Though it's now been over half a year since Diablo III's launch, Blizzard has only recently unveiled Diablo III's highly anticipated PvP mode. Diablo III Game Director Jay Wilson explained that another Team Deathmatch-type PvP mode had been in the works, but had been scrapped due to issues with depth and class balance.
The Diablo team has released the patch preview for Patch 1.0.7, which is also coming with details on how PvP will work with dueling.
In order for players to duel others, they'll need to speak with Nek the Brawler at the Inn of New Tristram. The dueling players will then be taken to the Scorched Chapel, a brand new area developed for the sole purpose of PvP. The Scorched Chapel is actually broken down into four different areas consisting of the church, the graveyard, the river, and the lake. Dueling for now will only support matchups to up to four players, meaning fifth wheelers are just going to have to sit out. However, third wheelers are totally welcome.
Dueling currently has no objectives of any sort, meaning that players will be neither rewarded nor penalized. Dying in the Scorched Chapel holds no consequences, not even for hardcore characters.
The patch preview also details some class rebalancing for the Wizard and Monk classes, new recipes, new gem tiers, Monster Power changes, and monster changes. Most significant of these changes are new items that, like Hellfire Rings, are account-bound, meaning that they cannot be sold on the Auction House. More account-bound items will now be available for players to craft, no doubt to allow players to have access to items that make them feel like special snowflakes, since they aren't devalued via a real money purchase.
Unfortunately, Blizzard didn't give a specific launch for Patch 1.0.7, other than the vague window of "soon." Who knows? It very well could be within the week.
