Why are they mad? A look into the motivations of angry, shouting champions.

The Ecdysiast·7/16/2018, 6:10:45 AM·28 votes·11,725 views

With the writing of Aatrox's lore (note: not re-writing; the Darkin weren't a solid idea before), there have been a number of complaints about him being changed from a quiet, mysterious character to an angry rampaging demon. And while I won't go into detail about how the mysterious character didn't go with his visuals, playstyle, animations, or abilities, I want to point out his and other champions' reasons for being angry. I hope these short explanations shed at least a little light on the mindset of these characters.

In order of my opinion on the magnitude of their reason: RekSai First things first, as for the "angry for the sake of being angry" nonsense I've seen claimed, Rek'sai is the only example. She's angry because she's motivated entirely by predatory instinct. She, unlike Rammus, is an animal in body and mind. Kled A sociopath. He isn't just telling everyone to get off of his property as a joke; he truly believes all of Runeterra is his. He defends "his" land from anyone in sight with all the ferocity of an old coot with a shotgun who thinks you're stealing his peaches. Tryndamere Revenge for his clan. Simple enough. Maokai Speaks for the trees, and the trees are not happy to be destroyed by magic. Renekton Driven mad by his incarceration. Sion Unwillingly brought back from death into a body that has no feeling, with little memory of the man he once was. Warwick His body was torn apart and reshaped into that of the monster we see in game, anesthetic intentionally withheld to drive his sanity further away.

Aatrox And then there's Aatrox: Following his descent from a godly hero of justice, he was sentenced to a fate far worse than any hell I can imagine. Instead of the mercy of a quick death, he has endured millennia with no body and no senses of any kind.

As you can tell, I ranked it mainly based on the pain which caused their anger, from the complete lack of pain present for Rek'sai, to the emotional pain of Tryndamere, to the intense physical and mental pain of Warwick. Aatrox stands at the top because he has the most reason to be angry: Loss of a clan? How about an empire. No feeling? At least Sion can move and see. Physical pain? The body of every host rejects him to the point that the blood, bones, and muscles tear away from each other.


In conclusion, champions are not made angry just for the sake of having an angry character. They're made angry because it fits the story.

49 Comments

Ebonmaw Dragon7/16/2018, 6:59:21 AM13 votes

You forgot the first champion who was created to be a rage machine: Renekton

Warlord Rhinark7/16/2018, 7:19:49 AM10 votes

I don't necessarily have a problem with Aatrox being angry all the time.

What I have a problem with, is that his old personality had to die in order to be replaced by it.

If they could just make a new champion with reworked Aatrox's personality, and we kept Aatrox's old personality, I'd be fine.

6FlagsFunnelCake7/16/2018, 8:11:04 AM8 votes

Gnar

Shooshoo bahnah! HAHAHA!

Warlord Dienekes7/16/2018, 6:30:17 AM3 votes

Well here's kind of the obvious problem.

People respond differently to the same stimuli. What makes one person a raging foaming at the mouth murderer, can make another react, well, not at all.

It's actually pretty easy to justify a lot of emotions to fit a story, if you know how to write it. Actually we even see this in the Darkin themselves. Rhaast and Varus both went through the exact same situation that Aatrox went through and they didn't turn into screaming lunatics. Rhaast became a snarky narcissistic serial killer like figure, and Varus became filled with a desire to find his family.

Frankly, being stuck as a sword doomed to wander all eternity. It is just as justifiable that Aatrox has grown empty over the course of his millennia, and strives to add chaos onto the battlefield because that is the only time he can truly feel anything anymore. It would have fit much better with his old personality and still fit the new direction of the lore.

The writers just didn't want to do that though, and wanted to take the character in a new direction. As is their prerogative. It's their game. I just don't like when people talk down to others for disliking a change. And not so subtly implying they are wrong for liking what they liked before. Aatrox was rewritten. His personality did change. Just because an idea wasn't completely detailed doesn't mean what was revealed wasn't there to begin with.

Jackom17/16/2018, 6:49:10 AM3 votes

Chogath He's hungry all the time and also hates humans. Fair enough

Renekton He's been locked in a magic prison for hundreds of years, toghether with xerath. Now he believes it's all Nasus's fault, and is a little upset about it.

Syndra She is somewhat shouty and angry. She thinks everyone hates and wants to kill her because she's too powerful.

KFCeytron7/16/2018, 10:14:02 PM2 votes

Aatrox is constantly shouting at me and I can barely understand one word in three, so I figure he's a Manhattan street vendor and his motivation is that he wants to sell me hot dogs.

WeetBix129912/11/2019, 9:17:03 PM1 votes

shouldnt varus and rhaast be up there with with aatrox?

Jaspers7/16/2018, 11:35:06 AM1 votes

Everything Aatrox is angry about he bought upon himself, the rest did not. That's the biggest thing to take from all this.

IceAYon7/17/2018, 5:19:18 AM1 votes

Um, Pyke? Or is he too quiet?

Mokuto Bunshi7/17/2018, 8:16:33 AM1 votes

Kled

2 more things about him.... well 3

He yells because he has PTSD of being in EVERY WAR EVER FOUGHT (might be a rumor but he IS old as dirt).

He has an entity known ans Brain weasels/Badgers aflicting and agitating him, might just be the poisonus drink or maybe even a previous problem spurred on by the summoner.

When he looses Skarl all of his brave quotes turn to 1 of 2 things, either sad and hopeless of absolute angry gibberish because of loosing sight of his one friend who has been there with him for so long but in also not there when he need it most.