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Diablo 3 update 2.6.8 patch notes - Season of the Forbidden Archives

The latest Diablo 3 patch notes for version 2.6.8 introduce a new season, roll back some changes to the Witch Doctor, and alter some items.
Sam Chandler
Sam Chandler
2

Diablo 3’s 2.6.8 update is now available and players can dive into the patch notes to see what’s new. Of the top-billing additions, players can look forward to experiencing Season 20, the Season of the Forbidden Archives. There are also a host of improvements, tweaks, and changes to a few classes. Please see the notes below!

diablo 3 update 2.6.8 patch notes
Update 2.6.8 is now out for Diablo 3!

Diablo 3 update 2.6.8 patch notes

General

  • Infernal Machines and Organs are now subject to vacuum pick-up
  • Crafting plans from Bounty Caches are now guaranteed to drop unless all plans have been learned

Seasons

  • A new Season Theme has been added for Season 20, the Season of the Forbidden Archives:
    • For the duration of Season 20, all slots in Kanai's Cube will be able to select Legendary powers from Weapon, Armor, or Jewelery
      • This means you could select three Armor powers, three Weapon powers, three Jewelery powers, or any other combination thereof across all categories
      • Items are not self-additive or multiplicative (meaning, you cannot stack multiples of the same item's power)
      • Once the Season has ended and characters roll over to Non-Season, players will have all currently active powers in their Kanai's Cube reset
      • Developer's Note: As we outlined in our Developer Insight blog, we want to continue to get creative (and maybe a little crazy) with the Season Themes and powers we add to the game. We heard from some players that they preferred themes that made your character directly feel more powerful rather than needing to focus on the environment around you. If that describes you, then the Season of Forbidden Archives should be right up your alley, and we're really interested to see how this changes the game for Season 20.
    • Two new Seasonal rewards are available for players who fully complete the Season 20 Journey, including a new portrait frame and pet

Classes

  • Crusader
    • Developer's Note: We're not convinced that this change has fully reigned in Crusader performance to be more in line with other classes. We'll be continuing to keep an eye on overall Crusader performance (as well as performance among the other classes) in 2.6.8 and beyond.
    • Heaven's Fury
      • The animation for the Fires of Heaven rune can no longer be cancelled early.
    • Witch Doctor
      • Spirit Barrage (Phantasm)
        • The periodic attacks from Spirit Barrage (Phantasm) are now twice as slow, but twice as powerful
        • Developer's Note: We rolled this change back between PTR and Live as it was creating additional bugs. We may consider re-exploring this option in the future if we find this adjustment is still needed.

