Diablo 4 Patch 2.5.2 First Impressions: The Tower and the Future of Endgame Pushing

With Patch 2.5.2, Diablo 4 finally delivers two features the community has been waiting on for a long time: the Tower and official leaderboards. While both systems arrive about a month into Season 11-later than many hoped-they immediately reshape the endgame for high-level players who thrive on pushing limits, optimizing builds, more Diablo 4 Items and competing for rankings.

After hundreds of hours of preparation and testing across multiple classes and builds, the early verdict is clear: the Tower is more engaging than the Pit, but it's also rough, bare-bones, and clearly just the first step in a much larger system Blizzard intends to evolve over future seasons.

What Is the Tower?

At its core, the Tower functions as a sister system to the Pit. It uses similar tier-based scaling, but changes several key rules that dramatically alter how runs feel.

Instead of being a simple "clear fast and kill the boss" experience, the Tower layers in constant pressure:

 Every two minutes, monster packs spawn directly on top of you, creating ambush-style combat reminiscent of the old Gauntlet.

 Pylons play a much bigger role than shrines ever did in the Pit, often defining whether a run succeeds or fails.

 The timer is reduced to 10 minutes instead of 15, tightening decision-making.

 Bosses are entirely new, single-target encounters that spawn directly in the map rather than in separate boss rooms.

 Progression mechanics are more active, with goblins and enemies dropping progress or XP globes that must be actively prioritized.

The result is a mode that feels far more dynamic and aggressive than the Pit. There's simply more happening at all times.

More Action, More Pressure, More Decisions

One of the Tower's biggest strengths is how it forces players to constantly adapt. You can't just mindlessly clear packs anymore. Every pull, every pylon, and every spawn timer matters.

The added mechanics make Tower pushing feel more "alive" than Pit pushing ever did. You're constantly weighing whether to hunt elites, farm progression globes, or reposition before the next ambush wave spawns.

That said, the system is still relatively bare bones. It's fun, but clearly unfinished. The expectation is that over the next few seasons-and especially with the upcoming expansion-the Pit and the Tower will diverge significantly, evolving into two very distinct endgame paths rather than parallel systems.

Early Leaderboards and Competitive Pushing

With leaderboards now live and rotating on a two-week lock-in, the competitive side of Diablo 4 finally has official recognition. This instantly changes how players approach builds and group compositions.

So far, pushing has gone well across multiple characters:

 Divine Javelin Paladin clearing up to Tier 117

 Sorcerer clears around Tier 114

 Additional success on Spirit-based builds and two-player group setups

The goal for many high-end players is simple: secure rank one for at least one class before the first leaderboard lock-in. Even at this early stage, competition is intense, and build optimization matters more than ever.

Patch 2.5.2 Broke Some Builds-And That's Not All Bad

As expected with a major system update, Patch 2.5.2 also broke some things.

The biggest casualty is Judgment Paladin, a build many players-including longtime theorycrafters-had invested heavily in. Changes to Spear of the Heavens Judgment applications forced the build to pivot toward Purify-based setups, resulting in a significant power loss.

Interestingly, this nerf brought Judgment Paladin closer in line with other builds rather than completely killing it. Even more importantly, it pushed players toward backup builds they had prepared but never expected to main.

One standout replacement was Shield of Retribution Paladin, which turned out to be not only viable, but incredibly fun. While initial runs still require gear tuning and optimization, the build feels smoother, more engaging, and more enjoyable to push than the previously dominant Judgment setup.

Sometimes, broken builds lead to better gameplay-and this patch is a good example of that.

Group Play and the Rise of Support Builds

With official leaderboards in place, group play is becoming more relevant again-especially at the high end.

Historically, Diablo 4 group pushing has revolved around heavy damage stacking. Now, support builds are taking center stage once more.

Currently, there are three standout support archetypes:

 Support Paladin

 Support Barbarian

 Support Druid

In four-player groups, the meta often revolves around three supports and one carry, though variations like two supports and two DPS may resurface depending on balance changes.

As leaderboards mature, expect to see more groups actively recruiting dedicated supports. These builds already occupy a permanent spot in high-end tier lists and will likely define group pushing for the foreseeable future.The Brick Wall Problem: Tower Scaling Explained

For most players, the Tower's biggest issue won't be mechanics-it will be scaling.

After Tier 100, monster health increases by roughly 32% per tier, applied multiplicatively. This results in exponential scaling that quickly becomes overwhelming.

In practical terms:

 A comfortable Tier 120 clear does not mean Tier 125 is achievable.

 Most builds will hit a progression wall within one or two tiers of their maximum.

 The difference between a successful run and a failed one becomes massive almost instantly.

This contrasts sharply with systems in Diablo 3, where scaling is smoother and incremental improvements matter more. Diablo 2 also allows for more gradual progression over time thanks to mechanics like area damage and other scaling tools that Diablo 4 currently lacks.

As it stands, Tower pushing is less about long-term refinement and more about hitting your ceiling quickly.

A System with Massive Long-Term Potential

Despite its flaws, the Tower shows enormous promise.

The current balance between player damage multipliers and monster health is clearly out of sync, but that's something Blizzard can-and likely will-adjust. Expansion launches are often when major systemic overhauls occur, and the Tower feels like a perfect candidate for tuning.

There's also plenty of room to introduce new mechanics that reward skill, consistency, and strategy rather than raw damage output alone.

Class and Build Variety Feels Surprisingly Good

One of the Tower's biggest wins is how different builds feel inside it.

For example:

 A Crackling Energy Sorcerer plays a surgical, elite-hunting style-ignoring trash and targeting only high-value enemies.

 Paladin builds thrive on massive pulls, screen-filling combat, and multi-pack brawls.

 Each class interacts differently with timers, pylons, and ambush spawns.

This variety makes the Tower far more interesting than a one-size-fits-all pushing system. Even in its early state, there's a lot to learn, optimize, and master.

Bugs, Exploits, and Launch Reality

As expected, the Tower launched with its share of bugs and exploits. While frustrating, this is largely par for the course for a brand-new endgame system.

Most players aren't treating this first iteration as a definitive version. Instead, it's being viewed as a testing ground-both for players and developers-to gather feedback and data.

And right now, feedback is flowing fast.

Final Thoughts: A Strong Start, Not the Finish Line

Patch 2.5.2 doesn't perfect Diablo 4's endgame-but it meaningfully expands it.

The Tower is more exciting than the Pit, leaderboards finally give competitive players a reason to push, and class diversity feels better than expected. While scaling issues, broken builds, more D4 materials and bare-bones systems hold it back, the foundation is solid.

Most importantly, the Tower feels like a feature with a future.

As seasons progress-and especially as the expansion approaches-this system has the potential to become one of Diablo 4's defining endgame pillars.