Armor Dye

Armor Dyes are a new feature in Diablo III, revealed by Jay Wilson at Gamescom, in August, 2010. [1]

There will be about 15 different colors of dye, which players can apply to their character's armor. Dyeing (not dying) will change the color of an item in some aesthetically-pleasing way. Items are designed to be dyed; the whole thing doesn't change color, but just some portion of it; usually just an outline or a stripe or sash, depending on the item.

Armor dyeing is purely cosmetic; there's no combat benefit nor other advantage to using them. It's just something for players to have fun with and give their character some originality. Dyes are found in various levels of rarity, and there will be some ultra-rare dyes. Dyes can not be salvaged [2] though, so dyes that are not going to be used by a player are likely to become a trade commodity.

Dyes did not make an appearance in the Diablo III beta test.

Armor Dyes

Armor dye examples, show in a Blizzcon 2010 panel.

Armor dyes can be found or purchased, with perhaps other ways of obtainment, and there will be rarer dyes as well as more common ones. For instance, a shade of red may be found all the time, but a darker shade might be much less common, and thus all the more desired.

Dyes are single use; when you use a color on any piece of armor, it's gone. A player will need to find multiple samples of the same dye to color all of their equipment the same hue.

It's not known how many pieces of armor can be dyed; definitely the body armor, as well as pants. It should also be possible to dye your shoulders, bracers, belt, gloves, and boots. Helms will likely be dyeable as well, despite their apparent metallic nature. It's magical dye!

Special Dyes

Dyes in the Blizzcon 2010 demo.

In addition to the normal dyes listed in the table below, there are two additional "dyes" which are not pigments themselves, but have special functions

All-Soap's Miraculous Dye Remover: Returns a single piece of armor to its original color.

The miraculous, mystical tonic that removes stains, cures rotfoot and tastes great! It's got what plants crave! Warning: Do Not Drink.

Vanishing Dye: Renders a single piece of armor invisible.

Causes materials to vanish before your very eyes! Be sure not to apply this to your undergarments.

Note: "It's got what plants crave!" is a reference to the film Idiocracy.

Dye List

There is reasonable room to speculate that some of the dyes have more function than a simple pallete shift. The description for the Abyssal dye, as an example, states "as though it were drinking in the very light that touches it," maybe hinting at some sort of extended animation or perhaps a different shader to the applied armor in question. This is just speculation, however, and remains to be seen in-game, however it is backed up by some of the official Blizzard statements on the dyes.

The table below is subject to change upon release of the game, where it will be updated. The source of the dyes (whether they are all drops, quest rewards, achievement rewards, or other sources) are currently unknown.

Dye Name	Color	Description
Abyssal Dye	Black	The inky blackness seems to grow even darker when exposed to the sun, as though it were drinking in the very light that touches it.
All-Soap's Miraculous Dye Remover	Original Color	The miraculous, mystical tonic that removes stains, cures rotfoot and tastes great! It's got what plants crave! Warning: Do Not Drink.
Aquatic Dye	Light Blue	Sailors from Lut Gholein distill the waters of the Twin Seas and apply the mixture to their sails in order to blend in and avoid detection by pirates.
Autumn Dye	Orange	The monks from the Order of Yir crush the first leaves of autumn into tea, and apply it to their robes during the Ceremony of the Harvest Moon.
Cardinal Dye	Dark Red	Once reserved only for nobility, this bright red pigment is now donned by both the influential and the courageous.
Desert Dye	Light Brown	Carried by the merchant caravans of the Dry Steppes to reflect the sun and hide dust.
Elegant Dye	Fuschia	The bright colors of the Hezna flower are always a favorite amongst the fashionable elite of Caldeum.
Forester's Dye	Green	The Wardens of Duncraig wear coats of this color while patrolling the woods for poachers and wolves.
Golden Dye	Gold Yellow	Flecks of gold are melted into boiling oil to create a rare pigment used strictly by nobility.
Infernal Dye	Red	The bottle is warm to the touch, seeming to flicker with liquid fire.
Lovely Dye	Pink	Named for the beauty of Queen Asylla, who once had a thousand gowns created in this color as a gift from King Leoric.
Mariner's Dye	Blue	Officers of vessels navigating the Skovos Isles wear deep blue garments to indicate seniority.
Pale Dye	Beige	Many commoners use sunlight and minerals to bleach their garments an off-white color.
Purity Dye	White	This mysterious mixture seems to make any material it is applied to impossible to soil, swirling and coalescing like a cloud.
Ranger's Dye	Yellow Green	Hunters and bandits alike use the bark of the Gorsenna plant to blend in with the shadows of the forest.
Rogue's Dye	Dark Gray	The preferred shade of those who do not wish to be seen, especially at night.
Royal Dye	Purple	For many years this color was forbidden to all citizens of Kingsport outside the Royal Family.
Spring Dye	Light Green	Traditionally worn during the Hearth Festival in Bramwell to celebrate the first thaw of springtime.
Summer Dye	Yellow	This brightly colored dye is extracted from spices shipped from Kurast at great expense.
Tanner's Dye	Brown	Leatherworkers use a variety of oils to seal their skins with a rich, natural brown pigment.
Vanishing Dye	Invisible	Causes materials to vanish before your very eyes! Be sure not to apply this to your undergarments.
Winter Dye	Gray	Jars of crushed Veilwood petals are buried in the snow throughout the winter to create this popular hue.

Image Examples

The dyes correspond fairly well with the icons for each, however the tint and hue will of course change depending upon the lighting in the game and the overall palette of whichever area the players find themselves in.

Various dyes on a female Monk.

Lovely (pink).

Summer (yellow).

Elegant (fuschia).

Golden (gold).

Purity (white).

A Barbarian who, quite frankly, doesn't care what you think.

Official Comments

More information about how dyes will be obtained and how they will function in the game came from the Diablo 3 community manager, Bashiok, who answered some fan questions about armor dyes after they were revealed at Gamescom in August 2010.

Bashiok:I wouldn't take the mechanics of how dyes will be accessed as gospel just yet, there have been many ideas on integrating them with other systems, but for the sake of implementation they're drops. They could stay that way, we'll just have to see.

Will the dyes be used solely on individual armor pieces or will there be patterns that change the entire scheme of the character's attire as well?

Bashiok: There are specific slots that are able to be dyed, and it's generally the slots where dying them would actually matter (ie they have some surface area to be dyed).

The dye system is also not a tinting system. And by that I mean we don't apply a color shift to the entire piece of armor. Each piece of dyable armor is specifically designed and built with certain areas that can have their color changed. It could be as simple as a strip of cloth running down a chainmail chest piece, or as complex as an entire robe. We hand craft and designate these areas, and in combination with specific colors we've chosen, we can allow players to have a lot of additional visual variety, while maintaining a controlled look and style to the game.

Are these dyes single colors only?

Bashiok: They're technically a two color gradient, which allows us to achieve a more natural looking coloration, but for the sake of simplicity, yes they're presented as a single color.

I think the idea of having dyes apply effects in different ways is awesome, but don't forget there are plenty of other things going on gear that could be the basis for those types of effects as well.