Who is Aphelios? New champion story added to official website

League of Legends will be seeing the addition of a new champion quicker than anyone might have expected. While the name was leaked back in May and presence subtly revealed last month on a Riot Games stream, only now has it been officially confirmed by Riot.

Aphelios is his name and The Weapon of the Faithful is his full title. A full biographic story has been revealed after a teaser last month suggested an upcoming champion would be 'a devout marksman raised from birth to protect the faith from those who stand in the sun.'

In his introduction, Aphelios' nature is confirmed as a calm and collected assasssin marksman with faith in the moon.

"Emerging from moonlight’s shadow with weapons drawn, Aphelios kills the enemies of his faith in brooding silence—speaking only through the certainty of his aim, and the firing of each gun. Though fueled by a poison that renders him mute, he is guided by his sister Alune in her distant temple sanctuary from where she pushes an arsenal of moonstone weapons into his hands. For as long as the moon shines overhead, Aphelios will never be alone."

Born during a rare lunar convergence, when the physical moon was eclipsed by its reflection in the spirit realm, Aphelios and his twin sister, Alune, were celebrated as children of destiny by those of Targon’s Lunari faith.

Fighting against the Solari from the shadows, Aphelios' skill and Alune's magic helped the siblings form a parnership as the Lunari's ultimate weapon against their oppressors.

It is more than likely that we see Alune in the future, as the addition of Lucian's wife Senna and previous champions with synergy like Xayah and Rakan suggest Riot's continued interest in bringing lore to life through the game.

His full biography can be found on his champion page.

In the previous roadmap, it was suggested Aphelios' kit will require players to 'train hard and achieve zen-like focus in order to reap the rewards.'

With mention of weapons cycling like the moon, Aphelios may well end up with a complex but adaptable set of abilities.

With 11th December listed as his release date on the LoL client, we can expect to see more from the Weapon of the Faithful in the next few weeks as part of the 2020 preseason.