**OFFICIAL** Diablo 3 Thread

[sweenish]

So, I only get a single keystone and I can upgrade it each completed rift, but each failed rift it will still open that same level? So, if I was at like level 30, and I failed, I didn't have to start from level 1, but rather just not be able to go to level 31?

The grift keystone is consumed when you open the grift (in the same way the rift keystones are). You won't have a stone to re-open with.

 

[Worthington]

So, I only get a single keystone and I can upgrade it each completed rift, but each failed rift it will still open that same level? So, if I was at like level 30, and I failed, I didn't have to start from level 1, but rather just not be able to go to level 31?

If you fail a level 30 rift (for example), you're done. You can upgrade your gems but you'll have to get another Trial key and start from scratch.

 

[Denithor]

You need to do rifts in torment difficulty to have a chance for the rift guardian to drop a keystone of trials which allows you to enter greater rifts. While in a greater rift only the rift guardian drops anything, and for your first couple runs you can expect 2 legendary gems, and 1 gem per RG kill after that until you have them all. I also average 1 legendary per greater rift RG kill.

Since you are playing on HC I would advise to purposely go slow in greater rifts and only kill the RG when the timer has about 4 minutes left so you only move up 1 level. This way you don't risk jumping up to a difficulty that is too hard and lose your character.

Yeah, Hard difficulty bounties are pretty easy for me now but Expert really slows things down, a lot, and creates some scary moments. Going to be a while before I'll be trying even T1 bounties or rifts...

 

[Schfifty Five]

I've done only 3 Grifts all 25+. Each time I killed the GRG, I would hear like 5-7 legendary sound drops. It was wonderful lol.

Sad that the double gob buff is gone. Was able to find 2 vaults via Goblin it Forward communities. Once on T3 and once on T6. i was dumb and didn't think about loading up my +GF% gear so only got like 20M and 90M respectively. Oh well, I'm sure I'll run into more.

 

[Ertaz]

You guys who play HC must have ballin interweb connections. At my house I'm always one netflix stream away from death.

 

[thm1223]

You guys who play HC must have ballin interweb connections. At my house I'm always one netflix stream away from death.

I decided to completely start over and only play using HC toons, and this issue is constantly in the back of my mind. Granted, I've only reached level 40 with my wizard and haven't even started using any of the other classes. But dying from internet lag is definitely something I worry about.

I do have to say though that hardcore is a lot more fun to me. It really reduces the mindlessness of grinding and forces you to be extremely cautious and wary of what might lie ahead.

 

[smackababy]

If you fail a level 30 rift (for example), you're done. You can upgrade your gems but you'll have to get another Trial key and start from scratch.

That is absolutely worthless. So, in the event I do make it to where I am doing more than autopiloting and actually pushing content and time limits, I get punished extremely hard for failing. Great job Blizzard! You've basically made farming so much of a chore, it isn't worth it.

Can I at least get multiple keystones to upgrade? So, while I can't upgrade each one every rift, I could alternate them and have at least a fall back option to try again, should I fail?

 

[Worthington]

yeah, you could. You could run G-rifts till you hit the threshold right before you'd risk failing (Grift 30 for example). And then stash the level 30 key and start with another rank 1 key. that way you could bank a bunch of level 30ish keys till you felt ready to take them on.

 

[sweenish]

You guys are bonkers. My T1 WD is lucky to get past GR13. MY Wiz on T2 is about the same.

My HC WD found a goblin portal, though. It was amazing. I earned about 10M gold. I was able to pay for 3 royal topazes and finally replace the low lever stuff I had, put a royal emerald in my weapon, and craft an aughild's chest and actually roll the three sockets into them.

Now I'm broke again, but I gained about 50k paper damage. ALSO, I got a Julia's Cameo, so I look forward to arcane now. It makes it so I can't die. Still gambling for a MoJ, though. Got Zuni's helmet and I'm using it just because it was an upgrade, but I'm still waiting for MoJ. I don't look forward to trying to gamble Tasker and Theo.

 

[Denithor]

I decided to completely start over and only play using HC toons, and this issue is constantly in the back of my mind. Granted, I've only reached level 40 with my wizard and haven't even started using any of the other classes. But dying from internet lag is definitely something I worry about.

I do have to say though that hardcore is a lot more fun to me. It really reduces the mindlessness of grinding and forces you to be extremely cautious and wary of what might lie ahead.

