ARCANE fan reacts to Swain (Voicelines and Theme)

[@Caporai]

Wolf: "Tell me a story, Lamb." Lamb: "Once there was a sacrifice exchanged for an oath." Wolf: "What was given?" Lamb: "A hand to rule with." Wolf: "And what was promised?" Lamb: "Nothing that would last."

[@supermarshmellowy]

Ahhh, love this one!!!

[@Argiue]

Wowww is this a legit voiceline??? I've heard kindreds so many times as well as swains, but never this. Guess I should check kindred interactions?

[@samuelmcewen9011]

@@Argiue Its a line from LOR legends of runeterra and its fucking genius because it strikes at one of the inspirations of Swains lore Dr Faust but it gives the question. What if Faust somehow outsmarted Mephistopheles and also the ambiguity of who outsmarted who is raum the arm to rule with under the complete control of swain or is swains raum arm to control noxus and steal it from leblanc.

[@Caporai]

@@Argiue its on Legends of Runeterra card game.

[@dyingstar3899]

I like how the two most powerful known entities of death both see how Swain will eventually lose against the demon and call him out for it. Mordekaiser literally calls it borrowed power.

[@BlackStarGamer3]

I think I can answer the question of Swain being manipulated by Raum. There's a line that was missed here that goes "Never make a bargain with a demon, that you intend to keep." Swain and Raum are essentially playing a massive game of chess against each other.

[@kingdrogo6124]

Lol and kane and his weapons relationship is funny

[@sparemobius7430]

@@kingdrogo6124 indeed, those two are trying to play a chess game but in the end are just bros. Bros who want to stab each other in the back, but bros.

[@kingdrogo6124]

@@sparemobius7430 i like how kanes weapon stands up to zed for him lol..especially since they have this weird student master grudge..

[@Ugotsomemilk]

Interesting fact about Swain: many of the voice lines you heard are activated, when he collects a soul fragment of certain champions: "Faces fading in the flames, it was all her fault" (Jinx in this case) for instance was the big hint for years, what happens in Arcane later on. Everybody knew SOMETHING happened. Nobody knew exactly what. They had the basic story for Arcane ready for a long time and they teased us since Jinx and Vi were released. ^^

[@erik_verastegui]

I highly doubt they planned for Arcane that far back (but I could be wrong) several of the characters have their backstory shroud in mystery with only hints here and there. The show is just building upon some of the snippets already in-game. On top of this the show and game are different canons considering the stark difference in hextech between the two

[@Pheonixess]

@@erik_verastegui They reworked swain and added new voicelines, some to foreshadow Arcane. They worked on Arcane for over 6 years.

[@Tur33233]

@@erik_verastegui you would be surprised how long into the future riot foreshadows things.

[@miseravi7520]

i think it's for annie, swain's rework came out before annie's origins animation, where she kills her parents and sister by accident.

[@Ugotsomemilk]

@@miseravi7520 i think annies line was: "A child only knowing hate, mistakes it for love" or smth similar. I could be wrong though. But i remember the jinx line specifically, because it was theorized by many, that the stuff teased by others would happen in Arcane.

[@elastores5051]

What really makes Swain so powerfull and fearced by all is that he knows everything, and i mean EVERYTHING. Because of Raum, the demon of secrets, Swain can gather intelligence which would regularly be far beyond his reach. His ravens are his eyes, and they are everywhere, not only in Noxus. He keeps track of all the nations at once, knowing exactly what each one of them is up to at all times. He is quite literally always one step ahead of everyone. Combined with a smart mind, Swain is a character unreachable for almost anyone in Runeterra.

[@sparemobius7430]

that is a good point,and who also had Ravens around in Arcane? Jinx. What if Swain was watching her closely for her experiments with hextech? We know Noxus is coming, it is likely Swain that killed Mel's brother or someone under his command, makes me wonder if season 2 involves him coming for the hextech knowledge to use for weapons? At least one of the plot lines anyway.

[@ShiwaTheDrink]

@@sparemobius7430 I agree, Swain is the type of character to keep track of those who experiment in order to make Noxus stronger. Maybe he is introduced as he goes asking for Singed since, in the old lore, he "helped" noxus during the ionian invasion with chemical weapons that killed soldiers in both sides, being Riven a survivor. Also, Remember that Mel's mom tried to convince Jayce of weaponizing Hextech and selling it to Noxus. There are different approaches they can take for introducing Noxus characters but I would love some Swain and Singed interactions because of the old lore.

[@kroneexe]

@@sparemobius7430 Swain is not yet in power when Arcane happens.

[@ninjatoriumnova2483]

These voice compilations usually leave out a lot of context, I'd suggest watching videos that cover special interactions in the future, that way you at least see which other champion they are responding to.

[@bread6596]

yea i agree with Swain you MUST watch the spotlight cause he has so many intresting direct lines to champion i HIGHLY reccomened anyone woh has not seen it to check it out

[@JayJayM57]

@Theunwantedwings everyone tells her that in every episode, because there are some missing lines.

[@CalmNoises]

@Theunwantedwings People have andshe responded with that she understands the character better or something by watching these. i think she even said so in the Evelynn video

[@p4scol3s]

Yeah I've been saying that since quite a while.

[@ilkankuss]

True! she should re-watch the spotlight

[@redmoonknight1130]

39:48 "faces fading in the flames, it was all her fault" that's actually a quote from Swain to Jinx

[@clover9725]

i hope we see him say that in season 2 of arcane. all these crows we saw can only be riot preparing him for later

[@rave743]

​@@clover9725 *ravens

[@idirbouchdoug1567]

@@clover9725 we'll need another timeskip for that probably , around this time i think boram darkwill is still ruling in noxus.

