User blog:Hereticalthoughts/The Nameless Usurper is... Nashandra?

Hello again everyone, Hereticalthoughts here with another crackpot theo... bit of speculation concerning the Dark Spirit known as... the Nameless Usurper.

There will be spoilers, if you have not yet played Dark Souls 2 and would rather not have elements from the game revealed, I would advise you not to read this blog page.

This Dark Spirit and her identity is certainly one of the more hotly debated ones in Dark Souls 2 because of her almost identical appearance to an npc known as Licia of Lindelt, a cleric with less than divine motives, it would seem. The evidence put forth towards this is rather solid, as the Usurper is certainly of the same build as Licia, wears the same clothing, and most players can easily decipher that our little nun is hiding something in her habit... but there is one slight bit of difference. You see, the Usurper attacks with a knife and only a knife, whilst Licia possesses a rather potent bit of power from her miracles and relies on them. If the Usurper were Licia, then why wouldn't she be using her miracles to defeat her enemies? Why rely on a knife to kill an opponent? Finally, why attack the Chosen Undead in front of Drangleic Castle?

Well, perhaps she's not Licia, perhaps she's the queen in disguise. Consider if you will:

Now, anyone who has completed the game knows readily enough that Nashandra is a daughter of Manus, that she came to Drangleic in disguise, that she seduced Vendrick into doing many things, and that her ultimate goal was to claim the First Throne, which is strongly hinted at as the kiln of the First Flame. Judging from how she interacted with the people around her and the success she had before her downfall at the player's hands, it's clear that Nashandra was quite cunning and could hide her nature well, even being able to shift from a human form to one much more monstrous in nature when it suited her purposes. These skills, traits, and her lust for power make the title of "usurper" a perfect fit for her. To add one more tidbit, it would appear that with the red gone, the Usurper looks like Licia, who looks rather similar to Nashandra...

Of course, there are issues with this theory, I can't explain how Nashandra could reduce her size or why she might attack, and I will readily admit that this is speculation and conjecture based mostly off of my own thoughts. Still, I think it's a potentially plausible theory.

Thank you for taking the time to read this.

-Hereticalthoughts