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Ascension - What is it?

SaltyToplaneGoat·2/16/2015, 8:00:55 PM·5 votes·1,499 views

So, now long after the Shurima Event, I got to the question: what exactly IS "Ascension"?

All we know is that it is supposed to be an empowerment ritual used in old shuriman times while using the energy of the sun. But how does it work? Are there downsides to it? If it was so awesome, why wasn't every Shuriman an ascended? Are there possible side effects? And, of course, could ascension be replicated by "modern" methods? (aka Hextech/Techmaturgy).

I will be talking about six champions here: Nasus Azir Renekton Xerath Cassiopeia TwistedFate

Yes, I know Cassipaia is cursed and not ascended, but I will get to her and her curse since it might be an interesting topic that might be connected to this. And about Twisted Fate... I'll explain that later.

So, about the first three. At first it seems like ascension doesn't turn you into a generic magical super-human and there seems to be some individuality. But how does it work? Does a popup plop up in your mind the moment you ascend, asking you to choose appearance and distrubute skill points? Not very likely. It seems like ascension turns you into what you think you are. Sounds weird, but let me explain.

It's very likely that the Shuriman Ascension technology was shrouded in mystery and religion, even for the shuriman people. So maybe some thought that it would turn people into gods or make them equal to gods somehow. Now, let's imagine that the highest god resembles a bird-man. So what form comes first to mind if an emperor thinks of becoming "a god"? That bird-man-god. Azir views himself as the "Emperor of the Sands" - what is his power? Sand control.

It's very likely that the same thing happened during Nasus' and Renekton's ascenseion. During the process they identified themself with their gods who were closest to their profession and turned into something that was similiar to how they imagined them.

Xerath on the other hand... is what could be called "true ascension" - because of his desire for ultimate freedom he just got that: being free of everything, even of a mortal body. He didn't want to become something "similiar to a god", he just wanted to be "free" - quite fitting for a former slave.

Now, why did I list Cassipaia before? Actually it's quite simple. If the appearances of ascended/half-human beings show their "true being", how would the people of Shurima react to someone with the body of a snake - an animal that has probably quite some bad reputation there?

The cell where Xerath and Renekton where held was secured with a defense mechanism, made to scare people away.* "If you open this tomb and free the evil inside, all shall know that YOU were the one who betrayed Shurima and sided with the traitor"*. I can imagine the snake curse being some form of "highest possible punshiment" in shuriman law, since it's basicially an excommunication from society - who would help someone branded as a traitor?

Ok, and now to Twisted Fate.

Empowerment through ritual? Check. Ritual conducted by a guy who's some kind of magic-pro? Check. Said pro is called Xavier Rath, what sounds awefully close to "Xerath"? Check. Possibility for a being like Xerath to use illusion magic and blend in with modern society? VERY HIGH.

OK, but why would Xerath be interested in replicating the ascension ritual? One possibility could be the hunger for more power, trying to ascend even further. Another one could be "I lead the world to absolute freedom, EVERYONE SHALL ASCEND AND BECOME IMMORTAL LIGHTENING BLOBS LIKE ME!" - we should keep in mind that we have no idea what Xerath is planing since he left the tomb. Or maybe he's just playing a bit of "mad scientist", we can't know that.

But why isn't Twisted Fate a half animal or some form of sentinent blue light? It's simple, because Twisted Fate never asked of being turned into that. All he wanted was magic, and that's what he got. He might be immortal though, but how would he know? For that he would needs his powers for some decades to realize he doesn't age.

Tl;dr: Ascension seems to be bound to the subjective expectations to the result of the ascending person. Also: Beware of people with suspicious names.

Your opinions on this?

25 Comments

Necrolegion892/17/2015, 5:15:58 AM2 votes

[{quoted}](name=Kyoki Shinkuro,realm=EUW,application-id=6kFXY1kR,discussion-id=kbcxAhEN,comment-id=,timestamp=2015-02-16T20:00:55.506+0000)

So, now long after the Shurima Event, I got to the question: what exactly IS "Ascension"?

