A list of characters from NieR Re[in]carnation.

Note: This game assumes you have played Nier and NieR: Automata and read some of their supplementary material, so potential spoilers from these two entries may be unmarked. PROCEED AT YOUR OWN RISK.

open/close all folders

Main Characters

Introduced in “The Story of the Girl and the Monster”

The Girl of Light (Unmarked Post-Chapter 6 spoilers!)

Fio

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/nier_rein_fio.jpg

A Mind Sealed; Dreams of Another World

Voiced by: Rika Nagae (Japanese), Cassandra Lee Morris (English)

The main player character of the first arc, “The Story of the Girl and the Monster”. An amnesiac girl who lost her voice and has been trapped within the Cage. She teams up with Mama to recover her memories and voice as well as fulfill a certain "wish".

Amnesiac Hero: She doesn't remember her real name or where she came from. Subverted in that Levania's the one who suffers this after switching bodies with her, Fio remembers everything perfectly well.
Birthday Episode: The Half-Anniversary event Garden of Benediction takes place on Fio's birthday.
- Ageless Birthday Episode: However, her age isn't stated anywhere during the event.
The Bus Came Back: After being absent in The Story of the Sun and the Moon, Fio is set to return in The Story of the People and the World as its central Protagonist, teaming up with other Memory Characters along the way.
Children Are Innocent: Fio is very much this and is prone to asking a lot of questions, which is normal for someone of her age. That makes her horrific suffering even more heartbreaking.
Clingy Jealous Girl: Played for Laughs in the Life in the Cage yonkoma series. In Friendship, she turns violent, complete with Red Eyes, Take Warning when Levania accidentally hints that he ate someone else's dreams when she's away and in You Can Do Everything, her 3rd request towards Levania, which while Censored for Comedy, is horrifying enough to scare the crap out of Saryu.
Cosplay: Fio has costumes based on 2B (Mechanical Girl) and One (Intoner Girl).
Creepy Child / Cute and Psycho: Her personality in the Life in the Cage yonkoma, where she's become a Yandere towards Levania, though it's Played for Laughs. As a comment on Twitter puts it:
"Never forget Fio's preferred fighting style is a savage beating."
Dark and Troubled Past: Hoo boy... her past is quite likely the harshest of any protagonist in both Drakengard and NieR: her family were their kingdom's equivalent of dalits, her father was murdered by his own former friends and coworkers and when Fio tried to tell her mother about what happened, she found out she cheated on her father and abandoned her for her lover, everyone in her town treated her as shit, and her house was demolished and turned into a garbage dump. And that's before getting to the nightmares damaging what little mental health she still has. And then she gets body-swapped with Levania and ends up trapped in the Cage for four months. It's a miracle she's still mostly sane after everything that happened.
- Even before her family became Goats, life wasn't that easy for Fio. Her family had always been destitute and her parents were always cold towards her despite doing her best to be a good daughter. It's also implied that they might not even be her biological parents in the first place.
Decoy Protagonist: The girl you've been playing isn't the real hero. In truth, the Dark Monster is the hero of the story, having taken her body four months prior.
Don't Look At Me: When she realizes she's now in Levania's body, she clutches her head and runs away, making a silent scream as she does so.
Fantastic Caste System: Fio's homeland has one of these. At the top are the king and the Nobles, in the middle are the Commoners, and at the bottom are the Goat Persons, or just Goats for short. Goats are the lowest caste and looked down by everyone else, as a strategy to suppress dissent in their kingdom. Fio and her family are Goats.
Final Boss: Fio in Levania's body serves as this for Chapter 12; her defeat leads to the chapter's end and the epilogue. She's also a Duel Boss, as she's fought by Levania in her body.
Girlish Pigtails: She wears two low pigtails.
Girly Run: When in the Cage, Fio runs like this.
Grand Theft Me: It turns out the player character is not Fio, but Levania, who took Fio's body in an attempt to become human despite forming a friendship with her. The real Fio's mind was placed inside Levania's body in turn. At the end of Chapter 12, both Fio and Levania get their bodies back.
Guest-Star Party Member: Fio appears in SINoALICE as a duo with Mama for their NieR series collaboration event in the Crusher class.
I Choose to Stay: Following Her's defeat, Fio realizes that She has been suffering for a long time as a result of being lonely after the Administrator Twins' defeat by Kainé, and so decides to stay on Earth with Her so that She could have a true friend. As a result, Fio is implied to have reincarnated on Earth, with her 2* variant disappearing from the player's inventory and the costume story replaced when viewed in the Library.
Mark of Shame: As a Goat, Fio is required by her kingdom's laws to wear a leather collar around her neck and manacles on her wrists to make her recognizable as one.
Meaningful Name: Fio can be short for names like Fiona or Fionnuala, with the prefix fionn meaning "white". This is indicative of her title of "Girl of Light" as well as her white hair and clothes. Additionally, to compliment Levania's name, Fio's name is also taken from Somnium; she's named after the protagonist's mother Fiolxhilde.
Nice Guy: She's described as a kind-hearted youth.
The Nicknamer: She gives a nickname to almost everyone she meets, such as "Mr. Monster" for Levania.
Nightmare Sequence: The real Fio used to have nightmares every night, often about the weapon memories that can be accessed within the Cage. She made a deal with Levania to have her dreams eaten by him in order to get them to stop.
Parental Abandonment: Fio's parents had been constantly bickering since her father lost his job as a town guard due to him being disgraced and made a Goat. To avoid listening to them fighting each other, Fio wandered her town alone. It became even worse when her father was murdered by his own former coworkers and her mother fled the town with another man, leaving her completely alone.
Pint-Sized Powerhouse: A small girl who, when playable, wields Power Fists.
Theme Naming: With Levania; Fio is actually short for Fiolxhilde, the mother of Somnium's main protagonist Duracotus.
Token Mini-Moe: The youngest of the cast and certainly the cutest of them all.
The Voiceless: Despite having a voice actor, the Girl of Light doesn't speak for most of the game. When she does, not only is it not her, but the voice is deep and otherworldly. The real Fio, however, sounds like a normal little girl.
Walking Spoiler: So much of her role gains a lot more importance after Chapter 6.
White Is Pure: Fio wears white clothes to signify her innocence and idealism. Levania's soul being placed in her body turns it black, and the end of Chapter 12 has it reverted back to white to symbolise her getting her body back.

Mama

Thousands of Stories; Millions of Dreams

Voiced by: Yumi Hara (Japanese), Emily O' Brien (English)

A ghost-like entity who has taken it upon herself to help the Girl of Light during “The Story of the Girl and the Monster” arc. Her true identity as Pod 006 is also one of the Main Protagonists of “The People and The World”.

Becoming the Mask: As Pod 006, she initially presents herself as a motherly figure to 10H in order to get the YoRHa android to trust her. But over time, 006 truly saw 10H as her own child and by the time the player and the Memory Characters meet 10H and 006, the latter is already used to being known as "Mama" that she completely drops the usual Pod speech pattern after a short while during Chapter 5 of The Story of the People and the World.
Bedsheet Ghost: Resembles a really cute ghost.
Cruel to Be Kind: Chapter Six is one long one for her, though it's a more unusual take on the trope. She's treating the Girl of Light (or rather, Levania in Fio's body) in the same way a mother would take off the kiddy gloves for a young adult. It doesn't make the suffering any less painful for him and - as Mama's voice implies - for her as well.
Foreshadowing:
- At certain points in The Story of the Girl and the Monster, pay attention to her dialogue. Hidden inside are hints that she's aware of the bigger situation at hand regarding Fio and Levania.
- The main visual for The Story of the Girl and the Monster features her with no shadow while The Story of the People and the World gives her one but it very oddly resembles a Pod. Come Chapter 4 and it's revealed that her true form is Pod 006, who serves YoRHa Unit 10H on the Moon Server.
Funny Background Event: During the first 2 chapters of the Garden of Benediction event story, while Fio is playing at having a birthday party, Mama can be seen beating up the Black Birds, complete with Big Ball of Violence, while Fio isn't looking.
Guest-Star Party Member: Mama appears in SINoALICE's NieR series collaboration event as a duo unit with Fio in the Crusher class.
Mission Control: In The Story of the People and the World, she serves as the Characters' guide in the very fractured Cage.
The Narrator: Heavily implied to be the one narrating the event stories.
Nice Guy: She's very helpful and has a motherly behavior towards the Girl of Light.
Obfuscating Stupidity: Mama knows far more about what's going on regarding the Girl of Light and the Monster and the Cage overall than she pretends. Chapter Six has her drop her flighty, doting persona entirely for a more serious, yet still kind one who reveals everything to the Girl.
Promoted to Playable: Certain segments have the player control Mama instead of the Girl of Light. She's also the one featured in Mama's Room and the mini-games.
Robo Speak: At the start of Chapter 5 of The Story of the People and the World, Mama attempts to communicate with the playable cast in standard Pod syntax as previously seen in Automata. However, she soon finds this difficult to maintain and reverts to speaking naturally, albeit with a digital filter over her voice.
Series Mascot: Of Re[in]carnation as a whole.
Thanking the Viewer: Mama does this once the player finishes the game's final chapter.
Third-Person Person: Mama will refer herself by her name, probably as a means to portray herself to the Girl of Light as more of a mother figure.
Walking Spoiler: Chapters 4 and 5 of the "Story of the People and the World" story arc spoil Mama's true nature as Pod 006; so proceed with caution if you have not played through these chapters yet!
You All Look Familiar: One of the Wham Shots of Chapter 12 reveals that this Mama is one of thousands of "Mamas".

The Dark Monster (Unmarked Post-Chapter 6 spoilers!)

Levania

Hidden Words; Stray Dreams

Voiced by: Motoyuki Kawahara (Japanese), Jason Nuzzo (English)

A monster that stalks the Girl of Light and Mama for unknown reasons during “The Story of the Girl and the Monster” arc.