This is exactly what I did, got to 70 with a Monk and a WD on SC then decided to try Crusader on HC. Loving it so far, got to 70 last weekend, finished Malthael on Hard and found two goblin portals and a handful of legendaries (most of which were worthless except as crafting mats).

I had some problems with internet connection when the whole DDoS thing was happening but otherwise has been relatively solid. The biggest difference that I notice in gameplay is that I have to be much more aware of the packs around me, getting pinned down has to be avoided at all costs. And I don't just stack DPS gear, this character is far more balanced between defense and offense.

 

[Jumpem]

That is absolutely worthless. So, in the event I do make it to where I am doing more than autopiloting and actually pushing content and time limits, I get punished extremely hard for failing. Great job Blizzard! You've basically made farming so much of a chore, it isn't worth it.

Can I at least get multiple keystones to upgrade? So, while I can't upgrade each one every rift, I could alternate them and have at least a fall back option to try again, should I fail?

You don't get punished at all. If you don't finish say a level 35 greater rift in the time limit you just use another keystone and start right back at 35 again.

 

[OCNewbie]

Melee characters kinda suck in this game now. You run into an electrified mob with out the lightning immune ammy, and you're dead. I don't know if Blizz play tests their own game sometimes.

I've got a Barb in full Raekor's now, including the new Vile Ward. It's a lot of fun to play, but you're right, when it comes to electrified or fire chains, I'm almost always screwed. Sometimes I can charge, then back away, then charge, repeatedly from the same angle, and that might keep me alive, but maybe only 1 out of 3 times. Also, Blighter, the rift boss, absolutely melts me. I can't take but like a single melee hit from him, and the second one splats me. I'm not sure what to do. I need Unity. I have one, but need a second.

 

[pandemonium]

That is absolutely worthless. So, in the event I do make it to where I am doing more than autopiloting and actually pushing content and time limits, I get punished extremely hard for failing. Great job Blizzard! You've basically made farming so much of a chore, it isn't worth it.

Can I at least get multiple keystones to upgrade? So, while I can't upgrade each one every rift, I could alternate them and have at least a fall back option to try again, should I fail?

Being able to upgrade your gems isn't a punishment...it's a consolation prize, and a pretty nice one at that. You're still getting loot from the GRG and it's not like you get kicked out of the grift, so I don't see how this is a punishment at all. It's pretty well balanced.

It doesn't take that long to farm the KoTs. All the while, you're getting a lot of loot and exp in the process.

Since it scales to your capabilities pretty accurately there's no real fail here. You're given the option to push your limits or run it easily as you wish.

The only thing at this point that I'd say takes a while to farm and isn't necessarily worth it, is the Hellfire amulet. I've rolled 4 now and only 1 is okay (the rest are garbage). The group I ran with for these all got garbage rolls, and salvaging those for a FS is insulting.

That's what I'm missing now. My Rorg have all been subpar. I suppose I will try to get cc/cd/Cdr and a socket.

I'm going back to farming for another RoRG since mine has IAS on it and I need the CC. :/

 

[Tweak155]

That is absolutely worthless. So, in the event I do make it to where I am doing more than autopiloting and actually pushing content and time limits, I get punished extremely hard for failing. Great job Blizzard! You've basically made farming so much of a chore, it isn't worth it.

Can I at least get multiple keystones to upgrade? So, while I can't upgrade each one every rift, I could alternate them and have at least a fall back option to try again, should I fail?

You clearly have no idea what you're talking about. Give it a try, it's actually a decent system.

 

[smackababy]

You clearly have no idea what you're talking about. Give it a try, it's actually a decent system.

Hence the reason why I am asking about the system, and people seem to have difficulty explaining it. How many keystones do I get and how are they upgraded? If I get to a level 44+ rift (which was the limit a week or so ago that people were pushing) and fail, do I get to continue in that same level (or, at least around that level) OR do I have to start over from level 1?

Because, if it is level 1, there is absolutely zero point in even bothering.

 

[Malladine]

smackababy - jumpem replied above..

 

[jruchko]

Hence the reason why I am asking about the system, and people seem to have difficulty explaining it. How many keystones do I get and how are they upgraded? If I get to a level 44+ rift (which was the limit a week or so ago that people were pushing) and fail, do I get to continue in that same level (or, at least around that level) OR do I have to start over from level 1?

Because, if it is level 1, there is absolutely zero point in even bothering.

