Diablo 3 Season 24: What Are Ethereals, Diablo's New Weapon Class?

Diablo 2 players will be familiar with Ethereal Weapons, powerful glass cannons with low durability and could not be repaired by normal means.

Season 24 of Diablo 3 introduces Ethereals to the game as a new weapon class, though they will function a bit differently than they have in the past.

What are Diablo 3 Ethereal Items?

With an Ethereal theme to Diablo 3, Season 24, Ethereals will be limited to seasonal play.

This means that they will not transfer over with any gear from Season 24 to Season 25.

It is a thematic choice that falls in line with the perishable nature of Etheral weapons from Diablo 2.

While Diablo 2 also had Ethereall armour, Diablo 3, Season 24, will only contain Etheral weapons with a random Class Legendary Power and a Class Passive Power.

Each class will have three unique Ethereals, meaning Diablo 3 will contain a total of 21 Ethereal weapons when all is said and done.

An interesting aspect of these new weapons is that they have no durability and can never break.

This contrasts with how they worked in Diablo 2, yet this is counteracted by the fact that players may only use them in Season 24.

Diablo 3 players will also only be able to equip one Ethereal weapon at a time, so no dual-wielding.

READ MORE: Diablo 3: How to Get Season Rewards

Blizzards official notes on Ethereals are as follows:

Ethereals are account bound and can only be dropped by monsters, chests, and destructibles, but do not require your character to be level 70 to drop. Ethereals cannot be acquired through Kanai’s Cube or from Kadala.

Ethereal rarity drop rate is set between Ancient and Primal items.

There are 3 unique Ethereals per class. Each Ethereal has fixed affixes and rolls one random Legendary Weapon power and one random Class Passive Skill

Only one Ethereal can be equipped at a time

Ethereals ignore item durability loss.

Legendary Powers and Class Passive Skills rolled on Ethereals do not stack with the same power equipped through Kanai’s Cube, Items or Skills.

Ethereals cannot be Enchanted, Transmogrified, Dyed, Reforged, or traded.

Ethereals can be augmented.

Collecting all 21 Ethereals during Season 24 will reward players with the Feat of Strength, Ethereal Recollection. Players who accomplish this will have all Ethereal transmogrify options available for future seasonal and non-seasonal play.

Ethereals only drop in Seasonal play, and will not transfer to your non-seasonal character when the season ends.

Diablo 3 Season 24 Starts July 23.