Updated 6/10/2008
Information about the ladder, ladder characters, etc. Last updated 6/10/2008
All other threads asking about when the next ladder will start are subject to being closed or deleted without warning.
Ladder Only Items
When playing on a ladder, there are Ladder Only Items.
These include but are not limited to Ladder Only Rune Words and Ladder Only Uniques.
These items only drup during the current ladder season, and only in ladder games. However, these items do end up in the non ladder population after any ladder season ends.
Character Types
There are two main character types on the Diablo II Realms: Normal and Ladder. Players choose these character types when creating their characters via check boxes as they are naming their characters.
Normal Characters
Any character that is not marked as a Ladder Character is a Normal Character. There are two types of Normal Characters:
Normal: Normal (also referred to as Core)(Non Hardcore)
Normal: Hardcore
Restrictions:
Normal Core: Characters can only join games with other Normal Core characters. They cannot join games with Hardcore characters, or ladder characters of any type.
Normal Hardcore: Characters can only join games with other Normal Hardcore characters. They cannot join games with Core characters, or ladder characters of any type. To create a Hardcore Character you must finish the game on Normal Difficulty.
Ladder Characters
A Ladder Character is a special character type that is allowed to compete on the ladder. These characters are separate from Normal Characters with their own games and economy.
All characters created before 1.10 are considered normal characters. Characters created before 1.10 do not have the option of being ladder characters. You must create a new character after patch 1.10 is released, and mark it as a ladder character to create a ladder character.
Characters created before patch 1.10 will not be able to join games with these new ladder characters, although they will be able to play with other normal characters that predate the 1.10 patch or characters created after 1.10 that are not created as ladder characters. This means that for the duration of the ladder season - which is yet to be determined - these ladder characters will exist in a new separate economy from the other Battle.net Diablo II characters. After the ladder season is over, all ladder characters become normal characters. To be on the ladder for the next season, players must create a new character and mark it as ladder, after the new season has begun.
Only Realm Characters can be Ladder Characters.
There are two types of Ladder Characters:
Ladder: Normal (also referred to as Core)(Non Hardcore)
Ladder: Hardcore
Restrictions:
Ladder Core: Characters can only join games with other Ladder Core characters. They cannot join games with Hardcore characters, or normal characters of any type.
Ladder Hardcore: Characters can only join games with other Ladder Hardcore characters. They cannot join games with core characters, or normal characters of any type. To create a Ladder Hardcore Character you must finish the game on Normal Difficulty.
What's the advantage to creating a Ladder Character?
This is similar to starting out on a brand new realm. Players will be able to experience Diablo II like when the game was first released. When the Ladder Season first begins, players start at Level 1 and do not have powerful items. They also cannot use powerful high-level items or other high-level characters to help them level up faster. Players create a character in a brand new world (ladder character world) where everything (economy, levels) starts from the beginning. The main advantage of creating a ladder character is being able to join in on a totally new economy where powerful items are very valuable.
What if I don't play ladder or don't want to compete on the ladder?
Although they are called ladder characters, players do not have to compete on the ladder to play. You can simply play at your own speed and not worry about how you are ranked on the ladder.
Can I convert existing characters to ladder characters?
No, you must flag a character as a ladder character when it is first created.
How long will the ladder season last?
No one knows, but Blizzard tends to give a few to several days warning before starting a new season.
What happens when the ladder season is over?
All ladder characters become either Normal Core or Normal Hardcore Characters depending on what type of Ladder Characters they are. If you want to be a Ladder Character for the next Ladder season you must create a new character and flag it as a Ladder Character.
Do I get to keep my Ladder Only Items when the season is over?
A: Yes. Any Ladder Only Items will be converted over when your character is converted to a Core character. These items can now be traded with other Core characters. That is the only way for Core characters to get ladder only items, as leftovers after a season is over.
Do I have to beat the game with a Ladder Character to create a Ladder Hardcore Character?
No, you can finish the game with either a Normal character or a Ladder character to unlock Ladder Hardcore Characters.
Can you convert a Ladder Character to a Normal Character?
No. Blizzard does this automatically when the Ladder Season ends.
In addition, there are several Horadric Cube formulae that will only work for a ladder character.
Example : Rune upgrading, runes can only be upgraded higher than Hel on the ladder. There are other ladder only formulae. They can be found here noted with (ladder only) in red:
http://classic.battle.net/diablo2exp/items/cube.shtml
The Gheeds Fortune Charm is also ladder only, meaning it drops in ladder.
Though it can be found in non ladder after the end of a ladder season.
Any news on when the next ladder will start ???
Ladder season 4 will reset the 17th of June, at approximately 9:00am PDT. Ladder season 5 will start about 6 hours after that. It is unknown how long season 5 will last.
Where should I look for information on the next ladder ?
http://classic.battle.net/diablo2exp/
http://www.battle.net/
http://diablo.incgamers.com
How long was the last ladder season ??
Code:
Season 1: October 28, 2003 - July 8, 2004
Season 2: July 8, 2004 - August 8, 2005
Season 3: August 8, 2005 - June 25, 2007
Season 4: June 25, 2007 - June 17, 2008
Season 5: June 17, 2008 -
How long will the current ladder last ??
We do not know, it may last as long as the last ladder or it could be shorter.
Have any new runewords been found ?
Yes, as of DEC. 12, 2004 there are 23 new runewords released, though the details have not been released, only the name of the runeword and the rune formulae.
They were also being searched for in these threads :
http://diablo.incgamers.com/forums/s...d.php?t=239239
http://diablo.incgamers.com/forums/s...d.php?t=220217
http://diablo.incgamers.com/forums/s...d.php?t=275917
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