[@anthonymorales9869]

When a casual person sees a crow in Arcane: "Well those clearly signify the constant death that haunts Powder's existence." When a League fan sees a crow in Arcane: "Is that you Swain, you nosy b**ch?"

[@NightSterling]

Swains birds are raven's so if anything those crows are fiddle's

[@anthonymorales9869]

@@NightSterling Jinx would be a buffet of fear for sure. Also it can no longer be a coinvidence that Fiddle and Raum are both primordial (AKA Boomer) demons with a bird motif.

[@mr.beanladen1469]

@@anthonymorales9869 Raum is not a primordial tho, only Fiddle. So far, out of 10, only 2 primordials are revealed. Fear and Joy.

[@anthonymorales9869]

@@mr.beanladen1469 TBF there's still a lot we don't know about Raum, AND the few pieces of concept art we've gotten of them does match up with the shared traits between Fiddle and Ashleigh.

[@Miragosa]

@@anthonymorales9869 Unless they change the story again Raum is not a primordial demon as the writer of the demons has stated that Raum evelynn tham noct are not part of the 10

[@mewweiss8833]

Swain is a character best described as "the end justifies the means". As far as I know, he acts completely demon-free (so he's 100% human), but he doesn't shy away from manipulating or killing humans. He is a calculating and logical character. For example, he used Draven to get Darius on his side in his revolution. The demon only makes him more dangerous than he already is. Sorry for the long comment. you make cool videos 😅👍

[@tudornaconecinii3609]

I don't know if I'd say that ends justifies the means is an appropriate category for Swain. He is the "greater good" in the sense that his ultimate goal (preparing and strengthening Noxus for the coming of Mordekaiser so they're not screwed) is good, and he does more good than evil on balance. But that doesn't mean all his actions are necessary evils individually, sometimes he straight up does an evil dictator thing. Compare and contrast Swain to a much more straightforward ends justifies the means champion, Zed. Zed is just as ruthless, but *always* in the direction of good.

[@MadCatAttack123]

I think Swain sees himself as "the necessary evil". Keep in mind that he is likely now aware of all the looming threats that hang over his world. The black mists of the Shadow Isles, the Void rifts in Icathia, the Watchers frozen beneath Freljord, and the one closest to Noxus: Mordekaiser building his army of the dead or whatever he's doing in the afterlife. He likely knows he will need great power to protect his people from those greater evils and is willing to commit atrocities to get there. That's how I read his character anyway. Now if we veer into the realm of speculation: If you believe the theory that the third member of the Trifarix is related to the Black Rose, it gets more interesting. For all the wrong they've done, it seems LeBlanc and the Black Rose are making preparations to oppose Mordekaiser when he eventually returns to wreak havoc on Runeterra. If "guile" is related to the Black Rose, it would mean Swain was willing to work with people he despised in order to work towards a common goal, which in this case I think can only be to oppose Mordekaiser.

[@beast9729]

Fact about Swain: As far as i know Swain is the most ontelligent and knowledgeble charackter on runeterra except Aurelion or some other celestials

[@evanhuizenga8626]

"Never make a bargain with a demon... that you intend to keep." -Swain

[@tiptoplolepop416]

“Faces fading in the flames. It was all her fault”. This voice line is directed at Jinx.

[@mariusfelder7438]

I feel that swain does nothing without purpose. There are a lot of apocalyptic threats in runterra and swain knows them all and because of that I don't think he searches power only for powers sake. Same goes for le blanc when u actually get into her lore u find out that shes preparing for mordekaisers inevitable return. That's the reason why the black rose tried to empower rell, because mordekaiser's physical body is out of metal and she would shred him. Swain and LeBlnac are not evil for evils sake they do what they deem necessary for the survival of runterra and most of all noxus and that's why they appear evil because their methods are often cruel or brutal but u cannot deny that they are effective and have always a deeper purpose behind it. but that's only my opinion

[@rayzuke1232]

exactly this. Noxus are a means for survival for the whole world. No matter who it has to antagonize Noxus must expand and reach a new pinnacle of strength beyond that of the other regions in order to survive the literal onslaught of doomsday scenario's. And Leblanc and Swain are the only ones who know this dark truth.

[@CorpseStarchEnjoyer]

The guy made a cameo in arcane with his ravens "Faces fading in the flames it was all HER fault" His voiceline when he interacts with jinx in games He's also preventing mordekaiser to come back in runeterra without the world knowing it.

[@valmiro4164]

Yea skinspotlights actually make all his lines way more interesting, a lot of his lines are easter eggs for what's about to come, he even hinted Arcane way before it was announced.

[@TrollCatGamer]

I'd recommend watching the voice lines videos from skins spotlights, they give a lot of context to why these lines exists. First watch the interactions then the voice lines video. The line '' A vault empy of relics but full of corpses'' are towards Elise and how she has been leading people to the Shadow Isles and feeding them to her Spider God, context matter a lot for this character and I'd highly recommend doing that in the future, will answer many questions

[@jestapath7373]

She talked about her preference for these ones over those( in the Evelyn video) for the sheer presentation and music accompanying it. She's aware she is missing some context and extra quotes, but for now she does seem to enjoy this quite a bit as a sort of "cinematic overview" I'd say.

