Many of you have probably seen the issue of PC Gamer where this was all debuted, but in case you haven’t, Riot’s posted the news to the Announcement forums for your perusal. The biggest news for what’s on the horizon is, yes, finally, a new map.
For my part, I’m not all that excited. I really don’t mind that there’s only one 5v5 map right now. There are so many different champion and build combinations that the variety doesn’t have to come from different settings, it comes from the way the games play out. In fact, I don’t really like the last new map Riot put together. It snowballs way too hard and allows for very limited character selection. At the onset, I’m worried that the new map will suffer the same problems, or different problems that are similar. If Miss Fortune taught me one thing, it’s that Riot is willing to release mechanics that are at conflict with the fundamentals of the game. Miss Fortune virtually breaks the laning phase for most characters, and I don’t want to see another map that breaks 60-70 percent of the available champions’ ability to contribute.
But enough of my fears and worries. They won’t do any more than give me Nostradamus-style credibility (which is to say, none) if things do indeed go wrong.
The new map is called The Magma Chamber, and promises to the “premier arena for [League] use.” You have to wonder what that means, but let’s cover the rest of the details first.
Deep within the obsidian mountain from which the Institute of War is sculpted lies the League’s most intense Field of Justice to date – the Magma Chamber. Before the time of the League, the Chamber was the heart of a powerful, but now dormant, volcano. Ancient magma flows cut out a gigantic cavernous room that the League has reshaped for its own purposes. This battle arena was built specifically to address the increasing number of disputes between Demacia and Noxus. It is one of the largest Fields of Justice found anywhere on Valoran. To that end, teleporting platforms provide champions with the ability to rapidly relocate to strategic points in the arena. The magic-infused stone and cooled magma that dominates the structure of the arena will force champions to work together more closely in pushing toward the enemy’s nexus. It will be harder for a champion to rely on their summoner to traverse hazards and obstacles. The League is preparing this Field of Justice to be the premier arena for its use; as such, a slew of new monsters and minions await champions in what will surely be their greatest challenge yet.
Things we know:
1. It’s hot
2. It’s really hot
3. You can teleport around
4. You might only be able to teleport around
5. It’s really big
From the sound of things, there’s no jumping over walls, no Body Slamming off the little ledges into hot magma. Of course, that could be totally wrong. “It will be harder for a champion to rely on their summoner to traverse hazards and obstacles” is so vague there isn’t really a way to know what that means, but my guess is you don’t have lane-jumping capability. That’s something Riot has hinted at for some time.
We also know it’s going to be big – one of the biggest in Valoran which makes it…bigger than Summoner’s Rift? Maybe. The good news is that there is a plan (I hope) for the rest of Valoran’s Fields of Justice. That’s good news.
What I’m most interested to see, though, is the teleportation system. Is there a delay? Is it instantaneous? Can you use it in combat? Do you have vision at the destination point? We won’t know any of this, obviously, until the map’s out in practice games for widespread playtesting.
On the whole, I’m anxious for The Magma Chamber’s release. Anxious, because I really want it, but I really want it to be good. If it’s not good, then I definitely don’t want it.
