Universe:Canonical inconsistencies

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In a Dev Update^[1], Laura 'poisonpixxi' DeYoung, Head of IP Creative for Riot Games, elaborated on their new approach to narrative cohesiveness by ironing out any inconsistencies that have sprung up over the years.

This wiki page serves as a compendium of both speculative and Riot-confirmed instances of canonical inconsistencies within the Runeterra Prime.

Main Changes[edit | edit source]

The following prominent changes are confirmed to happen to the narrative of the Runeterra Prime universe:

The Arcane and Runeterra Prime universes are canon and will be one shared canon moving forward. ^[1]
- Arcane's origin of Hextech will be the origin in the unified the canon in Piltover and Zaun moving forward. ^[1]
- Changes to Camille and Seraphine's origins in order to follow this new narrative ^[1]
Moving forward (starting from October 12, 2023) everything coming out from Riot Forge, Legends Of Runeterra and other narrative sources acknowledged by Riot Games will be considered part of this new canon.
- However, content that has been in development before the change in strategy may not have time to pivot, which can cause inconsistencies.
- This also means that it would overwrite any previous narrative that existed, which can cause inconsistencies.

Canonical Inconsistencies[edit | edit source]

Confirmed Cases[edit | edit source]

Inconsistency	Description	Reference
The Invention of Hextech	The origins of Hextech currently differ between what was established in universe and in Arcane. In Arcane, Hextech was the result of Jayce and Viktor's experiments to harness the power of magic through science. In the current universe, it was the result of discovering the power of the Brackern's crystals. It has been decided that the origin of Hextech in Arcane will be the origin going forward and champions related to Hextech will have their lore adjusted to accommodate, such as Seraphine and Camille, however, as it stands these champions have not yet been adjusted. Multiple issues arise when discussing Camille and her family, the Ferros Clan: In Arcane, Jayce uncovers and refines Hextech crystals based on a Rune stone gifted to him by a rune mage (An alternate timeline of Viktor) around 970 AN. Consequently, it appears implausible that the Ferros Clan could have discovered them within Shurima and refined the crystals between 787 AN - 892 AN. The Brackern, the creatures from which Hextech crystals originate, have had their lore entirely reimagined to be part of Ixtal instead of Shurima, and are now not associated with the crystals at all. This restructuring leaves the Ferros Clan's historical narrative devoid of a solid foundation.	Dev Update - Champs, Lore & More apothecarie on the Ferros Clan's history
Yorick's Absence during the Return of the Ruined King	Despite Yorick's story being primarily focused on finding and stopping the Ruined King, he played a limited role during the events of Rise of the Sentinels.	Dev Update - Champs, Lore & More
Second Invasion of Ionia in Awaken	In Awaken, Noxian forces can be seen once again invading Ionia, prompting its defenders to rise up against them. However, this event is in the distant future and has not been bridged with current events.	Dev Update - Champs, Lore & More
Sylas' Siege in Warriors	Sylas lays siege to a fortress of Demacian soldiers, Garen, and Lux with the aid of the Winter's Claw. However, this event is in the distant future and has not been bridged with current events.	Dev Update - Champs, Lore & More
The Hunter Hunted	While not confirmed by the IP Creative team, it is noted by Narritive Director Laurie 'Scathlocke' Goulding that The Hunter Hunted is currently not following the current canon completely.	Scathlocke on The Hunter Hunted
Narrative discontinuity relating to Taliyah's story.	The community noted that there are unresolved events between Taliyah's stories Echoes in the Stone and Hollowspun. After Taliyah enters the Shuriman capital in search of her family, key conflicts involving Azir and Xerath remain unexplained due to a six-year time skip between the two stories. The community is uncertain about what happened to Taliyah's family, her tribe (the Nasaaj), and which version of Xerath (from Legends of Runeterra or the main lore) is canon to her storyline. Riot's narrative writer at the time, Dana Luery 'griddlebones' Shaw, acknowledged the confusion but had no further details to clarify these gaps.	griddlebones on narrative discontinuity between Echoes in the Stone and Hollowspun

Community Identified Cases[edit | edit source]

