Season 13 and the Reign of the Warlock expansion in Diablo 2 Resurrected introduced some of the most challenging and rewarding farming opportunities the game has ever offered. At the center of this new grind are Heralds, unique bosses that only appear inside terrorized zones. These powerful foes not only put your character to the test, but also hold exclusive drops such as the coveted Sunder Charms. Efficiently targeting Heralds and optimizing your time in terror zones can make a huge difference in your gains.

In this D2R Heralds Farming guide, we will walk through how Heralds work in Reign of the Warlock, the spawning mechanics, the token system, how to consistently reach the maximum Tier 5 Heralds, how long it might take, loot expecially sunder charms drop rate from Heralds runnings, which terror zones offer the best returns, and tips for tracking zones throughout your sessions.

1. How Heralds Work in D2R

Heralds serve as randomly spawning super-elite bosses only found within active Terror Zones during their 30-minute window. They feature unique modifiers and are stronger than regular elites or even act bosses you usually encounter. What sets them apart is their scaling—Heralds appear in increasing tiers within a single session, each subsequent Herald being more powerful than the last.

Here’s what makes them unique:

• Heralds do not appear on the map or in static locations; they spawn as a direct result of your actions within Terror Zones.

• After killing certain elite enemies inside a Terror Zone, there’s a discreet system that determines if you’re eligible for a Herald spawn. When triggered, you’ll receive a chat notification signaling that you've "drawn the Ire of a Herald".

• Once eligible, Heralds can spawn anywhere within the terrorized area or even in a new subarea within the same act, especially if you’ve terrorized the entire act with a Worldstone Shard.

This means Herald encounters are driven by your progress, exploration, and methodical clear of the current terrorized environment. You need to seek out these encounters actively, and the process can stretch across hours in a single game.

2. How the Herald Token System Works

The Herald system is built entirely around an invisible token mechanic, which underpins the spawning process. Here’s how it actually functions:

Token Generation:

• Every time you kill an elite (champion, unique, super unique, or acts bosses) inside a Terror Zone, you have a flat chance (commonly referenced between 2% and 7% as per community speculation, though the real value may shift) to generate a token.

• The game notifies you with “You draw the Ire of a Herald!” when this happens. These tokens accumulate, up to a maximum stack of five.

Token Consumption:

• Heralds don’t spawn immediately. To use the token, you must force the game to generate new monsters—this happens by entering an unexplored subarea within the terrorized zone or within the terrorized act (if you used a Worldstone Shard).

• For each white monster that spawns in a fresh area, there’s a 1% chance for each one to be “upgraded” into a Herald, instantly consuming a token and sending the message: “A Herald is hunting you in [location].”

Token Sharing:

• In multiplayer, tokens are shared among all party members. Anyone in the group can trigger the Herald spawn once a token exists, regardless of who killed the elite.

Practical Application:

• Generating tokens is slow and sporadic. Spending tokens is much faster when you enter a location loaded with new monsters, sometimes fifty or more monsters may be generated at once, increasing the chance that at least one becomes a Herald.

• Double spawns are possible: if two or more tokens are burned at once, you may end up with two Heralds at lower tiers (less desirable than building tiers one at a time).

3. Why Should You Farm Heralds in D2R RotW & Season 13?

Players chase Heralds for two main rewards:

• Latent Sundering Charms (Thunder Charms): These are exclusive drops from Heralds and can be combined or upgraded into "renewed" charms. They have the unique ability to bypass monster immunities for a specific element, redefining the playable zones and builds for endgame farming.

• High-tier Uniques and Sets: Heralds, especially at higher tiers, are known to drop some of the game's rarest loot more frequently than almost any other monster type.

Because monster immunities are so prevalent in late-game content, having access to Sunders can dramatically improve your farming variety and playability. The pursuit for these charms often extends play session length and creates a competitive rush for the Ladder.  Heralds sit at the heart of this new farming ecosystem.

4. Heralds Loot & Drop Rate

Heralds represent some of the most lucrative and unique boss encounters in D2R’s endgame, offering exclusive rewards and the best chance at many of the game’s most coveted items. Understanding exactly what’s on the table for each kill, and how drop rates function, is important both for managing expectations and maximizing your time in Season 13.

