Twitch streamer Souaïb “cArn” Hanaf has suffered a fate worse than death: His level 100 Diablo IV Hardcore character has died — from a server disconnect. In the latest Blizzard dungeon-crawling installment, when a character dies in Hardcore mode, they are lost forever. It’s the definition of cutthroat, keeping players on their toes every second of their playthrough. However, for cArn, the death of his Barbarian brought an end to an 82-hour run with a maxed-out build and wasn’t even his fault.
As reported on and shared by PCGamesN, cArn lost his character not because of a mis-click, a lack of health potions, or an unexpected swarm of demons, but just because of being disconnected from the Diablo IV servers… for some reason. There is no explanation for why the streamer disconnected from the server, and on Hardcore mode, a disconnect counts as a death so that players don’t abuse the system to save their character in a pinch. It’s brutal, to say the least.
It’s genuinely kind of sad to see more than 80 hours of content lost to the ether. You can see cArn’s moment of pure pain on Twitch.
It’s a depressing end for cArn’s first level 100 Diablo IV hardcore character, but not all is lost. The streamer was also the first player to reach the max level. As a result, Blizzard is making good on its promise to reward the first 1,000 players to reach level 100 with a “Tempered Champion” in-game title. The real prize, however, is the fact that these same players will have their name etched into a physical statue of Blizzard’s choice, forever cementing them as some of the toughest Diablo IV has to offer. Plus, cArn, specifically, was recognized on official Diablo social media accounts as the first to reach the milestone.
Congratulations, @CARNDARAK
⚔️First to reach 100 on hardcore mode
💀First to be etched into #DiabloIV historyWill you join him? #Diablo4Hardcore
Restrictions apply: https://t.co/0m4OMXcCa8 pic.twitter.com/BTgXEHgOmk— Diablo (@Diablo) June 6, 2023
Despite the quick end to his Barbarian’s journey, cArn is pushing forward with a Rogue character. On a more positive note, the moment the streamer first hit max level in Diablo IV was also caught and clipped.