Developer Notes: The Monarch of Shadows, is finally here

Greetings, Hunters!

This is the Solo Leveling:ARISE Team.

The moment you have all been waiting for is finally happening. The Shadow Monarch will officially awaken and make his grand entrance at the end of July.

As the protagonist driving the entire narrative of Solo Leveling, the Shadow Monarch holds the most profound impact in the original story. Our team has poured months of hard work and passion into capturing that exact raw emotion and recreating it perfectly within ARISE.

In today's Developer Note, we are thrilled to give you a sneak peek at what is coming. Starting with the Shadow Monarch who will arrive as a Dark element successor, we will also cover the upcoming Workshop of Brilliant Light revamp, all new Hidden Stories, our latest Hunter Jung Yerim, and a massive lineup of summer events.

[Dark Element Successor - The Monarch of Shadows, Sung Jinwoo]

『Arise! 』

The long-awaited Monarch of Shadows Successor is set to arrive as a Dark element character in our upcoming update. To truly capture the unique and iconic significance of the Monarch of Shadows, we are introducing a brand new acquisition structure that differs from our previous systems.

1. Lowering the Difficulty to Acquire the Monarch of Shadows Successor

First, we have lowered the barrier to entry so that Hunters can recruit the Successor more easily. The Monarch of Shadows Successor content will unlock once you clear Chapter 11. After unlocking it, you can guarantee his acquisition simply through casual gameplay and completing missions, without any complicated processes.

1. Permanent Opening of ‘the Monarch of Shadows Special Draw’

Alongside the release, the Monarch of Shadows Special Draw will open permanently with no time limit. Hunters can play at their own pace without any time pressure, collecting tickets through regular gameplay to continuously grow him to his maximum stage.

Combat will maintain the distinct style of the existing Sung Jinwoo action while showcasing an even more spectacular and differentiated experience. A new combat concept will be added where Sung Jinwoo transforms into the Monarch of Shadows and performs combo attacks in perfect synergy with his shadows, allowing you to truly feel the overwhelming presence and awe of the Monarch of Shadows.

Please look forward to the arrival of the Monarch of Shadows and the countless battlefields you will conquer together.

※ After the update, your current Myro’s Legacy Seals can be exchanged for Monarch of Shadows Legacy Seals at a 1 to 1 ratio.

※ More specific details will be provided during the Developer Live Stream scheduled for  7/28.

[Workshop of Brilliant Light Revamp]

Have you ever wanted to face the Workshop of Brilliant Light bosses again after clearing them?

Our team is planning a step by step revamp of the Workshop of Brilliant Light to bring Hunters fresher and more challenging content. You will experience brand new combat encounters as you face the same bosses but with different elemental weaknesses. With the goal of bringing back the thrilling sensation of fighting Vulcan down to the wire, we will introduce these updates sequentially throughout late July and August.

■ Stage 1: Boss Rotation (Late July Update )

The Workshop of Brilliant Light will be revamped into a boss rotation based system. Monarchs you have faced before, such as Baran, Yogumunt, and Rockpasa, will periodically rotate along with Commanders and other bosses. The revamped Workshop of Brilliant Light will operate on a 2 week season system with different boss lineups each season, while the elemental weaknesses will rotate on a 4 week update cycle. Even when facing the same boss, you will need to prepare new strategies based on their changing elemental weaknesses over time.

For our very first season, you will be able to face "Baran, the Monarch of White Flames" before anyone else. We will also be streamlining the difficulty structure so that you can challenge your desired difficulty level right away without any separate unlock requirements.

※ Baran in the first season will appear alongside "(Commander) Vulcan" and "(Boss) Esil Radiru." Starting from certain difficulty levels, Fire and Dark will be the weakness elements.

※When a new Monarch debuts in the Workshop of Brilliant Light, that specific season will run for 4 weeks. The next Monarch to arrive in the Workshop of Brilliant Light this September will be the Monarch of Fangs Adan.

※ Future first clear race events will be prepared as a separate piece of content so you can challenge them much more conveniently.

■ Stage 2: Corridor of Monarchs (Temporary Name / August Update)

Once you clear the highest difficulty of the newly rotated Workshop of Brilliant Light, a new challenging content utilizing the workshop called Corridor of Monarchs (Temporary Name) will unlock.

Corridor of Monarchs (Temporary Name) is a content where Hunters can manually adjust the difficulty by selecting advantageous or disadvantageous conditions, earning scores, rankings, and rewards accordingly. Our team expects this content to be a feature that allows Hunters to immerse themselves even deeper into the raw action of Sung Jinwoo and the Hunters. Detailed information will be provided through a separate notice in the future.

