Diablo 4 is a massive game with a vast map. While you can get from place to place easily using teleport waypoints in each settlement, exploring a new area to get to those waypoints can be a bit daunting because of the distance between each teleporter. To make terrain traversal faster and easier, Diablo 4 introduced a mount system to the game for the first time in the series.
This new addition to the series opens up a lot of possibilities for movement and battle in the overworld.
How to get Mounts in Diablo 4
Mounts in Diablo 4 is a new feature introduced to the series, primarily because compared to the previous three entries, Diablo 4 has a lot more open world to trudge through. The types of mounts you can acquire will vary based on how and where you get them from. But before that, we need to know how to unlock the mounts feature.
Mounts are not unlocked from the start of the game. To gain access to mounts, you will have to complete a Priority Quest titled “Mount: Donan’s Favor.” Priority Quests are side missions that unlock different features in the game, and they can be undertaken when you reach certain points in the story.
Related: How to complete the Sight to Madness side quest in Diablo 4
To unlock Donan’s Favor, you will have to get to the Act III main questline titled “A Master’s Touch”. During the questline, you will meet Donan in Kyovashad as part of delivering Lorath’s message. After doing this, Donan’s Favor will begin and will require you to talk to the Stable Master Oskar. Once you do, the quest is complete and you will gain access to the mounts feature.
Now that you have gained access to the mounts feature, you will need to know how to acquire a mount for yourself and the rest of your characters.
The most basic way to acquire a mount is by purchasing one from the Stable Master in a town. Other methods to get a mount would be buying one through the cosmetic shop or rewards for different activities, such as racking up wins in PvP matches. Regardless of the method you use to acquire a mount, once you unlock it, it will be available for all of the characters on your account to use.
All Mounts in Diablo 4
Now that you know how to get mounts, you will need to know which ones to choose for yourself. You can only have one mount equipped on your character at any point in time. When you have one equipped, you can summon it at almost any point in the game, and your mount will join you in battle.
So which mount will suit you best? Pick the ones you like from the list of mounts mentioned.
Old Nell Mount
Old Nell is the default mount that you unlock upon completion of Donan’s Favor. As expected of the default mount in the game, this horse has no unique markings or features that make it stand out, but it gets the job done. If you are unsatisfied with Old Nell, you can always switch it out for other cosmetically pleasing mounts that you can get later down the line.
Mottled Steed Mount
One of the two upgrades to Old Nell that you can purchase from the Stable Masters. The Mottled Steed upgrade costs 20,000 Gold to purchase. At first glance, you can tell this mount looks very similar to Old Nell, just with a different skin. It is a worthy upgrade to Old Nell unless you decide to get different mounts later.
Grey Steed Mount
The second of the two upgrades to Old Nell is also purchasable from the Stable Masters. The Grey Steed upgrade similarly costs 20,000 Gold to purchase as well. Similar to the Mottled Steed, the Grey Steed is another reskin of the original Old Nell, but in grey. Depending on your tastes, choosing either one of these two should be good enough till you can choose the more expensive ones.
Bloody Steed Mount
This mount is the only PvP-based mount in the game and can be acquired from the Field of Hatred Stable Master for 100,000 Red Dust. PvP was a huge feature in Diablo 2 and was completely removed in Diablo 3. Now that it has made its return, the rewards that you get by defeating other players will give you enough resources to gain the Bloody Steed.
Decaying Steed Mount
One of two special mounts in the game is found as a rare drop from a rare enemy. Treasure Goblins are random spawns that appear anywhere on the overworld while you fight enemies. Defeating these Treasure Goblins will grant you a variety of riches, and the Decaying Steed is one of the rarest rewards you can get. Getting this mount is highly dependent on luck, though, so it might take a while.
Spectral Charger Mount
The other of the two special mounts in the game can be found by completing the Gathering Legions event in Kor Dragan. This event involves liberating the Stronghold of Kor Dragan from a sect of vampires. Once you complete this event, you will be granted the Ghastly Reins as a reward. Gaining this item is the only way to acquire the Spectral Charger.
