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2018 Lore Tournament - FINAL: Twilight of the Gods vs Where Icathia once stood

LordRedStone Nr1·12/30/2018, 3:05:49 PM·19 votes·15,749 views

Quarter Final [1 / 4] | Quarter Final [2 / 4] | Quarter Final [3 / 4] | Quarter Final [4 / 4]

                                                  Semi Final 1 | Semi Final 2

                                                                    Final

Today is the final of the 2018 Lore Tournament! What a ride it's been, and what a way to end! Both of our finalists today discuss the great threat that is ever-looming over the world of Runeterra, the Void, and the devastation it has brought. (And coincidentally, both were written by Graham McNeill.) Our first finalist, Twilight of the Gods, describes how the Void corrupted the Ascended, how these Ascended became the Darkin, and how they were captured. Our second finalist, Where Icathia Once Stood, describes how the Void was released on Runeterra in the first place, by the Icathians, and how this uncontrollable weapon ended up destroying those who summoned it.

Because this is the end of the tournament, today's poll will stay up for one day longer than usual, ending on the 1st of January, 9 AM PST / 17:00 UTC

#2018 Lore Tournament: Day 25

Twilight of the Gods by Graham McNeill Azir has fallen. Shurima is crumbling. Too many of the remaining Ascended have been scarred and corrupted by the Void, and have become Darkin. The panther Ta'anari, one such Darkin, speaks with Myisha, the former Aspect of Twilight, about what must be done to stop the violence. Little does Ta'anari know that Myisha has more in mind than simply stopping the corrupted Darkin…

##vs

Where Icathia once stood by Graham McNeill Axamuk, a Kohari warrior of Icathia, recounts how he and his companions, Saijax and Colgrim, stood with the city against the might of the Shuriman army and their Ascended warriors. Icathia has a plan to use a devastating weapon that will wipe out the Shurimans entirely, Ascended and all. Yet little do they know of the unimaginable terrors they are about to unleash on Runeterra…

[EDIT] Once again, Icathia remains victorious, making it the best story of 2018! (85 to 36 votes)

16 Comments

Chromatic Eagle12/30/2018, 3:34:36 PM8 votes

Whichever wins, this confirms that Mr. McNeil is the greatest addition to Riot.

EdgeLady12/30/2018, 3:45:46 PM7 votes

I knew that whichever won yesterday would win today, as was said by Rob the Blob too, and it doesn't seem to be wrong. Where Icathia Once Stood is just one of the greatest pinnacles of action, emotion, and captivating terror that has ever been written, and it does everything it needs to do. Plus it has Jax. And Jax is awesome. I think it's safe to say that Where Icathia Once Stood is going to win the 2018 Lore Tournament.

Blood Magicks12/30/2018, 4:35:35 PM5 votes

Yeah it's Icathia. Totg is still in my top5, maybe top3. To copypaste what makes Icathia special, from the previous thread:

About Icathia,

I mainly wanted to say that I hadn't felt so blown away by fiction in years. Like I was stuck in my seat with my jaw hanging for a good half an hour, and I get a similar effect every time I recall the rollercoaster that story put me through. It's just so effective at communicating its point, namely the theme and allegory to mutually assured destruction in warfare.

In the space of just a few thousand words, it presents this vibrant and convincing ancient world to you, it fills it with life and character to the brim, it drags you into an ancient conflict and introduces characters you can't help caring at least a little bit about. It showers your senses in light an colour, makes you experience history and feel every small victory alongside the main character... and it's all epic in the best possible sense.

Then it proceeds to wipe it all out. Oh, this beautiful civilisation, all of the excitement and wonder and human suffering you just experienced and fell in love with? It's gone. Not even history, not even archeology, not even a memory, nothing but the void in your heart. It's like it never existed. Deal with it. It shows you what the Void is and why it's so terrifying, and it works, and it's stunning.

The story also largely owes its effect to how well thought out and well-planned it is. I've seen GM weave the theme of a story into its structure a lot and the effect is always great.

Then there's the writing style, the vivid dynamic beauty of it. No point in me explaining, just go read it, it'll make you trip.

I've shown Icathia to most of my friends now, they say one of three things:

That was a really good read, thank you!

or

Wow, League is really growing up into a game with serious storytelling now.

or

Why is this guy writing for a dumb hentai game, he should go compete for the Nebula or something

Actually Cactus12/30/2018, 6:40:32 PM3 votes

Rest in Peace, Ta'anari.

Pale Mask12/30/2018, 9:16:41 PM3 votes

We welcome our magnificent masters.

Thank you for your contribution.

Warlord Rhinark12/30/2018, 9:42:14 PM1 votes

If only the fricking vote button worked.

I'm saying Icathia.

d00mface12/30/2018, 10:48:36 PM1 votes

I-ca-thi-a!I-ca-thi-a!I-ca-thi-a!

Honestly had a feeling WIOS could take it all the way and I'm glad to see that that's looking to be the case! I like Twilight of the Gods too, but as much as I love it and all the juicy darkin content it brought with it... WIOS felt easier to follow overall, immersed me more in the world, and overall just felt more interesting to me. Plus it's got my girl Setaka in it (and Aatrox, though he isn't mentioned directly). Really, there were just so many strong stories this year and I hope that this trend continues in the future. It's been a great time to be a fan of league lore imo :D

little king soul2/22/2019, 1:22:33 AM1 votes

Is all of the stories in the tournament legitimate Canon because holy mackerel I've been missing out and intend to remedy that