| “ | "You've got a good heart. Don't ever lose it, no matter how the world tries to break you." |
—  Vander to  Vi, The Base Violence Necessary For Change
| |
 |
Vander was a 
Zaunite bartender and the adoptive father of 
Vi and 
Jinx. A selfless and good-hearted man with a talent for fist-fighting, he was widely respected by the denizens of the undercity and was willing to die for his own convictions, especially if it meant saving those he cared about.
Background
Early Life
Vander and Silco were like brothers in their youth, and the two of them once fought together in order to free Zaun from Piltover's repressive rule. However, due to unknown circumstances, Vander eventually betrayed Silco and attempted to drown him in Zaun's polluted rivers. During the fight, Silco managed to stab Vander with his own dagger and escape back into the underground, leaving a large scar on the latter's right arm.[1]
Years later, Vander attempted to lead an uprising against Piltover due to the horrible living conditions that the citizens of Zaun were forced to endure on a daily basis. Unfortunately, the rebellion ended in a failure and dozens of Zaunites were massacred by enforcers in the ensuing battle.[2]
In the aftermath of his failed uprising, Vander stumbled across two sisters named Vi and 
Powder, who had been orphaned in the attack. Stunned by the fact that his actions had cost them the lives of their parents, Vander adopted the two girls as his own daughters and vowed to live a more peaceful life for the sake of his new family. At some point after this, he also adopted two orphaned boys as his own sons, 
Mylo and 
Claggor, and taught all four of them on how to survive and stay out of trouble.[2]
After the failed uprising, Vander took control of the Lanes of Zaun and became the head of a bar called the Last Drop, which became the main meeting ground of the undercity. He would also broker an uneasy agreement with the enforcers of Piltover, which brought relative peace to the Lanes.[2]
Hexgem Incident
After a heist in Piltover by Vi and the other kids, the peace in the undercity was at risk. Due to the raided house belonging to 
Kiramman Clan, the Wardens were tasked to apprehended the perpetrators in question.[2] Not wanting to betray his own kids, Vander refuses to indicate anyone. This decision would cause the increased Warden patrols that would anger the rest of the undercity. Vander tries to council his people to keep the peace, but many ignore him. With another uprising seemingly underway, even his Vi wants to defend her home. Vander teaches Vi that violence will not solve her problems and that it is best to protect what you still have then risk losing everything.[3]
Vi takes this to heart and tries to surrender to the Wardens in order to prevent the uprising.[3][1] Learning about this plan, Vander swaps places with her and gives himself to the Wardens. However, before he could be dragged to prison, an older Silco and his shimmer-mutated henchmen ambush them, killing several wardens including Sheriff Grayson and Benzo.[1]
Captured by Silco, Vander is dragged and imprisoned in his hideout. At first Silco tries to reason with Vander, sharing his vision for the nation of Zaun, but Vander rejects the offer stating that he is not the same person anymore.[1]
Later on Vi, Mylo and Claggor arrive to save Vander. Realizing it was a trap, Vi takes Vander's old cast iron gauntlets to fight Silco's men, trying to give enough time for Mylo and Claggor to unshackle Vander and find a way out. The events of the fight would end with Powder accidentally destroying most of the hideout, killing Mylo and Claggor and injuring Vander in the process. Trying to defend a surviving Vi, Vander takes makeshift knuckles and starts fighting the surviving henchmen, however he is bested by them and stabbed in the gut by Silco, dropping down in a pile of vials of Shimmer. Injecting one, Vander is able to finally defeat the mutated henchmen, nearly close to defeating Silco as well, but decides to save Vi from the exploding wreckage instead.[1]
Injured from the fall, Vander tells Vi to protect Powder before he passes out.
Legacy
Following the events of Silco's coup against him, Vander was presumed dead. However, even after his supposed death and Silco's takeover of the undercity, Vander was well-respected by the people of Zaun and remembered in a positive light by many. A statue of him was also built in the Lanes, where Silco would later go to and confide in when Jayce offered him Zaun's independence in exchange for Jinx.[4]
Appearance
Vander was a large and muscular middle-aged man with grey eyes, dark hair, and a neatly trimmed greying 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 that he got from Silco when he was young.
When Vander used Shimmer as a last resort to save Vi, it dramatically increased his muscle mass, made him grow several feet in height, and made his veins purple and pop out all over his body.
Personality
A caring person, Vander was always willing to protect those that needed his help. He was seen as a father and protector by many, and he always cared for the Lanes and the people in them. He was a fighter at heart and was willing to die for those he cared for, eventually dying to save Vi's life. He always acted in the interests of the Lanes and others instead of himself, and he always regretted betraying Silco.
Abilities
- Brawler: Vander was very skilled at hand-to-hand combat and was shown to dominate most fights he ever got involved in, even against Shimmer-enhanced opponents. He was also the one who taught Vi how to punch, a notable feat considering how skilled Vi became at hand-to-hand combat in her teenage years.
