To overlook the scale of the task Epic have undertaken by creating Monolith would be doing them and Paragon a great disservice. The enormity of the undertaking - to not only devise a new map but to also rebalance cards and all Heroes, to accommodate that new map - makes the mind boggle. For any studio to undertake this amount of work would be a huge task and yet for Epic, who are largely inexperienced in the MOBA genre, it’s possibly an even greater one.

For all the good that they’ve done with Paragon and its former map, now known as Legacy, it’s fair to say their inexperience at the design stage lead to a series of problems that were only apparent after the game was released into the wild. Though still in Beta, Epic have learnt valuable lessons from Legacy that, for the most part, can only be addressed by creating a new map. Although Paragon in its current form is unquestionably fun and a game I’ve spent a great deal of time in (I’ve several Heroes Mastered, only two cards missing and a level 50 account), it clearly has its flaws.

The blueprint for Paragon to be exceptional is in place. Epic’s art style is incredible and their skins already the best in the genre.

Its pacing is relatively slow, a variety of Heroes needed rebalancing or reworking, travel mode and the pace at which you could traverse the map was a longstanding issue, while Harvesters were largely redundant. Despite that, the blueprint for Paragon to be exceptional is in place. Epic’s art style is incredible, their skins are already the best in the genre, its Hero designs are fantastic and the fundamentals of jungling and laning more than capable of rivalling any of the competition.

It was with keen interest, then, that I had to good fortune of joining Epic last week to experience Monolith and spend time not only playing the new map alongside its creators, but to also explore the map in my own time against AI opponents. A great deal rests on the success of Monolith and I’m pleased to say, it’s something truly special.

The Map

Legacy was a huge map by any MOBA standard. So much so that it required a movement speed boost, known as Travel Mode, to get around quickly. Were you to not have it, travelling from one side to the other would have simply taken too long. Unfortunately Travel Mode made movement so swift that it largely trivialised laning and many of the nuances associated with lane control. Monolith attempts to address this by not only reducing the size of the map quite considerably (by about 30%) but to also remove Travel Mode entirely. Interestingly, Epic have also chosen to increase the movement speed of players - which I’ll discuss in greater detail below.

Where Monolith is concerned, the map is drastically different to Legacy in almost every way. While it retains the format of three lanes, these and its jungle have undergone sweeping changes. Unlike Legacy, Monolith isn’t symmetrical and as a result now gives way to clear roles for each lane. Whether you’re on safe lane, where you can farm card experience with little risk, or guarding offlane - which is unquestionably challenging - lanes now play to specific Hero strengths. It also means that depending on where you place yourself at the start can have huge ramifications for your team's success.

Monlith is drastically different to Legacy.

I had the good fortunate of watching Nathan Mooney, EPIC’s Community Coordinator, manage our offlane as Rampage. Fighting against Dekker and Sparrow he was regularly pushed back to our first tower and yet was able to hold it with intervention from myself (who happened to be jungling). What’s particularly interesting about the design of this lane is the fact the enemy team who’re attacking from their own safe lane, have to push down a steep incline. With the offlane tower met by the water, right next to the jungle, it’s inevitably risky for the opposition because they’re then vulnerable to attack from behind and the side. However, there’s a great deal of room as a two to bully the lone defender. Several times the Dekker and Sparrow warded the jungle exit, thinking they’d be protecting their flank as they pushed hard and yet they left themselves open from behind, which I gladly exploited (Feng Mao proves particularly adept on this map thanks to his Reaping Dash teleport).

The safe lane, unsurprisingly, proves incredibly difficult to push onto simply because it’s at the top of the incline, with only one additional route leading to it. It’s easy to defend as you have the height advantage and the knowledge that you can easily see who’s coming if you simply remain next to your tower. The dynamics of laning change further however as you attempt to push onto a safe lane tower because you then leave not only your flanks exposed, but the travel distance back to the safety of your own tower is far too great to survive a strike from behind.

This level of tactical relationship between lane and laner was missing from Legacy and it becomes instantly apparent just how much of a difference the asymmetrical design has on not only the depth of gameplay, but the overall fun of laning. There’s a genuine trepidation to being in lane with a fear of not only the jungler, but the risk versus reward factor of pushing. I’m not in any way suggesting those things were absent from Legacy, but there was a certain predictability due to the relatively simplistic design of each lane.

