Diablo 5 Plague Knight: The New Class Explained

Blizzard introduces the Plague Knight in one line: “The all-new Plague Knight is the embodiment of walking death.” It roams the battlefield spreading disease and pestilence, ultimately consuming it for power.

During the panel, senior game director Joe Shely added that it is a heavily armored class: “It’s a walking death. You’re going to be roaming around the battlefield spreading disease and then consuming it for power.” Spread first, then consume – that is the core the team has described.

Unlike the Demon Hunter and the Monk, the Plague Knight has no predecessor in an earlier Diablo. Shely sees the large number of classes as what makes such a new idea possible: “It also affords us the opportunity to explore new classes like the Plague Knight.”

In the same group interview, according to PlayDay, the team placed its classes between dark and light, with the Plague Knight clearly on the dark side. That fits the premise of Diablo V, in which Diablo has already conquered Sanctuary.

The black-and-white panel sketch shows a figure in full plate armor with a jagged helmet and a dark, spiky cloak. A long blade is visible in front of the body. Blizzard has not said whether that is the class’s weapon – the sketch is concept art, not an in-game image.

Still open (as of October 19, 2026): whether the Plague Knight fights in melee or at range, which weapons it wields, which resource it uses, how consuming disease works in play and which skills it has. Blizzard plans to show more on combat, progression and builds, with regular updates from 2027. The other classes are in the class overview, and the basics of combat are on the gameplay page.