Diablo II: Diablo - Boss Guide

Bosses

Diablo is the final boss of the original Diablo II, before the release of the expansion Lord of Destruction. He is also the best boss in the game in terms of combat, challenge, and variety of attacks.

Before you can fight Diablo, you have to open five seals in the Chaos Sanctuary. Opening three of the seals will release a Super Unique Monster with a pack of minions. These minibosses and their minions would have to be defeated as well before Diablo gets summoned and appears.

• Grand Vizier of Chaos
• Lord De Seis
• Infector of Souls

After the minibosses and their minions were defeated, the screen will shake, and you will hear, "Not even Death can save you from me!" This will kill as well any remaining monsters in Chaos Sanctuary.

Diablo Mechanics

• Diablo deals seven times more damage to hirelings than the hero. That is why they often die early in combat.
• Diablo has no magic resistance but has resistance for other elemental attacks.
• Diablo's stats are all preset. He does not get any random monster modifiers.
• Diablo does not leave the central area of the Chaos Sanctuary, so you can safely go to the seal halls to drink a potion or to cast a portal.
• Diablo, like other act bosses, does not regenerate health when you leave him unless you level-up mid-battle by killing other monsters.

Preparations for Combat

• Diablo's core attacks are based on Fire and Lightning, hence full Fire and Lightning resistance will help a lot.
• If you have high Physical Damage Reduction and Fire and Lightning Absorption, Diablo will end up healing you over time instead of damaging you.

Diablo Stats

Property	Hell	Nightmare	Normal
Monster Level	94	62	40
Experience	2,195,808	465,362	44,902
Hit Points	113,812	90,749	13,818
Defense	2,534	1,176	208
% to Block	50	40	33
Damage Resist	45	0	0
Magic Resist	0	0	0
Fire Resist	50	50	33
Cold Resist	50	50	33
Lightning Resist	50	50	33
Poison Resist	50	50	50
Drain Effectiveness	0	50	100
Chill Effectiveness	10	15	25
Immunities	None	None	None

Strategy Guide

Diablo is the strongest enemy in the game while still having that sense of being fair. Otherwise, it will be Duriel, of course. Diablo also has the most varied moves in the game, capable of doing different range and melee attacks as a reaction to the player.

It is relevant to become familiar with Diablo's attacks to defeat him and the other act bosses in the game.

By looking at the screenshot below, do you know what attack Diablo will perform next?

Physical Attacks

Top Claw Swipe

In this physical attack, Diablo raises one of his hands and then brings it down forcefully on the hero, doing a top claw swipe. He will only do this when he is in melee range.

Physical Damage
Hell	192-235
Nightmare	91-112
Normal	19-49

Side Claw Swipe

This physical attack is very similar to the one above, but instead of coming from the top, Diablo does a claw swipe horizontally.

Physical Damage
Hell	203-267
Nightmare	96-127
Normal	28-64

Bone Prison

When a town portal is cast near Diablo, he will cast Bone Prison around the town portal. Diablo will then have several seconds to kill the player within the bone prison. If you will cast a portal, do it away from the center of the sanctuary.

Charge

In this attack, Diablo goes on all four and sprints toward the hero. He is vulnerable when he performs this attack, as he can be slowed down by various crowd-control attacks like Holy Freeze, Decrepify, and other Cold Attacks. With a ranged character, you can land many attacks on him before he reaches you.

Physical Damage
Hell	116-132
Nightmare	80-96
Normal	53-69

Cold Touch

Cold Touch is a melee attack where Diablo's hand will glow blue while being raised. Once it hits the hero, he will get frozen and slowed down.

Magic Damage
Hell	105-145 (8s chill)
Nightmare	69-97 (8s chill)
Normal	42-61 (8s chill)

The effect of this attack can be avoided by wearing an item with the "Cannot be Frozen" ability. If the hero gets frozen and Diablo follows up this attack with the Red Lightning Hose, the hero will most probably die.

Fire Nova

In this attack, Diablo releases a ring of expanding fire that will fill the whole screen. With full Fire Resistance and maybe some good Fire Absorption, you should be able to survive this.

Fire Damage
Hell	108-138
Nightmare	76-106
Normal	52-82

Fire Wall

In this attack, Diablo releases a wall of fire that follows a straight line. It is the same attack that is available to the Sorceress. This is easier to avoid compared to the Fire Storm, either by running to the left or right of the wall.

Fire Damage
Hell	43-44/sec
Nightmare	29-30/sec
Normal	18-19/sec

Fire Storm

In this attack, Diablo releases a Firestorm that is similar to the Druid's skill; however, it is much larger and stronger. It is the boss version of the attack. You can avoid this by running to the left or the right of the attack.

Physical and Fire Damage
Hell	24-32 + 62-76 (10-30 hits)
Nightmare	15-24 + 40-54 (6-18 hits)
Normal	8-17 + 24-38 (3-9 hits)

Red Lightning Hose

The Red Lightning Hose, also known as Lightning Inferno, is Diablo's strongest attack. It typically one-shots the hirelings regardless of equipment. If your hero is poorly prepared, this attack will destroy him as well.

This attack has built-in tracking. When you try to avoid it by running to the sides, it will follow you in that direction. But this is better than running away from it in the same direction. One of the best strategies for this attack is to have a potion ready after receiving it, assuming you survive.

Physical and Lightning Damage
Hell	216-234 + 378-468/sec
Nightmare	126-144 + 234-324/sec
Normal	54-72 + 126-216/sec

Just before Diablo performs this attack, he always give a signal - he will raise his two hands with the claws facing the character. He will be surrounded by lightning and that is when he will unleash the attack. When the claws are towards Diablo, the attack will be Fire Storm/Wall.

You might not have enough time to differentiate this attack from the Fire Storm, but you will know to run around him, as this approach avoids both of them.