Inconsistency	Description
The Darkin Saga	The events of the Darkin Saga take place in a distant future. The unearthing of 1 The Darkin Bloodletters by the Wuju Order results in Kayn and the Order of Shadows assaulting their temple in order to claim them. In an act of desperation, 3 Jun, the Prodigy wields Bloodletters, allowing Xolaani to infest her. Xolaani travels to Icathia with her thralls and reactivates the Altar of Blood. Her reemergence alerts Aatrox and Varus to her presence. Aatrox sends out a call, awakening his other darkin brothers and sisters, and they begin to seek out hosts and rally to his side in Icathia to stop Xolaani. Varus travels around Runeterra, recruiting various bowmen, offering them power if they aid him in stopping Xolaani. The return of the Darkin is felt in the celestial realm as Kayle and Mihira muster a celestial army to stop them, Kayle also sends out a distress call to Ryze. The Darkin and Celestial armies clash in Icathia as Ryze watches on. In the ensuing battle, Xolaani merges herself with Mihira, gaining even more power. Uncertain if Runeterra is even worth saving, Ryze enters his mindscape and rewatches key moments in Runeterra's history. When he is finished, Ryze determinea that despite its flaws, Runeterra should not be condemned to oblivion. Kayn's story is divided into two possible outcomes. In one, Rhaast takes over Kayn's body, defeats the Wuju and retreats the Bloodletters while in another Kayn wins over Rhaast and fights Master Yi.
Fate's Voyage: Onward & Beyond	In Fate's Voyage: Onward, Morgana plays a key role as she aids Nilah in her recovery after her battle with the Volibear. Morgana's story reveals that she has ventured beyond Demacia to Targon, marking a change in her actions compared to The Mageseeker. Previously, she chose to remain hidden from mortals, fearing the repercussions from Kayle if she intervened openly. What happened between the events of The Mageseeker and Fate's Voyage that caused her to change her mind is currently not explored in the lore.
Ekko's parents	In Arcane, Ekko is implied to be an orphan, but in the Runeterra Prime universe he has two parents: Wyeth and Inna. They are both seen in CONV/RGENCE and mentioned in The Unexpected Spark.
Stone Cold	In the Song of Nunu, Nunu and Lissandra's relationship undergoes a significant change, with Nunu and Lissandra becoming foils of each other when faced with critical decision to sacrifice their family for the greater good. Their relationship in the game contradicts the portrayal of respect for Lissandra Nunu has in Stone Cold: "I try saying the prayers Lissandra taught me, just in case".
Ixtali borders Milio's Super-Special Adventure Reports Ezreal's Field Notes	Ixaocan and its corresponding arcologies are isolated from the rest of the world. However on multiple occasions, outside forces are able to circumvent Ixtal's protective barrier that has been isolating them for almost a millenia: During Milio's voyage through the isolated part of the Shuriman Jungle, he meets Neeko, a vastaya from the outside world. Neeko should not be able to move through Ixtal's barrier. In Ezreal's Field Notes, Ezreal mentions being able to visit Paretha, a settlement within the Ixtali borders. As Ezreal is a Piltovan outsider, he should not be able to breach the barrier without any major repercussion.
10 Cithria, Lady of Clouds	This card, as well as potentially 1 Trusty Ramhound, depict Cithria as a veteran soldier during the time when Jarvan III was alive. However, in non- Legends of Runeterra material like Turmoil, it's said she is still a new soldier, serving for barely a year. Since Turmoil and the entire mage rebellion take place after Jarvan III is killed, those cards can not work with the timeline (while 6 Cithria the Bold still shows a possible or aspirational future). Riot at the time claimed they wanted to tell a specific version of Cithria's story, regardless of what the other teams were doing,^[2] but it has not been addressed in the context of "One Runeterra".
Sylas' story	Sylas' story is told in multiple pieces of media and they're are not all cohesive with one another. In Demacian Heart, Sylas alone finds the mage girl and only after Marsino's death does Vannis become aware of her. Later Sylas accidently kills her, her father and Vannis. Thus this version of the story depicts the death of two mageseekers, but only one was killed by Sylas. The Unshackled says that both Sylas and his handlers (plural) found the girl. It also mentions that three people died, but only that one of them was one of Sylas' mentors. Sylas: Origins says that two Mageseekers and a young girl died in an "incident", though this incident could be refering to the Demacian Heart story in general and not just the accident. In the Lux comic, Sylas mentions how his superiors (plural) went after the girl which caused the accident. The artwork depicts the accident, showing Sylas, the girl, a man who is likely her father, and a mageseeker who is likely Vannis. In The Mageseeker, the artwork from the comic is tweaked, changing the man for another mageseeker, thus depecting two mageseekers dying in the accident. The Mageseeker takes place right after the Lux comic. In the comic, Sylas fights Garen and Jarvan IV before running away through the sewers with a group of mages, in the game however, he only fights Garen and runs away through the sewers with the help of Killan.
Piltover's Founding Timeline Conflict	In Arcane, Heimerdinger claims Piltover was founded about 200 years ago. We know that Jinx is portrayed as 17-19 years old during the 200th Progress Day.^[3] Based on the lore from Realms of Runeterra, the partial destruction of Zaun and the construction of the Sun Gates, which led to Piltover’s rise, occurred in 772 AN. If Piltover’s founding is tied to this event, the 200th Progress Day would fall around 972 AN, creating a Timeline inconsistency. This would imply Jinx is over 40 years old, contradicting her age in the series. The exact timing of Piltover’s completion remains unclear, leaving room for confusion regarding both the city’s age and Jinx’s true timeline.

Flagged Articles[edit | edit source]

The following articles have been flagged for containing information that will most likely change or be removed as part of the announced changes to the narrative.

References

[devUpdate-1] {Jump up to: 1.0} ^1.1 ^1.2 ^1.3 Dev Update - Champs, Lore & More

[2] Martin Montgomery on Lady of Clouds

[3] Jinx's age in Arcane: Official information

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