Infernal Hordes
Last Updated:October 26, 2024|Changelog
The Infernal Hordes in the Burning Hells is an endgame activity in Diablo 4, introduced with the 1.5.0 Update for Season 5. Hordes are an all-or-nothing, wave-based event which increases in difficulty and reward throughout, culminating in a Boss encounter with 3 randomly selected members of the Fell Council. This is where you will target farm a subsection of Uniques and Legendary Aspects forged in the fires of hell! Read on to learn more about how to access the Infernal Hordes and the Bosses, Offerings, and Rewards awaiting you below!
Unlocking The Infernal Hordes
In order to unlock The Infernal Hordes, you have to complete "The Eyes of the Enemy" questline. This is done once per account, and finishing this quest gives you an Infernal Compass that gets you started with the Infernal Hordes. One Infernal Compass is granted to you at the end of the quest. Further Infernal Compasses can no longer be crafted, but drop fairly commonly from Helltide Chests, Tree of Whisper Caches, and the end of Nightmare Dungeons and the Pit.
Infernal Compasses
Infernal Compasses are how you access the Infernal Hordes activity. These start dropping beginning in Torment difficulty, and drop from various other endgame activities. Functionally, they act very similar to Nightmare Dungeon Sigils, including the ability to teleport you to the starting point once you are ready. The Compasses scale to your current difficulty and randomly generate with either 6, 8, or 10 waves of combat.
The Infernal Hordes Overview
When you enter the Burning Hells to run the Infernal Hordes activity, you're faced with time-limited waves of enemies that last 60 seconds each. During each wave, your focus is fighting the enemies, but also on collecting the Burning Aether that spawns after the defeat of certain types of enemies. This Burning Aether is used to reap rewards at the conclusion of the activity, so gather all you can! Be on the lookout for potential surprises and random events, such as the new Burning Butcher that can appear and attack!
Once you have completed each wave, you are faced with a choice between three Infernal Offers, each containing a boon and a bane. These Infernal Offers enhance your experience and customize your run, and it is unlikely to get the same set of offers in the same order from run to run. Infernal Offers increase the difficulty and provide greater rewards, or offer you significant temporary boosts in character power. Once you have run all of the waves successfully, you then face the Fell Council. Once you have defeated the Fell Council, you have the chance to spend your Burning Aether on Spoils of Hell.
Infernal Offers
Infernal Offers are how you customize your run through the Infernal Hordes. For every upside (e.g., increased Burning Aether from elites), there is a downside (e.g., increased damage from Elites). Be careful as you choose them, as these Infernal Offers stack cumulatively across your run. The Offer you take at the end of Wave 1 still applies in Waves 2 and onwards, which means you can stack some serious damage multipliers (and reward multipliers!) if you want. Stacking these Infernal Offers in a strategic way can lead to increased amounts of Burning Aether, which is how you get your main rewards from this activity. All active effects of Offers can be viewed in your Map overlay.
The Offers you choose have an apparent effect on the types and frequency of events that occur during waves. For example, Hellborne and Aether Lords won't spawn at all unless a corresponding Offer is selected. So, it is recommended that you tailor your run to one or just a few event types, both to promote increased rewards from those events and to minimize the other types of events that spawn. Particularly potent are Offers related to Hellborne and Aether Fiends; be on the lookout for the less common "Surging" Offers associated with them. Similarly, Offers related to the Fell Council and The Stalking Devil (a guaranteed Burning Butcher spawn) gain value in later waves when you have fewer remaining waves to benefit from event-based Offers.
