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The story order is:
- Diablo
- Diablo II or Diablo II: Resurrected, followed by Lord of Destruction
- Diablo Immortal
- Diablo III, followed by Reaper of Souls
- Diablo IV, followed by its story expansions in their own release order
The crucial placement is Diablo Immortal between Diablo II: Lord of Destruction and Diablo III. Blizzard’s official chronology also describes Diablo III as moving the story 20 years forward from Diablo II. Playing the campaigns in this sequence keeps the major consequences, characters and changes to Sanctuary in the order they occur.
The complete story order at a glance
| Story position | What to play | What it contributes |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Diablo | The first Tristram cathedral crisis and Diablo’s initial defeat. |
| 2 | Diablo II or Diablo II: Resurrected, then Lord of Destruction | The Dark Wanderer’s journey, the Prime Evils’ campaign and the Worldstone’s destruction. |
| 3 | Diablo Immortal | The bridge era after the Worldstone is shattered and before Diablo III. |
| 4 | Diablo III, then Reaper of Souls | The next major age of the conflict, set after the interval described by Blizzard. |
| 5 | Diablo IV, then its story expansions in release order | The latest mainline era established by the supplied official chronology. |
Keep each expansion with its parent game. Finishing a base campaign and then jumping to a later title before its expansion can leave a major plot consequence unexplained.
Why this chronology works
The series is built around the Eternal Conflict between the High Heavens and the Burning Hells. Sanctuary, the mortal world, was created by Inarius and Lilith, and the rise of the nephalem became one of its defining historical turns. Those events form the background for every campaign, but the playable story begins with a much more local disaster: corruption beneath Tristram Cathedral.
Blizzard’s Diablo II: The story so far account explains how the Horadrim captured the Prime Evils and how the evil beneath the cathedral set the first game in motion. The hero of Diablo defeats Diablo, but the victory is not a clean ending: the character becomes the vessel known as the Dark Wanderer. That transformation is the direct narrative handoff to Diablo II.
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![Diablo II: Resurrected – Base Game 1P - Xbox [Digital Code]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/41fn34zaSmL._SL160_.jpg)
- Diablo II: Resurrected breathes new life into Blizzard Entertainment’s acclaimed ARPG and its expansion, Diablo II: Lord of Destruction, from beginning to end. Return to fight for Sanctuary and discover the fate of the mysterious Dark Wanderer rebuilt in all-new 3D graphics, brand-new cinematics, remastered audio… and the same classic Diablo II gameplay you remember.
Diablo II then carries the conflict beyond Tristram. Its final expansion, Lord of Destruction, is not optional if you want the complete pre-Immortal history. Baal corrupts the Worldstone; the heroes defeat him; and Tyrael destroys the damaged Worldstone. Blizzard identifies the resulting aftermath as the starting point for Diablo Immortal.
That is why Immortal is not a side story set after Diablo III. Its central quest concerns the broken Worldstone and takes place in the gap between the second and third games. Only after that bridge era should you begin Diablo III.
1. Start with Diablo
What campaign to complete
Play the original Diablo campaign. It introduces Tristram’s cathedral crisis, the first playable confrontation with Diablo and the ending that creates the Dark Wanderer.
You do not need to treat every optional activity as required reading. The important objective is to finish the main campaign far enough to see Diablo’s defeat and its immediate consequence. That conclusion supplies the motivation and identity shift that Diablo II assumes you already understand.
Why beginning here matters
Starting with Diablo gives the Dark Wanderer’s appearances in Diablo II their proper context. If you begin with the second game, the opening can still be followed, but the relationship between the first game’s hero and the figure moving across Sanctuary is less meaningful. The original also establishes Tristram as a place whose history continues to affect later stories.
If the original presentation is a barrier
Use the campaign as a historical prologue rather than expecting the interface and combat to behave like later entries. Its value in a story run is the sequence of events, not modern presentation. Once the campaign is complete, move directly to Diablo II or its remastered edition.
2. Play Diablo II, then Lord of Destruction
Choose the original or Resurrected edition
There are two valid ways to experience the second game’s story: the original Diablo II and Diablo II: Resurrected. Resurrected is Blizzard’s named remastered product for the Diablo II retrospective and is the straightforward choice if you want the same campaign with a remastered presentation. The story order does not change between editions.
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Whichever edition you choose, complete the base Diablo II campaign before launching Lord of Destruction. Treat the expansion as the final chapter of this stop, not as optional material to postpone until after another game.
