Master the Occult in Season of Witchcraft (part 1 of 2)

The Tree of Whispers’ most prized possessions are missing: the many Heads which pay their endless debt amongst its gnarled limbs. Uncover the source of this malevolent plot to discover incredible power. Starting on January 21, at 10 a.m. PST, embark on a new Seasonal Questline to unlock powers of Witchcraft, slay the rogue Headrotten, and uncover the secrets behind this haunting mystery.

Witchcraft Powers will be your gateway to wonderful new abilities, augmenting and empowering your existing skills. You’ll earn them as you uncover the mystery of the Coven, a group of heady Witches deep from within the bogs of Hawezar who are eager to serve the Tree of Whispers. As you ally with the Tree of Whispers, you’ll progress and enhance these wild powers throughout Season of Witchcraft.

This update also brings changes to all realms with the Armory, which lets you swap between your favorite builds with ease. Vessel of Hatred owners can search out and wield both new and updated Runes. Plus, there’s new Uniques and Legendary Aspects to earn and master, an all-new Pet in the Season Journey, and more.

Thank you to everyone who participated in December’s 2.1 Public Test Realm. We want you all to know that we’ve integrated feedback throughout this blog, but some feedback that was given will be used to help shape and inform future seasons.

Thank you to everyone that participated in our 2.1 Public Test Realm (PTR) for PC and Battle.net. Throughout the article, any text or section marked in red denotes a change made based off feedback from our latest PTR.

Heed the call of the Witches of Hawezar, a Coven that is bound by the deep magic oozing from the swamps they call home. The Coven are the protectors of the Tree of Whispers, who discovered its many captive Heads are missing. The Tree forgets no oaths and forgives no debts, and these Heads have dues to pay till the end of days. However, these missing Heads have been set loose—free to carry out their own hunt—travelling across Sanctuary to seek bodies and reclaim what was once theirs.

Summoned by the Witches of Hawezar, unravel the mystery of the missing Heads and expose the culprit in an all-new Questline. Within the Questline, you’ll uncover the tantalizing secrets to learn and harness seasonal Witchcraft Powers.

Help them to return the Heads to the Tree, and solve the mystery of who is stealing the Heads and why, and the Coven will reward you with the secrets of their awesome incantations.

To begin the questline, head to Gea Kul and speak with the Witch Gelena.

A strange sorcery has risen from the crags and bogs of Sanctuary—a sparkle is in the air and the ground thrums with the presence of dark magic.

Embark on the Seasonal Questline, unlock the wondrous powers of Witchcraft, and unleash these newfound horrors to melt the bones of the unwilling. There are three schools to learn and master:

• Eldritch—Wield magic that harnesses destructive energies.
• Psyche—Wield defensive powers of the mind and spirit to create visions, focus your attacks, and induce madness in your enemies.
• Growth & Decay—Wield living magic that both heals and harms, boosting Life, Resource. These incantations can create horrific diseases and disruptions.

Plus, discover rare Lost powers of Witchcraft unkown to both the Coven and the Tree. Each school of Witchcraft gives you the chance to experiment between new styles of power. Tinker with your build to create something strange and terrible to dismember your many formidable foes.

To learn Witchcraft, earn Seasonal reputation with the Coven from completing new Whisper bounties and defeating hulking Headrotten enemies to earn Restless Rot. At specific Tiers, you’ll unlock the ability to learn more Witchcraft Powers at Witches’ Altars near the Tree of Whispers.

To earn your Witchcraft Powers, do as the Witches ask by hunting down the Headrotten and returning the Heads where they belong to earn Restless Rot. This will grant you favor amongst The Coven.

Once you’ve earned favor with the Coven, upgrade the Altars underneath the Tree of Whispers to unlock new Witchcraft Powers. To unlock Lost powers, you’ll need a Forgotten Altar. Forgotten Altars are elusive, so keep an eye out for them within random dungeons throughout Sanctuary.

Witchcraft Powers can be upgraded directly in your inventory using the Restless Rot you’ve earned. Slaying Headrotten in higher difficulty tiers will earn you more Restless Rot.

