The Helltide is one of the many end game activities in Diablo 4. It’s the only way to obtain Fiend Rose and Forgotten Soul to enchant your gear at the Occultist as well as target farm for Legendaries or Unique items! Learn how to unlock it, the special locations, spawn timings, rewards and general tips & tricks to get the most while farming.
General
While roaming Sanctuary, be aware of your surroundings, as you might find yourself caught in a Helltide where powerful bosses roam the hellscape to put an end to you. This zone-wide event empowers enemies, raising their level to always be three above your character level, increasing their difficulty. With heightened danger comes powerful rewards to make the adventure worthwhile. Let's learn about how to push back the tide!
Unlocking Helltide
To unlock Helltide players must first reach Nightmare Difficulty. This can be done once the player reaches level 50 and completes the Capstone Dungeon on Veteran Difficulty.
Location & Timing
Helltides start at the top of every hour and last for 55 minutes, with a 5 minute break until the next event. It takes over a fixed set of four connected zones in any region. These zones can be normal as well as Strongholds, so be sure to cleanse them quickly to not hinder your farming locations. The game sends out a worldwide message right before a Helltide event starts:
"The Helltide has risen in multiple territories"
Helltide zones are highlighted in red with a flaming sword marker on them when you look at the map. This icon also tells you how much time is left when hovered over. Here are the zones per region:
Zones
Khargai Crags
Temple of Rot
Untamed Scarps
The Onyx Watchtower
Zones
Sarkova Pass
Frigid Expanse
Kor Dragan
Malnok
Zones
Dissmil Foothills
Fethis Wetlands
Ruins of Rakhat Keep
Eriman's Pyre
Zones
Amber Sands
Ragged Coastline
Southern Expanse
Dilapidated Aqueducts
Zones
Northshore
Deep Forest
Tur Dulra
Hope's Light
Special Helltide Events
Roaming Boss - Kixxarth, Helltide Assassin
During the Helltide a special Boss can spawn in various locations in the affected zones. It is marked with a Boss Icon on the Minimap and moves around on a set path to hunt down players. He is very tanky and has a variety of attacks that can crowd control everybody within range.
Defeating this Boss grants players Aberrant Cinders as well as a high chance for legendary items.
Portal Invasion Event
This event can spawn instead of Local Events in affected Zones. Numerous Occultists are trying to perform a ritual, and you must prevent it. Killing the Occultists causes Invasion Portals to spawn, summoning additional demons. Once you defeat all combatants, a Helltide Commander Boss spawns.
Defeating one of these Bosses grants players Aberrant Cinders, items and Obols.
Others Events
Various other Local Events (marked by an orange circle) as well as the Gathering Legion Zone Event can spawn in the Helltide as well. It is always worth doing these for the extra rewards and Aberrant Cinders!
Tortured Gift Rewards
Armor and Crafting Rewards
On top of the normal items monsters can drop, you may also receive Aberrant Cinders. This currency allows you to open Tortured Gifts throughout the zones that are affected. Each Gift has a particular gear slot linked to it, allowing you to target farm for possible Legendary or Unique items! Different gear slots have different values, so take note as you roam the zones and see a Tortured Gift. Also, Tortured Gifts are unique to you, so there is no reason to worry about other players or party members stealing them. The last bit of information is, DO NOT DIE! If you do, you lose half your collected Aberrant Cinders, and they do not carry over from one Helltide event to another.
- Tortured Gift of Protection: Costs 75 Aberrant Cinders.
- These have a high chance to drop Fiend Rose, Forgotten Soul and Legendary/Unique Armor Items such as Helms, Chest Armors, Gloves, Pant, and Boots. They also drop 1 Living Steel. You can see the kind of item slot a Gift drops by the name, for example: Tortured Gift of Helms
- Tortured Gift of Jewelry (Rings): Costs 75 Aberrant Cinders.
- These have a high chance to drop Fiend Rose, Forgotten Soul and Legendary/Unique Rings. They also drop 1 Living Steel.
- Tortured Gift of Jewelry (Amulets): Costs 125 Aberrant Cinders.
- These have a high chance to drop Fiend Rose, Forgotten Soul and Legendary/Unique Amulets. They also drop 1 Living Steel.
- Tortured Gift of Weaponry (Light): Costs 125 Aberrant Cinders.
- These have a high chance to drop Fiend Rose, Forgotten Soul and Legendary/Unique One-handed weapons, Shields and Focuses. They also drop 1 Living Steel.
- Tortured Gift of Weaponry (Heavy): Costs 150 Aberrant Cinders.
