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“ | I am Ledros, the King's Shield! | „ |
~ Commander Ledros |
“ | Most spirits lost themselves as the passing years eroded their memories. But anguish anchored Ledros to his past. Some things, even time cannot absolve. | „ |
~ Ledros' description in Legends of Runeterra. |
Ledros, also known as Commander Ledros or The King's Shield, is a major character in the League of Legends universe. While not an inherently evil character, Ledros is guilty of serving the Ruined King throughout the Iron Order's reign of terror, but was redeemed when he refused to raid the Blessed Isles, getting killed alongside Kalista, his unrequited lover.
Currently trapped in a cycle of torment, the undead Ledros is now mocked and manipulated by Thresh, cursed to suffer for all eternity due to his inability to stand up to the Ruined King until it was too late.
While existing in the League of Legends universe beforehand, Ledros made his first visual appearance in Legends of Runeterra as a collectible card.
Biography[]
In life, Ledros was a commander in an ancient empire that has been forgotten to history. Tasked with protecting the king, Ledros was given the title "The King's Shield" for his loyalty to the empire.
At some point, Ledros found himself falling in love with the king's niece, Kalista, who was the empire's best soldier and the king's most trusted general. As a means of proposing to her, Ledros attempted to gift Kalista an amulet, but dedicated to her duty above all else, Kalista refused, believing she could never give Ledros the peaceful life he wanted. When the queen fell ill with a deadly poison, Kalista left Ledros alone in the empire, and he witnessed the king's spiral into madness firsthand.
Though Ledros recognized the king's madness, he did nothing to stop it, remaining dutiful to the king even as his paranoid ramblings devolved into a reign of terror. Cities burned and hundreds were slain by Hecarim's Iron Order, and after a while Ledros considered killing the king, knowing no one would question his death. However, the commander did nothing, a decision he would later regret.
When Kalista returned too late with the cure, the king and his army journeyed to the Blessed Isles, with Kalista and Ledros in tow. Kalista had hoped the king could listen to reason if the Helian guardians told him that the queen's death could not be reversed, but when the elders told him this, the king flew into a violent rage. Kalista disobeyed the king's orders to kill the Helians, and for the first time, Ledros disobeyed his king's orders as well, standing with Kalista and her loyal soldiers. However, it was too late, as Hecarim betrayed Kalista, and Ledros lay beside her as they both died at the Iron Order's hands.
After the Ruination, Ledros awoke as a hideous armored specter, twisted by the Black Mist's magic. Ledros hated the king, Hecarim, and the Iron Order for their misdeeds, but most of all he hated himself for doing nothing to stop them. His mind trapped in an endless cycle of his last moments, Ledros didn't forget his past like most spirits on the Shadow Isles. Instead, he held onto the memory of his only love, Kalista, who had been transformed into the violent Spirit of Vengeance.
Using the amulet she'd refused all those years ago, Ledros tried desperately to convince Kalista to end her crusade of vengeance and be at peace, hoping to return her memories. But whatever Ledros tried, he never succeeded, much to the amusement of Thresh, who enjoyed watching the suffering of other souls. Ledros was determined to succeed, but after many centuries of trying, Ledros eventually gave up trying to bring back Kalista's memories and discarded the amulet. Now he has sworn to do what he failed to do all those years ago and end the suffering of the Shadow Isles, for he knows it's only a matter of time before he too succumbs to madness and loses himself.
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- Despite his role as a servant of the Shadow Isles, Ledros recently vowed to end the suffering of the lost spirits in the short story "The Echoes Left Behind" by Anthony Reynolds, implying he will take a more heroic role in the future.
- In Legends of Runeterra, Ledros' artwork shows that he only has half a sword. The other half was broken off when he fought and was killed by Hecarim's men, right before the Ruination.