Characters / Yu-Gi-Oh! Card Game N

Yu-Gi-Oh! Card Game character index
Storyline Cards/Characters: Duel Terminal | World Legacy | Abyss | Visas Starfrost | Diabellstar
Lore Cards/Characters: Atlantean | Dracoslayer | Endymion | S-Force | Six Samurai | Skull Servant
Other: Recurring Generic Monsters | HEROes | Numbers
A to B | C | D | E to F | G to I | J to L | M | N | O to R | S Part 1 | S Part 2 | T to U | V to Z

Characters from the Yu-Gi-Oh! card game, sorted alphabetically and starting from N.

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Nemeses

The Nemeses are a small archetype of monsters with various types and attributes. They are divided into two sub-groups: the lower-leveled "Nemeses" monsters have the ability to special summon themselves by shuffling a banished card back into the deck; and the level 11 "Archnemeses" which have the ability to special summon themselves by banishing monsters with different types or attributes from the field and/or Graveyard and destroy all monsters belonging to a specific type or attribute.

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• Back from the Dead:
  • Umbrella can add a Nemeses card from the graveyard to the player's hand.
  • Nemeses Adrastea can be used to summon any Nemeses monster that is in the player's Graveyard or banished. However, if it's used to bring back a Level 11 monster, said monster will be unable to use its effects during the turn it was summoned by this effect.
• Chest Blaster: The artwork of Adrastea depicts Eschatos shooting a fiery orb from its chest.
• Foil: Protos and Eschatos, the two Archnemeses, are this to one another. Both are dragonic in appearance but Protos is based after the eastern depiction of dragons and is Wyrm-type while Eschatos has the appearance of a western dragon and has the Dragon type. Their ATK/DEF and respective Attributes are the opposite of one another as is the meaning of their names: Protos being "first" and Eschatos meaning "last". Effect-wise, they are near-identical except that Protos works with Attributes and Eschatos with Types.
• Friendly Fireproof: Averted with the Archnemeses. Their effects destroys monsters on both sides of the field and prevent both players from summoning monsters with a specific attribute or type until the end of the next turn.
• Gratuitous Greek: The name of the archetype is derived from the name of the ancient Greek goddess of revenge. Additionally, both of the Archnemeses as well as the archetype's sole Spell card all have Greek words in their names.
• No-Sell: The two Archnemeses are immune to destruction by card effects. This doubles as Required Secondary Powers since this prevents them from being potentially destroyed by their own effects.
• Our Centaurs Are Different: Flag has the traditional appearance of a centaur with a horse-like lower half and an humanoid upper half but is metallic in appearance and like other Nemeses, has a blue orb instead of a head.

Nemleria

When she says five more minutes, she means it.

Nemleria is an archetype of LIGHT monsters revolving around getting the Fairy-type Pendulum Monster Dreaming Nemleria into your Extra Deck as quickly as possible. Supporting Dreaming Nemrelia are a group of food-themed Level 10 Beast and Fairy monsters who have the ability to Special Summon themselves from the hand if there is a Pendulum Monster face-up in the Extra Deck and banish face-down Extra Deck cards to pay for their effects.

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• Anti-Magic: By banishing a face-down card from your Extra Deck face-down, Couette can negate the activation of any opponent's card that targets a "Nemleria" card you control if "Dreaming Nemleria" is face-up in your Extra Deck.
• Gameplay and Story Integration: Dream Tower of Princess Nemleria is a stack of pancakes exactly 15 pancakes tall, which is meant to represent the Extra Deck and Dreaming Nemleria who sleeps atop it.
• Irritation Nightmare: Dream Eater - Réveil is named after (and has elements of) an alarm clock—exactly the sort of thing that no one wants to deal with in the middle of a good dream. Notably, it's the only DARK monster in an archetype full of LIGHT monsters.
  • The Continuous Trap Repette shows the aftermath of Réaliser vs. Réveil, with the latter firmly trapped under the grip of the former such that its bell can't ring at all.
• Level Ate: The realm of Nemleria's dreams—along with its denizens—appears to be food-themed.
• Little Miss Badass: Nemleria is an innocuous-looking little girl who can only be Special Summoned from the Extra Deck, and then only when she's the only one inside it. But when she's Summoned, she can banish enemy cards from the field or Graveyard face-down, and recycle your face-down banished cards, so she can lay waste to an opponent's setup in a way that's very hard to counter.
• Mechanically Unusual Fighter: Nemleria is a Pendulum archetype with no inherent Pendulum Summoning capabilities, similar to Vaylantz. Instead, their gimmick is using the face-down Extra Deck as fuel for their effects by banishing cards from it face-down, then using Dreaming Nemleria to return them.
• Really Fond of Sleeping: Nemleria herself.
• Status Buff: Oreiller can banish a face-down card from your Extra Deck face-down to gain 500 ATK for each enemy monster if "Dreaming Nemleria" is face-up in your Extra Deck. Then there's Réaliser, who gains 100 ATK for each face-down card in your Extra Deck.
• Status Effects: The Trap Card Louve can banish itself from the Graveyard and make 1 enemy monster lose 100 ATK/DEF for each of your cards that are banished face-down for the rest of that turn.
• Theme Naming: The names of the Dream Defenders are based on French words for bedding and bed-related furniture.

Nephthys

Nephthys is an archetype of Level 2 WIND Spellcaster monsters and FIRE Winged Beasts. It began with Sacred Phoenix of Nephthys, a monster from the earlier days of the game that can revive itself after destruction, clearing all Spell and Trap cards from the field when it did, and its dedicated support card Hand of Nephthys. Much later, an archetype with Ritual and Link support was built around it, expanding on the concept of destroying your own cards to summon large monsters and maintain field advantage.