- These have a high chance to drop Fiend Rose, Forgotten Soul and Legendary/Unique Two-handed weapons. They also drop 1 Living Steel.
- Tortured Gift of Mysteries: Costs 250 Aberrant Cinders.
- These have a high chance to drop Fiend Rose, Forgotten Soul and multiple Legendary/Unique items from any gear slot! These are rare (1 per Zone) but worth opening if you see one. They also drop 1 Living Steel. You can identify them by this special icon
- These have a high chance to drop Fiend Rose, Forgotten Soul and multiple Legendary/Unique items from any gear slot! These are rare (1 per Zone) but worth opening if you see one. They also drop 1 Living Steel. You can identify them by this special icon
- Tortured Gift of Living Steel: Costs 275 Aberrant Cinders.
- These have a high chance to drop Fiend Rose, Forgotten Soul and 5 Living Steel (with a bonus chance at another 5!) which is the boss summoning material for Grigoire, The Galvanic Saint! These are rare (1 per Zone) but worth opening if you see one. You can identify them by this special icon
- These have a high chance to drop Fiend Rose, Forgotten Soul and 5 Living Steel (with a bonus chance at another 5!) which is the boss summoning material for Grigoire, The Galvanic Saint! These are rare (1 per Zone) but worth opening if you see one. You can identify them by this special icon
Boss Summoning Materials
Helltide is one of the key activities in Diablo 4 that allow you to collect materials and summon one of many Bosses. Grigoire, The Galvanic Saint is a Lightning themed Boss that requires you to collect Living Steel from opening any Tourted Gift. Once you have collected enough, you can summon and defeat him.
To learn more about Grigoire, The Galvanic Saint read our full Boss Guides.
Aberrant Cinders
Killing enemies or opening a normal chest has a chance to drop Aberrant Cinders. One out of every five monster kills grants you Aberrant Cinders (on average), while Local Events, Elites and certain Nodes drop guaranteed Aberrant Cinders. Here are some base numbers we were able to observe:
| Enemy/Object | Amount of Aberrant Cinders |
| Elites | 1 |
| Treasure Goblins | 1-6 |
| Normal Enemies | 0-1 |
| Event Chests (from Local Events) | 3-6 |
| Chests | 0-1 |
| Fiend Rose Nodes | 3-4 |
| Screaming Hell Vein Nodes | 3-4 |
| Dammed Soul * | 3-5 |
| Tortured Souls * | 3-5 |
| Wretched Souls * | 3-5 |
* It appears you only get Aberrant Cinders from interactable items that are lit up with a red hue:
Other valuable rewards are Fiend Rose and Forgotten Soul. Fiend Rose nodes can only be found in zones that are affected by Helltide. Forgotten Soul are a different story. These are a possible drop when you open a Tortured Gift. Just know that if you want to maximize your loot gains, it is important to gather your friends and farm for these high level materials to upgrade your gear.
Strategy
Here are some tips for having a successful outing during a Helltide event:
- Prepare. Make sure you are keeping track of when the last Helltide event started to know when the next one starts. Organize your activities to suit.
- Group up. Gathering even just one friend to help kill monsters faster can yield more Aberrant Cinders during the 55 minutes of farming.
- Seek Local Events. Local Events have the highest yield of Aberrant Cinders due to enemy density and event rewards, so be on the lookout for them when traveling in a zone.
- Don't wait to spend! Since Aberrant Cinders are not carried over from one Helltide event to another, you have to spend them before the event is over! Keep a mental note of several nearby Tortured Gifts that can be opened as the end of the event draws near! Use your Map Pin to mark a particular Gift that you want to open.
- Open Cheap Gifts for Forgotten Souls. Opening any Tortured Gift has a chance to drop a Forgotten Soul. So, if this is your goal, only open 75 Cinder cost Gifts to rapidly acquire them!
Helltide Map Tool
Our Map Tool, which among many other benefits lets you easily find Helltides (and a whole lot more!) and find Local Events, Living Steel Chests and more. It's a powerful tool that we aim to update more as the game evolves over time.
Summary
- Helltide is a great event to do with friends to get high level materials such as Fiend Rose and Forgotten Soul.
- The event only lasts for one hour, so prepare and be ready.
- Don't go fast and furious, as dying cuts the amount of Aberrant Cinders you have collected by half - play smart!
- Remember what Tortured Gifts you want to open around you to target specific gear slots for possible Legendaries or Unique items!
- Don't wait until the last minute to open a Tortured Gift, as once the event ends, all Aberrant Cinders are lost.
Credits
Written by Dredscythe
Reviewed by McFluffin