Last Epoch Season 3 reworks Necromancer and Lich as the ARPG's new era begins

Hot off the announcement that Last Epoch developer Eleventh Hour Games is joining publisher Krafton to scale up its development of the excellent ARPG, the studio has given us a rundown of some of the additions we can expect from its imminent new season. Currently the strongest challenger to the mighty pairing of Path of Exile 2 and Diablo 4, Last Epoch Season 3 will expand on its most underused era. It introduces a threatening Rift Beast to put your builds to the test, unleashes a pair of Acolyte reworks for its Lich and Necromancer subclasses, and makes improvements to minion balance, alongside some solid quality-of-life upgrades.

The news that Eleventh Hour Games would be joining Krafton has been met with a mixed response, with some fans citing concerns around the publisher's ongoing legal drama with Subnautica 2 developer Unknown Worlds. EHG CEO Judd Cobler says he doesn't wish to comment on this situation directly, but assures, "after understanding it more deeply it isn't something that concerns us entering the partnership at all." Instead, his focus is on Last Epoch Season 3, which is just one month out.

The new update, Beneath Ancient Skies, adds the next chapter to the story of one of the best games like Diablo right now, and it focuses on the Ancient Era. Last Epoch's time-hopping setup has a lot of potential, but the prehistoric element always felt the most lacking, so it's good to see it getting more attention. Our goal is hunting down a relentless predator known as the Rift Beast, which can be found "lurking within chaotic rifts that twist and evolve with every turn."

Two of the Acolyte's subclasses are getting a rework, with attention going to both the Lich and Necromancer. The former was my go-to mastery when I was writing our Last Epoch review, and I had a great time with it, but it's fallen a little behind in the wake of other updates, and EHG hasn't been afraid of experimenting. Expect overhauled passives for both, along with extra dual-wielding options, a brutal new Flay skill, and revamps to minion balance for both the Necromancer and the Primalist's Beastmaster.

We get a glimpse at some new gear in the form of 'primordial exalted items' and 'primordial uniques.' Among the latter is the Tyrant's Skull, a relic that summons a Tyrannosaur minion; Wildfire Embers, an amulet that spreads ignites and creates Wildfire Wisps that can copy your fire skills; and Legends Entwined, a particularly powerful ring that "counts as a part of every equipped item set," granting additional bonuses based on the number of complete item sets you're wearing.

EHG also teases some more additions, including confirmation that purchased cosmetics will now be usable when playing in offline mode. The Merchant's Guild gets a new token that can replace the favor cost of purchases, the search for unique items has been improved to include roll ranges, and there's a new quick set filter.

Last Epoch Season 3, Beneath Ancient Skies, releases Thursday August 21. With just one month until the new season begins, there are sure to be plenty more details rolling out in the coming weeks, so stay tuned for those.

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