Alternate Realities

A common staple of many fictional worlds are Alternate Realities, or the various other types of names they could be known as, such as alternate timelines or alternate universes, and Paladins is no different.

Methods of traveling between these realities was barely touched on, though two ways of achieving this were shown. The first involves moving through alternate timelines, and from what was shown, appears incredibly limited, with Atlas able to use time travel to leave his future and journey to the past, ultimately causing the timeline to split into a future different from his own. It doesn't appear possible to actually move from one timeline to another using this method, only create new ones.

The second of these methods is more unclear, with it being shown that alchemy is capable of opening portals to other realities, though this was the result of an alchemic experiment gone wrong and doesn't seem to have been discovered or ever been capable of being used deliberately otherwise.

The canonicity of most alternate realities was never made clear, while the few that were made canon never ended up being elaborated on.

Canon Alternate Realities

These alternate realities are completely canon and exist (or at least did exist) and have interacted with the main reality at some point.

Lost Future

The Lost Future was the Realm's original timeline and the period from when Atlas originates.

During the Magistrate and Resistance's journey into the Shattered Desert, both having come seeking shards of the moon in the hopes of using its power to defeat the other side and win the Crystal War, the former ended up finding these shards. Corvus, who was leading the troops, unintentionally unleashed the force trapped within the shards, having not really understood what he was dealing with.

Things quickly snowballed, as the unleashed Darkness quickly spread throughout the Realm, killing and corrupting countless individuals, even the powerful Karne and Valera were no match for its power.

While the Realm was ravaged and destroyed by the monsters, some still managed to survive. Notably, Lex eventually got married and settled down briefly, with Atlas being born shortly after. Tragically though, Lex seemingly ended up killed not long after by Yagorath, leading to Atlas seemingly growing up without his father.

Decades passed. All that remained in the ravaged world were the monsters, and the few that managed to survive. The last remnants of Realm life would tell each other stories of the past in an effort to inspire hope as they continued to try and defeat the Darkness. However, when the day came for their final stand against the beasts, they completely failed; all hope had finally been lost... except for one last spark.

Out of desperation, Atlas studied old books regarding crystal magic in an effort to master the flow of time. He managed to succeed, and from there began to research how the Darkness had come to the Realm, how things had fallen. However, before he had a chance to finish his research, the monsters cornered him, forcing him to escape back in time earlier than intended.

Arriving in the Shattered Desert of the past, Atlas was determined to change the future and save the Realm. However, even prior to his arrival, the timeline had already been altered as a result of his time travel experiments. As a result of these incidents, as well the future actions of Atlas, the lost future ultimately ceased to exist, seemingly completely.

Salt and Pepper's World

The unnamed reality from which Salt and Pepper originate. Pepper was ultimately brought into the Realm via one of Pip's alchemic experiments going wrong, somehow opening a portal to their world. It was never explained whatsoever how Salt ended up in the Realm though.

While this world was never seen in any capacity, it appears to be a futuristic sci-fi type of reality, based on Salt and Pepper's similarly more futuristic light covered designs, Pepper herself being a world class DJ, Salt's holographic fox companion, as well as various references the two make to more modern types of society.

Some suspect other similarly styled skins, most notably the Remix skins, Raeve Maeve, and Neon Demon Grohk also exist within this reality in some form, though this has never been confirmed or hinted at beyond mere speculation.

Other Canonically Vague Alternate Realities

These alternate realities could be canon, but with no official word on the matter, their canonicity will forever remain unclear.

Life Unlived Reality

One of several additional alternate realities related to Atlas and the Darkness can be seen in the card Life Unlived, showing a world where the Darkness never arrived in the Realm, allowing for Atlas to live a peaceful life with his family as a farmer.

Legionnaire Reality

Another alternate reality of Atlas' future. In this timeline, the Realm managed to develop weapons to defeat the Darkness, never reaching the point time travel was necessary. However, this instead seems to have resulted in the emergence of an empire simply known as "The Legion", which appears to rule the Realm and have turned it into a horrific dystopia regardless; Atlas, who for some reason still learned his time related abilities, joined the group and became one of its most loyal followers.

It's unknown if Legionnaire Viktor also originates from this reality.

Corrupted Reality

The final alternate reality of the lost future and one incredibly similar to the original, though with some notable differences. Similarly to the main lost future, the Darkness was allowed to spread almost completely undeterred. However, unlike the original, the Darkness in this reality appears to be legitimately evil, and also unlike the original, Yagorath oddly doesn't grow wings or additional spikes as she does in the original.

