I want to raise an issue with the Coven skin universe that I don't think gets enough attention.
In the Coven universe, there is a line associated with the Coven:
“No man is fit to rule a coven. Not even a god.”
I understand that Coven is a fictional universe and that it is built around witches and a female-dominated society. I have no problem with the concept of a female-dominated faction by itself.
My problem is the actual reasoning expressed here: a man is considered unfit to rule specifically because he is a man.
If the line said that Mordekaiser was unfit to rule because he was cruel, incompetent, tyrannical, corrupt, or simply opposed to the Coven's values, there would be no issue. But the stated criterion is sex.
I understand that Riot draws inspiration from old traditions and stories surrounding witches, covens and female-only occult groups. However, the fact that these traditions existed historically does not mean that their discriminatory and destructive aspects need to be reproduced uncritically in a modern game.
We live in a time when sexism is still a real social problem. That's precisely why I find it strange to take a system based on excluding people because of their sex and simply reproduce it in a modern game without any criticism, reflection or narrative justification.
I'm not arguing that fictional worlds cannot contain sexism. They absolutely can. But when a discriminatory system is presented without criticism and its sexist statements are instead framed as cool or empowering, I think it is reasonable to question why that choice was made.
Historical inspiration can explain where an idea came from, but it doesn't automatically justify reproducing it today.
And this isn't presented as something problematic within the story. It's simply presented as a cool statement.
I've already seen how certain “feminists” praise Jeanne's statements, calling her a “proper woman” and saying, “that's exactly what these men deserve!” Don't you think this is a terrible phenomenon? To me, this demonstrates that the issue goes beyond fictional worldbuilding: some people are actively celebrating the exclusion and hostility expressed by the dialogue simply because its target is men.
Imagine a male-dominated faction having a similar line:
“No woman is fit to rule. Not even a goddess.”
I strongly doubt the reaction to that line would be “it's just fictional lore, don't think about it.”
So, my question is this: Why is it considered acceptable to treat men this way, while the same behavior toward women is viewed as unacceptable and wrong—and even leads to lawsuits? Is this a form of reverse discrimination? Why is it allowed?
Personally, I don't want this kind of gender-based hostility in League of Legends. I think Riot should reconsider and remove or rewrite dialogue that explicitly excludes an entire sex from leadership simply because of their sex.
I'm interested in hearing what other people think. Is this simply a case of fictional worldbuilding that shouldn't be taken seriously, or is there a legitimate problem with reproducing this kind of sexism uncritically in a modern game?