Loading...
Loading...
Itemization
September 13, 2026 at 10:06 PM
Updated internal link states after new pages were added (2026-09-12)
Itemization was one of the subjects Blizzard covered at the Diablo V reveal, and it is described as a set of intentions rather than a finished system. The stated goal is to "design items to feel readable, memorable, and worth chasing across hundreds of hours".
Pre-launch article. Diablo V was announced on 12 September 2026 and is scheduled for Spring 2029. As of 13 September 2026 the game has been public for one day, no playable build has been shown, and Blizzard describes it as "still early in development". Every itemization statement below is hedged by the team. The inventory shown at the reveal was called an early look and explicitly not a final design, and stat requirements were called an experiment.
Blizzard's announcement post sets out the direction in two sentences that are worth reading precisely: "Itemization in Diablo V is inspired by Diablo II. We're experimenting with stat requirements on gear."
Note the hedge. "We're experimenting with" is Blizzard's own wording. It is not a statement that gear has stat requirements, and this wiki does not record it as one. At the reveal the team separately described the inventory it showed as an early look and not a final design.
Gear-based sets. Blizzard: "Gear-based sets are also returning for Diablo V."
Belts. Described at the reveal as a returning item slot alongside sets.
Inventory size mattering. "Your inventory plays a key role in how you wield your arsenal, larger items once again take up more slots in your inventory."
Crafting is described as a major system rather than a side activity: "This will be a rich and deep crafting system, inspired by Lord of Hatred's approach, with Diablo II-style Runes and Runewords."
Scope note. The references to earlier titles are stated inspirations, and that is all this wiki records about them. No Diablo V rune, runeword, set or item has been named. Rune lists, runeword recipes and item tables from other games are not Diablo V content and do not belong on this wiki. Any page presenting such a list as Diablo V information is fabricating it.
The team described an approach of layering depth over time rather than presenting it up front, with items said to start simple and grow in complexity as the player progresses. Internally the team calls this principle "Deferred Complexity", a term Executive Producer Matt Zitterman attributed to Senior Game Director Joe Shely.
This is development vocabulary, not a feature. "Deferred Complexity" is what the team calls its own design principle. It is not the name of an in-game system, and it should not be written as one.
Element | Status as of 13 September 2026 |
|---|---|
Design goal | Items readable, memorable, and worth chasing across hundreds of hours |
Stat requirements on gear | Being experimented with, not confirmed |
Gear-based sets | Stated as returning |
Belts | Stated as returning |
Inventory slot sizing | Larger items take more slots |
Runes and Runewords | Part of the crafting system. None named |
Item tiers | Described as starting simple and growing in complexity |
Loot filters | Asked about, not commented on |
A single item, set, rune, runeword or affix name.
Any rarity tier name, stat, number or range.
How crafting works in practice, or what resources it uses.
Whether trading exists, and in what form.
Loot filters. The developers were asked and did not comment.
How itemization interacts with classes, which was itself deferred to 2027.
