After Diablo 4 officially launched in early June, it didn’t take long for players to realize just how powerful Vulnerable Damage was on nearly every build in the game. Going into Season 1 of Diablo 4, Blizzard took a look at Vulnerable and Critical Strike damage, and I can tell you that plenty of players are going to need some fresh builds.
Vulnerable Damage and Critical Strikes Nerfed in Diablo 4
As of July 18, both Vulnerable Damage and Critical Strikes have been nerfed. Most of the changes are applied to Affixes that are found on items like weapons and armor. Aside from skills and Paragon Points though, this is where most players will draw their power from, and the most popular stats in the game have taken quite the hit.
On global Affixes, Critical Strike damage has been reduced by 17%, and Vulnerable Damage has been reduced by a massive 40%. For primary weapons like swords and crossbows, that number increases. Critical Strike damage gets reduced by 50% when compared to before, and Vulnerable Damage on crossbows has gone down by 65%.
Within the Diablo 4 Season 1 patch notes, there is a developer’s note that explains the decision to nerf what many players have relied on for the past month in-game. “We’re seeing Critical Strike Damage and Vulnerable Damage often viewed as a hard requirement for a build’s success in Diablo IV. We believe this is a step towards allowing more builds to flourish and will continue to make changes in support of this goal.“
Related: How Many New Legendary Aspects are in Diablo 4 Season 1? – Answered
Other major stats that received nerfs in the Affixes section included damage against crowd-controlled enemies, cooldown reduction, and close-range damage reduction. It looks like the perfect time to roll a Season 1 character and ditch the Eternal Realm.
Make sure to read the full Season 1 Patch Notes for Diablo 4 before getting into the Season 1 content.
