Bashiok’s coffee maker pot went dry last night and decided to keep himself awake with a bombardment of questions from the community via Twitter.
Kultbot: So chat channels are still part of the game?
Bashiok: They’re in there right now. Unless people are expecting general open channels? We’ve consistently said we won’t have those.
witwix: Is there going to be as much incentive to sit around and MF for 14 hours at a time? Or is the end game plan more WoWesque?
Bashiok: It will be similar to D2, but emphasis is off boss runs and on exploring the world.
IamBGriffs: Any word when news about runes will be released?
Bashiok: We’re planning that out. Its in and working. Not too much longer.
Bargo_Gosu: Does this include the skill system?
Bashiok: Skill and rune systems are intrinsically linked.
Darth_caesar: Is there any bonus to pre-release bonus to pre-ordering the CE?
Bashiok: I’m not aware of any pre-order bonuses… We usually don’t do those.
Mrknify: how do i use the Diablo 3 forums ? it says I need a Wow account ? mine is frozen, and I have D2/D2_expansion?
Bashiok: You’ll need an active WoW sub, StarCraft II license, or DIII beta license.
iM_Bennotronica: What % will you guys take from real money action house?
Bashiok: That’s a good question, I actually don’t know. % is only on cash out though, or commodity/stackable item sales.
ReXimus128: Why did you guys remove scrolls of identification? Simplicity sake? Also, why can you change skills anywhere now?
Bashiok: We didn’t really feel like they added anything, except to take away inventory space.
Varastus21: I have a question about friends and chat in D3. Is it possible to add someone to a friends list? Also, is there a global chat?
Bashiok: Yes there’s multiple different types of friends lists. Global chat like you want to spam all your friends? 🙂 no.
Millerjoeblue: any plans for any guild/clan features?
Bashiok: We’d love to offer some kind of support for social groups, but it’s on a wish list at the moment.
Chiefey68: Will xpacs increase level caps or just new content/items? Thanks for the outreach!
Bashiok: We’re still just working on the game, but our philosophy is that levels should match the content. If that answers your question.
SimonTupper: One of the reasons why Diablo 2 was such a succes was that it was getting better over the years, will diablo 3 follow that pattern?
Bashiok: We’re fully designing and planning for Diablo III to be supported long into the future.
Efren1776: Any idea when more beta invites will go out?
Bashiok: We don’t really plan it out like that, it’s more a symptom of seeing how many people are playing and seeing if need more.
andrespdr: Any plans for contests for beta keys for people outside the states? (Latinamerica)
Bashiok: Yup, but I’ll let them tell you about it. 🙂
OldIronBlood: will we be seeing any runestones or gems in beta?
Bashiok: Extremely unlikely. The point of the beta is to test the service, patcher, launcher, and hardware compatibility.
hashstep: In the game guide some weapons have a range of values for min and max dmg (2-3)-(4-5) dmg for ex. Can the values be non-integers?
Bashiok: Nah, whole numbers is sexier.
CaptRaven: could you elaborate a bit more on why exactly Blizzard thinks that a general open chat channel like in D2 or SC1 is a bad idea?
Bashiok: The good is minuscule compared to the bad, and we have to actually support these things…
Doriide: How does crafting work?
Bashiok: It’s a bit complex to describe in 140 characters. You already read the artisan section on the website?
jeremysnow2: My wife wants to know how much sleep everyone at Blizzard is averaging trying to get this game out to demanding people like me…
Bashiok: Hah! It’s a lot of long hours and weekend work days, and has been for a while… but we have fun. 🙂
Regardless_: Could you tell us how the legendary weapons are coming along and if they will be in the beta?
Bashiok: Quite well. I don’t think we drop any more until later in Act 1. Probably not.
Efren1776: as somone who hasn’t played the first 2 will it be easy to understand the story of this one?
Bashiok: No matter what it’s going to be a fun story. If you’ve played the others you’ll get something extra, if not, you’ll seek it out.
eclittlejohn: Does the current list of items on the D3 website give all the items we can expect to see on release? Are there going to be more?
Bashiok: No, no, no, the website has very few items. We’ll update it when we get close to release.
Sarfazar: How close to the date of release should we expect the Diablo III, beta to run?
Bashiok: That’s a good question. I don’t think we exactly know. Pretty close.
IReesesCupI: Do you guys plan to have expansion for Diablo 3 still? If so would it be a class/content or just content. Etc.
Bashiok: We think it makes sense, but we’re focusing on releasing the game first. 🙂
pliers1: Is there going to be a pre-release download, so people can start playing as soon as servers go up? Including people on annual pass.
