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The PROJECT Storyline & Universe

Dreamspitter··57 votes·28,194 views

First let us review our cast of characters. Jhin

"All the world’s a stage, And all the men and women merely players; They have their exits and their entrances; And one man in his time plays many parts" -As You Like It, Act II Scene VII

G/NETIC - A rebel faction led by Ashe fighting against PROJECT Ashe Ekko Fiora Yasuo Leona Lucian

PROGRAM -Wholly artificial beings, implied to control PROJECT. Like Skynet it isn't hardware. It's software. Camille Lissandra Soraka EDIT:Blitzcrank

PROJECT (???) -Megacorporation controls all augmentation. Most of the characters it seems were apart of this. Since Katarina and Zed are fighting against G/NETIC I assume them to be apart of it. Yi sounds as though he is a man on the edge. On the one hand he rescues others, and fights Zed but...he has some odd quotes. Katarina Zed MasterYi (Formerly?)

HUNTERS -These are individuals all after something. None of them seem to be following higher orders, rather they act on their own. Vayne has her one woman quest for vengeance at any cost. The Vigilante. Vi is the cop, and an honest one which Vayne notes as a rarity. Whereas others would see an open and shut case, Vi wants the truth. Jhin is a collector of black market tech seeking upgrades. The Artist. Vayne Vi Jhin

The first big question is, what is PROJECT?

PROJECT: is the perfect fusion of one’s supernatural essence with advanced weaponry and body augmentation. This linking of technology and energy allows extraordinary hosts to channel their essence into physical manifestations and, in rare cases, transcend the corporeal plane. Only subjects possessing extremely focused inner essence and exceptional physical attributes can unlock the true power of PROJECT." https://na.leagueoflegends.com/en/news/champions-skins/creative-spotlight/how-project-champs-transcended-humanity

In ways, PROJECT is something we've seen before. A kind of fusion between the magical and technological, like Hextech with a totally different vibe and aesthetic. Not everyone can wield it, as it requires an extraordinary inner power. It can allow you to manifest your essence -perhaps as weapons, blasts of energy, or.....even transcend humanity.

"Through my work, you shall transcend." -Jhin

This gives us an interesting idea- Astral PROJECTION. It makes me want to go back to Projection of the Astral Body by Sylvan J. Muldoon. If PROJECT were to allow a human to transcend corporeal reality, they could become utterly immortal and everlasting. One could perhaps transfer from one machine body to another even after the destruction of it. It could represent absolute freedom, power of mind over body, and reality itself. It makes sense that people of the PROJECT world would pursue it, but there many problems that have come along with this.

Most of these skins are 1350 Epic Skins, but a few of them are 1820 Legendary skins. The latter have fully new voice overs that contain interesting details. We can examine some of the themes of the PROJECT setting through the skins that have been released.

#Lost Memories

Ashe "Memories are more than ones and zeroes." "Erasing our memories only ensures we repeat our mistakes." "Each reboot, a fresh guiltless mind." "Today only matters if we can remember it tomorrow."

MasterYi "Do not trust corrupted memories." "Memories... like shadows in the fog." "We are memories - deleted."

#Lies In The Code & Life Under PROJECT

Ashe "The source code lies." "They promised us infinite possibility. They lied."

MasterYi "Mercy is stilling a chaotic mind." "Order must be enforced." "Humanity has faltered." "Isolate the radicals." "These... are not my thoughts!"

Vayne "Every trace of PROJECT must be eradicated." "I will break your code." "PROGRAM is PROJECT Unchained" "For humanity to heal it must sometime ally with the virus." -Program Ally "To them, we are nothing but lab rats and batteries." "One more iteration and they will have no need for us." "I was rebuilt to override everything they are."

#Mortality, Humanity, Reality

Ashe "My humanity cannot be overwritten." "Will always trumps programming." "We aren't weapons, we're human beings." "So long as you refuse to obey, you are human." "Memories are what make us human."

MasterYi "Have I died?" "I see the edge of living." "We are not meant to grasp eternity." "Weakness is... human."

Vayne "The enemy is in all of us, programmed in our very core." "All we are is an accumulation of Data" "I am no longer human."

https://i.imgur.com/JeHYIbX.jpg

#Of Rats, and Cats, and Neon Mice https://universe.leagueoflegends.com/en_US/story/project-of-rats-and-cats-and-neon-mice/

The first PROJECT story that I know of. I enjoyed it and look forward to more. While voice lines from the few Legendary skins, and cinematic trailers give us hints of what is going on and what this 'skinverse' setting is about, writing takes us directly into it.