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• Amazon Brigade: All of the Nephthys monsters are female.
• Distaff Counterpart: Sacred Phoenix of Nephthys is one to Horus the Black Flame Dragon. Both share similar aesthetics, heavily reminiscent of the Winged Dragon of Ra, and also share the Egyptian God theme naming. They were also introduced alongside similar support cards (Hand of Nephthys and Horus's Servant respectively), and both have Metaphys and DARK counterparts.
• God in Human Form: Devotee of Nephthys. But thanks to her effect, she probably won't be in human form for long.
• The Juggernaut: Nephthys, the Sacred Flame starts out with a mediocre 2400 ATK, but by using multiple Ritual Monsters as Link Material, it can potentially grow into a 4800 ATK beatstick that can't be destroyed by anything and also protects your other Nephthys monsters for attacks.
• Meaningful Name: Nephthys was a goddess associated with funerary rites in Egyptian Mythology, helping guide the souls of the dead to the afterlife. Appropriately, the archetype needs to destroy their own monsters to use their effects.
• The Phoenix: The Sacred Phoenix and its advanced forms make up the archetype's heavy hitters. Sacred Phoenix and Sacred Blue Phoenix can also revive themselves with their effects.
• Physical God: Nephthys takes on the form of a phoenix wielding divine power, and has her own cult of loyal worshipers. She's not necessarily the most powerful monster in the game, but still, this is an Egyptian goddess we're talking about.

Ninja

Believe it!

Ninja is an diverse archetype. Their early cards relied on manipulating battle and using Flip effects to destroy cards. The ZEXAL era introduced Armor Ninjas as a subtype, who can manipulate levels to allow flexible Xyz summons. ARC-V introduced the Twilight Ninja archetype, which focuses on Tribute Summons and swarming tactics. They rely on the Ninjitsu Art Trap Cards, Continuous Trap Cards that tribute Ninjas to use various effects. The strongest Ninja is White Dragon Ninja, who protects Ninjitsu Art cards from destruction. Jean-Claude Magnum used a Ninja deck in the Duel Monsters series, but all of his monsters don't exist in the real game yet. In ZEXAL, Yamikawa/Kaze uses an Armor Ninja deck. In ARC-V, Tsukikage uses a Twilight Ninja deck.

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• Amazonian Beauty: Kagero the Cannon Ninja is a well built and attractive woman, a build that helps her lug her massive cannon around.
• Animal Jingoism: Mitsu doesn't trust Tobari as insects are considered prey by many birds.
• Anti-Magic: Armed Ninja destroys Magic cards while Crimson Ninja destroys trap cards. White Dragon Ninja protects the player's Spell/Trap Cards from being destroyed by card effects.
• Armor-Piercing Attack: Ninja Grandmaster Sasuke can destroy any face-up monster in Defense Position when fighting them.
• Back from the Dead: Senior Silver Ninja can bring back Ninja back from the Graveyard.
• Badass Bandolier: Kagero wears a bandolier full of heavy musket ammo, and seeing as she isn't encumbered by the weight in combat, she definitely qualifies for this trope.
• Barbarian Long Hair: Number 12: Crimson Shadow Armor Ninja has long, wild, red hair which makes him look more badass.
• BFG: Kagero the Cannon Ninja carries around a huge cannon musket in her artwork. Because of her gun's explosive nature, she's fire attribute.
• Canine Companion: Baku is a loyal companion to the ninja.
• Casting a Shadow: The art of A World Shrouded in Darkness has Meizen the Battle Ninja casting a powerful shadow spell in order to give his allies the advantage. Its effect enables members of the Ninja archetype to direct-attack their opponent and the revival effect after the card is destroyed hints at the Ninja hiding in the shadows.
• Clockwork Creature: VBEX3 lore mentions that Yaguramaru the Armor Ninja's entire body was modified into karakuri, making them this trope by default.
• Cloud Cuckoolander: Tobari seems to be as smart as a bird as he's seen in Mitsu's concept art, cluelessly staring at a bird with a hint of confusion.
• Colorful Theme Naming: Some Ninjas are named after colors, including Armed Ninja (known as Blue Ninja in the OCG).
• Combination Attack: Ninjitsu Art of Shadow Sealing, which is done by Blue Dragon Ninja and White Ninja Dragon.
• Confusion Fu: Because the archetype has had several waves of support with different focuses over the years, a Ninja deck could be many things - swarm the field, manipulate levels to set up Xyz Summons, manipulate the opponent's monsters with negation and destruction effects, clear the opponent's back row, focus on overwhelming them with powerful attacks, or change the battle positions of monsters to set up combos and disrupt the opponent's.
• Cool vs. Awesome: The art of several cards suggests the Six Samurai are rivals of the Ninja archetype. It's a bit of Truth in Television: as shady and covert assassins risen from the lower class, Ninjas didn't get along well with the honorable, elite-class Samurai.
• Curtains Match the Window: Green on green for Ninja Lady Yae.
• Dual Wielding: According to his concept art, War Ninja Meisen wields deer-horn shaped twin swords that produce a cherry blossom effect for added coolness.
• Dub Name Change: From Blue Ninja to Armed Ninja. Like several others, he was released before archetypes became a thing.
• Eyepatch of Power: Kagero uses her eyepatch as a scope to help aim her cannon shots, making it truly an eyepatch of power.
• Fat and Skinny: Masked Ninja Ebisu is the fat one while Goe Goe is the skinny one. In fact Ebisu has an effect that lets Goe Goe attack the opponent directly.
• Grappling-Hook Pistol: Mitsu the Insect Ninja, as she's based on insects, uses a centipede-themed grappling hook in the art of Ninjitsu Art Tool - Iron Digger.
• Harping on About Harpies: Tobari the Sky Ninja appears to be a harpy-like ninja and is even a Winged Beast like the Harpie archetype. His special technique is the Ninjitsu Art of Dancing Leaves, which lets him command powerful tornadoes.
• Historical Domain Character: Goe Goe the Gallant Ninja, Ninja Master Hanzo, Ninja Grandmaster Sasuke
• Homage: Yae, Goe Goe, Sasuke and Ebisumaru are characters from Ganbare Goemon under an realistic Art Shift
• The Idiot from Osaka: Mitsu has an incredibly thick Kansai accent, according to her concept art. She's also incredibly bloodthirsty whenever she has to pick a weapon for combat and she has an inexplicable distrust of Tobari.
• Improbable Weapon User: Goe Goe uses a kiseru bigger than he is and koban.
• Intellectual Animal: The lore within VBEX3 describes Baku as "a ninja dog possessing high intellect."
• Living Shadow: According to the concept art, “The shadow of [Baku]'s main body takes the form of a werewolf and gives a feeling of massiveness. The physique of the shadow is close to a Deva King/Nioh”
• Magnetism Manipulation: Jioh the Gravity Ninja's ability is called magnetism by the VBEX3 lore. His magnetic shuriken is described as having a mind of its own.
• Ninja Run: Strike Ninja (who is originally the Black Ninja of the Dragons, Dice & Dungeons Strategy RPG game from the manga). He even holds his dagger in a reverse grip with the front arm. As Joey (Jonouchi) in the English dub of the anime adaptation puts it, "I love watching this guy run."
• No-Sell: The effect of Number 12: Crimson Shadow Armor Ninja can make a face-up Ninja monster indestructible for one turn.
• Odd Name Out: Armed Ninja in the TCG. In the OCG, he's called Blue Ninja and fits the Colorful Theme Naming.
• Oh, Crap!: Goe Goe is seen with this kind of expression in the artwork of "Crackdown" as he's surrounded by guards.
• Poisonous Person: Mitsu's primary weapon is a wasp/bee stinger-like sword filled with a poisonous liquid.
• Playing with Fire: Kagero is manipulating flames in her concept art and her card art. In an aversion of Mudane Utility, she doesn't like being used as a lighter.
• Rocket Punch: The art of Yaguramaru the Armored Ninja has the titular ninja firing his fist like Mazinger Z.
• Technicolor Ninjas: They wear outfits fitting to their names.
• Walking Shirtless Scene: Jio the Weighted Ninja is a buff bearded ninja who carries a weight on his shoulder in his artwork. He's so strong, that he's considered a Rock-type.
• Wall of Weapons: Mitsu's concept art has a section dedicated to her right-arm weapon collection. She's excited to decide what item she will use to torment her victims.
• Weak, but Skilled: Most of them have low ATK, but have lots of support cards and strong effects.
• Wearing a Flag on Your Head: The colours represented by Red Dragon Ninja, White Dragon Ninja, and Blue Dragon Ninja are the colours of the flag of the United States of America and the Union Jack. Coincidentally, these three monsters were released as TCG exclusive cards, being released in America and Europe before being released in the OCG.

