Completing the Seasonal Questline in Diablo 4: Belial’s Return

Diablo 4 is launching its eighth season, titled Belial’s Return, featuring fresh seasonal activities and an upgrade track for players to dive into. Throughout Sanctuary, you’ll encounter fierce apparitions of Belial’s minions. Defeat enough of them, and you can summon Belial himself for an epic overworld battle. Combined with a revamped boss structure for the endgame, this season promises plenty of engaging content.

However, battling Belial is just the beginning of this new season. In this guide, we’ll outline how to initiate the Season 8 mechanics, explain the functioning of the Apparition Incursions, and briefly showcase the new Boss Powers seasonal feature.

How to Start a Deceitful Incursion

“A Deceitful Incursion” is the questline for Season 8 that kicks off after you complete the Diablo 4 main campaign. You do not need the Vessel of Hatred to begin. Once you finish the campaign, head to Kyovashad and talk to Sayeena to start the quest. This will introduce you to the main seasonal mechanics, upgrade system, and new activities.

Locate the Source of the Apparitions

Sayeena has identified some unsettling apparitions located at the eastern end of the Fractured Peaks. Move to the waypoint and eliminate the enemies there. If you’re just starting out and have skipped the campaign, now’s a great time to allocate your skill points. Once you’ve defeated the enemies, enter the newly revealed dungeon.

You will encounter an Apparition of Kirma, a massive foe with a variety of area attacks and powerful melee strikes. This enemy can be quite challenging even on Normal difficulty, so maintain a safe distance when you can. Ideally, have a movement skill with Unstoppable ready to escape any stuns inflicted by Kirma. Wear down its health until it eventually disappears, then talk to Sayeena again.

Complete Apparition Incursions

This apparition is just one of many that have surfaced in Sanctuary since Lilith’s fall. These apparitions are central to the new seasonal mechanics. Every five minutes, an Apparition Incursion will spawn somewhere in Sanctuary. These events are similar to Legion Events, but drop seasonal currencies and provide reputation toward Sayeena’s rewards.

When you reach an incursion and the activity begins, a horde of Belial’s minions will appear near the summoning ritual. Taking them down will trigger an apparition miniboss similar to the one you faced earlier. You’ll have support from other players nearby, making these encounters manageable. After defeating an apparition, the ritual will move to a different location. Relocate, defeat any visible minions, and repeat the process.

Once your group has taken down two apparitions, Belial will appear to end the event. This boss employs a range of wide-area attacks and occasionally summons pillars that explode after a few seconds. Strafe around Belial as much as possible to avoid the majority of its attacks.

After delivering the final blow, an event chest will spawn, and you will receive Spectral Ash, a currency used in the Boss Powers seasonal mechanic. Open your inventory and check the “Boss Powers” tab (located to the left of your main inventory) to see your new powers. We’ll provide a detailed guide for this mechanic later today.