So Kled's Q&A's Going on, and apparently yordles "manifest"

Sharjo··8 votes·3,670 views
SHUT UP AND GET IN THIS KLED Q&A

{quoted} 5. Yordle lore -- incoming soon i believe. Yordles are attracted to Runeterra cultures and enjoy manifesting around certain human ideals.

For context WAAARGHbobo is the principle writer for Kled, and his past works include Jhin, Illaoi, Tahm Kench and Rek'Sai.

Now this little lore nuggets gives us some insight in to how yordles work; being potentially not wholly physical entities, but one thing I do wanna point out is that this explains why Tahm hates yordle kind: demons embody the vices of mankind, while yordles embody human ideals. Vices versus virtues essentially. This essentially makes demons and yordles diametrically opposed entities.

Also if yordles are non physical at least some of the time, then them having special means of travelling around Runeterra, as was described by the new little "Did you know" things that appear in your loading screens, make sense; yordles go non physical and find pathways that exist only to beings like themselves.

Also yordle lore incoming. HYPEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE.

So, thoughts?

EDIT: Another dollop from the mad man himself -

{quoted}

Well observed. Yordle Lore coming soonish I believe (#no_idea_of_release_date --Might be a while) Yordles are magical creatures-- like fairies or --OMITED NAME (coming soon!)--- . They interact with the physical world and manifest in peculiar ways. So how YOU would see them is quite different compared to how a child or Garen might. Even Lux would see Kled slightly differently than her brother does because her relationship with magic and that heroic ideal is different than Garen's.

35 Comments

Shíny6 votes

Yordles are attracted to human culture , but I hope they still have a culture of their own. It'd be rather disappointing if they were completely human in origin.

Also i still dislike the whole "innate magic" thing and feel like it takes away from some of the yordle's accomplishments and underdog feel.

Fasmodey6 votes

{quoted}

Yordles are attracted to human culture , but I hope they still have a culture of their own. It'd be rather disappointing if they were completely human in origin.

Also i still dislike the whole "innate magic" thing and feel like it takes away from some of the yordle's accomplishments and underdog feel.

It started to be annoying.

Tahm Kench's appereance changes with person that he is going to feed on its misery. Appereance of yordles change with person's culture and mind and they see them different. Kindred's appreance changes with person's culture and mind again. Darkalops are also same.

It is quitely boring theme to go. Tahm Kench was ok, Kindred was also ok. In the end, Tahm Kench travels to anywhere in Runeterra, Kindred is omnipresent. So they have some unique and rare abilities. But yordles? muh innate magic, muh unstable appereance. And there are many of them.

Warlord Dienekes6 votes

I've said it before the creatures and characters and races are almost always more interesting the more you step them away from weird magic, unless they're the side shows and random exceptions. If they keep trying to make everything some new form of unexplained mysticism the world will seem erratic and the cultures will be uninteresting and ungrounded. And plots that focus on magic characters will be strange and unexplained because we will have no idea what's happening and why.

Sunreach2 votes

[{quoted}](name=Warlord Dienekes,realm=NA,application-id=6kFXY1kR,discussion-id=IvETkIfR,comment-id=00030001,timestamp=2016-08-09T21:35:12.217+0000)

I've said it before the creatures and characters and races are almost always more interesting the more you step them away from weird magic, unless they're the side shows and random exceptions. If they keep trying to make everything some new form of unexplained mysticism the world will seem erratic and the cultures will be uninteresting and ungrounded. And plots that focus on magic characters will be strange and unexplained because we will have no idea what's happening and why.

I thought there intentions for this "lore overhaul" that they described in the "Dev Blog: Exploring Runeterra" post was to make the story more concise. This seems counterproductive to that.

Sunreach4 votes

This seems like an excuse for the writers to ignore yordle culture and just integrate their identity into whatever human settlement they were supposedly manifested to represent. It seems like they've eluded to Bandle City not even existing in the new lore. Where does that leave so many of the yordle champions that are tied directly to Bandle City? This is just such an oddball story decision. Yordles were such an original race idea and had very intersting lore attatched to them (albeit quite limited and not very detailed). But regardless, they seemed to be a sentient race of their own, not these "magical manifestations" that they are supposedly going to be changed to. I'm worried that their identity will be lost and replaced as mere "manifestations of whoever perceives them"

Like...??

