Liliana Vess’s Complete Story | Planeswalker Lore Anthology Ep. 01

[@AetherHub]

This was a really well done video. Can’t wait to see how you continue to build this channel! Great information. Great editing. Well delivered. Thank you ❤️

[@OctopusLair]

Thank you man. I appreciate it so, so much. I will do my best to always improve the quality of my work here on KZbin, but in the meantime, I'm so grateful for the support ❤️

[@kv2315]

the part where she stands up against Bolas always brings me to tears. such a well designed scene

[@MikeHatcher]

So few people take the time to make magic lore videos, it's a genuinely underserved audience. It's a true shame that wizards doesn't care more about the lore. Good on you for taking the crazy amount of time it takes to make videos like this. Not everyone will appreciate videos like this but the ones who do will really appreciate it. Keep up the hard work and more people will find you here.

[@OctopusLair]

Thank you my friend, you're very kind. It is true, the lore of this game truly is awesome and huge, and I am so grateful to have this channel as an outlet to explore it with you. I plan to keep doing that for quite a while! ;) This video started out more like a personal project to me. I really wanted to go on a full dive into my favorite planeswalker and its lore and try to deliver a good and enjoyable summary of it. But it is true, it took a crazy amount of time (~80 hours if you also count the time I needed for the animations and transitions) which I had not foreseen. Of course, I am self-taught in everything that involves recording and videomaking, so I definitely could have been more time efficient/less sloppy sometimes. I hope my skills and efficiency will improve with each video and I will surely try my best to make it happen! PS: is there any planeswalker you would like to see featured in future videos? ;)

[@MikeHatcher]

@@OctopusLair pick what you are most passionate about, you'll make the best videos. That's why I chose to cover the entire brothers war on one of my other channels. Forget what other people want, make what you want to exist. If you don't, who will?

[@OctopusLair]

@@MikeHatcher You're right. Thank you for your good advice, I appreciate it!

[@MikeHatcher]

@@OctopusLair no problem, I learned alot building the magic historian and fantasy geographic channels. Glad it was helpful to hear

[@davidsaldarriaga3926]

Nissa plz

[@jayvonricketts4559]

Liliana is my favorite planeswalker and I really enjoyed learning more about her. I’m so glad you’re doing this series and can’t wait to dive into more lore!

[@turbo2763]

Really liked how you used actual cards when describing some of the lore! Love this!

[@OctopusLair]

Yeah, I feel that's the single most beautiful thing about MTG art: it's not just art, it conceals actual lore. It's amazing! Thank you so much, I am glad you enjoyed it! :)

[@JonSteitzer]

This was amazing. I didn't expect it to make me tear up, but it did. Looking forward to see where you go.

[@OctopusLair]

I don't know what to say. Thank you kindly from your support, I really appreciate it. I hope to always raise the bar and look forward to reading your impressions about next episodes too!

[@SnowAngle1330]

I've been looking everywhere for her history. I am currently obsessed with Liliana. Thank you so so much for making this

[@OctopusLair]

Thank you for watching. I really appreciate it! :)

[@SnowAngle1330]

Of course, it's my pleasure ☺️

[@bd_dev]

Very good story telling. I never realised Liliana Vess' history was so colourful. Once known and feared as a powerful necromancer, who would have thought in the end she became a human. I know fragments of her story from the game here and there and only until today I got a full picture.

[@OctopusLair]

Glad I could be of help sir. Thank you!

[@sparkymularkey6970]

I love Liliana & Gideon. They're my two favorite Planeswalkers. This was a great video! Thank you so much.

[@DiceTry]

Wow this is very well done, considering how new your channel is. I wish I was this good at making videos when I started.

[@OctopusLair]

Wow thank you so much, I appreciate the support a lot, especially when coming from a colleague! :) I had a look at some of your videos too, it's very good stuff, subscribed! Is there any planeswalker you would like to see featured in next episodes? I would love to have you guys pick the next protagonists!

[@HaleTheeRose]

Can I just say as a total stranger only twenty seconds into this; congratulations and thank you for sharing your love of this thing. Making the world a better place literally just by being you, again, thank you so much. Very excited for this story!!!

[@OctopusLair]

Wow, thank you so much. It means a lot!