[@mobiushelldoctor1423]

@@jestapath7373 yeah, that's kinda sad, she would have lost her shit with the Powder quote but that's her channel she do what she want

[@TrollCatGamer]

It really is a shame since those videos not only remove context from the lines but also edit them so some lines were cut halfway and added in another quote that wasn't related, it ends up mixing stuff and causing confusion if someone doesn't know that information beforehand

[@alexiskiamco6157]

Loved the reaction. I would recommend mordekaiser next as he was or I think the founder of noxus and the one that built the immortal bastion. And I think the reason why Swain is scared of the black rose is that because they want to bring mordekaiser back on runnetara. Mordekaiser is my fav character lore wise. He is like last boss level.

[@YuriLunaris]

I looked it up, while he did not founded Noxus he was born into an Noxii tribe, one of the tribes living in the area where Noxus was later founded, but he caused the Noxii tribes to unite to take him down, which allowed them to unite in one Nation.

[@rayzuke1232]

Leblanc literally is responsible for his second death (which he had planned for) and locked up his armor in the immortal bastion to seal morderkaiser away from the rest of the world.

[@CalmNoises]

@@rayzuke1232 and the whole Rell thing is about fighting Morde as well

[@alexiskiamco6157]

@@YuriLunaris I see. Thanks for this. He was only a human then. Imagine what he can do with his new strength. Waiting till riot makes an event centered around him like the ruination.

[@alexiskiamco6157]

@@rayzuke1232 ohhh..I did not know that.. thanks for that. So is he an enemy to leblanc then? And from his voicelines I think he is scheming something.

[@locobyte6819]

A lot of his voicelines are from when he’s using his w so most of the time he’s telling you about other characters

[@tabuula8968]

Swain is one of my favorite characters because he's so badass and knowledgeable. His knowledge is only surpassed by Aurelion and Zoe. His voicelines have forshadowed so many reveals like the return of viego, jinx's past in arcane, and aurelion having siblings. If you like him you should check out Vladimir as he also has a lot of lore in and out of Noxus although his league design and voicelines are outdated (I'd recommend checking out the legends of runeterra interactions by skin spotlights). He also has some really iconic followers in LoR that you already saw, called the Crimson Circle. Also we don't know the identity of the Faceless. A lot of people thought it was Leblanc, but Swain would never let her be part of the ruling council. Another theory and personally like is that it's Marcus Du Couteau, Katarina's father who was head of the assassin guild before his supposed death. I suspect he may have faked his death to go into hiding as the Faceless but that's just speculation.

[@tabuula8968]

Another thing about Swain is that he put together the Trifarix as a contingency plan in the event that his ambitions or his demon overtake him so he does seem to understand that he could be corrupted in the future. He's also pulled back the armies from all the campaigns in order to refocus their efforts against Ionia, which is apparently crucial to combat the coming "darkness" he talks about.

[@danieldani5922]

i would say that velkoz has more knowlege then swain

[@tabuula8968]

I agree Vel'koz is probably more aware of Runeterra in a more a scientific and analytical sense, but I think Swain knows more about about different people, nations, and their history/magic.

[@baisansebastian3358]

'If you plan on listing my crimes, mind you do not die of asphyxiation.' My man's a a boss through and through.

[@sylvananas7923]

Noxus is all about strength, but Swain brings that idea of 'work smarter not harder'

[@franingegnieri1831]

Smart is another type of strength

[@ScorpionViper1001]

@@franingegnieri1831 It's why they value Vision and Guile along with Might.

[@Broomer52]

@@franingegnieri1831 a beating of the minds

[@vagoerrante]

How I read Swain's character, he used these secrets and powers as a medium to a goal, being that goal expanding Noxus to all humanity, but as time has passed he grew to like the power he acquired

[@DaRealALX]

* (a correct summery of swain) * he is actually a good guy that does the bad things for the greater good he leads noxus into invading EVERY part of runeterra because he wants to see the entire world as one united nation under one united flag, his nation and moral values are power, talent, intelligence and skills, whatever you are good at, noxus will praise you with it and encourages you to proceed into your valuable dream and passion, swain has done a LOT of evil deeds as he said: tell me again all the crimes i have committed and i'll tell you the price of victory, he says that he has done terrible stuff at a price that is worth it, he used singed's chemical gas to kill an entire village and the one and only wuju dojo, the village where master yi is from, leaving yi as the only warrior with the ability to use the wuju style sword mastery, his first invasion of ionia was a set up by boram darkwill and leblanc which ended in failure, the second invasion was lead by him and it was a decisive victory for noxus, he only wants what is good for noxus and nothing more. now to answer some of your question's : 1: is swain evil? No 2: is raum in control of swain and/or manipulating swain into doing these evil deeds? No, swain is in full control of both human and demon capabilities 3: how did swain managed to take powers from raum? he tricked raum into submitting himself into him, sealing raum's soul unto his own soul, gaining full control over everything raum has. ( he legit trolled the FK out of the freaking DEMON OF SECRETS one of the most knowledgeable beings in the world, and he trolled him XD ) 4: his voicelines are really interesting and saying a LOT about characters examples: 1) so he's heard the rumors, the girl who came back. he is talking about Kassadin hearing and knowing about a girl who came from the void, being kai'sa later being revealed to be Kassadin's daughter who he went to void to search for, and Swain always knew about the truth. 2) it is better to be feared than loved vastaya. he is talking to Ahri and her story shows that no matter how much she tries to help humans she will never escape her true nature and her psychological perseverance of being soul devouring vastayan spirit, something like Evelynn but more empathetic and less sadistic. 3) faces fading in the flames... it was all her fault now THIS... props to the riot story makers, Swain's rework was released in 2018 which it means that the voices was taken about a year before it, so riot already written most of ARCANE's story in that time, because this voiceline is directly towards Jinx, as we saw in arcane, as she is the reason for death of Vander, Milo, Claggor. we never understood what it means for a lot of time, until we got to see arcane, again showing that Swain knowing the entire story of ARCANE before being made into an animation for us to see and know about, another example on how much he knows. 4) a child who has known only hate, confuses it for love he is talking about Kayns story and his past 5) my my does your niece knows what "C" is up to? this is a secret reveal to one of the greatest comicbook in 2016 which ended in around 2020 this broke the entire arc of the story and revealed EVERYTHING right in front of our eyes and no one even realized untill we got to the last chapter of Camille's story, again showing that no matter how much you think you know, Swain knows more 6) no daughters, only soldiers. this quote is to Darius, that confirms that Darius has two daughters he doesn't know about, but Swain knows. these are great examples to show this quote of his is true to its massage: they are five steps from realizing i am ten steps ahead. * i highly recommend leagues stories and realize what other secrets swain might know, because no matter how much and how many secrets the world is trying to keep, HE will always know, no matter the deaf the blind the mute or the dead, he WILL hear, he WILL know. if you come this far, thank you for making these videos, you are one of the few youtubers that stayed interesting and little to no filter. if you need more information about stories of runeterra just ask for it and i will be there to assist you georgiee.

