Creative Spotlight - Rek'Sai: Scourge of the Desert

Pyro··10 votes·2,080 views
Rek'Sai: Scourge of the Desert

It seems that Rek'Sai is getting a good, atmospheric background piece, on par with Sion's.

To anyone wondering if it's worth reading: It tells you who (or: what) that kid with the bell was.

Good job, Narrative. This piece alone painted a more realistic Shurima than the whole "Shurima event".

This surely is a great piece of Rek'Sai backstory, portraying her as a true menace to the local folks. However...

Rek'Sai exists completely detached from anyone from the current champion roster. This was already a problem with Gnar and you've used a band-aid in the form of comics by Rachel J Corey (whose works I love, by the way). With IoW gone, with League of Legends no longer being "real" to those characters, new champions without a default place in society (see: factions) are completely disconnected from the big picture.

In pre-retcon lore, to Garen, Ashe and Darius a creature like Cho'Gath was a monster, but if they got into Summoner's Rift together, he was a champion like the rest of them. There was a Summoner behind him, and Cho'Gath was a person, just like the other champions. Rek'Sai? She's a monstrous, ferocious pet. A big chess piece, perhaps, but not a person in any means. The same thing exists with Gnar. Without defined relations, without possibility of realistic conversation outside of the game, they aren't people, they're just... creatures. And there are creatures that are in relation to other characters. Think about Appa from Avatar: The Last Airbender, or any sort of animal with defined personality.

23 Comments

Pyro8 votes

Soraka What a lovely say on the Rift. Who do I support today? Kalista hi Soraka ...By the stars. Kalista i choose u Soraka Listen, maybe I'm not the best target for your... ARRGGGHHHH Kalista u r oathsworn now Soraka ...Ahh. You wicked spirits from the Shadow Isles! I hate when I have to put up with you! Kalista u prefer the stinky rat? or the crazy chick? she looony. Soraka ...Yeah, I guess we're it. Just move on to lane. Who's our mid? Azir HAVE YOU ACCEPTED SHURIMA INTO YOUR LIFE AS YOUR PERSONAL... Soraka Okay, okay! Move to the mid. Happy farming. Azir EVERYONE WILL KNOW THE NAME SHURIMA!

Soraka Sigh, I guess we'll need top to occasionally teleport and help us. Can we count on you? Khazix I took ignite. Soraka What? You had teleport! Why did you change it? Khazix Change... is good. Also, I'm against Rengar. I need to 1v1 him really hard. I can't help it. Soraka You Voidlings and your lack of manners. I guess we'll have to rely on our jungler. Speaking of which, who is our jungler?

[incomprehensible screeches] Soraka What is that? Your cousin or something? Khazix No relation. Soraka ...What are you, even?

[screeching intensifies] Soraka Forget it. Just... gank bot from time to time, okay?

[some odd sound] Soraka Was that a yes? Khazix How should I know?

Jellycake Demon2 votes

Change... is good. Also, I'm against Rengar. I need to 1v1 him really hard. I can't help it. hahahahahahahahahomg i lost it that is the best line ever XD, also the bit where Rek'Sai comes in & the continued coversation between Kha & Raka is really cleaver & good.

Igotlazy7 votes

I would like to think that only Voidborns can speak with her.

Like:

Darius Hey bug boy, can you tell your freaky southern cousin to gank my lane already?? Khazix ......Bug boy? Darius JUST DO IT! Khazix Fine, yeeesh you humans are grouchy. YO REK! -incoherent noises- RekSai random screeching...? Khazix incoherent noises RekSai random screeching Darius So? Khazix She says to shut your eating hole before she rips it out. Darius What in the.... RekSai random screeching Khazix Oh really? RekSai random screeching "raises left claw to sky" Khazix She means it. Darius ....

Centuros6 votes

Rek'Sai ISN'T people, though. She isn't supposed to be.

Pyro3 votes

There are many ways to make a creature stand out. "Alien" was new, menacing, and original. Any sort of team pet in cartoons exists in relation to the main cast.

The problem here is that Rek'Sai exists without any connection to other Champions. She could be from a completely another world or era as far as we know. What's her relation to other Void creatures? How does she behave when around Cho'Gath and Kha'Zix, how does Vel'Koz look at her? Which one of the usually dauntless champions could get scared by Rek'Sai? Is she Skarner's crush?

This sort of stuff.

Letsgetcooking5 votes

I think Vel'Koz and Cho'Gath are the oldest Void champions and have to deal with the youngsters being rude to each other.

Chogath "Are they doing it again?" Khazix FURIOUS SCREECHINGRekSai Velkoz "Yup." KogMaw "Hungryyyy..." Velkoz "I'VE ALREADY GAVE YOU TWO TRIPLE KILLS IS THAT NOT ENOUGH?"

ModWulf Helhammer2 votes

ohmygod that velkoz line....I died!!!