[@HaleTheeRose]

I FORGOT TO LEAVE A COMMENT AFTER I FINISHED OMG YOU ARE AN AMAZING STORY TELLER AND THIS COMPENDIUM IS THE MOST AMAZING AMAZINGEST THING EVER AHHHHH

[@SirRanSax]

Wow dude! I watched this a was blown away. Love Liliana and MTG lore. I subscribed immediately after completing the video and went to the main page to see the other video and I was so shocked when I saw the subscriber count!! With the depth and quality to put into your videos, I was sure it would be up in the 10,000s or so, at least. But keep it up man and I'm sure you'll get there. The content definitely deserves it.

[@OctopusLair]

Oh man, thank you so, so much for this. Doing this kind of content is really time and energy consuming due to the enormous amount of work to write, record, edit audio, look for pictures, animate them, look for right songs, make animations, mix it all together, etc. It's a huge work for each second of video and I don't mean to whine, don't get me wrong, I love it every step of the way. But it is when I read comments like yours that I feel truly happy and proud about the result of my work and I'm even more motivated to keep doing it. So thank you. I hope you're right, and I hope I will indeed get there. In the meantime, thank you so much for your kindness.

[@GoodEggGuy]

Great video: thank you for using MTG cards to show the lore as you talk about it. Must have taken a long time to edit together, but definitely worth it. I hope you find a much bigger audience.

[@chasemartinez2430]

Loved this video! Liliana is my favorite planeswalker of all time! Thank you for the work you did on this!!

[@OctopusLair]

Thank your for watching it. I’m glad you liked it!

[@luckyuther]

This is one of best lore videos I have ever seen, so much work you mustve put in. Definitely underrated, keep going, this is awesome

[@OctopusLair]

Wow, thank you! I will start making new content soon, likely after summer. Stay tuned! ;)

[@Linky609]

That war of the spark trailer was so damn epic. Great video, Lili is one of my favorite planeswalkers.

[@OctopusLair]

I hear you. I have the goosebumps everytime I watch it! Thank you, I'm glad you enjoyed it!

[@Celadil]

i can only agree with everyone else, incredibly well made video! Glad to be among your first 2k subs :)

[@OctopusLair]

Owhh! Thank you so, so much for your kind words. I am really glad you liked it. Welcome aboard! :)

[@Oravlagus]

These videos are incredible! Please keep it up. Don’t stop. Thanks so much for the hard work! ❤

[@MrTechNoIce97]

You made a walloping work with this video, must've taken numerous hours. Liliana is really a great character, thanks again for making her complete history into one video!

[@OctopusLair]

Thank you for watching and for your kind words! ❤️ It was indeed a big effort - especially as I had much less experience compared to now - but I’m so proud of what the final result was! Also, Lily has been my fav planeswalker and the first Walker I have ever played. She’s great and she deserved a great effort!

[@SamJones1337]

This is absolutely phenomenal. Well done.

[@OctopusLair]

Wow. Thank you so much for your words. I am really happy you liked it. :)

[@00ThatRandomGuy00]

This was such a great video! Very well made! Thank you!!

[@OctopusLair]

Thank you so much for your appreciation. It means a lot, especially after such a long time with no new uploads. I appreciate it.

[@cardintorem4869]

An incredible lore video. Way more in depth than I have ever seen before, not to mention smooth blending of audio and visual effects. I learned many things I had not known before about my favorite planeswalker, and will definitely share this video!

[@OctopusLair]

Wow. Thank you so much for your beautiful words, my friend. I'm really glad you enjoyed it, it was hard work but it fills my heart to receive such kind feedback, thank you, thank you, thank you!!

[@vincentconley9316]

Super well done! I had no idea there was so much story behind my favorite character!

[@OctopusLair]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@federicoham2024]

Excelent work. Nice way to introduce and remember, to old audience, how fascinating was MTG lore.

[@OctopusLair]

Thank you so much

[@lecoqlico]

that was so great, thanks a lot for all the work ! I was so into the story you told, thanks

[@OctopusLair]

Wow, thank you so much for watching dude! I’m really glad you appreciate it.

