In Season 8, the boss system in Diablo 4 has been restructured. Endgame or Ladder Bosses are grouped into a new structure called Lair Bosses, with three clear difficulty tiers.
Lair Boss Ladder
To challenge a Lair Boss, you must be in Torment I difficulty or higher. Lair Bosses are ranked within three difficulty tiers: Initiate, Greater, and Exalted. Each tier reflects both the difficulty of the battle and the quality of the rewards you will receive.
| Initiate Lair Bosses | – Grigoire – Beast in The Ice – Varshan – Lord Zir – Urivar (Vessel of Hatred) |
| Greater Lair Bosses | – Duriel – Andariel – Harbinger of Hatred (Vessel of Hatred) |
| Exalted Lair Bosses | – Belial |
How Lair Boss Keys Work
Each Lair Boss requires a unique key material to unlock the Hoard chest that appears after the boss dies. You do not need the key to start the fight, only to claim your loot.
This is especially important in groups: every player must bring their own set of keys to open the chest and receive their rewards. Once everyone has looted, there will be a short cooldown before the altar can be used again.
Initiate bosses drop key materials for Greater bosses. And Initiates also have a chance to drop a 
Stygian Stone, which are very useful. They can be converted into any Greater key 1:1.
Here is a quick overview of all the Lair Boss Keys:
| Difficulty | Lair Boss | Required Key | Drops |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initiate | Varshan | 12x  Malignant Heart |  Shard of Agony or Stygian Stone |
| Initiate | Grigoire | 12x  Living Steel | Shard of Agony or Stygian Stone |
| Initiate | Beast in the Ice | 12x  Distilled Fear |  Pincushioned Doll or Stygian Stone |
| Initiate | Lord Zir | 12x  Exquisite Blood | Pincushioned Doll or Stygian Stone |
| Initiate | Urivar | 12x Judicator’s Mask | Abhorrent Heart or Stygian Stone |
| Greater | Duriel | 4x Shard of Agony | |
| Greater | Andariel | 4x Pincushioned Doll | |
| Greater | Harbinger of Hatred | 4x Abhorrent Heart | |
| Exalted | Belial | 4x Betrayer’s Husk |
This is where each of these materials drop:
| Material | Drops from |
|---|---|
| Malignant Heart | Whispers or Open World drops in Helltides |
| Living Steel | Helltides Chests |
| Distilled Fear | Nightmare Dungeons |
| Exquisite Blood | Elites in Legion Events, Helltides and World Bosses |
| Judicator’s Mask | Open World activities: Helltides, Whispers and World Bosses |
| Shard of Agony | Varshan or Grigoire |
| Pincushioned Doll | Lord Zir or Beast in the Ice |
| Abhorrent Heart | Urivar |
| Betrayer’s Husk | Belial’s Ambush |
Find and Summon Lair Bosses
Lair Bosses are now clearly marked on the map with their own icons.
Lair Boss locations are now marked directly on your map with new icons. You can right-click to teleport there, and the tooltip will show you:
- Which boss resides there
- What they drop
- The key type and amount required
- Party Finder options for quick grouping
Once inside, progress through the dungeon until you reach the altar room, then begin the fight.
Lair Boss Loot System
Lair Bosses each have their respective loot pools composed of Uniques and Mythic Uniques. The first Unique item that drops from a Lair Boss is guaranteed to come from that boss’ specific loot pool. Additional Uniques have a 50% chance to come from either the boss pool or the general Unique pool.
Playing in a group also gives a bonus: for each extra party member, there’s a 33% chance for the boss to drop an additional Unique from their specific pool.
On Torment 4 world difficulty, bosses normally drop 5 Unique items in total.
For details on which items each boss can drop, check out our full Boss Loot Guides.
How to Farm Uniques from Bosses How to Farm Mythic Uniques from BossesBelial’s Ambush
After killing a Lair Boss, there is a small chance that Belial will ambush you. He uses a mix of Blood and Poison attacks and brings a surprising amount of pressure.
Defeating him gives you:
- A second round of loot from the same boss you just killed
- A Betrayer’s Husk, which is used to summon Belial in his true Exalted form
This ambush costs no additional materials, making it a rewarding surprise for prepared players.
To learn more about the ambush mechanics and how to deal with them, check out our Belial guide below.
Belial Ambush GuideTips
- You do not need the key to summon the boss, just to open the Hoard after the fight.
- If you die, you can simply go back to town and try again at another time. Your materials are safe in your stash.
- Every player must contribute their own key material to get their loot. So make sure everyone is ready to use their keys before summoning the boss.
- Use Stygian Stone to convert into any Greater Lair Boss key you are missing.
- Make sure to cap your resistances and armor, and use elixirs when needed.
Check out our Boss Guides with full mechanics descriptions below:
