"League of Legends" has been on a hunt to improve their gameplay, overall client, community, and champions. While they have been releasing new champions particularly frequently, they have also turned back to make sure they do not forget about their older characters. Recently, Kassadin and Malphazar have both received updates to their lore while Irelia has received a complete rework.

The last champion to be introduced to the game was Kai'sa, a young girl taken by the Void with a strong will to survive and destroy evil.


Irelia's lore and personality is not so different. This young woman loses her family and chooses to fight the Noxian occupants, despite struggling with the past teachings of her people. The rework ties her to another champion who was recently reworked as well, Swain, the Noxian general, and dubs him as the overall antagonist to Ionia.

Irelia lore explained

In terms of what specifically was reworked, Irelia is dubbed the ‘Blade Dancer.’ She is from Ionia and after leaving her village to learn the art of performing, she returned to find it already occupied by soldiers from Noxus and her family had been sent to an early grave.


While seeing Noxians carrying a chest with her family crest, she fights to take it back. The Noxian general makes his soldiers shatter the crest and with this, Irelia controls the broken pieces and kills two of the soldiers. She runs off with the pieces and tries to understand what occurred, coming to the conclusion that the dances she’d been taught were much more than simple performances.

Irelia, later with a group of rebels by her side, goes head on to fight the Noxian general Swain and with this new force, wins.

With Swain’s rework, the relationship between the two champions is greater understood as well. After years pass, Irelia continues to fight the Noxians as well as an order called the Brotherhood. She questions whether or not her methods are correct, as her ancestors, by Karma’s teachings, were never to cause harm to a person. Though she is comforted, Irelia clings to the blades that formed her family crest, prepared to continue fighting.

Gameplay rework and updated abilities

Irelia received a complete rework of her abilities. "League of Legends" worked diligently to assess what players thought about the changes to go ahead and perfect a style that comforted long-time Irelia mains while creating a much more interesting and fun champion.

Her Q, Bladesurge, is a dash that causes damage to an enemy champion and subsequently also heals Irelia for a portion of her health.


If the enemy champion or minion is killed by or marked by Bladesurge, the cooldown resets. Irelia’s E, Flawless Duet, shoots a blade in any direction and can cast a second blade that creates a line between the other. Any champions or creatures caught within the blades are damaged and stunned. If the second blade is not cast, then the line stun will simply stretch to where Irelia stands. With her W, Deviant Dance, Irelia charges her ability while being unable to move or attack.


The ability lowers incoming damage and on its second cast, shoots blades towards selected enemy champions.

Irelia’s ultimate is called Vanguard’s Edge. Her blades shoot out towards an enemy champion and surrounds them, causing damage, but creating a barrier that causes more damage, slows, and unarms champions when they try to exit. Her ultimate can work to set up a perfect kill or kills or make an escape from an enemy gank. Irelia’s passive is Ionian Fervor and she builds stacks with each ability hit. If there are multiple enemies hit with one ability, multiple stacks are built. Each stack gives her bonus damage and raises her attack speed.

In a nutshell

As a whole, "League of Legends" worked hard to rework a popular champion in terms of artwork, gameplay, and lore. They reached out to Irelia mains and those who played similar champions to understand how they should change her abilities and play-style without turning her into a completely different character. The entirety of the franchise is working to give more emotional attachment to their champions and to forge backgrounds that tie them together. There are many champions we can expect this year to be reworked and updated.

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