[New Hunter, Jung Yerim]

The cheerful healer of the Knights Guild, Jung Yerim, is joining the fight.

Having overcome poverty and hardships during her childhood, she learned how to survive on her own. 

She is a resilient character who always makes sure to repay any kindness she receives with her own abilities. Joining as a Fire element Supporter, Jung Yerim is an all-around supporter who boosts the team's firepower by providing healing and shields, as well as increasing Fire element Overload damage, Burst damage, Attack Power, and Ultimate Move damage. Please look forward to her exceptional synergy, especially with the Fire element Buster, Liu Zhigang.

Jung Yerim will join as a Hunter whose skills scale with HP.

[New Hidden Chapter - The Monarch of Fangs ‘Adan’]

A new chapter unfolds along the path Sung Jinwoo has walked.

The story follows the investigation of a bizarre Hunter Berserk Incident that occurred within the White Tiger Guild. Tracking the clues leads to a jungle island, where alongside Agnes Rivera and Diana Lopez, they confront an entity hidden within the island's darkness. Please look forward to the journey of Sung Jinwoo and his companions as they hunt down the source of the berserk madness.

[Third Summer of 2026, Event Story]

A mysterious Gate appears over the sea, bringing with it rumors of a mermaid that tempts Hunters. Discover the truth behind these rumors in this summer's event story, featuring Yoo Soohyun, Lennart Niermann, Meri Laine, and Agnes Rivera. We are also preparing a variety of events to help you cool off and enjoy the scorching summer.

[Artifact Information and Future Improvements]

First, we sincerely apologize to our Hunters regarding the situation where artifacts that do not match a Hunter's class had to be used in certain content. Although we previously stated our goal to reduce the fatigue of farming and create an environment where you could focus strictly on setting up artifacts that match each class, a close investigation revealed an issue that deviated from our original intention. To improve upon this, we plan to make the following adjustments in the next update.

■ Buffs to Class-Exclusive Effects for Striker and Buster Artifact Sets

Furthermore, in this update, we will be streamlining the Ultimate Skills for Buster and Stacker Hunters exclusively for Guild Boss and Power of Calamity contents, allowing you to deal damage more effectively by utilizing Buster Hunters. This adjustment will be gradually implemented for all Hunters in the future. We will continue to monitor this closely to provide a better combat experience for all Hunters, and detailed adjustment details will be provided in a separate notice.

[Improvements for a Better Gameplay Experience]

Our team has also prepared various improvements so that Hunters can focus on playing in a much more comfortable environment.

■ Sung Jinwoo Level Cap Expansion

Sung Jinwoo's maximum level will be expanded to level 160.

■ Guild Boss Exclusive Buff and Balance Adjustments

To ensure Sung Jinwoo performs sufficiently against the Guild Boss, we are adding a brand new Sung Jinwoo exclusive buff that applies only within Guild Boss content. Additionally, to improve the current situation where players are overly dependent on Defense Penetration, the Defense of the Guild Boss will be lowered compared to before.

Specific details will be provided through the update notice. Furthermore, our team will continue to make improvements so that you can experiment with diverse Hunter combinations, experience the strategic fun of defeating the Guild Boss, and truly see Sung Jinwoo shine.

■ Other Balance Adjustments

The balance for Hunters Choi Jong-in and Christopher Reed will be buffed.

※ Specific values and schedules will be provided through a future patch notice.

※ The content and resources covered in this Developer Note are currently under development and may be subject to change upon the actual update.

Until the moment Sung Jinwoo is reborn as the Monarch of Shadows, our team will meticulously polish every detail until the very end to ensure that the time you have spent waiting is truly rewarded. 

We will do our absolute best to make the next chapter of this long journey an unforgettable moment for all Hunters.

We look forward to seeing you again on the new battlefield with the Monarch of Shadows in late July.

Thank you.

[Developer’s Note Surprise Gift]

* Redeem codes can only be used once per account, and rewards will be distributed immediately upon use.

* Redeem codes are valid until 7/29 (Wed), 2026 at 23:59 (UTC+0) and cannot be used after the expiration date.

※ Artifact Enhancement Reset Ticket (Limited Time) can be used until 8/26 (Wed) at 23:59 (UTC+0).

※「Upgraded Wheel」 Event Tickets will be converted to Gold after the event ends, so please make sure to claim and use them before the event period concludes.

- Solo Leveling:ARISE Team