Interactive Lore Event II—Shuriman Independence

This is the second interactive lore event of Arc VII: Lines in the Sand. Ballots have been sent out to all three factions. If you can’t find a ballot in your email, check your spam folder. If you still can’t find a ballot, you can register here.

First-round voting will continue through Friday afternoon. Champion recruitment voting for Noxus and Piltover will continue up to shortly before each faction’s Featured Matches against Shurima this weekend: Saturday for Noxus, Sunday for Piltover.

On 6 July, 25 CLE, the Council granted Azir’s petition to join the League as a sovereign member-state. The petition had been complicated by a petition from the independent city of Dar’Khos, challenging Azir’s claim that he held supreme authority over the people over Shurima, or could speak on their behalf. Piltover and Noxus supported this rival petition, but Shurima defeated them on the Fields and secured confirmation of Azir’s status as Emperor of Shurima, with authority to speak for the people of Shurima.

While Azir asserts dominion over all the territory currently within “Shurima Desert”, as well as the historical principalities of the Empire, the only borders the League has recognized are those around his capital and the southern city of Dar’Khos. Both have been placed beyond the scope of armed aggression for the duration of this dispute, protected as would be the homeland of any League member-state. What is more, the Council seems to now be entertaining the argument that Azir is Emperor not only of the lands of the modern Shurima Desert, but of the principalities of ancient Shurima: Somungu (part of modern Kumungu), Targos (Mount Targon), Mogron (the Mogron Pass), and Uro’tan (the Shuriman name for Urtistan).

The truce that accompanied Shurima’s membership petition has ended. War has returned to Shurima, though its capital and Dar’Khos are now protected against direct aggression by Piltover and Noxus. The borders have been pushed outward, and Azir’s Summoners now delve into those stretches of land that are now marked as the territory of the Empire of Shurima.

Noxus and Piltover fight to regain their footing. Although Sivir’s mercenaries are increasingly irate about their lack of pay, the declaration of independence has quieted them somewhat, as they realize that Azir is what he claims to be. The nomads of Shurima have rallied to Azir’s cause, yearning for the respect and dignity that the great powers of Valoran have so long denied them.

The Story So Far

See especially the June 28 and the July 6 articles in the Herald.

• Opener—Lines in the Sand
• Update 1—Sand Hotter Than Blood
• Update 2—Champion Recruitment (June 5) (Morgana, Orianna, Leona)
• Update 3—Champion Recruitment (June 12) (Warwick, Nautilus, Pantheon)
• Tournament: Shuriman Independence
• Update 4: Champion Recruitment (June 26) (Annie)
• June 28 Summoner’s Herald Special Report: Unrest in Noxian Territory (Shuriman Independence)
• July 6 Summoner’s Herald Special Report: Shurima Joins The League
• July 11–12 Piltover Featured Matches—The Velocitronic Rail
• Interactive Love Event I—Ezreal and Lux
• Interactive Lore Event II—Shuriman Independence

Draft summaries for each faction follow. You are encouraged to discuss these options on the forum with your faction-mates.

Shurima

Emperor Azir sits upon his throne beneath the Sun Disc; in a matter of weeks, he has obliterated tribal grudges and clannish feuds that have endured for centuries: all are now his subjects, and all shall venerate their Emperor. The inhabitants of Shurima Desert have flocked to him, seeking a new life in the restored capital, a symbol of Shurima’s legacy. The walls that for so long held back the Rune Wars stand again, guarded by proud warriors and enchanted with magic that astonishes even the Institute-trained Summoners who have come to Azir’s court. The League of Legends has decreed that no foreign state shall violate the sanctity of those walls, lest all the powers of Runeterra arrange themselves against the aggressor. (Sivir’s occasional remark about, “All the good that did Ionia” is politely ignored.) Nasus and his chosen Summoners confer with the Solari, heirs to and innovators upon Shurima’s arcane traditions. Shurima’s great forges breathe again, as artisans craft enchanted bronze that glows with the sun’s own radiance.

