Diablo 4 Helltides feature much more prominently in the current season, and have been opened up to make them accessible to all player regardless of their level. In the past you could only fight in Helltide events if you were at World Tier 3 or above, but with a reworking introduced for Diablo 4 Season 4 anyone can get involved regardless of the World Tier they're exploring. These events provide a seemingly endless stream of monsters to slay, meaning you can level up fast and grab premium equipment in Diablo 4 as you slash through their ranks. Furthermore, you'll also earn Diablo 4 Wolf's Honor along the way, which is essential for improving your standing with the Iron Wolf mercenaries. If you want to get stuck in, then here's how Helltides in Diablo 4 work.
When is the Helltide in Diablo 4?
In a significant change for this season, the Diablo 4 Helltide starts on the hour every hour, and lasts for 55 minutes in every World Tier. That means there's a Helltide event running almost all of the time somewhere within Sanctuary, unless you're in the brief five minute window where the demons are at bay and everything resets, before the next instance starts up all over again.
How to find the Helltide in Diablo 4
Once the Helltide in Diablo 4 begins, it will affect one of the five regions of Sanctuary. This will be represented by a blood-red hue appearing over that section of the map, and if you look around the area you should also spot an icon of a red sword surrounded by flames stating "The Helltide Rises" when you hover over it. This isn't too difficult to spot once you know what you're looking for, but if you're having any difficulty finding it or want a complete breakdown of the event in progress then the tracker on Helltides.com has got you covered.
How does the Diablo 4 Helltide work?
Once you enter a Diablo 4 Helltide area, you'll be attacked by increasing waves of enemies and Elites. Keep an eye on the stats I've highlighted in the top right corner of the screen above, as these keep you up to date on your progress in the event. At the top is a timer showing how much time is remaining in the current Helltide, while the counters below show how many Aberrant Cinders (left) and Baneful Hearts (right) you've collected from fallen enemies, and the bottom bar represents your current Threat level.
Diablo 4 Aberrant Cinders
100 Aberrant Cinders are used to open a Tortured Gift of Mysteries, which are special Helltide chests that can drop consumables, gear, Murmuring Obols, and Baneful Hearts. These look like large skeleton-covered chests, and you can find their locations marked on the map as chests with a question mark above them. Opening Tortured Gifts of Mysteries will also earn you 100 Wolf's Honor each time, which will significantly speed up progressing your reputation with the Iron Wolves clan and unlock reward items with them.
Aberrant Cinders will be lost at the end of each Helltide event, so make sure you spend them before the current timer expires.
Diablo 4 Baneful Hearts
Three Baneful Hearts can be used on an Accursed Altar to begin the Accursed Ritual, which will trigger a swarm of demonic enemies followed by a powerful Blood Maiden that drops significant rewards when defeated. The Accursed Altars are marked by three pillars surrounding three bodies arranged within a circle on the ground, and while you can deposit a Baneful Heart in one of the Altars at any time the ritual won't begin until all three have been offered up, so you're better off holding on to your Baneful Hearts until you have three unless you see an obvious opportunity to assist another player in completing their set.
Baneful Hearts carry over between Helltide events, so you don't have to rush to use them before the current timer expires.
Diablo 4 Threat Level
Finally, keep an eye on your Threat meter, as this will gradually increase as you defeat enemies and move your through three Threat Levels, with each new level resulting in more regular and powerful ambushes to deal with. When the meter is full, you'll become Hell-Marked and will be swarmed by a large group of enemies. Survive that assault, and a Hellborn boss will spawn based on one of the five player classes, so you'll need to use all of your skills and abilities to send them back to Hell.
This encounter can be tricky to reach, because if you die at any point during the Helltide then your Threat Level is completely reset, so you'll have to start building it up again from scratch. Your Threat Level also resets once the Hellborn ambush begins, so you only get one shot at this final boss and should approach the fight accordingly.
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