What Can Drop from Heralds?

1. Latent Sundering Charms (“Thunder Charms”)
These powerful charms are uniquely available through Herald encounters, especially at higher tiers (most reliably from Tier 4 and Tier 5 Heralds). Each type corresponds to a different element and, when equipped, breaks a specific monster immunity, radically expanding the zones and builds you can farm in endgame. These charms can occasionally drop as “latent” versions, which can be collected, combined, and upgraded for even more potential.

2. High-End Uniques and Sets
Heralds, particularly in the higher tiers, have a boosted chance to drop some of the best unique and set items in Diablo 2’s item pool. This includes rare and sought-after gear such as:

• Griffon’s Eye

• Crown of Ages

• Nightwing’s Veil

• Death’s Fathom

• Tyrael’s Might

• Ethereal elite bases (weapons/armor for runewords)

• Sacred or revamp-only ladder items
  The specific pool depends on the Herald tier and Terror Zone location, but in general, Heralds can drop anything available from Act 5 Hell superuniques and more.

3. Crafting Materials & Runes
While not exclusive to Heralds, their increased drop count makes Herald runs a strong way to stack up on crafting ingredients and high runes. You can expect more gems, essences, and runes than you’d get from random elites in other content.

4. Worldstone Shards
Heralds also occasionally drop Worldstone Shards, a key ingredient to terrorize entire acts. While these can also be found elsewhere in endgame content, they’re a useful secondary prize from your Herald kills.

5. Large Volume of Set/Unique Items and Gold
Even apart from rare drops, Heralds drop larger piles of gear compared to standard elites or even some act bosses. You’ll often see multiple yellow (rare) and green/gold (set/unique) items on the ground at once, in addition to significant piles of gold.

Drop Rate Observations and Rarity

Sundering Charms Drop Rate:
Thunder Charms remain the rarest drop from Heralds. Community data and anecdotal experience suggest that even with efficient tier 5 farming, most players see a Sunder drop only once every dozens, sometimes hundreds, of Herald kills. The drop chance appears to be much higher for tier 4 and 5 Heralds than for those at lower tiers. Lower-tier Heralds may have little or no chance for Sunders at all (with rare exceptions noted by players), so rushing higher tiers is key for efficiency.

Uniques & Sets Drop Rate:
While Sunder rates are low, the drop rates for uniques and set items as a whole are significantly higher from Heralds than regular content. It’s not unusual to get several gold or green items per kill, especially at higher tiers. This makes Herald runs competitive with and often superior to Act Boss runs (like Baal, Diablo, or Nihlathak) for high-end unique and set hunting.

Crafting Materials and Runes Drop Rate:
Compared to regular elites, Heralds drop more runes and cubing ingredients, but they are not as focused a source as dedicated rune farming (like Lower Kurast or Cows). Still, every extra drop roll from a Herald is a chance at an upgrade or expensive recipe ingredient.

Worldstone Shards Drop Rate:
While not exclusive, these drop at an increased but still somewhat rare rate from Heralds, providing a useful supplement for future act-wide terrorization.

Herald Tiers and Loot Quality

Loot quality and reward potential scale directly with Herald tier:

• Tiers 1-2: Good baseline drops, but the chance of Sundering Charms is extremely low. Most loot is rare/set/unique standard pool.

• Tiers 3-5: These Heralds drop higher volumes of gear and have significantly boosted chances for unique and set items, high runes, and, most importantly, Sunder Charms. Tier 5 offers the absolute best odds for all loot, including the rarest charms and items.

• The more Heralds you spawn from tier 4 onward in one session, the more likely you are to collect truly rare gear, so “going deep” pays off long term.

Looting Tips and Maximizing Rewards

• Consider bringing a Barbarian with Find Item: The Find Item skill can be used on Herald corpses for a second chance at all item drops, including Sundering Charms, effectively doubling your loot per Herald.

• Always take time to ID and sift through all loot, Herald bodies often hide valuable small charms, rare bases, and crafting gems among the clutter.

