Will "Faceless" Champions ever be Revealed?

A Superb Villain·3/26/2015, 10:21:46 PM·13 votes·5,922 views

Champion identity is a very delicate subject. Who a champion is and why we players love them, is tied to their character, their stories, and generally, when any of these details are changed, we become distraught. For some champions, the absence of an actual face is a large part of their character. For example:

Veigar Viktor Jax Malzahar MasterYi Nautilus Shaco Shen Zed Mordekaiser

Conversely, some champions have been exposed, such as:

Kayle Kassadin Akali

My question to any Rioter is, will any currently concealed champions be revealed?

For the rest of us, I ask should they be revealed?

56 Comments

KING OF MASKS3/27/2015, 9:33:16 AM10 votes

For some of them, yeah why not. For others, absolutely not, unless there are extenuating circumstances. If the champion in question revolves around an air of mystery (Shaco Nautilus Jax Mordekaiser), then unless the reveal is somehow game-changing, learning what's under the mask would actually be detrimental to their character(s). For example (I'm just spitballing here), if Nautilus stripped down and we discovered that the diving suit housed an ancient eldritch being that somehow fused with the former human Nautilus to forge a new, unstoppable incarnation of vengeance (à la Lich King), and they somehow tied the ancient eldritch being into some other, larger story arc, then okay. That's pretty neato. But what if instead we just got some weird necrotic zombie design that didn't expand upon Nautilus' character in any way? Then that would suck. In fact, it would effectively ruin Nautilus' character, because the air of mystery is shattered and nothing is introduced to replace it. Then there are other champions who don't rely on any kind of air of mystery. Shen Zed are two examples. Unmasking these champions wouldn't affect their lore or their character much at all, because mystery isn't a part of their identity. If we learned what Zed actually looked like under that helmet of his, what would change? Pretty much nothing.

On the other hand, for a select few champions, unmasking could have some really amazing storytelling potential. Think about Viktor's more human side. And what about Malzahar? What was he like before his conversion? Exciting stuff.

Edit: For the record I would count Swain in the first category.

Aatrox Herself3/26/2015, 10:30:28 PM9 votes

If you ever see what is behind Shaco's face, your already dead

Jeddy0173/27/2015, 1:46:33 AM8 votes

I think you forgot Pantheon For him,it's possible that we may one day see his face.

Ebonmaw Dragon3/26/2015, 11:43:57 PM8 votes

Did you know, that the original model of Veigar showed his face?

but yeah... its old and need an update.

redniwediS3/26/2015, 11:38:40 PM7 votes

Technically speaking two of those champions you've listed are showing their faces, with one possibly also showing his.

Viktor is no longer a man, and he wears his glorious evolution proudly. There are some remnants of his former self (like the hair) but for all intents and purposes what you're seeing in the base skin is Viktor as he now is.

Mordekaiser is from the shadow isles, and based on his appearance I would consider him to be closer to Hecarim than Karthus. He is a spirit bound to an inorganic body, there is not necessarily anything inside beyond more metal.

Nautilus is a special case. He could quite possibly still exist within that shell of armor that was once a diving suit, however it is also possible that he and the suit are one and the same now. His lore leaves both options on the table.

With all this said, however, we could end up seeing what each of these champions used to look like.

Zirzon3/27/2015, 1:07:02 PM4 votes

Kassadin: "No one cared who I was until I put on the mask..."

GaleWinUnleashed3/27/2015, 3:59:21 PM3 votes

I'm fairly sure that it's impossible for us to see Nautilus' face. He essentially is the suit now, and it's unlikely that the helmet can be removed anymore.

Tesla Effect3/26/2015, 10:34:34 PM2 votes

Yes please, I wanna know whats behind those mask. We must go all Scooby- Doo on them Rito!

Levyathyn3/27/2015, 10:21:25 AM2 votes

Pretty sure Malzahar looks like Antonia Banderas from Assassins. Or The 13th Warrior.

Forbidden Siren3/25/2016, 2:13:15 AM1 votes

I think KateyKhaos confirmed Shaco's face is maskless in his Wild Card skin.

Criomhthann3/27/2015, 7:47:14 PM1 votes

WHY DO THEY WEAR THE MASKS?

tifas left elbow3/28/2015, 12:56:38 AM1 votes

Mordekaiser Isn't he supposed to be some sort of spirit inhabiting the armor? So far as the rest, bring it.

COWmanLord3/28/2015, 12:59:01 AM1 votes

Kayle has a skin where her helmet is off. Actually 2 skins now that I think about it. Also I think somewhere in Nautilus lore they say his soul is like bound to the armor or something so he doesn't really have a face. Same with morde

NeedMeSomeAshe3/28/2015, 3:31:55 AM1 votes

Here is what Jax looks like.

SpiritGear3/28/2015, 3:58:09 AM1 votes

Kayle has Skin that reveals her face

Sorioku4/1/2015, 6:28:24 AM1 votes

I'm pretty sure that black is Vivi's face.

Spam E for4/3/2015, 10:21:42 AM1 votes

For a while I thought you meant mysterious characters like "C" from Cait's lore...but to stay in topic, I would love to see Master Yi and Shen unmasked! But for champions like Jax,Mordekaiser,Shaco..."Unmasking"them will kinda ruin their mysterious character :S don't know about the rest tho