The original Darkin is finally getting the update he deserves. He just recently hit the Public Beta Environment, meaning that players will get to hear his new voice, personality, and champion interactions for the first time. It’s certainly something.
Aatrox is goofy now. Out of all the Darkin, he is certainly the silliest, but also maybe the most unstable. The interactions video above begins with him essentially goofing on his Darkin pals. He gets mad at Varus for only having one ’a’ in his name — unlike Aatrox and Rhaast. He also bullies Rhaast for being a scythe, saying that he’s only good for killing wheat and gardening.
The goofs keep going throughout his interactions, but there is still some pretty interesting stuff regarding his history. It seems that this new Aatrox has a history with Pantheon. He calls him a betrayer and talks with him about brotherhood.
While we don’t have full details on his lore just yet, it seems pretty likely that Aatrox’s current host (remember that the Darkin are now spirits that possess bodies and transform them) used to be a soldier alongside Pantheon. But Aatrox is also looking for a new, more powerful host — something we learn in an interaction with Tryndamere.
There are two big mysteries with his lore at the moment. First, he seems to embody the player-base of League in how much he hates Zoe. Although in Aatrox’s case, it seems like Zoe was the one to trap his spirit in the sword in the first place — an inarguably better reason than how OP she is. We’ll probably learn more about this in his lore update.
Second, Aatrox seems very concerned about the Void. He tries to get answers out of Vel’Koz, fearing that his form will eventually become a void creature. Vel’Koz doesn’t really answer back and Aatrox freaks out a bit. This is a very strange interaction that seems to suggest that the Darkin and the Void are tied together in one way or another. We could get more answers about that soon, or we could have to wait another four years.
Aatrox will also give you shit for your mastery score, which is a dream come true honestly.
Either way, Aatrox is a weird, metal-boy and I love him now.