[@mathies3598]

"Immortal Bastion" was painted by Mel Medarda in Arcane episode 6, with the ships with red sails in front.

[@georgieegames]

OH WHAAAT! THATS SO COOL

[@mathies3598]

@@georgieegames yup! That's why it means so much when she smears it with golden paint. She has rejected Noxus and her mom.

[@uselessmuffin]

The line "Faces fading in the flames, it was all her fault" is actually a nod to arcane on how powder got mylo and claggor killed

[@fabiobastardinho1301]

Also Mordekaiser had Demons under his command, one of them being Annie's! so its possible that are still demons in the immortal bastion

[@squilaxlegend6182]

Tybaulk?

[@fabiobastardinho1301]

@@squilaxlegend6182 yeah

[@mewweiss8833]

We would know from LeBlanc at the latest. But at that time no other demons were ever mentioned as far as I know

[@fabiobastardinho1301]

@@mewweiss8833 They were. Tybaulk is one of them

[@mewweiss8833]

@@fabiobastardinho1301 I only know from mirdekaiser himself (and the two demons) 🤷‍♂️

[@fabiobastardinho1301]

Fk i forgot i didnt do a summary from the last champion check video! Swain is one of the most badasses Characters in lore. So much lore was releaved when he first got reworked! Check the Legends of Runeterra Voice Lines too. Always so fun watching your videos Georgie!

[@ryan1000011]

Swain isn't really "evil" he knows what he is and how sometimes awful thing have to happen and he can bear the wieght of that he may be wrong but we've yet to see if he is

[@tekkenandrew3126]

Swain is basically Chaotic Neutral?

[@ryan1000011]

@@tekkenandrew3126 he's text book lawful evil and knows it (though the demon pushes chaoic) but like the devils in dnd he's a necessary evil

[@MrMeddyman]

He doesn't care that he's evil because he rejects moral relativism.good and evil are meaningless words as he says the only measure of a soul is the strength of their will

[@fabiobastardinho1301]

Sorry i just remember some fun facts: Swain is a very old champion! Before the Lore Reset and Swains rework, he was primarly green color. Things that Riot kept from his pre rework: His ult , which makes him transform into the demon form. Back then he would transform into a Giant Bird man; Being crippled. Swain used to have a wonky leg and use a cane everywhere. It Shows when you use the dance command: Swain starts dancing with a cane while whistling his theme; He also had a Crow pet name Beatrice. They couldnt keep the pet into the new version so they change it to the crows as his visions and spies. The nevermove ability used to be different but they still kept the same name and the stun effect. Basically Swain is a Tywin Lannister. He only cares about Noxus as a nation, but he isnt afraid of making sacrifices! He respect anyone who values the Noxian principles. Strenght above all!

[@papej3290]

Well that's a good comparison. Especially if you know that both are played by Charles Dance

[@fabiobastardinho1301]

@@papej3290 who Tywin and Swain? Its not the same actor but its pretty close and i wish it would be so

[@kroneexe]

Swain is not powerhungry and corrupt. In fact, he's uncorruptable. He truly wants the best for Noxus.

[@Evan-mt7bc]

You really need to add in a dedicated interactions video into these. There were a lot of quotes that probably went right over your head in the quotes video because quite a number of those were dedicated at specific characters. For example the line "What is this about? Siblings?" Is directed at Aurelion Sol, the line "Shaped by Humanity, a reflection" is when he encounters another Demon, "He asked her to do what she could not, to kill me" is directed at Katarina, "She was closer than he realized" towards Warwick, "If you take me you will leave Noxus with something far worse" Is towards Kindred".

[@Lucifernu5]

Swain can be resumed on his first phrase, they wanted a hero but what they needed was a villain. He is an evil asshole? Yes And yet he is what noxus needs to be united as a nation, to have under control all the other small reigns they have conquered, Noxus its like a feral blood hungry beast and Swain its tamer, he has to be hard and cruel or it will go rampant, specially if the black rose takes control, thats why he is a neccesary evil

[@TrollCatGamer]

