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[LORE DISCUSSION] Who made the Mercury Hammer?

ModCaptainMårvelous··18 votes·5,579 views

Welcome to (what I hope will be) a weekly discussion on League's Lore, stories, plots and little theories that are roaming around the universe of League. You'll find the various topics but for now, let's jump right into one of the first (And one of my personal favorite) fan discussions I've come across:

#Who Built the Mercury Hammer?

http://i.imgur.com/NRV3QNY.jpg

So the mercury hammer is Jayce's prized possession and the most iconic thing of his character (Asides maybe a chin so cut you could slice diamonds with it). In discussing the mercury hammer, fans have come up with a theory that Jayce himself did not invent the hammer but rather, Viktor did and Jayce took the plans into creation. With that little preface out of the way, let's dive into the two sides of this discussion:

http://i.imgur.com/UxPTpxg.jpg #The Case for Viktor: "Join the glorious evolution!"

For this theory to hold water, we have to take a step back and look at some examples of champion lore. Foremost, look at champions who are shown as intelligent and capable of creating amazing things. For one, we see a constant pattern that these champions are lifelong inventors. Examples include:

  • Ziggs and his hextech explosives.
  • Heimerdinger, the INVENTOR
  • Viktor, the "Creator" of Blitzcrank and the mechanical messiah himself.
  • Singed, practices for years in his craft.

So by all accounts, Jayce should also be among them right? Well...not really. Jayce was only spoken as a "promising young inventor" with no real inventions or creations to his name. Further investigation of his lore spies some interesting things, such as Viktor holding no initial animosity toward Jayce. In fact, he seems more than willing to cooperate until negotiations go south...or did they? Another thing to note is the actual design of the mercury hammer. Now compare it to things like Vi's gauntlets, Heimerdinger's turrets, Jinx's weapons, etc. Notice anything odd? The mercury hammer seems to be far, FAR more advanced in creation and the closest "resemblance" it seems to have is to Viktor's own style of creation. Now, when thinking about Jayce's lore, the obvious argument comes to "But Jayce specifically said he defeated Viktor and got the crystal back".

What if he didn't?

What if, of the two, Jayce arrived back first and recalled a fantastic tale of heroism, triumph, one man versus an army, etc. What if Viktor didn't bother telling HIS side of the story because nobody would believe him? In fact, Jayce is among the time period where we stopped getting judgements, so we never got an actual look into his personal thoughts and ideas of what happened. But probably the most damning proof was that the old lore team (a rumor, mind you) had plans to make Jayce only steal the plans, not actually make them himself. In fact, this idea sprung up the entire discussion and as far as I can tell was the source of it. In closing, for those who think Jayce's heroic attitude completely contradicts the idea of him being this bully....

Who's to say Jayce himself isn't just a fabricated personality? A heroic actor who betrayed Viktor and stole these plans because being a hero is a quicker way to fame and fortune than being a scientist for his entire life?

http://i.imgur.com/gE1da5E.jpg #The Case for Jayce: "I fight...for a brighter tomorrow."

The biggest argument that can be made in Jayce's case is that ALL of this is based on theory and conjecture. There exists no actual proof (Outside of that rumor that this was indeed the old lore team's plan) that Jayce in any way had knowledge of Viktor, let alone him building a mercury hammer. Which, in all honesty, is the only argument truly necessary to 'debunk' the Viktor theory. Along with this, Jayce does have some alibis he can attest to had this every been shoved in the actual character's face. Notably:

  • Jayce went to Piltover's government.
  • The general consensus is that Jayce is indeed Piltover's hero.
  • Jayce apparently tested this himself.
  • Other characters (Notably Heimer) attest to his "hexpertise"

Along with this, Viktor wasn't particularly focused on making weapons at the time. Rather he was focused on biomechanics and the "glorious evolution". If he was to make a weapon, it's more likely that he'd make it a part of the anatomy rather than something that can be held. Jayce is also friends with Caitlyn, Ezreal and Vi (According to the wiki) so that rules out that his personality is outright fake or contrived.

