Arcane: Hextech's Horrifying Secret Sets Up A Major Champion For Season 2

In Arcane, the crystals powering Hextech were not Piltover's to take. Eventually, their true owners will want them back & violence is likely to ensue.

Warning! This article contains spoilers for season 1 of Arcane.

The plot of Arcane revolves around Hextech, technology powered by magic that holds a dark secret, hinting at a major character who might appear in season 2. A Netflix highlight of 2021, Fortiche Studios’ Arcane was praised for its unique animation style and nuanced characters, and this lead will be followed by season 2, currently scheduled for release in late 2022. The complex storytelling at which Arcane has excelled will perfectly suit the introduction of a champion from the games — the giant crystalline scorpion, Skarner.

Arcane is set in Runeterra, the video game fantasy world from League of Legends, and acts loosely as a prequel story for the game world. At the time of writing, the game contains 157 playable champions, each with their own place within the world. Arcane tells the stories of a few of these champions, characters such as Vi, Caitlyn, Ekko, and Jinx, fleshing them out with detailed backstories and characterization — though a few League of Legends characters are different in their animated incarnations. While there's a whole world of champions to choose from as future characters for the series, one, in particular, stands out as a dangerous choice to follow the events of Arcane’s story so far.

Skarner is an interesting character in League of Legends. He’s part of an ancient magical race of giant, scorpion-like creatures made of crystal called the Brackern. They have a violent history with humans and an intimate connection with the crystals powering Piltover's Hextech. Unsettlingly, the crystals contain the knowledge, emotions, and even souls of Skarner’s people. With Hextech being an essential part of how Piltover operates by the end of Arcane’s first season, a conflict against Skarner seems inevitable.

One of the best animated TV shows of 2021, Arcane still has a whole world to explore, and the magic which the series is named after is a big part of that world. While the animation has made no mention so far about the darker side of Hextech, it's well known to players of League of Legends. Viewers familiar with the game have spoken about how the series feels a lot darker to watch, knowing what the hex crystals truly are and hearing how they scream when they're damaged (via Reddit). In the lore of the games, Skarner will stop at nothing to retrieve all of the crystals after they were taken from the Brackern, and justifiably so. Despite his seemingly monstrous appearance, Skarner is not an evil character. If he appears in Arcane season 2, he wouldn't be a villain but an antagonist, simply wanting to protect his people and reclaim what was taken from them. This gives him the potential to be a deeply complex antagonist, surrounded by more of the complex and morally grey storytelling that Arcane has so far excelled at.

Arcane season 1 made the wise choice to focus on the twin cities of Piltover and Zaun, taking the time to develop the characters, their lives, and their personal conflicts. The detailed characterization given to them has worked to build an extremely invested fanbase who are eagerly waiting to find out what happens to the characters next, both in a burgeoning war and in their family relationships. So far, the world outside the two cities has only been hinted at obliquely, talked about but never shown. Hextech seems a logical way to introduce the world beyond, bringing the potential to explore some interesting allegories about capitalism and exploitation — most humans likely have no idea how damaging their technology is.

There’s little information currently available on what exactly might happen in Arcane season 2. There are currently a lot of loose threads in the plot. Jinx’s attack on the council of Piltover. Vi's need to confront the fact that the sister she once knew is truly gone. The power vacuum left after the death of Silco and (presumably most of) the council. The budding romance between Vi and Caitlyn. Whether Skarner is introduced in Arcane season 2 or left for later on, the introduction of a looming outside threat is certain to lead to chaos for the troubled cities of Zaun and Piltover.