Introduction
All hail the Lord of Destruction, Baal! The Lord of Destruction for the highly-esteemed Diablo II adds and fixes what the original “lacked” in the gaming community’s opinion. There is a much larger stash, two added characters, the option to switch between weapon sets instantly, and the addition of another Act among other minute and large changes. This update proves to be very useful, but may not be quite up to par with what you as a gamer may hope to get out of your (or your parent’s) hard-earned cash.

Gameplay
It’s all about the details in a game and Blizzard knows that from it’s years of experience. Such things as the ability to finally give items, weapons, and armor to the hired companion helps to keep him or her alive. In addition, you can now carry two sets of weapons that can be switched between by the simple tap of a key and give you two extra slots to store a shield and a weapon for later use. More armor and weapons means more customization and more hunting for the perfect weapon and LOD has loads of new items. The game also benefits from more shrines, which includes one that will upgrade a random gem from your inventory. The game also gives more “unique” armor and weapons that only certain characters can use. The Druid has animal heads for helmets, the Barbarian his “primal” helms, the Necromancer his pickled/shrunken heads/charms, the Assassin her claws, the Paladin his new shields, and Sorceress her Orbs and Globes. In addition to gameplay, the developers finally made the resolution of 800x600 available and if your machine can run it, which, if it’s less than 3 years old, it should be able to, it makes the game much more crisp.

Story
After defeating Diablo in the very depths of hell, you are just starting to relax from all that magic casting and slaughtering when Baal (Diablo’s brethren) moves on in and takes over the world. This leads into Act V, the final act. Blizzard decided to add ONE act with the expansion, which happens to cost half of what the original game cost at it’s debut. This seems a paltry amount of bang for your buck, and it is. The Act is very unique and is set in the ice wastelands outside of a fortress in a mountainous area. Luckily, Blizzard makes up for this disappointment by throwing in a horde of new, more powerful weapons, along with jewels to plug into socketed items. Your stash is larger; you can hold more money, more weapons and armor unique to different characters all add to give you the most out of playing the game. The two new characters, the druid and assassin, tend to follow the pattern of the additional Act: cold and barren. Don’t read that wrong though, the Druid, who is like a “reverse” version of the necromancer and is capable of summoning vines, crows, wolves and other enhancements, is quite a decent character. The assassin runs the line of being stealthy and fast like a thief, with stealing techniques, ninja moves, and spells that help her sneak up on enemies. Although the assassin is also a decent character, she tends to be on the unpopular side for a reason. These are some huge changes, albeit they may be a tad disappointing for those wishing to find at least an added 50% of a game (that’s what you will be paying for anyway).

Graphics
All in all, Blizzard let some down with the small amount of additions. Notwithstanding, this downfall is little compared to what other things the expansion has to offer. Once you play the expansion, then attempt to go back to the original, it will be very painful. This is a MUST for fans of Diablo II and even those that just ENJOYED the game.