Jellycake Demon2 votes

hahahahahahah omg this is good

Sharjo3 votes

Have to agree, this is actually a really cool insight in to Shurima and its culture. This is what life's like outside of its glorious capital, and it's not nice. I also like the fact that Shuriman is a language as well as a nationality. Also I assumed that Rek'Sai was the only Xer'Sai in Runeterra. Boy was I wrong! It also appears as if Rek'Sai and the Xer'Sai's names are from the Shuriman language. Makes me wonder where the other Voidborn's languages come from.

As a note, that disc is an incredibly stylised map of Shurima.

Sharjo2 votes

While Rek'Sai and Gnar exist detached from other champions and alone in the world, the point of this is that as their stories develop, they'll meet up with other characters, other champions, and progress from there. As an example, Gnar has relationships with Lulu and Heimerdinger on his champion page despite having no indication of such. That doesn't mean he can't find them and interact with them, and stories can't be built around that.

Just because a champion is disconnected from other champions doesn't mean they're gonna stay alone forever.

Igotlazy2 votes

Also Rek'Sai was made the feel "non-human". She is the only champion in the entire roster of 120+ that doesn't have a single speaking line. Not even another language like Gnar, just flat out random incoherent screeches.

BLU Medic1 votes

Not bad. Probably spent too long talking about the narrator than Rek'Sai, but what can you expect for a primitive monster? Except, well, where she came from and how they know she's a Void being. Let's hope part of this gets added to the client, rather than yet another one-liner.

Sharjo4 votes

The piece concerns more the Shuriman desert as a whole than Rek'Sai herself. It paints a setting and then places her firmly in it. That seems to be the point. Also this won't be in the client. All the lore stuff will be on the website from now on, they've said this before.

BLU Medic1 votes

That's a pity, because the new client lore pages look awful.

Sharjo1 votes

They're redoing the client right? So it stands to reason the client lore pages will be built around the short lores once they get to that part of it. Then it won't look so pitiful, and it'll have a link to the rest of the lore!

Igotlazy1 votes

Gnar, while having no effect on the world at the moment, does have connections to a couple of champs. It was Rengar who found him wondering around the jungles, and it was Anivia who originally froze him. I wouldn't consider Gnar a "mindless beast". He has his own launguage sure but you can clearly see a fun loving almost mischievous kid behind all that fur.

The Soulforged1 votes

{quoted}

Gnar, while having no effect on the world at the moment, does have connections to a couple of champs. It was Rengar who found him wondering around the jungles, and it was Anivia who originally froze him. I wouldn't consider Gnar a "mindless beast". He has his own launguage sure but you can clearly see a fun loving almost mischievous kid behind all that fur.

Any idea how people learned that it was Anivia who froze him?

Igotlazy1 votes

I would like to see how Azir is reacting to all this. I mean he DID say he will revive Shurima, had the whole "capital city resurrection" and everything. Where's the giant army of sand soldiers storming the Sai' Plains to liberate the people? Get it together bro, you don't just have some awesome "savior from beyond the grave" moment only to fuck up.

Ebonmaw Dragon2 votes

{quoted} I would like to see how Azir is reacting to all this. I mean he DID say he will revive Shurima, had the whole "capital city resurrection" and everything. Where's the giant army of sand soldiers storming the Sai' Plains to liberate the people? Get it together bro, you don't just have some awesome "savior from beyond the grave" moment only to fuck up.

Well, The Empire of Shurima fought against the XerSai in the past... You can see a picture of Renekton vs RekSai in the creative spotlight. So, i dont think that Azir has power to defeat the void... for now.

LANWhale1 votes

But know that he is Ascended maybe he can deal with the Xer'Sai? Also i'm sure Azir actually has already had to deal with them when he was king of Shurima.

Sneak Dog1 votes

She'll probably be either a side-character in stories set in Shurima or about voidborn, or a monstrous antagonist. She probably won't be a deep and fleshed out person. League doesn't have many of those anyway, most characters are quite shallow instead of feeling like actual persons (I miss Dawngates lore already).

Letsgetcooking1 votes

[{quoted}](name=Sneak Dog,realm=EUW,application-id=6kFXY1kR,discussion-id=p9AueUq5,comment-id=0009,timestamp=2014-12-10T23:56:24.277+0000) She'll probably be either a side-character in stories set in Shurima or about voidborn, or a monstrous antagonist. She probably won't be a deep and fleshed out person. League doesn't have many of those anyway, most characters are quite shallow instead of feeling like actual persons (I miss Dawngates lore already).

She's going to be some sort of neutral character, in which that she kills everyone who walks in her turf, be they Xerath's funbusters or Azir's pimpsquad.

I think a rioter mentionned Sivir baiting enemies in Rek'Sai's territory. Could be this sort of plot twist thingy

Renekton "Siviiiiir....Xerath really wants you dead. I'm always the one to partake in BLOODY GOOD OCCASIONS!"Evil laugh Sivir "Oh no. I'm scared." Renekton"Yes, tremble! SCREAM AND DIE!" charges Sivir"Oh no, he's running. I am terrified. I will die. Why am i not running away like a little coward and instead standing still?" RekSai FURIOUS SCREECHING Renekton"WHAT ON EARTH IS THIS" Sivir"Oh yeah, that's why."

Jellycake Demon1 votes

hahahah this is good

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