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Xira Arien
Xira the Golden Sting
Details
Race Eumidian
Birthplace Unknown
Lifetime War with Phyrexia
Died 3607 AR
Colors
{B}{R}{G}
Sources
Johan, Assassin's Blade, Emperor's Fist, Champion's Trial

There were two characters named Xira Arien in the Magic storyline.

The Glass Mountain[ | ]

The first was the apprentice of Johan from the first Legends Cycle (Johan, Jedit & Hazezon). She was also known as the Glass Mountain.

The Eumidian[ | ]

The second was an eumidian and a master assassin and wizard working for Ramses Overdark in 3607 AR. When Overdark was ordered by Nicol Bolas to stop the uprising of the Edemi Islands he sent Xira to assassinate the leader of the rebellion, Lady Caleria. Xira was also ordered to lure Tetsuo Umezawa to Argenti, for Overdark hoped Umezawa would die fighting against the rebels, making Overdark's position stronger. Xira did this by infecting Kei Takahashi with her offspring. Xira hoped that she could use her offspring against Overdark, who kept her on a very short leash, but Tetsuo and Ayesha Tanaka killed it before it could fully develop. Kei did have to live with horrible insectoid mutations, however, for which Tetsuo later tracked her down and killed her.[1]

Continuity issues[ | ]

Most people think that these two versions of the character could be the same. The Xira from the second Legends Cycle was a far more experienced fighter but she didn't appear to have aged much. This could be a problem for the theory, but since next to nothing is known about eumidian physiology it could well be normal for them to live for longer than humans. Another problem is that the original Xira Arien was depicted as a human, not a eumidian. It's worth noting, however, that Xira was able to transform Kei Takahashi into a Eumidian via biological means, so it's not impossible the same was done to her human self between the events of Legends I and Legends II. But this all remains a theory until a future novel sorts things out. Most likely, the writers of the two books interpreted Xira's card differently, with one assuming she was an insect person, which was later supported by the change in her creature type, but the flavor text indicates she is just in costume.

Story appearances[ | ]

Title Author Publishing date Set Setting (plane) Featuring
Johan Clayton Emery April 2001 Legends Dominaria Hazezon Tamar, Jaeger Ojanen, Johan, Xira Arien, Adira Strongheart, Lucrezia
Assassin's Blade Scott McGough December 2002 Legends Dominaria Wasitora, Tetsuo Umezawa, Ramses Overdark, Lady Orca, Xira Arien, Kei Takahashi, Tor Wauki the Younger, Ayesha Tanaka, Marhault Elsdragon, Jorgan Hage, Gosta Dirk, Kasimir, Lord Magnus, Lady Caleria
Emperor's Fist Scott McGough March 2003 Legends Dominaria Tetsuo Umezawa, Ramses Overdark, Marhault Elsdragon, Jorgan Hage, Ayesha Tanaka, Kolo Meha, Gosta Dirk, Ramirez DePietro, Kei Takahashi, Wasitora, Barktooth Warbeard, Tor Wauki the Younger, Lord Magnus, Lady Caleria, Xira Arien, Lady Orca, Halfdane, Nicol Bolas
Champion's Trial Scott McGough November 2003 Legends Dominaria Tetsuo Umezawa, Kolo Meha, Nicol Bolas, Wasitora, Jorgan Hage, Sergeant Chada, Lady Caleria, Lord Magnus, Xira Arien, Hatoki, Gosta Dirk, Ramirez DePietro, Ayesha Tanaka, Tor Wauki the Younger, Halfdane, Ramses Overdark

Gallery[ | ]

In-game references[ | ]

Represented in:
Associated cards:

References[ | ]

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