As for Swain himself (coming from someone who was a swain main until very recently, and even top 200 swain players in my server), he is a very moraly gray character. For some he's a tyrant enforcing the idea of Noxus being a greedy empire, for others (including myself) he is a visionary, trying to make the best for his people. First, it is important to note that LeBlanc was behind Borin Darkwill pretty much the entire time, and so her manipulation of Swain was through him, not directly to Swain himself, he was serving the emperor. As he uncovered more and more he realized how deeply rooted the Black Rose was to Noxus itself and so LeBlanc decided to take him out since he knew too much. For context, before Noxus existed the region where the Imortal Bastion (a fortification in which Noxus Prime, the capital city of the empire was build). The Imortal Bastion was build by a bloodhungry warlord that dominated the region centuries ago, his name was Sahn-Uzal aka Mordekaiser, in his attempt to become more powerful he toyed with all sorts of magic (including torturing a yordle, Veigar, and the study of demons, like Raum, the demon of secrets). As the barbarian warlord grew more powerful, other tribes united themselves in an attempt to take him down, and they sucessed because someone from withing his ranks helped them, that person was LeBlanc. Though we do not know what are her or the Black Rose's goals we do know they are ancient and have been around even before Noxus was founded, over 800 years before the current time, and they have been pulling the strings all over Valoran, from the Ionian Invasion to the murder of the King of Demacia, Jarvan the third. After Mordekaiser was defeated by the local tribes they took over the Imortal Bastion and founded Noxus. The main reason the Empire is expanding is because the region itself was very scarce of materials and fertile lands and so taking over neighboring places was the only option for the empire to sustain itself. So that is why the whole deal with Noxus is a bit of a gray area because although they expand and wage wars they don't have much choice if they want to survive. It is also with mentioning that every region that is added to the empire, be through battle or though diplomacy (yes, Noxus does accept adding cities to the empire without the use of violence) also receives help with infrastructure and is added to the Noxian trade market ensuring they flourish as much as the empire does, such thing can be seen in cities that belong to the Shuriman Empire before it fell. Since they either have no leadership or are ran by crime lords most of them accepts peaceful being added to the Noxian Empire since it benefits them a lot. Now back to present times, the whole Ionian invation was architectured by the Black Rose the destabilize the empire (for god knows why) and was a war they knew could not be won, it go so bad that Darkwill was sending kids to fight because he thought locals would not kill children to survive (that's why Kayn was raised in Ionia although born in Noxus btw) and was also using chemical warfare against the land and his own men if needed (this is where Riven's and Yasuo's stories meet!), it is also worth noting that the responsible for making these chemical weapons was Singed, the doctor from Arcane! In the end, the war was an absolute disaster just like the Black Rose wanted but Swain, instead of dying in Ionia like LeBlanc wanted him to, survived. We do not know yet how Swain was able to trap Raum, some believe he made a deal with the demon, but in parts of the story it was said that he tricked the demon so this part is unsure. But having the demon's power as a weapon he took over the empire and have been working to end the Black Rose's influence over the empire, the whole concept of the Trifarix was that if they were able to corrupt one leader the other ones would root it out before it could fester. Darius was a remarkable soldier and loyal to the empire so he was a clear choice for Swain as someone he could trust, since Draven is Darius' younger brother he came along and Swain gave him a job in the arenas. As for Swain itself, he is a very gray character. He wants LeBlanc's cabal out of the picture but their influence cannot be denied and so he cannot just witch hunt them, he needs to play the political game and see how things ends. From my understanding of his character, he sees the dangers that lie in the future such as the returned of the Ruined King, the big Void Incursion, the return of the Empreror of Shurima and the Ascended, the return of the Darkin, all of those cataclysmic events that humanity will only be able to survive by working in unison, one that can be achieved through conquest and expansion of the Empire, so even if the world falls to darkness, Noxus will still stand, Noxus being not only the capital but the entire empire. So it's a very complex subject, he's a ''means justify the ends'' type of character and so deciding where to stand when it comes to him goes more for personal opinion than facts (unlike villains like Jhin for example). And Noxus itself follows that logic, they wage wars and conquer land but these lands often grow much more then they would have on their own, they make prisoners fight in arenas for their lives, but also accept people from anywhere, any sexuality, race, species, anything as long as you have strength. I'm sorry this is absolutely HUGE but this character is heavily connected to the entire world and so context is extremely important to read him correctly, I'd highly recommend watching the videos Necrit makes regarding the Lore of each characters since he gives a lot of context and makes everything every easy to understand and digest. Ps: Some people believe that the man Mel's mother mentioned (that killed Mel's brother) is in fact Swain and that their family might be linked to the Black Rose which would be why she was so afraid. Since Noxus was introduced into the storyline it is not hard to believe we will see more of Swain of the Rose in the next season!

[@hunchbackproduction]

Swain very cool character. I do think he really does do stuff for Noxus though, not for himself as a pursuit of power. I don't think a power hungry demon dude would split create a 3 way ruling system instead of being a dictator. He strikes me as the ultimate "The ends justify the means character", someone who does terrible things but Noxians may not necessarily consider him a villain. I really believe swain when he says "I would not ask of anyone what I would not do myself". Seems like he is planning and preparing for something unseen, "The dagger is at our throats. But their hands quiver."

[@sortilien2099]

You want to understand noxus that's easy... Noxian have a saying : "Fight them until they are family !"

[@SectorZeroGP]

Explanation. Swain linked himself to the essence of raum, the demon of secrets, acquiring all its abilities, powers, knowledge and of course, the control over the demon itself. They are like kurama and naruto, indeed for fiddlestics they count as the same entity

[@greenin5537]

So, in your latest videos some of us told you that if you were going to react to Swain you should have used the other channel that gives you context to who he is talking for each line, because the most interesting things about Swain is the interactions he has because of Rain knowing their secrets. For Mordekaiser having Raum, a demon(like fiddlesticks, Evelyn, tahm, nocturne, etc), as servant, that should tell you the level of power Mordekaiser has. He built the immortal bastion as an HQ, but when he was defeated by the black rose and Vladimir, The Noxians founded their nation with the immortal bastion as a capital. That place holds a lot of secrets beneath it, it is like a labyrinth down there, and Mordekaiser is sealed down there. The moment he comes back, Noxus will have a great problem right inside their capital. Also Vladimir, Viego's uncle, old as shit, was an entertainment as a Darkin prisoner, they were bored so they taught him blood magic, and now he is a Vampire.