In addition, Jayce's addition to the League is both proof of his physical prowess as a fighter and mental prowess as an inventor. Even if he had stolen these plans, Jayce had brought them to existence and indeed had the mechanical know-how not to blow up his own lab and a chin that Varian Wrynn would blush at. So it is entirely possible (and probably more likely) that Jayce's inclusion was not as fabricated as theorists believe. So in closing, there is clearly evident proof that Jayce HAS the capacity to be both a warrior and an inventor.

Regardless of if he stole the plans or not, this blows a fairly large hole in the theory of Jayce being a thief and a liar.

http://i.imgur.com/7HoeDVM.jpg #My personal theory

Please keep in mind that this is my own personal hypothesis on the matter and in no way reflects the truth or canon lore of League.

I'm kind of at a toss up. Personally, I find Jayce's character as a whole very faux and shoddy. Does he portray an air of heroics? Yes. Do I feel he is actually heroic? Not one bit. In that regard, I'm very biased as I feel Viktor often gets a bad rap and is portrayed as overly villainous in his endeavors. But now we're just diving into fan fiction territory far more than theory.

In this case, my personal history of events is thought of as so:

  • Viktor approaches a fledgling inventor Jayce with promises of fame and fortune if he works with him on his evolution
  • Jayce accepts because he always wanted to be a famous hero/celebrity.
  • Mercury plans are found by Jayce, Jayce considers it an easier way to fame (And overall safer)
  • Viktor, still not fully over his pains of being human (As his greatest creation, Blitzcrank, was stolen) attacks Jayce and breaks much of his lab.
  • Jayce begs Piltover for help, saying Viktor stole the crystal. They refuse.
  • Jayce builds the hammer from the plans he had.
  • Showdown at Vik's lab.
  • Crystal destroyed. Jayce and Vik rendered incapacitated.
  • Jayce wakes up first, returns to Piltover, spins tale of heroics and his full lore.
  • Viktor says nothing, as he does not think anyone would believe him.

In these events, there's obviously wrongdoing on both sides and a little of both theories. Jayce does indeed steal the plans but he's also the one who actually built the hammer. Viktor's intentions were not as wicked but his reaction and eventual plan are clearly notorious. Above all, Jayce's lore would have inconsistencies to play up Jayce being the hero but Viktor (who knows the truth) does not say anything as prior experience has told him that people will not trust or believe him.

So everyone, what's your personal take? Are you with Jayce and think these are just Viktor spreading lies? Do you side with Viktor and think Jayce is a handsome, thieving bastard? Perhaps you're middle of the road and think both sides have some points worth exploring?

Also, be sure to vote for discussions on other lore theories we can have in the future. Happy discussing!

29 Comments

Omnipherious10 votes

I remembering hearing of that rumour. Plenty of good points have been made but you've missed one key piece of information - the Mercury Hammer technology wasn't originally from Viktor or Jayce; the original concept belonged to some other person. How do we know this? The owner of the red side shop for the Howling Abyss, Ezreal's uncle Lyte, once made a Mercury Hammer. This suggest that the design existed even before Jayce and Viktor's time.

The old man may currently be senile, but given that he has a robot assistant it isn't a stretch to believe that this man was once a great inventor; it would also make sense that his desire to create better inventions would have led him to Freljord in search of 'inspiration'. In one of his quotes he says, 'Imagine what a True Ice Hextech device could do!'; this could have been what brought him to Freljord in the first place. He heard tales of the miraculous, magical, never-melting True Ice and wanted to utilize it to futher improve his hextechmaturgy. However, many years of fruitless research renders him senile and a shadow of his former genius.

My theory is, Jayce and Viktor were working together as you believed. Jayce, so hungry for fame and glory didn't hesitate to accept Viktor's offer in the hopes that he would finally achieve greatness. However, as the collaboration progresses Jayce cannot bring himself to completely buy into Viktor's glorious evolution (methods, ideals, etc). His doubts cause him to secretly seek a way out of their agreement. Jayce discovers old plans for a Mercury Hammer and thinks its his ticket out. While Viktor is busy examining the crystal, Jayce secretly adapts Viktor's Hexcore tech into the Mercury Hammer in the form of the Hextech Capacitor. Viktor discovers this just as the Mercury Hammer nears completion.

