Ninian

"Why was Lord Elbert so... Lord Eliwood, why were you both... so kind to us? It’s... This is... This is all my fault... These nightmares... All these terrible things..."

- Ninian, in a conversation with Eliwood

Ninian is a playable character in Fire Emblem: The Blazing Blade. She is a quiet, sweet, polite, and beautiful dancer and is the older sister of Nils. She also appears as a sticker in Super Smash Bros. Brawl.

Profile
Ninian was born in Ilia, her lineage half-human, half-dragon. Her mother is an ice dragon named Aenir who was kidnapped during The Scouring, and clues from the game ironically suggest that her father is the antagonist, Nergal. Nergal decided to search for her, but left explicit instructions to the pre-teen Ninian and infant Nils to pass through the Dragon's Gate after a period of time (10 days in the Japanese version, undefined in others), should he not return with their mother.

Ninian and Nils waited in a place not too far from the Gate, but Nergal never returned. They followed his instuctions and passed through the Dragon's Gate in their dragon forms, losing most of their memories as time passed—but excluding some, like those of their missing mother, which Ninian kept a silver ring as a memento. They eventually settled in the world beyond the Dragon's Gate and lived there mostly in peace, with Ninian even becoming a powerful and well-respected priestess at a local Shrine, but deep down they always longed for their birthplace, the land of Elibe. Thus, when they received an opportunity to return through the Dragon's Gate and go back, they quickly cooperated and passed through the gate, losing most of their quintessence and being forced to revert to their human forms.

However, this was after Nergal was corrupted by the dark magic that had, ironically, been used to open the gate to reunite with his children. Forgetting both his children and his initial motivation to open the gate, he was deluded into thinking that the purpose of opening the Dragon's Gate was to gain power beyond belief and rule over Elibe. He succeeded, and he and Limstella were confronted by the two siblings, who were greatly weakened by the loss of their powers and the travel through the gate. Ninian and Nils were then held captive by the Dark Druid, but they eventually escaped from Valor, The Dread Isle and were chased across Elibe by Nergal's morphs and Black Fang agents under the influence of Nergal's morph, Sonia. Eventually, they sought refuge in an inn at Khathelet, but Ninian was ambushed by a group of Black Fang assassins and abducted, with Nils being barely able to escape. While being escorted to the Black Fang hideout, however, the assassins were attacked by the Pheraen noble, Eliwood, who was meeting up with Hector for their semi-monthly spar. Eliwood escorted the girl back to Nils, who had already defeated the Black Fang agents pursuing them with help from Lyn, a wandering Sacaen, and her group.

While the two lords made acquaintances with each other, Ninian learned that her keepsake from her mother had been stolen from her by the assassins, and informed the group. Lyn quickly pursued the Black Fang agents and, along with her group and the Tactician, defeated Ursula's assistant, Beyard, and reacquired the ring. Ninian, however, was unable to assist the group since she twisted her ankle while in the company of the Black Fang, but was still able to accompany the group as they defeated Lundgren and the Caelin throne while Nils became the group's Bard. During the celebrations, the siblings slipped quietly out of Caelin, and were believed to simply travel around to hone their skills.

Ninian was seen again when the three lords were sailing to the Dread Isle by way of Fargus's pirate ship, found in a flimsy ship that had gone adrift. She was pulled aboard by Dart and the rest of Fargus's pirates, but was quickly discovered and attacked by a detachment of Black Fang assassins. Ninian was hidden from sight while the group repelled off the invaders, and the skirmish ended after Fargus and his men killed the commander of the Black Fang assassins. During the journey, they learned that Ninian had suffered amnesia from her ordeal. She only remembered that she should not be on Valor, but the group had no choice, as they were also searching for the missing Marquess Pherae, so she journeyed with them to the Dragon's Gate.

When they arrived, though, Ninian was captured by Ephidel, who smugly commented that she and her brother had escaped earlier, but fortunately, the group had brought her back and saved them the trouble. While the group fought their way through Black Fang agents and Darin, Marquess of Laus, Ninian was brought before Nergal and he quickly took control of her mind, forcing her to open the Dragon's Gate. When the group arrived, they found themselves too late, gazing at the summoning of a dragon. Before the dragon had fully emerged, however, Nils comes out of hiding and breaks Ninian out of her trance, allowing her to stop the summoning ritual; the group quickly escapes from Dragon's Gate and Valor, leaving Nergal with a grave wound dealt by the deceased Marquess Pherae and Ephidel consumed along with the dragon.

In Badon, however, the group was still confronted by Black Fang assailants, who were still ordered to capture the siblings at all cost. Ninian decides to join the group to atone for what she sees as collaborating to Elbert's death; Nils then transfers whatever power he had left to Ninian and allows her to fight alongside Eliwood, Lyndis and others. During their journey across Elibe to stop Nergal's plot to resurrect dragons, she gains a small attraction to Eliwood that can be returned to the dancer through support conversations.

