Papercraft Nunu & Willump

First time I saw this skin in a loading screen I thought someone was trolling me. Willump looks like a paper mache project your kid brings home from school, and Nunu is riding on top like he’s having the time of his life. Spent maybe 40 games with this equipped last season in Diamond and honestly the novelty doesnt wear off. The whole origami aesthetic is so different from anything else Nunu & Willump have that it stands out hard on the Rift.

The origami yeti and what it changes

So the entire model is rebuilt to look like folded paper. Willump has visible creases, fold lines running down his arms and legs, and his fur is replaced with these layered paper textures. Nunu himself gets a little paper crown and his outfit matches the craft store vibe. Clean work.

The VFX are where Papercraft Nunu & Willump really earns the 1350 RP. His Q chomp has paper confetti bursting out. W snowball? Not a snowball anymore. Its this massive rolling paper ball that picks up little origami bits as it travels down lane. Been using it to engage teamfights from river and the visual of a giant paper boulder crashing into their backline is genuinely funny every time. The E snowball tosses are replaced with paper projectiles, and the root effect has this paper-unfolding animation on the ground.

R is the highlight though. The ult channel shows paper swirling around Nunu & Willump in this tornado pattern, confetti and folded shapes everywhere. Not gonna lie, the first time I channeled it in dragon pit and caught three people I was laughing too hard to play properly. Kinda feels like Riot’s art team had way too much fun with this concept and just ran with it.

New recall animation too. Nunu folds a little paper airplane and tosses it, Willump catches it. Simple but fits perfectly. Voice lines stay base, no new VO, which is fine because the base voice work on Nunu & Willump is already solid.

Papercraft skinline and release context

Papercraft dropped February 21, 2019. Season 9 era. The Papercraft line is one of those smaller Riot skinlines that came and went pretty quick. Papercraft Anivia released alongside this one if I remember right. The theme works better on Nunu & Willump than most champions because Willump’s bulky model gives the paper folds more surface area to read clearly in game.

Maki Planas Mata nailed the splash. The warm orange background with Nunu riding Willump through what looks like a paper forest, little origami birds flying around. Its one of those splashes that makes you smile. Good energy.

This Epic tier skin sits at 1350 RP. Shop has it, permanent availability. For the price you’re getting new model, new VFX on all abilities, new recall. Standard Epic package but executed well above average for 2019 standards.

7 chromas total. Obsidian goes dark and moody which is a weird contrast against the cute paper aesthetic (random aside: I use Obsidian specifically because the tonal clash is hilarious). Aquamarine gives Willump this ocean blue paper look that reads cleanly against Summoner’s Rift green. Pearl is the cleanest one, white and pastel, very arts-and-crafts energy. Ruby, Amethyst, Rose Quartz, and Catseye round out the set but none of them hit as hard as those first three for me.

Where it ranks for Nunu & Willump mains

Real verdict: Nunu & Willump has a decent skin catalog now. Space Groove exists, Nunu Beelump is cute, Zombie is a classic. Could be wrong here but I think Papercraft is the most underrated of the bunch. Maybe just my experience but I see it in maybe 2 out of every 50 Nunu games in my ranked matches, and thats a shame.

The skin does something that a lot of Epic skins fail at. It commits to the bit completely. Every particle, every texture, every animation detail reinforces the paper craft theme. No half measures. Compare that to some 1350 RP skins that just slap a new color palette on and call it a day.

If you’re a Nunu & Willump main grinding jungle clear efficiency in ranked, this skin wont give you lane prio or better ganking angles obviously. But the VFX clarity is actually decent. The W rolling paper ball is easy to track, the E projectiles read well, and the R channel is visually distinct enough that your team knows whats happening. Played a game last Thursday where my ADC pinged the ult channel immediately because the paper tornado is that noticeable.

1350 RP feels fair for what you get. Not the flashiest Nunu & Willump skin anymore with newer releases, but the charm factor is through the roof. Top pick for Nunu & Willump mains who want something lighthearted. Skip it if you need edgy or serious vibes, but if you lock in Nunu & Willump you probably arent taking things too seriously anyway.