[@lecoqlico]

​@@OctopusLair I'm creating a deck for EDH. At a certain point, I've seen that I had multiple cards with Liliana on card's art and I've checked for other ones and it my mind it becomed some kind of a sub theme of the deck. Then I was curious about her story, and after watching your video I feel like creating such kind of deck is so much more that just about the game itself, it's like discovering magic via another point of view ! (well, sadly I find myself having more cards than before and the choice for which to cut out of the deck is even harder now haha)

[@OctopusLair]

@@lecoqlico Ahaha, this is a beautiful story. Thank you for sharing it! :)

[@kevinschott5659]

This was amazing. Thank you for sharing this!

[@OctopusLair]

Thank you very much, sir. I am glad you liked it! :)

[@seankeane769]

Amazing video, absolutely loved how you tied in the cards with the story… I just started getting into lore and this is a great bridge for me to learn more about the game I love… well done

[@OctopusLair]

Awhh! Thank you so much dude, I'm glad you liked it. MTG's Lore is just amazing. And it also makes you enjoy the game much, much more!

[@teunbremen8611]

Really well done, can't wait to see more of this serie. Good job man.

[@OctopusLair]

Thank you dude! Next episode is underway and should be out in about 10 days, looking forward to it myself! :)

[@jaawa31]

This was so good! Thank you so much for doing this! Such an emotional story for Liliana, I love it.

[@OctopusLair]

Thank you dude, I'm glad you appreciate it. Thank you for watching! You're right, Liliana is definitely my personal favourite. What about you, which one's your favourite/you'd like to know more about?

[@jaawa31]

@@OctopusLairTeferi has always been a fascinating character for me, when I was a kid playing with Mirage cards, I didn't know anything about the story, but the cards referred to this mysterious character when things were called "Teferi's" this and that. I guess that's why I gravitated to Blue and more recently started playing Teferi cards in my UW Control deck :D I'd definitely like to know more about Teferi and his story.

[@toniogutierrez8542]

Amazing video!

[@SMEEON]

This was very helpful in my research for building a Lilliana cosplay. Thank you!

[@OctopusLair]

Thank you! I'm happy I could be of help! :)

[@KKDY28]

This is a very well made video But i do have something to point out here First It would have been nice to include Liliana and Thalia's interaction Telling this story would establish how selfish Liliana really is And would put more impact on her sacrifices on Innistrad and Ravnica. And second. A nitpick, if you may, Rat is not a Planeswalker Kaya used her Ghostly powers on Rat so she could traverse the blind eternities without being harmed Other than that, it is a very well made video And im really excited to watch more of your work

[@OctopusLair]

Thank you so much for your feedback. I really appreciate it! I can see your points. As for the first one, I had to make lots of cuts and semplifications to fit all the information in a reasonable video-length and, unfortunately, Liliana and Thalia's interaction at the Helvault was one of those. You're right, though. It would have probably added a lot more to the characterisation of Liliana as a selifh hero which would have in turn given more impact on her later sacrifice. As for the second, you're right. Again, I tried to keep the complexity level to a minimum and in doing so I made this minor mistake. So thank you for noticing. I am glad you enjoyed it, though. Thank you so much for watching!

[@KKDY28]

@@OctopusLair no no Thank you! i love watching your videos especially the one that i dont know like Tezzeret and Vraska as for the video format i am one of those who dont mind a lengthy video i actually do want a very lengthy one for it will contain more info on the topic but not all people are like me so i understand why you need to keep your videos with a reasonable length. looking forward to more of your videos! and if i may suggest a topic, i will recommend Elspeth

[@OctopusLair]

@@KKDY28 Thank you very much. I am super glad you like 'em. Elspeth is surely on my list and tbh I think she might be one of the first I'll cover after Christmas! :)

[@pedrojulian3115]

Awesome quality! Keep up the good work :)

[@OctopusLair]

Thank you! I will do my best!! :)

[@JackMeadows6322]

Fantastic job! Well presented and narrated.

[@OctopusLair]

You're super kind, thank you!! I'm glad you enjoyed it! :)

[@The_Loreseeker]

NICE JOB here, glad to see more lore channels!

[@OctopusLair]

Thank you!! It's so nice to receive such warm support, thank you, thank you, thank you! ❤️

[@unpassantquipasse8268]

I didn't read anything on the New set, but I'm afraid that Liliana, after all her ordeals and introspection, become phyrexian after finding out a purpose in life by becoming teacher and caring for younglings... Nice to see a reprint and the Raven man get a card though. And the video is Amazing ! Thanks you ! ^^

[@OctopusLair]

That's the fear we all have deep down... true for the reprint and the Raven, finally! Thank you my friend, appreciate it!!