[@soninh4357]

25:42 this is why you dont learn about lore from wiki. They missing alot because they need to made it short for "quick look" that why under each wiki there often link to champion story and media. Story of Swain cant be tell in 1 small wiki page, he have multiple story from when he was young to when he become Grand general.

[@BartAlpine]

You MUST react to Sylas, as he is one of the most interesting characters in league

[@matthewswartz6763]

Yes Yes Yes I think she would love it and his lines are so interesting.

[@mewweiss8833]

Yes. And he is one of the most important characters in runeterra

[@friedaiceborn1663]

Something you likely didn't notice during arcane are the numerous Ravens that chill in the backround of the show. Swain sent them and he knows everything.

[@leonardogomez9805]

Please please PLEASE, you have to start whatching the skin spotlight interaction videos, is gives so much more context, it's really worth it, even more than the quote videos

[@baztbw6990]

Swain voice acting feels like Meryl Streep in devil wears prada - like he's quite quiet and never raises his voice but he has so much authority in it

[@parzivalkni110]

If there is any champion you should have watched the skin spotlights video on over the stylised video, it would have been swain. A lot of his quotes are directly talking to another champ (and revealing their secrets), and without that context, you lose a lot of what makes swans lines so great!

[@bottlecapster9586]

Swain is fascinating for how he exemplifies the ways that Vision and Portent affects one's actions. By virtue of Raum's power, Swain has the ability to see a much grander tapestry of causality and threat than almost any other character in Runeterra, and thanks to his demonstrable will, it's clear that he is acting out a much grander narrative with the insight given to him. He sees the workings of the ants below him, but it's virtually impossible for him to focus on the wellbeing of the individual, when he understands the various world-ending threats that would consume everyone, including the nation he's so dedicated to protecting. By no uncertain terms is Swain, like Leblanc, a villain, but like Leblanc, because we cannot see the board they play on, it's hard to fully understand the morality that justifies their actions, and how much that morality is colored by the knowledge they hold, or their own bid for power and control. Leblanc represents Noxus' past, the Strength lost to time and conceiled by manipulation and forbidden knowledge, Darius is Noxus' present, a symbol of Noxus' Ideals taken to their most venerable degrees, and Swain represents Noxus' Future, a grand game of chess, one move from oblivion and imminently aware of the threats stacked against it. Guile / Strength / Vision, the core tenents of the Governing system that Swain himself devised to protect Noxus from itself.

[@MrMeddyman]

For Swain you need context as to who he is talking to because they're all directed at specific champs, even then without some base level understanding of the individual champion stories the secrets Swain tells will go over your head, because they're just that. Secrets. "Faces fading in the flames, it was all her fault" for example refers to Jinx and is an early Arcane tease

[@bluenightmare4223]

You might have thought of Game of Thrones because the voice actor of Swain (James Faulkner) plays Randyll Tarly in Game of Thrones

[@kindreadr]

Awesome, i was waiting so long for you to do the Swain review 😁

[@dragonsmith3285]

Okay, so about Swain and his demon. Because there are levels to the powers of Demons, it should be stated Swain's Connection to Rhum is basically all the power Rhum has. Rhum is a Demon who feeds on Secrets and Regrets. like how all demons feed on specific ideals or emotions, Swain can learn those Secrets which is why alot of his voice lines are regrets or secrets other champions have

[@Tur33233]

You really should watch his interactions with other champions. It s on skins spotlight channel. He tells the player certain secrets about characters he hits with w in game.

[@chunchunmaru1995]

I think you should watch it from skin spotlight. Bcz u missing whole point. Most of the voice lines to other heroes and you can see them at skin spotlight videos.

[@chunchunmaru1995]

especially like swain, he know all truths about all heroes.

[@hapythots]

from my understanding of swain, hes more like the guy thats willing to do what needs to be done to get what needs to be done. without hesitating. hes not "evil" but hes not "good". he is the master strategist that gathers information/secrets, in order to win. he is dedicated to noxus 100%. the fact that darius allows him to lead is evidence of that. darius walked in and beheaded the previous ruler because he wasnt fit to lead. think of it like the trifarix rules together. swain is the political/military tactician. darius is the arm/axe that carries out enforcement of noxus. and the guile lady... does... guile things lol. their whole thing is mystery, so we just know she does "things". also his voice lines make more sense when you know more lore. a lot of them are lines about other champions lore when he interacts with them.

[@thesolarhunter]

Yeah LOR revealed that Mordekaiser used two demons when he returned from the dead.

[@ronaldopayne5514]

You should probably use skin spotlights because alot of the interactions are to certain champions and gives context to his interactions.

[@willydonka1041]

Swains quotes are better experienced knowing who he is talking to, having no context on swain quotes is like listening in on someone’s conversation half way through

[@friedaiceborn1663]

Fun fact: Swain is commonly played as a support. The funniest part is that several people who are on Swains payroll are the ADC's that he plays with.

[@therainbowconnection6813]

Swain can be played in pretty much every role except adc.

[@friedaiceborn1663]

@@therainbowconnection6813 I would say swain APC is a thing. But swain jungle isn't

[@intruwuder4183]

Fun fact: Raum is a demon "in real life", he's mentioned in the ars goetia and solomon's lesser key.

