Ornn is cuddly and cute even though he doesn't want to be

Ornn is very cute. Did you know that? Because he is. Look at his face, and the cute fur that surrounds his entire body. The horns look a little hard but we can forgive that. After quite a few not so fluffy champions like Camille and Kayn, it is lovely to see another big, lovable pal make their way into the League of Legends roster. What is perhaps the best part about Ornn being so cuddly, is that he has absolutely no interest in being cuddled.

He even says as much here:

“I have fur, it is soft, do not hug me.”

His crusty personality combined with his unbelievably cute face is what makes Ornn such a masterpiece. So I have gathered here today with Cass Marshall, the site lead for our Overwatch sister site (Heroes Never Die), to complain about the lack of sweet Ornn plushies and blankets.

Ryan Gilliam

Cass. When Ornn was first announced we were immediately on the same page about how cute he was. But we were wrong. Ornn is not just cute, he is adorable. As I sit here writing this, I can see the Volibear plushy sitting on corner of my desk and honest to god I am already mad that I don’t have an Ornn one. He looks so fuzzy and grumpy. Also I could make them fight.

Cass Marshall

I’ve always felt like Riot Games struggled a little with making something genuinely cute. We have the Yordles, who are certainly small and fuzzy, but don’t quite fit the bill. Teemo is cute, but he’s also a high functioning sociopath. Skaarl is pretty cute, but she’s also partnered with Kled, which may make her somewhat complicit with war crimes. Pug’maw is horrifying.

Ornn is the first champion that I’ve felt my heart melt over. He’s the perfect combination between cuddly, furry face with little legs and big ol’ horns, and a gruff personality that brooks no nonsense. I don’t know whether he was intended to be the cutest thing ever, or whether they hit that by accident, but this is the first champion I would buy a plushy of. And his enemy is a giant, armored polar bear! Even his ancestral grudges are cute!

The Freljord is quickly becoming the most lovable place in all of League, hosting Braum, Ornn, and Poros. I get I’m meant to be emotionally invested in the war brewing up there, but I just want to cuddle half the cast involved.

Ryan Gilliam

“Pug’maw is horrifying.” God, we are so on the same page when it comes to cute stuff in League. Volibear makes my heart melt but that is because he is a big ol’ bear that has lots of fun bear puns, which is pretty much my overall aesthetic. But Ornn is certainly something special. Not only is he my new favorite personality in the game (OK, it is real close between him and Tahm Kench), but he is just SO CUTE.

Maybe it is because I am a cat person, but I have so much love for a furry face that is filled with contempt for everything and everyone in this world. When Gnar was first released (probably League’s currently most cuddly friend) they released a plushy, which is maybe the most “no duh” move that Riot has ever made. With Ornn, I need plushies. I need t-shirts. I need body pillows. I need a Halloween costume for my cat. I need a thematically appropriate electric blanket with his face on it that glows red when you plug it in.

I will go broke buying cute Ornn stuff, that is a promise.

Cass Marshall

I think what really makes Ornn work as both a character and a cute friend is his engagement with the world. Gnar has what seems to be basically a toddler level of intelligence, tantrums included and all. Ornn, on the other hand, has taken a long, long look at the world, and decided “no, I’d really rather not.”

Despite this, he’s still out and about due to the whole war and potential Watchers thing, so it’s this fantastic dynamic between Ornn and his team that carries over to the player. He doesn’t even want to be here, but he still showed up... not because he cares about the Freljord or anything, baka. If your team dies, he grumbles as he runs away. If his teammates joke with him, he shuts them down.

All of this should be, by all rights, completely unappealing. But for some reason it’s just so cute I want to die.

Ryan Gilliam

Gnar is young OK, and he will blossom into a handsome young yordle eventually. But Ornn is certainly the cutest and bestest character that League has seen in ages. I mean, just look at that face.