You do regular rifts in torment difficulty and the rift guardians have a chance to drop a keystone of trials. (on t6 the drop rate is 100%)

When you have a keystone of trials you use it on the obelisk just like you would a normal rift fragment. In this map you will fight waves of enemies, and you have a timer with each wave. The goal is to kill all of the enemies before the timer expires. Once you fail to kill a wave within the time limit your trial is over and you are given a greater rift keystone of a level that is appropriate for your character.

The greater rift keystone will have a number displayed on it, that is the level of greater rift it will open when used at the obelisk. If you manage to kill a greater rift guardian within the time limit you have an npc that spawns and he gives you 2 choices, either upgrade a legendary gem, or upgrade your keystone. How much your keystone gets upgraded depends on how much time was left on the timer when you killed the greater rift guardian. If the time left is under 4:30 it will only go up 1 level.

Once you use a greater rift keystone it is used, the only way to get it back is to upgrade it after killing a greater rift guardian. If you fail a greater rift you need to use a keystone of trials again to get a new greater rift keystone. (every time you use a keystone of trials you get a greater rift keystone based on the amount of waves you kill)

I really don't think it is possible to go into anymore detail. I hope this helps.

EDIT: Some additional details:
If you fail a greater rift you can still upgrade legendary gems.
The chance to successfully upgrade a gem is determined by both the greater rift level, and the level of the gem. If the greater rift level is 10 levels or more above the gem level it is a 100% chance.
You have 3 rolls to upgrade a gem, and you can switch which gem to upgrade with each roll.

Here is a chart for the upgrade chance for gems.

 

[Malladine]

Once you use a greater rift keystone it is used, the only way to get it back is to upgrade it after killing a greater rift guardian. If you fail a greater rift you need to use a keystone of trials again to get a new greater rift keystone.

Can you confirm in this scenario that the new greater rift keystone you receive starts at the last level you were able to clear?

 

[jruchko]

Can you confirm in this scenario that the new greater rift keystone you receive starts at the last level you were able to clear?

I guess I wasn't clear enough. Every time you use a keystone of trials you have to kill the waves to get a keystone. Previous performance in greater rifts has nothing to do with what level greater rift keystone you will get from the trial.

 

[JimKiler]

When/Where can i get a keystone to do the greater rifts? I just picked up RoS and am level 54 but i have not completed the RoS campaign yet. I could not do a rift MP game with a friend due to no keystones.

 

[smackababy]

So, this sounds exactly like I described it: stupid if you want to push content you aren't able to auto pilot through. If I go, right now, and do a T6 rift, get my greater rift key, and then level it up to 30, if I fail on that level 31, I am done. I have to alternatively farm another stone up to that level, having to do the stupid levels of 1-25 again, correct?

That is such a bad farming mechanic.

 

[Malladine]

I guess I wasn't clear enough. Every time you use a keystone of trials you have to kill the waves to get a keystone. Previous performance in greater rifts has nothing to do with what level greater rift keystone you will get from the trial.

yeah i'm with Smack then, massive grind.

And so Jumpem was wrong:

You don't get punished at all. If you don't finish say a level 35 greater rift in the time limit you just use another keystone and start right back at 35 again.

Which is why i wanted confirmation. You misunderstood.

 

[jruchko]

It really isn't a massive grind though, I don't get how you think it is. The trial you do is a pretty short process and is there to get a high level keystone quickly if you can kill the waves fast enough. Once you kill a wave, another starts after like 5 seconds. The time to kill a wave is like 30 seconds or a minute. It really doesn't take long at all.

The entire purpose of the trial is for the game to judge what greater rift level you should be placed into. The system is there to reduce grind, not increase it.

 

[Malladine]

Ah right, the quicker you complete waves the bigger the jump. I had "wait until the last 4 minutes to keep the jump to 1 lvl" in my mind cause I play HC. SC it has be much better.

 

[smackababy]

It really isn't a massive grind though, I don't get how you think it is. The trial you do is a pretty short process and is there to get a high level keystone quickly if you can kill the waves fast enough. Once you kill a wave, another starts after like 5 seconds. The time to kill a wave is like 30 seconds or a minute. It really doesn't take long at all.

The entire purpose of the trial is for the game to judge what greater rift level you should be placed into. The system is there to reduce grind, not increase it.

So, if I am pushing level 40+ grifts, it isn't a grind to spend an hour grinding back up to level 40 if I fail one? That is stupid. The trivial rift content will continue to be a trivial, forced grind. And, as overall gear levels increase and new items / balances are made, eventually someone doing a level 100 rift is going to be in for a huge, awful grind if they fail.