Mecha Kingdoms Draven

First game I played with Mecha Kingdoms Draven was a late night ranked session, maybe 1 AM on a Wednesday. Locked in Draven, loaded up, and the splash alone had me hyped. Giant mech armor, spinning axes that look like they could cleave through a turret. Not sure if it’s just me but this skin makes Draven feel heavier in the best way possible. Like every auto attack carries actual weight behind it. Been running this in Diamond for a while now and I keep coming back to it over his other skins.

The mech fantasy on Draven actually works

So heres the thing about Mecha Kingdoms Draven. The model swap is massive. Draven goes from his usual shirtless gladiator energy to full mech pilot armor. Gold and red plating, mechanical joints visible on the shoulders, and the axes themselves get completely redesigned into these spinning mech blades. In lane specifically the axes catch light differently when you’re juggling them between cs waves.

New VFX across the board. His Q spinning axes get this golden energy trail that tracks clean against the Rift. W Blood Rush has a burst of mechanical particle effects on activation. Stand Aside (E) throws out these mech-styled projectiles with visible gears in the particle work. His R, the global ult, is where Riot really put in effort. The returning axes have this gold and red energy field trailing behind them. Caught their Jinx across the map with it last week in a game where my support was roaming and I was just sitting bot lane farming. The kill cam on that ult looked clean.

New recall animation too. Draven summons this massive mech construct behind him and strikes a pose. Classic Draven ego but with giant robot energy. No new voice lines though, voice stays default. Erik Braa’s base VO still carries hard so its not a huge loss. The mech sounds from the VFX do enough to sell the fantasy.

Played maybe 30 games with this skin in one stretch during season 10. The auto attack animations feel slightly different with the mech axes, almost like the wind-up is more pronounced. Could be wrong here but I think the spinning axe catch indicator reads a bit cleaner than base too. Might just be the gold particles making it easier to track.

Mecha Kingdoms lineup and release context

Mecha Kingdoms Draven dropped January 15, 2020. Early season 10. The Mecha Kingdoms skinline came out as this batch release with Leona, Garen, Sett, and a few others. Riot was going hard on the mech-meets-ancient-warrior aesthetic that patch.

The Mecha Kingdoms line pulls from Eastern dynasty imagery fused with giant robot designs. Think Three Kingdoms but everyone pilots a Gundam. Draven fits the vibe surprisingly well because his ego and showmanship translate naturally into a pilot who customizes his mech to be the flashiest one on the battlefield. (Random aside: the Mecha Kingdoms splash arts as a set make for an incredible desktop wallpaper rotation.)

6 chromas total for this one. Obsidian is my personal pick, goes full dark armor and the axes look menacing against the gold trim. Peacekeeper has this dark purple and black combo that reads like a stealth variant. Rose Quartz is the wildcard, pink mech Draven is either the best or worst thing depending on your lane opponent’s mental state. I’ve tilted a Kai’Sa main just by running the pink chroma and spamming emote after every kill.

This is an Epic tier skin at 1350 RP. Shop has it, permanent availability. For that price point you’re getting model, VFX, recall, and chromas. Standard Epic package but executed well.

Should you buy Mecha Kingdoms Draven?

Real verdict: if you’re a Draven main or even someone who plays him occasionally in ranked, Mecha Kingdoms is a strong pickup. 1350 RP feels fair for what you get. The VFX are distinct enough that your axes stand out in teamfights, which honestly matters when you’re trying to track spinning axes in a five-man dive at dragon pit.

Compared to his other options, Soul Reaver is the classic pick and Gladiator has nostalgia value. But Mecha Kingdoms brings the most visual flair per RP spent. Fright Night and La Ilusion came later and they’re solid too, but Mecha Kingdoms has this specific over-the-top energy that matches Draven’s personality. Real talk though, if you only main Draven for the laning phase aggression and dont care about cosmetics in late-game teamfights, maybe save the RP. But if you want your axes to look like they cost more than your opponent’s entire champion, this is the one. Top pick for Draven mains who want the flashy mech look without dropping Legendary money.