The PROJECT setting takes place in a particular city, unnamed with a population numbering about 100 million. The Tokyo metropolitan area spread over multiple prefectures holds only close to 40 million. I take the city to be a bit like the Boston-to-Atlanta Metropolitan Area in Gibson's Sprawl trilogy. The Boston-Washington Corridor or Northeast Megalopolis is projected to reach 58 million by 2025. It's divided into many sectors -perhaps like city blocks, but also vertical levels. The lower levels are poorer and destitute compared to wealthier upper levels. This reminds me strongly of the relationship between Piltover and Zaun currently.

This is a dark world lit by neon. Neon itself is an aesthetic choice, since a world so advanced probably wouldn't use gas-discharge tubes. Cyberpunk is a genre full of retrofuturism. It often rains in the PROJECT art, giving us a Noir feel. If this were set on Earth, perhaps it could be Seattle home of Shadowrun. But, one of the characters notes that while he is old (intending to retire 20 years ago) he's still not old enough to remember "real" rain. There's no mention of greenery, or plants and the rain that falls is produced by moisture condensers. Why though is a good question. Perhaps it helps clean polluted air?

https://i.imgur.com/oU9LuyU.jpg

Everyone in this setting pursues augmentation. But most people can't afford augments fresh off the assembly line. The poor, and working class acquire older parts that upper sectors no longer want. After using augment technology for a time, one's memories somehow become imprinted on the technology. Remember ....PROJECT interfaces with the soul . In a sense, this means after you upgrade, you leave behind a piece of your essence.

"At my last performance hearing, I asked the reviewing officers what it took to make it in Central. One of them said you had to be ready to trade a piece of yourself—that every upgrade would take you higher up PROJECT’s command line, but would cost some more of who you were in the bargain. "

Characters are bothered by memories that aren't there's passing through them because of used hardware. Sometimes scrubbing the hardware dozens of times can't remove them and one could imagine some people becoming cluttered by thoughts and feelings they can't get rid of. Jhin has been collecting high end parts stolen, or taken right from his kills -but had experienced personality fragmentation. In theory, in this way Jhin might keep the memories of his targets last moments. In Shadowrun, an illegal cyberdrug is called "Better Than Life" or BTLs (Beetles). These single use chips allow you to relive someone else's memories of anything -just as if it were happening. Adventure, Romance, Wealth can all be yours- for a time. Unlike commercial simsense tech, BTLs have no limits to intensity or content. Sex is common, but there is also are rape, murder, torture (giving or receiving), and other crime. Some BTLs are strictly mood chips, with all data except the emotion edited out and overrides removed, so one can move about in the real world and still be aware of one's environment.

It is implied that, in certain cases it might be possible to raise people from the dead. Jhin reveals to us that Shauna Vayne and her squad "all died". But they "Rebuilt" her because she was "special". It may be that Yi, Yasuo, and others are these special souls. Jhin says that she "wears them well." indicating most of her hardware was reclaimed from them. And further, that "PROJECT rebuilds us all." Based on Ashe's remarks certain military personnel might be formatted after "death" in an attempt to gain complete control over them. Or like the Hashashin of old (from which the word Assassin comes) , who were said to smoke hashish in hopes of forgetting their crimes or believing them to be only a dream.

37 Comments

XIII Vanitas10 votes

You missed iBlitzcrank, he's one of the Program skins.

Dreamspitter9 votes

Another thought.

What happens when someone dies?

Since PROJECT can interact with the "soul" then the soul , does that mean a soul can be kept in a mechanical body forever? What could be the long term consequences of this? Yi says that humanity was "not meant" to grasp Eternity. If a person dies, should their soul be "reincarnated" in some other form? Would a machine body cause a soul to become trapped, and unable to be spun in the wheel of fate?

If PROJECT "rebuilds" someone, do they pull their eternal essence from the aether?

Project Ashe has an interaction with Project Lucian , in which she mentions Senna. Could that mean that....Program Thresh could be a possible future skin?

"A spirit cannot be engineered." -MasterYi

Project Yi says that souls cannot be engineered by man. Therefore, does this imply that fully aware robots could have the reincarnated souls of humans, provided the vessels are capable of holding them?

