Mortality of Braum

spicymonki·Oct 24, 2018·1 votes·2,867 views

Everyone should know Braum from League as this protector of sorts. That's the idea I got from playing him anyways. His skillset revolves around the idea of being the ideal illustration of a support. His voice quotes only enforce that idea and turned him from this visibly chiseled, beefy man, who looks like he's out for glory, into an honestly likable, undeterred lifelong friend. His likability affected me so much to the point I would read his bio and story. However, after reading the criminally short story about how Braum saved the troll boy trapped in a mountain, a few things about the way it was told perplexes me.

His age is never mentioned in the story; the only point in which we get any reference of time is when the grandmother mentions "My grandmother used to tell me of the time Braum protected our village from a great dragon! Or once, this was long ago, mind, he raced down a river of lava!" Already I have a question. Apparently Braum was doing Braum things when the Grandmother's Grandmother (That's two generations in between!) was still alive. Which means that Braum's story is being told. I know it's redundant to highlight "told" since it's literally what's happening in his story: a grandmother is telling her child a bedtime story. However I want to clarify that to have your story told, you have to be famous IN LIFE. They have to already know the beginning and the end to tell a story, otherwise it'd be just like telling someone, "oh you know there's a guy that saved a kid trapped in a mountain? Yeah then he just ripped a door off it's hinges and saved everyone from an avalanche. Crazy, right?" Although it's hard to explain in words, you all get the picture i'm trying to paint right? Is Braum dead at the time in which the grandmother tells his story? Has Braum halted his aging somehow similar to Lissandra? Is the story being told from the future about Braum and the deeds he's accomplishing right now? Where does he fit in the story that's currently unfolding on Runeterra? There are so many questions that such a simple story can raise, and **I want your opinions on them! **

Note: You don't have to limit yourself on the story of Braum and when it takes place. If you have any thoughts, questions, or theories about the Runeterra timeline, you're free to post them below!

9 Comments

mrmeddymanOct 24, 20184 votes

I've seen many theories as to the nature of Braum

That he's Iceborn/a Watcher.
That Braum is a spirit like Janna.
Braum is a title that gets past down through generations. One Braum trains another to pick up his mantle before he dies and the cycle goes on from there to create the illusion of immortality
Braum is LITERALLY just a myth. Now that the summoners and the League of Legends is not canon technically nobody has ever seen Braum or interacted with him. He may actually just not exist, which would probably make him one of the wilder League champions in concept. Celestial Dragon? Manifestation of Death? Bruh my champ doesn't even fucking exist outside of folklore.

I kind of like all of these. We'll never know until he gets lore update which coulda happened with Nunu but instead we got Gnar T_T

The EcdysiastOct 24, 20183 votes

My theory is that use of true ice has age-repelling properties, akin to the complete stasis Gnar was placed in.

spicymonkiOct 24, 20181 votes

I'm not sure how true ice works, but if true ice just imbues itself unto you, then wouldn't Ashe have the same properties? I mean, she has a bow made entirely of true ice, but then again that may just affect her arrows and not her. You know, I read that Ornn made the door Braum uses as a shield, so maybe since it was made by a demigod, it could be enchanted or something?

The EcdysiastOct 24, 20181 votes

{quoted}

I'm not sure how true ice works, but if true ice just imbues itself unto you, then wouldn't Ashe have the same properties? I mean, she has a bow made entirely of true ice, but then again that may just affect her arrows and not her. You know, I read that Ornn made the door Braum uses as a shield, so maybe since it was made by a demigod, it could be enchanted or something?

In Sigvar's story (god I hope Sigvar Half-quiver becomes a champion, he's so fucking cool), when he grabs his comrade's hammer he can feel the cold coursing through him. I'd say it definitely imbues itself unto you. And there's nothing saying Ashe isn't that old.

spicymonkiOct 24, 20181 votes

Damn, it would be so cool that Braum might not actually be dead. It also explains how mortals can practically live forever, especially in the Frelljord region. But what about guys like mordekaiser pantheon? I think I read somewhere that mordekaiser can live and die again and so can pantheon. I'm pretty sure they don't have true ice to keep their bodies in stasis, so what about them?

The EcdysiastOct 24, 20182 votes

{quoted}

Damn, it would be so cool that Braum might not actually be dead. It also explains how mortals can practically live forever, especially in the Frelljord region. But what about guys like mordekaiser pantheon? I think I read somewhere that mordekaiser can live and die again and so can pantheon. I'm pretty sure they don't have true ice to keep their bodies in stasis, so what about them?

There are different kinds of magic keeping the various old champions alive.

Although, Mordekaiser doesn't live and die over again. He, Karthus, Yorick, Kalista, Hecarim, Pyke, Nautilus etc. are undead. So technically nothing is keeping them "alive".

Pantheon is not the body. The body is a man by the name of Atreus. Pantheon is the cosmic entity whose power now inhabits that mortal body. Because the body is mortal it can die, but because Pantheon the Aspect of War is a celestial being, it simple leaves the dead body until another worthy vessel scales Mount Targon.

Other examples include:

Yordles, who by their magical nature have extremely long lives compared to humans. Poppy may be special even among yordles because of whatever factor has determined she is the Hero of Demacia, though there's nothing explicit in any other yordles' stories that claims that they aren't or can't be as old as Poppy.

The Ascended, who are kept alive by the magic of the Sun Disc which empowered their ascension.

Ryze, whose interaction with the ~~infinity stones~~ World Runes has cursed him with longevity.

Ivern is kept alive by the magic of the God-Willow.

Automotons and cyborgs who either never had or no longer have physical bodies that decay, Blitzcrank, Galio, Camille, Orianna, and Viktor.

Then there are all the champions who, by nature of what they were born as, are possibly immortal. The demons, elementals, demigods, and celestials.

RyzeTheSmurfMageOct 24, 20181 votes

{quoted}

There are different kinds of magic keeping the various old champions alive.

Although, Mordekaiser doesn't live and die over again. He, Karthus, Yorick, Kalista, Hecarim, Pyke, Nautilus etc. are undead. So technically nothing is keeping them "alive".

Pantheon is not the body. The body is a man by the name of Atreus. Pantheon is the cosmic entity whose power now inhabits that mortal body. Because the body is mortal it can die, but because Pantheon the Aspect of War is a celestial being, it simple leaves the dead body until another worthy vessel scales Mount Targon.

Other examples include:

Yordles, who by their magical nature have extremely long lives compared to humans. Poppy may be special even among yordles because of whatever factor has determined she is the Hero of Demacia, though there's nothing explicit in any other yordles' stories that claims that they aren't or can't be as old as Poppy.

The Ascended, who are kept alive by the magic of the Sun Disc which empowered their ascension.

Ryze, whose interaction with the ~~infinity stones~~ World Runes has cursed him with longevity.

Ivern is kept alive by the magic of the God-Willow.

Automotons and cyborgs who either never had or no longer have physical bodies that decay, Blitzcrank, Galio, Camille, Orianna, and Viktor.

Then there are all the champions who, by nature of what they were born as, are possibly immortal. The demons, elementals, demigods, and celestials.