One of the best things in all of Diablo 4 is the World Bosses. These massive fights ask you and a team of other players to battle against ferocious Demons no hero could take down alone. They’re exciting, offer loads of loot, have unique rewards tied to them and are generally just a pretty great time. Unfortunately, World Bosses only spawn a limited number of times per day and, if you don’t know when they are going to pop up, you may miss your chance completely. Adding onto that fact is knowing when World Bosses spawn is a tricky thing to figure out, especially if you’re playing on your own.
Here’s everything you need to know about World Bosses in Diablo 4, including the most accurate World Boss spawn times, strategies to beat all current Bosses and what kind of exclusive loot they can drop.
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What are World Bosses in Diablo 4?
World Bosses are a special type of World Event in Diablo 4. In them, large groups of players are expected to face down a single large boss who has mountains of HP and would be insurmountable taken on solo. World Bosses only spawn a limited number of times per day and they are a great source of endgame loot and exclusive rewards at World Tier 3 and above. Whenever a World Boss spawns, you have 15 minutes to defeat them before they disappear.
There are currently three World Bosses available in the release version of Diablo 4:
- Ashava the Pestilent: a gigantic dragon who spews poison.
- Avarice, the Gold Cursed: a golden Demon wielding a box of treasures as a weapon.
- Wandering Death, Death Given Life: a massive skeletal monstrosity who conjures bone walls to disrupt the fight.
Each World Boss has their own mechanics players must learn, as well as unique loot that can drop from each of them. This includes special Mounts, bardings and more. As for when each Boss appears, it seems to be completely random: the same World Boss does seem to appear multiple times in a row, though, giving you multiple opportunities to catch them before they skitter off back to Hell.
On the whole, World Bosses are some of the best events in Diablo 4 and all players should try to attempt one at some point or another. But that leads to another question: when do they spawn and what do the Bosses actually do?
Diablo 4 World Bosses
When Do World Bosses Spawn in Diablo IV?
When World Bosses spawn in Diablo 4 is currently the biggest pain point. As we mentioned, World Bosses will only spawn 4 times per day at very specific times. While it is possible to get a rough estimate of when they’re going to spawn, it isn’t exact and they can spawn much earlier or much later if you get unlucky. World Bosses will appear around every 6 hours from when they last spawn. This can appear around an hour before or an hour after, as well, which just makes nailing them down even more difficult.
The main times when World Bosses will spawn in Diablo IV appear to be:
- 03:30 to 05:30 PDT (EDT+3 / BST+8 / AEST -5)
- 09:30 to 11:30 PDT (EDT+3 / BST+8 / AEST -5)
- 15:30 to 17:30 PDT (EDT+3 / BST+8 / AEST -5)
- 21:30 to 23:30 PDT (EDT+3 / BST+8 / AEST -5)
If you don’t want to use third-party apps or accounts to track World Bosses, your best bet is to open up your map every 30 minutes whenever you get into the timeslot when a boss should spawn. Completing the main campaign will cause a marker to appear on the map whenever a World Boss is going to spawn: this should appear about 20 minutes before the boss pops in, giving you plenty of time to get ready and get over there.
If you want to be more precise and are okay with using outside help, we recommend following the Diablo 4 World Boss Timer account on Twitter. This account will not only send out a reminder 20 minutes before a World Boss is scheduled to spawn but it also lets you know what boss you’ll be facing in advance. So far, this account has been very active and very accurate so, if you’re fine using third-party tools, make sure to follow and turn on notifications for an easier World Boss hunting experience.
World Boss Map Marker
Ashava the Pestilent
Ashava the Pestilent is our first World Boss and some of you will probably have fought them previously. This poisonous spiny dragon was not only the main World Boss in the Diablo 4 Open Beta and Server Slam tests, but also a final challenge players must overcome at the end of the campaign.