The Atoner: Prior to losing his memories, Levania befriended Fio. However, driven by his desire to become human, he took Fio's body and banished her soul to his dimension, which is heavily implied to turn humans into Monsters. When he recovers his memories, the first thing he does is try to fulfill his wish: to restore Fio's humanity. Mama later tells him that atonement is one of the greatest powers in the Cage, and his desire to do so was so intense that it ensured he'd get what he wanted.
Levania: I will... MAKE HER HUMAN ONCE MORE!!
Become a Real Boy: Levania and those belonging to his race obsessively eat the dreams of mankind in an attempt to become humans themselves. However, this is heavily implied to turn their victims into Monsters like them.
Berserk Button: Once Fio endears herself to him, her suffering becomes this. When he first sees a memory of her in chapter 12, he swears to kill all those who hurt her when he becomes human.
Levania: When I become human, I will murder every last person who dared cause her pain.
Blind Without 'Em: As a human, he wore glasses and couldn't see well without them.
Defrosting Ice King: He was initially dismissive of Fio, but ultimately grew fond of her as they spent more time together.
Dream Stealer: His nature as a Dark Monster is to eat human dreams to become human.
Levania: I search for human dreams, eat them, and become human myself. That instinct is all that drives me.
Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Levania's main reasoning behind not telling the boy what happened to his mother was because he didn't want to make him cry.
Horned Humanoid: His Abstract version gives him a long pair of Triceratops-like horns, while his Yuletide version has antlers.
Meaningful Name: "Levania" originates from the novel Somnium. It’s a name of an island, which is actually the Earth’s Moon, inhabited by daemons according to the author’s dream. His dark weapon reveals that "Levania" was his character in an MMO his old human self used to play, while his Frozen-Heart story reveals he got the name from an older game he played as a child, where it was the name of the hero. The bug-like monster design also originates from that game, as an unrelated nameless monster.
My God, What Have I Done?: The moment Levania realizes that his wish was granted at the expense of Fio being stuck in his body, he's utterly horrified since he had gotten attached to the little girl. Unfortunately, there's no sympathy from Carrier's end, who thinks it's just another job well done and is so offended by Levania that he attacks him.
Mythology Gag: His relationship with Fio is similar to Zero and Mikhail: a dark entity using a white-clad innocent being to sate their violent urges (Zero using Mikhail to kill the Intoners and then herself; Levania using Fio to feed on her nightmares so he can become human.)
Not So Above It All: Despite his intimidating appearance, Levania was seen in Chapter 4 playing with the piano stairs and enjoying himself. Then and again, that was Fio in his body.
- Even he's confused when he sees the Cursed God in Chapter 8.
  Levania: What is that... thing?
- He's the first slapstick victim in Life in the Cage where he gets a rather brutal beating up after he accidentally tells Fio that she isn't the only person whose dreams he's been eating, and he's terrified of the little girl when she's about the beat the crap out of him for doing so.
Reincarnate in Another World: He fell victim of this, at the hands of his stout co-worker who pushed him to a train's tracks. He was reincarnated into his current form after his painful death.
Theme Naming: As it turns out, both he and Fio's names originate from Johannes Kepler's Somnium, with Levania being the name of an island (actually the Earth's moon) inhabited by demons according to the author's dream.
Tsundere: He enjoys spending time with Fio, but it takes a long time to get him to admit it.
Voices Are Mental: Played straight in his case. When he regains his voice in Chapter 6, he sounds the same despite having the body of a little girl at the time.
Walking Spoiler: Almost everything about him is this trope.
Was Once a Man: Levania's Dark Weapon story, "A Man in Life" reveals that he was originally an IT engineer who was killed by a co-worker and was reborn in the Cage in his current form, a recreation of his MMO character, an heroic insectoid being named Levania. It's likely the real reason he wanted to be human, as he was once one himself.

Carrier

A Single Story; Humorous Antics

Voiced by: Ichitaro Ai (Japanese), Ian James Corlett (English)

A friendly being that appears to be of the same race as Mama at “The Story of the Girl and the Monster” arc. He acts as Levania's servant.

Beehive Barrier: Management gave him the "power of rejection", which manifests as a black energy shield that makes him completely invulnerable until he speaks too much and it gets removed.
Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: Carrier was only pretending to be nice and professional when working with Levania and Fio. When he fights Levania, he's very rude and cold.
Casting a Shadow: His attacks are Dark-elemental.
Climax Boss: Of Chapter 12, when Levania gets outright pissed that Carrier granted his wish by swapping his body with Fio's. However, the chapter doesn't end with his death; there's still Fio in Levania's body to deal with.
Combat Tentacles: He's able to reshape his tentacles into drills to hit people with them.
Evil All Along: He exposes his true nature once Levania changes bodies with Fio. He turns out to be a huge Jerkass and a terrifying Smug Super.
First-Person Smartass: Contrary to his cordial demeanor, one Secret Story reveals his inner thoughts during his interactions with Levania and Fio, and they're absolutely crude and vicious.
In-Series Nickname: Fio calls him "Carrie."
Nice Guy: Always friendly and professional… When he wants to be.
Nice Job Fixing It, Villain: He ends up saying too much about his boss, and it gets his invincibility shield removed, which leads to his death.
Palette Swap: Of Mama. While Mama wears a white sheet over her head, the Carrier wears black mailman clothes.
Portal Door: He carries a folding one with him at all times. He uses it to bring Fio to the Cage while she sleeps. In his boss fight, he also uses it to throw dark copies of the signature weapons of the characters.
Villainous Breakdown: When Management takes away his "rejection" for revealing his true intentions and purpose, Carrier panics as he realizes he can now be harmed and killed.
Carrier: Tell ya what, let me give you a little nugget to chew on: I've got orders to meddle in this world, and those orders come from an absolute being. [Carrier's shield breaks] Wait, my rejection... It's coming undone! Don't tell me Management has... Bloody hell! I said too much!
Walking Spoiler: He doesn't make his first appearance until after the revelation behind the Girl of Light's circumstances, so it's difficult to say anything about him without spoiling anything.
Was It Really Worth It?: He invokes this in his final moments, saying that his death won't solve anything.
Carrier: Killing me... ain't gonna solve-*cough*
You All Look Familiar: At the end of Chapter 12, there's a Wham Shot that shows that there are thousands of Carriers and Mamas in existence.

Introduced in “The Story of the Sun and the Moon”

Tropes applying to both

All for Nothing: Near the end of the third chapter, each of them learn that their respective parent are already dead (the father committed suicide while the mother passed away through a heart failure). However, both Hina and Yuzuki are given one last chance to fulfill a wish to save their beloved parent in their arc after restoring the Sun and the Moon, respectively. In the final chapter, this trope comes back again. Although both siblings get their parents back, they end up dying again, with Hina's father being murdered by Yuzuki, and Yuzuki's mother being murdered by Hina.
Alternate Self: Their Dark Memory variants take place in a "Divergent Timeline" where Hina and Yuzuki are members of the Hamelin Organization - Hina being a well-regarded captain of a squad tasked in transporting a captured Legion while Yuzuki leads a team of the organization's 'rejects'.
The Atoner: Both of them choose to stay in the Cage willingly to atone for murdering one of their parents in the true ending.
Cain and Abel: Both have the potential to be the Cain to the other's Abel depending on your choices. In practice, both of them are Cain and falsely see the other as their Abel.
Child Soldiers: Both the Dark Memory Stories revealed that they are both part of The Hamelin Organization (the very organization mentioned in Grimoire Nier Supplementary Material) in a Divergent timeline.
Dark and Troubled Past: While both have fond memories of their parents, the parents themselves had a rough relationship. Their mother impulsively burned through money until there was nothing left, while their father would beat her. Eventually, they got a divorce which has put a strain on their children. As the father has been unemployed since the divorce and the mother frequently visits the hospital due to having a heart condition, both kids have to work part-time jobs to make ends meet, especially when Hina has to resort to being a drug dealer.
Heroic Sacrifice: In The Story of the People and the World, the siblings help Mama to open up a gateway to Earth by creating an eclipse at the expense of their memories of their family. Fortunately, Mama and 10H manage to prevent the full effects.
Heroes Prefer Swords: Their full-length art seen in their concept image reveals that their mainhand is a sword. These swords manifest when they explore their own memories.
I Choose to Stay: Unlocking the arc's true ending will result in Hina and Yuzuki choosing to stay in the Cage to atone for their Patricide/Matricide of the parent who left them.
Laughing Mad: In the final cutscene, if you pick either sibling to win the fight, the survivor will end up like this as they fade away from the Cage since they believe that the death of the other will guarantee that their wish will be truly granted.
Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: If you thought choosing the ending where both survive was the best option, Chapter 5 of The Story of the People and the World reveals that their actions in The Story of the Sun and the Moon's final chapter allowed the dark foes to invade the Cage and cause the events of the first 4 chapters of The Story of the People and the World to happen. Hina and Yuzuki understandably are upset with this revelation.
Non-Uniform Uniform: According to Yuzuki's concept art notes, his and Hina's school has lax uniform regulations. Hina's concept art justifies this by explaining that it's relatively new.
Ordinary High-School Student: Until they're transported to the Cage via mysterious circumstances involving responding to certain messages from their smartphones.
Parental Substitute: Both of their Bedsheet Ghost companions are this for the parent they're dedicated to - Papa for Hina and Mama for Yuzuki.
Promoted to Playable: Upon completion of Chapter 6 of The Story of the Sun and the Moon, the player can get Hina and Yuzuki's default Characters along with their weapons.
Reincarnation: Since Papa and Mama revealed that Hina and Yuzuki are incarnations of the Sun and the Moon respectively, destined to fight each other at the end, it's implied that Hina reincarnated from Priyet, Marie and Yudil while Yuzuki reincarnated from Saryu, Yurie and Sarafa.
The Reveal: Yuzuki killed Hina's father and staged it to look like a suicide, while Hina killed Yuzuki's mother and staged it to look like she died of heart complications. Later it's also revealed that the two are incarnations of the Sun and the Moon, always destined to fight each other to the death until one remains.
Sibling Rivalry: Even besides their relationships with their parents, the two always quietly resented each other for seeming to have what they don't; Hina hated how Yuzuki could get away with being an aloof loner and not having to fake smiles, while Yuzuki hated his inability to be more outgoing compared to the social and popular Hina.
Sibling Yin-Yang: The first chapter confirms that they're siblings whose parents got a divorce at some point. As people, Hina is friendly and intelligent, while Yuzuki is cold and stoic.
Theme Naming: Both siblings follow Stellar Theme Naming; Hina for the Sun and Yuzuki for the Moon. According to the producers during the game's final livestream, both their names were chosen also because their full names would be considered "inauspicious".
Trapped in Another World: Both of them are brought to the Cage and have to collect certain 'fragments' in order to leave. Pick the arc's true ending and both will choose to stay in the Cage to atone for their sins.
Walking Spoiler: Chapter 6 is a doozy of spoilers regarding their circumstances, and let's not mention what happens at the very end.
What Happened to the Mouse?: Chapter 4 of The Story of the People and the World has Mama get all the Memory Characters out of the Cage... which begs the question of Hina, Yuzuki and their Bedsheet Ghosts' whereabouts during all of this. Eventually Yuzuki and Hina are seen in Chapter 5, but especially given the truth about Mama, one would wonder about Papa and Mama and Babe.
You Are Not Alone: They're the ones to say this to 10H to help cure her of her virus infection brought about from her loneliness in managing the Cage all by herself.

Female Student

Hina Akagi (明城陽那 Akagi Hina)

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/nier_rein_brokensun.jpg

Broken Sun; Memories Worth Holding

Voiced by: Kana Ichinose (Japanese), Allegra Clark (English)

One of the Player Characters in ”The Story of the Sun and the Moon”, Hina is a honours student who is suddenly transported to the Cage. Her motivation for escaping the Cage is her father.