Partial Early Victory

Shurima has secured a partial early victory through its early dominance. This has the following beneficial effects:

• Shurima gains +20 stat points for the duration of the arc. (This converts to +4 permanent gains after the arc, no matter who wins.) This gives it significantly more power to shape the course of the storyline through World Systems.
• If Shurima wins the arc, its stat gain from the arc victory is increased by 40%, i.e., from +7 to +10. It will secure control of one of its former principalities, such as Urtistan, Kumungu, or Mount Targon.

To make this more interesting, I’ve created a few different options for Shurima to choose from. I’ve garnished them with small special rules. (Fair warning: the special rules may be adjusted as we continue to revise the mechanics of World Systems.) Each option centers around one of Shurima’s Champions.

• Oceans of Blood: Build up Renekton’s war cult. +10 to Military.
• The Brackern: Purify Kalamanda faster than the League could with the Crystal Scar—especially given that Summoners seem to be avoiding that particular Field of Justice lately. This would allow Skarner’s kind to return, so he could stop missing them. +10 to Production.
• Lost in Time: Dispatch Shurima’s mages and Summoners to help Zilean pursue a possibility that some of his people escaped the destruction of Urtistan. +10 to Espionage. (This sort of dimension-hopping magic would come in handy in Espionage. Also: you come up with a better Espionage option! As for the premise, it may be about as original as Chosen Master Yi, but don’t let that fool you into thinking you know how it’ll end.)
• Temple of True Ascension: Retake Xerath’s temple from Noxus and Zaun, allowing Xerath to further loosen his bonds and reach out to the cosmos. +10 to Insight. (One hundred percent guaranteed not to backfire even a little bit.)
• The Astral Vault: Find a way to unlock the Astral Vault, a treasure hoard from a thousand years before Azir’s time. Sivir can take care of the rest. +10 to Commerce. (Gives your Champions a special pendant that they can use when the Temple Guards appear out of nowhere in the Shrine of the Silver Monkey.)
• Defenders of Valoran: Convince Azir that Shurima must fulfill its commitment to the League, to prevent another Rune War, even amidst squabbling modern nations who cannot truly understand what is at stake. +10 to Diplomacy. (Yes, this is a bonus based largely on Nasus’ awesome voice. The old voice. The real voice.)

Shurima can select one of the above. That storyline will move forward with a lore update. We’ll then give +5 points to each of the stats featured in the runner-up options.

Dar’Khos

The League has recognized Shurima’s control over Dar’Khos. Many within Dar’Khos are wary of Azir, though they are also grateful to no longer be facing the prospect of armed invasion by Piltover or Noxus. The Sar’Kah of Dar’Khos, its democratically elected governor and representative of the Grand Senate, has approached Azir’s court to request that Dar’Khos retain independence.

Shurima must make a decision. This will impact the progress of the storyline, as well as the distribution of the World Systems stats gained from the tournament.

• Bow To Your Emperor! Renekton and Pantheon call for Azir to subjugate Dar’Khos by force, turning its considerable assets toward military ends. (+6 Military, +3 Production)
• A New Day For Shurima. Nasus and Sivir are, for very different reasons, inclined to leave Dar’Khos some measure of autonomy. Nasus values its long history of scholarship, while Sivir doesn’t see a lot of profit to be had in motivating a bunch of merchants and craftsmen to become stone-throwing rebels. (+3 Commerce, +3 Diplomacy, +3 Insight)

Speak, Summoners. The Emperor commands you to render him your learned counsel.

Discuss options with other Shuriman Summoners here.

Noxus

Cassiopeia’s scheme to break Azir’s court apart from the inside, and to ensnare him with League politics and corruption, has not played out as she’d hoped. His overwhelming success on the Fields has kept his divided house together, and the outcome of the Dar’Khos petition was far from ideal. Swain is severely displeased with his aristocratic legate, but she insists her strategy will work, if given time.

Her Summoners and spies have felt out the League’s stance on the present dispute, and have found some leverage with the Council. Many of the Shuriman Champions’ petitions to join Shurima were rushed in the chaos of the Sun Disc’s rise, leaving some room for political challenges to their eligibility for particular matches. (That would be the ban.) Despite the strength of the Noxian military, Azir’s fanatic following has grown so large that it is now clear victory cannot be won without a stronger presence on the Fields.

