Zaun

Biodata

Name	Zaun
Original name	祖安
Alias(es)	New Zaun (after relocation) 274
Type	Neutral Character (AI); independent city-state
Government	City lord and elected council system 92
Affiliation	Twin Cities Federation; shares its chief seat with Piltover 272
Location	Reclaimed land between the two continents; formerly connected to Piltover at Dance Hall and Progress Bridge 274
Status	Active; relocated and re-established at the end of January, Year 991 of the Twin Cities calendar 274
First Appearance	Chapter 1, “Good Luck, Mr. Summoner” 1

History

Origins and decline

Zaun and Piltover were originally one city. Its people undertook a massive maritime project to open a route between the Valoran and Shurima continents, gradually abandoning faith in Janna for science and machinery. The later Great Canal Incident sank part of the settlement to sea level, creating the Zaun of the modern era 61.

By Li Ke's arrival, Zaun was dominated by violence, gangs, unemployment, and industrial decline. Piltover's expanding trade economy and adoption of assembly lines had displaced Zaunite laborers, widening the wealth gap between the cities 1 29. Under Silco, Glow became both a political weapon against Piltover and a source of fear, addiction, and conflict among Zaunites 29.

Reform and independence

Li Ke united Zaun through the Lian Hua Gang, initially using it to dismantle rival criminal power rather than simply replacing it. Hope Community became an early model for the reforms: residents gained safer factory work, protective equipment, and stable schedules, while the community collectively resisted Piltover Enforcer raids 50.

Zaun then began dismantling and sealing Piltover's wastewater pipelines, ending its dependence on the Upper City's waste system and asserting control over entry into the city 58 68. By the time Viktor visited, gangs had been forced into hiding, late-night travel had become safer, extortion had declined, and Zaunites could find work without seeking jobs in Piltover 82.

After repelling Piltover and Noxian forces on Progress Bridge, Zaun compelled Piltover to recognize its autonomy, surrender control of key infrastructure, and cease interference in Zaunite domestic and economic affairs 87 90.

On November 3rd of Year 1, Zaun formally became an independent city-state 92.

Reconstruction and relocation

The Darkin Stelaratu's attack on Grandstone Mine threatened Zaun with catastrophic flooding and forced a joint Zaunite-Piltovan evacuation 109 110. Li Ke sacrificed himself to stop the threat, and Piltover subsequently committed aid to Zaun's reconstruction 112.

Rebuilding accelerated Zaun's industrial development and environmental cleanup. Its seventh-generation Purification Device brought air quality up to Piltover's standard, though the city remained dark, damp, and densely built into its ravines 115.

Void tunnels beneath the city later made the original site geologically unsafe. The Twin Cities reclaimed land from the sea for a new location, and Janna lifted the existing city intact before lowering it onto the prepared land. The relocated city became New Zaun 268 269 274.

Government and Law

Institution / Office	Function
City Lord	Li Ke became Zaun's first city lord and First Councillor upon independence 92.
Zaun Council	Governs the city-state; future councillors are elected rather than inheriting office 92.
Seventh Councillor	Janna holds a permanent seat with authority equal to the First Councillor and veto power in major matters 92.
Sump Enforcers	Official civic enforcement body formed from former Lian Hua Gang members; Vi serves as Chief of the Sump Enforcers 92 96.
Military	Separate from the Enforcers, with Vander assigned responsibility for Zaun's military forces 92 96.

First Council

Councillor	Position / Representation
Li Ke	First Councillor and City Lord 92
Silco	Councillor 92
Vander	Councillor; military leadership 92
Heimerdinger	Councillor 92
Scar	Councillor; former Wildfire Gang leader 92
Marna	Councillor and voice of ordinary Zaunites 92
Janna	Seventh Councillor and divine safeguard of Zaun 92

Society and Living Conditions

• Hope Community demonstrated the reform model: stable factory employment, reduced workplace hazards, and residents willing to defend their neighborhood from outside interference 50.
• Former gang members became public servants after the Lian Hua Gang was disbanded by Li Ke's order 92 96.
• Sump Enforcers patrol all three districts, maintain records on outsiders, and enforce Zaun's own security policies 127.
• Zaun accepts refugees and newcomers as Zaunites rather than defining citizenship solely by birthplace; Scar is specifically noted as a non-native who became part of the city 127.
• New Life Community was built during the post-independence development period, and Progress Day was renamed New Life Day as a civic celebration 103.

Economy and Infrastructure

Energy and Industry

Viktor's arrival gave Zaun access to designs for power generators using materials available within Zaun itself. His work was intended to reduce the city's economic reliance on Piltover 83.

Renata Glasc's policies accelerated industrialization through three major initiatives 103:

• Rebranding and commercializing chemtech rather than treating it solely as a symbol of decay and violence.
• Using the Sun Gates to establish direct diplomatic and trade relationships with major nations.
• Reforming mines and factories by replacing harsh traditional rules with Glasc factory practices.

Environmental restoration

• Zaun sealed Piltover's wastewater pipes, forcing the Upper City to address its own disposal problem 58 68.
• The seventh-generation Purification Device achieved low-noise, low-energy, high-efficiency air cleaning; Zaun's air later became comparable to Piltover's 115.
• Reclamation work created land for New Zaun while addressing the collapse risk posed by Void tunnels beneath the old city 268 269.

Technology and Defense

Zaunite technology

• Hoverboards and flyboards — Used for rapid movement through Zaun's vertical terrain and for mass mobilization during the defense against Piltover 85.
• Chemtech — A major industrial sector promoted for medicine, alchemical products, and export rather than Glow production alone 103.
• Hextech weaponry — Zaunite forces field Hextech rifles, rocket shoes, protective pocket watches, and other devices developed by engineers such as Jinx and Ekko 216.
• Airships — Jinx, aided by Li Ke, Singed, Orianna, and Akali, built a Hextech Gem-powered airship in Ionia 171.
• Purification Devices — Environmental machines that transformed Zaun's previously poisonous air quality 115.

Military strength

Zaun's leaders rejected Piltover's reliance on a small Enforcer force alone, establishing a distinct military alongside civic law enforcement 92 96.

During the war for independence, Li Ke, Vander, the Lian Hua Gang, Wildfire members, and Silco's people overwhelmed Piltover and Noxian forces on Progress Bridge. Zaun captured Councillor Saro and General Ambessa Medarda, forcing Piltover's surrender 87.

Relationships

• Piltover — Former ruling city and wartime enemy; later became Zaun's partner in reconstruction, trade, land reclamation, and the Twin Cities Federation 90 94 115 269.
• Janna — Zaun's wind deity, Seventh Councillor, and protector. She helped defend the city from Stelaratu and later relocated Zaun to its new site 92 109 274.
• Lian Hua Gang — Li Ke's reform movement and the force that initially unified Zaun; formally disbanded after independence, with members reassigned as public servants 82 92 96.
• Bilgewater — Trading partner and recipient of Zaunite military support; Sarah received Zaun-made cannons, weapons, supplies, and funding under Li Ke's orders 151.
• Federation — Zaun and Piltover jointly hold the chief seat among the Federation's five seats 272.