Available Offers
| Infernal Offering | Bane | Boon |
|---|---|---|
| The Aether Rush | Normal monster damage +25% | Gathering Aether increases movement speed (8s) |
| The Burning Hellborne | Hellfire now spawns Hellborne | Hellborne drop 2 additional Aether |
| The Burning Rain | Hellfire rains upon you | At the end of each wave spawn 3-9 Aether |
| The Bursting Fiends | Elite damage +25% | Aether Fiends explode and damage foes |
| The Bursting Masses | Masses deal unavoidable damage | Wave start, spawn an Aetheric Mass |
| The Corrupting Spires | Soulspires empower nearby foes | Soulspires pull foes inward |
| The Draining Spires | Soulspires drain Life | Soulspires grant +2 Aether |
| The Enfeebled Wanderer | Potion Cooldown is increased by 2 seconds | Defeating Fell Council grants +15 Aether |
| The Exalted Council | Fell Council damage +50% | Defeating them grants +15 Aether |
| The Exalted Elite | Elite damage +25% | Aether Fiends grant +2 Aether |
| The Exalted Hellborne | Hellborne damage +25% | Hellborne grant +1 Aether |
| The Exalted Hordes | Normal monsters damage +25% | Killing them spawns Aether Events +50% faster |
| The Exalted Masses | Aetheric Mass damage +25% | Aetheric Mass grants +1 Aether |
| The Exhausted Wanderer | Evade Cooldown is increased by 2 seconds | Defeating Fell Council grants +15 Aether |
| The Gorging Masses | Slaying Aetheric Mass slows you (8s) | While slowed this way, you have unlimited resources |
| The Insatiable Spires | Soulspires require 2x kills | Soulspires grant 2x Aether |
| The Invigorating Hellborne | Hellborne damage +25% | Slaying Hellborne invigorates you |
| The Stalking Devil | An Infernal Demon has your scent | Slay it to gain +25 Aether |
| The Summoned Hellborne | Hellborne are hunting you | Hellborne grant +1 Aether |
| The Summoned Lords | Aether Lords now spawn | They grant +3 Aether |
| The Surging Elite | Chance for Elite to spawn is doubled | Aether Fiends grant +2 Aether |
| The Surging Hellborne | +1 Hellborne when spawned | Hellborne grant +1 Aether |
| The Teeming Masses | Masses spawn an Aether Lord on death | Aether Lords grant +3 Aether |
| The Unstoppable Elite | Elites are Unstoppable | Aether Fiends grant +2 Aether |
| The Withered Wanderer | -10% All Resistances | Defeating the Fell Council grants +15 Aether |
Burning Aether
The "currency" of the Infernal Hordes, Burning Aether act a lot like Aberrant Cinders. Burning Aether only lasts as long as your run does, and if you don't spend it, you lose it when the event ends. Burning Aether is only spent at the end of the run once you have successfully defeated the Fell Council, and it is spent on the Spoils of Hell.
Burning Aether is generally earned by slaying enemies like Aether Fiends and Aether Lords, or by killing Soulspires and Aetheric Masses. Through various Infernal Offers, other enemies in the Infernal Hordes may drop Burning Aether for you or your pet to pick up. Once you defeat the Fell Council, there is a large drop of Burning Aether that scales with your Difficulty, so make sure to pick that up before scouting your rewards!
If you are playing multiplayer, have no fear, as Burning Aether is earned and spent independently. Your rewards are separate from your friends', so have fun and slay all the demons you want!
Spoils of Hell
On a successful run, you'll use the Burning Aether you collected to unlock the Spoils of Hell. There are 3 types:
- Spoils of Material - Exchange all remaining Aether for Obducite and Gem Fragments
- Spoils of Gold - Exchange all remaining Aether for Gold
- Spoils of Greater Equipment - Requires 200 Aether - Guarantees at least 1 Ancestral Legendary and often includes 1-2 Scrolls of Restoration
Check out our Boss Loot Table Cheat Sheet for a list of Uniques and Legendary Aspects more commonly found in the Infernal Hordes!
The Fell Council
Once you've completed all the waves, you encounter the Fell Council. While there are five members, you encounter 3 randomly at the end of each run of the Infernal Hordes. Each member of the Fell Council uses a different element to attack, so make sure that all of your resistances are capped because you don't know who you're facing until you get there!
- Geleb the Flame - Summons three-headed Hydras that shoot Fire, casts Meteors, and summons Flame Waves.
- Wyand the Shadow - Summons one-headed Hydras that deal Shadow damage; can cast Teleport.
- Ismail the Accursed - Summons Hydras with slow-moving projectiles and Claws of Ishmail, which can be destroyed.
- Maffer the Cruel - Charges players and periodically casts Bone Prison.
- Bremm the Maelstrom - Summons two-headed Hydras, chains of Lightning, and fallen Lunatics.
Summary
- Complete "The Eyes of the Enemy" questline to receive an Infernal Compass, unlocking access to the Infernal Hordes!
- Collect the Infernal Compasses from various endgame activities around Sanctuary.
- Battle through timed waves of enemies, collecting Burning Aether, and choose Infernal Offers for strategic boosts and increased rewards. Be careful, however - don't make things too dangerous!
- Once the waves have been defeated, battle three randomly chosen members of the Fell Council, each with unique elemental attacks, and once you've won, spend your Burning Aether on Spoils of Hell rewards.
- There are certain uniques that have higher drop chances from the Infernal Hordes, so target farm if you need them!
Credits
Written by IBoilerUp
Reviewed by wudijo, Dredscythe