Viktor presumably wouldn't have been angry even though Jayce technically stole Hexcore tech and adapted it for the Mercury Hammer; in fact I believe it is more likely that Viktor would have been impressed or pleased that the young Jayce managed such a feat. However, once Viktor discovers that the purpose of the Mercury Hammer wasn't to further the glorious evolution, they clash. I would assume that the labs end up getting trashed because neither Viktor nor Jayce were aware of the Mercury Hammer's full output and chaos ensued. As the chaos hit its peak, Viktor was unwilling to sacrifice anymore time or resources that could instead be used to futher the glorious evolution. The agreement is voided and Viktor leaves.

Naturally, Piltover authorities arrive at the scene not long after since such a ruckus would've been called in by other members of the public. Jayce sees this as his golden opportunity and decides to play the hero. He portrays Viktor (and his ideals) in a less than favourable light and claims to have temporarily thwarted the threat. Vi doesn't fully buy into the story and neither does Caitlyn, but they aren't able to gather many leads due to the state of the crime scene. They end up having their attention pulled away by the more immediate threat of a rampaging Jinx. Due to their previous encounters with Jayce, they deem his story trustworthy for the time being. Presumably, Jayce 'grows' into this hero persona more as he aids the authorities.

Damorion2152 votes

And how do we know Lyte made a Mercury hammer before Jayce did?

Omnipherious3 votes

He says so.

Rew7111 votes

Yep, but to Jayce's defense, I want to put this in.

Jayce seems to be smart, so he could had made an improved model. I would not be surprised if Jayce did not look into mercury power and eventually created it. Then made his own version of the Mercury Hammer that was like Lyte's. Victor found out about the mercury and was impressed and asked to barrow it from Jayce. Jayce obviously didn't want him to have it so Victor took it by force. Angered, Jayce had to sneak into Victor's lab and battle him with his wits and know-how until he finally got the mercury back to power his hammer and was able to subdue Victor and leave with the mercury. He was then hailed as a heroic person.

Pyrobob45 votes

I haven't read much theory crafting on Jayce's lore, but there has been something that always bothered me about his story. If the mercury hammer was the thing he was inventing to make use of the crystal, how was he able to complete it without the crystal? If it wasn't, then what was he making? And are we just supposed to believe that he came up with the mercury hammer, essentially, on the spot, as a means to fight Viktor? Something just doesn't add up.

But anyway. My main problem with the idea of Vik coming up with the mercury hammer is that it's totally not something he would have bothered with. You could argue that its reasonable to assume he had all sorts of ideas, and the hammer was just some random other idea that he came up with. Most inventors do this... But not Viktor. He is singularly driven and focused. It's unlikely he would bother wasting time on anything not part of his Evolution.

Assuming Jayce is as talented as he is praised to be, it is possible that he was inspired by his time with Viktor. Not that he found/stole any specific plans, just that he learned a lot from seeing Viktor and how his technology worked, and was able to use that information to come up with the mercury hammer.

There is also something to be said for Jayce being properly motivated to create the means to his revenge. If not for his encounter with Viktor, its unlikely he would have been so driven to make anything near the level of the mercury hammer.

Those two factors together, I feel, bridge the gap (decently) between unproven potential and creating one of Valoran's most advanced pieces of machinery.

Sunfield2 votes

Sorry for not contributing, but when I saw "lore discussion" in community creations i lost it. Thats so god damn accurate, nowadays decent lore is only fan made. Thats about the only thing Im angry with Riot

bbbbates1 votes

Well I guess its good to see that the reason you are mad isn't because of balance changes I guess...

But I think Riot focuses more on large scale events in Runeterra now rather than the smaller scale things that the JoJ dealt with. These kind of things are largely speculated on by the community. Riot has time and again say that they still care about the lore and I think things like the whole freljord event reflect that. Some of the problem also comes from the game being so large now, with multiple projects going on at once, people often get pulled off of things to work on something that the company feels pressure from the community to do (aka the SR VU)

Sunfield3 votes

I can understand all that, but they had enough time.Id love to see some results.

bbbbates1 votes

Also nice choice of summoner icon ;)

and yeah hopefully we will see something along with the SR update

Sunfield1 votes

Assasin master race. Fistbump

bbbbates1 votes

bumps fist

Onegarion1 votes

Riot to me doesn't really care that much at all. While with the scope of the game it would be near impossible to have a JoJ constantly evolving and furthering event, but when we only get a lore related event like once a year and they are as small in scope and detail as both the Frejlord and Shurima events it makes me wonder how much time they actually put in.