Outside of the safe and offlane, the mid lane has earned far greater importance. Not only is the lane itself short (Gideon can comfortably reach his tower from the water's edge by using Torn Space) but there’s a variety of routes leading to it. Surrounded by Fog Walls, this lane has never been more risky to play in. In fact, it requires a highly skilled player to begin to handle it especially when balancing the risk of pushing versus the likelihood of being attacked. The mid lane now has near immediate access to river buffs which bolster damage, increase movement speed or stealth you. While I’d still suggest most are far more valuable for a jungler, it’s imperative that you not only deny your opposing mid-laner these buffs, but also ensure your team secures them. Being surrounded by so many access points, while surrounded by Fog Walls, poses its own set of problems.

The jungle makes up a large portion of the Monolith map.

Outside of the lanes and their layout changes, Epic have taken great strides in adding clear definition between each half of the map. Legacy had a single theme running through it that was vibrant green and lush with plant life. Monolith certainly has this, especially in the jungle but is divided by clear artistic differences as you cross the central river. Dawn is light, fresh and clean while Dusk is rough around the edges and filled with deep reds and grim lighting. Although the definition isn’t yet finalised and there’s still plenty of polish to be added to this split to really cement the feeling that you’re advancing into foreign territory, it’s done well. Dusk in particular has a feel not too dissimilar to Lord of the Rings and the Tower of Isengard. The spiked pillars that loom over towers, combined with the scorched earth and subtle green hues are dark and brooding. It might not be to everyone's taste and it’s entirely at odds with what players were used to in Legacy. Personally, I love it.

The Jungle

Before I talk about the new jungle, its layout and buffs, I first want to talk about Fog Walls. In Legacy these were known as Shadow Pads and were situated on the entrance to the right and left lane with two also leading from the mid lane, towards the Orb Prime buff. As circular pools, players could stand in them to enter the Shadow Plane. As long as they didn’t use an ability or step out of the pool, the only way they could be seen would be with a Ward, if Kallari was in the Shadow Plane looking at you, if if another enemy who had line of sight was also stood in a Shadow Pad. They were a clever design and added a nervousness when moving from lane to lane as there was the possibility of someone always lurking. Unfortunately they were also limited in the sense that due to their placement and the fact they were pools, they didn’t actually block your line of sight into the jungle. Considering line of sight is such a key element in MOBAs, I can understand why Epic were key to take the basic principal of Shadow Pads and tweak them ever so slightly. The result, I think, is quite possibly the best thing about Monolith.

Not only do Fog Walls act as entrances into and out of the jungle, but their verticality and total obstruction of vision adds an entirely new dimension to that associated with Shadow Pads. This isn’t about taking greater care because someone might be in a set location in front of you; this is about taking greater care because anyone could be on the other side of every entrance or exit to the jungle. It’s a level of trepidation I never experienced in Legacy and one that caused me to jump out of my skin several times, especially when Steve Superville happens to be waiting on the opposite side dropping Cosmic Rifts onto your head.

Fog Walls mark almost every entrance into and out of the jungle.

Vision from allies plays a key role in countering Fog Walls and their value to mask those behind them, as any allies in lane who have vision on an enemy, allows you - stood behind the Fog Wall - to also see them. Shadow Pads acted in a similar manner but not to this degree and not with this level of importance. On multiple occasions when jungling I used the sight of my team mate to wait in situ behind a Fog Wall, waiting for the enemy players to push onto our offlane. When they were in touching distance of our tower, I’d leap out to attack with my ally and often secure two kills. On the flip side, I’ve had vision of an enemy in lane and made my way to them only to find they (and their team mate) are waiting on the other side to counter-gank.

In many ways Fog Walls act in an identical manner to the grass and vents that you see in the likes of Heroes of the Storm. They’re integral to the tactical approach to play and not purely for securing kills: evading detection, out-rotating or to simply scout. None of these things were really possible with Shadow Pads: the introduction of Fog Walls has changed all that.

The multitude of paths combined with the mix of verticality add a great deal of variety in not only moving towards a lane, but to also evade enemies in pursuit.

As for the jungle itself, it’s vastly superior to Legacy. It may look relatively complex on the map Epic have released but it’s surprisingly easy to learn. After only two matches I knew exactly where everything was and found a natural rotation that, for the most part, seemed highly effective. The central river running through the map acts as a key location to navigate out from while the concentration of white camps in your own ‘half’ are easy to locate and clean up. Even though I found the jungle easy to navigate, it feels far less linear in comparison to Legacy in the sense that there’s genuine choice of movement. The multitude of paths combined with the mix of verticality add a great deal of variety in not only moving towards a lane, but to also evade enemies in pursuit. Several times I not only managed to use the jungle and its verticality to survive, but repositioned myself to to re-enter combat and secure a kill. This was, to a large degree, only possible in Legacy at the mid lane; other fights were often encased by the high walls of the jungle.

