Notice!
This page is about Vander, one of the characters in the main Arcane universe. For the alternate universe version of this character, please see Vander/Alternate Universe.
When did you get so comfortable living in someone else's shadow?
Vi to Vander, "Welcome to the Playground"
Vander (later known as Warwick) was a supporting character in Arcane. He was once the determined and zealous unspoken leader and protector of the undercity. Vander did all he could in his later life to ensure the safety of those under his protection—the residents of Zaun and, more specifically, the four children he'd taken under his wing, as his own. When a series of events forces him to choose between an established truce between Zaun and Piltover and his children, Vander's life is up-ended by his past.
Biography[]
Early life[]
In his youth, Vander formed a strong sibling-like bond with two other Zaunite individuals, Silco and Felicia, with him and Silco sharing dreams of Zaun's freedom and unity as one nation.
Vander would come to earn the nickname "Hound of the Underground", who fought for the community he'd supposedly built and united. He tried to lead a revolt across the bridge to Piltover, one that ended in failure and resulted in multiple deaths, including those of Felicia and Connol. Upon seeing their bodies, Vander dropped his gauntlets, symbolically abandoning his fight against Piltover,[2] and took their children Vi and Powder in. At some point after this, Vander and Silco had a falling out, after which Vander tried to drown Silco in a river, only for the latter to slice his arm to escape.[2]
Eventually, Vander also came to adopt two other children: Mylo and Claggor, who, alongside Vi and Powder, grew up eager to please and to prove themselves to Vander and everyone else around them.[3]
In hopes of establishing some semblance of peace in Zaun for their protection, Vander struck a deal with the Enforcers, mainly their Sheriff, Grayson—he would ensure that Zaunites would not cause trouble in the upper city, and the enforcers will stay out of his business.[3] This news would somehow reach Silco, who despised this decision.[2]
Season 1[]
One day, Vander’s adoptive children decided to go topside to try to pull off a heist on their own. The attempt caught the attention of the Council and the authorities because it caused an explosion in the Academy district, and the workshop they'd broken into belonged to an influential family. Even Vander's connection to the Enforcers and the leniency of Sheriff Grayson could not protect them, though Grayson at least asked for one culprit to take responsibility so that they could present a culprit to the Council.[3]
Vander had to talk the children down, particularly Vi, from making more of a scene. This proved challenging due to the continued pressure on the enforcers from the Council and the children's tendency for trouble. After a conversation with Vi, during which he reminded her of the risks fighting Piltover posed,[4] Vi stole the pneumatic tube capsule from Vander and sent a message to Grayson so she could surrender herself to spare the others. Vander caught on, stopped Vi, and trapped her in Benzo's basement while he turned himself in instead.
Before he could be taken to the upper city, they were intercepted by Silco and Deckard who, after killing Grayson and Benzo, dragged Vander to Silco’s Shimmer factory. Silco finally confronted him for their last encounter before he strapped Vander to a chair in preparation for an experiment for Singed. Vi, Claggor, and Mylo then arrived to break him out. Moments away from escaping, multiple explosions caused by Powder rock the cannery, and Vander fights back against Silco's remaining men and the beast before getting stabbed by Silco. Desperate to protect Vi, Vander used the last of his strength to take Shimmer, temporarily turning himself into a monstrous beast. Vander then grabbed Vi and jumped out of the collapsing building, apparently dying from the fall.[2]
However, as revealed in Episode 9, Singed found Vander's body and took it back to his lab, where he began experimenting on him.
Season 2[]
Episode 4[]
Vander, now Warwick, has been transformed into a wolf-like beast by Singed. Vander retains little of his humanity as he becomes instinctual, bloodthirsty, and animalistic. He is then released and rampages the prison that Jinx and Sevika are inside, freeing Zaunite prisoners that were arrested unlawfully; one of these prisoners being Isha. Warwick continues the spree, killing any guard and prisoner in his way until finally getting to Jinx, Sevika, Isha, and the Enforcers who were preparing to arrest them. The Enforcers turn their focus to Warwick, attempting and failing to stop him as Jinx haphazardly prepares her weapons. Jinx would tell Sevika to run and get Isha away as she prepares the fight the beast head on.
Jinx ends up getting pinned to the wall, Warwick ready to tear her apart until pausing. Flashes of Powder begin to cloud his eyes as he stares at Jinx, remembering the scared little girl he took in as his own daughter. This seemed to calm the beast, as Warwick’s breathing steadied, and as he's calming down, the only thing he says is: "Powder?"
Episode 5[]
Having had parts of his memories retriggered, Warwick made his way into the old mines that Vander and Silco used to work in. As he progressed deeper and deeper into the mines, he began remembering more and more, such as the fact that Powder had a sister and that he was friends with Felicia and Silco.