Items

  • Developer's Note: With Patch 2.6.8, we're adding three(!) new class sets with similar goals to those we included in the previous patch. Each set was designed primarily with boosting long-requested skills and play styles we lifted directly from community feedback. Frenzy, Spirit Barrage, and Hydra were requests that offered a lot of opportunity for gameplay exploration, and we're looking forward to seeing what players do with these new tools at their disposal. Additional changes to associated supplemental Legendaries have been included to round out these builds.
  • Mantle of Channeling
    • The bonus granted by this item now occurs 1 second after channeling has begun
  • Barbarian
    • New Class Set: Horde of the Ninety Savages
      • 2-Piece Bonus: Double the effectiveness of all Shouts. Feared, Frozen, or Stunned Enemies take double damage.
        • Developer's Note: The callout that Stun may be the best fit for this set bonus was definitely heard, but we didn't want to take away other potential builds enabled by experimenting with Fear or Frozen. We hope this opens up a variety of options for Barbarians to explore!
      • 4-Piece Bonus: Each stack of Frenzy reduces damage taken by 6%. Frenzy lasts twice as long.
      • 6-Piece Bonus: Frenzy deals 1000% increased damage per stack.
    • Undisputed Champion
      • Frenzy gains the effect of every rune and deals 300-400% increased damage.
    • Bastion's Revered
      • Frenzy now stacks up to 10 times and hits an additional time per stack. Each additional hit will chain to any enemies within 15 yards and the damage is split between all affected enemies.
    • Witch Doctor
      • New Class Set: Mundunugu's Regalia
        • 2-Piece Bonus: Big Bad Voodoo now follows you and lasts twice as long.
        • 4-Piece Bonus: Gain 60% damage reduction for 30 seconds when you enter the Spirit Realm.
        • 6-Piece Bonus: Spirit Barrage deals 20000% increased damage plus an additional % equal to 5 times your Mana Regeneration/Second.
          • Developer's Note: We found this set was overperforming at the highest end, but we also wanted to maintain its capabilities at early gearing stages. The addition of a base multiplier and reducing the effectiveness of the Mana Regeneration bonus should accomplish this goal.
        • The Barber
          • Instead of dealing direct damage, your Spirit Barrage now accumulates on the target. When you stop casting, it explodes dealing 225-250% 400-500% of the accumulated damage to all enemies within 15 yards.
          • Is now classified as a Ceremonial Knife, with a base 1.4 attack speed
        • Gazing Demise
          • Spirit Barrage gains the Phantasm rune. Each active Phantasm lasts twice as long, increases the damage of Spirit Barrage by 40-50% 100-150%, and also increases the attack rate from Manitou spectres.
        • Ring of Emptiness
          • You deal 250-300% increased damage to enemies affected by both either your Haunt and or Locust Swarm.
        • Wizard
          • New Class Set: The Typhon's Veil
            • 2-Piece Bonus: Double the duration of Hydras and increase the number of heads on multi-headed Hydras by two.
            • 4-Piece Bonus: Damage taken is reduced by 8% for each Hydra head alive as long as there is one available. Each time you take damage, a Hydra heads dies. Heads cannot die more than once every 2 seconds
            • 6-Piece Bonus: Hydras deal 1200% 1300% increased damage for each Hydra head alive.
              • Developer's Note: We've continued to tilt more of the power for Hydra in favor of the 6-piece set bonus and away from the supplemental Legendary items.
            • Serpent's Sparker
              • You may have one extra Hydra active at a time and they deal 450-600% 250-300% increased damage.
            • The Magistrate
              • Frost Hydra Your Hydras now periodically cast Frost Nova and deal 450-600% 250-300% increased damage.
            • Etched Sigil
              • The bonus granted by this item now occurs 1 second after channeling has begun.
            • Deathwish
              • The bonus granted by this item now occurs 1 second after channeling has begun.

Bugs

  • Several issues with adding/removing players to group and starting new games as a group have been resolved
  • Captain Crimson's Trimmings
    • Fixed an issue where the set bonus did not increase damage reduction when using Devour – Voracious
  • Barbarian
    • Fixed a bug where Threatening Shout (Grim Harvest) would not activate when enhanced by the Horde of the Ninety Savages set bonus
  • Crusader
    • Corrected the spelling of “Imperius” on the flavor text for several pieces of the Aegis of Valor set
    • Fixed an issue where the bolts cast by Fist of the Heavens - Divine Well failed to zap enemies
  • Demon Hunter
    • Fixed an issue where In-geom was not properly dropping for Demon Hunters
  • Wizard
    • Fixed a bug where Arcane Torrent would get an extra damage multiplier from Etched Sigil and Deathwish
    • Fixed a bug where Hydra (Frost Hydra) was getting a damage bonus instead of Attack Speed bonus from its owner's Attack Speed; this rune now benefits from Attack Speed in the same manner as other Hydra runes
  • PTR Specific
    • Note: The following issues were only live on the PTR, but we're including the fixes here for visibility and to indicate intended functionality on live.
    • Fixed a bug with Bastion's Revered where it would not properly benefit from Convention of Elements
    • Fixed a bug where Big Bad Voodoo would not properly follow its owner through zones when utilizing the new 2-Piece set bonus
    • Fixed a bug where Hydras would have a short delay after being summoned

Source: Diablo3.com

Update 2.6.8 for Diablo 3 is now live. After updating, players should be able to see the above changes reflected in-game. Be sure to check out the Shacknews Diablo 3 page for our on-going coverage and support of Blizzard’s excellent hack’n’slash RPG.

Guides Editor
Guides Editor

Hailing from the land down under, Sam Chandler brings a bit of the southern hemisphere flair to his work. After bouncing round a few universities, securing a bachelor degree, and entering the video game industry, he's found his new family here at Shacknews as a Guides Editor. There's nothing he loves more than crafting a guide that will help someone. If you need help with a guide, or notice something not quite right, you can message him on X: @SamuelChandler 

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