Combat Sadomasochist: In the Divergent Timeline, Hina became this as a result of a psychiatric disorder developed from protecting Yuzuki from the Legion. What her squad saw as her taking one for the team was actually her fulfilling her pleasures from pain.
Daddy's Girl: She's closer to her father and tries to support him however she can after the divorce. He's also her motivation for escaping the Cage.
Deadpan Snarker: She's more snarky with her interactions with Papa than her brother is towards Mama.
Fallen-on-Hard-Times Job: She deals drugs on the side to make up for her family's awful finances. She crosses the Despair Event Horizon when the school finds out and suspends her.
Joshikousei: This is the style of uniform she wears.
Lonely at the Top: She's a model student and is at the top of her class, but she doesn't have any real friends; her classmates only hang out with her to copy her homework or study together. This is in contrast to Yuzuki, whose classmates don't hang out with him at all.
Meaningful Name: Her first name contains the kanji for 'sun' while her last name has the kanji for 'bright'. The Sun Route is from her perspective.
Nervous Wreck: She's understandably become a lot more anxious after she's suddenly brought into the Cage.
Player Character: Of the Sun Route in The Story of the Sun and the Moon should the player choose her route.
Power Gives You Wings: During the "Rebellion's Reality" event, Hina grows angel wings in Mementos. She uses it to carry Makoto/Queen to safety when the Palace her suicidal friend created starts flooding. Sadly, she cannot do this in the main story of Nier: Re[in]carnation.
Pun: Hina's name can mean both 'day' and 'chick' (as in, a young bird). Hina's hobby is collecting pictures of chicks.
Trademark Favourite Food: She loves Tamago kake gohan, which is a common Japanese breakfast consisting of cooked Japanese rice with a raw egg and soy sauce.

Papa

Path of the Sun; A Father's Guidance

Voiced by: Masaki Terasoma (Japanese), Lloyd Sherr (English)

A ghost-like entity who's of the same race as Mama and Carrier from the 1st Arc. If the player chooses Hina's route, he's the creature accompanying her throughout her journey in the Cage.

Bedsheet Ghost: Much like his female counterparts, he too has a bedsheet covering his body.
Bumbling Dad: His interactions with Hina are this. While he is very supportive, he also doesn't know how to connect with her.
Expy: Of the Mama from The Story of the Girl and the Monster, both are white ghost-like creatures who speak to their respective main characters in a caring tone. The only difference is that Papa has a mustache.
Not a Morning Person: When Hina comments that the Cage resembles a theme park, before she can finish her sentence Papa starts yawning, then apologizes because he hasn't been sleeping well lately.
Tertiary Sexual Characteristics: He wears a mustache to differentiate himself from the previous season's Mama.
Voluntary Shapeshifting: Chapter 3 reveals his ability to transform into an umbrella (or light himself up if the other route was picked).

Male Student

Yuzuki Kurezome (暮染佑月 Kurezome Yuzuki)

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/nier_rein_brokenmoon.jpg

Broken Moon; Flowers Worth Saving

Voiced by: Kōki Uchiyama (Japanese), Aleks Le (English)

One of the Player Characters in ”The Story of the Sun and the Moon”, Yuzuki is a Ordinary High-School Student until he somehow ends up in the Cage. His motivation for escaping the Cage is his mother.

Affectionate Nickname: His sister calls him Yuzu. In the Cage, his version of Mama uses the nickname as well, only calling him "Yuzuki" in serious moments such as viewing his own memories.
The Aloner: Yuzuki prefers to be by himself and sees relationships with others as a waste of time.
And Then John Was a Zombie: His Dark Memory story ends with him infected with White Chlorination Syndrome, transformed into a Red Eye, and now leads a group of Legion to destroy humanity.
Chuunibyou: Hina refers to him as such as an Insult of Endearment when the two realize that they'll have to stay in the Cage for the rest of their lives after what they did to their parents. She's not half-wrong.
Gender-Blender Name: 'Yuzuki' is more commonly seen as a girl's name.
Genre Savvy: Being a gamer, he instantly knows that he has to defeat the monsters in order to proceed.
Heroic Suicide: Invoked, but ultimately Subverted. He considers doing one so he could donate his heart to his mother, which would (hopefully) save her life. He even bought a drug that would kill him while keeping his heart intact. He's just stopped short of killing himself when the hospital calls him to inform him of her death.
Leaning on the Fourth Wall: If playing his route, he'll comment that the Cage resembles a mobile game he's playing recently. He only manages to get the 'Re' from "Re[in]carnation" out before Mama interrupts him with a cough.
Meaningful Name: His first name contains the kanji for 'moon' while his last name has the kanji for 'sunset'. The Moon Route is from his perspective.
Momma's Boy: Yuzuki is completely devoted to his mother, who is sickly and had been repeatedly subjected to physical abuse by his father. He not only visits her in the hospital as often as he can, he hopes to one day become a doctor and cure her illness.
Nom de Mom: As Yuzuki went with his mother when his parents divorced, it's assumed that his name if they didn't would be "Yuzuki Akagi".
Player Character: For the Moon Route in The Story of the Sun and the Moon if the player chooses to play his route.
The Quiet One: After being transported to the Cage, he becomes less talkative and even colder.
The Stoic: He's pretty reserved when it comes to showing his emotions.

Mama and Babe

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/nier_rein_darkmama.jpg

Path of the Moon; A Mother's Guidance

Voiced by: Yui Horie (Japanese, Mama) and Ryota Takeuchi (Japanese, Babe); Erin Yvette (English, Mama) and Keith Silverstein (English, Babe)

A pair of “mother and child” ghost-like entities who are of the same race as Mama and Carrier from the 1st Arc. If the player chooses Yuzuki's route, she and her baby are the creatures accompanying him throughout his journey in the Cage.

Acrophobic Bird: Mama is scared of heights (or "is extra good at low heights" as Babe puts it) despite being a floating ghost.
Bedsheet Ghost: Oddly subverted. Instead of wearing a bedsheet that covers her entire body, this Mama wears it like an apron and a baby carrier.
Big Little Brother: Although they're not related, the tiny Babe acts as this to Yuzuki.
The Ditz: By her own admission, this Mama can be a bit air-headed.
Expy: While she has the same name as the Mama in The Story of the Girl and the Monster, her showy behaviour is more akin to Carrier. What sets them apart is that Carrier has a nice hat and a bag, while This Mama of Arc 2 wears an apron that also carries Babe.
Genki Girl: While the previous Mama was known to be gentle, this Mama is much more energetic and carefree.
Momma's Boy: Babe loves his "Mumsie" and will not accept any slights towards her.
Obfuscating Stupidity: Heavily implied when Yuzuki experiences his own memories. When she's talking to him, she suddenly acts very serious and focused.
Palette Swap: She's the Carrier to Papa's Mama of Arc 1.
Suspiciously Similar Substitute: Of the Mama from The Story of the Girl and the Monster; both even have the same name. However, while Fio's 'Mama' is a white Bedsheet Ghost with a caring personality, Yuzuki's 'Mama' is a black Bedsheet Ghost Genki Girl.
Vocal Dissonance: Babe, who has a deep male voice for a miniature ghost-like entity. Even Yuzuki points that out.

Introduced in “The Story of the People and the World”

The Savior (SPOILER CHARACTER ALERT)

YoRHa Unit No. 10 Type-H (10H)

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/yorha_10h.png

Ephemeral Reality; A Caged Bird

Voiced by: Shion Wakayama (Japanese)

The main protagonist of one of NieR: Automata's novellas "A Much Too Silent Sea" who first shows up in Chapter 4 of The Story of the People and the World and makes her official debut in Chapter 5 of the same arc. For more information about her, see her tab here.

Ascended Extra: From a minor character in Automata to a major playable character in Reincarnation.
Brilliant, but Lazy: Her official description on the game's websites describes her as "a tad lazy and rough around the edges" but she can be focused when she puts in the effort.
Combat Medic: As a Healer-type YoRHa android she's not very used to fighting but like 9S before her she can pull her own weight in combat. In her default 2* appearance her character skill heals herself like F66x and Saryu before her.
The Cameo: Appears at the end of Chapter 4 of The Story of the People and the World before becoming the central character of the next chapter.
Gameplay and Story Integration: As 10H is primarily a Healer-type YoRHa android with combat abilities, both of her costumes have her character skill involve some form of healing, with her default 2* being a healing skill while her Reborn Warden variant deals damage, cures her allies' status ailments and constantly replenishes 20% HP for 3 turns.
Heroic Sacrifice: Having been infected with viruses over and over, 10H knows she's not going to last any longer so she sacrifices herself by holding off the dark creatures invading the Cage in order to buy enough time for Mama and the Memory Characters (now including Hina and Yuzuki) to escape to Earth.
Locked Out of the Loop: Being on the Moon throughout the events of Automata, she finds out way too late that the Bunker was already destroyed via Logic Virus infection, making her one of the very last YoRHa androids alive.
The Medic: She's a Healer-type android so her skills are primarily for physical repairs and data fixing.
Promoted to Playable: Initially a minor character, Reincarnation is where she eventually shines by being playable.
She Knows Too Much: Every time she finds out about the truth about humanity or gets close to it, her Pod will kill her and reset her memories. As of her EX Memory story, it's now happened at least 54 times, 46 coming from before "A Much Too Silent Sea".
Walking Spoiler: Her appearance spoils the ending of "A Much Too Silent Sea" and Chapter 4 of The Story of the People and the World regarding Mama's true form.

Memory Characters

In General

Anyone Can Die: Of the characters you meet in memories, only Gayle, Akeha, Lars, Noelle, Priyet, Marie and Yurie stay alive by the end of the overarching narrative portrayed in the memories.
Alternate Self: The Cage, just like the Library, is vast enough to have more than 1 version of the Memory Characters running around. In particular, Chapter 2 of The Story of the People and the World has Akeha and Saryu deal with another Akeha who killed the heir of the rival clan instead of saving her and another Saryu who immersed herself in dark magick to get everything she wanted.
Hero of Another Story: The Memory Characters ultimately don't have a connection to the main story, with the Girl of Light experiencing their stories through Dark Scarecrows.
Mystical White Hair: The only characters that don't have white hair are Dimos, Argo, Akeha, Griff, 2P, O63y, F66x and Emil, and the last three don't have hair. Dimos's Dark Memory reveals he used to have white hair before he was partially dismantled.
No Name Given: They're only referred to by the titles given in promotional content and have aliases in the gacha. Players can find out their real names through the enhance section in the game. F66x is the sole exception to this trope if you have her pull a Heroic Sacrifice in her story, as the story has her last text address her by name to show her development.
Promoted to Playable: In Arc 3, they're the ones navigating the Cage, with the player so far getting to play as Saryu in the prologue and Argo and Noelle in Chapter 1's exploration. In the Bird Cages, Fio's the central narrator.
Theme Naming:
- Each version of their character is known as (Banner)(Title). For example, Argo's Summer version is called Summer Traveler.
- The livestream for the game's final chapter reveals that each pair of Characters whose stories are linked to each other have names that compliment each other. To wit:
  - Fio and Levania's names come from the novel Somnium by Johannes Kepler; Levania for a island inhabited by demons that's actually the Moon while Fio is named after the protagonist's mother Fiolxhilde.
  - Rion and Dimos's names are taken from the Greek words "aurion" (tomorrow) and "dimios" (executioner).
  - 063y and F66x's names involve Numerical Theme Naming and the "x" and "y" in their names refer to the female and male chromosomes respectively. Their full names involve their version number and how many times said version died; put together the numbers refer to a certain passage in The Bible.
  - Lars and Griff's names come from the English words "wrath" and "grief" respectively, outlining their most expressed emotion throughout their war.
  - Hina and Yuzuki's names follow Stellar Theme Naming and are also chosen to make their names inauspicious.
  - Saryu and Priyet's names come from greeting words; Saryu from salut, the French word for "goodbye" and Priyet from "privet", the Russian word for "hello".
  - Marie and Yurie's names are derived from people associated with famous composers; Marie sharing her name with the wife of Carl Nielsen, who composed the Helios Overture while Yurie's name is a variant of Julie Guicciardi's nickname "Giulietta", she who Ludwig van Beethoven dedicated the Moonlight Sonata to.
  - Yudil and Sarafa's names are Arabic in origin; Yudil's coming from the Arabic words for "shadow" and "illumination" while Sarafa's is from "dawn" and "goodbye".
Weapon Specialization: Each of the Memory Characters can wield swords, spears, two-handed swords, staves, guns or gauntlets, though they do more damage when paired up with their specialized weapons.
- Sword: Gayle, Lars, Marie, Hina, Yuzuki, 10H.
- Spear: Argo, Noelle, Sarafa.
- 2H Sword: Akeha, 063y, Yudil.
- Staff: Rion, F66x, Saryu.
- Gun: Dimos, Griff, Yurie.
- Fists: Fio, Levania, Priyet.