Firebat Servants

• A deadly swarm of Firebats swarm enemies every 3 seconds, inflicting 20% total Fire damage over 1 total attack.
• At Higher Ranks: Enemies are Stunned for 3 seconds after being hit 5 times by your Firebat Servants.

Abyssal Resonance

• Every 250 Resource spent, release an explosion dealing 400% Shadow damage. Each explosion triggered within 10 seconds of the last increases the size and damage by 130%. Stacking up to 3 times.
• At Rank 10: The third explosion pulls enemies towards you before detonating.

Wave of Woe

• Release a Wave of Woe when damaging an enemy with your skills. Wave of Woe deals an additional X Shadow damage and echoes this damage to all other nearby enemies of the same type.
• At Rank 5: Damage is increased by 15% each time damage is echoed and is guaranteed to echo at least 5 times. May strike the same target multiple times.

Purging Touch

• Eldritch Effects X increased damage against Headrotten.
• At Rank 10: This damage bonus now extends to all monsters.

Shaken Soul

• Eldritch Effects apply Vulnerable to enemies for X seconds.
• At Rank 10: Damage from Psyche and Growth & Decay Effects will also apply Vulnerable at half the duration.

Hex of Flames

• Lucky Hit: You have up to an X chance to apply Hex of Flames. Hex of Flames deals 40% additional Fire damage each time you deal damage to the target.
• At Rank 7: Hex of Flames explodes dealing damage to all nearby enemies when you land a Critical Strike.

Doom Orb

• An ominous orb of pure Eldritch energy circles you, damaging any enemy it touches for 400% Fire damage. Doom Orb may launch itself at distant enemies before returning.
• At Rank 5: Kills or damage to Bosses empower the orb’s damage by 5%. After 100%, the orb explodes dealing 5,200 damage to nearby enemies before reforming 3 seconds later.

Life Link

• Automatically link your life force with up to 3 nearby enemies. X of the damage you take is shared with the linked targets as physical damage. Cannot Life Link to enemy Players.
• At Rank 15: For 10 seconds after using a Defensive, Macabre of Subterfuge Skill, any linked damage will be a guaranteed Critical Strike.

Hex of Shattering

• Damage done by your Witchcraft Effects afflicts enemies with Hex of Shattering causing them to deal X reduced damage for 5 seconds.
• At Rank 8: When any Hex Effect is applied to Headrotten, all damage will be guaranteed Critical Strikes for 5 seconds.

Aura of Misfortune

• Enemies near you have X chance for their attacks to be interrupted. Does not work on bosses.
• At Rank 5: Aura of Misfortune increases your Movement Speed by 5% and Slows enemies by 30%.

Aura of Lament

• When you first strike an enemy, it is afflicted with an Aura of Lament that Slows it and other nearby enemies by 70%. For each enemy inside Aura of Lament, you gain 3 Primary Resource each second. If the initial enemy dies, Aura of Lament is passed onto another nearby enemy retaining the duration. Lasts X seconds.
• Only 1 enemy may be afflicted at a time. May only occur every 30 seconds.

Vengeful Spirit

• Every 19 Seconds, a Vengeful Spirit Servant appears for X seconds. While active, all damage taken is instead taken by the spirit. Vengeful Spirit Servant deals 750% damage.
• At Rank 5: When the Vengeful Spirit’s Life is fully depleted, it rushes towards up to 8 enemies dealing 2,000 Shadow damage.

Twilight Warding

• Every X seconds, gain a Barrier for 5 seconds absorbing 100 damage.
• At Rank 12: Twilight Warding reflects enemy projectiles while active.

Poison Frog Servant

• Summon a Poison Frog Servant that attacks and Poisons enemies for 150% damage over 3 seconds. On death, the frog explodes violently dealing X Poison instantly damage to nearby enemies. This explosion will always Critically Strike.
• At Rank 5: Poison Frog attacks will pull enemies towards itself and Taunt enemies for 1 second.