Bashiok: We plan to have a digital download people can grab so they’re ready to go right at midnight.
digitahlemotion: Aside from being able to slow down to enjoy the lore, are there any drawbacks (in regards to the story) to playing solo vs co-op?
Bashiok: We hope not, we’ve worked really hard to try to ensure co-op is nothing but bonuses and awesomeness.
Procrastajason: is the retail release of the game the entirety of the content we’ll see for a while or will there be content patches ala WoW?
Bashiok: Well, WoW is a subscription game. We’ll have patches. New items, probably. New zones or bosses? Probably not.
WilliamCairns1: With you taking out the scrolls do you have any plans to put them back in maybe as like purchasable pet like in WoW maybe?
Bashiok: We didn’t remove them so we could charge people for them later, if that’s your question. 🙂
SamuEllmer: Will there be official midnight launch events globally? (and if so, could you make it to London’s?)
Bashiok: We tend to have midnight launch events, no announcements until we know when the game will launch. 🙂
Ryallcowling: Do I need to pay any tax on my monthly paypal earnings from the sale of in game items? Any other options than paypal?
Bashiok: I believe that’s between you and the IRS? PayPal is what we’re focusing on for NA and some other regions.
Wasted_Panda: Will the colorblind mode be implemented during beta?
Bashiok: Do we need one? Would appreciate feedback in a forum thread if there’s specific issues.
MrPaNtsONhEad: I like the changes to skillswap with cooldown BUT why is there a cooldown when you are in town?
Bashiok: It’s a rough first implementation. It was wrangled in very shortly before the patch went out.
leftupseven: In a party, if people are skipping loot barrels and side rooms, do you lose xp for staying back and exploring?
Bashiok: You need to be within range (screen and a half or so) to be counted for drops or experience.
EldacarJS: Is there going to be a monster in the game named Bashiok? Also will Rakanishu and Bishbosh be returning?
Bashiok: Yes. Well… I don’t know. Those guys are dead…
verylemonade: Why the massive disparities in starting armor for some of the classes for male/female? EX: Sorcerer/ess.
Bashiok: Likely one was revised and the other wasn’t. (bug) A bug report or other written feedback would help.
Br0ckHamill: with pets been taken out of the game is there any plans of the use of the models or will they just return to wild life in game?
Bashiok: I believe they’ll be freeze-dried until later.
EmperorDoomwolf: Is it possible you can make the CE wings dyeable? I know they’re an inventory item. It would just be cool!!!
Bashiok: No, they’re the single amazingly cool color they already are. 🙂
Kennigit: How many times have you played through the campaign?
Bashiok: From start to finish with one character? :X never…
LadyFoxette: Do you recommend I go back and play the first two games (+expansion), or does Diablo 3’s story stand well enough on its own?
Bashiok: I think you can find some good story recaps (if anyone has link pls share) that it’d be pretty easy to catch yourself up.
Darkcoro: Is a melee Wizard still viable with the new stat system etc? Was very interested to try that ^_^
Bashiok: Absolutely.
dethbox: Max players per game. 4 or 8?
Bashiok: 4.
arkeus: Is it possible we will see a return of the Amulet feature in an expansion?
Bashiok: Anything is possible. That kind of secondary item-based stat augmentation is real cool though. Perfect for later on.
SnailCraft: How big is the game in comparison to D2?
Bashiok: I dont know. Around the same I suspect.
Regardless_: Do you get to influence the game design at all outside of being the CM? If so, what did you help with?
Bashiok: I complain all the time but I’m usually wrong. 🙂 All the good stuff comes from the community.
Sn0wcatcher: Can paypal unsupported countries use the rmah ? Is blizzard usiing any other web-based payment besides paypal?
Bashiok: I believe we’ll be providing more info about regional options once they’re ready. To be honest I don’t know specifics.
mikesacco: forum feedback still says DH feels less powerful than other classes; perception or real thing? any plans?
Bashiok: Overall we agree. Next patch (?) there will be a number of class changes.
Sarfazar: Is it possible to post gold/real money on the auction house to be bought with real money/gold respectively.
Bashiok: You can put up gold to be bought with currency, yes.
jaredgaut: any word on a new Blizzcast?
Bashiok: The delay kinda threw us off. We’ll get back on track…
Mikeregan7: When does beta testing end?
Bashiok: sometime before release.
digitahlemotion: Are the Pre-Orders for Diablo 3 CE by Walmart, Gamestop, etc legit?
Bashiok: I would assume so. I’m not sure how those work, I’d guess they have to work off a unit estimate?
AlexVanDijkNews: Any ETA on news about the EU beta? Will the EU beta be the final phase/part of testing?
Bashiok: Not yet. No.