[@generalzod90]

it was really great story i never knew this aobut lilina or the mtg universe great work

[@OctopusLair]

Thank you, my friend! I really appreciate that. Stay tuned for more videos in the upcoming weeks! ;)

[@generalzod90]

Awesome and yeah Liliana is also my favorite planeswalker and I do feel bad for her what she went through and Nicol Bollas is just a jerk lol

[@OctopusLair]

@@generalzod90 ikr dude, there were two just heart-breaking moments for me. First is when she is promised freedom IF she returns the infinite consortium and it ends up being all a lie; second is when she finally slays the final Demon Lord and not only she isn't free from her contract at all, but now she's also directly subordinated to Bolas. That's just nasty dude.

[@generalzod90]

@@OctopusLair I agree at least Nicol Bollas is defeated now

[@OctopusLair]

@@generalzod90 For now...

[@Tok999]

Was nicely in depth but i do feel some details where smoothed over, though I can overlook them as a lot of the explanations will most likely be told later on in later videos. Thanks for the video.

[@OctopusLair]

Hey Tok! Thank your for your feedback. You’re right, some details were indeed smoothed over as part of the cut and editing process to produce something that could have a reasonable length. The idea is, just like you said, that of creating a sort of interlaced puzzle where different explanations and aspects of the lore are explored more in depth across different videos. This keeps the amount of information for each video humanly processable and the behind-the-scenes more manageable. I will make sure to thoroughly talk about each and every detail in due time, though! Thank you again!

[@Brian.13]

your beauty never ever scared me ❤

[@whitemoonwolf13]

lilliana is not my favourite planeswalker card but she is one of my favourite characters also as one of the og gatewatch i am very concerned for her in the next set drop. all will be one broke my heart. march of machines i'm certain will stomp all over it.

[@OctopusLair]

While I fear for a compleated Liliana, the thought of how powerful and badass a compleated version of her could be is pretty sick. I have contrasting feelings about it ahah!

[@whitemoonwolf13]

@@OctopusLair a completed version would be horrifying and while I think the card would have some really twisted artwork and look cool as hell I am happy to leave that to the imagination. I think this new set is a changing of the guard so to speak so even if she doesn't get completed she might just get straight up killed.

[@OctopusLair]

@@whitemoonwolf13 the Liliana I know would never just straight up die. I believe we can expect her to put up the fiercest of fights!

[@cptsparklfingerz9210]

My favorite line of planeswalkers

[@OctopusLair]

I feel you

[@chrisa7875]

BRAVO 👏 👏 BRAVO 👏 ! Thank you

[@OctopusLair]

Thank you 🙏

[@guiyuanful]

Merci pour cette vidéo !!! French fan

[@OctopusLair]

You’re most welcome my friend! Thank you for watching!! ;)

[@schumerus6786]

She ends up teaching like her Mentor, responsibly like her mentor advised, respecting the death of those around like she couldn’t when her brother was about to die. What past mistakes she made in the start all come around and in her way, she tries to make things right. I just wonder what will happen to her now in Phyrexia, she’s technically not in direct confrontation but part of the reserve need there be a back-up team were a trap be layed down like on Ravnica, but she may just actually come anyway, Tezzeret, the fiend of many is there and even if revenge isn’t her primary goal anymore, perhaps the help call of Jace could make her engage again. I really doubt she can be turned phyrexian, if you can be turned or not, I think, I down to personal motivation, so far only walkers with great sense of unity and protection have been turned, Tezzeret is apparently immune, if that’s due to his fabric or Egoistic stance is not clear. If it’s the ladder, Liliana would never fall, her past would protect her

[@OctopusLair]

What a nice analysis, thank you. I do agree with you on the fact that she will most likely never being turned into a phyrexian. The sense of unity and protection can easily be twisted and redirected towards Phyrexia instead than against it. That’s what happened with Ajani, for instance. As for Tezzeret, he has been injected on Mirrodin (before attending the Inventors’ Fair on Kaladesh) by a servant of Nicol Bolas with a serum that made him immune to Phyresis. So that’s where he got his immunity, although I also believe that an egoistic stance and personal motivation help in this regard. As you said, Lily would be greatly protected by her past, if that’s the case.