Introduced in “The Story of the Girl and the Monster”

The Exile

Rion, the Wanderer

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/nier_rein_leon.jpg

Unbendable Will; A Noble Vow

^{Dissenting Exile}

^{Mechanical Exile}

^{Abstract Exile}

^{Summer Exile}

^{Reborn Revolutionary}

Voiced by: Junko Minagawa (Japanese), Zeno Robinson (English)

A runaway prince from a faraway kingdom. He and the Clockwork Soldier are the first memory characters the Girl of Light and Mama meet.

Abusive Parents: Despite being first in line, Rion's father wanted nothing to do with him due to his kind heart and disowned him completely once his illness struck him. Rion also mentions that he's afraid of him. When his father started another war and Rion stood up to him, he ordered Dimos to kill his son and started roaring like a beast when he refused to do so.
Big Damn Heroes: He saves Dimos from dying near the end of "Stronghold of Desolation" by killing the last clockwork soldier with one of his companion's spare pistols.
Cosplay: The Final Fantasy XIV collab has his Phantasmal Exile costume based on said game's White Mage class.
Decoy Protagonist: Despite being the subject of the first Memory the Girl of Light encounters, the story focuses more on Dimos and Gayle.
Delicate and Sickly: Rion was born with a congenital illness and was "given up on and thrown away" because of it. It eventually ends up killing him.
Dub Name Change: From 'Leon' in Japanese to 'Rion' in English.
Meaningful Name: Rion's name comes from the Greek word "aurion" meaning "tomorrow"; he's supposed to be the heir to the throne of his kingdom, shaping its tomorrow. The name was chosen by his mother against the king's proposal, "Dimos".
Missing Mom: Rion's mother died when he was a child. It's impled she died of the same disease that ultimately killed him.
Posthumous Character: Every story involving Rion is this since it's known from the start he's going to be dead by the end of of Chapter 1.
Replacement Goldfish: "Seat of Shadow" has him be this for a mother taking care of him who lost her son to the war which his kingdom is responsible for. When he tells her who he is, she tells him Get Out! since his kingdom is the reason for all the misery, including her dead son.
Say My Name: As Rion is saved by Dimos at the expense of Dimos's own safety in The Story of the People and the World's prologue, the prince screams his most loyal companion's name before being tugged away by Yudil.
The Scapegoat: He's blamed for everything his father the King did just by virtue of being his firstborn son.
Self-Harm: After his attempt at leading an army towards a peaceful resolution ended in catastrophe and an enormous loss of human life (and being taunted of this fact by his envious brothers), Rion retreats into his chambers and cuts his own arm.
The Wise Prince: Official materials explicitly describe Rion as "wise and gentle". He was also first in line to succeed his father for the throne of his country.
- Deconstructed in Dimos's character quest, where Rion's naivete while commanding an army gets the army annihilated despite his wisdom, foreshadowing the wise yet naive approach he uses when confronting his father.
- Ultimately played straight in the Frozen-Heart Automaton Historia story where Rion's efforts were not in vain. In the far future, a reborn Dimos is told that the actions of the two led the world into an era of peace.

The Gunman

Dimos, the Clockwork Soldier

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/nier_rein_dimis.jpg

A Mechanical Prayer; An Oath of Loyalty

Voiced by: Takuya Sato (Japanese), Alejandro Saab (English)

A clockwork soldier who befriended Rion and became his protector.

Affectionate Nickname: He refers to Rion as "My Prince". It starts out as him simply acknowledging him as his superior, but it becomes this as their bond develops.
Dark Is Not Evil: Most of his signature guns have the Dark element, and despite being built as a Robot Soldier, he's quite a caring man.
Declaration of Protection: Once Dimos and Rion escaped from the king's castle, he swore to protect the prince until his dying breath. He made true on it for the entire last century of his life.
Dub Name Change: From 'Dimis' in Japanese to 'Dimos' in the Global server.
Forgotten First Meeting: He first met Rion while the latter was commanding their kingdom's army in a battle against an enemy nation. Dimos saved him when an enemy artillery blew up the command post. The reason why it was forgotten is because Dimos' memory was wiped before being imprisoned, while Rion didn't recognize him since there are many other clockwork soldiers like him.
Grew Beyond Their Programming: Dimos's friendship with Rion gives him the will to resist orders from the King, despite being created to be an obedient war machine.
Dimos: My programmed obedience to my kingdom is no longer functional. I follow the Prince through my own will alone.
Last Stand: In "Stronghold of Desolation", he expected his battle in the abandoned castle against the clockwork soldier hit squad to be this. They were more advanced and stronger than him and heavily outnumbered him and Rion, so he intended to hold them off long enough for his prince to escape. In the end, it wasn't the case as Dimos managed to kill all but one of the advanced soldiers and Rion saved him from the last survivor.
Meaningful Name: Dimos's name comes from the Greek word "dimios", meaning "executioner". Dimos was made to be a mechanical soldier; an executioner by any other name. In-Universe, it's the name of a war god and was the king's proposed name for Rion before settling for the more peaceful name offered by his wife. The king instead gave the name to the supposedly heartless mechanical soldier, projecting upon him what he wanted his actual son to be like.
Mercy Kill: On the receiving end by Gayle at the end of Chapter 1.
No Name Given: "Dimos" is technically the name of his clockwork soldier line, as he doesn't have one himself.
Robot Soldier: Clockwork soldiers like Dimos were built to help fight the wars of their home kingdom. They were sent ahead of the frontlines for recon and assassination missions.
Uncertain Doom: Until Rion and Yudil are featured in The Story of the People and the World, there's no status about Dimos's survival after the prolouge.
Undying Loyalty: Even a century after Rion had died, Dimos protected his body from any living creature that came near it.
What Is This Thing You Call "Love"?: The focal point of Dimos’s character quest story. Despite his friendship with the prince, Dimos does not understand what the prince means when he talks about stopping the pain in one’s chest (referring to sorrow from losing loved ones). Tragically, Dimos only comprehends what the prince is talking about when he feels sorrow for the first time, after the prince dies.
Wistful Amnesia: Of a sort. After Dimos's memory is reset in his EX story, he notes a strange sensation in his chest that he cannot describe, and he comes to the conclusion that there is someone he must see, though he understands none of it and considers it illogical.
You Have Outlived Your Usefulness: The fourth entry of his Dark Weapon, Treason's Reward, has the King order Dimos to shoot himself since he's now considered an inferior model. Dimos survived this.
But then the king ordered him to shoot himself, for the data determined he was an inferior model. Dismantled and discarded as scrap, he became the foundation for the king's desires.

The Hunter

Frenlyze / Gayle, the Prosthetic Hunter

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/nier_rein_frenliese.jpg

Cruel Hopes; Frozen Time

Voiced by: Ayaka Fukuhara (Japanese), Dana Powers (English)

A bounty hunter with a prosthetic arm and leg, driven by vengeance. Her story is set 100 years after Rion and Dimos'.

An Arm and a Leg: Gayle loses her left limbs during the experiments conducted on her. They're both replaced with prosthetics, hence her title.
Big Sister Instinct: Her first chapter has her fight off a bear. She's constantly worried about her sister and is outright terrified when she finds out what happened to her after she was experimented on.
Dark and Troubled Past: Although she lost her parents at an early age, Gayle lead a happy life with her younger sister. Until another country (the kingdom Rion and the clockwork soldiers came from) invaded her village, kidnapped both girls and turned them into test subjects for a project meant to turn humans into unstoppable killing machines. Gayle lost an arm and a leg in the process. She soon escaped and ran into her younger sister, now an Ax-Crazy berserker who slaughtered an entire village. And just before Gayle could help her sister recover, a surviving soldier cuts her down.
Doom Magnet: After the events of her main story, Gayle became this. At least two towns she visited ended up utterly destroyed by maddened clockwork soldiers.
Dub Name Change: The sole character with a complete name change - from 'Frenlyze' to 'Gayle'.
Due to the Dead: She gives Rion and Dimos a proper burial and a grave despite the latter trying to kill her.
Earn Your Happy Ending: She lost her family, spent decades of her life on a fruitless quest for revenge, became an alcoholic after killing all the soldiers she could find and losing her purpose in life, and reunited with her childhood mentor only to find that he had gone mad and tries to kill her. After all that, she ends up adopting said mentor's daughter and starts a peaceful life with her, having finally found a proper reason to live.
Even the Girls Want Her: Played for Laughs in Life in the Cage when, at Akeha's suggestion, Gayle puts on a cutesy idol show at a sakura viewing party which causes Akeha, Fio and F66x to blush (though Noelle is confused).
Expy: Of A2 appearance-wise.
Inconsistent Spelling: Is her name 'Frenliese', 'Frenlyze' or 'Frenleeza'? Despite this, the localization outright changes it to Gayle.
Locked into Strangeness: Her natural hair color is a deep black, but the experiments performed on her to turn her into a living weapon caused her hair to become pure white.
No Good Deed Goes Unpunished: Her Character Story has her kill an Empire soldier harassing an woman in an out of the way village, where after a warm meal she gets her first genuine smile in years and gets an upgrade to her prosthetics from her husband. The soldier had a brother who has the town razed to the ground and kills every last civilian, including the engineer and his wife. Gayle believes she was responsible for this tragedy just by being there.
Meaningful Name: Frenlyze's name comes from the English words "friendly" and "breeze". In the NA and SEA versions, her name change to Gayle comes from "gale". Her default 2* weapon is of the wind element.
Only Sane Woman: Gayle is the only Character in Life in the Cage who questions the ridiculousness of the series and is generally the Straight Man to everyone else.
Tragic Keepsake: Her silver hairpin which used to be her mother's. She had given it to her sister, and it was how she recognized the android that was her sister.

The Assassin

Akeha, the Assassin

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/nier_rein_akeha.jpg

Silent Indignation; A Flower in Bloom

Voiced by: Eri Kitamura (Japanese), Laura Post (English)

A swordswoman under the command of a daimyo during Japan's Warring States Period. She is ordered to assassinate the heir of a rival clan.

