First Time Hardcore Tips

I have never played Diablo before, but I jumped right into Normal Hardcore in hope of hitting 70 and getting the trophy (PS4). So far I'm at the end of Act 2 with a level 32 Demon Hunter. Things have been relatively easy as I play it safe by keeping my distance and using traps. I've avoided MP as I fear the buffs the enemies could get could kill me. Is there anything else I should know so that I reach lvl 70 Hardcore?

IF there servers are in any way acting up, dont play.

Only time I ever rolled a HC character, got him to 70, then the Diablo servers crashed while me an some randoms were fighting a rift boss. Logged back in, character is dead.

Get more life, life leech, regen, resistances, buffs and debuffs than you think you will ever need. If a small group of normal enemies can take away a visible amount of your life, it's time to upgrade your armor.

That's how I rolled Hardcore in D3 and PoE anyways.

The console version is far easier than PC, so many of the same tips don't apply. If you were playing on PC (or on a difficulty higher than Normal...which is really Easy....which on console is Very Easy) then I would tell you to monitor patch notes, test changes to skills & mobs on the PTR, and be prepared to die due to lag spikes. In this case though, you don't have much to worry about until you increase the difficulty.

I don't think you have anything to fear on normal difficulty, it really should be called very easy.. Just keep updating your armor like you would normally. Maybe get some life on hit/regen for the later bosses, but I doubt even that is necessary on normal.

This is the number 1 most important tip. Had a HC barbarian and tried to leap away only to be rubber banded back by server lag right into instant death.

You can faceroll your way to the level cap on the easiest couple difficulties (I have played multiple characters with friends new to the game where I handicapped myself by only using the last six skills/runes I unlocked, leading to stretches where my only damage skill on my DH was the sentry that makes a chain between you and it, for example). Your biggest threat is going to be latency.

If you're going to be playing at 70 because you enjoy the thrill of HC and start bumping the difficulty, then Defense > Offense.

If you're playing on the console version and playing a local game, you don't need to worry about lag spikes or disconnects at all, so you're safe on that front. This is the #1 reason I like the console version, being primarily a HC player.

The playstyle you say you're using so far sounds good; at this point, the main threat to your life will be situations where you're forced to fight up-close. I usually pick a lot of defensive/escape skills (elective mode!) with one or two sensible damage abilities, preferably with AOE or some sort of CC built-in. On Monk, I take things like Serenity, Mantra of Healing, Breath of Heaven, etc. On Demon Hunter, things like Vault, Caltrops, and Smoke Screen are useful. I recommend using a shield, unless you've found a 2H legendary that's just so good that it's worth the loss in defensive stats. Try to keep your primary damage stat roughly even with your Vitality, and don't be afraid to gem for Vitality if you feel like you need it.

If you're just after the trophy and nothing else, you can put it on the easiest difficulty, but that sort of defeats the whole reason HC is fun, in my opinion. (It'll also take longer because you don't get the XP bonuses that the higher difficulties confer.)

Speaking of lag spikes being the number one HC killer...I just started a new hardcore Crusader and died at level 7 after my screen froze for 6-7 seconds because the game was trying to load a piece of armor that dropped. NICE

I wish there was some way of getting the character back if you die from some bullshit reason like server side lag. It really is such a shitty thing.

@splodge: Yeah it's pretty lame. I understand the policy of never reversing hardcore deaths though, otherwise people would just be sending in tickets and claiming lag even if it's because they were busy showing their stream viewers pics on their cell phones or something dumb like that.

Yeah it sucks. HC is really cool, but after I lost that char from bullshit server lag I never did it again.

@splodge: I understand the feeling...it sucks because after I got used to playing hardcore, regular mode just wasn't as fun anymore. The sense of tension and accomplishment I get from hardcore is still worth the risk of the occasional lag or bug death.

Still looking forward to Seasons, though. Should be coming pretty soon.

It does look good. I haven't played D3 in a few months now, got kind of bored with it, need more to do. The seasons thing looks cool, also the chance of finding a golden vault :O

Avoid those stampedes of exploding enemies in (i think) Act 3.... if you just rush into a room and those things all charge, you're gonzo. *RIP my first hardcore character*

my main rule in hardcore is typically to pay particularly close attention to your position. If there's a mob up ahead, popping several abilities that could get you surrounded quickly isn't a good thing because if there's multiple elite mobs just off screen, you might be hosed. Beyond that, make sure you're particularly cautious about the benefits and drawbacks of trying on different gear as some of the proc abilities of various gear may be more valuable that just the raw stat bonus bump you get. In all honestly on normal, it shouldn't be too hard to hit 70. At that difficulty, usually by the time you've got your crafting vendors upgraded so you can craft weapons/armor if they're not just dropping via conventional means, you're out of the woods in terms of danger of being killed by a random mob.

Don't be afraid to play with people. Use them as meat shields since you're a range class anyway. If you do play online, always teleport to a ranged class. Hopefully they'll be out of the frey and you won't teleport into a mob and be dead before you load.