Noble Knight

From left to right: Eachtar, Medraut, Brothers, Gawayn, Artorigus, Borz, Laundsallyn, Gwalchavad, Drystan and Peredur.

^{click here to see Infernoble Knight Roland}

Noble Knights, known as Holy Knights (聖騎士 Seikishi) in the OCG and as Sacred Knights in the anime, is an archetype of primarily LIGHT Warrior monsters based on the Arthurian legends. Their effects focus on using Equip Spells and comboing with the Noble Arms series of Equip Spells, who can re-equip themselves to other Noble Knights when destroyed. The archetype is supported by multiple non-Noble Knight monsters based on other characters from the Arthurian legends, such as Merlin.

A sub-series based on Matter of France, known as Infernoble Knight was introduced in Structure Deck R: Warriors' Strike and expanded in Rise of the Duelist. The Infernoble Knights feature an updated Equip-based playstyle and have new Infernoble Arms Equip Spells that support them.

Noble Knight Joan, as well as other anime-only Noble Knight monsters, were used by Sherry LeBlanc in Yu-Gi-Oh! 5Ds, serving as the Floral Knights sub-archetype.

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• Androcles' Lion: Noble Knight Iyvanne is depicted alongside a lion on his art, in reference to Ywain's legend and this trope. He can summon his lion companion in the form of a Token.
• The Atoner: Gwenhwyfar goes on a quest to find Excaliburn in order to save Artorigus in atonement for her affair with Laundsallyn.
• Awesome Moment of Crowning: Heritage of the Chalice depicts the moment where Artorigus crowns Custennin as his successor.
• Back from the Dead:
  • Noble Knight Gwalchavad can bring a Noble Knight back from the Graveyard to your hand, and Noble Knights of the Round Table can do the same.
  • Both Sacred Noble Knights can revive one Knight when they are sent from the field to the Graveyard.
  • Laundsallyn, Eachtar, and Lady of the Lake can summon themselves from the Graveyard with their effects.
• Badass Cape: Almost every member possesses this, either on their regular or upgraded forms.
• The Bad Guy Wins: Despite dying, Medraut ultimately achieves his goal of destroying Artorigus and bringing ruin to Camelot through Laundsallyn's actions.
• Barrier Warrior: While Drystan is in the field with another Noble Knight, he can protect Noble Knights with less than 1800 ATK from battle and effects.
• Big Bad: In a stunning divergence from Arthurian myth, it's Laundsallyn, not Medraut. However, is later revealed that Medraut is the reason everything goes to hell.
• Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: Medraut is implied to be this in his card artwork & effect, befitting his original counterpart.
• Cool Sword: The Noble Arms, especially Excaliburn since, well, it's Excalibur.
• Cool Versus Awesome:
  • A TCG tagline for Shadow Specters pits the Noble Knights against Vampires.
  • The second wave of Noble Knight support plays with the trope by pairing Noble Knights and the Danger! ^note Comprised of Cryptozoological creatures archetype.
• The Corruption:
  • The final lore article implies that Laundsallyn was corrupted and turned to evil by Medraut's blood.
  • After being defeated by Artorigus, Laundsallyn's ghost goes to corrupt his half-brother Eachtar.
• Dark Is Evil: Cemented by High Laundsallyn, Medraut, and Eachtar (when their effect are activated).
  • Averted with Merlin & Peredur (when his effect is activated) and zig-zagged with Morgan & Eachtar.
• Dreaming of Things to Come: Until Noble Arms are Needed Once Again depicts Artorigus having visions of the future after pulling Caliburn from the stone. Better expressed by the card's Japanese name "The Future Guided by the Holy Swords" (聖剣の導く未来)
• Dual Wielding: Ignoble Knight of High Laundsallyn, and Sacred Noble Knight of King Artorigus. Both of them are wielding Excaliburn alongside their previous signature sword... somehow.
• Dub Name Change: The Japanese translation keeps the modern English names for the Arthurian knights and weapons.
• Dude Looks Like a Lady: In contrast to the Hunky or Pretty Boy-style designs of the other male knights, Infernoble Knight Astolfo is as femininely pretty as the genuinely female Bradamante, in a very clear Shout-Out to the Astolfo from Fate/Grand Order.
• Early-Installment Weirdness: Joan, the first member of the archetype, is based on Joan of Arc, rather than any figure from Arthurian legend, but this is justified as she was released in the OCG about a year and a half before the first TCG cards for the archetype, and thus predated the archetype and its thematic concept as a whole. This is an especially weird case since she was originally known as Sacred Knight Joan on her debut in 5D's but when Noble Knights were released in the OCG, the translation used for them, Holy Knight or 聖騎士 (Seikishi), retroactively made Joan part of the archetype. Celestial Sword - Eatos was caught in the same situation, thus technically becoming the first Noble Arms card.
• Enigmatic Empowering Entity: The Lady of the Lake, the tuner of the group.
• Epic Hail:
  • Medraut can call a Noble Knight into battle from the deck, at the cost of one of your Equip Spell Cards. Ignoble Knight of High Laundsallyn can equip a Noble Arms from the deck when Synchro Summoned and can search out a Knight or Arms after defeating a monster in battle.
  • Merlin can tribute himself to summon a Noble Knight from the Deck.
  • Noble Knight Brothers can summon up to two additional knights from the hand when he's Normal Summoned.
  • Isolde can summon a warrior from the deck by sending equips from the deck to the Graveyard equal to that warrior's level.
• Equippable Ally:
  • Gwenhwyfar can be equipped to a Noble Knight, and her effect depends on the Attribute of the Noble Knight she's equipped to.
  • With the exception of Renaud, Astolfo, and Charles, all of the Infernoble Knights have an effect that lets them equip themselves to another monster. Charles can invoke this trope with his effect to equip himself with a FIRE Warrior during the End Phase.
• Excalibur in the Stone: Averted with a vengeance, Caliburn and Excaliburn are clearly shown to be different swords. Specifically by Sacred Noble Knight of King Artorigus Dual Wielding them both at once.
• Fairy Companion: Ogier is depicted to have numerous of these.
• Fallen Hero: Laundsallyn, in line with Lancelot, his counterpart in the Arthurian myths.
• Give Me a Sword: Bedwyr's effect allows the player to exchange equips on the fly between the knights on the field.
• Grand Staircase Entrance: King Artorigus on the art of Glory of The Noble Knights.
• Iconic Item: Several of the knights have a Noble Arms clearly associated with them:
  • Artorigus has Caliburn
  • Laundsallyn has Arfeudutyr
  • Gawayn has Gallatin
  • Gwalchavad has Destiny
  • Medraut has Clarent
  • Surprisingly not Excaliburn, however, as it appears to be used by both Artorigus and Laundsallyn in their respective upgraded forms.
  • Roland has Durandal.
  • Olivier has Hauteclere.
  • Emperor Charles has Joyeuse.
  • The Holy Grail can be seen in the background of different cards, acknowledging its role in Arthurian Mythos.
• Flaming Sword: Befitting their name, the Infernoble Knights wield fiery weapons.
• Herd-Hitting Attack: Avalon's effect allows its controller to destroy all the cards in the field by banishing five Knights (with at least one Laundsallyn and one Artorigus monster) from the Graveyard.
• The Juggernaut: Artorigus's Xyz forms can equip up to 3 Noble Arms cards to itself from the Graveyard when summoned. With the right ones (plus one or two more from the hand), you can easily end up with a monster that hits like a truck while being nigh-unkillable.
• Luckily, My Shield Will Protect Me:
  • Noble Arms of Destiny.
  • While not a shield, Noble Arms - Excaliburn protects the equipped monster from targeting effects.
  • One of Gwenhwyfar's effects turns her into a ''literal shield'' for LIGHT Noble Knights.
  • Ogier, Olivier, and Mauris protect the monster equipped with them from card effects, targeting, and battle; respectively.
• Love Triangle: Between Artorigus, Gwenhwyfar and Laundsallyn, and Drystan and the two Isoldes.
• Mid-Season Upgrade:
  • Both Artorigus and Laundsallyn got improved forms in Sacred Noble Knight of King Artorigus and Ignoble Knight of High Laundsallyn.
  • Fitting his role as Artorigus' successor, Custennin becomes Sacred Noble Knight of King Custennin.
  • For the Infernobles, Roland and Oliver get improved forms as Infernoble Knight Captain Roland and Infernoble Knight Captain Oliver
  • Infernoble Knight Emperor Charles gets a link retrain, Emperor Charles the Great
• Mythology Gag: Looking closely at the art of the Knights and Arms yields many nods to the original legends:
  • Noble Arms of Destiny has the sword and shield in stone by a river. One test of Galahad's worth was pulling a sword from a stone by a river.
  • The woman-shaped shadow in Laundsallyn's art is that of the Lady of the Lake, a nod to Lancelot's legend of being raised by the Lady of the Lake after his parents died in an ambush.
  • The shadow in Medraut's art, as well as his effect making him DARK, are obviously allusions to Mordred's status as the final enemy of the Arthurian mythos.
  • Gawain's scarf, is a clear reference to Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, where he gets to keep the green sash as a reminder of his attempt to cheat death. His ability to summon himself in defense position is also a reference to how he steps up to take on the "beheading dare" in place of Arthur. Both his art and that of Gallatin prominently feature the sun, in early versions of the myths, Gawain becomes more powerful as the sun rises.
  • Artorigus, King of the Noble Knight's sword is slightly different in design to Noble Arms - Caliburn, the sword wielded by Noble Knight Artorigus. Similarly, Arthur originally had the Sword in the Stone (often named Caliburn), which is replaced with Excalibur by the Lady of the Lake after it breaks.
  • Borz is holding the Holy Grail, in the myths Bors was one of the three knights who came closest to the Grail. His effect searches three Noble Arms from the deck, adds one to your hand, and discards the other two, this is probably an allusion to how Bors was the only one of those three knights to return to Camelot. And while his ability to make him DARK seems odd, it's likely a reference to how Bors sided with Lancelot after the latter broke away from Arthur's side, as all the DARK Noble Knights are ones who betrayed Arthur in some way in the mythology.
  • Gwalchavad and Borz appear in the background of Peredur's art, in an obvious allusion to Galahad, Bors, and Percival being the three knights who discover the Holy Grail. The allusion was so obvious that Peredur was quickly identified as Percival as soon as his art was revealed.
  • Isolde, Two Tales of the Noble Knights depicts two women on its art, a gloomy black-haired one and a beautiful blonde one standing in the middle of a ship with black and white sails behind them. This is a reference to the story of Tristan's death and the women depicted are Isault White Hands, the legitimate wife of Tristan, and Isault the Beautiful, Princess of Ireland, and former lover of Tristan.
  • Clarent's art depicts the exact moment when Medraut steals the sword from Artorigus' armory.
  • Peredur looks a lot like Pellinore since he is his son.
  • Avalon's effect is a pretty faithful translation of the Battle of Cammlann's events in card form.
  • Custennin becoming Sacred King Custennin is a reference to his role as Arthur's successor.
  • Both of Bedwyr's effects are allusions, and even the way they're formatted is one. His mill a Noble Arms effect is a reference to Bedivere returning Excalibur to the Lady of the Lake, while his effect to change the wielder of an Arms is an allusion to him being given Excalibur by the dying Arthur to do so. And the fact that the effects are placed in that order is an allusion to Merlin, who saw time backward, something cemented by Bedwyr's lore article being written from Merlin's perspective.
  • Iyvanne is depicted alongside a Lion on his art and his effect allows him to summon a token when he's equipped with a Noble Arms card, alluding to his story where he gained a Lion as a loyal companion after saving him from a Dragon. He also wears a pendant with the same symbol found on Morgan's scepter, since he is her son.
  • Last Chapter of the Noble Knights is similarly an allusion, as its art depicts Bedwyr returning Excaliburn to the Lady of the Lake. Its effect relies on a similar reversal Mythology Gag, as its art depicts a sword and a man being lost, but the effect brings back a Noble Knight and Noble Arms, because its events are seen in reverse by Merlin.
  • Noble Knight Pellinore's effect of destroying a Noble Arm to destroy an opponent monster is an allusion to his battle with Arthur, where not only he emerged triumphantly, but he also broke Caliburn in the process.
  • Laundsallyn's effect of adding a Noble Arms card from the Deck to the hand by Tributing a Noble Knight is a reference to the passage where Lancelot is ambushed by Mordred and Gawain's brothers while he's unarmed in Guinevere's chambers. He manages to escape the trap by killing one of Gawain's brothers and stealing his gear, using it to fight his way out of the ambush.