Abusive Parents: Her father, her family's former lord was the man responsible for Akeha's terrible childhood, training her both to be a living weapon and his successor. He even killed his own older brother, Akeha's uncle, because he objected to assassinating someone.
Bait-and-Switch: The first part of Akeha’s Dark Weapon story starts with her describing the feeling of cutting meat and bone, as if describing one of her assassinations. She’s actually describing how she’s cutting a mackerel and, contrary to her description, is doing a bad job of it.
BFS: Her sword, Guren/Shimmering Lotus, is an ōdachi as long as she's tall. Her Dark Weapon, Byakuren/Pure Lotus, is also this.
Cool Big Sis: Despite starting off with Let's You and Him Fight with Saryu, she ultimately serves as this to her in The Story of the People and the World by being her voice of reason.
Cosplay: Akeha has costumes based on the Commander (Mechanical Assassin), Two (Intoner Assassin) and Snow White (Fabled Assassin).
Dark and Troubled Past: From a young age, she never had any control of her life. She was raised to be the weapon of the clan she currently works for and was physically and emotionally abused in order to form her into the perfect assassin.
Eye-Obscuring Hat: Her Summer version has a black summer hat not only to look elegant and to keep the sun out, but in her line of work, to hide her face when she kills her targets.
Happy Ending Override: While her EX story shows her able to live a quiet and normal life for over five years with the girl she was able to save. Her Recollection of Dusk shows that, once her younger sister kills said girl, Akeha is driven mad and proceed to slaughter her own entire clan and family, but forever dooming herself to a life of unhappiness.
Iaijutsu Practitioner: Her story scenes have her kill several enemies like this.
I Die Free: Probably the first choice Akeha ever made for herself was to protect the heir of the rival clan, but in doing so, she's severely wounded in battle. Subverted in her first EX Story when she is revealed to have survived and escaped together with the heir, and both were still alive and living together five years later.
Meaningful Name: Akeha's name is written as "緋葉" in kanji, meaning "scarlet leaves".
Ninja: Her Dissenting Assassin form turns her into this.
One Degree of Separation: During the Sunset Port event, while the two of them don't meet, one of the passengers on the ship carrying Akeha's target is Argo.
Parasol of Pain: Black Sunflower, Summer Akeha's weapon, is this.
Spell My Name With An S: Quite a number of people have misspelt her name as 'Ageha' before.
Would Hurt a Child: The Sunset Port event quest has her slaughter everyone aboard a ship, including a young boy whom she had helped earlier on. And when she spares the heir in her main story, it is made clear this is due to a perceived similarity between them and has nothing to do with their age.

The Traveler

Argo, the One Who Challenges Mountains

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/nier_rein_argo.jpg

A Man's Sorrow; A Journey's End

^{Dissenting Traveler}

^{Abstract Traveler}

^{Summer Traveler}

^{Celebratory Traveler}

Voiced by: Kazuhiro Yamaji (Japanese), Andrew Morgado (English)

An adventurer who seeks to climb every mountain imaginable.

Advertised Extra: Of the Sunset Port banner. He only appears at the end of the story.
Bold Explorer: Argo is one, a wanderer who seeks the great sights and works of art of nature throughout the world, evne if they might endanger his life.
- "Valley of Light" reveals that in his youth, he used to be a treasure hunter and grave robber who wasted his found fortunes on alcohol, until one day he fell into a ravine when he got too impatient and greedy. When he came back to his senses and saw the starry skies, it changed him into the man he is now.
Bookends: His thrill for exploration and sightseeing started when he fell off a cliff in his youth. His life would ultimately end in the same way, only instead of being filled with wonder, Argo died with regret in his heart.
Cosplay: The Nier collaboration event provides a costume of Father Nier for him.
Covered with Scars: His Summer Traveler portrait shows that underneath his heavy clothes is a mess of scar tissue from years of adventures, and that's just what's seen on the front.
Did Not Think This Through: His entire story is a Deconstruction of this trope even when he’s not just thinking of his own desires. Almost every decision that Argo makes is with his gut instinct, and almost every single one hurts him, his family, or both.
Dying Dream: The hallucination he has at the top of the mountain was actually this, due to falling off the cliff side that would have gotten him to the summit.
Forgot I Couldn't Swim: His Summer Traveler outfit's Story has his wife worry about this as Argo departs for the beach in search of "the white whale of legend".
Hanlon's Razor: He's not a good father or husband by any stretch of imagination, but not because he's explicitly abusive; he's genuinely too dense and stubborn to realize how much his hobby is hurting them. He seems to believe he's financially supporting them by giving them "treasures" (worthless junk) that he finds in his travels to sell, and in one story he buys worthless trinkets with the money that was meant to go towards groceries, but upon realizing this is he sells the clothes on his back to get enough money for the actual groceries (without ever realizing that he was scammed with his initial purchases).
Innocently Insensitive: During his Hard mode story, a clearly-drunk Argo cheerfully tells his daughter that he'd take her on adventures with him...if only she was a boy. She breaks into tears over this, and while Argo clearly realizes he did something wrong, he brushes it off anyways.
Irony: His Patriotic Traveler costume is designed after Father Nier, who, like Brother Nier (The World Ender), is one of the most selfless characters in the series while Argo is one of the most selfish characters in the game.
It's All About Me: While Argo does care about his family deep down, his story makes it clear that he always prioritizes what he himself finds most important. He does not seem aware just how much his adventuring and his comments both hurts his family and makes his older daughter resent him.
Wife: I hope that fool is alright. He can't even swim....
Jerkass Realization: Come the third story arc, Argo realizes how the selfishness of his actions have hurt his family, particularly his children. He even starts questioning whether someone like him should even be allowed to help Fio and Noelle when they're looking for Levania.
Meaningful Name: Argo is named after the most famous ship from Greek Mythology of "Jason and the Argonauts" fame. Fitting for a traveller.
My God, What Have I Done?: Argo's second-to-last story implies that he subconsciously feels this when he has his hallucination of his wife blaming him for not being there for their children. Given the twist at the end of his story, it's completely justified.
One Degree of Separation: During the Sunset Port event, while the two of them don't meet, one of the passengers on the ship carrying Akeha's target is Argo.
Parental Substitute: Argo serves as one to Fio in The Story of the People and the World while travelling in the same area of the Cage. While Fio thinks of him as a good father, this causes Argo to realize that he actually wasn't in life and decides to try and be one to Fio who lost both her parents in her story.
Super Gullible: In his Character Story, Argo gets easily scammed out of all of his pocket money his wife gave him to buy groceries by a seedy merchant who sells him "adventuring tools" that don't at all work.
Thrill Seeker: Argo is a deconstruction of one. He's a seasoned adventurer who constantly goes on dangerous and life-threatening adventures because he feels that it's the only thing that makes his life worthwhile. This unfortunately makes him incredibly self-centered, insensitive, and a poor decision maker, and his relationship with his wife and firstborn daughter is extremely strained due to his constant desire to partake in self-fulfilling trips and abandon them for extended periods of time.
Walking Shirtless Scene: In his Summer Traveler outfit.
What the Hell, Hero?: Mama gets disgusted that Argo left his family to climb mountains, though she obviously doesn't get to say it directly to him.

The Prisoner

O63y, the Man in White

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/nier_rein_o63y.jpg

Unheard Words; Indelible Memories

Voiced by: Kenyū Horiuchi (Japanese), Emerson Brooks (English)

A man who, along with his wife, is drafted by his government to fend off monsters in the shape of flowers.

Accent Upon The Wrong Syllable: The English version has his story titles do this. (priSOner for example)
Action Dad: He had a son who died in the initial invasion. It becomes averted when it's revealed that his son was never real to begin with.
Black Knight: His Final Fantasy XIV skin turns him into a Dark Knight with the Bale Armor.
Dark Is Not Evil: Mirroring the plot of FF14's "Shadowbringers" expansion, this version of O63y is the Warrior of Darkness who fights against the Sin Eaters.
History Repeats: One side story deals with what appears to be a younger or alternate clone of him; the story starts with him standing at a battlefield filled with corpses, including his best friend's at his feet. As a result, he swears he'll get revenge against the Flowers, even if it costs him his life; he throws himself bodily into his training and quickly excels, despite his (worried and sad) mentor urging him to exercise more caution and restraint. When the big battle finally happens, the man eagerly charges into the fray, only for the battle to be a complete massacre in which all of the clones, him included, are killed. The mentor and another person reflect on the "progress" of the clones, while another clone of the man stands above his corpse, swearing he'll get revenge against the Flowers for killing his best friend, even if it costs his life...
Hot-Blooded: "Coffin of Repose" shows he was this in his younger years, wanting to get put on the frontlines so bad to kill the Flowers.
La Résistance: Forms one in Chapter 8 after the events of the previous chapter, both to kill the flowers on their own terms and free the other prisoners.
Locked Out of the Loop: Depending on the clone, though he's more prone to being kept out of the loop than his wife, who is often incarnated as a higher-ranked researcher who is fully aware of the cloning project and the truth of the war and has to put down O63y whenever he ends up learning too much.
Meaningful Name: According to the game's livestream corresponding to the final chapter, the "06" refers to 6 zeroes, 3 corresponds to the Greek equivalent for "Z" and y refers to the y chromosome. His full name adds RV 12.08; RV from "revengeance" referring to his and F66x's motivations for killing the Flowers, 12 is his model version number and 8 references the number of deaths he faced. Put together, Revelation 12:08 in the Bible is about the defeat of a dragon at the hands of Archangel Michael.
Tomato in the Mirror: He and his wife aren't real humans. They're clones of humans who were implanted with fake memories so they could have a reason to fight the flowers.
You Are Number 6: Both he and F66x have the number 6 in their names.

The Captive

F66x, the Woman in White

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/nier_rein_f66x.jpg

A Family's Grief; An Unattainable Past

Voiced by: Satomi Sato (Japanese), Suzie Yeung (English)

A woman that has been drafted by the government to destroy invading flower monsters alongside her husband.

Action Mom: Her son died in the initial invasion. Averted when it's revealed he was never real to begin with.
Bald Head of Toughness: Like all "inmates". Averted for her original self, who had a short bob cut.
Combat Medic: In gameplay, she can fight and heal at the same time. Notably, she's so far the only character until the start of Arc 2 and Saryu's debut with a healing ability.
Continuity Nod: The "flower" she tried to revive which would end up being the source of the flower monsters was implicitly a Lunar Tear, as she notes that there's a legend that it has wish-granting properties. She was right, in a way.
Driven to Suicide: An option in the main story, as well as the canonical way her original self died; after her first clone was complete, her first order towards it was "kill me".
Gone Horribly Right: Her original self's goal was to restore the world's flora which were devastated by humans. Not only did she technically succeed by creating the monstrous flowers, but years after they've ravaged the world, the world's nature started flourishing thanks to the absence of humanity. It's implied that the flowers are genuinely trying to accomplish the original F66x's goal for her, and that they view her as their beloved mother.
Heroic Sacrifice: She tries to do this by saving her husband from their abusive superior by pushing him off a cliff and getting cut down. However, she survives, but doesn't know how until the end of her story. There she learns that she did die, but was reprocessed to be a weapon to be used against the resistance her husband formed. Should the player choose, this can be played straight by making her kill herself so she doesn't kill her husband when on the verge of going berserk.
Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Indirectly, as a result of being part of a Cloning Gambit: Her original version is implied to be the scientist who accidentally caused the creation of the murderous flowers in an attempt to restore the world's flora.
In the Hood: Her Guardian costume has one over her head.
Meaningful Name: According to the game's livestream corresponding to the final chapter, the "F6" refers to 6 Fs, 6 corresponds to the Greek equivalent for "F" and x refers to the x chromosome. Her full name adds RV 12.02; RV from "revengeance" referring to her and 063y's motivations for killing the Flowers, 12 is her model version number and 2 references the number of deaths she faced. Put together, Revelation 12:02 in the Bible refers to a woman in pregnancy who is revealed to be Jesus Christ 3 verses later.
My Own Grampa: In her Hidden Story, one of her higher-ranked clones creates a clone of her husband after his death and raises him as her child from infancy. She also creates a clone of herself with the goal of having them hook up years later and give birth to a child, simulating the actual child that she supposedly had with her husband. Thus making her both the kid's mother and grandmother.
Please Wake Up: She's on the receiving end of this by her husband in Part 1 of his EX story after a battle with the Flowers puts her in a coma.
Tomato in the Mirror: She and her husband aren't real humans but clones of humans who were given fake memories to give them incentive to fight the flowers.
What Is This Thing You Call "Love"?: Her Dissenting Captive's profile has her ask this before coming up with her own answer.
You Are Number 6: She and 063y literally have the number 6 in their names.