Having teamed up to find Vander, Jinx and Vi (Accompanied by Isha) make their way into these same mines. They eventually come across the old office Vander and Silco used to share. After some brief exploration, Vi would find a letter on the table. Jinx asks what it was, to which Vi answers by saying that it was a message from Vander to Silco. Jinx picks up the letter and begins reading it, revealing that Vander was remorseful over his attempted murder of Silco and that despite how much he tried to convince himself that Silco deserved it, he knew that they were both to blame. He concludes the message with their insignia 'Blisters and Bedrock.'
After exploring more of the mines, Vi, Jinx and Isha stop and turn back as they hear the sound of howling come from the distance. They see the substance on the walls begin to light up again. Vi tells them they need to run, but Jinx insists that Warwick is Vander. She tries to shout out to him and calm him down, but his prenotion for Isha's blood makes it impossible. Vi is forced to push Jinx and Isha out of the way and engage Warwick in combat. Jinx and Isha watch in fear, torn between wanting Vi safe and wanting Vander to come back to them. Eventually, after hearing Jinx's pleas, Vi folds and opens her arms for a hug and shouts 'Vander!' as loud as she can.
This causes Vander to remember when Felicia revealed that she was pregnant with Vi, over 23 years ago. After Felicia expresses her doubts about her domestic abilities, Vander reassures her that she'll be a great mother. Felicia then goes on to state that she fears that being split between taking care of a child in Zaun and being able to work out how to parent her. She then asks Vander and Silco to continue their mission in uniting the undercity, and Vander and Silco oblige as their insignia 'Blisters and Bedrock' is born. Vander then gives Felicia the name idea of 'Violet' and then the memory ends.
In the present, after everything went dark and silent, Jinx clinks open her lighter and uses it as a lantern. She grabs hold of Isha's hand and begins to walk forward, searching for Vi and Warwick. In the distant darkness, she sees Warwick's lamp has changed from red to green, indicating he's calmed down. She eventually gets close enough to see that Vi and Warwick are embracing, as Warwick has remembered Vi. Upon seeing Jinx inch closer, Vi extends a hand to her, inviting her to the hug. She obliges, running up and hugging both of them, soon followed by Isha.
Episode 6[]
Jinx, Vi and Isha bring Warwick to Viktor, who can supposedly heal him. At the gates, they are met with Huck, who politely asks them to surrender their weapons. They all hesitate, but upon looking back at Warwick over her shoulder, Vi is reminded of when Vander gave up his weapons to look after her and Powder, and she reluctantly drops her gauntlets. Upon entering Viktor's sanctuary, they slowly make their way through.
The quad then reaches Viktor, who attempts to tap into Vander's psyche, only to be kicked out immediately after by Warwick's psyche. Viktor and Vi discuss terms, with Viktor promising Vi and Jinx that he will do everything he can to help Vander, so long as he is restrained at night to avoid bloodshed.
Viktor spends days with Warwick, trying to reach his human psyche. Eventually, after much trial and error, they are able to reach Vander's memories, which all come flowing back at once, such as times when he and Silco were friends, when Felicia was pregnant with Powder, exchanging friendly banter with Benzo, their found family and the times he spent with Vi as he watched her grow up.
As Viktor is healing Warwick, he is approached by Singed, who offers to help Viktor retain his power via Warwick's regenerative qualities, which would kill Warwick and presumably allow Singed to cure his daughter. Viktor declines this offer politely, only to be told/reminded by Singed that if he perishes, the commune will soon follow.
Warwick continues to rest. One of Ambessa's army men attempts to lure him out by drawing blood, only for it to fail as Warwick is being healed. After Vi and Caitlyn join forces once more to protect Vander, Caitlyn is caught trying to get Warwick to safety by Rictus, who threatens to kill her, only to be flanked by Jinx. The two fight until Rictus grabs Jinx's braids and throws her to the floor. Right as Rictus swings to take the final blow, Warwick moves in the way, causing the blade to collide with him instead. For the first time since he reunited with Jinx, he speaks up, saying 'Don't touch my daughter!' before throwing Rictus through a wall, knocking him unconscious. Jinx then begins sobbing quietly before hugging Warwick, which he returns. Vi and Isha run back in, with the former embracing Jinx and the latter sharing affection with Warwick.
However, while all this was happening, Jayce was moving to kill Viktor. Upon succeeding in his goals, Jayce, in the process, ends the entire commune, as Viktor's death, as Singed predicted, would cause it all to rot and die. Jinx, Vi, Caitlyn and Isha run outside to see what's happening, giving Singed the perfect opportunity to inject Warwick with a serum he created. Once more, Warwick turns feral. His vents and lanterns begin to spew out lava. He tries his best to quell his animalistic thirsts as Vi and Jinx watch in fear, but ultimately fails. He roars loudly and then proceeds to maul Rictus to death.