  • Olifant Horn depicts Roland sounding his Olifant horn to call Charlemagne, the act that ultimately led to his demise. Fittingly, this card requires its controller to sacrifice a Roland monster and enables the summoning of Infernoble Knight Emperor Charles
• Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Laundsallyn killing Medraut is what led to the fall of Camelot.
• No Celebrities Were Harmed: Gwalchavad bears a stunning resemblance to Chris Hemsworth.
• Obvious Rule Patch: The name of the archetype has caused some conflict when translated into other languages.
  • In Italian, Portuguese and Spanish, the archetype names are respectively Nobile Cavaliere, Nobre Cavaleiro and Noble Caballero, with the adjective meaning Noble coming before the noun meaning Knight. This is to make sure that the support cards work well with Ignoble Knight cards which are called Ignobile Cavaliere, Inobre Cavaleiro and Innoble Caballero; however, in these languages the Noble Arms archetype has the adjective after the noun meaning Arms. In French, the adjective is placed after the noun in both cases of Noble Knight (Chevalier Noble) and Noble Arms (Armes Nobles), as Ignoble Knight cards are simply named Chevalier Noble Infâme (literally Infamous Noble Knight).
  • There is no agreement on the noun phrase Noble Knight in English (the plural form is simply Noble Knights, with no change reflected on the adjective Noble). However, in other languages, there is, which makes the naming of the archetype potentially complicated. To circumvent this, German, Spanish and, French translations never use the plural forms on card's names, Portuguese translations use ungrammatical forms of plural; and the Italian translation uses the plural form Nobili Cavalieri under the agreement they count as Nobile Cavaliere for card effects.
• Odd Name Out: Merlin and Gawayn are the only Arthurian figures to not have their Welsh names in the English translation (they should be Myrddin and Gwalchmei respectively).
• Power Nullifier: Morgan's effect allows her controller to negate any effect as long as they control both a Noble Knight and a Noble Arm in the field.
• Public Domain Artifact:
  • The Noble Arms are mostly named after swords from Arthurian legend, Gallatin from Gawain's sword, Arfeudutyr from Arondight, Lancelot's sword, Caliburn from one of Arthur's swords, and Excaliburn from Excalibur.
  • The Infernoble Knights come with their own set of Noble Arms: Durendal, Hauteclere, and Joyeuse. Belonging to Roland, Olivier, and Emperor Charles respectively.
  • The Holy Grail can be seen in the art of Borz and Sacred Noble Knight of King Custennin.
  • Camelot and the Round Table are present as field spells that work in tandem to protect and strengthen the archetype.
• Public Domain Character:
  • The original Noble Knights are based on Arthurian Legend, with the exception of Joan. Artorigus is Arthur, Laundsallyn is Lancelot, Gawayn is Gawain, Medraut is Mordred, Gwalchavad is Galahad, Drystan is Tristan, Isolde is Isault, Borz is Bors, Peredur is Percival, Brothers is Agravain, Gareth and Gaheris, Eachtar is Hector, Custennin is Constantine, Bedwyr is Bedivere, Iyvanne is Ywain, Morgan is Morgan Le Fey and Pellinore.
  • Infernoble Knights are based on characters from The Matter of France: Infernoble Knight Roland is based on the titular character of the French epic The Song of Roland, Emperor Charles is Charlemagne, Maugis is Maugris, Ogier is Ogier the Dane, Oliver is Olivier de Vienne, Renaud is Renaud de Mountaban, and Astolfo is Astolfo.
  • Brave Beauty of Ruby Regard - Bradamante is based on a fictional knight heroine from the Renaissance poem Orlando Innamorato by Matteo Maria Boiardo.
• Sadly Mythtaken: The Archetype portrays Laundsallyn as Artorigus' ultimate enemy. While Lancelot and Arthur did fight one another, Mordred is the one who kills Arthur in practically all versions of the myth and Lancelot is usually coming to Arthur's aid when this happens. Interestingly, it was later revealed that Laundsallyn was being corrupted by Medraut's influence.
  • Last Chapter of the Noble Knights features Bedwyr being killed by a man who is implied to be a Laundsallyn-possessed Eachtar after returning Excaliburn to the Lady of the Lake, despite Bedivere being the only Knight to survive on most accounts of the myth.
  • Heritage of the Chalice depicts Artorigus in possession of the Holy Grail, the actual mythos state that neither Arthur nor his successor, Constantine III, managed to acquire to Grail.
• Shout-Out:
  • Custennin being Arthur's successor is taken from Geoffrey of Monmouth's Historia Regum Britanniae
  • Infernoble Knight Astolfo's design is very obviously inspired by Fate/Grand Order Astolfo.
• Sliding Scale of Gameplay and Story Integration: As previous entries show, this is a case of Deliberate Integration, with the bulk of the archetype effects being designed to recreate passages from the myths as accurately as possible. Sometimes to the detriment of the archetype's playability.
• Theme Naming:
  • With the exception of Merlin, Pellinore, and Lady of the Lake, all the monsters in the archetype get their names from the Old English names of the Knights of the Round Table. This extends to the Noble Arms as well, besides Clarent that is.
• The Smurfette Principle: Surprisingly subverted by both the British and the French knights:
  • Arthurian Knights have Gwenhwyfar, the Lady of the Lake, Morgan, and both Isoldes among their ranks.
  • French Knights have Brave Beauty of Ruby Regard - Bradamante and Angelica Princess of Noble Arms
• Took a Level in Badass:
  • Artorigus, twice. First by becoming King of the Noble Knights, and then by acquiring Excaliburn to become Sacred Noble Knight of King Artorigus.
  • Laundsallyn does this as well by becoming Ignoble Knight of High Laundsallyn.
  • Custennin follows the tradition set by Artorigus by becoming Sacred Noble Knight of King Custennin.
  • Both Roland and Oliver get promoted to Infernoble Knight Captain Roland and Infernoble Knight Captain Oliver, respectively.
  • Emperor Charles gets upgraded to Charles the Great.
• Tron Lines: Artorigus, King of the Noble Knights, Ignoble Knight of High Laundsallyn, and Sacred Noble Knight of High Artorigus and Sacred Noble Knight of King Custennin.
• You Have Outlived Your Usefulness: Laundsallyn can sacrifice a Noble Knight to bring out a Noble Arms, Medraut can destroy an Equip Spell to summon a Noble Knight, Gwalchavad can destroy an Equip Spell to get a Noble Knight back from the Graveyard and Pellinore can destroy a Noble Arm to destroy an opponent's monster.

