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Sylas; a revolutionary, an anarchist or a maniac?

A Ryze From Dead·1/11/2019, 5:44:26 PM·3 votes·7,639 views

I haven't read his bio, just his special interactions and a summary of his bio.

What I recognized is, he doesn't have any allies, nor considers anyone as his, apart from his good willed liberator maybe. It feels like he is fighting against everyone and everything, but doesn't really provide any concrete solution from his side.

"A world with no kings or peasants." - is what he says, which sounds pretty much like anarchy, but that's about it. No further explanations or ideas. Considering that he doesn't show any signs of morals and does a agitation against the current systems, this might be no more than a catch phrase to get followers.

In the end when he achieved everything, he'll just continue to sit on his throne, like a king of barbarians, which would defeat the purpose of anarchy, because unlike Brand, he is human and anarchy will certainly not be his final motivation, so what is?

Is he just spitefully/mindlessly destroying everything that held him in chains like a maniac or does he have an actual plan for a fairer world. Because for me it sadly doesn't really seem so. And that would be a lot of wasted power on a single individual.

######Not forgetting he is capable of reaching the hidden World Runes with Ryze's powers.

13 Comments

Pale Mask1/11/2019, 5:51:58 PM4 votes

Sylas is a brat that refuses to learn. He's a reckless, naive, immature anarchist. He doesn't use his brain beyond "I'm angry. I want to be free." He will become a threat the moment someone stands up against him.

Blood Magicks1/11/2019, 5:48:57 PM3 votes

I think this angry-deranged-aimlessly-aggressive part of Sylas is what makes him a more resonant and believable character. He spent his adult life in prison instead of maturing, and likely went more than a little bit insane.

It would be plain boring if he was legitimately a rational man with a plan.

Warlord Dienekes1/11/2019, 7:26:10 PM3 votes

He is an angry child that is trying to throw the gameboard over.

That's it. That's his character.

Now the reason he's an angry child is because he has legitimate problems with society, but you don't expect an internal consistency from his actions. He actually reminds me of a more aggressive Dr. Horrible, if you've seen the sing-a-long blog. A lot of anger and aggression and big words and ideas that sound impressive with nothing really underneath.

But angry people shouting with enough conviction can actually be pretty convincing to other angry young people. Thus, the growing mage movement that follows him. And historically these kind of people are useful for getting their grievances with society heard. Unfortunately, they also have a habit of uniting people against them if they get too aggressive. Also they're terrible if they actually win.

Criomhthann1/12/2019, 8:43:02 PM2 votes

a revolutionary, an anarchist

Anarchism is Revolutionary, unless you are talking about Ancaps, which aren't actually Anarchists nor Capitalists at all.

a maniac

This is an ethical commentary more than anything else. As a matter of substance, neither Reaction nor Revolution have any potential to be bloodless affairs. Which means his violence isn't truly in question here, but what his Theory guiding his Praxis actually is, if he has any at all.

On that, not enough information internal to the story exists but given that the writers are probably not actually Anarchists or seriously familiar with Anarchist Theory, Insurrectionary or otherwise, or even at all interested in seriously portraying such things, they will likely take the route that most people who aren't familiar with such things take:

"He might have some legit grievances but violence is bad, and people who engage in it are counterproductive children who are simply lashing out."

BoringLittleF1/13/2019, 7:10:29 PM2 votes

I am disappointed with his personality, tbh. I was eager to see the mage of Demacia who is not happy, who never had rich mom and dad to pay for his life, who is bitter because of what has been done to him. Someone who is not a leader material due to their isolation in prison, but rather a walking cataclysm with a "you fuckers will never know peace as long as I live" goal that travels around Demacia, wipes out mageseekers and spreads havoc just to shatter the Demacian illusion of safety and show that not a king, not all king's men can ever kill magic.

But instead we got another rebel with "brothers and sisters/eat the rich" rhethoric even though the elites are not the only ones that have that magephobic philosophy: lower classes of Demacia too can and will sell their magic-imbued children out to the mageseekers or lynch a person for alleged sorcery with delight. It was boring enough with Xayah, but thankfully, Rakan was there to make her fun, but Sylas here is just sad.

The Iceborn1/11/2019, 6:33:27 PM2 votes

revolutionary maniac would be the proper term

Chromatic Eagle1/11/2019, 8:52:35 PM2 votes

Too early to say. It may be accurate to say he's immature, even reckless, I can't blame him for it. He lives in a nation that hates him for being a mage. His attempt at fitting in backfires, and he spent over a decade in prison. He would've died had he not escaped. Demacia has a hatred rivaling the Salem witch trials against magic. How does someone begin to rationalize that?

EdgeLady1/13/2019, 7:28:29 AM1 votes

I'd say that he's anarchic, but not an actual ideological anarchist. It's almost like he's creating his own beliefs/ideology which results in anarchy, except that he's not really following a set of principles.

Sirsir1/13/2019, 2:07:31 PM1 votes

Yes

[slayer-jinx-wink]

mrmeddyman1/12/2019, 5:03:35 AM1 votes

If you ever played Bioshock: Infinite than you know what Riot is going for.

The tragic reality that in a lot of cases the worst thing that oppressors can do to the people they oppress is drag them down to their level and make them like them.