Compared to the other World Bosses, Ashava is the one most focused on damage-over-time effects. They have a variety of different attacks which either directly deal poison damage or spread it as stage hazards across the battlefield: should you come into contact with this poison, you’ll begin rapidly taking huge chunks of damage over a few seconds. While many of Ashava’s attacks are easy enough to dodge, getting careless and being caught by these toxic traps is where most adventurers will find the end of the line.
Ashava the Pestilent
In terms of attacks, here’s what Ashava the Pestilent is packing in Diablo IV:
- Sweeping Strike: Ashava will lean back before sweeping down at the group with its arm blade before following up with a second sweep in the opposite direction. Stick close to Ashava during both of these attacks to escape the attack range.
- Ground Slam: Ashava raises its arm into the air before slamming it down onto the ground, dealing big AoE damage to anyone standing below it. Simply get out of range and use the time Ashava takes to get in some free damage.
- Bite Attack: Ashava tilts its head before biting directly in front of it. Staying behind Ashava will ensure that you will never deal with this attack, but a tanky character like a Barbarian can force Ashava to use this move multiple times in a row by standing directly in front of them.
- Pounce: Ashava leaps to another part of the arena. This is usually reserved as a way for the boss to reposition themselves but it does deal big damage if you’re standing where they plan on landing, so be careful.
- Poison Blast: Ashava will spit out a cone-shaped pulse of poisonous fumes, spreading poison on contact and creating poisonous pools on the ground. Getting hit or touching the pools will cause you to become poison-struck, so be sure to avoid these areas and stick to the sides or behind Ashava.
- Dual Ground Slam: Ashava will raise both arms before slamming them into the ground and raking them backwards. This attack is meant to punish those who get too comfortable in Ashava’s blindspot so quickly evade to the side whenever you see Ashava performing this attack.
Poisonous Demon
Exclusive Loot
By defeating Ashava, you’ll get your usual suite of Legendaries, Sacreds and maybe even a Unique or two. The unique rewards attributed to Ashava (as well as the other World Bosses) are mainly to do with Mounts, letting you proudly show off your conquests as you ride around Sanctuary.
Besting Ashava the Pestilence while the weekly exclusive rewards are active gives you the chance to obtain either the Ashava Barding or the Ashava’s Bone Fragment Mount Trophy. The Ashava Barding gives your Mount similar-looking boney spikes and plates as the toxic draconic Demon.
The image below is credited to u/gamer238 on Reddit.
Ashava Barding
Avarice, the Gold Cursed
Avarice, the Gold Cursed, is the next World Boss to know about. In terms of difficulty, it’s probably the easiest thanks to its long telegraphs and lack of annoying factors such as debuffs or DoT. You still cannot slack around it, though, as some of its moves can kill you quickly if they catch you off guard.
Avarice’s main deal is direct damage dealing. It has a variety of moves which it uses to deal big damage to large sections of the battlefield while teleporting in and out to sneak attack unsuspecting players. There are a few things to worry about – primarily Avarice’s molten gold and explosive golden clusters – but your main issues with this World Boss are going to be based on facing it head-on.
Ultimate Loot Goblin
Avarice has a wide variety of moves at its disposal:
- Treasure Box Swing: Avarice will throw its treasure box forward before spinning it around in a clockwise circle by a connected chain. Simply stick close to Avarice during this attack and you’ll be able to avoid taking damage.
- Maul Slam: Avarice lifts its maul, dealing damage in a line directly in front of it. Stay around Avarice’s sides and back to avoid this attack.
- Shockwave: Avarice stomps the ground, causing an AoE blast to go off in the surrounding area. Dodge to the side and get back to stop yourself from taking unnecessary damage.
- Golden Pool: Avarice will stand in place and begin vomiting up a pool of molten gold which deal damage when stepped on. More of these pools will be created throughout the fight and you just need to be aware of where you’re standing as the battle progresses.
- Portal of Greed: Avarice will rush forward into a golden portal before appearing next to a random player to slam down with its maul. Be ready to evade as soon as you see Avarice spawn back in as it will target at complete random.