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![Diablo II: Resurrected – Prime Evil Collection 1P - Xbox [Digital Code]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/4115uKA3a+L._SL160_.jpg)
- The Diablo Prime Evil Collection includes Diablo II: Resurrected, Diablo III, the Reaper of Souls expansion which includes Act V, Adventure Mode and the Crusader class, and the Rise of the Necromancer pack, with the Necromancer class, and additional cosmetic items. This collection also includes the Mephisto pet and the fearsome wings, Hatred’s Grasp, for Diablo III.
What carries forward from Diablo
Diablo II follows the consequences of the first game’s ending. The Dark Wanderer’s identity and movement through Sanctuary are central to the setup, while the wider conflict brings the Prime Evils and the Horadrim’s earlier work back into focus. The second game expands the scale from a single cathedral to a campaign that follows the demons’ broader plan.
Why Lord of Destruction must come next
Lord of Destruction completes the pre-Immortal sequence. Its decisive event is Baal’s corruption of the Worldstone. After Baal is defeated, Tyrael destroys the damaged artifact. The destruction scatters Worldstone shards across Sanctuary and creates the unstable situation that Immortal’s main quest addresses.
Stopping at the end of the base Diablo II campaign leaves that turning point unresolved. For a story-first run, the correct stopping point is the end of Lord of Destruction.
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3. Continue with Diablo Immortal
Its exact place in the timeline
Blizzard states the placement directly: Diablo Immortal takes place between Diablo II: Lord of Destruction and Diablo III.
That makes Immortal the bridge chapter of the series’ main chronology.
What the bridge story is about
Immortal begins in the aftermath of the Worldstone’s destruction. Its core quest is to contain the broken Worldstone and deal with the danger created by its scattered shards. Returning figures such as Deckard Cain and Charsi help connect this period to the earlier games.
The game is useful in a story order even if you are mainly interested in the numbered releases. It shows how Sanctuary responds to the Worldstone catastrophe and explains why the world encountered by Diablo III is not simply a continuation of the battlefield you left in Lord of Destruction.
How much of Immortal to play
For chronology, prioritize the main quest. Seasonal activities, repeatable content and other optional systems can be played later without changing the placement of the campaign. The essential handoff is the story that begins after the Worldstone’s destruction and leads into the era before Diablo III.
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It is before Diablo III. The order is not a matter of release-date preference: Blizzard’s official story summary places it specifically between Lord of Destruction and Diablo III.
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4. Play Diablo III, then Reaper of Souls
Start the Diablo III campaign
After Immortal’s main quest, begin Diablo III’s campaign. Blizzard’s chronology describes Diablo III as moving the story 20 years forward from Diablo II. That statement gives the broad time jump; Immortal occupies the intervening bridge period rather than replacing Diablo III’s role in the sequence.
Play the main Diablo III campaign first. It follows a Sanctuary that has had time to change after the Worldstone’s destruction and develops the consequences of the earlier games on a larger scale.
Finish with Reaper of Souls
Play Reaper of Souls immediately after the Diablo III campaign. It is the next major story chapter attached to Diablo III, so moving to Diablo IV before it would skip the conclusion of this era.
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For a story-only run, focus on the campaign chapters. Endgame modes and repeatable activities can extend the game considerably, but they are not required to preserve the narrative sequence.
Why the expansion belongs to Diablo III
Reaper of Souls changes the state of the world established by Diablo III and therefore belongs directly after that campaign. Grouping the two together also gives you a clean transition into Diablo IV instead of treating the expansion as a detached side episode.
5. Finish with Diablo IV and its story expansions
Where Diablo IV belongs
Diablo IV is the latest mainline era established by the supplied official chronology. Start with its base campaign after completing Diablo III and Reaper of Souls.
How to place its expansions
Play each Diablo IV story expansion in its own release order after the base campaign. The available chronology here establishes Diablo IV as the latest mainline setting but does not provide an exact in-universe year or a complete expansion-by-expansion timeline. Do not invent a calendar gap; use the game’s stated campaign and expansion sequence.
If you are returning after a long break, check the title screen or in-game story selector for the expansion’s campaign entry and complete the preceding story chapter before starting it. This preserves the intended order without requiring you to replay unrelated seasonal content.
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Where every expansion fits
| Expansion | Play it | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| Lord of Destruction | After Diablo II | It contains Baal’s Worldstone corruption and the events that lead into Immortal. |
| Reaper of Souls | After Diablo III | It is Diablo III’s next major campaign chapter. |
| Diablo IV story expansions | After Diablo IV, in their release order | The supplied chronology places Diablo IV last but does not specify a different internal order. |
Grouping expansions this way is the simplest rule for avoiding a broken handoff: complete the parent campaign, then its story expansion, before moving to the next game.
