I just recently downloaded the map.
Well I will judge the altered melee and the melee properties in different parts.
1) skin color changed.
2) Removed ballista tier 1, added Sentry, a healer like the priest for tier 2. it doesnt attack air (tested they didnt against the dragon).
3) Removed Hippogryph, removed the magic dragon fairy thing, cant remember the name.
4) changed goblin shop for a custom merchant, that sells preset blizzard items.
5) Thunder Lizzard as critter.
6) Mountain gigant model and name changed with a gigant wildkin, same skills and icons and stats.
7) instead of hippogryph now there is a land wildkin but the normal creep unit, with 550 hp.
8) Human Race's Riflemen was changed to Archer. (didnt play as human, so I just copy paste).
So as altered this Watchers new race:
- Lost the only mechanichal siege unit they had, (read altered melee tutorial, 1 mechanical unit per race is needed at least)
- the sentry is IMO an unecesary tier 2 unit, NE have the moonwells, and the druid of the claw has rejuvenation wich is better. Also NE have night HP boost regeneration.
- They lost a lot of aerial options, against other races, or to the dragon level 6, you need to go with the archers, or the druid of the claw in talon form or quimera in tier 3, the hippogryph is critical anti air in tier 2. with no need to research the druid of the talon.
Melee: map desing.
1- green creep loot unbalanced, a lot of power ups for only 1 creep L10. 6 tomes, and L2!!, an orange L10 should drop 1 L 2
2- the new shop is defended with the treants with dissease wich Undead are inmune.
3- the wall of rocks between red creep goldmines, really limits the game and unbalance it, Orcs have tier 1 catapults, undead and Hu have tier 2 siege, but NE lost their siege tier 1, also in melee such blocks are not used.
4- no tavern, no merc camps, no goblin labs.
5- the creeep route seems not that good, I went for the greens, and then when I went to the shop, I had a hard time trying to reduce them, I had to run
the red imposible with the dragon level 6, and no hippogryph, I used the deamon hunter, so thats it,i cant mana burn it,, the dragon makes you to use the keeper of the grove type hero or moon priest hero.
The main problem of the creep route is this, you start with the greens 3 sludge minions L1 each, then 1 isolated satyr with aggro, then the orange level 10,
, and suddenly, the next levels are 16 and 18, there are no orange level 10-14 so if you go blind to the level 16 in a 1v1 you are dead, like it happened to me, and went with archers and hunters (I want the ballista for tier 1).
6- gaps between trees (small units can walk,wisp can hide, bad for melee)
7-base shape to open and exposed, it should have more a form of U region, to exposed you cant protect the peons, tier 2 buildings, the shop.
8-creeps can aggro (attack while passing) they should be in a U region.
9) L18 goldmine creep and shop, creeps cant attack air, by being HU I would rush to tier 2, gryphon aviary, 1 elf air raider can kill them slowly.
10) the drops of the creep in the shop are too random, perma L3 or Charged L4 wich is a lot for L16, Charged L4 or clarity potion wich is cheap.
a L16 creep should loot a charged level 3 and 1 tome Level 1 or 2.
same for goldmine camp, I can loot a charged level 5 spike collar, Alleria flute, perma L5 or a lesser potion of invulnerability L2.
a L18 should loot a charged level 3 or if is a strong L18 it may loot a permanent L4.
11) red player has an un-walkable area and the other not.
Overall: As an altered melee it has few work. And as melee it has many balance situations that should be worked with melee guides.
If you are going to do altered, try to take a balanced map (one from Blizzard Ladder and focus on altered melee and do a new race or new play).
If you want a melee, try to read melee tutorials, read reviews of maps, to learn how to do a good melee map.
this map lacks merc camps, goblin labs, tavern, and the layout offers you few ways of attack or play
(the main problem is the 64x128), 64 is really small size to use in melee. I sugest 96x96 or 96x128
(a good map, the camara limits should not be reached by land units, cliff limiting or deep water limit, the black parts breaks inmersion)
please dont feel discouraged, is hard to do a good 1v1 melee map, from my 23 maps, only 3 are good, the rest are all unbalanced in one way or another.