The Soldier

Lars, the Vengeful Young Soldier

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/nier_rein_lars.jpg

Unending Rage; Vengence's Blade

Voiced by: Kensho Ono (Japanese), Griffin Puatu (English)

A young man who lost his parents in a war that ravaged his country. He joined the military to find the man who killed them and exact revenge.

All for Nothing: The English version of the game states this word for word when it's revealed that Lars was actually kidnapped as a baby and the parents he loved were actually his kidnappers; all while killing the man who was his biological father.
Big Damn Heroes: In Chapter 4 of The Story of the People and the World, Lars shows up just in time to stop a dark creature targeting Rion and a Heroic BSoD-riddled Yudil. He goes off for a bit afterwards.
Blood Knight: After killing his father, Lars realizes he can only find mental peace in battle.
The Cameo: Shows up for a brief moment during The Story of the People and the World's Chapter 2, but ultimately doesn't contribute to the plot as the main focus is instead on Saryu and the area of the Cage both people, Priyet and Akeha are in is particularly glitchy.
Dangerous Deserter: His Hidden Story reveals he deserted the army after the incident with the blue-eyed man.
Happily Adopted: Lars loved his parents, but he didn't know that they weren't his biological parents. His feelings towards them become much more mixed once he finds out the truth.
He Knows Too Much: When he got too close to the truth of his origins, his country sent an intelligence agent (a man with blue eyes that disguised himself as a fellow soldier) to assassinate him, as he risked exposing state secrets (the country Lars was fighting for kidnapped children from all over their world to bolster their gene pool). Lars was forced to kill the blue-eyed man, and the incident ultimately drove him to desert the army and return to his homeland.
Leeroy Jenkins: He gets this attitude when he discovers his mission involves the person who had killed his parents. His captain wisely refuses to let him go through with it though it does not stop Lars from sneaking out alone.
Meaningful Name: Lars's name comes from the English word "wrath", which is his main emotion throughout the war.
Poor Communication Kills: Zig-Zagged. When Lars deserted the army and returned to his homeland, he encountered his birth mother. Unfortunately, she didn't recognize him and attacked him as she recognized his soldier uniform and his sword. She nearly killed him before her town was attacked by the child-kidnapping country. Fortunately, she spared him after the battle was over and brought him to her home so he could recover.
Roaring Rampage of Revenge: His motivation.
Still Wearing the Old Colors: He continues to wear his soldier uniform and his sword after deserting. It nearly gets him killed when he finds his hometown and his real mother attacks him.
Took a Level in Kindness: After learning the truth about his parentage, Lars becomes more respectful of Griff during the latter's story.

The Captain

Griff, a Young Captain of Deep Regrets

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/nier_rein_griff.jpg

Altruistic Prayers; Cowardly Pride

Voiced by: Yusuke Shirai (Japanese), Conrad Haynes (English)

Lars's commanding officer, who has a reputation for being timid despite his rank and skill as a soldier.

A Father to His Men: Despite what they think of him, Griff does care a lot about his soldiers.
Be Careful What You Wish For: As shown in his Dark Memory, Griff back at his time as a reckless soldier always wanted a Medal of Honor. He eventually earns it, but at a greater cost of losing the lives of his platoon along with suffering heavy trauma.
Big Damn Heroes: Shows up in the nick of time in Chapter 3 of The Story of the People and the World to save 063y and Marie from Yurie after she goes berserk by absorbing data about humanity in an attempt to make herself complete. Chapter 4 reveals that he made it out but the fight exhausted him pretty badly.
Cheaters Never Prosper: Played for Laughs in Life in the Cage where he intimidates Yurie to return the gems she hacked into his account because he believes that getting what he wants with ill-gotten gems is no fun at all; he'd rather grind for them via completing quests.
Disappeared Dad: Griff's father was an anti-war activist, who died at the hands of military.
Driven to Suicide: [[His final Recollection of Dusk shows he kills himself once he successfully brings all of his subordinate back home alive and safe]].
Embarrassing Nickname: He's known as "Captain Craven" by some members of his squad. He's deeply focused on minimizing casualties at any cost, which has led some to mistake his cautiousness with cowardice.
Irony: In his Character Story, he tells that his parents were pacifists in a militaristic nation, and got his father shot dead by the military. He joined the same military that killed his peace-loving father.
Ironic Echo: "I'm glad you survived" were the last words his superior officer told him before dying. Years later, he says those same words to Lars after they're rescued by their squad. They both break into laughter.
Kill It with Fire: His Abstract Captain's skill, Controlled Incineration, pulls out a flamethrower fitting for a soldier like him.
Meaningful Name: Griff's name comes from the English word "grief", which is his main emotion throughout the war.
Motor Mouth: In Life in the Cage, where he breaks the fourth wall talking about wanting to motivate players to keep playing NieR: Re[in]carnation by gathering various enhancement materials to give to them. As he goes on, the text wall gets creepy enough to terrify Lars.
My Greatest Failure: Griff used to be a lot like Lars, and his gung-ho and selfish attitude got his platoon and captain killed. Since then, he has strove to be better than he once was. His final level involves fighting off the ghosts of that failure, giving them a Shut Up, Hannibal!.
No One Gets Left Behind: While giving out orders over comms to make sure his unit survives with no casualties, he's willing to risk his own life to pull a wounded Lars out of an enemy filled battlefield.
Sharp-Dressed Man: His Dissenting Captain costume is dressed like a modern spy like something out of James Bond.
The So-Called Coward: He's called "Captain Craven" by his unit for his perceived cowardice. He's not actually cowardly at all, except insofar as he's scared that his brash overconfidence will lead to another disaster like the one that previously got his teammates killed.
Survivor's Guilt: The Final part of his Dark Memory story shows Griff undergoing PTSD while he drinks heavily and he nearly was about to shoot himself to join with his fallen squad mates. Luckily he was too drunk that he failed to do it, and thanks to noticing the envelope of the ceremony of earning the Medal of Honor along with his promotion, Griff decided to atone for his mistakes by taking the promotion as captain.
You Have Outlived Your Usefulness: In his Dissenting Captain costume, while on a spy mission, after killing a witness just for being in the wrong place and time, he feels one day he'll be on the other end of that gun.

The Weapon

Noelle, the Sealed Girl

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/nier_rein_noel.jpg

A Fleeting Hope; A Clear Mission

Voiced by: Yukana (Japanese), Faye Mata (English)

A young woman who awakes in an abandoned laboratory and begins searching for clues about her past.

Airplane Arms: How she runs.
Amnesiac Hero: Noelle starts off her story unsure of her identity and life prior to awakening.
Cosplay: The Final Fantasy XIV collab bases her Phantasmal Weapon costume on the Dragoon class while her Fabled Weapon costume is based on Red Riding Hood's Paladin class.
Human Weapon: In the very first part of her story, she eventually discovers that she was experimented on to become one of these. Especially since her Character Story reveals she's a far more advanced clone of Gayle's sister.
Meaningful Name: Noelle's name is the feminine version of "Noel" which includes the suffix "-el" for angels.
Red Eyes, Take Warning: When Noelle is about to engage in combat, her eyes glow red. Unlike other instances of red eyes in the franchise, this doesn't seem to indicate a horrible mind controlling curse... probably.
Scannable Woman: Has a barcode on her left thigh.
Stripperific: At most, she wears a white sheet that covers her front and leaves her sides exposed, high heels, long sleeves and some bands on her legs. Her alts tone it down, with her Dark form just about going the opposite way.

Introduced in “The Story of the Sun and the Moon”

The Witch

Saryu, the Silver-haired Witch

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/nier_rein_salyu.jpg

A Magick Pledge; Hidden Thoughts

Voiced by: Himika Akaneya (Japanese), Alejandra Reynoso (English)

A young girl who's started her education in a wizarding school into becoming a full-fledged witch.

Be Careful What You Wish For: When she finds out that her two friends have been keeping secrets from her which resulted in a Love Triangle, she wishes for them to disappear for their supposed "betrayal". The next day, the teacher announces that a student was found dead and another student is missing. Realizing that these are her friends, she decides to find her missing friend out of regret. And while she finds her female friend, Priyet, she eventually learns that she accidentally turned her into a Cat Girl and was manipulated into killing their friend and 98 others.
Combat Medic: Her default appearance has this Character ability.
Contrasting Sequel Main Character: To Rion; both are the first Memory Characters in their respective Arcs and specialize in staves, but while Rion's a prince who has been ill for some time, Saryu is a ordinary witch-in-training who's pretty healthy herself.
Cosplay: Her Fabled Witch outfit from the SINoALICE collab is based on Alice's Cleric class outfit.
Cute Witch: She's a magic user and has a very cute design.
Driven to Suicide: Saryu was horrified to learn her curse not only turned Priyet into a monster, but that she also killed nearly a hundred people, including their friend. Once she casts a seal to restore Priyet's sanity, she kills herself by stabbing her staff through her chest, out of guilt over not only all of that, but also for losing her temper and hurting Priyet, both as a human and as a werebeast.
Everyone Has Standards: Poor Saryu is scared of Fio when she makes her 3rd Magick request in Life in the Cage, which is aimed at Levania and... doing something towards him that for reasons is Censored for Comedy. She can do anything with magick, but adhering to a Creepy Child's Yandere wish is not one of them.
Expy: Her design and background are reminiscent of Hermoine.
Fighting Your Friend: She's the final boss of Priyet's chapter, after she discovers her transformed friend killed their other friend. Overcome by rage, Saryu attacks Priyet.
It's All My Fault: She utters these last words when she kills herself after being defeated by Priyet.
The Lost Lenore: She becomes this to Priyet, who loved her more than anything else on their world, after her death.
Love Triangle: Ends up being part of one with her two friends when the 'Contract Day' for wizards draws close. She has a crush on her male friend, who wants to pledge with their female mutual friend, who in turn is in love with Saryu. It did not end well for either of them. Her male friend dies, while her female friend is turned into a werecat.
Meaningful Name: Saryu's name comes from the French word for "goodbye", "salut". According to the game's livestream for the final chapter, her name references saying goodbye as the moon rises, making her an incarnation of the Moon.
My God, What Have I Done?: To say that Saryu was 'shocked' when she found out what happened to her friends after she wished for them to disappear for keeping their relationships a secret is an understatement. Upon hearing about her male friend's death and her female friend's disappearance, she personally goes out to find her to make up for her actions.
Not Good with Rejection: She takes it very badly when the Spiky-haired Boy tells her he didn't want to pledge with her and wanted to do it with the Bespectacled Girl instead. Saryu then takes out her rage on Priyet by slapping her. When the girl reveals to her that she actually loves Saryu, she's become too angry to think straight and loses it, screaming that she hates her friends and that she never wants to see them again.
Power Incontinence: When Saryu gets very emotional, her magick starts affecting physical objects near her. It also has disastrous consequences when she accidentally curses Priyet in a fit of rage.
Throw the Dog a Bone: After the ending of her and Priyet's stories on a depressing note in The Story of the Sun and the Moon, The Story of the People and the World's 2nd chapter allows both girls (Saryu in particular) to resolve their issues and reconcile.