Additionally, and perhaps most notably, are the individuals who ended up corrupted in this reality, those being Atlas and Io. The circumstances surrounding Io's corruption were never made clear, though Atlas' situation is made more clear, with him similarly fighting to the end and studying crystal magic to master the flow of time, just like his original counterpart, however, he ultimately ended up joining the Darkness, though it was never made clear if this was due to him failing to escape and being corrupted, or if this version of him simply lost hope and gave up. Regardless, gaining Atlas' temporal abilities allowed this version of the Darkness to invade other timelines beyond its own, with none managing to defeat the invading force or save themselves.

An additional unclear detail is the situation of Vora. In the original lost future, the individual that would come to be known as Vora was actually a completely different person from the playable Vora in-game, with this future Vora being far more monstrous due to being corrupted by the Darkness for so long. It was never made clear what became of the playable Vora in the lost future though. However, in this reality, this version of Vora seems to have been corrupted just like her original counterpart. Oddly though, despite the fact Vora's slowly transforming into an actual Darkness creature, and that decades have evidently passed based on Atlas, this version of Vora remains at the same level of corruption as her playable counterpart. This confusion is additionally present with Io, as despite Luna having been completely corrupted, Io herself still has a large amount of exposed skin and appears far less corrupted in comparison to both Luna and Atlas.

It is evident that the creators of the Lost Future skins, due to these errors, as well as making the Darkness outright evil, as opposed to that not being the case in the main timeline, did not really understand the lore.

Abyssal Corvus Reality

The alternate reality of Abyssal Acolyte Corvus. The only known difference in this timeline is that here, Corvus completely embraced the Abyss. Anything beyond this, including how this change impacted other events in the Realm, was never explained.

Pyre Corvus Reality

Prior to the definition of Echo Skins being properly explained, Magnus ended up receiving a few statements that said rather than being his own individual, he was actually supposed to be Corvus if he went to the Pyre rather than the Abyss and ended up transformed similarly to Furia, only instead of becoming fueled by vengeance, he became fueled by balance.

However, due to this clashing with the eventual proper definition of what an echo skin is, these statements are no longer considered canon regarding Magnus himself, however, the idea of an alternate reality where Corvus was transformed by the Pyre remains as a result of these statements.

Mei Reality

The world where Mei resides. Absolutely nothing is known about this reality, outside the fact that in this world, Mei was the one responsible for giving Jenos his cosmic powers.

Gamer Reality

The world where Avatar Androxus' player resides. This reality is assumed to be identical to the real world of the time.

Dark Drake Reality

The world where Dark Drake Azaan resides. In this reality, the Abyss and Pyre have merged to a certain extent, becoming known as "Dark Pyre", though the Abyss and Pyre themselves do still exist. Additionally, long ago in an age simply known as the "Old Age", dragons were sworn enemies with the leipori, as the latter had ravaged the land and slain many dragons, yet even in the modern day this animosity between the two continues, as evident by Dark Drake's immense hatred of Rei.

Omega Reality

A far-flung future version of the Realm where the various Omega skins reside. Similarly to the main reality, some form of the Magistrate exists, as well as a form of resistance, though whether or not this latter group is some future version of the original Resistance was never made clear.

A notable event in this world's history is Protocol 64, which was an infamously destructive event, though the specifics on this event are unknown.

Beyond this, all else that's known is that there's some form of population limit, which Omega Makoa seems to be responsible for maintaining, something it's rather enthusiastic about.

Cuddly Reality

A reality focused on various living toys owned by an unknown individual. Stuffed dolls of Moji and Makoa are known to exist, while small green Viktor soldiers are also part of this individual's collection. While most of the toys are focused on making people happy, the Viktor troops seem convinced they're really soldiers, acting as though they are and refusing to accept they're really just toys.

A stuffed doll version of Yagorath may also exist in this reality, and by extension, so would versions of Io, Vora, Ash, Atlas, Lex, Sha Lin, and Viktor, as well as other more generic stuffed animals. While Yagorath also seems to be focused on making people happy and having fun, she appears to be far more extreme than Moji and Makoa, assuming the reason people are screaming being due to how much fun they're having. She may also be outright malicious as well, asking for some blood to quench her thirst.

Battlesuit Reality

Another seemingly different far-flung future version of the Realm where the various Battlesuit skins reside. Set in the year of "Paladin 200", two groups known as the Imperial Magistrate and the Paladins Defense Force struggle to maintain control in an endless conflict of high-tech battlesuits and elite soldiers that consumes the Realm, known here as "Realm Alpha", with one aspect of this seemingly being the two sides fighting over a substance known as "Paladanium".