Cassiopeia has gathered her inner circle of Summoners to plan their next moves.

The partial early victory rules give Shurima a major story gain, then rebalance the arc to hopefully make things competitive again. As part of that, Noxus and Piltover may each select one of the following buffs.

Reinforcements

The faction immediately recruits two Secondary Champions. This takes place before any regular recruitment that week.

• This option is not available if the faction lacks at least two remaining Secondary options.
• This is the “vanilla” option. It’s a good choice if a faction thinks it just needs to clear its bench faster. It imposes no additional cost on the faction.

Mercenaries

The faction adds three independent Champions to its Tertiary list. An independent Champion is a Champion who does not appear on the Core or Secondary roster of any other faction.

• We will take nominations from the faction’s Summoners, then put the list of nominees to a vote. The vote will include up to 5 options. (If there are more than 5 nominations, we’ll take the 5 with the most nominations. Each Summoner can nominate up to three Champions.)
• Use the Factions of Runeterra page as a guideline. This is somewhat out of date, so certain exceptions may be made in either direction.
• Staff reserves the right to veto any truly impossible options. In short, think of what this Champion would be asking in return, and whether the faction would ever agree to those terms.
• Interim rule: If two or more factions try to add the same mercenary to their list of options, we’ll randomly decide who gets them.

Vengeance

The faction may select another faction also involved in the arc. (It does not have to be the dominant faction.) It may then select two Champions who are Hostile to that faction, and are not Core or Secondary for any other faction involved in the arc, nor Hostile to the “vengeful” faction itself. It recruits both of them on the Friday after the partial victory, in parallel to any other recruitment that happens that day. The use of these Champions is not restricted to matches against their Hostile faction. These Champions are considered Secondary for system purposes.

• On a Quest for Vengeance. The faction may not cooperate with or assist its chosen foe in any way for the rest of the arc. Their range of options in lore events and the like will be slanted toward hostile action against their nemesis.
• From Hell’s Heart.  The faction commits itself to breaking its nemesis, no matter the cost. When the arc is finished, the faction will make one last strike at its nemesis. It will sacrifice a third of its permanent stat gains (or two points, whichever is greater) from the arc from all sources to deal damage to its nemesis. There will be a final tournament after the arc ends, but before the next arc begins. The tournament will consist of three matches with premade teams. If the vengeful faction wins 3-0, the damage done is triple the number of points sacrificed. If the vengeful faction wins 2-1, it deals double damage. If the vengeful faction loses 1-2, it deals damage at a 1:1 ratio. If the vengeful faction loses 0-3, it deals half damage.
• For Lines in the Sand, options would be:
  • versus Piltover: Ekko, Viktor, Jinx, Rumble
  • versus Shurima: Vel’Koz, Rek’Sai, Diana, Ryze

Alliance

The faction may select a potential friendly faction. It then gains access to any three of that faction’s Core Champions. (The faction’s Summoners vote to decide which three Champions it wants access to. Certain modifications are noted below.) It recruits one of them immediately, and adds the other two as Secondary (Ally) options. At the end of the arc, it gives one-fourth of its permanent stat gains (from all sources) to the ally faction. (Or one point, whichever is greater.)

• Gameplay-wise, this is a good option if the faction thinks it needs more variety.
• Noxus ally options:
  • Bilgewater
    • Except Nami
    • Including Tahm Kench
    • Including Diana
  • The Shadow Isles
    • Including Maokai
  • Zaun
    • Except Zac

You can discuss these options here.

Especially if the Reinforcements option is selected, Noxus may be required to make a decision as to whether to recruit Riven or Singed. Recruiting Singed will slant Noxus toward the use of biochemical weaponry against Shurima and Piltover, and strengthen the Zaun-influenced “New Noxus” regime. Recruiting Riven will strengthen the position of the aristocratic traditionalists within Noxus, and signal a return to classical Noxian values of personal strength. (See also: Mirrorwater Update 5: The True Noxus, as well as Shon-Xan Update 9: Peace and the latter part of Hextech Revolution Update 8: Shield of Light.)