Nordic / Aesir

Odin, Thor, and Loki

Nordic monsters (known as Polar Star (極星, Kyokusei) in the OCG) are monsters themed after Norse mythology and support the Synchro summoning of the three Aesir monsters (known as Polar Gods (極神, Kyokushin) in the OCG) Thor, Odin and Loki, which are very powerful and can revive from the Graveyard when destroyed. In the anime they are the signature theme of Team Ragnarok of 5D's.

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Tropes associated with the Nordics:

• Action Girl: The Nordic Ascendant sub-archetype contains a few of these.
  • Vanadis of the Nordic Ascendant. "Vanadis" is the alternative name of Freyja, the Norse goddess of love, fertility, battle, gold and death.
  • The Valkyries are minor female Norse gods that serve Odin. Befittingly, Valkyrie of the Nordic Ascendant is a Tuner Monster that can Summon Odin in the game.
  • Gullveig was a being who was speared by the Aesir, burnt three times, and yet thrice reborn. Upon her third rebirth, Gullveig's name becomes Heiðr and she is described as a knowledgeable and skillful völva, a female seer.
• Color Motif: A unique thing to note about Nordic Alfar is that the colors of "Svartalf", "Dverg", and "Ljosalf", are magenta, yellow, and cyan respectively, while "Loki" and "Mara" are black (or shades of it). This may be a reference to the CMYK color system.
• Cool Horse: Guldfaxe of the Nordic Beasts is based on the Gullfaxi from Norse mythology, a golden maned horse given by Thor to Magni, his son. It was said to be the fastest horse on land, second only to Odin's horse. This extreme speed may be referenced by its ability to be Special Summon itself to the field if the opponent controls a Synchro Monster.
• Götterdämmerung: The effects of Fenrir and Jormungardr are designed to be used together to evoke this. Both of them Special Summon themselves to the opponent's field while their owner controls an Aesir monster, with Fenrir having the additional restriction of needing to be Summoned this way during the owner's Main Phase 2. At the start of the controller's Battle Phase, Fenrir's effect will switch all of their monsters to Attack Position. This then triggers Jormungardr's effect, inflicting 3000 damage to its controller when it is switched from Defense to Attack Position, which is often quite devastating if it hits. Given that their mythological counterparts are two of the monsters that would cause the events of Ragnarök, this is not surprising.
• Hellhound: Garmr is based on the hound that guards the gate to the Norse underworld. Fenrir can also qualify, given its status as one of the monsters that will ultimately cause Ragnarök.
• Hoist by His Own Petard: The effects of Fenrir and Jormungardr are designed to be used together in order to inflict 3000 damage to the opponent. However, to do this, the owner needs to Special Summon them to the opponent's field (during their Main Phase 2 in Fenrir's case) and then keep them there until the start of the opponent's next Battle Phase. There is a good chance, though, that a competent opponent will easily prevent that damage and instead use those monsters in a manner that furthers their position, to the detriment of the owner.
• Horse of a Different Color: Tanngrisnir and Tanngnjóstr of the Nordic Beasts. In Norse mythology, Tanngrisnir and Tanngnjóstr were goats that pulled Thor's chariot. "Tanngrisnir" translates to "teeth-barer, snarler" and Tanngnjóstr translates to "teeth grinder" in Old Nordic language. In fact, when Tanngnjóstr was used to Synchro Summon Thor in the anime, you can clearly see it grinding its teeth.
• Obvious Rule Patch: Valkyrie of the Nordic Ascendant is not a member of the Valkyrie archetype, as its OCG name does not include that archetype's name string. When the Valkyrie archetype was printed, this necessitated an errata on the Nordic monster's card text to include a clause stating that she was not part of the archetype, as she was not renamed for this purpose.
• Our Elves Are Different: "Ljosalf of the Nordic Alfar" is a combination of the words "light" and "álfr" (elf). These light elves are divine beings who dwell in the heavens in Álfheimr. Japanese name of "Svartalf of the Nordic Alfar", Dökkálfr, is the counterpart of Ljosalf, because it's a combination of the words "dökkr" (dark) and "álfr" (elf). Unlike the light elves who live in the heavens, the dark elves are beings who dwell down in the earth.
• Our Goblins Are Different: Mara of the Nordic Alfar. "Mara" is the Old Norse word for "goblin" or "nightmare". "Mara" also is the name for a specter or wraith-like creature in Germanic and particularly Scandinavian folklore, thought to cause nightmares.
• Ouroboros: While in Defense Position in the anime, Jormungardr is depicted encircling the controller's field, and biting its own tail. This ties into how it is traditionally depicted in Norse mythology, while it encircles the Earth. Once it lets go of its tail, however, Ragnarök will begin. Incidentally, it has an effect that inflicts 3000 damage to its controller when it is switched from Defense to Attack Position, evoking this.
• Public Domain Artifact:
  • Nordic Relic Gungnir. In Norse mythology, Gungnir is Odin's magical spear; it always hits its mark and always kills.
  • In Norse mythology, Lævateinn is a weapon mentioned in the Poetic Edda poem Fjölsvinnsmál. The amended name Lævateinn is etymologically considered to be a kenning for a sword (Old Norse "damage twig").
  • In Norse mythology, Mjöllnir was the name of the weapon used by Thor himself, a hammer crafted out of iron gifted to him by the dwarves. The Norsemen believed that the sound of thunder was made by him hurling it at his foes. However, the card "Divine Relic Mjollnir" does not appear to be the weapon Thor is holding.
  • In Norse mythology, Draupnir is a gold ring possessed by Odin with the ability to multiply itself. Additionally, the hand of "Odin, Father of the Aesir" is shown producing another armor in this card's artwork. This explains Draupnir's effect of producing another relic from your deck.
  • In Norse mythology, Brísingamen (from Old Norse brisinga "flaming, glowing" and men "jewelery, ornament") is the necklace of the goddess Freyja.
