Welcome to Noxus: What Happened to Mel & Who Are Darius and Trundle?
What did the Welcome to Noxus trailer show and why is it important to the Arcane universe?
Riot Games' latest trailer is officially just the annual cinematic ad for the new season of League of Legends. But even a cursory glance reveals that the rules have changed this year. Is this just another gameplay video or a teaser for the Arcane sequel?
Mel's return to Noxus
The main connection to the Arcane series is the unexpected direct continuation of the story of one of its characters, Mel. The new leader of the Medarda clan arrives on the shores of Noxus – returning home after a long absence.
At the ancient gates, adorned with the symbols of the Black Rose, she senses the remnants of ancient magic – the visions she sees seem to be a warning. It seems that people like her have many enemies in Noxus.
Mel is sure to be the new champion in LoL – rumors of her arrival have been circulating for a long time. However, the plot offers her an even greater role – as a heroic guide to the cruel and intriguing world of Noxus. She must decide who will be her enemy and who will be her friend.
Duel Between Darius and Trundle
On a mountain plain, Darius, warlord and champion of Noxus, and Trundle, the Troll King, engage in a duel of honor. The battle ends in defeat for both – Trundle is knocked unconscious by Darius' axe, and Darius is crippled by the ice curse on Trundle's club.
It is quite possible that we are at the very beginning of Darius's story – the general sent to take over the northern Freljord, only to return to find Noxus in revolt. A soldier returned from the cold – a puppet in the hands of schemers who will inevitably break free of their strings.
Dance of Katarina and Eliza
In this story, the action takes place within Noxus – at a masked ball, in a hall decorated with the symbols of the Black Rose. But under one of the masks hides an assassin – her name is Katarina.
She intends to kill the Noxian nobleman who is hosting the ball – but at the last moment her path is blocked by his bodyguard, Elise, a spider woman. In a dance of threads and blades, Katarina accomplishes her task – she manages to eliminate her target.
Elise is closely connected to the Black Rose and is one of its agents. Katarina is an assassin in the service of Swain, an obsessed Noxian general, the ideologist of a local coup – it was his personal raven we saw in the final scene of the second season of Arcane.
Perhaps we are seeing the first moves in Swain's chess game against the Black Rose?
Post-Credits Scene: LeBlanc, Vladimir, and the Demon Weapon
The most interesting part comes in the post-credits scene, where two important figures in the universe discuss plans for the entire world of Runeterra. At the heart of the Black Rose, its two founders, the ancient sorceress LeBlanc and the vampire Vladimir, are discussing what happened in the Arcane series.
In the final shots, they notice the symbol of the sword – suspiciously similar to one of the Darkin, former god warriors, intelligent and powerful weapons capable of subjugating the minds of their wielders.
The Black Rose, led for centuries by LeBlanc, will do whatever it takes to stop Calamity – an event that threatens to destroy all of Runeterra. Apparently, what happened in Piltover in Arcane Season 2 is seen as a special case of this threat.
The Black Rose clearly has plans for Mel's arrival, but there is no agreement on what tactics to choose for the coming crisis. Perhaps LeBlanc will decide to seek help from the Darkins, ancient weapons as powerful as they are dangerous.
Welcome to Noxus Looks More Like a Teaser for an Upcoming Sequel
Welcome to Noxus is hard to call a regular cinematic – Riot Games' intentions to combine the universes of the series and the game seem too serious.
And even if we don't take it as a teaser for a new animated story, one thing is for sure – the chances that the sequel to Arcane will take place in Noxus have increased significantly.