N
The Daily Insight

Why does Nier kill Shadowlord?

Author

Abigail Rogers

Updated on February 22, 2026

Just like the Replicant Nier (the character played throughout most of the game), Shadowlord's ultimate goal is to save his sister and humanity (the Shades). All the sentient Shades are linked to the Shadowlord, and his death would cause them to relapse.

Herein, what happened when NieR killed the Shadowlord?

It is revealed in NieR:Automata that as a result of Nier killing the Shadowlord, Project Gestalt failed, and humanity became extinct within a thousand years. Because of their failure to stop Nier, Devola and Popola model androids everywhere were blamed entirely for the project's failure.

Secondly, why did Shadowlord kidnap Yonah? The Shadowlord kidnaps the Replicant Yonah in order to cease the relapse and speed up the fusion process with her body. She interrupts the battle between NieR and the Shadowlord to give up her body to the second replicant soul because she feels she loves her brother as much as herself.

Also to know, how does NieR become Shadowlord?

The Shadowlord makes his first in-game appearance as his new form when Nier's village is assaulted by Shades.

Why do shades attack Replicants?

5 Shades Have A Good Reason To Fight Replicants

Replicants were not meant to have any consciousness. They were meant to fight off the Legion and serve as empty bodies to where the Gestalts would eventually return. Upon regaining consciousness, the Replicants were dooming humanity to their current incorporeal state.

Related Question Answers

Is the Shadowlord the real Nier?

The Shadowlord is actually the original Nier, who was the player character in the beginning of the game. In the year 2053, 50 years after the incident where the Dragon and the Giant appeared in Tokyo, Nier and Yonah (as real humans) were trapped in Shinjuku when its lockdown commenced.

Does Kaine have feelings for Nier?

While she's openly rude towards Nier, Kaine develops for a very deep love for him over the course of their journey – something Nier reciprocates. Nier outright says he loves Kaine during the final battle and even kisses her at the end of Ending C.

What did devola and Popola do?

They were made to provide support when the day has come for Gestalts to return to the Replicant's vessels. They are tasked with extracting data from Gestalts' souls, making new Replicants' bodies, and returning a dead Replicant's data to its Gestalt. "Those two have watched the world wither for time immemorial.

Is Nier a father or brother?

The original Nier was developed with two characters in mind: Father Nier and Brother Nier. The father was the protagonist of the 360 version in Japan, which was the only one localized. Nier Replicant will be most audiences' first time playing as Brother Nier, ultimately seeing a very different side to a familiar story.

How did Emil survive?

His head survives the blast and lands in a far away desert. Free from his monstrous body, his head rolls away as he travels in hope of being reunited with his friends. Emil is reminded of seeing his friends die as the humans went to extinct.

Who is the villain in Nier?

Adam is a major character and one of the main antagonists of Routes A and B in NieR: Automata, he is the brother of Eve, despite their android appearance they are classified as machines due to the fact that they were made by machines. He was voiced by Daisuke Namikawa in Japanese and Greg Chun in English.

Is the Shadowlord a replicant?

The Shadowlord is the main Boss in NieR Replicant. He is the antagonist of the game along with his companion, Grimoire Noir.
Shadowlord
Character Type Boss
Species Shade
Companion Grimoire Noir
Location Shadowlord's Castle

Is Yonah a human?

Yonah is the only character seen as a true human in the main game. She is the only character in NieR to appear only in the prologue and part two. Her role in the story mirrors a discarded idea Yoko had for Furiae in Drakengard.

What happens after ending e Nier Replicant?

Ending E is a continuation of ending D, which can be activated after starting a new game and playing up until the second fight with Hook when Nier tries to wake up Kainé. Kainé recovers the person she cherishes, which allows the save file the player got ending D on to be restored.

Should I petrify Kaine?

The short answer to which one players should choose is that it doesn't matter. Players must eventually choose to petrify Kaine if they want to continue playing, unless they consider "be annihilated" to simply mean uninstalling the game and moving on to something else.

Why does Kaine turn into a shade?

When half of her body was taken over by Tyrann, she became a Shade-possessed and gained humanly impossible battle power and the ability to hear the voices of the Shades, but despite this had convinced herself that they are all evil and deserve to die (Tyrann even mockingly asks her if she's going to sympathize with the

What happened Grimoire Weiss?

7 What Happened To Him Is Not Clear

At The End of Nier Replicant, Grimoire Weiss loses his physical form when he decides to use all his power to restrain the Shadowlord. That was the only way Nier would have a shot against his Gestalt self and apparently caused Weiss to lose his physical form.

What happened to the Replicants Nier?

In NieR: Automata, we are told that the last remaining humans actually flew to the moon after aliens invaded Earth. This suggests that Project Gestalt must have been a success, and the Gestalts were able to fuse with the Replicants in the end. Long story short: Replicants are all dead, and humanity is a lie.

Are shades Gestalts?

Shades are the main Enemies of NieR Replicant. Shades, also known as Gestalts, are abundant in the World of NieR Replicant and are NieR's main opponents. Monsters called Shades now roam the land, threatening our very lives.

What is Yonah sick with?

Black Scrawl is the ailment that affected Yonah, which caused strange black runes to appear on her skin. Nier was trying to find a cure for it, at any cost.

Who loves Yonah most?

The correct answer is that Yonah loves here brother more than anything. Her brother being you, the player, of course. You are supposed to enter the same name you entered when you started the game and it asked you for your name.

Is Yonah cured?

In case players missed it, Yonah is about to die. The endings change how Gestalt Yonah reunites with her brother, and what happens to Kainé and Nier. However, in all endings, Yonah still has the Black Scrawl and no cure was found.

Why does Nier tell Yonah not touch the book?

It was pretty clear that using the Grimoire was making humans turn into crazy, mindless souls who hunted their own kin. This is why Nier repeatedly told his sister not to touch the book. Yonah touched the Grimoire Noir because she wanted to help, but the Grimoire has never helped anyone around her.

Is Grimoire Weiss still alive?

According to side materials, his consciousness remains within the world without a body. He hasn't completely disappeared from existence. In the DLC, Nier and Grimoire Weiss happen upon a diary.

Are shades relapsed Gestalts?

Due to the relapse phenomenon Shades could become hostile and aggressive monsters, which are encountered throughout the game. Replicants and Gestalts can retain their sapience due to the existence of the Original Gestalt, who is known only as the leader of the Shades, or Shadowlord, by Replicants.

Who dies in NieR Replicant?

The Gestalt Yonah, whom the Shadowlord has tried to save for over a thousand years, dies.

Can Replicants have babies NieR?

The term "replicant" originally came from the sci-fi movie Blade Runner. Director Taro Yoko says, "Even if they can't reproduce, Replicants still have sex drive. Replicants don't realize that they can't have babies since they have no concept of what normal childbirth looks like.

Are devola and Popola replicants?

Just like Emil, Devola and Popola are returning characters from NieR who play a part in the events of NieR: Automata. This marked the end and failure of Project Gestalt, and all of the Devola and Popola models gathered the Replicant data and sent them to the moon.

Is emils Butler an android?

Appearance and Personality

He is tall (although not as tall as Nier), with a short haircut, and is dressed in a grey coverall and white undergarments. Weiss and Nier say that this being can't be human, making it clear that Sebastian is actually an android. There are various Sebastians in Emil's Manor.