The Imperial Magistrate is notable for having many of its various positions known, though the only known members are alternate versions of Androxus and Fernando. The most notable of these positions is the Dark Battlesuit Godslayer Sword Squadron, which has three aces, one of which being Androxus. Various other briefly mentioned positions include the Four Blue Kings, the Eight Orange Queens, and the Twenty Two Maroon Jacks. Battlesuit Eagle Eye seems to imply the group forced their ideals onto colonists of the world. The group is also implied to be conquering planets, or at the very least, some individuals / portions of the group.

Meanwhile, the Paladins Defense Force, also known as the P.D.F. for short, similarly has its own aces, an alternate version of Furia serving as one, though beyond that, the similarities are unclear. The group has its own academy where one appears to learn how to operate a battlesuit.

A notable event in this world's history is known as Operation Fireball, however, little is known about this event beyond the fact Androxus, Furia, and Fernando were present, where they witnessed a huge slaughter, seemingly the result of Fernando himself.

Star Sister Reality

The anime inspired world of the Radiant Star skins. In this world, the Radiant Stars, a group composed of various Star Sisters, those being alternate schoolgirl versions of various characters with powers gifted to them by the stars, fight against various villains, from a fallen Star Sister version of Vora bent on conquering the universe, demons, to a Dark Prince version of Corvus using the power of love and friendship.

The moon is also notably not shattered in this reality, Lian apparently looks noticeably different, Tiberius appears to be a hero, but seems like a villain associated with demons to many, and Koga is known for reading... various types of magazines in public.

Abyss Hunter Academy Reality

Another anime inspired world, this time of the Abyss Hunter Academy skins. As one may expect, this reality features the... well, Abyss Hunter Academy, where one can go in order to learn and fight the Abyss, as well as taking classes on the matter, such as being tested on various Abyssal monsters, as well as other subjects, such as math, softball, and alchemy. The academy's motto is "You got this", requires students bring their own money for lunch, and also apparently results in rather high student debt.

Prior to the academy though, this reality is also home to a high school known as Paladins High. Though apparently the academy is also a high school.

Additionally, despite the Abyss Hunter Academy being set up to fight against the Abyss, they apparently have their own comic series about Raum, to the point Maeve gains a huge admiration for him.

Kasumi, Maeve, and Rei are three notable students that go to the academy. Kasumi and Rei were childhood friends that made a promise to be best friends forever, but Rei eventually stopped talking to Kasumi because she was way too into stabbing things, which Kasumi didn't exactly take well. Maeve and Rei, meanwhile, seems to have originally had a poor relationship, based on how Maeve treats Rei in her voice pack, but the two seem to have eventually become best friends.

Wild West Reality

The slightly futuristic wild west world of the... well, Wild West skins, largely known for its various criminals and the law enforcement intent on stopping them. As mentioned, it appears to be a fairly stereotypical wild west world, aside from the fact there are sapient robots about.

Pirate's Treasure Reality

The pirate world of the... well, Pirate's Treasure skins, and potentially the Dark Depth skins as well. Set on a number of islands, including the Siren's Soar, seemingly home to hostile mermaids, Allied Aisle, which fires cannons at nearby ships, Shattered Islands, home to vulpin guides that help one navigate the islands, Feline Shores, where an unknown terror emerges at midnight, none having survived encountering it, and others, some of which feature buried treasure, the main goal of many in this reality.

Being the reality of pirate skins, this world is home to several different pirate groups, though most lack names. Most famous of these pirates though, is this reality's version of Dredge, a legendary pirate that once had his own crew, but has since been joining and attempting to take over various other pirate groups.

The most notable of the various other pirate groups would be the Lunar Pirates, a crew led by Io, with Luna serving as the first mate, while Pepper serves as another crew member. This also seems to be the current group Dredge is part of.

Other notable pirate groups include those of Ruckus and Maeve, Ruckus serving as captain of his own ship... which seems to just be Bolt and no actual crew, while Maeve serves as the daughter of a different captain, one of the many crews Dredge attempted to take control of.

However, this reality isn't home to just pirates, as versions of Ying, Lian, Khan, and Jenos also exist, Ying serving as a dangerous, yet friendly siren, Jenos seemingly ascending and becoming a legend similar to original counterpart, while little is known of this version of Lian and Khan, though Lian at least is rich, while Khan gave Maeve a letter of mark.

