Diablo 3 ending, explained

Diablo 3 was released on May 12, 2012, and took the fandom by storm with its rich and interwoven storytelling, which was full of twists and turns that kept players hooked at every instance of the game. This series has always been one with a dark and intriguing plot, making it stand out from other games in the genre.

In this article, we will discuss what truly happened in the final hours of Diablo 3 and the Reaper of Souls expansion.

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What happened at the end of Diablo 3 (base game)

Diablo 3 retcons much of Diablo 1, and in this case, it’s for the best. The game is full of shocking twists and haunting revelations that keep players questioning if it's actually happening. So what did happen?

Brief lore

Diablo 3 follows the Nephalem’s journey to Tristram after witnessing a falling star, where they team up with the primary NPC, the ever-trusty Deckard Cain, and his assistant and adopted daughter Leah.

Deckard Cain

Deckard Cain the last Horadrim and Leah at the Tristram Church right before the stars came crashing down (Image via Blizzard Entertainment)

Deckard Cain, since he’s been with us since the beginning of the series, guiding players throughout their journey to conquer the Prime Evils. Suffice to say, Deckard Cain is the last of a long line of Horadrim, which began with his ancestor Jared Cain.

Leah

Leah is the daughter of the Dark Wanderer and Adria The Witch, and a vessel of the Prime Evil Diablo (Image via Blizzard Entertainment)

Leah is the main NPC in Diablo 3, after the tragic passing of Deckard Cain. Leah is the daughter of the Dark Wanderer (aka the oldest Aiden son of King Leoric and also a vessel of Diablo himself) and Adria (a potions vendor from Diablo 1 and 3).

Lineage

Adria the Witch and Aiden the Dark Wanderer are the parents of Leah, who was born to be the vessel of Diablo (Image via Blizzard Entertainment)

In Diablo 1, Prince Aiden (the warrior class) is the canon hero who goes on a journey along with the Sorcerer and the Rogue to save his little brother, Prince Albrecht, and defeats Diablo in the process. But he and his two friends get corrupted by Diablo; consequently, Aiden (the warrior) becomes the host of Diablo by putting the Black Soulstone inside his head, the Sorcerer becomes The Summoner, and the Rogue becomes Blood Raven (all appear in Diablo 2, in antagonistic roles).

While Aiden was slowly being possessed by Diablo, he met Adria (a potions vendor), and before leaving Tristram, they had a child (Leah), and within this child was hidden the essence of Diablo. Adria left Leah with Deckard Cain and left Tristram as well, and she would stay away for the next 20 years. We find proof of this in Adria’s Journal, where she mentions:

“Aidan came to me last night. I suspected what was lurking within his troubled heart. I consoled him as best I could. Regardless, wherever he's headed, Hell will surely follow in his wake. The shadows close in on Tristram once again. But, like Aidan, I'll be gone before they fall.”

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Ending explained

In Act 3 of Diablo 3, the protagonist and Tyrael watch helplessly as Adria, the Witch, uses Leah as a vessel for Diablo to appear (Image via Blizzard Entertainment)

At the end of Act 3, we watch Adria, the Witch (Leah’s mother), turn traitor and overpower Leah to use her as a vessel for Diablo. Diablo manifests completely through Leah and absorbs the Black Soulstone (which now contained the souls of all seven Prime Evils) to become the ultimate incarnation of the Burning Hells, the Prime Evil.

Diablo, now fully manifested, launches his assault on the High Heavens, but Imperius, the Archangel of Valor, stands in his way (Image via Blizzard Entertainment)

Diablo launches his attack on the High Heavens, with his eyes set on Anu’s (the first being in creation from whom the Archangels were born) remains, which will destroy all creation.

But the Nephalem takes up arms against Diablo in a decisive battle at the Crystal Arch and manages to defeat the Prime Evil once again. Sanctuary was saved once more by the hands of a mortal.

At the end, the Prime Evil was defeated and cast down from the High Heavens (Image via Blizzard Entertainment)

With Diablo banished and his soul trapped inside the Black Soulstone, it was time for the Archangels to decide what should be done with the stone. Imperious (the Archangel of Valour) wanted it to be destroyed for good, Auriel (the Archangel of Hope) wanted it to be sealed away, and Itherael (the Archangel of Fate) remained silent and indecisive; only Tyrael, who had taken the place of Malthael (missing Archangel) as the Archangel of Wisdom, saw its corruption among his brethren and decided it should be hidden away even from the Angels.

"I cannot destroy the stone, nor allow its evil to remain within the Heavens. And so it must be hidden. Even from the angels."

Thus, Tyrael bestowed the charge of hiding the Soulstone to the newly restored Horadrim to be hidden somewhere in Sanctuary away from both Demons and Angels.

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What happened at the end of Diablo 3: Reaper of Souls

Tyrael and the newly reformed Horadrim hides the Black Soulstone, in the depth of the Tomb of Rakkis (Image via Blizzard Entertainment)

While the Soulshard was being taken to the Tomb of Rakkis to be hidden away, the Horadrim and Tyrael were ambushed by Malthael (former Archangel of Wisdom), now the embodiment of Death.

In the ensuing conflict, every Horadrim except Lorath Nahr was slain by Malthael, and Tyrael was left wounded, powerless to stop him.

Malthael, the Angel of Death steals the Black Soulstone from the Tomb of Rakkis (Image via Blizzard Entertainment)

Malthael, the Angel of Death, took the Black Soulstone and began his campaign to eradicate all of humanity, starting from Westmarch, for he believed humans are nothing more than an unholy amalgamation of Demons and Angels and are thus evil in nature.

By Tyrael’s command, Lorath Nahr reached Westmarch and recruited a Nephalem to counter Malthael. In their journey, they also encounter Adria, the witch, and give her a well-deserved death but only after she reveals the location of Malthael.

The nephalen defeats Malthael and becomes a champion to the angels (Image via Blizzard Entertainment)

So the player and Lorath Nahr pursue Malthael to Pandemonium (another realm place between the High Heavens and Burning Hells). Here, the Nephalem defeats Malthel and breaks the Black Soulstone, which releases the souls of the Prime Evils into the world.

The Nephalem absorbs the essence of Death itself and becomes something more, something that can kill Angels (Image via Blizzard Entertainment)

The Nephalem absorbs the essence of Malthael and becomes something more than what he was, vowing to protect all of existence. But Tyrael warns the Nephalem of their own inner darkness, for mastery over death always comes with a cost.

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Diablo 4 takes place 50 to 60 years after Diablo 3, in a world that still hasn't recovered from Malthael’s assault. Here, we again meet a much older and weary Lorath Nahr and begin a new journey to stop another Prime Evil; this time it's Mephisto and his daughter Lilith.

But so far we don’t know what happened to the Nephalem from Diablo 3. Maybe he got corrupted like many before him, or maybe he’s still out there keeping the demons at bay; only time will tell.

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Check out our other Diablo guides and features:

• Diablo 3 Season 35: Start date, journey, and what you need to know
• Diablo 4 is finally adding Diablo 3 feature that should’ve been there from the start
• How to farm Petrified Scream in Diablo 3
• Is Diablo 3 worth trying on the Switch?