Empyrean Nocturne

First game I played with Empyrean Nocturne was around 2 AM on a Wednesday, right after the patch dropped. Locked it in for a Diamond ranked game and the loading screen splash alone had my duo asking what skin that was. Nocturne has had some solid options over the years but this one hits a frequency the others dont. The Empyrean color palette turns him from a shadow nightmare into something closer to a digital phantom, all neon streaks and holographic edges. Completely different energy.

How Empyrean Nocturne actually looks in game

The model rework here is clean. Nocturne’s body gets that signature Empyrean treatment with flowing particle trails and a translucent torso that shifts between purple and cyan depending on the angle. His blades look like shattered light fragments. Not gonna lie, the idle animation alone sells the skin.

Q trail is where you notice the biggest change. Duskbringer leaves this bright neon streak on the ground that reads way better than base, almost too well honestly. In a chaotic teamfight around dragon pit last week I could actually track exactly where my Q landed, which sounds minor but Nocturne mains know how cluttered that ability gets with base VFX.

W spell shield pops with a crystalline barrier effect. Looks expensive. E tether has these electric arcs connecting you to the target, gives real “you’re not going anywhere” vibes when you’re diving the backline. The ult is the highlight though. Paranoia’s screen darken gets a subtle digital distortion overlay and when you launch at someone the trail behind Nocturne pulses with Empyrean energy. Been running this in ranked for a few weeks and the R animation feels faster somehow, even though its obviously the same speed. Placebo from good VFX I guess.

Recall animation is new. Nocturne channels some kind of Empyrean rift and gets pulled into it. Short, stylish, no filler. Voice lines stay base, no new VO, which is expected at this price point.

The Empyrean line and where Nocturne fits

Empyrean Nocturne released May 1, 2024. Season 14 content. Eric Xie and West Studio handled the artwork, and they captured something sinister with the pose. The Empyrean skinline has been one of Riot’s more ambitious thematic pushes, pulling in champions like Jhin, Lux, K’Sante, and Vex across multiple patches. Nocturne fits the Empyrean aesthetic naturally because his kit already revolves around darkness and fear. Adding the neon-digital overlay just gives him a sci-fi horror angle that works.

(Random aside: the splash is genuinely one of Nocturne’s best across all his skins, might set it as my client background.)

9 chromas total for this one. Tanzanite goes deep purple which honestly clashes a bit with the base Empyrean palette. Neon Facade is the standout for me, that red-green split hits hard and reads completely different from any other Nocturne chroma. Pearl is clean if you want the minimalist look. Could be wrong here but I think Ruby might actually be the weakest of the bunch, it loses that ethereal quality that makes the base skin pop.

Is Empyrean Nocturne worth 1350 RP?

Real verdict: this is a strong Epic skin. 1350 RP feels fair for what you get. New VFX on every ability, solid recall, great model. You’re not getting new voice lines or a transformation, but no Epic does. Compared to Eternum which was the go-to Nocturne skin for years, Empyrean trades the mecha horror for something sleeker. Different vibe entirely.

If you main Nocturne or even just pull him out for jungle clear sessions when your main gets banned, this is worth picking up. Shop has it, permanent availability, no vault rotation concerns. Kinda feels like Riot finally gave Nocturne a skin that matches the champion’s fantasy without just making him “dark thing but darker.” The Empyrean energy adds dimension. Been spamming this in Diamond since it dropped and I keep coming back to it over Old God and Hextech. Might be overthinking it but something about the Q trail and ult VFX just makes the whole kit feel more responsive. Top pick for Nocturne mains, easy.