[@alexandreeu5105]

Can't wait for Pyke and Sett reaction

[@azoth9875]

Whilst I get that you like these videos for the voice compilations, I would really recommend watching skin spotlights or some similar videos, as they cover almost all the voicelines, and also give context for them (e.g 'A glimpse, mere seconds into the future' comes from when Swain collects a soul fragment from Ekko, who can travel a few seconds back in time), which is often really important to understanding what it means. The compilations you watch also muddle voicelines from different skins, which further confuses the identity of the character. Also, in regards to Swain himself, he seems to be preparing for some great threat by trying to unite the world against it. Possibly Mordekaiser, possibly the Void, possibly something else entirely. He is definitely of the opinion that the ends justify the means, and that often means he comes across as a villain, but he is acting in the better interest of the world, and Noxus itself. I would also argue that Noxus, despite being more brutal than Demacia, has become better than it under Swain's rule. Whilst Demacia is racist against magic, Noxus accepts everyone unconditionally, and anyone can rise to a position of power if they have the strength (physical, mental or otherwise) to do so.

[@ScorpionViper1001]

"But I thought they stopped all the wars." Georgie, Noxus has two modes: war and preparing for war. If they are declaring peace, it means they're just better preparing for round 2 when they're in a better position. Swain's personality and villainhood is very much the Machiavelli line "It is better to be feared than loved." However he does also Machiavelli's other adages that if it's possible to be feared and loved by your own people (or at least respected in Swain's case) you should go for that (as for those outside of the country, in this case Noxus, who cares?) And like Machiavelli he believes that even if he's feared by his people he also avoids making them hate him because that obviously threatens national unity. "What are his motivations? Is it for him to protect Noxus or for him to get power?" Yes. Why's he scared of the Black Rose? They're an ancient conspiracy that managed to take down Mordekaiser. That is some serious political pull. And LeBlanc is a ridiculously powerful mage with mind control and likely cloning abilities. And they're apparently gunning for Swain for unknown reasons. If I was him I would not underestimate them all. Fear is the appropriate response. Anything else is stupidity. And like others have said, a lot of the voicelines are directed at specific characters or types of characters and are either wry commentary by Swain about them or insight at darker secrets of themselves or their nation and/or faction. Check out the Skin Spotlights video of Swain and his quotes, it will help provide a little more context.

[@JayJayM57]

One of his best line is missing, " never make a deal with a demon, the you intend to keep". Also, his lane are targeted to direct champions. Without seeing who he is targeting, you are missing the true value.

[@housey_]

Have you checked out the first part of Bridging the Rift, or have any plans to do a video on it at all?

[@apatheticdeity6030]

In Noxus, the common people respect Swain. But nobility fear him in the political sphere due to what he has done in the lore. He is extremely patriotic and while you may think that the power is getting to his head, in the end everything he does is to ensure that Noxus will survive no matter what. That is why he saids "Noxus becomes a more perfect expression of my will" because he knows best that he will not live forever and he doesnt need to. He has established everything he needs to ensure Noxus's continued sucess. A three rulership goverment to ensure no one person can ruin everything, power to the people can rise from the lower class, and a ensured value in "Might, Mind, and Gile (deceit)" so that only the best of the best can rule.

[@K4k3e]

Swain is so powerhungry that he willingly gave away two thirds of his power :D love the videos

[@soninh4357]

Noxus have this saying: "kill them until they become family" because noxus war often ended quickly and when a nation surrender them self to noxus they become citizen of noxus and treated equaly, they get to keep their tradition but most of the land and talent will be invest for the empire: A kingdom which primary grown flower after surrender to noxus, they still get to grown flower as their tradition but some of the land will now use to grown medicen.

[@AlexWaff]

As everybody's saying, Skinspotlights' videos are superior because they organize quotes and specify when and to whom each procs, for the extra context.

[@vagoerrante]

about Noxus being in war or not, currently they're not in any like "official war" if you will, but Noxus is pretty much an Empire that is constantly anexing new territories until they finally command their attack to the great nations like Demacia and Piltover. But right now Swain knows that he needs more stuff moving until doing that move, so he's like preparing his big war if you will, which is making all land and all humans in Runeterra into Noxus

[@vagoerrante]

by official war I mean a war with a big nation of runeterra

[@sortilien2099]

In arcane Swain can be the man Mel's brother tried to doublecross...

[@Pauli-dg2yv]

Swain holds another demon that is as old as Evelynn, Nocturne, Tahm Kench and Fiddlesticks

[@argux.syaknidaddem4016]

"no daughters, only soldiers" man as a darius main I feel sad for his story

[@murkel7634]

39:44 That's the Jinx interaction btw...

[@PixelSkull7547]

If I remember correctly, Raom is a primordial demon in the same vain as Fiddlesticks or Ashlesh (nillah's Joy demon).

[@luckyday5721]

In one year you took over Noxus turned the monarchy into a three stage government, allied himself with the guilds of assassins and killed the ones who refused, abolished slavery and noble houses and strives for all to feel as equals, and let's assassination attempts be seen as publicly as possible to show his power and to inspire fear and awe...A villain to be praised and feared equally.

[@diogogomes5365]

The voice character for Swain is the actor who played Randyll Tarly on GOT

[@traurigergartner2231]

If swain was truly after power he wouldn't have created the trifax, it was his idea to split the power to keep the values of Noxus intact. He looks to me like he wants to be percived as villain to be the nessecary evil.

[@Ner0x]

I recommend using "champion spotlight interactions" from SkinSpotlights channel, that way you're gonna see to who other champions refers to in their quotes. In blank image you can only guess and that's kinda sucks :D

[@akashsandhu2931]

fiddlesticks is the first of ten. Swain, and Nilah's demons are what would follow him.

