I can't help but notice that vastaya are typically defined as human/animal hybrids. That said, I can't help but notice the Ascended like Azir, Nasus and Renektion, with the exception of Xerath are all also human animal hybrids. So that begs the question: Are Ascended also special variants of Vastaya? If they are, then why isn't Xerath a animal hybrid?
Xerath is a Electric Eel/Human hybrid.
They aren't. Being Ascended, while it typically involves an animal totem, is fundamentally different from being vastaya.
Ascended beings are basically demigods, and in the lore would be much more powerful than your average vastaya.
It does raise an interesting question, though; could a vastaya become Ascended?
Vastaya are not Ascended. The Ascended are humans who were granted power by the gods of Shurima. The Vastaya are just animal people who evolved, rather than being created by gods.
I like to think of the Ascended as being literally possessed by the gods, similar to how it was believed to happen in the ancient Egyptian culture that Shurima is obviously based on.
Xerath isn't even true ascended he's screwed up that's why he looks the way he does.
Think of the vastaya as naturally occurring chimeric beings, the ascended is a position granted by the gods and through ritual, unnaturally occuring chimeric demi gods
The vastayan are magical, but magic is a natural part of runeterra
The only reason they are animals is because of what they're wearing. If you read Azir's color text, you'll see him wearing a falcon helmet. The animal is what they're wearing. Xerath wasn't wearing anything meant to give his ascension shape, so he became energy.
They are not. The ascended have been gifted their power from the sungod via the sundisc through the ascention ritual.
Though it is fully possible that the ritual not only uses sun-magic but also similar to magic that the Vastaya live in. We do not have any details on that though.
No, they achieve this form after an ascenison ritual at the Sun disk. It may be possible that their form could be linked to latent vastayan genetics, and when combined with the energy from the Sun disk they ascend. But this would be linking the Vastaya to much into the lore.
Xerath's Ascension was meant for Azir, he stole it. Since preparations were made for Azir, ritual couldn't accept Xerath. So he literally just fucked up the entire ritual.
He also consumed much more energy of the sun than any ascended as he forced sun priests to continue the ritual (probably mind controlling). He just drained it so his flesh and blood got obliterated.