RiotKindlejack29 votes

This is why I really love Program Soraka's splash. Is it salvation at the hands of a mechanical angel, or the oppression of being trapped in a cycle of reincarnation? She won't let you die...

Dreamspitter2 votes

{quoted}

This is why I really love Program Soraka's splash. Is it salvation at the hands of a mechanical angel, or the oppression of being trapped in a cycle of reincarnation? She won't let you die...

A few things about that....

The hand in her splash is a LEFT hand, that is dark skinned. This could theoretically belong to Ekko, or to Lucian. However , both of these characters have organic right hands with nails faintly visible. However also realize that Soraka carries her staff in her RIGHT hand in her model. Not the LEFT as in this splash art. It's not uncommon for splashes to be REVERSED from the actual model

https://ddragon.leagueoflegends.com/cdn/img/champion/splash/Soraka_6.jpg https://i.imgur.com/YNFMDud.jpg

So correcting that it suddenly becomes "correct"

And probably inspired by this.

"Come with me if you want to live."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T-2FkSlShqo

We don't see a lot of English language text in art or documents, but there is an "NK" on the vertical sign in the picture. This might stand for

B A N K

So money might exist in this universe -albeit we hear "credits" mentioned. With internet like systems you would think there would be no need for a physical place to deposit, or receive money.

Behind her is a red pink blast on energy, with projectiles shooting out in multiple directions. Could this then be Katarina using Death Lotus?

ChuShoe7 votes

New comic Idea, PROJECT: Ashe trying to int, but program raka just keeps healing her, getting ashe the penta. Ashe then looks at her tormenter, and screams "WHY. WON'T. YOU. LET. ME. DIE."

Velzard of Koz1 votes

Soraka being able to save the team from inters and trolls? That will make her OP.

Crimson Anam1 votes

{quoted}

This is why I really love Program Soraka's splash. Is it salvation at the hands of a mechanical angel, or the oppression of being trapped in a cycle of reincarnation? She won't let you die...

Kindlejack, maybe you mentioned it before, but is it true now then that Program faction and PROJECT faction belong to the same universe?

Which would also mean PROJECT Vayne being revived in Of Rats and Cats and Neon Mice was indeed no coincidence, as its something Programs like Soraka could do. It's actually a good spin on Soraka's theme and kit for PROGRAM-PROJECT storytelling.

RiotKindlejack3 votes

PROJECT was first given a solid story when it was needed for the cinematic done with the first 'set' of skins. This was fairly new ground for the skins team as the idea of thematics and alt universes was just beginning to be discussed. A few of us new concept artists were very excited by the idea and spent a lot of time pushing for more story, cohesion, etc. but at the time it was kept pretty light; Evil Megacorp vs Freedom Fighters. In subsequent years we've added layers to this which I think is turning out to be a really unique way to introduce a world. We've done a similar thing with SG, SG, BM etc. where we begin in with the central characters then spiral out learning about the broader story.

When we created Program Lissandra, it was always my intention that she be the AI mastermind behind the PROJECT as the 'bad guys' were under-represented with just Zed and the heroes were really missing a villain. I was lucky enough to work on the follow up set with Ashe, Ekko and Katarina as well as Camille's launch skin and we used them all to continue to flesh out that story (Ekko is Ashe's hacker insurgent and Camille is Lissandra's human hunter, each sent to destroy the other leader). But without a cinematic that story remained largely internal 'head-canon' until much more recently when the team got some narrative support and decided to be more proactive with alt-u storytelling. It's been awesome to see everyone from promotion to execution all working together to give releases a consistent tone and voice and I'm glad (now that I'm not on the team) they are supporting all our wild notions from days of yore.

Moonboy651 votes

do you know the names for PROJECT: Jhin and PROJECT: Vayne's weapons/equipment?

ChuShoe1 votes

It's mentioned in the story, jhin has a pulse rifle and vayne just has a crossbow. I think the thing on her wrist was called a boltcaster? not sure.

GelsominoKiller3 votes

I am fairly sure that the PROJECT takes the ghosts of long dead warriors of the past from the ether and puts them in a biotechnological shell trying to override their memories in order to control them as tools. This works for some (Zed, Katarina), but others break free (G/NETIC).

In the previous cinematic, Yi remembers being killed by some samurai dudes. The setting is evidently in a distant past (architecture, greenery, samurai armors & weapons), so I conclude that yi was long dead, and his notable soul was taken from the afterlife to power his PROJECT.