After visiting Athos, gaining his assistance, resolving the conflicts within the Bern royal family, and recovering the Fire Emblem from Bern's Shrine of Seals, Nils and Ninian are confronted by a fully revitalized Nergal, revived after feeding on the quintessence of the deceased Four Fangs and other powerful individuals. Ninian nobly gives herself up for Nils after transferring her power to him, and once again become Nergal's captive.

Back on Valor, Nergal attempts to get Ninian to cooperate, but fails. He then preys on her newfound love of Eliwood, asking her what the lord would think when he learned of her true identity. Plagued by these thoughts, Ninian reverted to her dragon form, effectively losing her memories of the journey except for a desire to see Eliwood, and leaves to see him—crossing a long distance in the span of few hours to get her only wish.

However, Ninian arrives just after Eliwood retrieves the Blazing Sword, Durandal, and is slain by the noble, who did not know who she was at the time and was briefly controlled by Durandal's power as well. Dying, Ninian uses her remaining quintessence to revert to her human form, which reveals the secret of the two siblings to everyone. She dies in Eliwood's arms, begging him to protect the land of Elibe, as Nergal laughs over his victory.

Nergal's supposed victory only spurs the group further in their conquest, and they eventually confront and kill the Dark Druid for his atrocities. In his final moments, he seemingly remembers his purpose for opening the Dragon's Gate, and finally succeeds in doing so—but dies anyway, with three dragons emerging from the newly open portal. Bramimond intervenes, however, and revives Ninian with the last of his strength. In her dragon form, she kills two of the three and leaves the last gravely wounded (though she does so while crying and begging them to forgive her), allowing the group to eventually defeat it.

With Nergal and his morphs defeated, along with the leading powers of the Black Fang, the siblings no longer had any fear to live in the human world. Nils, however, informed his sister that the air of Elibe would not sustain them much longer, and, if they remained in the human world, they would die soon after. Accepting this fact, Ninian and Nils depart from the human realm, sealing the Dragon's Gate permanently from their side, and probably returning to their more or less peaceful life with other dragons. In an alternative ending (triggered only if Ninian and Eliwood have the highest support level), Nils recognizes his older sister's feelings for Eliwood and departs for the world beyond the Dragon's Gate alone, leaving the two to marry back in Pherae. Later, Ninian becomes the mother of Roy, but dies of illness shortly after, as previously warned by Nils. This is the ending used in the Square Enix light novel adaptions of the game.

Personality
Ninian is a gentle, polite, and courteous girl, treating all of the people she can support with recognition, respect, and courtesy. However, it is shown that she can also be very brave to protect those she loves and protects, shown when she gives herself up to Nergal to protect Nils. Her speech patterns are also very slow, meaning that she pauses and thinks a lot before she speaks, most likely out of shyness since she's re-adapting to her old home in Elibe, or out of fear regarding other people.

Despite this, she retains an enigmatic aura for fear of any learning of her heritage, causing some people to seek to use it for their advantage, a prime example of this being Nergal's treatment of Nils and herself. While they attempt to defeat Nergal, she develops feelings for Eliwood, and this can be returned by the lord, giving her incentive to remain in the human world and marry him.

The Blazing Blade
Description: ''A somber girl. Quiet, but filled with a solemn energy.''

Growth Rates
(Same as Nils' growth rates)
 * 85%
 * 5%
 * 5%
 * 70%
 * 80%
 * 30%
 * 70%
 * }
 * Note: Nils and Ninian have the same stats, except for Con, where Nils' is one point lower.

Rings

 * Ninis' Grace: Boosts target's effective defence and resistance by 10 for one turn.
 * Filla's Might: Boosts target's effective magic or strength by 10 for one turn.
 * Set's Litany: Boosts target's effective avoid chance by 10% for one turn.
 * Thor's Ire: Boosts target's effective critical strike chance by 10% for one turn.

Supports

 * Eliwood
 * Florina
 * Hawkeye

Overall
Her dances, as well as Nils' music, invigorate her allies and allow them to move again. Ninian and Nils have the same stat growths, and as they level up, their gains transfer between them, including stat boosting items. Though they have different classes, they are interchangeable (except for Ninian's supports, which are exclusive to her). They both may refresh an allied unit so that it may move again, or use one of four magic rings to provide a temporary stat bonus. Due to plot developments that remove one or the other from action, you may only control one at any time; the only aspect of these characters that does not transfer between them is their support bonuses.

Since neither Nils nor Ninian can attack or retaliate, and they have poor physical defense, it is wise to keep them defended behind other characters, although for Ninian, you can use Hawkeye, Florina or Eliwood's support bonuses to raise her avoid (Hawkeye is arguably the best choice due to his ability to critical quite often and he is the only one of the 3 that Ninian can keep up with as Florina gains 8 movement and Eliwood gains 7 movement upon promotion). To offset this, they come with high growths in Speed, Luck, and Resistance, making them likely to avoid enemies, and resilient against magic attacks. They gain 10 experience every time they Dance or Play for an allied unit. With the use of hacks and/or codes she can attack, but double attacks make the game freeze. Set's Litany is unavailable to Ninian, as you may only find it after the last time she is replaced by Nils for the game's duration.

