build a playlist of endgame activities, then rank those activities up through a skill tree. It arrived with the Lord of Hatred expansion, which Blizzard describes as the game's second and last expansion. GameSpot reported the details of the Season 16 changes ahead of the test.
The biggest addition is War Plans Tactics, a new meta-progression system. Meta-progression is a long-term layer that carries across play sessions, rather than resetting with each run. Players earn points by completing War Plans activities, then spend them on nodes, the small upgrade spots in a skill tree. Those nodes raise the odds of preferred activities or rewards showing up.
Players can put up to three points into each endgame activity, and up to three points into different reward types. Putting at least one point into Helltides raises the chance of Greater Helltides. Putting at least one point into Nightmare dungeons raises the chance of Escalation Nightmare dungeons. Reward nodes can make armour, weapons, jewellery, Obducite, salvage, gems, gold, activity keys, Horadric Cube materials or Talisman items more likely.
Rerolling War Plans now costs a new currency called Marks of Wisdom. Players earn them by turning in completed War Plans. Blizzard says the marks replace gold for changing nodes in both the Tactics tree and the individual activity trees. According to GameSpot, the currency caps at 20.
Season 16 also adds Tyrael's Boons, a seasonal War Plans tree with four paths: Curious Addition, Merchant of Mystery, Scent of Gold and Trash for Treasure. Each path has six nodes, and players can choose up to four of them. Some options give more seasonal reputation or currency, according to Blizzard.
A new gear type, Horadric legendaries, is designed to work with specific Talisman charms. Horadric legendary jewellery pieces count toward Talisman set bonuses. Blizzard's test notes also list reworked Infernal Hordes, Pit and Lair Boss activities for testing.
The public test realm, known as the PTR, lets players try upcoming changes before they reach the live game. The 3.3.0 PTR runs from 10:00 a.m. Pacific time on 27 October to 10:00 a.m. Pacific time on 3 November 2026. It covers both Eternal Realms, which are non-seasonal, and Seasonal Realms. War Plans Tactics will be available for both kinds of play.
Some features from the Season of Hell's Legacy will carry into Season 16, but they are not part of this test. Blizzard published its PTR guide, "The 3.3.0 PTR: What You Need to Know", on 22 October 2026.
For players, the test is the first hands-on look. Feedback from the test can still change the final version before Season 16 goes live.