Jinx tries to calm Warwick down, only for the beast to accidentally swipe her while defending himself from the Noxian army. Upon seeing that Jinx and Vi are injured, Isha makes the difficult decision to sacrifice herself. She loads Jinx's zapper with three Hextech gemstones and fires it next to Warwick, killing both of them in the process as Vi and Jinx watch in sorrow and horror, with Vi shielding Jinx from the blast as she tries to reach Isha.
Episode 7[]
Similarly to Benzo and Silco, Vander is alive and well in the alternate universe. He is first seen when Ekko is taken to The Last Drop by the alternate version of Benzo, acting as a barman and offering Powder some live advice after commending her ability to help her family.
He appears again later when Ekko is saying his subtle goodbye to Benzo just before the Innovator's Competition, where it is revealed he and Silco made amends.
Episode 8[]
Vander is dead throughout episode eight before being revived once more towards the end by Singed, who, with Viktor's help, completely removes Vander's psyche from Warwick forever, killing Vander for good. What remains of him, along with the other members of the commune, are involved in Viktor's glorious evolution and his body is transformed.
Episode 9[]
Midway through the battle, after Viktor's decoy was destroyed, Warwick climbs up the Hexgate alongside the transformed commune members. He initially intends to slaughter Vi, but is stonewalled as Jinx fires her minigun at him, which has seemingly no effect. Warwick jumps to Jinx and Ekko's airship to kill the former, before Ekko and Vi board the ship once more. Warwick subsequently grabs Vi and begins to possess her, before Ekko crashes the airship into the Hexgate as a last ditch effort.
Jinx and Vi team up, and it's revealed that Warwick is watching them from above, ready to attack. Warwick seemingly teleports towards them, and successfully grabs Vi before focusing on Jinx having been enraged by her shots. Viktor's powers clash with the Hexgate's causing the room the three former family members fight in to lose gravity. The three fight for a while before Warwick grabs both of them and they are ensnared by the beams of Viktor's hivemind.
After Viktor and Jayce are presumably killed and everyone is released from the hivemind, Jinx, Vi and Warwick all fall down the Hexgate before landing *mostly* safely on some support beams. Upon realising the one Vi and Warwick landed on was about to break, Jinx alerted Vi, warning her to run and jump to another ledge. Vi, however, ignores/blocks out Jinx's pleas and walks over to Warwick's body. She kneels down in front of it, crying, knowing that Vander is gone for good now. However, Warwick, once again, wakes up and attacks Vi. This likely happened because Warwick was originally created by Singed and doesn't follow the same biology as the rest of the hivemind. Jinx, in a last ditch effort, uses her Shimmer powers to bump Warwick off the support beam, only for Vi to grab her hand before she was able to fall and Warwick grabbing her waste so she couldn't escape. Jinx says goodbye to Vi before removing the gemstone from her gauntlet, causing Warwick and Jinx to fall down the Hexgate and leaving Vi crippled with grief. Jinx, relieved that Vi is safe, cups Warwick's face, looking at her father one last time and remembering when he used to tuck her and Vi into bed when they were infants. Jinx then proceeds to blow up Warwick with a Hextech-powered grenade and presumably kills him, while she escaped through the air duct system.
Characteristics[]
Personality[]
Vander is implied to have been a brutal man in his younger years. A flashback reveals an incident between him and Silco, where Vander tried to viciously drown the latter in Zaun’s polluted river, despite carrying a knife with him. After leading a failed uprising against Piltover's regime that saw a tragic loss of life, Vander was forced to bear the message to Vi and Powder that their parents had lost their lives in the fighting. After witnessing the grief this bore upon the two children, Vander turned pacifist, dropping his weapons and carrying the girls away to raise them as their father.
At the time of Arcane's first act, Vander was the surrogate father of Vi, Powder, Mylo, and Claggor. A caring man, Vander was always willing to protect those who needed his help. He was seen as a protector by many, and he cared for the Lanes and the people in them. He governed the Lanes through paternal authority, relying on people's gratitude and genuine respect for him to maintain order. Even though he had turned pacifist, he defied his dogma in Episode 3, fighting and seemingly dying to save Vi's life.
Appearance[]
Vander was a large, muscular middle-aged man with grey eyes, dark hair, and a neatly trimmed, graying beard. He was generally seen wearing blue trousers, leather boots, a brown leather jacket over a white undershirt, and a leather pauldron on his upper right arm to cover up the scar he got from Silco when Vander tried to drown him.
When Vander uses Shimmer as a last resort to save Vi, it dramatically increases his muscle mass, makes him grow several feet in height, and makes his veins purple and pop out all over his body. The drug also makes him lose some of his cognitive abilities, as he was seen acting more animalistic while under the effects of Shimmer.