All we know is that it is supposed to be an empowerment ritual used in old shuriman times while using the energy of the sun. But how does it work? Are there downsides to it? If it was so awesome, why wasn't every Shuriman an ascended? Are there possible side effects? And, of course, could ascension be replicated by "modern" methods? (aka Hextech/Techmaturgy).

I will be talking about six champions here: Nasus Azir Renekton Xerath Cassiopeia TwistedFate

Yes, I know Cassipaia is cursed and not ascended, but I will get to her and her curse since it might be an interesting topic that might be connected to this. And about Twisted Fate... I'll explain that later.

So, about the first three. At first it seems like ascension doesn't turn you into a generic magical super-human and there seems to be some individuality. But how does it work? Does a popup plop up in your mind the moment you ascend, asking you to choose appearance and distrubute skill points? Not very likely. It seems like ascension turns you into what you think you are. Sounds weird, but let me explain.

It's very likely that the Shuriman Ascension technology was shrouded in mystery and religion, even for the shuriman people. So maybe some thought that it would turn people into gods or make them equal to gods somehow. Now, let's imagine that the highest god resembles a bird-man. So what form comes first to mind if an emperor thinks of becoming "a god"? That bird-man-god. Azir views himself as the "Emperor of the Sands" - what is his power? Sand control.

It's very likely that the same thing happened during Nasus' and Renekton's ascenseion. During the process they identified themself with their gods who were closest to their profession and turned into something that was similiar to how they imagined them.

Xerath on the other hand... is what could be called "true ascension" - because of his desire for ultimate freedom he just got that: being free of everything, even of a mortal body. He didn't want to become something "similiar to a god", he just wanted to be "free" - quite fitting for a former slave.

Now, why did I list Cassipaia before? Actually it's quite simple. If the appearances of ascended/half-human beings show their "true being", how would the people of Shurima react to someone with the body of a snake - an animal that has probably quite some bad reputation there?

The cell where Xerath and Renekton where held was secured with a defense mechanism, made to scare people away.* "If you open this tomb and free the evil inside, all shall know that YOU were the one who betrayed Shurima and sided with the traitor"*. I can imagine the snake curse being some form of "highest possible punshiment" in shuriman law, since it's basicially an excommunication from society - who would help someone branded as a traitor?

Ok, and now to Twisted Fate.

Empowerment through ritual? Check. Ritual conducted by a guy who's some kind of magic-pro? Check. Said pro is called Xavier Rath, what sounds awefully close to "Xerath"? Check. Possibility for a being like Xerath to use illusion magic and blend in with modern society? VERY HIGH.

OK, but why would Xerath be interested in replicating the ascension ritual? One possibility could be the hunger for more power, trying to ascend even further. Another one could be "I lead the world to absolute freedom, EVERYONE SHALL ASCEND AND BECOME IMMORTAL LIGHTENING BLOBS LIKE ME!" - we should keep in mind that we have no idea what Xerath is planing since he left the tomb. Or maybe he's just playing a bit of "mad scientist", we can't know that.

But why isn't Twisted Fate a half animal or some form of sentinent blue light? It's simple, because Twisted Fate never asked of being turned into that. All he wanted was magic, and that's what he got. He might be immortal though, but how would he know? For that he would needs his powers for some decades to realize he doesn't age.

Tl;dr: Ascension seems to be bound to the subjective expectations to the result of the ascending person. Also: Beware of people with suspicious names.

Your opinions on this?

Love your enthusiasm dude.. Mind if I write my own thoughts on the matter?

I will enlist perhaps the same characters you mentioned, plus a couple more.

Main Characters: Azir Nasus Renekton Xerath

Minor Characters: Cassiopeia Ezreal Elise TwistedFate

Technology: Throughout Runeterra's past, civilizations have risen and fallen. Almost every conflict that has happened has been because of magic and runes. In Shurima, they either created or discovered Ascension through the Sun Disk. It is possible that a previous empire created the Sun Disk and Ezreal's amulets as weapons of war. The Sun Disk granting soldiers great power at the cost of losing their humanity. Their may have also been some problems with the ritual.

