Cryocore Brand

First time I saw Cryocore Brand in a loading screen I thought somebody modded their client. Brand throwing ice instead of fire? Kinda feels like Riot just wanted to see if the opposite gimmick would work. Spoiler: it does. Been running this skin on and off since season 3 and the ice theme still holds up way better than it has any right to for a 975 RP Standard tier skin from 2011.

The ice treatment on a fire mage

So the whole concept is straightforward. Take Brand, strip the fire, replace it with frost and cryo energy. The model swap gives him this armored tech look with blue-white plating and exposed ice core sections across his chest and arms. Head design reminds me of a cryo containment unit more than a champion. Clean stuff.

The VFX are where Cryocore Brand actually earns the price tag. His Q pillar of flame turns into this icy blast, the W drops frozen ground instead of the usual fire circle, and the passive burn visually reads as frost spreading on the target. Not gonna lie, it threw me off in lane the first few times I played against it because the ability timings feel different when the colors shift that hard. Your E bounce still chains the same way but the blue particles make it easier to track in teamfights, at least in my Diamond games.

R is the highlight. The bouncing ultimate keeps the same chaotic energy but the ice projectile pops against dark Rift terrain. Played a game last Thursday where I got a 4-man ult bounce in dragon pit and the frozen particles stacking on top of each other looked genuinely sick. Voice lines stay base though. No VO refresh, which is expected for a skin this old at this price point.

Silver Age origins and the 2011 era

Cryocore Brand dropped October 5, 2011. Deep into season 1 territory. Part of the Silver Age skinline, which is one of those early Riot thematic groups that doesn’t get talked about much anymore. Most Silver Age skins share that “alternate element” or “sci-fi reimagining” vibe and Cryocore fits right in.

No splash artist credited in the data, which tracks for skins from that era. Riot wasnt always consistent about crediting artists back then. The splash itself is decent for its age – Brand in the cryo suit with ice energy radiating outward. Nothing groundbreaking but it reads well as a thumbnail. Zero chromas available, which makes sense given the skin’s age. Riot rarely goes back to add chromas to pre-2015 skins unless theres major demand.

975 RP puts this in Standard tier pricing. For context thats the same price bracket as a lot of skins that only give you a model swap with zero VFX changes. Cryocore Brand actually includes new VFX across all abilities which makes it punch above its weight class. Shop has it permanently, no vault rotation or loot exclusive nonsense.

Should you pick up Cryocore Brand?

Real verdict: if you main Brand and you want something different from the fire fantasy, this is your cheapest entry point that still delivers on VFX. Zombie Brand and Eternal Dragon Brand exist at higher price points with more polish, sure. But 975 RP for a full visual theme flip with custom particles? Hard to argue against that value.

(Random aside: I use this skin specifically in ARAM because the ice particles on a cramped map with four other blue-toned champs creates pure visual chaos and I love it.) Could be wrong here but I think Cryocore gets overlooked because Brand has so many skins now. Seen maybe 5 of these in my games all season. If you’re climbing with Brand support or mid, the ability clarity on this skin is genuinely good for tracking your passive procs. Worth 975 RP if you main Brand, easy. Not the flashiest option in his catalog but a solid workhorse skin that still looks clean after all these years.