Where the new jungle buffs and camps are concerned, I’ll merrily admit that they’re all a triumph. Only recently have Epic revamped the jungle camps in Legacy and it’s fantastic to not only see these retained (for the most part) but built on. Although minion camps still stack in power, their strength is no longer detonated by a number above their head but by physical muscle: a level 5 camp has 5 minions stood waiting. Not only does this make taking camps that are left too long a challenge, but there’s a genuine risk of death - especially during early levels. This single adjustment changes the dynamic of jungling considerably as it places a great deal of pressure on you to not only farm effectively to prevent a five-stacked camp, but to guarantee your progress isn’t hampered when you do need to clear one. Several times over the course of my matches I had to clear five white minions and while possible, it resulted in me having to return back to base having exhausted all my potions and barely making it out alive.

What this change to camps does do, as a minimum, is place far greater emphasis on cleave damage and the value of regeneration. There’s no suggestion Heroes who lack cleave can’t jungle effectively, but there’s certainly going to be a need for them to build their decks cleverly or to jungle with great efficiency.

So what about the buffs themselves? Well, they’re all valuable and serve distinct purposes. While the river buffs are randomised between movement speed, stealth, a damage over time and attack damage, the gold, green and raptor camps (technically black buff) are especially attractive.

Both the green and gold buff are likely to receive their own unique model.

Gold Buff

Situated just off the first tower on the safe lane, the Gold Buff multiplies card experience to the carrier and considering where it’s situated, is a huge boost to a ranged Hero such as Sparrow or Murdock. It helps them farm quickly and enables them to get ahead of their opposing laner. What I do like about this buff isn’t just its ability to provide an economic advantage to a single player, but because of the fact the map design of Monolith grants another route to the gold buff. On several occasions as the enemy team pushed down safe lane towards our offlane, I snatched the gold buff. Denying the enemy Sparrow what could have potentially put her significantly in front was especially satisfying.

Green Buff

A personal favorite and one that’s incredibly clever in its design, the green buff provides a high value shield to the player. Once that player has taken enough damage, the shield will detonate causing area of effect damage. It’s undeniably good for jungle farming and can, in a single stroke, wipe a five-stack minion camp. Although the cooldown on the buff is fairly lengthy, it’s absolutely vital that you secure it. It helps your farm, prevents you from having to use health potions or return back to base to replenish and can save your life if you get jumped.

Raptor Camp

Towers already died quickly in Legacy and for the most part, the black buff exacerbated the issue. Fortunately for us Epic have reworked the buff* so that instead of dropping when you kill the Raptors, instead you gain an instant card level. Never has a camp been more valuable to a jungler or your team's carry, especially if the camp is reinforced with multiple raptors. Unfortunately, Raptors hit like a truck and I was hard pressed to solo them as any Hero until very late game but did manage to kill a lone Raptor as Feng Mao, but only when I was relatively high level. I think their difficulty is perfectly balanced and based on their value of a whole card level, it adds an exciting control element to the jungle, especially when both teams coordinate to kill them.

*A physical black buff is now available in the river and provides damage over time to enemies.

The Rebalance

With the patch notes for Monolith having already been released, there’s still a lot that those looking in will be unaware of. How fast is the game? What difference has the reduction in cooldowns made? How much faster are abilities when cast? Is the reduction in card value from 3 to 1 per level a big difference? Have cards themselves been rebalanced well? How is the Hero balance after largely sweeping changes? How long are matches now? These are only some of the questions, but I’ll do my best to answer.

Firstly, Paragon is now incredibly fast. I’d hazard a guess at movement speed being increased by 25% which makes walking speed significantly quicker than that of Legacy. In fact, it’s so much quicker that it actually took me by surprise and I admit, it made me a little giddy. As a player who has always found the pace of Paragon relatively pedestrian, the improvement in the game experience as a result of this change is remarkable. Fights feel instantly more intense, traversing the map more satisfying and there’s an “oomph” to combat that was sorely lacking.

I’d probably say that the nearest comparison in terms of speed is SMITE, and I think for all intents and purposes, Epic have absolutely nailed this change. I can’t comment on how this speed difference will affect console users, but many of my friends who play Paragon on the PlayStation shouldn’t find too greater difficulty in adapting: personal ability on a favoured peripheral is all that determines a player's skill level, after all.