Essential story route versus optional content
The shortest route that preserves the main plot
- Complete Diablo’s campaign.
- Complete Diablo II or Resurrected.
- Complete Lord of Destruction.
- Complete Diablo Immortal’s main quest.
- Complete Diablo III.
- Complete Reaper of Souls.
- Complete Diablo IV.
- Complete Diablo IV’s story expansions in release order.
This route follows the major narrative transitions without requiring every optional quest or repeatable mode.
What you can postpone
- Optional side quests that do not advance the main campaign.
- Repeatable endgame activities.
- Seasonal or live-service content that is not part of the principal campaign handoff.
- Extra character classes or alternate builds when your goal is simply to see the story.
Postponing these items does not change the chronology. Return to them after completing the relevant campaign if you want more world detail.
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- Diablo’s original campaign, if you want the first game’s cathedral crisis and the Dark Wanderer’s origin.
- Lord of Destruction, because the Worldstone’s destruction directly starts Immortal’s era.
- Immortal’s main quest, if you want the events between the second and third games rather than jumping over them.
- Reaper of Souls, because it completes Diablo III’s story era before Diablo IV.
Do you need to play Diablo before Diablo II?
No. Diablo II has enough context to be playable on its own, and Resurrected tells the same second-game story. However, playing Diablo first makes the Dark Wanderer’s identity and the consequences of the cathedral finale more immediate. If you have limited time, you can read a reliable recap and begin with Diablo II; if you want the fullest narrative continuity, play the original campaign.
The choice is therefore about context, not access. Skipping Diablo does not move Diablo II to a different place in the timeline, but it removes the first game’s setup.
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Characters
Deckard Cain and Charsi are examples of returning figures identified in Blizzard’s description of Immortal. Their presence helps establish that Immortal is a connected historical period rather than an unrelated adventure. The Dark Wanderer provides the most direct character link from Diablo into Diablo II.
World events
The Worldstone is the major chronological hinge. Baal’s corruption and Tyrael’s destruction of the damaged stone explain why Immortal begins with a crisis involving scattered shards. That event also distinguishes the post-Lord of Destruction setting from the one that existed during Diablo II.
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The first game centers on Tristram and its cathedral. Diablo II broadens the struggle and culminates in the Worldstone catastrophe. Immortal addresses the immediate aftermath, Diablo III follows after the interval Blizzard describes, and Diablo IV represents the latest mainline era in this sequence.
A practical setup checklist
- Choose your starting edition. Use the original Diablo campaign, then select either original Diablo II or Diablo II: Resurrected for the second game.
- Record your stopping point. Do not move on until you have finished the parent campaign and its listed story expansion.
- Follow the campaign objective. In games with substantial optional content, prioritize the main quest when your goal is chronology.
- Use the Worldstone event as your checkpoint. After Baal’s defeat and Tyrael’s destruction of the damaged Worldstone in Lord of Destruction, begin Immortal.
- Keep Diablo III and Reaper of Souls together. Complete both before starting Diablo IV.
- Handle Diablo IV expansions sequentially. Complete the base campaign, then each story expansion in release order.
Edition and availability note
Prices, platforms, regional editions and storefront availability change. Confirm the current edition and access requirements for the game you intend to play, especially if you are choosing Diablo II: Resurrected. Those commercial details do not alter the story order.
Common ordering mistakes
Putting Immortal after Diablo III
This reverses the bridge chapter. Immortal belongs before Diablo III because its story begins after the Worldstone’s destruction and is explicitly placed between Lord of Destruction and Diablo III.
Stopping Diablo II before Lord of Destruction
The base campaign is not the end of the pre-Immortal sequence. Without the expansion, you miss Baal’s corruption of the Worldstone and Tyrael’s response.
Playing Reaper of Souls after Diablo IV
Reaper of Souls is part of the Diablo III era. Finish it before moving to the later mainline game.
Treating Resurrected as a separate timeline
Resurrected is a remastered presentation of Diablo II’s story, not a new chronological chapter. Choose it for presentation and convenience while keeping the same position.
Assuming every side mode is required
Repeatable, seasonal and other optional activities can be postponed. The campaigns and named story expansions are the material that determines order.
Final recommended route
For the clearest first-time experience, begin with Diablo, move through Diablo II and Lord of Destruction, play Immortal’s main quest, complete Diablo III and Reaper of Souls, and then enter Diablo IV before its story expansions. This route follows Blizzard’s stated chronology, preserves the Worldstone-related transition and gives every expansion its proper place.
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