Soul Harvest

• Feed upon the life force of nearby enemies whenever you use a skill with a cooldown, increasing your primary stat by 3% per monster for X seconds.
• At Rank 9: Soul Harvest does not lose duration so long as enemies are nearby.

Hex of Whispers

• Dealing damage to an enemy afflicts them with Hex of Whispers that deals X Shadow damage the next time damage is dealt. Afterwards, Hex of Whispers will jump to another enemy up to a maximum of 6 times. Hex of Whispers may only be applied once every 5 seconds.
• At Rank 7: After bouncing onto 6 enemies, the hex bounces back to you granting 15% Fortify and removing all crowd control and negative status effects.

Decay Augmentation

• Your Witchcraft Effects deal X of the damage dealt over 5 seconds. The damage type is based on your class.
• At Rank 10: When your damage-over-time effects exceed 85% of the target’s total Life, they immediately die.

Grow

• After casting an Ultimate Skill, your Servants, Minions, and Companions are empowered with dark magics. Growing larger in size and dealing X bonus damage. Lasts 15 seconds.
• At Rank 11: Your Servants, Minions and Companions gain 100% Critical Strike Chance while enlarged.

Aura of Siphoning

• Conjure an aura of decay that deals 80% Poison damage to enemies every second.
• At Rank 10: Each time Aura of Siphoning deals damage, you are healed for 1% of Maximum Life.

The Cycle

• Dealing any damage with your skills has a 15% chance to grow a flower from the ground. When an enemy is near, the flower deals X Poison damage to that enemy over 5 seconds. If an ally is near, the flower Heals for 6% Maximum Life. The flower withers away after use. A flower may grow once every 2 seconds per enemy.
• At Rank 5: The damage and healing affects all enemies or allies near the flower.

Breath of the Coven

• Dealing damage or applying a Crowd Control effect with any of your Witchcraft Effects increases your Attack Speed by X for 10 Seconds, stacking once per unique Witchcraft Effect.
• Witchcraft Effects are Eldritch, Psyche, and Growth & Decay.
• At Rank 8: Gain 40% Lucky Hit chance while bonuses from Eldritch, Psyche, Growth & Decay are active at once.

Hex Specialization

• Increase the potency of your Hex Effects by X.
• At Rank 10: Increase the Critical Strike Chance by 10% against enemies afflicted by your Hex Effects.

Aura Specialization

• The size of your Aura Effects are increased by X.
• At Rank 10: Increase the Critical Strike Damage by 50% against enemies inside your Aura Effects.

Piranhado

• When an enemy is afflicted by both a Hex and an Aura Effect, a Piranhado is summoned pulling enemies towards it and dealing X Physical damage over 12 seconds. May occur once every 20 seconds.
• At Rank 5: Piranhado moves itself towards nearby enemies.

Since the Heads once dotting the macabre canopy have disappeared, The Tree of Whispers has invigorated their bounties with a renewed fervor. Set out to track down these rogue Heads and bring this chaos to heel.

There are many new Whisper bounties to seek out and complete to appease the enraged tree. During Season of Witchcraft, there’s a chance the Tree will offer an Ancestral Collection as your reward, guaranteeing at least 1 Ancestral item within.

The Heads missing from the Tree of Whispers have become even more ghastly, true abominations. They are desperate to claim new bodies for themselves, to be whole and human again. But without the Tree they are incomplete, fragmented and mad. They spread a terrible rot to anyone they touch.

Multiple Headhunt zones will appear across Sanctuary which signal that vicious Headrotten are skulking the zone, eager to carry out their disembodied Heads’ command. These Headhunt zones are perfect for completing Whisper bounties. During Season of Witchcraft, you’ll be able to return your Whispers at a new additional location: the Raven of the Tree, a friendly Raven found within Headhunts.

Completing Whisper bounties within a Headhunt zone will reveal Exposed Roots, and gives a rare chance to spawn an Uprooted Cocoon. Uprooted Cocoons will spawn the elusive and deadly Headrotten Bosses. These Headrotten Bosses will appear often as Headless Husks, headless creatures that have lost their controlling Fugitive Head.