Sharjo3 votes

Considering that one of new Tristana's lines is "How's that for a bandle city beat down?" I'd say that Bandle City does still exist. I feel like folks like Teemo and Tristana embody what yordles that just do yordle stuff are like while folks like Poppy, Kled and Kennen are among the small number who appear to humans physically and come to represent the most idealistic version of the culture of the humans around them.

Also yordles were never an original race idea. They were League's diminutive people, and transitioned in to a more inventor-ish angle as time went on. They're equatable to the gnomes of Warcraft (and every other fantasy genre that uses gnomes in a similar fashion that I just can't recall right now) and the Asura of Guild Wars.

Sunreach2 votes

{quoted}

Considering that one of new Tristana's lines is "How's that for a bandle city beat down?" I'd say that Bandle City does still exist. I feel like folks like Teemo and Tristana embody what yordles that just do yordle stuff are like while folks like Poppy, Kled and Kennen are among the small number who appear to humans physically and come to represent the most idealistic version of the culture of the humans around them.

Also yordles were never an original race idea. They were League's diminutive people, and transitioned in to a more inventor-ish angle as time went on. They're equatable to the gnomes of Warcraft (and every other fantasy genre that uses gnomes in a similar fashion that I just can't recall right now) and the Asura of Guild Wars.

By saying "original" I meant that they were the most prevalent non-human race in the game. Obviously them being short isn't any great breakthrough, especially in a fantasy genre. (gnomes/goblins/dwarves/asura/chua/hobbits/halflings/etc).

My issue with this new info is that it seems to sap at their potency as a race. If they are 'spirit manifestations' that change depending on who is perceiving them, then it still begs the question: What the hell are they?

Then again, WAAARGHbobo was so vague that it's hard to really make judgement about what this means for yordlekind/Bandle City until this supposed "yordle lore" arrives (soonish, apparently?)

Fasmodey2 votes

Poppy - Loyalty Kled - Rage Veigar - Hate Heimerdinger - Mentality Ziggs - Madness Rumble - ??? Teemo - Courage Lulu - Wonder Kennen - Stability

ModWulf Helhammer1 votes

Tristana?

Fasmodey1 votes

{quoted}

Tristana?

Idealism? Not that simple, but she carries idealism. She is idealist, adventerous, curious, honest etc.

Sharjo2 votes

I don't think it's that simple really; Poppy's about honour, courage and the Demacian way. They seemingly become representative of human cultures as a whole rather than of a single trait.

I suppose you could take Heimerdinger as a yordle who embodies ideals like ingenuity, perseverance, intelligence and craftsmanship, among other things.

Also another thing I realise; this might be why yordles appear to be aged - they actually have no age, but their appearance is affected by the ideals they embody, and so when yordles like Heimerdinger and Corki took on such forms they looked older as a sign of those qualities. Or not I dunno.

Fasmodey2 votes

{quoted}

I don't think it's that simple really; Poppy's about honour, courage and the Demacian way. They seemingly become representative of human cultures as a whole rather than of a single trait.

I suppose you could take Heimerdinger as a yordle who embodies ideals like ingenuity, perseverance, intelligence and craftsmanship, among other things.

Also another thing I realise; this might be why yordles appear to be aged - they actually have no age, but their appearance is affected by the ideals they embody, and so when yordles like Heimerdinger and Corki took on such forms they looked older as a sign of those qualities. Or not I dunno.

I already figured out they're not that simple when I was classifying, because as you said, they carry more than one ideal. In the end, even the Angel of Justice can carry wisdom. :)

Edit: Grammar mistakes.

Valaran Nara1 votes

{quoted}

Poppy - Loyalty Kled - Rage Veigar - Hate Heimerdinger - Mentality Ziggs - Madness Rumble - ??? Teemo - Courage Lulu - Wonder Kennen - Stability

Kled: Might makes right.(Rage isn't a virtue. Might and victory defying the odds is their virtue.)

