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Diablo 4 players, get ready for a game-changing update coming in February! Blizzard is implementing a major balance shift in Season 7, introducing both significant nerfs and a few buffs. If you’ve been following the current meta, brace yourself—the top-tier Pit builds that were dominating the leaderboards have been completely invalidated.

The biggest takeaway? The Decay Augmentation Witchcraft Power has been disabled, rendering many of the strongest builds useless. Let’s dive into everything you need to know about this upcoming patch, the biggest nerfs and buffs, and how it will affect the game moving forward.

Major Nerf: Decay Augmentation Witchcraft Power Disabled

The most crucial update is the complete disabling of the Decay Augmentation Witchcraft Power. If you currently have this power equipped, it will no longer function, meaning its previous impact on the meta is entirely negated. This power was the core of some of the most broken builds, which resulted in absurdly high damage output, often displaying negative damage values due to the game's internal calculations going haywire.

At some point in the future, Decay Augmentation may be re-enabled, but it remains uncertain whether it will return as the best build option. Spiritborn builds, which were benefiting massively from this, may no longer be the strongest choice. We will have to wait and see how the meta shifts once this update rolls out.

Buffs and Bug Fixes: Some Good News for Players

Despite the massive nerf to Decay Augmentation, there are a few buffs coming as well. Here are some of the most notable ones:

Necromancer Buff: Ring of Moline Fixed

The Ring of Moline, which previously wasn’t calculating damage correctly, is now receiving an update to ensure it functions as intended. This will make Necromancer builds more consistent in terms of damage output.

Mount of Fury Rework (Earthquake DOT Buff)

Mount of Fury’s damage-over-time (DOT) from Earthquakes is getting tweaked. While exact details remain unclear, this suggests that DOT-based builds may become a more viable choice going forward.

Pit Farming and Forgotten Altars Improvements

A major buff has been applied to the spawn rate of Forgotten Altars. Players who are grinding for these can expect to find them more frequently.

Additionally, a little-known potion trick will allow you to increase your chances of finding Forgotten Altars without overriding your existing potion effects. This is similar to the anti-Bendon mechanic from a previous season, where two elixirs could be stacked. If you’re farming the Pit, this will be a great tool to increase efficiency.

Leaderboard Shake-Up: Sorcerer & Spiritborn Impacted

Before the update, Spiritborn was hands down the best class, surpassing every other build by miles. It had infinite damage scaling and was clearing Tier 150 Pits with ease. However, after the nerfs, the leaderboard tells a different story:

· Sorcerer has dropped from Tier 150 down to Tier 134

· Spiritborn may no longer be dominant without its bugged damage boost

· Druid has successfully cleared Tier 150, showing promise for the future

· Barbarian could potentially join the top ranks in the coming weeks

It’s clear that Diablo 4’s meta is shifting significantly. While these rankings may continue to evolve, expect to see more balanced class representation at the top rather than one dominant pick.

Dark Citadel: Not Worth Farming After First Completion?

One of the more controversial updates revolves around Dark Citadel. Many players were initially excited about this new endgame content, but after acquiring their cosmetics from the first clear, there's little incentive to keep farming it. There are no significant loot advantages or repeatable rewards worth the effort. Blizzard may need to introduce additional incentives in future updates to make it a more attractive long-term challenge.

Bug Fixes and Quality-of-Life Updates

Aside from the major balance changes, the patch also introduces a range of bug fixes:

· Cleansing Pests no longer crash the servers

· Exposed Roots Loot Drop Fix – Loot from Exposed Roots destroyed by other players now functions correctly

·  Jeweler Fix – The QA Rune was mistakenly listed as Rare but is actually a Magic-tier item

· Doom Orb Buff – The Doom Orb now returns faster if its target dies mid-flight, improving its usability

· Rune Words in the Armory Are Not Snapping Correctly – This frustrating issue still persists, and Blizzard has yet to provide a fix.

If you're a Diablo Partner, you may want to highlight this issue to Blizzard directly!

Changes to Witch Powers and Summons

There are also adjustments to various Witch Powers and Summon interactions:

· Decay Augmentation now properly states damage instead of base damage

· Aura of Lament now triggers correctly with powers like Breath of the Coven

· Firebats Nerf – Firebats Servants now spawn every 3 seconds instead of 2 (a minor nerf, but nothing game-breaking)

· Sorceress Primordial Binding Passive Fix – It now interacts correctly with Witch Powers tagged as Summon-based

· Golem Growth Bug Fixed – Players were exploiting a bug where summoned Golems could grow multiple times when transitioning zones. This has been patched.

Conclusion: How Season 7 Will Shape the Meta

Diablo 4 Season 7 is bringing one of the biggest shake-ups to the game yet. While the nerf to Decay Augmentation is a major blow to players who relied on it, the buffs to Necromancers, Earthquake DOT builds, and Pit farming should help balance things out.

Expect to see new top-tier builds emerge in the next few weeks as players adapt to these changes. While Spiritborn might not be the uncontested king anymore, the new meta is still developing. Barbarians and Druids could rise to prominence, and forgotten builds may make a surprising comeback.

One thing is certain—Diablo 4’s Season 7 update is going to completely change the way we play the game. Stay tuned for more updates as we continue testing the best builds post-patch!