[@Elgranmentor1]

I need the internet to do his magic. I’m making a D&D MTG campaign, and I think it would be awesome to introduce Kothoped as one of the demons the players meet. However, I didn’t get any clues about the plane he’s from. Maybe by analysing his clothes, but no idea. Any suggestions? Idk why, but kothophed clothes make me thinks that he belongs to old kamigawa or even Tarkir. Being a plane full of demons, being from New Capenna would be strange? Thank you so much for the help!!!

[@OctopusLair]

I apologise for the late reply. A lot happened on these few months and my relationship with KZbin was not at its best. As to your question, Kothoped’s birthplace is unknown but all your suggestions could perfectly fit the character. Their clothes remind in a way old Kamigawa or Tarkir. He could also be originally from New Capenna or from another plane we know so little about such as Shandalar. I think any choice you’ll take will be amazing and I hope this reply doesn’t come too late. Let me know what did you/will you end up making off this!

[@Almighty_Mage]

The best planeswalker

[@Jamesx2525]

I really want to see a Garruk video

[@OctopusLair]

Hey! Thank you for your suggestion. I am currently recording (and editing) Jace and after that my Patreon supporters have voted for Elspeth, but I will surely add both Garruk and Venser to the list and add them as options in the next Patreon sub-polls! ;)

[@ryuujimaru413]

I want to see Magic: The Gathering become a movie. I just like the fact that a dragon (Nicol Bolas) has a surname! LOL a dragon with a surname.

[@OctopusLair]

Yeah, a War of the Sparks movie would be just amazing with today's CGI, I reckon!

[@user-zl6ps4rp9g]

I don't suppose you've done Ugin's timeline?

[@OctopusLair]

I didn't, yet. It's definitely going to be in one of the next episodes, though! Episode four is going to be Tezzeret and it should be out in a week. Then probably Ajani due to Dominaria United and Ugin right after that!

[@ericdavis3046]

Damn, bro….you’re a natural.

[@OctopusLair]

Thank you my friend! I'm glad you liked it!! ❤️

[@reubenhugo6450]

Gideon!!! Why??!!

[@CosmicErrata]

Liliana Best. Well, after she started to reform that is.

[@OctopusLair]

She is amazing, isn't see? I love the War of the Spark finale, and the cinematic is just wow, give me the goosebumps everytime I watch it!

[@outshimed]

She must pay for her crimes!

[@OctopusLair]

​@@outshimed It's true, but I believe that she paid back at least for some of it through her being miserable, alone and despised by her own friends over multiple instances. I believe that Gideon saw her true, kind nature when he decided to sacrifice his own life to save hers. Of course, he also wanted to secure Bolas's defeat, but I think that some affection between them was in place too!

[@outshimed]

@@OctopusLair if I slaughter a bunch of people but feel real bad about it and my friends forgive me I still go to jail

[@OctopusLair]

That's a good point ahahah!

[@MyStoryCinema]

Why did you stop making videos

[@OctopusLair]

Long story short: many things happened in my life and I preferred to take a long break from KZbin rather than making lower quality videos. Thankfully, that period is over now. I am about to move to another country, start a new job and with that I will resume my KZbin activity as well. I'm already working on the next Planeswalker's video, which will most likely come out after summer. Stay tuned

[@jautele49]

❤️

[@OctopusLair]

🐙❤

[@darklightmagus1222]

Awesome video. So many mispronunciations. AmonKETH instead of Amonkhet. SaHEli instead of Saheeli. Editing to add that there is a crucial detail missed in Liliana's storyline. When Jace whose mind is corrupted by Emrakul's influence confronts Liliana on Innistrad, he is actually able to see the Raven Man which surprises both Liliana and the Raven Man as 1) Jace has never been able to penetrate to see into Liliana's mind and 2) no one has ever been able to see the Raven Man.

[@OctopusLair]

Thank you! You're right. As a non native speaker it is sometimes difficult to get the right pronunciations at the first try, thank you for the corrections, though. I will keep them in mind!

[@darklightmagus1222]

@@OctopusLair No problem. As a native English speaker, I had the pronunciation of Garruk wrong for years until I heard it in an official MTG video. My friends and I were calling him GaROOK when the name actually rhymes with Derrick.