The River King Is Kog'Maw's Dad And Here's Why

Okay, I've given this a lot of thought, and I think I know who the River King is: he's Kog'Maw's dad. Now I know this may come off as ridiculous seeing as neither champ have seemingly a lot in common at first glance, but if one examines the two characters a bit more and do some background research on the void, the pieces line up. This isn't a for sure thing, but it would be one hell of a curve ball if I turn out to be right. Here we go.

1. The River King and Kog'Maw both love to eat

Now I know this might seem somewhat obvious and insignificant but there's more to this than meets the eye. When Kog'Maw first came to Runeterra (from his lore), he was curious and wanted to see what he could eat. He began with fruits and then animals and then people and this is what led him to join the League: because he desired to eat all that Runeterra could offer. I believe that the River King will join the League of Legends in his lore for the same reason, as he too has an insatiable hunger to which he sees to fulfill by joining. Now this might just sound like a coincidence, but let's take a look at some other void creatures. Cho'gath, Kha'zix, and Vel'Koz all share this "insatiable quality" to consume (although Vel's is a hunger for knowledge) which also led them to the League. For this reason I think it might be safe to say that the River King's hunger pains are more than just a sign that he's Kog's dad, but also a sign that he may very well be from the Void. Plus, they get the first and second place prizes for biggest mouths in League (third goes to Draven for sheer arrogance).

2. The River King has been everywhere

In the teaser, the River King states that "Ain't no place I ain't been. Ain't no place I can't go again." I don't believe that the River King was exaggerating when he made this claim. This can be supported as after the gambler made the deal with the River King, the King swallowed him up and took him to a "faraway land". While this is brushed over in the teaser, it begs the question, how did the gambler survive that long in the jaws of the River King on such a long journey? Well, being a creature that lives in water, it seems as if he'd be able to swim him there, but if the place is truly faraway there's no way the gambler would last that long. Thus, (and I may be reading too much into this) I am inclined to believe that the King has the ability to teleport from river to river. I believe this not only because the journey would seem too long by swimming, but also because of his nonchalant attitude towards traveling across the world. I mean look at the previously mentioned quote, (this is for you Phreak) something is too fishy about this catfish. Also, calling the world "one river" implies that international travel is easy for the King, which wouldn't make sense even if he swam incredibly fast. This is also implied by the new easter egg in the recent patch that when you laugh next to the drag or baron you can hear an ominous laugh echoing afterwards, which may mean he is sort of omnipresent as if he can be anywhere he wants at anytime as long as it's on a river. Also, catfish generally speaking aren't renowned for there speed either, but more so for finding holes and crevices to hide in which would be a cool character choice for an underwater creature that eats a lot and finds secret pathways (possibly rifts) to travel from river to river. This is where it stretches a bit, but I believe that because the King can more than likely teleport somehow, I believe he has once been to the void and maybe even frequently because when he says he's seen it all, he more than likely may mean that he wasn't just talking about Runeterra.

3. He passes the Void checklist

• Altered voice recordings, preferably deep? Check.
• Grotesque, far from human yet not quite Urgot look? Check.
• Evil? Definitely check, hell he's nightmare worthy.
• Insatiable hunger? DEFINITELY check.
• Disdainful/menacing attitude towards Runeterra inhabitants? Check. (Void champs honestly don't give af about anyone)
• Uses magic, preferably dark magic? Probably check (I mean he may teleport, and his river/Southern accent is giving off some Voo Doo vibes) Well whaddaya know, he passed with flying colors. Even if Riot doesn't confirm he's a void champ, he definitely has a lot in common with them. Too much to be a coincidence maybe...

4.. His title as King indicates some level of importance In a previous Q&A held by riot employee RiotOpeli, Opeli was asked about what Vel'Koz thinks of the other Void creatures and if he's ever had to deal with Kog's dad. In response, Opeli wrote "Vel'Koz is a little highbrow. Creatures like Cho, Kha'Zix and Kog are a little primitive to him...as long as they don't get in his way they're fine." This implies that Vel'Koz doesn't deal or work with void creatures that he finds to be lower to him or of lesser importance. However, Opeli also stated that "He's probably familiar with Kog's dad". Well, what does this all mean? It means that Kog's dad is not just some monster, he's a monster of importance in the void, one might even say an "upper class" Void inhabitant. "Familiar" could mean a lot of things, but let's examine it from the angle that Opeli was implying Kog's dad is of importance such as that of Vel'Koz or from this Void "upper class". If one examines the River King's paintings in the teaser and his close up at the end, one will notice that he wears a top hat, a tailcoat, and a gold ring around his whiskers if you'd call them that (idk he's a catfish thing). He also has the desire to attend royal affairs, as seen in the wedding disaster and his monologue to the gambler. For these reasons, I don't believe the River King, if he is indeed from the Void, is seen just as some run of the mill creature, he's an important, maybe even highly distinguished character in Void stature. This is why I believe that the River King is Kog's father from this Q&A piece, because if the King is from the Void, he fits the description interpreted of that of Kog's father.

5.. Kog's only truly fears his father/Kog only was brought to Runeterra because of his father This one is probably the biggest stretch I've had to make, but it still is an argument in my favor so what the hell. The only true reason we have to believe Kog has a father is his taunt in which he states "Terror coming...Daddy coming!". Now there are several questions this begs, but the two main ones are why does Kog fear his father and why does Kog know his dad's coming? Well, we know from Kog's lore that he entered Runeterra through a Void Rift created by Malzahar. Now here's the interesting part, in both Kog's lore and Malz's lore, it's indicated that Malzahar was inclined to do so because of an ominous voice that had invaded his mind (obviously from some Void creature or the Void itself, idk). The River King teaser too implies that the King has the ability to corrupt people's minds as he sang a siron-like song to draw the gambler towards the river. Now you may be thinking, "So what that's just a coincidence, the River King isn't capable of mind control". I don't think that the River King is the one who actually corrupted Malz's mind, I believe that was the Void itself or some other creature. What I do believe though is that the River King is the "ominous voice" that beckoned Malzahar to open the rift to allow Kog to enter Runeterra. This voice, whether or not it's the River King's, is most likely that of Kog's father as Kog was not brought to Runeterra by chance, he was selected. Kog must be entirely aware of this and thus soon expects his father to join him in the League. That's why I argue that the River King is probably the one who beckoned Malz to bring Kog to Runeterra as of his "persuasive abilities", if you could call them that, and for the fact that they share so much else in common. Also, as previously stated, Kog fears his father and this is a huge indicator that the King must be his father. As Kog is from the Void, I highly doubt much scares Kog. On top of that, all Kog knows is to eat and climb the food chain, which was his inclination to join the League of Legends. So what could scare a monstrous eating machine? Only something that could eat Kog, something higher on the food chain than him. I might have previously thought that someone like Cho would be Kog's father but let's face it, Kog said his dad was coming, not already here, whether here be the League or Runeterra. Knowing this, it's very possible that the River King is Kog's father as Kog would simply be an appetizer for the River King and the King seems to be the most insatiable champ to join the League of Legends.

Well those are my reasons for why Kog's dad could very likely be the River King. Again, these are just assumptions so don't take anything too seriously, but there still are questions to be answered about the background to this hungry beast. Anyways, thank you for reading this, and if you have any opinions or thoughts on the topic of your own, feel free to add on or criticize my argument. Adios.