Here’s a clear table summarizing approximate drop rates from Heralds in D2R: RotW / Season 13, based on community consensus and reported observations. Actual rates may vary due to game updates and RNG, but this should give you a practical guideline.

5. How to Get Heralds To Spawn in Terror Zones

The process for getting a Herald to spawn involves several steps:

1. Farm Active Terror Zones: Focus your elite-killing within the currently terrorized area.

2. Kill All Possible Elites: Champions, unique packs, bosses, and super uniques all may generate a token. The more efficiently you clear, the better your odds.

3. Generate Tokens: These accumulate invisibly (notification via chat message).

4. Explore New Areas: To spend your token and trigger the actual Herald spawn, move on to fresh parts of the zone or act, ideally unexplored dungeons, side areas, or levels.

5. Wait for Announcement: The chat pop-up will tell you, “A Herald is hunting you…” followed by the exact area location. Seek the location described, as a Herald will appear somewhere within.

Using Worldstone Shards: If you run out of new areas, you can use shards to terrorize an entire act, self-refreshing the available “fresh” real estate to spend tokens and force additional Herald spawns.

6. D2R Heralds Spawn Rate

The actual spawn rate of Heralds depends on several factors:

• Token Generation: Most community estimates place the chance per elite kill at around 2–7%, but player experience has found it can be streaky, sometimes you go 30-40 elite kills without a token.

• Token Spending: Entry into new areas creates the 1% roll for each monster. Entering rooms with many white monsters substantially increases the chance to burn through your tokens and spawn the Herald.

• Game Duration Matters: The longer you stay in the same session and the more fresh areas you enter, the more Herald spawns you can force. Herald progress (and tiers) resets if you create a new game.

Player Count: Larger groups (higher player count) spawn more monsters and elites, boosting both token creation and spending opportunities. This is crucial if you want to speed up the process.

7. How To Reach Tier 5 Heralds of Terror?

Heralds scale through five tiers in any single play session, with Tier 5 being the most difficult and lucrative. Reaching Tier 5 requires the following steps:

1. Remain in the same game session throughout your grind.

2. Draw and defeat Heralds in sequence, each successful Herald kill raises the next Herald’s tier by one.

3. Continue this chain, without leaving or resetting the session, until you beat the fifth Herald. Once achieved, every subsequent Herald in that game will be Tier 5.

If you restart or leave the game, the progress resets, and you begin with a Tier 1 Herald again.

How long does it take?
It can require 5+ hours in a single session, depending on luck and how quickly you can trigger spawns. If you log out or lose your game for any reason (disconnect, crash), your Herald tier resets to 1 the next time.

8. The Best Terror Zones to Farm Heralds

Since not all Terror Zones are created equal, target these areas for the most efficient Herald hunting:

Terror Zone Tier List: S-Tier and A-Tier zones stand out for density, accessibility, and monster variety.

• Popular S-Tier Zones: Chaos Sanctuary, River of Flame, Worldstone Keep, Ancient Tunnels, The Pit, Mausoleum.

• Why these zones? They feature more elite packs, better drop lists, and are easier to clear for well-geared builds than scattered or maze-like areas.

Avoid Zones:

• Maps with monster modifiers that hard-counter your build (e.g., Fire Immune everywhere if you’re a Fire Sorc).

• Zones with awkward layouts or poor elite density.

• Levels with dangerous map-wide auras (Cursed, Extra Fast) that put hardcore or solo players at risk.

Having access to a current tier list from the community (such as on diablo2.io) helps prioritize which Terror Zone is worth waiting and gearing up for.

9. D2R Best Heralds Farming Strategy - How To Farm Heralds Effectively

Farming Heralds efficiently in Diablo 2 Resurrected's Reign of the Warlock and Season 13 demands far more than clearing monsters in a terrorized area. You’ll need to plan every move to advance your Herald tier chain, wrest maximum value from your time, and greatly improve your odds at rare rewards like Latent Sundering Charms.

