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Could we talk about Swain for a bit?

PhoenixSlayer13·11/22/2014, 2:24:33 AM·4 votes·1,238 views

So... I've always thought Swain was kinda weird design and story-wise.

He's supposedly the Master Tactician... but while his VO certainly supports his title, his skills don't. While his skills could be considered "tactical" in a usage sense, they don't exactly have a tactician theme; instead opting for a "dark raven warlock" idea.

On that note... we've never really known how or why Swain got his dark magics. In fact, his lore never even mentions his magical prowess, only that he inexplicably rose through the Noxian ranks, where a cripple like himself would be seen as weak. He's certainly crafty and intelligent, yes... but he also turns into a goddam bird demon.

While I very much enjoy his raven warlock theme, I feel like his tactician side isn't delivered well at all. Moreover, while his lore focuses almost exclusively on his intelligence and creepy determination, it makes no mention of his magical potential. It almost seems like he's two ideas thrown into each other without a clear bonding agent actually holding the two parts together.

TL;DR: Swain is Master Tactician, but feels more like Raven Warlock. Thoughts?

6 Comments

Dan Squared11/22/2014, 10:27:29 AM4 votes

tactician I feel would likely be hard concept to pin down for gameplay purposes....closest thing I can come up with would be something very near Azir. A commander issuing orders to his troops. This is fine, but Swain isn't just one theme....he is a tactician yes, but he is also as you say a "raven-warlock". Dark bird mage is one of his big gameplay hooks.

So they combine the idea and you get the best of both. Swain's VO and lore show you without a shadow of a doubt that this man is a clever strategist. But he is fully capable of personally destroying anyone in his way if he must.

TLDR: Master Tactician? Raven-Warlock?.....why not both

A Superb Villain11/22/2014, 9:04:10 PM3 votes

I always imagined his powers being something Swain relies on when his back is against the wall and not his modus operandi; he would rather lay out an extensive plan with innumerable contingencies, but if push comes to shove he can still peck out your eyes as a giant, demon bird... thing.

FuryOfAnon11/23/2014, 12:09:12 AM3 votes

Think of him like this then: as the dark shadowy figure who is the genius behind noxus. And when he has to, shows how powerful he can be to his enemies so they know not to fuck with Noxus. That is just what i got from a symbolic point of view.

But this is the thing about Swain, like his lore said, the earliest record of him was him wandering in to seek medical attention and only asked fro a crutch despite his leg bone protruding from his leg. Thats why i said shadowy figure, we dont know anything about him except he is cunning, and both powerful. And thats what led him to eventually rule Noxus

catraven11/22/2014, 11:59:22 AM1 votes

Stopped reading at "magics"