Less clear is the existence of other notable characters seen with the Dark Depth skins and those with a similar theme, these being Tyra, Saati, Yagorath, and Ripjaw. Tyra has lines specifically towards Mermaid Ying, potentially implying the two originate from the same reality, which could additionally mean Saati, Yagorath, and Ripjaw may also potentially exist in the same reality due to their shared theme with Tyra, however, this isn't clear.

Regardless, Tyra too, serves as the captain of her own pirate crew, which also seems to have had an attempted takeover by Dredge, who stole much of her gold regardless. However, this version of Tyra ended up transformed into a fish humanoid by this reality's version of Seris for unexplained reasons, and also had one of her eyes pecked out and eaten by a baby seagull. Saati meanwhile, serves as ruler of her own underwater kingdom, while Yagorath and Ripjaw are feared sea monsters, the former seemingly more of a feared threat than the latter.

Dragon Hunter Reality

The dark dragon hunting world of the Darkness and Dragons skins. This reality seems to be ravaged by a war between dragon hunters and dragons; the former largely hunting the dragons due to viewing them as monstrous evil beasts that only exist to ravage and destroy everything, with some having destroyed at least a few towns, though the hunters also seem to kill dragons for numerous other reasons, such as for sport, crafting tools, or food. The dragons meanwhile, while some appear violent, largely only seem to be reacting to the violent hunters and attempting to protect their nests. Additionally, there are a few additional types of dragons in this reality beyond just standard ones and wyrins, including drakes, as well as other more humanoid dragons with wings too small to fly; an alternate version of Drogoz seems to exist in this reality as well.

On top of the dragon hunters, dragon riders and Warders also exist, with the former seemingly being those who attempt and tame dragons, while the later seem somewhat the same as their original counterparts, though the dragon hunters don't trust them.

The Abyss doesn't seem to exist in this reality, or at least doesn't appear to be as prevalent as in the main world.

RWBY Reality

The world of RWBY where the characters from the show and their story takes place. While this crossover did receive an animated teaser showing most of the skin coming through a portal into the Realm, the canonicity of this cinematic was never elaborated on.

Rambo Reality

The world of the Rambo franchise. Similarly to the RWBY skins, Rambo also received an animated teaser showing it in the Realm, as well as the skin's splash art showing Rambo fighting alongside the two Viktors in front of some kind of portal, but as with the RWBY skins, the canonicity of this was never elaborated on.

gen:LOCK Reality

The world of gen:LOCK where the characters from the show and their story takes place.

Paladins Strike

The world of Paladins Strike. As the game never received any lore, it's unknown how closely it resembled the main reality, as well as whether or not champions that weren't included in the game even existed in Strike's world. The only known difference is the existence of a new character known as Kai, who doesn't exist in the main reality. However, nothing was ever revealed about her lorewise.

Smite

The existence of Grover, who originally appeared in Smite, naturally led many to wonder whether or not Paladins had any canonical connection with it. While the topic hasn't received much attention, it has been stated the two are completely alternate realities from each other and aren't connected. At best, the two take place extremely far apart, either in different galaxies or in the distant past / future. In these potential latter scenarios, there's absolutely zero overlap from Smite into Paladins.

Unclear Alternate Realities

These are other potential alternate realities, but don't have enough information regarding whether or not they're truly an alternate reality, or something else, such as an event in the main Realm.

Raum's Apocalypse Reality

Raum's card Apocalypse is notable for featuring Raum alongside an army of zombie-like creatures, unidentified flying creatures, and Abyssal Lord Drogoz. It's not clear whether this is an event from the past, future, or a completely alternate reality.

Rei's Full Moon Reality

Rei's card Midnight Stroll is odd for a number of reasons, most notably the fact that the moon isn't shattered, and with the moon having shattered centuries ago while Rei seems quite young, leads one to speculate as to whether or not this is an alternate reality of some kind.

Ripjaw Reality

As the only echo skin that never received any additional information regarding its lore, the topic of whether or not this skin comes from its own separate reality will forever remain unclear. It's possible this skin originates from the same reality as the various Pirate's Treasure skins, due to the similar theme it shares with them, as well as the Dark Depth skins, which are implied to share the same reality as the Pirate skins.

Realm Royale

Realm Royale has a lot of connection to Paladins, both games being set in the Realm, featuring weapons used by the various champions, and Realm Royale making other references to the original game. Despite this, it was never made clear if Realm Royale is an alternate universe or takes place in the far future of Paladins.