I even believe that the PROGRAMS are the entities that interact directly with the souls, with each one of them having specific purposes (ex: PROGRAM soraka "not letting you die", meaning taking your soul and putting it into another shell if your previous one was broken).

Dreamspitter1 votes

{quoted}

I am fairly sure that the PROJECT takes the ghosts of long dead warriors of the past from the ether and puts them in a biotechnological shell trying to override their memories in order to control them as tools. This works for some (Zed, Katarina), but others break free (G/NETIC).

In the previous cinematic, Yi remembers being killed by some samurai dudes. The setting is evidently in a distant past (architecture, greenery, samurai armors & weapons), so I conclude that yi was long dead, and his notable soul was taken from the afterlife to power his PROJECT.

I even believe that the PROGRAMS are the entities that interact directly with the souls, with each one of them having specific purposes (ex: PROGRAM soraka "not letting you die", meaning taking your soul and putting it into another shell if your previous one was broken).

[sg-zephyr]

Feels Bárd 6 votes

I really enjoyed reading all of this!

I've had some difficulty putting the "teams" together. I'm really curious as to what Yi's deal is in this PROJECT world. I kept thinking back to that cinematic where he [Yi] us strapped down to the seat and is remembering some scary looking samurai dude approaching him.

I think it would be awesome if Riot released more stories on the PROJECT universe.

Good read!!

CytheGuy2 votes

Master Yi is probably someone who had a decent amount of "essence" and went through a memory wipe to be upgraded. He ended up realizing this though, and saw that he needed to fight against it. The thoughts that aren't his own were probably implemented into him because the PROJECT corporation saw him as a threat and tried to control him, but because of his "essence" he is able to fight it and realize what has happened to him.

Festive Bear1 votes

{quoted}

Master Yi is probably someone who had a decent amount of "essence" and went through a memory wipe to be upgraded. He ended up realizing this though, and saw that he needed to fight against it. The thoughts that aren't his own were probably implemented into him because the PROJECT corporation saw him as a threat and tried to control him, but because of his "essence" he is able to fight it and realize what has happened to him.

In his project trailer though, it shows his memories of his village being burnt down as told in his lore. Maybe one of his ancestors had the same armor and therefore he has these memories?

CytheGuy1 votes

But then the PROJECT: Master Yi skin isn't even Yi himself, but rather one of his descendants (assuming he has descendants after his village was destroyed)

Festive Bear1 votes

{quoted}

But then the PROJECT: Master Yi skin isn't even Yi himself, but rather one of his descendants (assuming he has descendants after his village was destroyed)

That's what I'm saying, when he says "these thoughts, are not mine", his memories could just be fragments of whoever had the armor last. And the "familiar scent" with the "never trust corrupted memories", could be him associating those 'fake' memories with his current experiences. Because his lore says that he never fought anyone back at his village, only to see the ruins and everyone dead or dying. But shown in his PROJECT trailer, he did fight someone. Showing that something doesn't match up. My thought is that, there was a PROJECT, or machine being in the attack on Yi's village. However, they did something wrong and were killed off by what seems to be the leader of the killing. So when Yi was 'upgraded', the parts from the machine that helped kill his village were used. Perhaps to constantly remind him of what happened, and attempt to corrupt his own self. As he did not truly master Wuju until he was able to clear his mind of what happened, and did not fight for vengeance anymore. This caused him to become one of, if not, THE most powerful bladesman in Runeterra. So IF he were to fall to those thoughts again, his skill and strength would fall and the Noxian army would be able to destroy him.

ReisenTheDos4 votes

I wonder how Pulsefire fits into the Project universe thanks to several lines from Puslefire Caitlyn. Especially whenever she kills a PROJECT skin character, she's afraid she might had accidentally messed up her timeline.

AFilthyCaitMain4 votes

This is exactly what I thought. I think Pulsefire is sometime after the PROJECT era, as time manipulation and technology seems to have advanced.

JooshBox4 votes

This is a really detailed and thorough post, I look forward to reading it after I finish up the PROJECT: story. There's a cute little easter egg in the story that I haven't seen mentioned anywhere yet. Vi's badge number is her release date.Vi

Blaiz Fenix3 votes

I always thought the PROJECT, Mecha, Program, and Battlecast skins were all contingent on Viktor.