Liwet1 votes

{quoted}

Poppy - Loyalty Kled - Rage Veigar - Hate Heimerdinger - Mentality Ziggs - Madness Rumble - ??? Teemo - Courage Lulu - Wonder Kennen - Stability

no teemo is satanicTeemo [slayer-pantheon-thumbs]

The Soulforged2 votes

I honestly don't like the direction of changing yordles to simply be a representation of different cultures. It just doesn't really fit what we knew about yordles before all of this new lore. They're cute cuddly folk, but before they were just another race that lived in civilization. They seem to be turning into spirits that manifest into the stuff of fairy tales, which I think doesn't fit what we previously knew yordles to be.

SlyTactician 2 votes

Its extremely confusing so far, and I do hope Riot gives us information about the yordles soon. I really dont like the direction of just making the yordles as magical beings that manifest human ideals honestly - it just makes them feel generic and unimportant to the lore as a whole as specific characters.

We recognize the yordles as cute, furry little underdog characters that want peace, but at the same time co-existed with humans to share their improved technology and so on. I do wonder what state Bandle City is as well as I really hoped we would learn more about the yordle homelands as opposed to just more of Noxus or Demacia.

Yordles are my favourite champs and species in the game, so I really hope justice is given to them as opposed to just being mythical fairy-like beings. Also I thought Kennen was recruited by the Kinkou due to his burst like speed by running up the placidium in Ionia- now Ive heard that hes even older than Shen/Akali and even Shen`s father? o.o

Sahn Uzal1 votes

Oh so you're alive, I was kinda shocked when I saw Kled's bio was up, but no sharjo thread to be found...

Sharjo3 votes

The sod you talkin' 'bout son? I made a post! It's right there!!!

http://boards.na.leagueoflegends.com/en/c/story-art/AROZU71r-kleds-bio-has-been-released

Sahn Uzal1 votes

Oh so I'm just blind. Fair enough

Sunreach1 votes

The hints on yordle lore that they are spilling are confusing <_>

Sharjo2 votes

Basically just think of them as spiritual pixie things that physically manifest when they find some human cultural qualities they find and really like.

Chromatic Eagle1 votes

What Did you know things? I haven't played this game in a year.

Warlord Dienekes1 votes

Eh I like more toned down magic in general, but then I don't particularly like any of the current crop of yordles anyway. So, I guess this information just isn't really designed for players like me anyway.

Good we're getting actual background information though.

I am a bit curious how you consider Kled not built along a vice like a demon, considering he represents, essentially stupid induced violence, territorialism, aggressive expansionism, and cuss words. None of which are particularly high on the list of virtues.

It'd make maybe more sense if yordles represent some stagnant concept that demons can't play off of. Like Tahm corrupts and deals with humans to give them what they want at a price that will doom them. But Poppy just wants to protect Demacia by finding/being a hero and would never take his deal, while Kled only wants violence and land he gets by violence so he'd be hard pressed to get a real deal going either.

Sharjo1 votes

I am a bit curious how you consider Kled not built along a vice like a demon, considering he represents, essentially stupid induced violence, territorialism, aggressive expansionism, and cuss words. None of which are particularly high on the list of virtues.

That's not really what he embodies though. Kled embodies the Noxian way of life, which is about strength, conquest, ambition and glory. Strength above all, take what's yours and fight to protect it, if you have a goal then go out and accomplish it, and do whatever will bring you satisfaction. Things like courage, power, solidarity and individual willpower also come in to play here. Kled's just not really of the best mind when it comes to...anything really, I mean I asked the brain badgers and they told me how weird it is inside Kled's head.

For demons really anything can be corrupted. Too much courage becomes arrogance, too much kindness breeds naivety, too much patience leads to lethargy, etc. I feel like it's more yordles embodying the traits of cultures that they personally think are really great, and demons embodying what happens when those traits are twisted to their darker sides. In the end they're both entities that benefit off of the cultures and societies of mortal beings in some way, it's just that one generally seems to take the "good" parts and the other focuses on the "bad".

Valaran Nara2 votes

[{quoted}](name=Warlord Dienekes,realm=NA,application-id=6kFXY1kR,discussion-id=IvETkIfR,comment-id=0005,timestamp=2016-08-09T21:30:44.155+0000) I am a bit curious how you consider Kled not built along a vice like a demon, considering he represents, essentially stupid induced violence, territorialism, aggressive expansionism, and cuss words. None of which are particularly high on the list of virtues.

