There are too many hints at a Diablo 4 shadow drop at The Game Awards to convince me paladins won’t be playable next week

Tin foil hats on, everyone. Several clues point to a new class dropping in Diablo 4 right after next week’s Game Awards, where Blizzard is expected to announce the next expansion.

I wouldn’t be convinced of this if it weren’t for a preview image on the Diablo 4 website that contains something that wouldn’t exist otherwise: a new flail weapon type.

Every season you can fill out a battle pass of sorts that unlocks fancy weapon skins, and people quickly spotted a curious looking weapon on the info page for the upcoming Season of Divine Intervention. Under “additional bonus rewards” there’s a flail alongside a mace and a glaive, and unless they’re giving necromancers a new weapon type, I think we’re looking at a clear hint at paladins making their way to Sanctuary immediately.

It would line up with a bunch of other hints we’ve gotten in the past few months about what’s happening with Diablo 4 at The Game Awards on December 11. Those include:

An internal build of the game had “paladin” in the title before it got taken down earlier this yearDiablo 4 developers urged people to watch The Game Awards in an interview last monthSeason of Divine Intervention happens to start right at the end of The Game AwardsThe developers once again told everyone to watch The Game Awards earlier this weekThe lead class designer pointed out the coincidence on X with a thinking emoji

(Image credit: Blizzard Entertainment)

I don’t know about you, but I think this smells like a surprise paladin release for people who preorder the next expansion. World of Warcraft players got player housing early; Diablo players get a class that people have been begging for since it came out.

It’ll be interesting to see how the new season goes if this is the case. Season of Divine Intervention is basically overhauling a few of the core systems in Diablo 4, like itemization and crafting. Upgrading your gear won’t be as tedious as before, and there will be a new way to gamble with your items to make them even more powerful than you can normally.

Keep an eye out for Diablo-related stuff at The Game Awards on December 11, and then pray the servers don’t collapse under the weight of everyone scrambling to play a new class when the season launches right as the show ends.

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