The difficulty progression in Hero Siege Season 10 is much easier to understand once you know the new campaign structure. Season 10 changed the road to endgame, with Act 8 becoming part of the free main campaign and the new Act 9, Ebontharn, serving as the final part of the Normal story.

If you want to reach Inferno without wasting time, follow the progression below.

Normal: Finish the Full Campaign

Start by pushing through Acts 1–7 normally. You do not need to stop and farm every zone.

After completing Act 7 and defeating Mevius, return to the Town of Inoya. A new portal in the lower-right area leads to Mevius's Memory, which continues the campaign into Act 8.

Act 8 is now part of the natural progression in Season 10. Continue through its quests and areas until you reach Helheim and defeat Odin.

Do not leave immediately after the Odin fight. Make sure you interact with the required quest elements before using the portal so the progression is properly registered.

Act 9: Ebontharn

After Odin, Act 9 becomes available.

Follow the main quest through Ebontharn's jungle areas, temples, and later zones. The route eventually leads to the Abyssal Realm, where you face Cthulhu.

Cthulhu is the key boss for the new difficulty progression.

Defeating Cthulhu on Normal completes the first major stage and unlocks Nightmare. You do not need to replay every previous boss simply to unlock the next difficulty.

Nightmare: Prepare for the Real Gear Check

Nightmare is where you should start paying more attention to gear rather than simply following the campaign.

One major Season 10 convenience is that your Normal waypoints carry over into Nightmare. The official Season 10 announcement specifically highlights this change, making the second run much faster.

Your main target is Level 100.

You can continue improving your build through Nightmare and farm stronger equipment when necessary. If your character suddenly feels weak, do not force the next boss. Spending some time farming upgrades is usually faster than repeatedly dying.

Once you reach Level 100, return to Cthulhu and defeat him again.

That unlocks Hell.

Hell: Expect the Biggest Difficulty Spike

Hell is where many new players hit their first serious wall.

Season 10's Hell is roughly equivalent to the old Hell 4.5 difficulty, so jumping into it with mediocre gear can feel brutal. The official Season 10 notes confirm that Hell sits significantly higher than the new Nightmare tier.

When you enter Hell, you also receive 9 Ether Points. These can be spent in the Ether tree to improve your progression and farming potential.

If normal enemies are taking too long to kill or your character dies constantly, go back to Nightmare instead of forcing Hell. Farming stronger equipment and building up Hero Siege Gold can make the transition much smoother.

What If You Get Stuck?

Use this simple checklist:

Enemies die too slowly: upgrade your weapon and offensive stats.

You die instantly: improve Life, resistances, defensive stats, and positioning.

Boss damage feels impossible: stop pushing and farm Nightmare Satanic Zones or other efficient content.

Gear upgrades are rare: improve your farming route instead of repeatedly running the same difficult boss.

Hell feels completely overwhelming: that is normal. Season 10 intentionally makes Hell a major progression checkpoint.

Do not confuse being stuck with needing to buy everything immediately. Good farming and targeted upgrades should solve many early problems. If you eventually decide to buy Hero Siege Gold, make sure you understand what your build actually needs before spending resources.

From Hell to Inferno

Inferno is the final major difficulty after Hell.

At this point, your goal changes from simply surviving the campaign to optimizing your build, farming stronger equipment, and investing efficiently into progression systems.

Season 10 also introduces additional endgame content and three new Uber Bosses: Phantom Leviathan, Captain Grimtide, and the Blood Maiden. These are part of the broader endgame rather than something you need to rush through during your first Normal clear.

The Fastest Progression Route

For a new Season 10 character, remember this:

Normal → Acts 1–7 → Mevius → Mevius's Memory → Act 8 → Odin → Act 9 → Cthulhu → Nightmare → Level 100 → Cthulhu → Hell → Gear Farming → Inferno

The biggest mistake is trying to push every difficulty without stopping for upgrades. If a boss becomes a brick wall, step back, farm efficiently, improve your build, and return stronger.

That approach is usually much faster than forcing progression with an undergeared character.