The 30-second version
- Confirmed[B1] news.blizzard.com · verified Oct 9, 2026Survival is no longer tied to towns or strongholds; it is tied to your caravan.
- Confirmed[T2] warcraft.blizzplanet.com · verified Oct 6, 2026You are the safe zone: "the player is the point of safety."
- Confirmed[T2] warcraft.blizzplanet.com · verified Oct 6, 2026It grows with every survivor you find.
- Confirmed[T2] warcraft.blizzplanet.com · verified Oct 6, 2026All side content comes from caravan characters.
- Confirmed[T2] warcraft.blizzplanet.com · verified Oct 6, 2026Inspired by the Rogue Encampment in Diablo II, except it moves.
Concept art · not final · © Blizzard Entertainment
Why are there no towns?
Because Diablo won. In "Forging the Next Era", Blizzard explains that with Sanctuary under his rule, "survival is no longer tied to towns or conquered strongholds." You need allies who travel with you through the scorched wastes. Confirmed[B1] news.blizzard.com · verified Oct 9, 2026
At the panel, executive producer Matt Zitterman framed the design problem: how do you represent a safe place in a world where Diablo has already won and there literally is none? His answer: "the player is the point of safety" (panel video). Confirmed[T2] warcraft.blizzplanet.com · verified Oct 6, 2026
How does it work?
- Confirmed[T2] warcraft.blizzplanet.com · verified Oct 6, 2026You find survivors along the way.
- Confirmed[T2] warcraft.blizzplanet.com · verified Oct 6, 2026They join the caravan, which grows with them.
- Confirmed[B1] news.blizzard.com · verified Oct 9, 2026[T2] warcraft.blizzplanet.com · verified Oct 9, 2026They become vendors, crafters and companions, each with a past, motives and scars.
- Confirmed[T2] warcraft.blizzplanet.com · verified Oct 6, 2026They give you the side quests. No more errands from strangers on the road.
- Confirmed[T2] warcraft.blizzplanet.com · verified Oct 6, 2026Every stop opens a new part of the world to explore.
Old towns vs. the caravan
| In earlier Diablo games | In Diablo 5 | Status |
|---|---|---|
| A fixed town as your safe haven | No safe place; the haven is you and your caravan | Confirmed[T2] warcraft.blizzplanet.com · verified Oct 6, 2026 |
| A blacksmith waiting in every town | Crafters are survivors who join you | Confirmed[T2] warcraft.blizzplanet.com · verified Oct 6, 2026 |
| Errands from strangers | All side content comes from your caravan | Confirmed[T2] warcraft.blizzplanet.com · verified Oct 6, 2026 |
| The camp stays put | The caravan travels; every stop opens a new area | Confirmed[T2] warcraft.blizzplanet.com · verified Oct 6, 2026 |
Senior production director Tiffany Wat put it with a joke on stage: in older games there was a conveniently placed blacksmith, "Bob 1, Bob 2." The "Bob Prime" blacksmith that came up was a gag: "not canon." Confirmed[T2] warcraft.blizzplanet.com · verified Oct 6, 2026
Who travels with you?
Blizzard has introduced two characters. The total cast is unknown.
| Character | What's confirmed | Status |
|---|---|---|
| A former Sister of the Sightless Eye | One of your companions; name not revealed | Confirmed[B1] news.blizzard.com · verified Oct 9, 2026 |
| A Treasure Goblin | Stranded, "searching for meaning in a world where greed has lost its purpose" | Confirmed[B1] news.blizzard.com · verified Oct 9, 2026 |
| Zarg (the goblin) | Name used on stage, possibly not final | Provisional[T2] warcraft.blizzplanet.com · verified Oct 6, 2026 |
| Zarg, again | The team repeats it to the press: "He's a treasure goblin" | Interview[T3] windowscentral.com · verified Oct 10, 2026 |
For once, a Treasure Goblin is a character rather than a loot piñata: a demon driven by treasure. The campaign will reveal why he joins and what part he plays in taking Diablo down. Confirmed[T2] warcraft.blizzplanet.com · verified Oct 6, 2026
Everything known about each of them: the Treasure Goblin and the former Sister of the Sightless Eye.
What has the team added in interviews?
- Interview[T3] playday.one · verified Oct 6, 2026The caravan is a "point of light," and its characters give "you something to lose."
- Interview[T3] playday.one · verified Oct 6, 2026They are not companions you gear up; they are people you travel with (interviewer's paraphrase).
