Nia, the beloved Gormotti blade from the previous Xenoblade Chronicles games, returns in the latest entry as a pivotal character with an expanded role. As the Queen of Agnus, one of the warring nations in Aionios, Nia plays a vital part in Xenoblade 3‘s narrative and can even become a playable hero.
In this extensive guide, we‘ll cover everything you need to know about Nia in XC3, including:
- Her backstory and previous appearances
- Nia‘s role as Queen of Agnus
- How to unlock her as a playable character
- Details on Nia‘s class, skills, abilities and more
- Why recruiting Nia is worthwhile for both new and returning players
So whether you‘re a longtime Xenoblade fan eager to have Nia back in your party or a new player curious to learn more, read on!
A Brief History of Nia
For those new to the series, Nia made her debut back in 2017‘s Xenoblade Chronicles 2 as one of the main party members. She began as a rogue Flesh Eater hiding her true nature but soon became a Driver to the Blade Pyra/Mythra.
Nia quickly cemented herself as a fan favorite with her sarcastic wit, emotive Welsh accent, perseverance in battle, and ultimately courageous spirit. She forms a strong bond with Rex and the others while also developing as a character in her own right.
In XC2‘s climactic ending, Nia is revealed to have gained a longer lifespan thanks to her transformation into a Flesh Eater. While this enables her to survive into the events of Xenoblade 3, it also leads to her taking on greater duties to guide humanity.
Queen Nia Rules Over Agnus
The world of Aionios in Xenoblade Chronicles 3 is dominated by two warring nations – Keves and Agnus. Caught in the endless conflict are soldiers known as Ouroboros who can fuse into powerful giants called Ouroboros Forms.
Serving as Agnus‘ ruler is none other than Nia herself. She has taken on the role of queen and leads Agnus‘ forces against Keves in the ceaseless struggle. Nia plays a pivotal part in the story as one of the main arbiters perpetuating the war.
Fans can delight in seeing how much Nia has grown and matured since the previous games, now commanding armies and fleets as a seasoned leader. However, Xenoblade 3‘s narrative explores how even Nia‘s once noble intentions to guide humanity have deteriorated after centuries of war.
Early encounters with Nia see her antagonistic towards the party, though not entirely hostile. She takes particular issue with the protagonist Noah, seeing him as a threat to stability. Their philosophical disagreements shape much of the first half‘s events.
Without getting into heavy spoilers, Nia‘s outlook evolves after reuniting with old friends. She reconsiders her fixed mindset, gradually returning to her impassioned and empathetic former self. There‘s still much left unsaid regarding secrets Nia harbors about Aionios‘ past, but her role represents a thought-provoking exploration of power and purpose.
Unlock Nia as a Playable Hero
Initially, players mostly interact with Queen Nia in cutscenes and brief gameplay sections rather than directly controlling her. However, Nia can become a permanent party member later on by completing the endgame hero quest tied to her. This gives fans the chance to wield Nia‘s newfound mastery of water and healing arts themselves.
To unlock Nia as a hero, you must first finish Xenoblade Chronicles 3‘s final boss fight and watch the credits. This wraps up the main story, enabling free roaming across Aionios during the postgame chapter where heroes can be recruited.
Your next step is reaching Hall of Serene‘s upper level, the same location Nia first appeared at the start. Here you‘ll discover a golden question mark quest marker – interacting with it begins the hero unlock process.
The quest "A Voice from Days Long Past" has you locating Keves Castle to find a memento from Nia‘s past. After the scene there, head to Swordmarch to trigger another cutscene where Nia overtly joins your party at last!
With Nia comes a bonus hero quest to locate her missing memories across Aionios. Finding them all via the map‘s pulsing question marks will reveal more backstory and upgrade Nia‘s class to its full potential.
Nia‘s Playstyle and Abilities
As a hero, Nia boasts one of most well-rounded and self-sufficient roles out of the bunch – the Lifesage class focuses solely on healing and supporting others. Wielding mighty aqueous arts in battle, she sustains the team while dishing decent damage herself.
True to her compassionate personality, Nia‘s abilities aim to keep allies safe in even the most overwhelming fights. Arts like Redeeming Bloom and Merciful Heart form high HP barriers that nullify attacks, allowing more margin for error.
Nia also gains various Talent Arts that automatically activate healing when allies drop low on health. Coupled with her high evasion, she expertly avoids attacks while resuscitating others. It‘s extremely useful against Xenoblade 3‘s challenging superbosses.
Her shared Skillset with Noah improves aggro draw and HP recovery further, letting Nia tank hits aimed at weakened teammates. It perfectly complements her unmatched life-sustaining abilities. Attacks like Swordmarch Rain even heal Nia herself by damaging foes.
With a build focused on extending Redeeming Bloom uptime near 100%, Nia makes the party almost invincible. While she lacks offensive buffing abilities, she more than contributes by enabling super aggressive playstyles that ignore defense. Thanks to Nia‘s sublime healing prowess sustaining the frontline, your damage-dealers can fully cut loose!
Altogether Nia forms the ultimate support hero – new players still learning battles will come to rely on her vital assistance. Meanwhile experienced fans can attempt risky new strategies that exploit Nia‘s unparalleled longevity arts.
Why Recruiting Nia Pays Dividends
Both Xenoblade newcomers and series veterans have much to gain from acquiring Nia. As mentioned earlier, she enables more high-risk, high-reward playstyles that amplify combat‘s speed and excitement. Nia‘s incredible survivability gives you more leeway to harmlessly learn enemy attack patterns as well.
On top of dynamic benefits, controlling Nia herself feels wonderfully nostalgic for returning fans. From her instantly recognizable Welsh voice to familiar arts like Anchor Shot and Chroma Katana, seasoned players will delight in reuniting with an old friend.
Nia also has several unique post-battle quotes that reference moments from past games. Longtime fans can look forward to nods highlighting her growth across the last decade. These sentimental touches make keeping Nia around feel especially rewarding.
For Xenoblade first-timers, Nia still proves an excellent addition – her humor and charisma shine even without context. And since unlocking heroes also lets you inherit their classes on other characters, new fans can utilize Nia‘s invaluable Lifesage job however they please.
With dozens of hours of challenging content awaiting in Xenoblade 3‘s postgame, having Nia‘s supremely reliable support abilities on your side makes further progression much more viable. Her healing strengths will continue paying dividends when tackling superbosses, high-level content, and the formidable secret final boss too.
In Conclusion
Nia‘s inclusion in Xenoblade Chronicles 3 proves that developer Monolith Soft knows exactly how to please fans with both heartwarming nods to the past and an enticing look towards the future. Nia retains all the charm that made her a beloved fan-favorite while showing off intriguing development befitting her new queenly role.
And by letting players eventually recruit Nia themselves, Xenoblade 3 grants everyone the wish fulfillment of fighting alongside her again. Wielding her compassionate water and healing arts to save allies, then hearing that familiar Welsh tongue in victory…what more could a longtime fan ask for?
Yet even new players unfamiliar with Nia‘s history have plenty to appreciate after unlocking her. Nia thrives based on enjoyable playstyle merits alone – her Lifesage class enables thrilling combat strategies veterans and beginners alike can exploit to great effect.
No matter your history with Xenoblade, Nia proves an invaluable ally. If you haven‘t already embarked on her hero quest, do so once Xenoblade 3‘s credits roll! Just prepare some tissues beforehand – seeing Nia‘s exuberant return firsthand represents a true series highlight.