- Golden Cluster Explosion: Avarice will create several large clusters of gold around the arena, blocking off paths and sightlines. After a short time, it will slam its maul into the ground, causing all golden clusters to explode and deal AoE damage a few moments later. For this attack, try and stay away from the clusters for as long as you can and be ready to jump ship once you see Avarice begin lifting its maul.
Golden Greed
Exclusive Loot
Similar to Ashava, Avarice has the chance to drop a boatload of Legendaries, Sacreds and Uniques upon defeat. It should also be noted that you can break open Avarice’s treasure chest after the fight ends for at least one additional loot drop and some Gold.
As for Mount Cosmetics, defeating Avarice, the Gold Cursed, can get you either the Treasure Beast Barding or Avarice’s Gilded Horn Mount Trophy items. The Treasure Beast Barding lets you dress up your Mount in shiny golden armour, peppered with the skulls and swords of those who tried to take it from you.
The Image below is credited to u/Evil-Mr-Kibbles on Reddit.
Treasure Beast Barding
Wandering Death, Death Given Life
Wandering Death, Death Give Life, is the final World Boss currently in Diablo 4. Out of the three, this is probably the toughest and the one which will cause the most wipes if you happen to go in carelessly.
The reason for this is that Wandering Death is the master of stage hazards, debuffs and AoE. It can slow and daze you, leaving you wide open for a variety of other devastating AoE attacks, while closing off areas of the battlefield as the fight progresses. You need to keep on your toes at all times, making sure you watch where you’re standing to avoid the onslaught of various effects Wandering Death may throw at you. Expect to revive a fair few souls here or there in this fight.
Keeper of Death
For moves, Wandering Death has access to the following attacks:
- Sending Skulls: Wandering Death will throw out its hands, sending a homing skull from each. Evade each skull if it closes in on you to escape the tracking effect.
- Bones of the Earth: Wandering Death will reach out, causing a cracked pattern to appear on the ground. A second later, a series of boney spikes will travel back towards Wandering Death, damaging any in their path. As the fight progresses and Wandering Death gains more arms, this attack will get longer with more areas to avoid so stay active and keep moving.
- Beams of Decay: Wandering Death will outstretch its arms and telegraph a cone from each. It will then begin shooting out two beams and start moving around the arena. If you get caught in either of these beams, it’s a guaranteed game over so before to stick in the safe spots between the beams or behind the boss. Once you reach 50% HP, this will become a three-beam attack.
- Bone Trap: Wandering Death will encircle a random set of players in a circle of bones before casting a high damage AoE within those bones after a few seconds. If you get trapped, destroy the bone barriers and escape as soon as possible or else you’ll likely die when the explosion hits.
- Ground Slam: Wandering Death will slam the ground surrounding it with its arms, dealing AoE damage to those nearby. Back away with evade and then dart back in once the attack has concluded.
Never Ending Death
Exclusive Loot
Wandering Death has a similar loot structure to the other World Bosses, with one major caveat. Killing Wandering Death has the chance to drop Legendaries, Sacreds and even Uniques at World Tiers 3 and above.
However, at current, it doesn’t seem like Wandering Death has any associated Barding. However, it does drop the Bone-Caged Heart Mount Trophy, as seen in this Reddit post by u/mangdrew. Defeating Wandering Death is also required to obtain the World Boss Slayer accolade (which is given when you beat all 3 World Bosses) which will award you the Decaying Shaman’s Skull Mount Trophy as a reward.
Let Hell Fall
That was everything you needed to know about World Bosses in Diablo IV.
Mangdrew
You can get a trophy from the wandering death world boss. I have it, its called bone-caged heart. I posted it on reddit a little bit back. u/mangdrew
Jack Carson
Hey! Cheers for the heads up, the drop seems really rare so I appreciate you reaching out. I’ll be sure to include an edit with credit to your Reddit post, so thank you!