- Barkeep: 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 failings, 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 them, as displayed when Vi had a hallucination of him encouraging her to work on her guard and get back up during her second fight with Sevika.
Relations
Silco
Vander considered Silco to be his brother in their youth, and the two of them once had the same dream of freeing Zaun from Piltovan rule. However, their relationship fell apart when Vander turned on Silco and nearly drowned him for unknown reasons. Despite this, however, Vander never hated Silco and came to feel very guilty about what he did to his former friend, only attempting to kill him a second time for trying to kill his kids. Similarly, although Silco hated Vander for what he did, he still respected him to an extent, even after the latter died in their last fight.
Violet
After his failing uprising, Vander adopted Vi as his own daughter and taught her to both live a better life and be a better person than himself. He was also the one who taught her how to punch and expressed pride in her skills whenever she clobbered someone in a fight. Ultimately, Vander would have a large impact on Vi, as his teachings would continue to influence her long after his death.
Powder
After his failing uprising, Vander adopted Powder as his own daughter and taught her to both live a better life and be a better person than himself. Although Powder had a good relationship with Vander, with the latter even serving her her favorite drink whenever she got sad, the intense guilt and trauma that she suffered from accidentally killing him with one of her makeshift grenades would haunt her for years after his death and cause her great pain whenever she thought of him.
Arcane Show Appearances
| Season One appearances: 3/9 | ||
| Welcome to the Playground: Appears |
Some Mysteries Are Better Left Unsolved: Appears |
The Base Violence Necessary for Change: Appears 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 |
Read More
Starring Champion
Alternate Universes
Video
Every legend has a beginning.
Starring: 
Aero, 
Amara, 
Ambessa, 
Babette, 
Benzo, 
Billingsworth, 
Bolbok, 
Caitlyn, 
Cassandra, 
Chross, Claggor, 
Deckard, 
Ekko, 
Elora, 
Finn, 
Gorgeous Man, 
Grayson, 
Harold, 
Heimerdinger, 
Hoskel, 
Huck, 
Jayce, 
Jericho, 
Jinx, 
Jules, 
Lock, 
Marcus, 
Margot, 
Mel, Mylo, 
Pim, 
Ren, 
Renni, 
Salo, 
Sevika, 
Shoola, 
Silco, 
Singed, 
Sky, 
Smeech, 
Thieram, 
Tobias, Vander, 
Verne, 
Vi, 
Viktor, 
Ximena
Short Story
By Ty Sheedlo
The Council Archives. You'd heard stories at the Academy, of course, but words could not describe the breathtaking magnitude of its contents. The entire history of your city: its glorious achievements, its sinister secrets, painstakingly documented, waiting to be read.
Starring: Caitlyn, Jayce, Jinx, Vi
Mentioned: Benzo, Cassandra, Chross, Claggor, Deckard, Ekko, Grayson, Heimerdinger, Marcus, Mylo, Renni, Silco, Smeech, Tobias, Vander, Viktor, Ximena
Trivia
- With the release of Arcane, fans have speculated that Vander might be Warwick before he was transformed into a lycan by Singed's experiments. Although this has yet to be officially confirmed by Riot, there are several clues in both the animated series and the video game that hint towards this:
- Vander's alias, "The Hound of the Underground", is similar to Warwick's alias, "The Uncaged Wrath of Zaun".
- Vander is called a lapdog by Silco.
- Both Warwick and Vander were once criminals who put down their weapons to live a better life.
- Vander is the one who taught Vi how to punch, and one of Warwick's lines towards her is "Who taught you how to punch?".
- Another one of Warwick's lines, "You were there…", is addressed towards Jinx and is a possible reference to her being present next to Vander's corpse after her bombs destroyed Silco's hideout.
- Warwick's theme is heard during Vander's capture and shortly before his death.
- After he ingested Shimmer, Vander's physique became similar to Warwick's. His voice and growl became similar to Warwick's as well.
- During her mental breakdown in the final episode of Arcane's 1st season, Jinx pictures Vander with a wolf-like outline around him.
Media
See also
 Playable Characters |
                                                                                                                                                                 |
|---|---|
| Other Characters (League of Legends) |
 Alune Book Bristle Bubbs Daisy Gregor Hermit Longtooth Pirate Finn Pix Skaarl Tibbers Valor Willump Wolf |
 Other Characters(Universe) |
 Cithria Doran Isolde Kai Kusho Ledros Nagakabouros Necrit Rafen Tianna Tyari Valmar Vrynna |
 Other Characters(Arcane) |
 Amara Ambessa Bolbok Caitlyn Cassandra Chross Claggor Ekko Elora Finn Harold Heimerdinger Jayce Jinx Marcus Margot Mel Mylo Renni Salo Sevika Silco Singed Smeech Tobias Vander Vi Viktor |
