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Does anyone else find the whole "Demacia suddenly hates all mages" thing unbelievable?

Extrasolar·4/2/2017, 4:36:15 AM·10 votes·5,862 views

So wait, the new Galio lore has Demacia suddenly hating mages simply for their existence? Um...what.

Runeterra is a world absolutely full of magic and magic users in all shapes and forms. Sure, there's some evil magic users, but there's just as many good- or neutral-aligned magic users. Like... Why does Demacia suddenly hate them all? Do they hate Ionia for being very magical in nature? Do they suddenly despite Piltover for its prevalent use of Hextech, which is a fusion of magic and technology? Like...that seems ridiculous and arbitrary, especially in the context it's in.

What about all the magic users that have done amazing, good things for the world? Ionia's peaceful elders, all the super cool Hextech technology? Would someone like Ezreal be tarred and feathered if he visited Demacia, despite being a well-meaning explorer with tons of knowledge to share, just because he happens to be a mage and has a magical artifact?

So you're saying that Demacia literally has no population of mages that isn't in hiding and hideously oppressed? No battle mages? None at all? All their dudes are sword and board? Not only is that stagnant, but that's poor army composition, especially when they're fighting people with magical power.

And sure, Rune Wars were a thing, and I know Demacia's founding backstory has it being menaced by wizards iirc...but that was eons ago, and the rest of the world is getting on fine with the large amounts of magic that exists. Like...that's like hanging every single person who works with TNT and explosives, even for harmless and beneficial purposes, because nukes exist.

**EDIT: ** Ralanr further down the thread has given a very good response on some of the inconsistent things that bothered me (i.e., why no one but Demacia has the "all mages bad" attitude) that seems to make sense. I just wish we had gotten more development on that point.

Given what we know now (magic's rarity, Demacia being a very insular and xenophobic state, the events around its founding), I can believe Demacia's extreme aversion to magic. ...I just wish it was written more subtly and with more nuance.

55 Comments

Jeddy0174/2/2017, 5:08:54 AM8 votes

Runeterra is a world absolutely full of magic and magic users in all shapes and forms.

Yeah, you're behind the times. This isn't the Institute of War days anymore. Magic is actually pretty rare in most of Runeterra nowadays. Ionia seems to be the only exception with their abundance of magic.

Sure, there's some evil magic users, but there's just as many good- or neutral-aligned magic users. Like... Why does Demacia suddenly hate them all? Do they hate Ionia for being very magical in nature? Do they suddenly despite Piltover for its prevalent use of Hextech, which is a fusion of magic and technology? Like...that seems ridiculous and arbitrary, especially in the context it's in.

Okay 1st of all, Runeterra doesn't have the internet. Yes, there are plenty of good/ neutral mages. But most Demacians likely have no knowledge of them or even care to find out about them. In fact, most of their experience with magic came from their enemies attacking them. So it's pretty easy to see why Demacians would discriminate against mages. Remember, Demacia has taken a more isolationism stance when it comes to Runeterra. They're focused on their own territory & defending it from invaders. So, most Demacians likely have little experience with the outside world. Hell, they probably don't even know Ionia exist since it's so far way & they'll likely have to go through Noxus territory to reach it. Or take the long way through the Freljord.

Also, you might want to watch this:

https://youtu.be/pxjiCFo0NZM?t=3m18s

Chad Chadlainn4/2/2017, 5:21:25 AM7 votes

I'm reminded of this game... uh, what was it? Wyvern Period? No, that's not it... uh, perhaps.... AH, YES, it was Dragon Age! Remember those Templar dudes? They hated on mages and were complete dicks, but they were justified with the potential damage mages could cause. I feel it is the same here. Mages have hurt people and that's all that matters. Rather than unbelievable, Demacia has become scarily realistic.

Remember that one thing with the Germans and the Jewish? That was stupid, but yet it was still something that happened IRL. People look for something to blame for anything bad happening to them, or has happened to them.

TheHappyReaperz4/2/2017, 4:54:56 AM4 votes

Not really, Demacia has always been swords and shields, over magic. Think about it. They are the only faction with a single mage representing them. Its not a stretch to see them hating magic, for a couple reasons. A, the Rune Wars. An event so cataclysmic it forced people to run for their lives until they found magic-devouring stone trees. B, Noxus. The foremost combatant of Demacia. The Freljord is too far for a serious all out war, same with Shurima. The Void and Shadow Isles don't have a hold in that region, and Piltover and Zuan have little interest in anything besides themselves. However, Noxus is close enough, and has a large enough army, to constantly battle with Demacia. You know what else Noxus has? A lot of mages. The whole Black Rose organization. So, part of Demaica's hate is past conflict with the whole Rune Wars thing, but the other part of it is near-constant combat with "evil" Noxian mages.

Lanceworks4/2/2017, 5:19:33 AM3 votes

First of all, magic isn't actually that common on Runeterra at all, we just think it is full of magic because a lot the champions can use it.

Demacia's borders are closed from Piltover's traders as seen in the Medarda Heirloom. (I hate it when people still think they are allied)

And for your last point, here's a blurb from Demacia's universe page: "Some suggest that the golden age of Demacia has passed and unless it is able to adapt to a changing world – something many believe it is simply incapable of doing – that its decline is inevitable"

Don't assume that people are rational either. We have a bunch of nonsensical rivalries and taboos in the real world. Why can't a fantasy world (where most of the world is living in medieval times) be hesitant to try new things?

Placentas4/2/2017, 1:57:18 PM3 votes

In this thread

OP refuses to read/listen to anyone's arguments and repeats their argument which was been shut down.

GreenLore4/2/2017, 11:55:33 AM2 votes

Its because the rune wars almost devestated the whole continent. Remember that whole nations were erased by it.

And the backstory that demacia was founded by people who were hunted down by mages only to find this anti-magic material and win,actually explains pretty well why they see magic as bad and anti-magic as good.

Also in Luxs lore they mention a slum for mages and "doctors" to cure them,so they have other mages,its just that they are treated like they have some dangerous illness. And they can hold their own in battle,because they are better trained and equipped than other armies. Enemy magic isn't that bad if you have anti-magic armor and wyvernrider as air support.

OurLestrade4/2/2017, 8:27:44 AM1 votes

I'm hoping the Noxian updates make them human purists that hate non-humans. They already had hints of that in the JoJ.