Viktor's new lore...
Isn't out yet.
Please stop freaking out and blowing everything from Jayce's lore out of proportion. Remember - this is Jayce's lore. About Jayce. It's written based on Jayce's perspective, and we don't get anything from Viktor's perspective except right at the very end (kind of). The purpose of his bio is to explain how Jayce became "Jayce, the Defender of Tomorrow", not Viktor's story.
Remember who Jayce is - a stuck-up, arrogant little genius prick who only really cares about himself and his own genius. Of course we're going to be missing a lot of information about Viktor - even though they were friends, do you really think Jayce is capable of a deep, meaningful friendship? I seriously doubt that Jayce paid real attention to Viktor as a person, rather than just an intelligent colleague.
He basically says it himself:
Viktor was the closest thing Jayce had ever really had to a friend
There's a few big topics that I'd like to address that are just blatantly wrong, as well:
- "Riot made Viktor hate free will" - False. Viktor was not opposed to free will:
Viktor’s design for the next version of the suit included a chemtech implant that would increase the wearer’s strength output by tenfold, while also preventing them from getting tired, panicking, or disobeying instructions from their superiors. While Viktor considered this feature a brilliant means of reducing the frequency of construction accidents, Jayce found its indifference toward free will immoral.
Viktor was not on some rampage to remove people's free will and enslave them as his own personal robot army - he simply was willing to infringe on it if it meant helping people in other ways (reducing injuries, deaths, and property damage from construction accidents). He was essentially following the motto "The ends justify the means".
- "Viktor starts out as a villain now" - False. First off, we don't even know the beginning of Viktor's story. We only know about him after Jayce meets him. I'm anticipating Viktor having a much deeper "Pre-Jayce" story than Jayce's "Pre-Viktor" story. And on top of that:
While Jayce sought to improve humanity via versatile technology, Viktor sought to solve problems inherent to humanity itself, such as physical decay or illogical prejudices. They constantly argued with one another, but their conflicts never got personal – though their methods were different, the two colleagues knew their ultimate goals were very much the same.
and
[Victor had] finally learned how to achieve his dream – how to eradicate disease, hunger, hatred. If Jayce joined him, the two would accomplish more than anyone from Piltover or Zaun could have dreamed of: they’d save humanity from itself.
Viktor certainly does not begin even Jayce's story as a villain. He is working towards the same goal as Jayce: helping humanity improve and advance. Again, he simply believes the ends justify the means more than Jayce does.
- "Viktor is a murdering psychopath" - We don't know that! There is no explanation of where the bodies in his lab came from, or what happened to the people - they could very well have been volunteers. Remember - Viktor has been working on this project for a long time - probably years. He has likely been working with the local Zaunites to advance his research - and since his work is intended to help people, he probably gets quite a few volunteers trying to find some way to improve their (honestly pretty awful) lives in the slums of Zaun.
Don't forget that the Glorious Evolved are willing to dismember themselves. I'm pretty sure there are people willing to transplant their brain into a robot.
- "Orianna one-ups Viktor and took his 'first fully-machinized-human' theme" - False. This one is from Orianna's lore, but it's pretty easy to disprove. There is very clearly a difference in timeline between the lores.
From Jayce's lore:
As Jayce studied in solitude, Clan Giopara’s explorers discovered a raw, blue crystal deep within the Shuriman desert.
A strange crystal from Shurima? That has a massive amount of power inside it? What could it be? Well, it's obviously a Hextech crystal, right? But why is that special, and why don't they call it that?
Because it's the first one. When Jayce and Viktor's story takes place, hextech hasn't yet been created.
Jayce and Viktor were only able to use the crystal as a power source - they hadn't yet started making the complex weapons and machines that are referred to in other stories. In fact, the Progress Day short story tells us:
A hextech crystal. The crystal is no bigger than her thumbnail, but it is the future. This is what could make the clans of Piltover rulers of the world if they so desired. Or, if not them, whoever can craft it more efficiently and without the years of work to produce a single item.
It apparently takes ridiculously long to actually make anything using hextech crystals, and they are clearly not a common item, even during the time of this story (Tamara has never seen a hextech crystal before - it's likely that the leading clans control most of the crystals). And yet, a tinkerer in Zaun with no close ties to the powerful clans is able to obtain one.
The fact that hextech crystals are even legally available to the general public tells us that this is years, probably decades, after Jayce and Viktor's story. Don't forget that Camille fell in love with a highly skilled artificer of hextech crystals when she was young-ish (probably late 20s to late 30s). She's now 80. That means hextech has been around for at least 40-odd years. Orianna is no one-up of Viktor.
Assuming Camille and Orianna even happen in the same time period, as well.
So, please. Calm down about Viktor and see what happens. We'll get his side of the story and find out what actually happened and who he actually is.
Honestly, this seems pretty in line with Viktor's "neither good nor bad", "gray area" theme all his fans want him to have. Working passionately towards a cause to help humanity, but doing so in a controversial way. "The ends justify the means" and all that.
But who knows. We'll find out soon enough. So wait and see.
