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On Magical Disability in the Shuriman Empire

NotaRobot1006·11/7/2019, 10:18:10 PM·9 votes·9,926 views

WARNING: REALMS OF RUNETERRA SPOILERS AHEAD

The old Shuriman Empire killed the disabled. That's it in a nutshell. The book has a brief mention of the Baccai, failed Ascended, and says "it was considered a kindness to end their inhuman sufferings as quickly as possible." It does NOT specify whether the Baccai were consulted before being, you know, murdered.

This can go one of two ways:

  1. Baccai consented to being killed. Maybe they were in severe pain (though it's unlikely that applied to every single one of them), or maybe they believed they had no value as people because that's what their culture said. They failed Ascension, the greatest test there is, and therefore are worthless. Result: Baccai absorb toxic, dehumanizing values and commit suicide by proxy.

  2. Baccai did not consent to being killed. They were murdered as a "kindness" whether they wanted it or not. Result: Ancient Shuriman culture says killing the disabled AGAINST THEIR WILL is actually a good thing sometimes.

And make no mistake, these guys are disabled. The source is magic rather than injury or birth, but ultimately Shurima is killing a disabled subsection of its population. There are plenty of ways to be "kind" to disabled people without killing them. Those are called "accommodations." If the Baccai have trouble walking, get 'em some crutches. Soldiers lose limbs all the time, there's no way Shurima doesn't know what a crutch is. If the Baccai are in pain, get 'em painkillers. Shurima has no shortage of mages, there must be some kind of spell or herb that makes stuff hurt less.

But Shurima decided that accommodating the disabled just wasn't a good option and killed them instead. You could say that's symbolic of IRL devaluation of disabled lives, but right now I want to focus on Shurima specifically. Speaking as a disabled person (though not by magic), screw those guys.

Then again, they also had slaves. Probably shouldn't expect a lot of morality from them.

11 Comments

DerMangoJoghurt11/8/2019, 10:32:22 AM5 votes

I can also imagine they were killed to preserve the public image of the Ascended. They are the pride of Shurima and a symbol of strength that deters anything they've conquered from rebelling. Ascended are supposed to be incredibly powerful, unkillable, and overall god-like. As sad as it is, having basically disabled Ascended among their ranks would weaken that image. Their malformations most likely heavily impacted their combat capabilities, they appear to be relatively easy to kill against their will (as shown by their executions), and lastly they also tarnish the god-status of the Ascended (as far as we know there aren't any disabled gods in Runeterra).

It's still a cruel thing to do, but the perceived power of the Ascended probably prevented countless uprisings and rebellions, while also greatly reducing combat casualties in the rare cases those do happen. Killing of one person, Ascended or not, disabled or not, is absolutely worth it for the empire to maintain that image.

StonePlatypus11/8/2019, 3:29:00 AM3 votes

Pretty sure Baccai were incredibly violent. Not that they choose to be this way but pretty sure all were like this. They more or less got a needed death for screwing up. Pretty sure Ascension was voluntary, so they knew what they were getting into. Can't have monsters wanting to slaughter people running around. That is to say if I recall correctly.

WeAreDuo11/8/2019, 7:25:51 PM1 votes

I think overall Shurima has a heavy survivalist culture. Notice how those nomad tribes that ride on the backs of Dormuns abandon the old when they cant work the ropes anymore. Killing the disabled in the old days must have seemed very ethical to the general population. I can imagine that not being able to support yourself or contribute effectively to your immediate society was frowned upon, you can say that's just a product of the harsh desert climate

LuaDotExe11/8/2019, 9:19:30 PM1 votes

While I don't know anything about the specifics, I believe that the implication was "demented beyond recognition and turned grotesque", rather than "disabled". I also think that it would be absurdly painful for that to happen to you, and you wouldn't want to live on like that. You became, in the eyes of your society, an absolute failure. You went from "rising to honor of the highest magnitude" to "worse than a peasant" in a fraction of a second. I'm not sure on the specifics, but I'd assume rituals were available to be seen by the public-- or at least a few people-- in which case you not only have taken that fall, but have people to witness it. The important take away is that this is not only incredibly devastating to the mental health of the Baccai, but equivalent to breaking every bone in your body and then being dumped into a pile of flames. This is very different from losing a limb.

Edit: To note: because Ascension was also voluntary, to fail would be absolutely crushing, which further feeds into the comment about "I came seeking the highest peak but instead lost everything" and what that would do to their mental health.

StonePlatypus11/10/2019, 2:01:56 AM1 votes

I think until we have more information lore we can't make a ruling on anything.

Assuming Baccai are disabled (or just a different kind of transformation), assuming it was voluntary (or not), assuming if it was physical (or mental), and other factors.

All I can say if it was volunteered for then they are either not understanding what they are signing up for, or are fools who don't think it can fail.

At the end of the day I don't really think it matters too much. It's just League Lore, some people geek out on it, some people just like the game.

I am 50/50, lore is nice, but I'm not so attached to it that it affects me enjoying the game.

As far as things go if the Baccai signed up voluntary it's their fault for not thinking they could fail, not seeing it as an outcome, or they were fine with their place if they failed.

While you can blame it on Shurima or an emperor, they still had a choice. Perhaps that choice was slavery, servitude, death, or perhaps something else, but regardless they did this willingly, and if they did so unwillingly, well sucks to be them I guess.

I don't really see a situation I feel bad for them at all. The only situation I could see this being a problem is if they promised great things with no downsides, and never told anyone of the possibility of failure. If they ended up disabled it's only their fault if they were never informed of this possibility, or it was a new process and no one new and this was the result. However it isn't a new process, the result is known. Either they had the choice and willingly took the risk, or had no choice in the matter. This would lead to them being criminals, condemned, or something along those lines where becoming ascended or failing and becoming a Baccai are the only options, at that point it's a hail mary play.

Things have to be taken under the correct lens. This isn't a 1st world country in today's year of 2019. This is Year XXXX in fantasy land Runeterra. Different value systems, levels of comfort, and goverment all have roles to play. Let's say worst case scenario is Shrumia does this, full knowledge, and just executes them as you say, peoples fault for not revolting, either they are to weak to revolt, or they don't see it as a problem either.

Whatever direction they take I just don't hope it goes to hard left SJW or hard boomer right. I hope they keep politics out of gaming, but if they have to they at least tell a good story at least. Either way it will be interesting to see if Riot screws up, or if they can tell a good story. Popcorn will be made either way.