- Interview[T3] playday.one · verified Oct 6, 2026You can replay areas; when the caravan leaves, the darkness returns (paraphrase).
- Interview[T3] playday.one · verified Oct 6, 2026Starting with very few people matches the feeling of starting from nothing (paraphrase).
- Interview[T3] news.xbox.com · verified Oct 6, 2026On the Official Xbox Podcast, Tiffany Wat described the caravan as home to the world's glimmers of hope.
What they told Windows Central
In an interview with Tiffany Wat and John Mueller, the caravan came up as the answer to a fair complaint: Diablo IV's side characters were easy to forget (Windows Central). The writer doesn't attribute each line to one of the two.
- Interview[T3] windowscentral.com · verified Oct 10, 2026The caravan is where you get to know people: "The caravan is how we are really spending time with the characters in Diablo 5."
- Interview[T3] windowscentral.com · verified Oct 10, 2026Survivors will be rare and valuable. In a post-apocalyptic world, finding someone worth saving will be "really rare."
- Interview[T3] windowscentral.com · verified Oct 10, 2026Each one brings a backstory. You learn it when they join; the campaign covers how they survived, why they join you and what drives them (the writer's paraphrase).
- Interview[T3] windowscentral.com · verified Oct 10, 2026The blacksmith and the jeweler are back as people. The team wants "one character you get to know as the blacksmith, one as the jeweler, because they're like the last denizens of Sanctuary."
What they told the Korean press
In another interview, published by Inven Global (translated from Korean by the outlet, so the English wording is theirs), Matt Zitterman added two details:
- Interview[T3] invenglobal.com · verified Oct 10, 2026Each caravan character's story should feel like a "mini-campaign," with a role in the main story.
- Interview[T3] invenglobal.com · verified Oct 10, 2026You can't park the caravan just anywhere. You go out first and secure a safe location; only then can the caravan and your companions move there.
What we don't know yet
As of October 9, 2026, Blizzard has not said:
- how many characters the caravan will have;
- which service each one provides (trading, crafting, storage…);
- whether you can upgrade or customize it;
- how it works in multiplayer;
- how it fits into the endgame;
- the name and role of the former Sister of the Sightless Eye.
Crafting by your survivors is covered on Runes, runewords and crafting.
Sources
- Blizzard: Diablo V: Forging the Next Era (Sept. 12, 2026). Tier 1. Checked Oct. 9, 2026.
- Official Diablo channel: "Forging the Next Era" panel (Sept. 12, 2026). Tier 1.
- Blizzplanet: panel transcript. Tier 2.
- PlayDay: group interview with the team (Sept. 15, 2026). Tier 3, interview.
- Xbox Wire: Official Xbox Podcast (Sept. 15, 2026). Tier 3, interview.
- Windows Central: interview with two developers (Sept. 13, 2026). Tier 3, interview. Checked Oct. 10, 2026.
- Inven Global: interview with Matt Zitterman and John Mueller (Sept. 12, 2026; translated from Korean by the outlet). Tier 3, interview. Checked Oct. 10, 2026.
FAQ
Are there towns in Diablo 5?
No. The towns are gone, and survival depends on a caravan of allies who travel with you.
What does the caravan do in Diablo 5?
It gathers the survivors you find, who become your vendors, crafters and companions. All side content comes from them.
Confirmed[T2] warcraft.blizzplanet.com · verified Oct 10, 2026
Who is in the Diablo 5 caravan?
Blizzard has shown two characters: a former Sister of the Sightless Eye and a Treasure Goblin whose working name is Zarg.
Do caravan companions fight alongside you?
Not as gear-swappable mercenaries. Per an interview, they are characters you travel with.
Can you upgrade or customize the caravan?
Blizzard has not said.
Where does the caravan idea come from?
The Rogue Encampment in Diablo II, campfire and all, but on the move. Matt Zitterman said so at the panel.
Confirmed[T2] warcraft.blizzplanet.com · verified Oct 10, 2026
Changelog
- 2026-10-09: first version.
- 2026-10-10: four points from Windows Central (rare, valuable survivors; each one's backstory and motives; the blacksmith and the jeweler; Zarg repeated by the team) and two from Inven Global (each character as a "mini-campaign"; secure a location before moving the caravan), all as interview. Links to the goblin and Sister sections on Characters, which now own those link terms.