Maokai
Maokai, once a serene spirit of the forest, stood tall among the trees of his homeland. But when a magical cataclysm tore through the Shadow Isles, it twisted him into a wrathful force. His grove shattered, his kin lost, he endured the curse of undeath thanks only to the Waters of Life pulsing through his heartwood. No longer the gentle guardian he once was, Maokai now storms through the blighted land, driven by fury, seeking to purge the corruption that defiled his home.
Opening
Welcome back, lore-lovers! This is Liandrug, and today we dive deep into the twisted tale of Maokai, the vengeful treant of the Shadow Isles.
The Chronicle
Long before any memory took root, a chain of barren isles rose from the ocean's depths--bare stone and clay, untouched by life. From their creation emerged Maokai, a spirit shaped as a towering treant, bark-bound and branch-limbed. He wandered the lifeless lands, burdened by their silence and aching with the hope of what they could become.
His search led him to a hill cloaked in fertile soil, where an ancient energy pulsed beneath the surface. Maokai drove his roots deep into the earth until they found a hidden spring--waters rich with magic and life. Drinking deeply, he felt power surge through him. From that source, he birthed countless saplings, scattering them across the islands in his quest to awaken the land.
In time, the once-barren isles blossomed into a paradise. Vast forests unfurled across the land, filled with groves of virenpine and tangled woods humming with magic. Towering skytrees spread their immense canopies overhead, their roots weaving thick beneath the soil. The land teemed with life--nature spirits drawn to its lushness, animals thriving in its green embrace.
When humans arrived, they found a world already alive with wonder. They flourished in its bounty, building a society of scholars eager to understand the mysteries around them. Maokai, though cautious, watched them closely. They honored the land, choosing to build where the forests were thin, careful not to disturb the spirits that dwelled within. In time, Maokai revealed himself to a chosen few--those who had earned his trust. To them, he shared the secrets of the isles, including the hidden spring whose waters could mend even mortal wounds.
Centuries flowed by in peace, and Maokai dwelled in quiet harmony with the land he had nurtured. But that peace shattered when ships arrived from distant shores, carrying soldiers and a grieving king who clutched the lifeless body of his queen. Desperation led the king to the sacred spring, where he immersed her decaying form in the healing waters. She rose, not in life, but in torment, pleading for death. In his attempt to undo the horror, the king unleashed a curse that sank its claws deep into the land.
Maokai felt it from afar--the first tremors of something dreadful stirring beneath the earth. A chill crept through the soil, unnatural and cold. As the corruption spread, he acted quickly, forcing his roots into the spring, drawing in its magic, binding the Waters of Life to his very being. Just before the taint could reach him, he tore himself away, severing the connection. The sacred reservoir churned and darkened, its purity lost forever.
Then came the mists--thick, black, and suffocating. They rolled across the isles, imprisoning all life in a limbo between living and dead. Maokai stood helpless as everything he had cultivated--the forests, the spirits, the creatures, even the humans--were twisted into ghastly echoes. The land he had raised from nothing crumbled in an instant, undone by the reckless hand of man. His sorrow burned into fury, and from that fury, he would rise again.
The choking mist curled around Maokai, draining the breath of life from the world. Flowers that once bloomed on his shoulders withered and crumbled to dust. His form twisted, bark splitting and limbs knotting into a gnarled mass, yet within him, the Waters of Life still flowed. They held back the curse, anchoring him to life while all else faded into shadow.
The land was overrun--spectral wraiths and abominations poured forth from the darkness. Lifeless men surged toward Maokai, and in a storm of limbs and fury, he lashed out. His blows crushed the spirits to ash, but with each strike, he recoiled. He had never taken life before. Still, the horrors came in endless waves, and though he fought with a wrath born of despair, their numbers drove him back.
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His forest lay in ruin, his kin twisted into hollow husks. For a moment, the thought of escape flickered through him. But in the hollow of his heartwood, the sacred waters stirred. He had endured the Ruination not by chance, but by carrying the life of the isles within him. He would not flee. As the first spirit born of this land, Maokai would remain. He would stand against the tide and fight for what soul the islands had left.
Surrounded by endless waves of wraiths and the ever-choking mist, Maokai fights on, his rage unrelenting. He finds no joy, save in the crushing of the soulless creatures that infest his home. Each blow is vengeance, each strike a cry of defiance against the darkness that defiled the land.
There are days when his fury pushes back the corruption--when the mist recoils and the spirits falter. In those fleeting moments, Maokai reclaims a grove, a thicket, a sliver of the forest once lost. No new life stirs in the tainted earth, but still he presses forward, carving out pockets of peace in a world swallowed by decay.
Within his heartwood, the untainted Waters of Life still flow--an ember of what once was. As long as Maokai stands, that spark endures. If the land can be healed, if its beauty restored, then he too may cast off the twisted shape forced upon him. Long ago, he brought life to these isles. He will not rest until they live again.
Now, with the islands in ruin we still have some insight about Maokai's activity, like we can see in the short story "Nightbloom". In this story, we follow Maokai, the last living guardian of the ruined Blessed Isles. He roams the ashen forest, his bark chilled by cursed winds, surrounded by the lifeless husks of once-thriving trees. Though the lands are consumed by death and haunted by vengeful spirits, Maokai endures, kept alive by the sacred waters flowing through his heartwood.
One quiet night, something extraordinary happens--a single nightbloom, a vibrant crimson flower once seen only during the summer solstice, pushes through the blackened soil. Maokai is mesmerized. The flower is delicate, radiant, alive--an echo of the world he once nurtured. But its presence draws danger. A hungry spirit senses the bloom's life and rushes toward it.
Maokai lashes out, furious and protective. He crushes the wraith with sacred strength and conjures a violent storm to shield the flower. More spirits come, drawn by the chaos, but Maokai stands his ground, striking them down one by one. Around him, the winds howl, the forest trembles, and yet the nightbloom glows undisturbed--until, at last, it withers and dies.
As the flower fades into dust, the spirits retreat. The storm quiets, but something has changed. For the first time in ages, life briefly bloomed again. The soil beneath Maokai stirs with hidden promise. Fueled by the memory of that fragile flame, he turns to the haunted woods with renewed fury. He will hunt the spirits. He will burn the blight from his homeland.
Champion's relations
Now, let's explore Maokai's relationships with other champions: Maokai, Yorick, and Kalista share a bond as inhabitants of the Shadow Isles but rarely interact due to differing goals. Maokai seeks to cleanse the Isles, Yorick guides souls to rest, and Kalista hunts betrayers. While their paths don't often cross, they share an unspoken understanding of the Isles' curse.
Vladimir, the Crimson Reaper, took nightbloom seeds from a grove once nurtured by Maokai. These nightblooms, symbols of the Isles' past beauty, now hold darker significance as Vladimir may seek to use them for his own purposes, linking him to the Isles' corrupted history.
Maokai's quest is driven by his desire to restore the Blessed Isles, with Viego, the Ruined King, at the heart of his mission. Maokai seeks to defeat Viego, ending the curse and bringing peace to the tortured spirits, hoping to heal the land he once nurtured.
Closing Words
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