The story of Diablo II begins with a new hero which will be one of five new types. The Amazon, the Paladin, the Sorceress, the Necromancer and the Barbarian. All the characters will have their own set of fighting abilities or spells. Diablo II will have four acts, which take place in four different locations. The locations are presented in a linear progression across the distant lands to the East, each accessible only after the final quest of the previous act is completed. Following the completion of the act, a caravan or a ship or some such conveyance becomes available and the hero can travel back and forth among the lands each route reveals.

Rather than having a single town the hero may return to, there is a different one in each Act (for a total of four), each with a unique flavour, and populated by new folk. Additionally, in each of these locations, there will be various dungeons, keeps, and caverns matching the theme of the area.

Act 1 : The Sightless Eye Locations:

The Steppes & the Frozen Lands

Not too far distant from the ruined Tristram, in the forested foothills of the great mountains, stands the great Monastery of the Sisters of the Sightless Eye. The Monastery, built into the sheer rock face of the frigid mountain, is a citadel protecting the mountain pass from the Western Empire to the mysterious east. In this boreal kingdom, walls of gelid granite and tall coniferous forests set off the rocky steppe. Caves might lead to the dens of whatever animals have braved this harsh environment. The Sisters of the Sightless Eye is the order that the rogue of Diablo was a member.

Unfortunately, the former stronghold of the Rogues has fallen under the foul influences of a great evil, Andariel leading a demonic army. Only a small camp of Rogues and merchants wishing to travel to the East remains on the plain below the Monastery. Here Deckard Cain, rescued from Tristram by the sisterhood relates the story.