Description

 * Oracle of Destiny
 * A young dancer who has a serene and mystical presence. Her dances are divine tributes. Appears in Fire Emblem: The Blazing Blade. 

Base Stats
Rarity: ✯✯✯✯✯

Weapon Refinements

 * Light Breath+

Base Set
Ninian has a special role in Heroes. Although she is weaker Base Stat total wise to her fellow Blue Dragons Nowi and Female Corrin, she has the special distinction to of being a Dragon Dancer. As such she is a standout unit for Dragon teams and a valuable asset even on non-Dragon teams, though her restriction of being a 5-Star unit limits the likeliness of obtaining her easily. Overall, she has a solid HP pool though her Defense and Resistance may not be there to capitalize on it and she has decent Speed which serves to be her best Boon to focus on and the best Refinement stat for all of her weapons as it helps to mitigate the threat of crucial red targets like Ayra and Mia. She comes with Escape Route naturally which does allow her to escape dangerous situations if she manages to survive a round, but overall is not likely to be all that useable. Ninians crowning jewel skill is her Fortify Dragon skill which is exclusive to her, making her best suited on Dragon teams, boosting the sturdiness of Nowi, Adult Tiki, and Grima Robin and their natural all range counterattack weapons.

Counters
Like most Dragon Units, Ninian is weak to Falchion users, especially Skill Forged Falchion Alm who can easily ORKO with its effect as well as Julia and Deirdre whose green unit status on top of Book of Naga can easily dispose of her. Otherwise, standard Green Units, especially physical ones, can easily dispose of her and Poison Dagger units.

Skill Inheritance Options
As a Dragon Unit without a special Breath, her Light Breath can be easily substituted with Lightning Breath+ to give her better defensive capabilities, especially to dispose of Red Mages who can only deal semi-decent damage to her. Her solid speed makes her a great candidate for Specials with longer cooldowns as she can double a decent amount of units, so Luna is a great skill that is easily accessible while Aether is the best for her overall if willing to fodder units with the skill off to her. Steady Breath is the most ideal Skill A, especially if running Lightning Breath to speed her cooldowns of her specials. Otherwise Fury is always a solid option for those who cannot secure Steady Breath. Skill B has a wide range of options. Ninian syncs well with Wings of Mercy to assist allies after they fight to either finish off an enemy or help them escape. To reduce the threat of Falchion users and to shut down most speedy red units, Swordbreaker works well on her. If using Lightning Breath, Quick Riposte combos well, though Rank 3's accessibility is low. Skill C works well with just her base Fortify Dragon skill, but Panic Ploy pairs nicely with her high HP stats.

If Eliwood was present in the battle
Ninian: Ah...

Eliwood: Ninian!

Ninian: I'm so sorry, Lord Eliwood... I...cannot...stand much longer...

Eliwood: You needn't try. I'll take care of everything. Retreat to a safe place. Can you do that?

Ninian: Yes...

If Eliwood was not present in the battle (only possible in Hector's story)
Ninian: Ah...

Nils: Ninian! Are you well?

Ninian: I'm sorry... I can... stand no longer...

Nils: There's nothing else we can do here. Come, let us retreat to the rear. We don't want to become a burden on you.

(End of chapter)

Eliwood: Nils! How is Ninian?

Nils: I think she'll be fine with a little rest.

Eliwood: I asked too much of her. It was not right... From now on, the two of you will stay out of combat. Is that understood?

Nils: Yes. I'm sorry.

Heroes

 * Ninian/Heroes Quotes

Possible Endings

 * Nils & Ninian - Children of Destiny
 * After these dragonkin bid farewell to the land of their birth, they returned to their new world. Meeting Eliwood warmed the hearts of these ice dragons with the hope that man and dragon could live in peace.


 * Ninian and Eliwood
 * Eliwood and Ninian were wed after the conflict. Ninian gave up her old life and her people to enjoy a brief life with Eliwood. They have a son named Roy, who will one day take up arms to defend his nation.

Etymology
Niniane is one of several name variations for the Lady of the Lake who gives King Arthur Excalibur. Other variants include 'Nimue' and 'Viviane'.

The name Ninian is Welsh. Ironically, it is a male name: Saint Ninian is a legendary Christian bishop first mentioned in the 8th century as being an early missionary among the Pictish peoples of what is now Scotland.

Trivia

 * In the Fire Emblem Heroes Choose Your Legends poll, Ninian finished 100th overall.


 * Ninian shares her English voice actress, Brianna Knickerbocker, with Sakura and Charlotte from Fates, as well as Est from Heroes and Echoes: Shadows of Valentia.
 * If Ninian is married to Eliwood, Roy would become one-quarter ice dragon.
 * Ninian is the winner of the 7th Voting Gauntlet (The Blood of Dragons) in Fire Emblem Heroes.