Piltover

Piltover’s plans to modernize Shurima have been somewhat derailed, so to speak, by Azir’s return to power. It has, however, begun to regain some ground. The New Model Army has beaten back Renekton’s war cultists and Cassiopeia’s legions, allowing for the continued construction of the Velocitronic Rail link between Demacia and Bandle City. Piltover waits anxiously to see what will happen when Azir assumes control over Dar’Khos, the most progressive of Shurima’s cities, and Piltover’s most likely ally among them.

The Mayor has convened a meeting with Piltover’s Summoners and Champions, to decide on their next moves.

The partial early victory rules give Shurima a major story gain, then rebalance the arc to hopefully make things competitive again. As part of that, Noxus and Piltover may each select one of the following buffs.

Reinforcements

The faction immediately recruits two Secondary Champions. This takes place before any regular recruitment that week.

• This option is not available if the faction lacks at least two remaining Secondary options.
• This is the “vanilla” option. It’s a good choice if a faction thinks it just needs to clear its bench faster. It imposes no additional cost on the faction.

Mercenaries

The faction adds three independent Champions to its Tertiary list. An independent Champion is a Champion who does not appear on the Core or Secondary roster of any other faction.

• We will take nominations from the faction’s Summoners, then put the list of nominees to a vote. The vote will include up to 5 options. (If there are more than 5 nominations, we’ll take the 5 with the most nominations. Each Summoner can nominate up to three Champions.)
• Use the Factions of Runeterra page as a guideline. This is somewhat out of date, so certain exceptions may be made in either direction.
• Staff reserves the right to veto any truly impossible options. In short, think of what this Champion would be asking in return, and whether the faction would ever agree to those terms.
• Interim rule: If two or more factions try to add the same mercenary to their list of options, we’ll randomly decide who gets them.

Vengeance

The faction may select another faction also involved in the arc. (It does not have to be the dominant faction.) It may then select two Champions who are Hostile to that faction, and are not Core or Secondary for any other faction involved in the arc, nor Hostile to the “vengeful” faction itself. It recruits both of them on the Friday after the partial victory, in parallel to any other recruitment that happens that day. The use of these Champions is not restricted to matches against their Hostile faction. These Champions are considered Secondary for system purposes.

• On a Quest for Vengeance. The faction may not cooperate with or assist its chosen foe in any way for the rest of the arc. Their range of options in lore events and the like will be slanted toward hostile action against their nemesis.
• From Hell’s Heart.  The faction commits itself to breaking its nemesis, no matter the cost. When the arc is finished, the faction will make one last strike at its nemesis. It will sacrifice a third of its permanent stat gains (or two points, whichever is greater) from the arc from all sources to deal damage to its nemesis. There will be a final tournament after the arc ends, but before the next arc begins. The tournament will consist of three matches with premade teams. If the vengeful faction wins 3-0, the damage done is triple the number of points sacrificed. If the vengeful faction wins 2-1, it deals double damage. If the vengeful faction loses 1-2, it deals damage at a 1:1 ratio. If the vengeful faction loses 0-3, it deals half damage.
• For Lines in the Sand, options would be:
  • versus Noxus: Alistar, Irelia, Kayle, Varus, Veigar, Poppy, Xin Zhao
  • versus Shurima: Vel’Koz, Rek’Sai, Diana, Ryze

Alliance

The faction may select a potential friendly faction. It then gains access to any three of that faction’s Core Champions. (The faction’s Summoners vote to decide which three Champions it wants access to. Certain modifications are noted below.) It recruits one of them immediately, and adds the other two as Secondary (Ally) options. At the end of the arc, it gives one-fourth of its permanent stat gains (from all sources) to the ally faction. (Or one point, whichever is greater.)

• Gameplay-wise, this is a good option if the faction thinks it needs more variety.
• Piltover ally options:
  • Bandle City
  • Demacia
  • Ionia

You can discuss these options here.