Everyone who plays through a season in Diablo 4 will always have an endgame goal and for most players, it’s defeating endgame bosses and obtaining good loot.
With the Lair Boss ladder now changed, players can easily obtain the loot that they need by targeting certain bosses and challenging them to open their hoards.
This has put the different bosses in certain tiers and knowing which ones to fight first will make progress through the game much easier.
Lair Boss Rework
The Lair Boss Rework happened in Season 8 has changed how bosses are challenged as well as how you gain rewards from defeating them, which remains permanent for all seasons.
Boss Summoning Items have been altered and there are now Lair Boss Keys, which are items used to open Boss Hoards that appear after you defeat them.
Obtaining Lair Boss Keys can be done by progressing through each season as well as completing certain activities.
Lair Boss Ladder Guide
Lair Bosses have been separated into 3 different tiers, which are Initiate, Greater, and Exalted which determine the difficulty of the bosses.
Initiate Bosses include Beast in the Ice, Lord Zir, Grigoire, Varshan, and Urivar, who all drop loot based on their tables as well as Liar Boss Keys.
The following are the Lair Boss Keys for the Initiate Lair Bosses:
- Beast in the Ice – Distilled Fear
- Lord Zir – Exquisite Blood
- Grigoire – Living Steel
- Varshan – Malignant Heart
- Urivar – Judicator’s Mask
Each of the Initiate Bosses will have a Hoard Chest that appears when they are defeated, and these require 12 of their specific keys to open.
Initiate Lair Boss Hoards may include Lair Boss Keys for Greater Lair Boss Hoards, making this a type of progression to eventually move up to Greater and Exalted Bosses.
The following are the Lair Boss Keys for the Greater Lair Bosses:
- Andariel – Pincushioned Doll (Drops from Beast in the Ice & Lord Zir Hoards)
- Duriel – Shard of Agony (Drops from Grigoire and Varshan Hoards)
- Harbinger of Hatred – Abhorrent Heart (Drops from Urivar’s Hoard)
Aside from the Greater Lair Boss keys dropping from Initiate Boss Hoards, they may also be acquired by completing certain activities.
Greater Lair Boss Hoards will require 3 of the specific keys depending on which boss you face and the Hoard Chest that will be opened.
Currently, there is only one Exalted Lair Boss and this is Belial, Lord of Lies, who was introduced in Season 8.
Opening Belial’s Hoard Chest requires that you have Betrayer’s Husk, which is obtained by defeating him during an ambush that occurs in other Boss Lairs.
There is a chance that Belial will attack you after opening an Initiate or Greater Lair Boss Hoard, but you will have to defeat him when this happens.
How To Get All Lair Boss Keys?
Distilled Fear (Beast in Ice)
- Nightmare Dungeons
- Undercity of Kurast (Tribute of Titans)
- Tree of Whispers Cache
- World Bosses
- Mercenary Bartering
Exquisite Blood (Lord Zir)
- World Bosses
- Legion Events
- Blood Maiden (Helltide)
- Undercity of Kurast (Tribute of Titans)
- Tree of Whispers Cache
- Mercenary Bartering
Living Steel (Grigoire)
- Helltide
- Undercity of Kurast (Tribute of Titans)
- Tree of Whispers Caches
- World Bosses
- Mercenary Bartering
Malignant Heart (Varshan)
- Tree of Whispers Cache
- Undercity of Kurast (Tribute of Titans)
- World Bosses
- Mercenary Bartering
Judicator’s Mask (Urivar)
- Tree of Whispers Cache
- World Bosses
- Mercenary Bartering
Pincushioned Doll (Andariel)
- Glacial Fissure (Beast in the Ice Hoard)
- Ancient’s Seat (Lord Zir’s Hoard)
- World Bosses
- Undercity of Kurast (Tribute of Titans)
Shard of Agony (Duriel)
- Hall of the Penitent (Grigoire’s Hoard)
- Malignant Burrow (Varshan’s Hoard)
Abhorrent Heart (Harbinger of Hatred)
- Fields of Judgment (Urivar’s Hoard)
- World Bosses
- Undercity of Kurast (Tribute of Titans
Betrayer’s Husk (Belial)
- Defeat Belial during Ambush after opening Lair Boss Hoard
Pound of Flesh (The Butcher)
- Bloodied Activities
- Kills during Killstreak
- Treasure Goblins
Verdict
The best way to progress with other bosses is to use the Lair Boss Keys that you have for Initiate Bosses to get keys to Greater Lair Bosses.
As you continue to farm the Initiate and Greater Lair Bosses, Belial will begin to appear when you open their Hoards, which will allow you to get keys to his Hoard.
Depending on which bosses you challenge, the rewards may vary but opening Belial’s Hoard will allow you to choose drops from a specific boss.