I mean we also have to consider the fact that they are retconning everything that maybe its being put into that, but it still feels kind of half assed imo as an overall thing atm. Maybe once they finish the retcon we can see some new things going on. Right now its just a load of half finished stories that seem to go no where. I like a good cliff hanger, but when everything is hanging off of a different cliff and just left to hang there it doesn't really bring a lot of cohesion. I mean there is very little crossover with the lore they have now with past events that have already been retconned.

I just hope they have some master plan because I loved reading all the lore and now I feel like I'm missing out on it. They have created this huge world with many living things and it seems like we are only seeing a small portion of what is actually going on. I'd like to maybe know a bit of how life in Demacia, Piltover, Zuan, etc is ESPECIALLY with things being retconned. Just throw us a bone Riot.

Kanvell2 votes

This is really cool. I enjoy when people take deeper looks into the game's lore.

Also what about what happened to the city Fizz once lived in? Who were his people and what did they do to disappear? And what are they called since Fizz isn't a yordle.

Also what happened in Sivir's lore? It just left an annoying cliffhanger.

Fisk2 votes

It says that jayce makes it.... I'm not really sure where this is coming from

ArtoriusIV1 votes

In regards to who killed Yasuo's master, it is riven. http://leagueoflegends.wikia.com/wiki/Yasuo/Background Rivals are only listed as riven, the only other wind bladesmen in the league.

The Neverworld1 votes

What if I told you that Riven is being accused and is Yasuo's enemy? Who would believe her? Noone, thus it stays that both are rivals.

The truth hasn't been spoken yet.

bbbbates1 votes

So Riven used to be part of the elite Noxian troops. During the Ionian invasion (unless its a new champ later) Riven could have easily been the one to kill yasuos master. She afterall the only other wind swordsman in the league.

Or are you saying that Yasuo actually did kill his master, and then now is trying to pass blame to Riven who is also a wind swordsman. That would be quite interesting too.

That said, the quotes from yasuo regarding riven seem like he met her in the league and found out she is trying to be forgiven. He may or may not still hate her but he clearly doesn't forgive her for what she has done

Basilio1 votes

If that were the case then Yasuo wouldn't be giving her words of reassurance in the game.

MyAccountYouGuys1 votes

Reassurance? Those are all on the taunt button for a reason. He's judging the ever-loving crap out of her.

The Neverworld1 votes

My version:

  • Jayce was a young and promising inventor, thus he followed the examples set by a famous person (Professor Stanwick), perhaps infamous person (Viktor).
  • Jayce praised professor Stanwick as a godly scientist for creating Blitzcrank and reviving Urgot. When Jayce went to Professor Stanwick to show his Mercury Hammer plans, Stanwick couldn't follow him and probably said something like "Neat idea, but.. it wouldn't work.".
  • Jayce's morale sank deep on the ground. The rumors that Professor Stanwick wasn't the actual inventor spread around, and when Stanwick refused his plans, he partially thought that it wasn't Jayce's fault, but Stanwicks.
  • Jayce searched for Viktor, who said that he was the true inventor, and finally found him. When he showed Viktor his plans, Viktor said "This is perfect!" ... Jayce's hopes went high up and he was happy.
  • Viktor was also relieved and in a good mood because he found someone who believed in him - that he is the true inventor and not Stanwick, thus he wanted to help Jayce.
  • Viktor and Jayce worked hard together to create the mercury hammer, because Viktor once again trusted someone to work for - Atleast something of human was left inside of him.
  • When Viktor visited Jayce at his labor, he found the crystal. Viktor wanted the crystal badly, but the little remains of the human inside of him refused it.
  • Jayce said then something like "This hammer will make me famous like Professor Stanwick!" - Viktor enraged, asked if Jayce would rather be his partner and take the crystal for better use - like for his glorious evolution.
  • Jayce refused, as he wanted the crystal for his mercury hammer. Viktor threw Jayce with brute force aside and took the crystal.
  • Jayce plead Piltover to help, because he couldn't come up with a mercury hammer in first place due to his first mission to create a device to harness the power (to study the crystal) - Piltover refused, Jayce took some of his time to create the prototype and went head-first into Viktor's place (Who thought that Jayce wasn't capable of finishing the mercury hammer without him).
  • When Jayce wanted to take the crystal, Viktor overloaded the systems and destroyed the crystal, as he knew that Jayce would become invincible once the crystal gives the hammer enough power.
  • Jayce could do nothing but tell a lie - That he alone created the hammer, that he went to the labor and had to destroy the crystal in order to stop Viktor's villainous plans (Because why would he tell that Viktor destroyed the crystal itself? Viktor himself could let Jayce get the crystal and take it back again - but Viktor knew that Jayce would be strong enough to finish Viktor and his attempts)
MrSc0tty1 votes