[@tinius9276]

I think if I theorize correctly that Noxus will play a bigger part in the future of arcane, and get a personal perspective from Swain as a character. Just like Mel, Jayce, Viktor, ETC ETC. We will probably learn a very good deal about the workings of Runeterra and its worldly politics and perhaps unknown secrets. Swain might be the one who holds the most information about the world, due to his ravens and network. I have a feeling his personal self might be a lot sadder and conflicted than it first seems though, I don't think he is fully evil.

[@Risankun]

I'd recommend reacting to Mordekaiser next (in order to understand the Immortal Bastion better) and then reacting to Sylas (has some of the best voice lines)

[@BkNowGreyD]

A 53:00 min video about Swain?? fk yea please.

[@NebKrahe]

Swain is another of demons, btw. Well, he made a contract with one, who is Secrets

[@mr.killer3953]

Check video called “swain special interactions “ it shows the champion he talked to. In this video u cannot understand many things :c

[@Kevin61733]

Hopefully we see him in arcane if they cross over a bit into noxus

[@misterlucky1416]

Swain is voiced by James Faulkner who played Randyll Tarly, Samwell Tarly's father in game of thrones.

[@Wladeex123]

Swain feels like a lot like Fiddlesticks with his voicelines, which is valid, since, ya know, he's also got a demon inside him, one that Fiddlesticks calls by name. He knows the deepest secrets of other people, but unlike fiddlesticks, who only uses those informations to cause terror, swain is extremely smart and uses them to strategise. I love his rework mostly because of the lore associated with it, even if abilities pushed him out of my favorite roles in-game. [Edit] Also heavy Tywin Lannister vibes

[@tercionogueiraresende3562]

It will be very nice If you see the interactions between champions!!

[@andreivasiliu1807]

You shoul better react to the voicelines from skin spotlight bcs you are given context of those lines be seeing to witch champions are adressed, as an Arcane fan you will be intrigued by Swain s voicelines to some

[@traurigergartner2231]

*Swain voiceline towards Urgot* Swain: "Your message is your power. You have learned nothing."

[@mathies3598]

Noxus went to invade Ionia twice. Sion was in the Awaken video, the huge undead dude with the axe, fighting irelia, akali, yasuo, karma and kennen. Knowing how Swain uses Sion in his army the awaken video must take place under Swains rule.

[@DadoPanda]

Saruman. He even uses birds like him to gather information.

[@jeduwin]

i personally think you were right on the money with the arcane comparison, for one simple reason: who were the first to respond to Piltover's INTERNAL unrest? Noxus Swain knows far more than he lets on and he has a plan, Swain's plan is the reason Noxus is taking over other kingdoms. It's also why they don't just destroy them, they assimilate. He's not entirely evil he's tunnel-visioned. Mostly he's leading Noxus to do okaaaaaay things. They're "liberating" kingdoms that abuse their subjects, and when they do their citizens become full citizens of Noxus, but Swain doesn't do it out of the goodness of his heart. He does it for some weird reason we have no idea of so it's complex. Also in relation to the Black Rose, as far as i can surmise the only reason he would be scared of them is that they're so tricky that even he can't see what they're doing, which is why he keeps LeBlanc (french name btw, the C at the end is silent) as close as he does

[@Artenar]

You really should react the interactions to the other champions

[@rich9320]

Swain is a inspired by Odin a God who greeds for knowledge and fears the end of the world. Swain has seen the power of demons and most likely the void slowly bringing the end of their world so he is driven to rule and conquer to fight back no matter the costs. The cruelty is necessary in his eyes because he knows so much that he feels that he is the only one who can lead even if they don't want him to so he will make them follow.

[@donnieackerman9597]

the voice actor for swain is James Faulkner the same actor who played Randyll Tarly in game of thrones

[@macquest33double95]

can you react to mordekaiser voice lines pls those are awesome and he has a link to swain

[@MattyOD]

Enjoyed your thoughts on this and the breakdown of lore beforehand 😄 Swain is hard to read because he wants others out of the loop and a few steps behind, I guess 😅

[@itjustworks2993]

Around 37:40 you're asking how Swain managed to get Raum. Demons must feed off of something (idk if only emotions) and their relationship is kinda like symbiosis of sorts. Raum feeds off of Swain and Swain has powers because of Raum. Latest champion, Nilah, is also using a demon like that and in her lore it got some explanation if I remember correctly Edit: Forgot to add both of these characters are set up to be fucked up in the future by the demons

[@ctgx7735]

Not sure he feeds off him tho

[@FOMmie086]

In fiddlesticks interaction with other demons like evelyn, nocturne, tahm kench, & raum(swain's demon) fiddlesticks always said there name like fiddlesticks said "fiddlesticks end of men fiddlesticks first of ten" referencing fiddlesticks is the first demon in runeterra if you want to know more about them check necrit video about the first demon in runeterra.

[@YRSHKD]

i'm dead at the "mega villain" part 😂😂

[@lv_1003]

In my eyes Noxus is about strenght, I do not know if you remember but way back you watched a trailer when Darius invaded the throne of Demacia and a little girl came forth and tried to stop them only to be rediculed by the Demacian King himself, anyway my point being Darius straight up accepted her into Noxus cause of her bravery and strength, otherwise he would probably end her right there with the King. This probably lies in the line of what u saw of Darius and your impression of him, he shows mercy when someone demonstrates strength which is not different from Swain but albeit different view of what strength is.

[@wattenleagueofficial]

Swain was clearly modelled to be similar in character to Tywin Lannister, that explains the Game of Thrones vibes