Light Bearer Mount
One of three promotional mounts. Only available as a pre-order bonus to anyone that purchased the game before launch. The Light Bearer is available with any edition of the game, so it doesn’t matter if you pre-ordered the Deluxe or Ultimate editions or even the Standard edition, you should be granted access to this mount when you unlock the feature.
Primal Instinct Mount
The second of the three promotional mounts. This mount is limited-time only, and you can get it as a Twitch drop for supporting your favorite Diablo 4 streamer after linking your Twitch account to your Battle.net. The window to acquire Primal Instinct is very short since it is only going to be available from June 5 to July 2 as a promotional collaboration between Blizzard and Twitch streamers.
Temptation Mount
The third and final promotional mount. Only available with the purchase of the Deluxe or Ultimate editions of Diablo 4. Unlike the Light Bearer, the Temptation mount will not be available with the Standard edition since it is a season pass unlock that is only available by purchasing either the Deluxe or Ultimate editions.
Apart from these mounts, there are a few of them that are only available as drops from battle.
- Blood Bay Mount: Dropped anywhere in Kehjistan.
- Bloody Liquid Mount: Acquired by defeating the Echo of Lilith.
- Brigand’s Mount: Random drop from anywhere.
- Buckskin Bay Mount: Dropped anywhere in Kehjistan.
- Caldeum Mount: Random drop from anywhere.
- Cavalier’s Mount: Random drop from anywhere.
- Dustback Mount: Dropped anywhere in the Dry Steppes.
- Executioner’s Mount: Random drop from anywhere.
- Granite-coat Mount: Dropped anywhere in Scosglen.
- Marshback Mount: Dropped anywhere in Hawezar.
- Marsh Roan Mount: Dropped anywhere in Hawezar.
- Pale Mount: Dropped anywhere in Fractured Peaks.
- Seal Brown Mount: Random drop from anywhere.
- Spotted Shale-coat Mount: Dropped anywhere in Scosglen.
- Striped Steppe Mount: Dropped anywhere in the Dry Steppes.
- Taiga Roan Mount: Dropped anywhere in Fractured Peaks.
- Trapper’s Mount: Random drop from anywhere.
The rest of the mounts on this list are cosmetic mounts and can be purchased directly from the shop using varying amounts of the Platinum currency.
- Endurance Mount: Can be purchased from the cosmetic store for 1600 Platinum.
- Ingot Mount: Can be purchased from the cosmetic store for 1600 Platinum.
- Liath Icehowl Mount: Can be purchased from the cosmetic store for $6.99.
- Triune Charger Mount: Can be purchased from the cosmetic store for 1500 Platinum.
One important thing to note here is that every mount in the game is purely cosmetic and, as such, will not impact your character’s power or gameplay in any way. Once you have your mount looking a certain way that is pleasing, you can move on to the mount mechanics in Diablo 4. There are only two ways that a mount will affect your gameplay.
Mount mechanics in Diablo 4
The two mechanics that are affected by mounts are terrain traversal and skill changes. Terrain traversal is quite self-explanatory since you go faster when you are on your mount. When it comes to mount skills, apart from the “Spur” and “Dismount” skills, each mount also contributes to battle by offering its own skills, which differ based on which character is currently using the mount.
- Bounding Slam (Barbarian): Leap from your mount, slamming the ground twice and stunning enemies in the area. This skill requires a two-handed weapon.
- Pummel (Druid): Leap from your mount, transforming into a werebear and slamming the ground to deal damage and knock down all surrounding enemies.
- Bone Spike (Necromancer): Leap from your mount, slamming the ground and releasing waves of spikes to stun all enemies near you.
- Volley (Rogue): Leap from your mount and fire a barrage of arrows at all nearby enemies. This skill requires a bow to be equipped.
- Freezing Wake (Sorcerer): Leap from your mount, turning into an ice crystal and freezing all enemies in your vicinity.
Apart from these skills, mounts just make life in Sanctuary a lot easier by allowing you to bypass a lot of annoying enemies that you would rather not fight. Since mounts also unlock for every character on your account, it should make your next character’s journey through Sanctuary that much easier.
Published: Jun 20, 2023 02:00 am