The Werebeast

Priyet, the Unsightly Werebeast

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/nier_rein_plie.jpg

A Cursed Pledge; Twisted Emotions

Voiced by: Hitomi Ohwada (Japanese), Tessa Netting (English)

Because You Were Nice to Me: When she was human, she befriended Saryu and the spiky-haired boy because they helped her get her food back in her first day at school.
Bedsheet Ghost: To prevent others from seeing her true appearance, Priyet covers herself with a sheet that makes her resemble a ghost. In her other costumes, they go over the bedsheet. Some of her costumes, like her Reborn version change the bedsheet's color.
Big "NO!": She screams one when Saryu kills herself.
Cat Girl: She's one, due to her originally being a human girl.
Cute Kitten: Resembles a giant plush kitten.
Foil: To Dimos and how they relate to the character of the first chapter.
- Where Rion finds Dimos as their story progresses, Priyet loses Saryu by the end of their story.
- Their weapons also reflect this as the gun-wielding Dimos can attack at range, while Priyet has bell-like gauntlets to fight with in close combat.
Forced Transformation: Saryu accidentally cursed her with her current form.
Hearing Voices: In the form of a beastly shadow who encouraged her to kill mages. Believing that killing 100 of them would turn her back into a human, she did so anyway.
Incompatible Orientation: Though Priyet is in love with Saryu, Saryu is only attracted to their mutual best friend. This also applies to the friend as well, as he has feelings for Priyet. The Story of the People and the World eventually allows Saryu and Priyet to reconcile, with the chapter ending with the former promising to stay with the latter and forgiving her for her past actions.
Informed Flaw: The narrative often frames her as a hideous werebeast, despite the fact that she looks like an adorable Halloween mascot.
Meaningful Name: Priyet's name comes from the Russian word for "hello", "privet". According to the game's livestream for the final chapter, her name references saying hello to the morning sun, making her an incarnation of the Sun.
Mega Neko: Priyet looks like a large kitten, complete with cat ears and a tail. When she was human, she was a Meganekko.
Serial Killer: Priyet killed 99 mages, including her mutual male friend with Saryu, while she hallucinated a faint hope to restore her humanity, thinking she'd been manipulated by a shadow that looked like her.
Shrinking Violet: As a human, Priyet was very shy. When her food was stolen in her first day at school, she was left crying and uncertain of what to do.
The Reveal: Priyet is the Bespectacled Girl from Saryu's story, who vanished at the end.
Walking Spoiler: Her origins and relations to Saryu make her one.

The Songstress

Marie, the Virtual Songstress

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/nier_rein_marie.jpg

A Promise Remembered; A Gentle Melody

Voiced by: Azusa Tadokoro (Japanese), Baraka May (English)

Beautiful Singing Voice: But of course. She uses this to entertain her country during wartimes.
Empty Shell: She's left unable to remember why she sang after Yurie's maiming.
Eye Scream: Yurie overpowers Marie and steals her eye, along with the very thing the former needs to be "complete".
Meaningful Name: Marie is named after the wife of Carl Nielsen, who composed the Helios Overture. Helios is the god of the Sun in Roman Mythology.
Musical Theme Naming: Doubling with Named After Somebody Famous with Yurie as both are named after women associated with famous composers.
Noodle Incident: It's unclear what exactly happened during her time as her country's ruler, but a moment of hesitation led to the deaths of thousands and the loss of the original capital, leading to her removal from power and her being replaced by Yurie.
- It is later adverted in her EX story where one learns that said incident was sparing a man from execution, despite him committing treason and opening the nation to enemy attacks. In spite of her counsel and compassion (as the man's motive for committing treason was due to his daughter being held hostage), the Conclave (those responsible for developing her) decide to strip her authority away.
- This was made even WORSE by the fact that the Conclave KNEW that not killing him wouldn't change much in the long run.
Nice Girl: Her peaceful nature makes her popular among her fans.
Ridiculously Human Robots: As detailed in Yurie's story, it turns out that Marie is actually "Unit One", an AI designed to govern her nation and guide it through times of war. While she was an excellent AI initially, her conscience eventually lead her to make poor decisions, resulting in her being deposed with Yurie.
Starting a New Life: After she was "fired" as the ruler, Marie reinvented herself as a singer. She also altered her appearance.
What Happened to the Mouse?: The end of her story ends abruptly before she could finish her sentence. While Yuzuki and Hina assume that the story ended on a good note, Mama and Papa's responses imply otherwise. This is undone in Yurie's story, which concludes both of their stories at once. Her sister attacked her while she was ruminating.
You Are Number 6: She's known by the scientists who created her as "Artificial Intelligence Unit One".

The Ruler

Yurie, the Digital-Age Empress

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/nier_rein_yuri.jpg

A Mission Unforgotten; A Fervent Eye

Voiced by: Haruka Tomatsu (Japanese), Dawn M. Bennett (English)

All for Nothing: She wanted to be complete to be a better ruler than her predecessor. The country fell while she had her Heroic BSoD, making her a failure as well.
Benevolent A.I.: She's the AI ruler of the country Marie lives in. Although her methods are underhanded, she cares deeply for her people.
Berserk Button: Do not even think of so much as saying words like "incomplete" or "imperfect" in her presence, or she will become irate. She nearly shoots a man in the head when he refers to a weapon he's developing as incomplete.
Cain and Abel: She's the Cain to Marie's Abel. Despite the latter's failure as a ruler, Yurie still envied her because she was complete unlike her.
Heroic BSoD: Suffers a literal one after she inserts Marie's eye on her socket. Overcome by emotion and remorse, Yurie has an error cascade and freezes. She recovers months later, but by then, her country is in ruins.
Meaningful Name: Yurie is derived from Julie Guicciardi's nickname "Giulietta". Julie was also who Ludwig van Beethoven dedicated the "Moonlight Sonata'" to.
Musical Theme Naming: Doubling with Named After Somebody Famous with Marie as both are named after women associated with famous composers.
My God, What Have I Done?: It turns out that the thing that was supposed to make Yurie "complete" was a conscience. It's so intense she crashes and shuts down for several months.
The Perfectionist: Her insecurities drive her to do everything as perfectly well and complete as possible.
Ridiculously Human Robots: Although not quite a robot in the traditional sense, Yurie is an AI capable of projecting herself as a hologram which is also capable of interacting with the physical world. At the same time, she is extremely insecure about her incomplete state, even though she is unsure of why exactly she is incomplete.
The Unfettered: Yurie does not hesitate in using underhanded methods to fight her foes and protect her city. In her introduction, she uses her intangibility to ignore enemy fire and lead her squad to dispatch their targets. Once the coast is clear, she orders them to place explosive mines on the corpses.
Unfinished, Untested, Used Anyway: She was still under construction when Marie was removed as ruler of her country. As the Conclave that created them both felt that Marie's conscience was an obstacle to ruling efficiently, they left Yurie intentionally unfinished so that she'd be The Unfettered and perform more effectively.
You Are Number 6: She's known by the scientists that created her as "Artificial Intelligence Unit Two".

The Boor

Yudil, the Young Sailor

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/nier_rein_sailor.jpg

A False Departure; The Irretrievable

Voiced by: Ryōhei Kimura (Japanese), Kaiji Tang (English)

"Arabian Nights" Days: Comes from a country that's Arabic in nature. Hina and Yuzuki can even lampshade it as they go further into his story.
Awful Truth: The Story of the People and the World eventually reveals to him and Rion that Sarafa is both the princess and the fortune teller. The poor guy does not take it well and it shocks him so bad he becomes The Load during a story fight, which appears as paralysis in the battle and forces Rion to try to hold off a dark creature that ambushed them on his own until Lars pulls a Big Damn Heroes and saves both boys.
Bait-and-Switch Character Intro: His story starts out with a wealthy young man believed to be Yudil buying clothes to present himself to the princess, only for a thief to rob him. After the obligatory story fight, it's revealed that Yudil is actually the thief, who takes the man's place as the main POV Character.
Berserk Button: Due to a certain issue from his past, he goes absolutely livid when other people try to take what's his.
Bold Explorer: Of the ocean kind, going on voyages on his boat. Or so he says...
Decoy Protagonist: In an Interesting use of the trope, while the game doesn’t hide that Yudil is the protagonist of this story, it doesn’t tell us that the sailor we play the beginning of the first chapter as isn’t Yudil like many players would assume.
Disguised in Drag: The lady that appeared in "Record: Marketplace of Deceit"? That was actually him in disguise after he exposed a seller's bluff.
Foil: Of Argo from the first arc. Both are explorers who live their lives selfishly. However, Argo is an older man who truly explores for a living and has a family, Yudil pretends to be an explorer to woo a princess.
- He's also this to Aladdin from SINoALICE. Both are story characters hailing from "Arabian Nights" Days settings and have similar backgrounds. Both are also thieves but Yudil is currently one while Aladdin is a former thief. However, Yudil is more selfish than Aladdin, who's a Nice Guy albeit obsessed with money.
Meaningful Name: Yudir in the Japanese version is named after a plant closely related to ginseng that's used in medicine and cooking, befitting his origins. His name is also derived from the Arabic words "ydi" ("illuminate") and "zul" ("shadow"), meaning "to lluminate the shadow" when put together.
Taking You with Me: At the end of their stories, just as Sarafa gloats that no one is able to defy their fates as she predicts after stabbing Yudil, Yudil takes her by surprise by stabbing her in return and throws both of them into the ocean to drown together.
The One Guy: Yudil's the only male Memory Character introduced in The Story of the Sun and the Moon, discounting Yuzuki at the end of the arc.

The Belle

Sarafa, the Uncanny Fortune Teller

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/nier_rein_fortuneteller.jpg

A False Prophecy; The Elusive

Voiced by: Chika Anzai (Japanese), Anairis Quiñones (English)

Another Side, Another Story: Sarafa's chapter story is basically Yudil's but from her point of view.
Fortune Teller: But of course. It's in her title.
Living a Double Life: By day she's the princess of the kingdom Yudil lives in, by night she's a fortune-teller.
Meaningful Name: Sarafa's name is derived from the Arabic greeting "ma'at salama" ("farewell") and the word in the same language "fajr" ("dawn)"; put together it means "To leave at dawn".
Rose-Haired Sweetie: Subverted - pink-haired, yes but the "sweetie" part isn't who she really is.
You Can't Fight Fate: Her belief. She takes an interest to Yudil when he laughs at her prediction.