In his transformed state as Warwick, he has an unnaturally muscular and enlarged body with dark grey fur coating his back, head, and arms. He has metal fans and bolts scattered across body, as well as a central pump filled with a green liquid on his back. His hands are metal gauntlets with sharp claws as fingers. Vander’s face has wolf-like features with pointy ears, wolf nose, and a smaller muzzle-like mouth with sharp teeth. He has dark grey hair and a beard which connects to the fur on his back. In this form; his sclera is black, his right iris is blue, and his left iris is yellowish-green.
Abilities[]
Human[]
- Incredible strength: Vander had a gift for hand-to-hand combat and was shown to dominate most fights he ever got involved in, even against Shimmer-enhanced opponents. He also taught Vi how to fight, a notable feat considering how skilled Vi became at boxing in her teenage years.
- Pain tolerance: As noted by Singed, Vander had a strong pain tolerance, which was probably the reason why he could withstand so many attacks while he was human and keep fighting.
- Bartending: As the owner of The Last Drop, Vander was a skilled bartender and could make various kinds of drinks.
- Leader: Vander was a competent and honorable leader despite his past failures, and many Zaunites respected him for it, even after he supposedly died.
- Teacher: As the adoptive father of four children, Vander would be their primary teacher in life and gave them just about every skill they needed to survive in Zaun. Even after his assumed death, his lessons would still resonate with Vi and Powder, as displayed when Vi had a vision of him encouraging her to work on her guard and get back up during her second fight with Sevika.
Warwick[]
- Mutated Body: Due to Singed's extensive modification, including grafting animal organs and heavy application of shimmer, Vander's body has become significantly larger and more monstrous, taking a wolf-like appearance. As a consequence of this, he is in a constant bestial state of pain, but retains some aspects of his identity and can speak in single words. In this new form, he is labelled Warwick.
- Improved Strength: Warwick is shown to be extremely strong, ripping through metal and soldiers with ease.
- Improved Endurance: Warwick's body can take bullets and blades without much damage, but still feels pain.
- Claws: Warwick has large, sword-like claws.
- Scent Tracking: Warwick is shown tracking the scent of Singed's blood from miles away, even while Singed was underground.
Evolved[]
- Evolved Body: After being affected by Viktor's power, Warwick's body was further mutated into a mindless but extremely powerful technomagical form. In this state, he no longer has any fragment of his former identity or memories, having fully been turned into a weapon.
- Immortality: Those evolved by Viktor do not age, get sick or require sustenance - as such they are deathless unless directly slain. Warwick was even more resistant than other evolved humans, as he was still alive after Viktor's power was undone.
- Extreme Strength: In this form, Warwick was even stronger than before.
- Extreme Speed: In this form, Warwick is shown moving at invisible speeds for short bursts.
- Extreme Endurance: With his flesh turned to metal, Warwick is shown to be practically immune to physical damage - it took a point blank hexgem explosion inside the Hexgate core while weakened by Viktor's defeat to destroy him.
Trivia[]
- Vander was widely theorized to be the League of Legends champion Warwick,[5][6] which was confirmed in the final episode of season 1. This is further shown in Arcane: Season 2 First Look.
- Vander and Loris have similar appearances, and Vi mistook Loris for Vander on two different occasions:
- When she wakes up in Episode 8 after Isha’s sacrifice and the destruction of Viktor's Commune
- After getting knocked down by an explosion in Episode 9.
Appearances[]
| Season One appearances: 3/9 | ||
| "Welcome to the Playground": Appears |
"Some Mysteries Are Better Left Unsolved": Appears |
"The Base Violence Necessary for Change": In main story and flashback |
| "Happy Progress Day!": Absent |
"Everybody Wants to Be My Enemy": Mentioned only |
"When These Walls Come Tumbling Down": Mentioned only |
| "The Boy Savior": Mentioned only |
"Oil and Water": Absent |
"The Monster You Created": Illusion only |
| Season Two appearances: 4/9 | ||
| "Heavy Is the Crown": Absent |
"Watch It All Burn": Absent |
"Finally Got the Name Right": Appears as a corpse only |
| "Paint The Town Blue": Appears |
"Blisters And Bedrock": Appears |
"The Message Hidden Within The Pattern": Appears |
| "Pretend Like It's the First Time": Alternate universe |
"Killing Is a Cycle": As a corpse; Warwick |
"The Dirt Under Your Nails": Appears |
See also[]
References[]
- ↑ Timeline
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 The Base Violence Necessary for Change, 1x03
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Welcome to the Playground, 1x01
- ↑ Some Mysteries Are Better Left Unsolved, 1x02
- ↑ "vander warwick" Google Search results
- ↑ Vander on the League of Legends Wiki
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