The speed change doesn’t just extend to base movement but also the use of abilities and their animations. To compensate for the increased speed most Heroes have had their cast times sped up and while it’s welcome (certainly the likes of Feng Mao and Howitzer needed an injection of pace to their Ultimate abilities) others do feel far too quick. Where Steel was once a juggernaut that you had to treat with care in preparation for his Shield Slam, his Ultimate is now near instant and Bull Rush charges at lightning speed. I have to admit it looks and seems a little odd. Seeing Steel zip through the air at blindingly fast speeds, with an Ultimate that’s near unavoidable, doesn’t look great and it doesn’t feel great to be on the receiving end. In Legacy there was clear counterplay to all abilities and that feels immediately lacking as a result of this speed injection. To dodge Steel and his Shield Slam would now require psychic powers and although I’ve done it, it was pure luck rather than personal ability.

Steel using Shield Slam and Bull Rush in Monolith

Paragon and its original Legacy pacing offered clear windows of opportunity to out-skill your opponent based on your understanding of their abilities and the likelihood of their use. This now feels lacking and while one could argue it’s simply a matter getting used to the new speed, I’d beg to differ. Avoiding a barrage of instant abilities is never going to be reliable when your ability to actually evade is based on less than a fraction of a second.

MOBAs thrive on personal skill and while I commend the base movement speed increase, I feel Epic have been far too over zealous when it comes to compensating ability actions. Steel doesn’t have to have near instant Ultimate. Grux doesn’t have to pull at such a speed you can’t evade it. Feng Mao doesn’t have to strike down with Earthshatterer that no one can move out of its way. Instead, players need to work on their own ability to land skills by predicting their opponent, while their opponent needs the opportunity to counter-play, based on personal ability. As it stands, ability speeds feel far too generous.

Fortunately (and there is a silver lining) the effort Epic have taken to implement Monolith and these changes perfectly summarize how they’re willing to accept feedback and adapt accordingly and I hope that they slow down some of the juiced-up abilities, even if it’s by just a second.

When it comes to game length and ability cooldowns, both are so much better. Most of the matches I’ve played comfortably ended within thirty minutes, even those played with hardened Epic staff. I suspect however that with a truly coordinated team it would be more than possible to end in twenty, if not sooner. In part this is due to the new design of Monolith and the fact lanes can be pushed quickly if a defending player is killed, but also because a jungler has a greater role in aiding a push (due to the ease of access the river provides).

Sevarog is particularly strong in Monolith thanks to tweaks to his kit.

If you combine this with adjustments made to health and Hero scaling and the opportunity to use abilities far more often, it’s not surprising to find matches end sooner - people can die quickly. Where Heroes were near indestructable if they built health and armor, it simply isn’t the case now. Having all health on cards halved has made an enormous difference to the point where I’m very tempted to once again attempt to pursue a critical damage build (although crit bonus cards are 6 points, instead of 3, which is odd?).

Before I move onto my final thoughts, I just wanted to briefly discuss the changes to card experience. For the most part, it doesn’t feel as though anything has really changed despite the speed of acquisition being lowered. That said, there’s a greater emphasis now on building effectively, rather than having the opportunity to rush through to card bonuses. By 12 minutes I’ve typically got around 16 to 20 card points which offers a surprising amount of early flexibility. When combined with the raptor and gold buffs, alongside effective jungling (or laning), getting up to speed is fairly quick. In all the thirty minute matches I’ve finished on 60 card points, something that I think makes the new pacing pretty darn perfect.

Final Thoughts

Monolith is unquestionably a triumph. Epic have built upon Legacy’s foundations and set out to address all of its flaws; I think they’ve achieved that, which is quite remarkable. There’s still lots to do, notably adding final polish, but there’s a new foundation here that’s far superior to what we’ve played before. Besides further adjusting ability speeds, adding animations on minion and buff camps would be welcome so they don’t stand eerily idle (perhaps the creatures and minions could interact with one another or patrol their space?). Other than that, Monolith confirms that Epic know exactly what they’re doing.

I’ve always felt Paragon could easily upset the MOBA space and unseat the likes of SMITE and Monolith has well and truly laid down the gauntlet. During my entire time all I kept thinking was “Why would I play any other MOBA?” and honestly, I can’t see myself doing so. I can’t wait to see where Epic go from here.

Want to learn about how the balance changes effect Paragon's Heroes? Hit the jump.

Want to see the Monolith login menu, cards and Hero abilities? Look here.

Have a question about Monolith? Here's our lengthy community Q&A!

Ten Ton Hammer would like to thank Epic for allowing us to participate in the Monolith preview. Paragon is free to play right now.