Diablo 3 Beta Patch 13 Update: Rune Skill System

Blizzard recently released their latest patch which implements a vast array of class tweaks, a UI overhaul, but most importantly finally implements their much anticipated Runestone system in a new and improved way. Diablo 3 is definitely going to be worth the wait. Runestones have now officially become Diablo 3's, "rune skill system". Originally planned to be items which, when placed in specific skill slots, allowed for the skill to bind with a devastating new affect. Imagine playing a barbarian, and unleashing a whirlwind attack, through in a rune skill that deals lava damage, and you'll see volcanic rock and lava spew from your whirlwind of destruction. Many fans complained that this was the wrong choice. The original Runestone system was designed as an accent to the combat, yet if they were a rare item, it could almost guarantee you may not see them for a long time in gameplay. You may even be forced to resort to the Auction House and buy one. Something just felt off about the system, and Blizzard listened. As the design process brought the Diablo team to tough decisions, they quickly realized that: "Originally, we tied this in to the itemization system because it felt like a good fit, as Diablo is all about the item drops. But with around 120 base skills, that meant there were around 600 rune variants; on top of that, each variant had five quality levels each, meaning ultimately there would be something like 3,000 different runes in the game€ and we knew we were heading toward a problem." So what did they do? They made them an unlockable skill attribute through core gameplay. Check it out. What's best about implementing their skill rune system is that now through leveling up, you will be rewarded at each level up to level 60, with a new skill, skill rune, or passive skill. You may even acquire multiple skill unlocks at certain levels. I think this is very smart, they've eliminated a very big design problem that could potentially have delayed Diablo 3 even further, so c'mon Blizzard give us that release date! Check out Jay Wilson's post on Skill and Rune Changes and here are the Beta Patch 13 Notes