Prioritize High-Value Terror Zones First

When preparing your Herald runs, focus exclusively on S-Tier and A-Tier Terror Zones. These zones typically offer the best combination of elite pack density, linear layouts for easy navigation, and valuable item base types. Lower-tier zones tend to waste time, both because of their sprawling design and smaller elite counts. Instead of forcing runs in less desirable zones, use their rotation for downtime—sort your stash, trade, or take a break, so you’re always refreshed and ready when a top zone comes up.

Thoroughly Clear Every Section:

1. Hunt all elite packs: Leave no champion, unique, or super unique untouched.

2. Clear EVERY side-area: Visit every sub-dungeon, cave, and passage to maximize token usage and Herald spawn chances.

3. Once you see “Ire” has been drawn, move to new, unexplored map sections or terrorize the next act if you have a Worldstone Shard.

4. Only spend Worldstone Shards if there's enough fresh territory left in the act. Don’t waste them on already-cleared maps.

5. Space out spawns: If farming in a group, coordinate so only one Herald is triggered at once for proper tier progression.

6. Don’t leave the game: Your Herald tier chain resets upon logout or disconnection.

Manage and Spend Tokens Efficiently

Tokens are the backbone of Herald spawning. Once you gain a token (“You draw the Ire of a Herald!”), avoid rushing headlong into unexplored rooms. Instead, consider killing more elites until you have several tokens stacked, up to five. When you’re ready to spend them, target unexplored areas flush with white monsters, this approach gives you multiple opportunities to trigger a Herald, since each monster rolled gets its own 1% chance per token. To avoid accidentally lowering your tier progression, be careful that only one token is spent at a time: multiple Heralds triggered together can split the progression, causing you to “waste” tokens on lower-tier spawns.

Use Worldstone Shards Strategically

Worldstone Shards are powerful consumables that terrorize an entire act, opening a massive number of fresh areas for Herald spawns. These should be reserved for when an act is mostly untouched, if you have already cleared the best elite spots or side dungeons, save your shard for a future run. In multiplayer games, coordinate with teammates about act status to avoid overlap and wasted resources. When used smartly, a Worldstone Shard can extend your farming session considerably, letting you keep pushing higher Herald tiers long after a single Terror Zone window ends.

Emphasize Group Play Whenever Possible

Herald farming is much more efficient with multiple players. In a group, you’ll share tokens, speed up elite kills, and trigger spawns faster. Player count directly increases both the number of monsters per area and the chance for elite spawns, which ramps up both token collection and Herald appearances. Having at least one Barbarian with Find Item is highly recommended, as this can double your loot from a Herald corpse, giving you an additional roll for coveted drops like Sundering Charms, uniques, or high-end bases.

Avoid Dangerous or Inefficient Zones

Don’t commit to terrorizing acts or spending shards in areas filled with monster modifiers that negate your strengths or overly punish your build. For example, a Fire Enchanted roll when playing a Fire Sorceress, or Cursed everywhere in Hardcore, can turn efficient farming into a time sink or even cost you progress through deaths. If the current Terror Zone isn’t suited for your build or group, wait for the next rotation rather than forcing a bad run.

Stay in the Same Game Session

One of the most punishing elements of Herald farming is session persistence. Herald tier progression resets entirely if you log out or lose your connection. For this reason, plan your playtime around session longevity. Dedicate a block of hours, often at least four to reach tier 5 Heralds—so you can chain spawns without interruption. Some players even leave their game open overnight or during breaks to maintain progress.

Focus on Fewer, Higher Tiers Instead of Quick Restarts

Efficiency isn’t about running as many games as possible; it’s about digging deep in one. Sticking to a single game and gradually working your way up the Herald tiers is the only way to get repeat chances at tier 5 spawns, which are the sole or primary source of Sundering Charms and improved loot odds. Once you reach tier 5, every subsequent Herald in that session will remain at this maximum tier, maximizing each token spent.

Monitor and Adjust Your Routine

Make use of external tools like d2emu.com to track upcoming Terror Zones so you can schedule play sessions during the best periods. Take notes during your runs to identify which acts, subareas, and map mods deliver the most productive sessions for your character and adjust your route as you refine your method. Over time, this will help you waste less time on less productive areas and sessions.