Diablo 4's Server Slam Beta Sorcerer Nerfs Hit The Wrong Suspect
Diablo 4 successfully concluded its Server Slam beta today, and the lead-up was a hype train for fans who wanted to test new builds, score an Ashava the Pestilent kill to earn their mount trophy, and get a grasp of the current class balance. Striking a good balance between Diablo 4's classes has proved time and again to be tough, especially with so many possible builds in the game and the fact that past betas had a skewed drop rate for Unique items, making them more common. Still, Blizzard made several changes to the game before the beta went live, including a plethora of buffs and nerfs.
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One of the most nerfed classes in the game was the Sorcerer, which was a bit too powerful for its good in the previous betas, to the point that it had the best add-clearing potential as well as boss DPS - all with one skill, Chain Lightning. This was possible thanks to several Legendary Aspects, good gear, and the fact that the base skill was overtuned compared to many others, which made it almost mandatory and removed the customization aspect from Sorcerer builds entirely. While Blizzard's nerfs to Chain Lightning were justified and good for the health of the game, Diablo 4's Enchantments for Sorcerers should have been looked at, instead.
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Why Blizzard Missed the Mark With Diablo 4's Server Slam Beta Nerfs
While Chain Lightning was and still is a decent skill for add-clearing, it is by no means great simply because even if it one-shots all the monsters it hits, it's still going to need another cast or two to finish the pack in its entirety. However, what makes it incredible even after the nerfs is the Fireball Enchantment that Sorcerers get from level 15 onward, as it makes enemies explode in a fiery burst on death, thus needing only one kill or two per pack to trigger a chain effect that will clear the whole screen and ending up in most Diablo 4 Sorcerer builds.
The powerful explosion from the Fireball Enchantment wasn't hit by nerfs, but it should have been in order to make it more in line with other classes and the constant use of Chain Lightning. For example, Diablo 4's Rogue gets a similar effect through means like Shadow Imbuement, which makes enemies killed while the ability is active explode on death. Comparatively, though, it is a skill that players have to actively slot on their skill bars and has a cooldown that was even increased with the latest patch, whereas the Fireball Enchantment is free to use and is active all the time.
As such, Chain Lightning continues to be one of the best skills for Sorcerers simply because it makes easy work of anything that isn't a boss when combined with this specific Enchantment, and the Enchantment itself makes other ones less appealing by default. Chain Lightning's damage on Diablo 4's powerful bosses is not as high as it was before the Server Slam beta, however, so that does give Sorcerers a bit more leeway in terms of their single-target skill of choice.
A nerf to the Fireball Enchantment's explosion range or damage, or even both, could not only be part of the overhaul Blizzard wanted for Chain Lightning, but also have the side effect of making other Enchantments look more viable. On the other hand, Blizzard could also make some other Enchantments more alluring for players, at least as much as the one for Fireball currently is. With Diablo 4 hitting the shelves in three weeks, now is a good time to make some final changes to the game before it launches, especially since the biggest patch post-launch will likely only come with Season 1 in July.
Diablo 4 is available on PC, PlayStation 4 and 5, and Xbox One and Series X/S.
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Source: GameRant