The Mecha skin line being the initial designs that were completely inorganic, but ultimately being a failure because he couldn't control Sion.

He then created the PROJECT initiative because he felt the soul would make them easier to control and was successful with Zed and Katarina, but the addition of memories, the organic component, led to free will in some of them. This led to the G/NETIC faction. The hunters I believe were intermediaries between the Zed faction and Ashe's group that first showed signs of wanting independence, but not to overthrow the status quo.

Program in my thinking was the same as you. AI to control the Megacomplex and the PROJECT but each one seems to represent different parts. Lissandra as the central computer, Soraka to maintain the order that's established by "helping" cyborgs/robots in danger of destruction, and Camille to delete any rogue dissidents.

The Battlecast is rather obvious as not only the pinnacle of Viktor's efforts as the perfect combination of biological inspiration fused with indomidable machinery, they also serve to increase their ranks by finding "additional specimens," according to Skarner, and protect the empire he has created.

Those were my thoughts at least. As a side note, the Battlecast skins seem like the perfect combination Piltover and Zaun technology. The clean, efficient crafting of hextech with the rough, unfettered power of chemtech.

ChuShoe2 votes

So is project an example of a dystopia?

Dreamspitter1 votes

{quoted}

So is project an example of a dystopia?

Is it?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4YbMqcQK0k4

tendo6252 votes

You should include the character motivations. Kindlejack commented on them here: https://www.reddit.com/r/leagueoflegends/comments/6rw755/what_do_you_think_of_the_programproject_universe/dlbixrl/

Solidair31 votes

Great read, thanks for throwing this together!

I actually haven't gotten a chance to read the PROJECT story yet, but PROJECT is a fascinating world that I want to know more about.

Moonboy651 votes

there's also Battlecast and Mecha who could potentially be part of the same universe

A Liberal1 votes

Isn't super galaxy part of the Battlecast/Mecha universe?

Moonboy652 votes

no, Super Galaxy is in it's own universe

FlameHalbrdOkido1 votes

Good enough to make a new story based game from

GenoXx1 votes

+1

RobAaronCross1 votes

I WANT PROJECT:Talon

DarkKatalyst1 votes

Program Nami pls, Riot!

Dreamspitter1 votes

{quoted}

Program Nami pls, Riot!

Well....

[{quoted}](name=Feels Bárd ,realm=NA,application-id=6kFXY1kR,discussion-id=HwVaBUEX,comment-id=0000,timestamp=2017-11-27T18:30:30.350+0000)

I really enjoyed reading all of this!

I've had some difficulty putting the "teams" together. I'm really curious as to what Yi's deal is in this PROJECT world. I kept thinking back to that cinematic where he [Yi] us strapped down to the seat and is remembering some scary looking samurai dude approaching him.

I think it would be awesome if Riot released more stories on the PROJECT universe.

Good read!!

Relating to the above. A long time ago Riot said after Pentakill, when making group skins they wanted ALL the champions in them to be able to play together as a team that works. That means people have to fill all positions.

PROJECT has a large number of characters -12 not counting PROGRAM but trying to divide them up is difficult.

That aside PROGRAM apparently includes iBlitzcrank though it's got a unique name, AND Soraka. Adding another support seems odd at first, but in theory both Blitz and Soraka could top lane or support. In fact Blitz was long, long ago intended to be a top laner before being relegated to support.

DarkKatalyst1 votes

Right, but notice how only one support has a Project skin. The rules governing Project and Program skins are definitely different from trying to make a working team.

I think the rules are, "Is the champion a normal looking human? Then Project," otherwise, "Is the champion a non-human or have an abnormal body? Then Program."

So far, Riot is following the trend of those rules. This is why I think Program Nami can definitely happen.

Modl Ryden l1 votes

How about Pulsefire Caitlyn and Ezreal.

I believe in one of Caitlyn's quotes, she mentions how slaying a PROJECT: champion might affect her timeline. Where does the time travelling between Caitlyn and Ezreal tie in all this?

HudnofskiBleh1 votes

Is it confirmed that Project, Mecha, and Battlecast are seperate universes?

ChuShoe1 votes

My personal theory was always project is a fractured group of factions all fighting each other, revived from fighting against viktor's "glorious evolution" terminator-esque battlecast epidemic, programs were built to keep project in line or healthy, and the mechas, I haven't found a place for them in the theorized timeline yet, but it's basically just giant robots fighting, pacific-rim style.

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