Dark Citadel is the first Raid endgame content to be introduced in Diablo 4 with the release of Vessel of Hatred on 8th October 2024.
How to get The Dark Citadel
The Dark Citadel opens on Torment 1 which is gated behind clearing 15 levels of The Pit. Once you have unlocked Torment 1 you have access to the Dark Citadel. You’ll then receive an introductory Quest to begin your journey, which only needs to be completed once on your Account.
Torment 1 and onwards are the new levels of difficulty to be introduced in Season 6. Even when you have finished the campaign of Vessel of Hatred there are additional questslines to help you get your character build to where it needs to be to unlock Torment 1.
What is the Dark Citadel?
Hidden deep within Nahantu, nestled in the center of a massive crater created during the Mage Wars lies the colossal Citadel. The Dark Citadel is under the sinister rule of The First Khazra, who harness the Citadel's dark powers to perform gruesome experiments on captured villagers. The Mercenary, Aldkin was born part-demonic as a result of the First Khazra within the Citadel performing dark rituals on his mother. Their ultimate goal is to resurrect an almighty demon through the sacrifice of innocent souls.
Teams of players must navigate through three distinct wings, each filled with lethal traps and fierce battles, before emerging, to confront the final boss. Within the Citadel’s three wings, secrets lurk and dark plots await discovery. This is strictly a co-op endeavor and whilst it can be tackled as a party of two players, four is best.
Each wing can be approached as a group, allowing for multiple attempts if rest is needed along the way. The Citadel can take multiple hours to complete! Strategic communication is vital, and the new Marker System will help to coordinate your next move.
There seems to be some limited form of puzzle solving or choices to be made as a group as one image from Blizzard is labeled 'Puzzle Room' and there are two other images from the Citadel that show doorways with symbols on them.
With the addition of raid-like gameplay, Blizzard are also adding a Party Finder system which is not currently in the game but will launch at the same time as Vessel of Hatred and Season 6 patch, however it doesn't require VoH to access and will be available on both Seasonal and Eternal Realms.
Dark Citadel rewards
Complete the Dark Citadel each week to earn a Weekly Rewards cache, offering exclusive items found only within its dark confines. One such item is the Scroll of Retempering that enables you to refresh the Tempering rolls on an item you have used up all the Tempering rolls on.
As you progress, you'll also collect Citadel Coins which is a new currency that can be used to purchase exclusive items from the Citadel vendor who you will find inside the Dark Citadel. You'll also get Khazra Horn which can be used in crafting.
- Khazra Horn - Used to transmute high-level Boss materials. The Alchemist currently offers a transmute service so it may be them who you take the Khazra Horn to craft into another item.
- Citadel Coin - A currency needed to shop at the Citadel Vendor, a new merchant.
There is also a Dark Citadel Armor set to collect. Details on how you get this exactly haven't been revealed but it's likely rewarded rather than bought and probably piece by piece rather than the entire set at once.
When designing the Citadel we designed a lot of really cool bosses and we took that design and made armor sets for each of the classes. That way you feel like you took their armor and you feel like you're wearing a little bit of them after your victory. ~ Richie Marella, Associate Art Director, Concepts, Blizzard 21 August 2024
Dark Citadel Gallery
Changes to Dark Citadel
Patch 2.0, October 8, 2024
- Added in Vessel of Hatred