  • In Norse mythology, Megingjörð is a belt worn by the god Thor. When worn, the belt is described as doubling Thor's godly strength, hence the first effect of this card. Interestingly enough, Thor's hammer Mjollnir is named "Divine Relic", while Megingjörð is considered a "Nordic Relic", despite both items being used by the same god. Both items are also associated with doubling a monster aspect. Megingjörð doubles strength, while Mjollnir doubles the number of attacks a monster can have.
• Sibling Team: The effects of Fenrir and Jormungardr are designed to be used in tandem with each other to inflict 3000 damage to the opponent, and their mythological basis are brothers, with both being sons of the mythological Loki.

Tropes associated with the Aesirs:

• Anti-Magic: Loki's effect allows the controller to negate the activation of Spell and Trap Cards during the Battle Phase.
• Back from the Dead: If they are destroyed and sent to the Graveyard, the controller can Special Summon them during the End Phase of that turn and apply a unique effect. In the anime, it does not matter which player destroyed the Aesir, while in the OCG, the Aesir must be destroyed by an opponent's card. The OCG also tacks on the additional requirement that a Tuner of the Aesir's corresponding tribe be banished from the Graveyard as a cost before Special Summoning it.
• Combat Clairvoyance: In Norse mythology, Odin gave up his eye in order to drink from the well of Mimir, in order to gain wisdom and memory. This story parallels Odin Eye's effect, in that Odin gives up his eye (the negation of the effects of an Aesir monster you control) to gain wisdom and memory (look at the cards in your opponent's hand or all Set Spell/Trap Card your opponent controls). He also gained the power to see the future.
• The Emperor: Odin's card name includes the title "Polar God Sacred Emperor" in the OCG, in contrast to Thor and Loki's merely being "Polar God King" instead, which highlights Odin's Top God status and superiority over the other two Aesir.
• Ethnic God: Each Aesir monster is stated by Konami to rule over a different tribe of Nordic monsters. Thor rules over the Nordic Beasts, Loki rules over the Nordic Alfar, and Odin rules the Nordic Ascendant. Each Aesir also requires a Tuner from his corresponding tribe as a Synchro Material.
• Götterdämmerung: Being based on Norse deities, it's unsurprising that some of their support cards would be based on Ragnarök, the great apocalyptic battle that leads to their deaths. As such, they typically focus on dealing potentially game-ending strikes towards the opponent.
  • The epynomous card allowed the controller to give control of an Aesir on their field to the opponent. Befitting the fact that the Aesir perish during Ragnarök, the monster handed to the opponent is destroyed during said opponent's next End Phase, and all cards on their field are banished.
  • March Towards Ragnarok negated the effects of one of the controller's Aesirs, and allowed it to be unaffected by other Spell and Trap effects until the end of the turn, enabling the controller to attack the opponent with that monster without fear of reprisal.
  • The anime-only card, Gjallarhorn, is named for the horn blown to signify the beginning of Ragnarök, and was used by Harald in a bid to defeat Yusei. It was activated from the Graveyard when a Divine-Beast-Type monster is Special Summoned, and during that turn, it prevented the Special Summons of Divine-Beast-Type monsters from being negated, which synergized well with the Aesir's ability to come Back from the Dead. On the third End Phase after its activation, the card banished itself and all monsters on the controller's field, and inflicted damage to the opponent equal to the combined ATK of the banished monsters. If used as Harald planned, it would have inflicted 10,800 damage (the combined ATK of all three Aesirs) to Yusei.
• Gratuitous German: Gotterdammerung, the German translation of Ragnarök, was used as the name of the epynomous card for its English, German, and Italian releases. Averted in the case of the other languages, however, which instead named the card with the more literal translation "Twilight of the Gods", in their respective lingoes.
• Hand Blast: In the anime, when Thor uses his effect negating effect, he shoots lightning from his finger at the targeted monster. Loki attacks by generating a ball of dark energy from the tips of his fingers that he then fires at the target.
• No-Sell: In the anime, Odin had an effect that allowed the controller to negate the effects of Spell and Trap Cards that affected Divine-Beast-Type monsters, including himself. In the OCG, this is downgraded to only rendering him unaffected by the effects of Spell and Trap Cards during the controller's turn only.
• Olympus Mons: They are DIVINE Divine-Beast-Type monsters in the 5D's anime.
• Power Parasite: In the anime, when Thor negated the effects of opposing monsters, he also gained said negated effects and can use them himself.
• Shock and Awe: In Nordic mythology, Thor was known as the god of thunder. Strangely, "Thor, Lord of the Aesir" is not a Thunder-Type monster or even LIGHT Attribute (which is the Attribute most commonly associated with electric-wielding monsters). However, in the anime, lightning surrounds his hammer when he attacks, and when he uses his effects, he shoots lightning from his finger (for his effect negating effect) and the spikes on his shoulders (for his damaging effect) at the opponent.
• Squishy Wizard: Loki is a Spellcaster-Type monster and the weakest Aesir in terms of ATK.
• Thunder Hammer: Like his mythological basis, Thor wields a hammer that produces lightning to fight, though strangely he's not Thunder-Type or LIGHT attribute to represent it. Curiously, however, the hammer he uses is of a different design from the one depicted in the artwork of Divine Relic Mjollnir, which is based on the hammer wielded by the mythological Thor.
• Top God: Just like in Norse mythology, Odin is this. He also boasts the highest ATK and DEF among the Aesir and in the anime, was used by Harald, the leader of Team Ragnarok. The title in his card name, "Polar God Sacred Emperor" in the OCG, and "Father of the Aesir" in the TCG, also conveys this.
• The Trickster: Loki, Lord of the Aesir is based on Loki, the renowned Norse trickster. Loki's effect could be homage to its inspiration, Loki the Trickster, because of its ability to retrieve Trap Cards from the Graveyard.

