If you haven’t watched Act 1 of Arcane: League of Legends Season 2, stop reading and go watch it. Today’s article has major spoilers for Season 2 so don’t say I didn’t warn you! I know a lot of you who watched the first act of Season 2 may or may not be confused about the Black Rose Cabal. They appeared towards the end of Act 1 and seem to be the reason why Ambessa fled to Piltover. Now, here’s the reason why League fans are all freaking out about the Black Rose Cabal being shown in Arcane. I want to preface this by saying that a lot of what I talk about in this article is purely from the League of Legends canon lore and everything in Arcane moving forward is purely speculation.
Who are the Black Rose Cabal
A little background on the Black Rose Cabal. These mysterious individuals are part of a shadow organization based in Noxus. They have been around since before the birth of Noxus and the construction of the Immortal Bastion (more on that later). They are led by an individual Noxians called “The Pale Woman” but League players know her as LeBlanc.
I won’t go into too much detail but LeBlanc has been leading the Black Rose Cabal for as long as it’s been around. She was once a member of Mordekaiser’s inner circle (again, more on that later) and is the shadow puppeteer of all of Noxus’ politics. Once the right hand of the Iron Revenant, she personally saw the downfall of Mordekaiser and established the Black Rose Cabal.
While it’s not clear yet where the story will go in Arcane and what their plan is, the Black Rose Cabal isn’t just your run-of-the-mill shadow organization. They don’t seek total control over the governments and world domination. Instead, their main goal is to prevent the return of Mordekaiser from the Death Realm. It’s not clear what their main goal is in Arcane but we’re looking forward to seeing more of them! Perhaps we’ll see more in Act 2 but we won’t know till this weekend.
Why is This a Big Deal?
The involvement of the Black Rose Cabal hints at LeBlanc and other members becoming characters in Arcane! We might see members like Vladimir, Cassiopeia, Elise, and maybe even Rell. This could also be a hint as to where Arcane is going to take place after Zaun and Piltover. It is great to see Noxus as the main focus for once. This direction could even lend itself to more storytelling about Mordekaiser and the Immortal Bastion!
What’s their Goal?
For context, Mordekaiser was once a revered warlord in ancient Runeterra (The world Arcane and League take place). He lived his life conquering and slaughtering in the hopes of having a seat at the table of glory in the Hall of Bones. Upon dying later in his life, he found the Death Realm to be empty and void of anything. Angered, he learned necromancy and the primal language in the realm and brought himself back. This time, he was bound to an enchanted armor and he once again conquered the land. He would use his necromancy powers to bind the souls of all his kills and use them as servants. He founded the Immortal Bastion, a massive stone fortress, and used it as his base of operations.
It was there that he was betrayed by LeBlanc and sealed once again in the Death Realm. However, he now had an entire army waiting for him there. LeBlanc founded the Black Rose Cabal and gathered all the old Noxii tribes and together founded the region of Noxus around the Immortal Bastion. The Black Rose Cabal now lurks in the shadows, controlling the politics and power of Noxus from behind the scenes and doing their best to prevent the return of Mordekaiser.
What Are They Doing in Arcane?
It’s not clear what their goal is yet but they do seem to be quite unhappy with Ambessa and her family. Whatever it is Mother Medarda did, it sure pissed them off. We don’t know enough to make any proper speculations but it sure is cool that we get another faction to watch out for in Arcane Season 2!
Want to know more about Arcane Lore and League of Legends? Read these ones next!
