Sylas

Their story, step by step

1. Step 1

   A poor boy with a hidden gift

   Sylas was born into poverty in Dregbourne, a lesser quarter of Demacia. As a child he showed magic and a rare knack for sensing other people's hidden magic. His parents, who believed magic was a sickness, persuaded him to hand himself over to the Mageseekers in hope of a better life.

2. Step 2

   Working for the people who hunted mages

   The Mageseekers used his talent to find concealed mages across the city. He trained beside another young mage, Wisteria, under a Mageseeker named Killan, who cared for his students and taught them control. Sylas went along with the work for years.

3. Step 3

   The killing and the cell

   While trying to shield a young mage girl hiding in the countryside, Sylas touched her skin and found he could take in magic. He lost control of her lightning, and it killed her and two Mageseeker handlers. He was named the most dangerous mage alive and locked away in petricite shackles for fifteen years, growing bitter while old friends turned their backs.

4. Step 4

   Lux and the breakout

   Luxanna Crownguard found him in his cell, wanting to know how he had sensed her magic. He taught her control in exchange for books, and she later stole texts that showed petricite stores magic rather than blocking it. When her family set his execution, she hugged him goodbye, and he drew her light magic into himself, broke his chains and freed other mages in a riot.

5. Step 5

   Rebel commander

   In the chaos he spared Lux's brother Garen at her plea, and he captured Prince Jarvan IV at the palace, only to find King Jarvan III already dead. Jarvan IV blamed him anyway, and Lux turned on him when the mages tried the prince. Sylas then joined the rebels of Zeffira under Leilani, raided Mageseeker prisons and killed Eldred Crownguard.

6. Step 6

   Morgana's truth

   After Leilani died covering the rebels' escape, Morgana showed Sylas a vision of Demacia's hidden past, in which magic had once helped protect the kingdom and later history was rewritten against it. Sylas broadcast that vision, shifting his cause from pure vengeance toward something broader. He now leads the rebels and fights alongside Lux at Terbisia.

Turning points

• Absorbing a young mage's lightning and killing her and two handlers, which sent him to prison
• Learning from Lux's stolen texts that petricite stores magic, then drawing her power to escape his execution
• Sparing Garen Crownguard at Lux's request
• Receiving Morgana's vision and turning his revenge into a wider cause

Where their story stands now

Sylas leads the Rebels of Zeffira as their elected commander and has no fixed home, mostly operating in the Freljord. He keeps fighting the Mageseekers, including Wisteria's faction. Open threads include Wisteria's condition, the young Mageseeker Rayn, the full threat of the Mageseekers' petricite colossus, and the return of Kayle that Morgana warned of.

Who they are tied to

• Lux →Lux taught by Sylas how to control her magic and later betrayed by his use of her power, she ends up beside him again at Terbisia, wary but recognizing how far he has come.
• Jarvan IV →Sylas's escape and palace raid shook Jarvan IV's rule, and the prince blamed Sylas for a father's death he did not cause, leaving real hostility between them.
• Sona →A mute virtuoso of the etwahl who speaks through music.
• Shyvana →A half-dragon warrior of the Dragonguard who can shift into dragon form.
• Nocturne →A primordial demon of nightmares that feeds on fear in the waking world.

Games they appear in

• The Mageseeker: A League of Legends Story →Sylas escapes imprisonment and turns his anger at Demacia's Mageseekers into an organized rebellion.

Where this fits in the story

1. Demacia · step 1

   A refuge from the Rune Wars

   Demacia was founded as a refuge from the Rune Wars, when World Runes reshaped entire nations. It built its identity on order, law and keeping magic at arm's length.

2. Demacia · step 2

   Petricite and the fear of magic

   The Demacians discovered petricite, a magic-dampening stone, and made it central to their defense. Persecuting mages became state policy, carried out by the Mageseekers.

3. Demacia · step 3

   The long rivalry with Noxus

   Demacia and Noxus fought for generations. One of the best-known clashes ended with the Noxian Sion killing King Jarvan I.

4. Demacia · step 4

   Turmoil at home

   The assassination of King Jarvan III shook the kingdom, and Sylas rose against the persecution of mages. The cruelty of the Mageseekers is now openly questioned, and Jarvan IV rules a kingdom that is changing.

Read the full story of Demacia