It'd make maybe more sense if yordles represent some stagnant concept that demons can't play off of. Like Tahm corrupts and deals with humans to give them what they want at a price that will doom them. But Poppy just wants to protect Demacia by finding/being a hero and would never take his deal, while Kled only wants violence and land he gets by violence so he'd be hard pressed to get a real deal going either.

TLDR; They manifest around the virtues of the culture they're around. Noxus is a very wardriven culture, so fighting til the death makes sense as a virtue of theirs

You're looking at vices of your current culture. Kled represents the virtues of "Might make Right," "Courage", and the willingness to look death in the eye in battle.

You are seen as a coward if you run from a fight. Darius chopped off the head of his commander for issuing a retreat. You do not back down from a fight. You keep going until the enemy's dead or you are. If you really think about it, while most Noxians don't actually realize this, Kled is the amalgamation and perversion of what all their virtues and ideals truly show.

Poppy, on the other hand, is Demacian virtues. They put the virtue of honor, courage (in the form of defending home) and being humble. That's why she refuses to see herself as the hero despite her obvious accomplishments. Soldiers aren't suppose to see themselves as heros. They are to see themselves as part of their people who have an obligation and the purpose to follow the mission they are given through.

Warlord Dienekes2 votes

Always hated that. Even the Spartans retreated when they had a bad position. Staying still just to die stupidly is how not to lead an army.

In any case good point.

Valaran Nara1 votes

[{quoted}](name=Warlord Dienekes,realm=NA,application-id=6kFXY1kR,discussion-id=IvETkIfR,comment-id=000500010000,timestamp=2016-08-09T22:21:26.977+0000)

Always hated that. Even the Spartans retreated when they had a bad position. Staying still just to die stupidly is how not to lead an army.

In any case good point.

Well, Kled is the culmination of their virtues. Some virtues are at such a high standard, most people can't actually reach it.

For example, things like generosity, selflessness, or even the simple act of accepting people for who they are are virtues that aren't easily done 24/7. I mean seriously, how do people expect us to not judge another person (even if we do give them the benefit of the doubt). The moment you look at someone and start thinking, you already judged them (probably just not super harshly).

So yeah. Kled is an extreme for Noxian virtues like how Poppy is probably an extreme of Demacian virtue or culture.

Meep Man1 votes

I don't yordles are literally manifesting around human ideals. I think he means they more pop up and culminate around certain human ideal extremes. For example, Kled is an extreme Noxus while Poppy is an extreme Demacia.

Sunreach1 votes

[{quoted}](name=Inept Maverick,realm=NA,application-id=6kFXY1kR,discussion-id=IvETkIfR,comment-id=0007,timestamp=2016-08-09T21:44:21.954+0000)

I don't yordles are literally manifesting around human ideals. I think he means they more pop up and culminate around certain human ideal extremes. For example, Kled is an extreme Noxus while Poppy is an extreme Demacia.

It's unclear at the moment. WAAARGHbobo was extremely vague with his hints. But he also says to check out Illaoi's interactions with yordles, saying that her interactions tell a lot about the nature of yordles. She refers to them as "spirits" that serve as an "inspiration to man".

TerraRising1 votes

So... what Runeterran region does Teemo personify? I mean, besides deepest pits of the ninth level of the Inferno?

Sharjo1 votes

Potentially none; he might stay around Bandle City and not interact with humans. Nothing says that all of our playable yordles have actually manifested physically in Runeterra as of yet.

Ethereal3111 votes

[[[ INTERDIMENSIONAL MAGICAL HAMSTERS ]]]

SomethingUnknown1 votes

Sigh. Not this Tahm Kench/Kindred bullshit again. Now I'm scared what they'll do to my Jax :/ (Inb4 Jax is an enigma and nobody knows who or what he is)

Korosu Uno1 votes

for the first time I'm actually upset with the lore creative staff. I was actually looking forward to a story about bandle city getting invaded by noxus or something like that but now you telling me that they're magical spirits that pop up and take on some traits of human cultures.... -_-

sounds lazy as hell.. instead of polishing their culture and race we get this?

I liked that they were a sentient underdog race not this magical fairy spirit thing

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