Zerath may have been researching the Ascension ritual prior to the events that led to his betreyal and Shurima's demise.

Nasus used the Sun Disk to Ascend and become what he currently is. Same goes for Renekton and Azir.

Demi-Gods: There are countless god-like creatures spread over Runeterra. There is the serpent god that cursed Cassiopia, Vilemaw who transformed Elise into a spider queen, There is also Baron Nashorn, the sea serpent that was slayed by the black mist from the Shadow Isles after it attempted to save Bilgewater, Anivia, and the thunder god that gave Volibear his powers.

These demi-gods may be remnants of previous Ascension rituals, perhaps not originating from Shurima but from similar technologies and magic as the Sun Disk.

Ascension: Ascension, for all we know, is a ritual used to unlock or grant tremendous power to an individual person. The mechanism behind it is completely unknown, but perhaps it draws on some sort of symbolism. Each shape representing the type of power.

Nasus became a canine creature, possibly due to the symbolism behind creature. Dogs are loyal companions to men, and in most cases serve to guard their owners from harm and protect them. Nasus may have taken the shape of a canine due to the responsibility he inherited or granted by people who prepared the ritual. Maybe he was born with a birthmark that locked him in that role!

Renekton became an alligator possibly due to his position as a soldier. The alligator may have represented, patience and savagery. Patience to prepare for war and savagery to prevail in war. Alligators typically do not go out on a blood rage unless hungry or provoked.

Azir became a bird. He was tasked with overseeing his empire and what better way than from the air.

Zerath is the special case. He violated or circumvented the limitations imposed by the Sun Disk Ascension ritual and ascended into a different being. He transformed into energy, symbolizing raw power. We do not know however how Zerath deviated from the rest using the same ritual, but the fact that he deviated could hint at other possibilities.

Possibilities: The fact that Zerath was able to violate the limitations imposed by the Ascension ritual may in fact give way to things like the Darkin, Sion, Shyvana, Galio, Iceborn, Gnar, and possibly others like the Ruined King of the Shadow Isles to exist. The Ascension ritual may be some sort of universal ritual practiced by long gone civilizations to gain power. Some may have modified it, while others may have put limitations on it to prevent cases like Zerath from happening(ironic though as it still happened).

insaiyanbacca2/16/2015, 8:08:02 PM1 votes

this minus the cass part was what i thought about posting earlier today, this is good!

LANWhale2/17/2015, 5:19:07 AM1 votes

Hm not going to lie, the Xerath and Twisted Fate connections seems a bit....forced if you would.

The idea that Ascension alters your form depending as what you see as "higher up", is very interesting and i like it. But may I offer another one of my own Champions to this?

Ah but it seems I still need to research him a bit more, my apologies for this but well, lets just say hes quite the package.

turkeyBACON2/18/2015, 12:51:08 AM1 votes

Interesting ideas but i don't think the Cass part makes logical sense. Why would they make a curse that turns you into snake (or a version of a detestable/lowest creature you think of subconsciously or consciously) to mark you and banish you, BUT the curse also empowers you? The curse makes your enemies stronger? How does that make any sense?

Honestly, I don't think the narrative team thought the whole ascension story line through and your attempts at explanations are commendable. I don't think this one works though.

Also I've posted about this before but it's implied that the ascendee can chose their final form by wearing a helm that depicts the animal. Azir wears a golden hawk helm and eventually becomes a golden hawk.

TheGrandAlliance2/19/2015, 1:24:47 AM1 votes

[{quoted}](name=Kyoki Shinkuro,realm=EUW,application-id=6kFXY1kR,discussion-id=kbcxAhEN,comment-id=,timestamp=2015-02-16T20:00:55.506+0000)

So, now long after the Shurima Event, I got to the question: what exactly IS "Ascension"?

...An excuse by RIOT to sell limited edition skins/items and to lure people into playing LoL for a few months....