Diablo 4’s mechanics are pretty well-understood by its hardcore community by this point – from the fact that elemental resistances are basically nonfunctional to the critical requirement of Vulnerability applicators on every single build. There’s a big, buff-heavy balance patch on the horizon (sometime before Season 1, per the developers), but it won’t affect what we’re talking about today: Lucky hits. Here’s how Lucky Hits are calculated in Diablo 4.
What Does a Lucky Hit Do in Diablo 4?
Put simply, a Lucky Hit is an independently rolled modifier that varies in likelihood between Skills. I’m going to use Druid as an example in this piece, since that’s what I play most.
Storm Strike has a Base Lucky Hit Chance of 25%. This means every time I use my Storm Strike, there’s a 1/4 chance it will be a “Lucky Hit.” This is NOT a Critical Strike – it does no extra damage, but it does trigger the chance of ALL Lucky Hit Effects.
For instance, if we also take the Passive Skill Elemental Exposure, we’re given a 10% chance on Lucky Hit to also make enemies Vulnerable.
Related: Diablo 4: Thorns Stat Explained
How Are Lucky Hit Effects Calculated in Diablo 4?
Let’s put these two Skills together – when we attack with Storm Strike, having taken the Elemental Exposure ability, we have a 10% chance within our 25% Lucky Hit chance to make enemies Vulnerable for 1 second. It calculates as follows:
0.25 [Storm Strike] x 0.1 [Elemental Exposure] = 0.025 or 2.5% chance to make enemies Vulnerable for 1 second
It’s quite convoluted, but Lucky Hit effects are often powerful, so their low likelihood of proccing makes sense. Also, Lucky Hit Effects can trigger simultaneously. This means you can activate none, one, or all of your Lucky Hit Effects with a single strike.
Remember, some abilities have higher Lucky Hit chances than others, and Lucky Hit chance can be increased by affixes. Use this to your advantage if you’re trying to trigger Lucky Hit Effects often.
If you’re curious about other unique, somewhat obtuse stats, check out our Diablo 4 guide on Crackling Energy.