Companions

In General

It Only Works Once: They can only fire their attack once per quest. To compensate, their attacks also act as a Status Buff and hit quite hard.
Power Floats: They all fly and/or float besides the party member that equips them. If anyone is knocked out, they'll fly near the survivors.
Stat Stick: They boost the stats of whoever equips them, depending on the type of companion.
Status Buff: They have two types of buff. An active buff that activates when they attack and a passive buff that boosts the entire party. The latter can either be a boost to resistance to a single element (X Shutdown) or a buff to the damage all party members can do with that element (X Support). The Companion with the strongest passive buff will override the other buffs of the same type and element.

Bears

Capitalism Is Bad: Sandra became a firm believer of it after she realized her worth came from the golden nut in her chest.
Dark Is Not Evil: Andre's original owner was a Jerk with a Heart of Gold. He was the only one who knew about it.
Glass Cannon: They buff their owners' attack damage.
It Can Think: The bears developed minds of their own.

Dolls

Tomes

Status Buff: They have the strongest passive buffs when fully upgraded, increasing damage or elemental resistance for the whole party by 20%.

Spirits

Cargo Cult: An unspecified civilization worships them as deities.
Our Spirits Are Different: They resemble strange spheres with hand-shaped wings.

Dragons

Mechs

Mechanical Lifeforms: They're Pods from the world of NieR: Automata.

Authors of the Lost Archives

In General

Trapped in Another World: These “Travelers” were also transported to the Cage prior to the main story.

The Blogger of “All Things Occult”

The Army Survey Corps

ERROR

The Pale Man

The Brunette Girl

Other Characters

The Cursed Gods

Mysterious entities that roam the Cage, allegedly to do harm. They're immensely powerful, but don't attack unless provoked.

Animalistic Abomination: They resemble gigantic mooses with pitch-black skin, mechanical heads with glowing white eyes and a mountain in their back. The elemental Cursed Gods have varied types of horns and head shapes.
Ambiguously Evil: Carrier claims that it's an evil being, but so far, it hasn't done anything to warrant that description.
Attack of the 50-Foot Whatever: Should you decide to fight one, their bodies are so massive that they can't fully fit on the screen.
Invincible Villain: Elemental Cursed Gods cannot be killed, only dealt as much damage as possible within the 6 minutes you fight them.
Physical God: It's a god with the body of a strange-looking moose.
Shout-Out: Its moose-like form and its title as a "cursed god" can be seen as references to Princess Mononoke.
- Its face looks suspiciously similar to an EVA unit's. As it just so happens, Yoko Taro cites Neon Genesis Evangelion as one of the inspirations for his writing.
Shows Damage: When the Knock Down bar progresses and the Cursed Gods are stunned, their bodies and horns begin to fill with glowing cracks and break.
Sleep-Mode Size: When knocked down, they turn into balls covered in Tron Lines of the same color as their element. They also take much more damage while in that form.
Superboss:
- Fighting the one in Chapter 8 is entirely optional, but doing so recommends a team strength of 150,000. Its kin from the Subjugation Battles are even stronger.
- Subjugation Battles are focused on fighting them. The weakest Cursed Gods have a force of 150,000, while the strongest have 350,000.
Time-Limit Boss: Subjugation Battles give you 2 minutes per phase to deal as much damage as possible to a Cursed God before the time runs out and it banishes the current party to progress to the next phase.

Carrier Substitute

Voiced by: Ichitaro Ai (Japanese), Ian James Corlett (English)

A member of the Carrier's race who steps in for him when he's summoned by his superiors.

Foreshadowing: His similar uniform and that he's also a carrier imply that the Carrier isn't the only one of his kind.
In-Series Nickname: Fio calls him "Tutie".
The Unintelligible: The Substitute slurs so much that the subtitles the game provides are the only way to understand anything he's saying.

The Old Man/Boy (Unmarked Post-Chapter 6 spoilers!)

An old man who is encountered in Chapter 3 and then in Chapter 10 as a boy. When he was a boy, he was somehow chased out of the Scarecrow by Griff's forces and became trapped within the Cage.

I Want My Mommy!: Even as an old man, he just wants to see his mother. He even says this for verbatim as a child. Unfortunately for him, his mother had died shortly after he became trapped in the Cage.
I Will Wait for You: The boy decided to stay put and not wander off any longer in case his mother is still looking for him. Yet, it will still be meaningless since she’s already dead.
Manchild: He talks like a child when he becomes old, probably due to the fact that only four months had passed since Chapter 10, so he would not have been able to socially mature that quickly.
Rapid Aging: Even though four months had passed between Chapters 10 and 6, the boy rapidly ages into an old man.

The Parents

The Deleted User (POTENTIAL UNMARKED SPOILERS)

Her/Female Administrator

Voiced by: Yui Ishikawa (Japanese)

A mysterious entity whom the Arc 2 Bedsheet Ghost companions, Papa and Dark Mama, answer to.

She is later revealed to be one of The Administrators, Her, from Ending E of NieR: Replicant ver. 1.22 and the main antagonist of Re[in]carnation. Originally created by the Male Administrator/Him within the quantum server that stored all of humanity's past, present and future, She was accidentally abandoned within the destroyed server when Kainé destroyed it to resurrect Nier, forcing Her to wander the remnants of the server for eternity and causing loneliness and resentment to fester in Her heart. She eventually absorbed a dying Red Girl's data following the latter's defeat at the hands of A2, giving Her the means to bring down everything humanity had left in their wake and relinquish Her suffering once and for all.

For more information about her, see her tab here.

Big Bad: She ends up as this for Re[in]carnation after the events of NieR: Replicant ver. 1.22's Ending E.
Defeat Means Friendship: Once She's defeated, she eventually accepts Fio's offer of friendship and companionship.
Final Boss: She serves as this for The Story of the People and the World and the game as a whole.
Fusion Dance: With one of the Red Girls who were defeated by A2 in the Tower. Using the latter's powers, she then remade Earth to resemble the aliens' homeworld, which also drastically changed the layout of the Cage.
He Who Must Not Be Seen: She did not appear in person throughout The Story of the Sun and the Moon, but eventually shows up in the final chapter of The Story of the People and the World.
The Man Behind the Man: It's eventually revealed in The Story of the People and the World that She created Papa and Dark Mama to use Hina and Yuzuki's conflict to open a path from the Cage to Earth, created the Black Birds and Cursed Gods as viruses attacking the Cage and is responsible for Carrier's Beehive Barrier. On the other hand, Mama is the only Bedsheet Ghost who does not answer to Her as she serves 10H instead.
No Name Given: She was known as "The Deleted User" for a long time and even when She was revealed she still was not named, only going by She or Her.
Sole Survivor: Of Kainé's attack on the Administrators, which was unexpected.
Walking Spoiler: Beware, all ye who have not completed Arc 2. Even more so since Replicant v1.22's Ending E is required viewing for Her backstory in Arc 3.
Woobie, Destroyer of Worlds: Her actions in Re[in]carnation are the result of her twin's death in Replicant, so it's understandable that she'd end up this way.

(SPOILER WARNING)

Mourning Mother

The Final Boss of The Story of the People and the World's Chapter 4. Like Her Inflorescence before her, she is a Grotesquerie Queen possibly linked to the Queen Beast from the original Drakengard.

The Bus Came Back: The 4th Grotesquerie Queen encounter since Drakengard, Drakengard 3 and the YoRHa: Dark Apocalpyse raids.
Call-Back: Once again, fighting this Grotesquerie Queen involves a Rhythm Game. Unlike the Queen Beast and Her Inflorescence however, Mourning Mother isn't truly defeated at the end as Mama made getting all the Memory Characters who appeared in The Story of the People and the World out of the Cage her main priority.
- Additionally, there's a visual callback with her reaching to the sky with her mouth wide open and her thin tongue hanging out.
Eldritch Abomination: For starters, she doesn't have any eyes.
Final Boss: For Chapter 4 of The Story of the People and the World.
Greater-Scope Villain: If she is a Grotesquerie Queen as is heavily implied, she's a Watcher, meaning she's part of the same group that serves as this for the entire Drakengard and NieR franchises as a whole. More specifically for Reincarnation, she's behind the black crows plaguing the Cage, brainwashed Yurie in Chapter 3 and may have corrupted Sarafa and Griff in Chapter 4.
Walking Spoiler: Those who have not finished the chapter and/or don't know about Drakengard's storyline, you have been warned.
Wham Line: In a rarity for "Queen" encounters in the franchise, she actually talks for a bit, cryptically mentioning "our goals" and questioning the value of protecting humanity, a rare instance of the Watchers' or "God"''s apparent agenda coming to the surface.

Characters / NieR Re[in]carnation

Main Characters

Introduced in “The Story of the Girl and the Monster”

Fio

Levania

Introduced in “The Story of the Sun and the Moon”

Hina Akagi (明城陽那 Akagi Hina)

Yuzuki Kurezome (暮染佑月 Kurezome Yuzuki)

Introduced in “The Story of the People and the World”

YoRHa Unit No. 10 Type-H (10H)

Memory Characters

In General

Introduced in “The Story of the Girl and the Monster”

Rion, the Wanderer

Dimos, the Clockwork Soldier

Frenlyze / Gayle, the Prosthetic Hunter

Akeha, the Assassin

Argo, the One Who Challenges Mountains

O63y, the Man in White

F66x, the Woman in White

Lars, the Vengeful Young Soldier

Griff, a Young Captain of Deep Regrets

Noelle, the Sealed Girl

Introduced in “The Story of the Sun and the Moon”

Saryu, the Silver-haired Witch

Priyet, the Unsightly Werebeast

Marie, the Virtual Songstress

Yurie, the Digital-Age Empress

Yudil, the Young Sailor

Sarafa, the Uncanny Fortune Teller

Companions

Authors of the Lost Archives

Other Characters

Her/Female Administrator

Mourning Mother

Previous

Index

Next

Characters / NieR Re[in]carnation

Edit Locked

Main Characters

Introduced in “The Story of the Girl and the Monster”

Fio

Levania

Introduced in “The Story of the Sun and the Moon”

Hina Akagi (明城 陽那 Akagi Hina)

Yuzuki Kurezome (暮染 佑月 Kurezome Yuzuki)

Introduced in “The Story of the People and the World”

YoRHa Unit No. 10 Type-H (10H)

Memory Characters

In General

Introduced in “The Story of the Girl and the Monster”

Rion, the Wanderer

Dimos, the Clockwork Soldier

Frenlyze / Gayle, the Prosthetic Hunter

Akeha, the Assassin

Argo, the One Who Challenges Mountains

O63y, the Man in White

F66x, the Woman in White

Lars, the Vengeful Young Soldier

Griff, a Young Captain of Deep Regrets

Noelle, the Sealed Girl

Introduced in “The Story of the Sun and the Moon”

Saryu, the Silver-haired Witch

Priyet, the Unsightly Werebeast

Marie, the Virtual Songstress

Yurie, the Digital-Age Empress

Yudil, the Young Sailor

Sarafa, the Uncanny Fortune Teller

Companions

Authors of the Lost Archives

Other Characters

Her/Female Administrator

Mourning Mother

Previous

Index

Next

Hina Akagi (明城陽那 Akagi Hina)

Yuzuki Kurezome (暮染佑月 Kurezome Yuzuki)