Something that's surprised me about the reaction to the Piltover Stories.

So, we've all noticed the outrage over Victor finally becoming the villian so many already saw him as (he wants to forcibly convert humans into monsters!? YOU FIEND!) Buut I think what people might not have noticed, is both where the old naive but back stabbed Victor vanished to, or for that matter, the way Piltover has shifted from being 'Science Demacia, more or less' to something capricious and occasionally cruel. From what I've seen, Piltover's character previously was 'let's use technology to make the world a better place!' versus Zaun's straight-up 'who cares about the cost!?! THIS IS FOR SCIENCE!!!!' Now though... Between Piltover's construction flooding half of Zaun, the pressure on to accept Piltover's gilded offers of a better life, and 's putting down of a Zaunite Baron for trying to marry his way into the circles of power in Piltover, and yes, the arrogance displays in his new story, I think Piltover IS a place for intelligent people...But it desires a different sort of intelligence than what Zaun wants. Piltover now, strikes me as only claiming to be a place for innovators and artisans-it's REALLY for merchants and charismatic types- or Pre-transformation or would be right at home here, perhaps even moreso than in Noxus. Faction-wise, it's the Face, pretty, but obsessed with making sure it's reputation is not tarnished, lest it's power fade with it's looks... Zaun, on the other hand, seems to be the true home for intellectuals and creators, like , like , and yes, like or . And fascinatingly enough, there's a certain link between the four of them-they've all, at some point or another in their careers, tested their science on themselves. Now granted, this view is still somewhat hinging on older Zaun lores, but something in particular I'd like to point to in all this is actually . Maybe this is just me not seeing this side of before, but I always saw as being a straight-up heroic figure, someone who goes around saving kitties from trees and helping old ladies cross the street level of heroic. But I ALSO considered as being the of Piltover, an exemplar of what Piltover was all about in a nutshell. And with this new lore change, I think he arguably is this even more so than before. He's intelligent enough to create new Hextech creations, and he's certainly willing to use this new technology to improve humanity's bearing, as well as defend it against those who would take it to use for their own darker purposes...But he's also arrogant and looks down upon those he views as his lessers, with his abilities fueling an over-grown ego. And now, I'd like to link this back to . Old , lore-wise was bright, and wanted much the same as -to use technology to aid and help humanity. But after losing the credit (and the acess to resources that this loss would bring) of creating due to legal problems and just how cruelly what an invention meant to help others became nothing but a massive scandal that would blacken his name...He turned bitter. He was mad. He wanted to make Zaun burn for this. But he caught himself before going too far, and chose to try and use his technology to help him become a better man...And ended up the herald of the Glorious Revolution instead. While his actions are generally questionable, he's a good guy at heart, right? Except...What makes this guy stand out in amongst the rest of Zaun? When half the city has been flooded and washed away thanks to Piltover? When their best and brightest are lured away with Piltover's gilded promises, only to be either stifled or culled by the ruling elite as demonstrated? The only thing unique about Old in this new Zaun is that he managed to make a cyborg of himself. And really, is that anything special now? And while I haven't seen the New lore, seen things from his perspective, I don't really see the old as doing anything but pointing out how much the chips are stacked against those Zaunites who do have the talent and ability to make something of themselves.