I'm taking that Viktor and Jayce lore comic as canon because it's better than anything Riot has produced in years.

Viktor is the villain. But he's an awesome villain as he should be. I play Viktor because he is a villain.

Jayce is a derpy but of an asshole but a hero, makes sense. He creates the hammer.

Leona is Waifu1 votes

Thanks for doing this, while I'm not real big into Piltover (I enjoy Mount Rakkor much more) I do enjoy the depth you've put into this. I just wanted to add, while I don't have any theories or anything, I'll always chose Viktor being cooler over Jayce. Jayces lore made Viktor into a B-rated villain instead of the master of the "Glorious Evolution" he was in his own lore.

The Anagram King1 votes

I'm not sure about the mercury cannon, but it definitely seems to have integrated Viktor's 'style' of technology in its design. This could be down to deliberate hextechnological thrift/theft, but it could also be down to the lead designer's influences. :P

One thing that seems blatantly apparent, however, Is Jayce's fake persona. And his story. Are we willing to believe that the Zaunites would retaliate to government intervention, but not a terrorist from Piltover's one-man assault on a lab? On a community? Piltover brands him a hero, and offers him sanctuary.

And then nothing. No consequences.

The story is definitely phony. And Viktor's ideals clash with his actions. There's more to this.

The only thing we can really ascertain from the two champs' lores is that Jayce is either lying, or refraining from correcting people who tell 'his story' on some of the finer details.

Personally, I've always viewed Jayce as an attention-seeker aiming for fame and glory. And because Viktor doesn't desire recognition through anything but his own deeds, he's never gone out of his way to set the record straight. But a few select confidants may know the real story.

Damorion2151 votes

This is from Jayce's lore, word for word:

"Jayce returned to the lab to prepare for his attack. After intense research, development, and hands-on testing, he emerged with his crowning achievement - the Mercury Hammer. Weapon in hand, Jayce marched to Zaun and began his one-man assault."

No where in the lore suggests he stole any plans nor did anyone else make a Mercury Hammer before him and from theses sentences here, it seems perfectly clear that the hammer was made by Jayce alone. No one else made it before him and he didn't steal any plans. Period, end of story.

ModCaptainMårvelous2 votes

It's like you didn't even read the actual post. :(

Damorion2152 votes

It's like you didn't even read the actual post. :(

And from Omnipherious:

He says so.

Alrighty, there we go. That's what I was looking for. Sorry if I'm a bit off tonight, just a little pissy about much bigger issues. I apologize for my poor, tunnel-visioned judgement in my opinion. :(

ModCaptainMårvelous1 votes

It's fine. You ok?

Damorion2151 votes

Yeah, I'm fine for the most part. Just that I'm thinking about too much of the ugly crap that's going on in the word right now, plus it's late at night too, so there ya go. :/

Other than that, I do think this is a neat series you've started and I look forward to more lore discussions. :3

PøwerPlayer1 votes

Hm, I don't know. Seems a bit too far fetched. While there are some good points, Jayce just doesn't seem like the type. Always considered Jayce benevolent with a tad bit of arrogance.

Good theory nonetheless.

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