Diablo 4 is gearing up for a massive shake-up in Season 11. From new Divine Gifts to a full monster rework across Sanctuary, nearly every part of the game is evolving. Player defenses are at the heart of these changes, with major updates to Armor, Resistances, Healing, and Fortify.
Diablo 4 Defense Overhaul
Starting in Season 11, both Armor and Resistances will function as rating systems with diminishing returns at higher values. Armor now reduces all incoming damage—both physical and non-physical. However, Blizzard is also introducing a new, dedicated Physical Damage Resistance stat to refine how players mitigate different damage types.
In addition, Torment Tier penalties for Armor and Resistance are being removed, giving players more freedom to push higher difficulties without arbitrary drawbacks. Skills and Paragon Nodes that previously granted Damage Reduction now provide multiplicative bonuses to your Armor or All Resistances instead, making defensive scaling clearer and more impactful.
Introducing Toughness
Season 11 also adds a brand-new stat: Toughness. This value represents the total amount of raw damage—of any type—you can take after all forms of mitigation. You’ll find Toughness displayed directly beneath your Attack Power on the character screen.
Hovering over Toughness provides a detailed breakdown of your average defenses against each damage type, making it easier than ever to understand your character’s survivability at a glance.
Healing Updates
Defense isn’t the only thing changing. Healing and Potions are getting a full redesign in Season 11.
- Base potion capacity is now set to four.
- Using a potion instantly heals for 35% of your total Health.
- You’ll automatically regenerate one potion every 30 seconds, keeping you stocked during long fights.
Life on Hit returns as a potential affix, with boosted Life Regeneration, Life on Kill, and Healing % values. Because healing is now tied directly to your total Health, potion upgrades have been removed entirely.
Another Fortify Rework
In accordance with these changes, Fortify is shifting from a type of Damage Reduction to more of a backup source of life that’s drained to heal you over time. Now, when you gain Fortify, it stacks up to your Maximum Life. When you have Fortify under Maximum Life, you’ll heal for a percentage of your Maximum Life per second in exchange for an equal amount of Fortify.
Fortify is being reimagined from a static damage reduction mechanic into a secondary life pool that sustains you over time.
Now, when you gain Fortify, it stacks up to your Maximum Life. If your Fortify is below that cap, you’ll heal a percentage of your Maximum Life per second—consuming an equal amount of Fortify as you recover.
You remain Fortified regardless of how much Fortify you currently have, ensuring the mechanic stays active but now plays a more dynamic and strategic role in survivability.
For full details on the Fortify skill, passive, and item changes, check out the 2.5.0 PTR Class Changes.