Nouvelles

Let him cook.

Nouvelles is an archetype of DARK Beast-Warrior and Warrior Ritual Monsters themed after French nouvelle cuisine and demonology (mostly from the Ars Goetia). They each have 1850 DEF and an effect that Tributes Attack Position monsters to summon Ritual Monsters from the hand or deck. The low-leveled Rituals do so when targeted by effects/attacks, while the higher-leveled Rituals can do so with less strict conditions, leading to the summon of their boss monster "Baelgrill de Nouvelles", which can wipe out the opponent's entire front row. They also feature cross-archetypal support with the card Patissciel Couverture, a Level 5 DARK Fairy Fusion Pendulum Monster released as a TCG World Premiere card in Dimension Force.

Recipe is an archetype of Spell and Trap cards designed to support the "Nouvelles" archetype as well as the old-school vanilla Ritual "Hungry Burger", which is also supported by "Baelgrill de Nouvelles".

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• Anthropomorphic Food: Of an unusual kind, as they are shown to be spirits possessing the food rather than food creatures like the aforementioned "Hungry Burger".
• Cooking Duel: The art for Concours de Cuisine shows Poissoniere de Nouvellez clashing with Patissciel Couverture in a cooking contest. This is represented by the card summoning a "Nouvelles" Pendulum Monster and a "Patissciel" Pendulum Monster on opposite sides of the field.
• Continuity Cameo: "Chef's Special Recipe" shows the making process that led to "Hungry Burger". The art is even similar to the art in "Hungry Burger"'s associated Ritual Spell, "Hamburger Recipe".
• Eating the Enemy: Likely what the process of Tributing the opponent's monsters to "make" a more complex dish represents.
• French Cuisine Is Haughty: The "Nouvelles Restaurant "At Table"" is a French-themed restaurant with the nouvelle approach.
• Gameplay and Story Integration:
  • The videogames frequently referred to "Hungry Burger" having the ability to eat foes when they get close enough to it, with "Recette de Specialite - Chef's Specialty Recipe" finally integrating that ability to "Hungry Burger"'s summon.
  • "Nouvelles Restaurant "At Table"" doesn't add "Nouvelles" monsters, but instead "Recipes" cards, since, logically, you need to follow a recipe before making a dish.
  • The "Nouvelles" monsters have a number of stars on their attire that reflect their Level, likely reflecting the status and price of the dish too.
  • The effect of Concours de Cuisine sets up a cooking duel between Patissciel Couverture and Poissoniere de Nouvellez by placing them on opposite sides and stripping away the ability to special summon from the Extra Deck.
• Hat of Authority: Each Ritual has a chef's hat, with the hat's design becoming more elaborate as you progress through levels.
• One-Note Cook: Poissoniere de Nouvellez specializes in cooking fish-based recipes, as seen in the art for Recette de Poisson (Fish Recipe). Even her attempt at making a strawberry shortcake (gâteau poisson d'avril, to be exact) in the art of Concours de Cuisine and the art of Poissoniere de Nouvellez is shaped like a fish. In French, Poissoniere means fishwife, so essentially, she can't cook anything that's not fish-related.
• Our Demons Are Different: Despite being based on demons from the Ars Goetia, the "Nouvelles" are all Beast-Warrior and Warrior type monsters, with the exeception of Poissoniere de Nouvellez, who is a Fairy-type with a demonic aesthetic because she's the rival of Patissciel Couverture.
• The Rival: The art of Concours de Cuisine implies that Patissciel Couverture and Poissoniere de Nouvellez are rivals in the cooking industry. In fact, their stat lines and outfits even clash with each other. (700 ATK and 1700 DEF vs. 1700 ATK and 700 DEF; All black-ensemble vs. all-white ensemble; and demonic wings vs. angelic wings)
• Summon Bigger Fish: Each monster is capable of Summoning a progressively higher-Leveled "Nouvelles". Except Baelgrill, who summons... a burger.