Boards›Story, Art, & Sound

Champions and Perceptions

Chromatic Eagle·5/17/2015, 4:37:04 PM·3 votes·2,510 views

It has come to my attention that there's a gap in how a champion's lore is written, their portrayal in game, and how various groups of fans and even Riot themselves view a champion.

With Ekko's eventual release, there's been a lot of talk about Zaun. One of the champions mentioned is Mundo. In lore, Mundo is a sociopath. He kills puppies, and experiments on people. While his experiments have changed his body and mind, he still essentially does the same things he did before. In game however, he seems to be more of a goofball, an almost lovable goofball by fans.

Now, if Riot were to ever change Mundo, how should he be? A serious, crazed monster, a goofball who doesn't quite understand how to interact with people, or a mix of both? Personally, I can see Mundo as someone who loves his work. That's a defining trait for Zaun, they love their work, they just don't care who they have to hurt to get their way. Mundo experimented on himself, so I don't think he's a pure sadist. Sadomasochist is more accurate. He might even like the people he's hurting. Maybe he's just curious about them?

I'm once again afraid that talking about story ideas, even if we're talking about their personas, may result in Riot refusing to work with it due to fan-fiction, but what are your perceptions about certain characters? Do you feel they match up with either the lore or their in-game portrayal? What about how other fans feel about them? Do people seriously consider Teemo to be Satan? Should the lore be changed to match our views or in-game versions? Should champions in-game be changed to match the lore and we change our views accordingly? Is there a compromise between these sides?

17 Comments

SEKAI5/17/2015, 4:42:44 PM6 votes

Mundo is happy all the time in the game because he gets to make both people and himself bleed there on the front line, given his nature.

Also the reason why he generally behaves and acts like that is due to his own physical enhancement drug that he has been overdosing over the years, which greatly handicaps his intelligence as a side effect.

He just hasn't lost all senses of self yet, seeing him actually acknowledging his own mental deformation and deconstructionism. He is just pretty optimistic about his own mental health that's all. He was pretty insane to begin with I wouldn't be surprised if he really just see that as an improvement.

RiotBioluminescence5/18/2015, 8:57:42 PM4 votes

Now, if Riot were to ever change Mundo, how should he be? A serious, crazed monster, a goofball who doesn't quite understand how to interact with people, or a mix of both? Personally, I can see Mundo as someone who loves his work. That's a defining trait for Zaun, they love their work, they just don't care who they have to hurt to get their way. Mundo experimented on himself, so I don't think he's a pure sadist. Sadomasochist is more accurate. He might even like the people he's hurting. Maybe he's just curious about them?

I know that the names of abilities usually aren't much for giving lore or story information, but for Dr. Mundo, they are:

  • Adrenaline Rush
  • Infected Cleaver
  • Burning Agony
  • Masochism
  • Sadism

Which would back up your suggestion.
A few people seem to think that Mundo's evilness might come from his self-experimentation, whereas it is implied that he was doing terrible things to the neighborhood pets even as a child (before, I assume, he was chemically modifying himself). Unless I am misunderstanding where those players are coming from.

kitcat3005/17/2015, 9:08:34 PM3 votes

Maybe Mundo could fill a similar role as Kreig from Borderlands 2. Krieg had many brutal/sadistic lines, but his mannerisms and delivery made them funny and entertaining.

McAllister5/19/2015, 7:03:40 PM3 votes

I'm willing to accept Mundo being a slobbering meathead in the game because he ups the dose on his 'roids in preparation for 20-60 minutes of killing and being killed, but I'd love to see some evidence that he's still a brilliant scientist off the Fields of... I mean... when he's not fighting. Maybe we're playing Mr. Hyde, but I want a glimpse of Dr. Jekyll.

Hellioning5/18/2015, 9:18:53 PM2 votes

Why can't he be both? He enjoys playing games and is a general goofball, but his 'games' are deadly combat and he enjoys hurting people and getting hurt.

GreenLore5/19/2015, 8:24:07 PM2 votes

Overall this has been a big problem for quite some time. Many champions have basically different representations.I mean ahri is supposed to feel remorse over killing humans,but judging by her ingame quotes it sounds like she enjoys combat quite a bit. I think for characters like these the safest route would be to combine these different aspects of their personality,Mundo can be a funny guy who talks in a weird way,but that doesn't mean he can't be a psychopathic sadomasochist too and while ahri feels remorse for her actions she probably still enjoys flirting and playing with her enemies quite a bit.

Then there are champions who have barely any personality at all.I mean Sona is floating around thinking about music all the time(and taric is basically the same just with gems),but I think these are even worse,since Riot more or less has to think of a real personality for them,that still feels fitting.