Diablo III Images and Series Timeline

Blizzard's official Diablo III website has been updated wiht four new pieces of artwork, four new screenshots, and a timeline covering all the important events that have occured across the entire series. The year 1265 is immediately recognizable:
'¢ Increasingly deranged, King Leoric begins imprisoning all who question his authority and executing them as traitors. He declares war on the kingdom of Westmarch.

'¢ Diablo kidnaps and possesses King Leoric's only son, Prince Albrecht.

'¢ Lachdanan, captain of King Leoric's army, returns from the disastrous war with Westmarch and is forced to kill Leoric. The fallen monarch curses Lachdanan and his followers with his dying breath. Not long afterward, Lachdanan and the king's guards are attacked by Leoric, resurrected as the Skeleton King, as they attempt to bury him.

'¢ Archbishop Lazarus leads a group of villagers into the cathedral and abandons them to a bloodthirsty butcher demon. People begin fleeing Tristram in droves.

'¢ A lone hero arrives in Tristram and defeats the bloated, fetid butcher demon.

'¢ The hero kills Archbishop Lazarus and defeats the Skeleton King.

'¢ Diablo is defeated by the hero, who then tries to contain Diablo within himself. Despite the hero's noble intentions, his valiant spirit quickly succumbs to Diablo's corruption. He becomes the Dark Wanderer, leaving Tristram behind shortly before legions of foul demons attack and destroy the town and its inhabitants.

'¢ A group of heroes begins a quest to defeat Diablo and his brothers. The heroes defeat the demoness Andariel and journey east, following the Wanderer.

'¢ The demon lord Duriel is defeated within the tomb of Tal Rasha; it is discovered that Baal is already free from his Soulstone.

'¢ The Dark Wanderer completes his transformation into Diablo; Mephisto is destroyed beneath the jungles of Kurast by the band of heroes.

'¢ Diablo is defeated. His Soulstone is destroyed, along with Mephisto's, upon the Hellforge.

'¢ Baal and his army march on Mount Arreat.

'¢ The heroes follow Baal to Mount Arreat for the final conflict between man and the last of the Prime Evils. Although the heroes defeat Baal, his demonic army continues to advance.

'¢ The angel Tyrael discovers that Baal has succeeded in corrupting the Worldstone housed within Mount Arreat. Realizing that the Worldstone cannot be restored, Tyrael reluctantly destroys it. The resulting explosion destroys Mount Arreat, ravages much of the countryside, and decimates Baal's army.