“Her story begins in the ashes…” This was the only line of text available for Annie’s biography before her lore was updated accompanied by the cinematic short video, Annie: Origins. Recently, Riot has begun to completely overhaul the lore of Runterra and giving older champions brand new back stories. Annie is one of the champions to undergo the recent lore rework receiving a brand new story.
Video Credit: Riot Games
In the Beginning, There was FIRE
Annie was the daughter of a witch and man from Noxus. Her mother sewed Tibbers for Annie as a toy version of the shadow bears that use to roam near their home. One day, when Annie was sick, her mother left to draw water from a nearby river and never returned. Her father soon remarried to another woman who also had a daughter of her own, Daisy. At this point, this is where the cinematic begins with Daisy and Annie playing. Daisy tries to take Tibbers from Annie and is burned by a mysterious power coming from there bear. Her stepmother blames Annie for hurting Daisy, but Annie and Daisy continued playing together. One day, the two girls spot one of the fey when playing outside and chase it across the top of a waterfall. When crossing, Daisy tripped and fell from the stepping stones and was swept away by the river. Heartbroken, Annie’s stepmother called her a monster causing Annie to hide in a corner and weep as fire starts to slowly creep out from Tibbers. Soon the fire spread to become a massive inferno that engulfed the house. Annie’s father manages to save her, but he remains trapped inside leaving only Annie and her stepmother alive. In her rage, the stepmother tried to rip apart Tibbers causing the bear to come to full life. The cinematic ends with Annie alone, her stepmother gone from the place she was previously standing, only a small fire left.
A lot of interesting tidbits were included in the cinematic by Riot. For one, Annie’s stepsister, Daisy, could be the rock golem of Ivern. Daisy was killed by the waterfall and Ivern was said to have put a river pebble inside a wounded rock golem to save it. Annie’s mother was heavily implied to have merged with Tibbers after her death to continue protecting her child. The fey the two girls were chasing around could have been Lulu’s Pix, leading children to the fey world and in this case their demise. In the end, Riot has done a fantastic job of fleshing out the Universe of League of Legends and their future work is highly anticipated.