In rare cases, this Headrotten Boss will appear with the Fugitive Head still attached. Killing one of these abominations will grant you a Head to return to the Coven, to their wicked delight and grand reward.

Complete Whisper bounties within Headhunts to earn Favor with the Coven, and progress through the Coven’s Tiers to earn rewards such as a Resplendent Spark. You’ll also earn the Materials needed to craft Occult Gems, which provide disturbingly powerful enhancements to your Witchcraft Powers.

While completing Whisper bounties within Headhunts, keep a keen eye for any Rootholds. These seasonal dungeons have bonus challenges and rewards to aid your quest to support the Coven. To access, collect Whisper Wood sigils found in Whisper Caches and Silent Chests.

These powerful Seasonal socketables are crafted with materials earned from completing Whisper bounties and returning Fugitive Heads from Headhunts. Meet with Gelena at the Tree of Whispers, who crafts Occult Gems in exchange for Fugitive Heads, Restless Rot, and Gem Fragments. If you manage to slay a Headrotten possessed by a Fugitive Head, you’ll be able to trade this reclaimed Head for Materials needed to craft Occult Gems.

These powerful Gems provide additional affixes, strongly complement Witchcraft Powers, add Witchcraft tags to your Skills, and more. It is rumored Occult Gems had once even been used to cheat death, if you believe the legend.

You can craft powerful higher tiers of Occult Gems with the following Materials: Fugitive Heads, Restless Rot, Gem Dust, and other Occult Gems.

Each Occult Gem provides 160 Armor and 8% Resist All. Craft the following Occult Gems at Gelena:

Wicked Pact

• Your Non-Unique Eldritch Witch Powers gain 25% Potency.

Heart of Anima

• Your Non-Unique Psyche Witch Powers gain 25% Potency.

Toadling’s Wish

• Your Non-Unique Growth & Decay witch Powers gain 35% Potency.

Phantom String

• You deal 15% more Overpower damage to Hexed enemies.

Elder Sigil

• Your Agility, Corpse, Incarnate, Mastery, Weapon Master, and Wrath Skills deal 25% increased direct damage to Hexed enemies. This Skill now has a Potency skill tag instead of Potency.

Killing Wind

• While you have three or more Eldritch Witch Powers slotted, gain 25% Movement Speed and 15% Critical Strike Chance.

Witching Hour

• While you have three or more Eldritch Witch Powers slotted, every 1 seconds, the next Core Skill you cast gains the Eldritch tag.

Raging Enigma

• Your Unique Witchcraft Powers deal 40% more damage.

Voice of the Stars

• While you have an Aura active, your Ultimate Skills gain each Grimoire tag and deal 10% more damage.

Mind Wreath

• While you have three or more Psyche Witch Powers slotted, your Defensive, Macabre, Trap Skills gain 20% Cooldown Reduction.

Spiral Coin

• While you have three or more Psyche Witch Powers slotted, gain 30% Control Duration and 20% Lucky Hit Chance.

Cornucopia

• While you have three or more Growth % Decay Witch Powers slotted, you generate 30% more Barrier, gain 30% more Fortify and have 30% more Thorns.

Vulture Talon

• While you have an Aura active, you deal Damage Over Time 50% faster.

Pointed Finger

• Your Summons deals 15% more direct damage to Hexed Elites.

Vile Phylactery

• While you have a Witch Power with the Summon tag slotted, if you would take fatal damage, instead prevent that damage. Then gain a Barrier equal to 100% of your Maximum Life and disable your Witchcraft Powers with the Summon tag for 6 seconds. This can only occur once every 75 seconds.

Friend of the Bog

• While you have three or more Growth & Decay Witch Powers slotted, you gain 10% primary stat, 10% Maximum Life and you are always Unhindered.

Moonlight Ward

• For each rank in your slotted Unique Witchcraft Power, you gain 3% Damage Reduction and 0.5% Maximum Resistance to All Elements.

Dust Stone

• For each of your Auras and Hexes an enemy is afflicted by, they take 2.5% increased damage from you.

Hungering Void

• While you have an Aura active, pull Nearby enemies toward you every 8 seconds.

SE MERE