Highlights

  • Borderlands 4 is in development, and Nyriad, an ancient Siren, may be a key element in the game's narrative.
  • Nyriad's writings reveal that she sealed away an ancient evil, the Destroyer, and warns of its return as well as the existence of a mysterious "Seventh" Siren.
  • Nyriad's role in the future of the Borderlands series remains to be seen, but she is poised to play a significant part in the lore.

Borderlands 4 has been the focus of much attention in the gaming community, despite the title having yet to be officially confirmed by developer Gearbox Software. While Borderlands 2 was a benchmark in looter-shooter gaming, Borderlands 3 failed to live up to the hype. However, the title featured one truly compelling element, an ancient Siren named Nyriad, whose various recordings hinted at the return of an overwhelmingly powerful foe. With Borderlands 4 recently leaked to be in development, fans have begun to speculate about the future of the series and whether the title will conclude its overarching narrative thus far. If so, there's a good chance that Nyriad will play a big role in Borderlands 4.

Nothing is truly known about Borderlands 4, aside from the fact that it is in development. However, fans have been speculating about its major elements since the release of Borderlands 3. Many are particularly focused on its main antagonist, as Borderlands 3’s Calypso Twins failed to leave a lasting impression, let alone match the shadow cast by Handsome Jack, one of gaming’s most beloved villains. However, Nyriad may hold the key to solving that very element, as players discover her role in containing an ancient evil centuries before the modern Borderlands Universe began to take shape.

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Borderlands 3’s Nyriad Explained

Despite its weak narrative, Borderlands 3 revealed quite a bit of lore regarding the franchise’s Sirens. Most significantly, the title introduced an ancient Siren named Nyriad, whose writings provide a history of the Eridians, the Guardians, and the Destroyer, whom players faced a portion of in the original Borderlands. It is revealed that Nyriad eradicated the Eridians to energize the Pyre, which she used to imprison the Destroyer within Pandora. Nyriad's powers, the Power of the Leech, are an incredible burden and pose a significant danger to the universe. For this reason, the Siren’s writings come off as those of a reluctant observer forced to take action in times of extreme peril.

The act of sealing The Destroyer away left Nyriad feeling overwhelmed with guilt, leading her to fear what may happen if her powers were inherited by another. In order to prevent that from happening, Nyriad traveled to Nekrotafeyo and sealed herself inside its Vault. However, her plan ultimately failed. After Typhon DeLeon and his wife Leda opened the Vault on Nekrotafeyo, the power managed to escape, leading to its manifestation in the eldest of their children, Tyreen of the Calypso Twins.

Nyriad's Final Logs Point to a Much Greater Role in Borderlands 4

In her final logs, Nyriad ushers a warning to "the ones who are listening", aka the players, about looming threats to the universe. The first is the return of the Destroyer and, more significantly, its Creator. She reveals that The Destroyer knows the secrets of the cultures it devours, therefore possessing knowledge unknown to even the Eridians and Sirens about their own origins. She fears that someone may attempt to unleash the Destroyer for this and other reasons, as the Eridians spread word of its whereabouts and the glory of discovering its whereabouts as a means of luring food to their prisoner. It was this trap that ushered in the narrative for the very first Borderlands title.

Nyriad also issues a mysterious warning about "finding the Seventh", seemingly alluding to a seventh Siren whose powers threaten the balance of the universe itself. While Borderlands lore has long held a "Rule of Six" which states that exactly six Sirens exist at any given time, Nyriad's writings appear to refute this narrative. Nyriad states that Sirens always find their way to other Sirens unless prevented from doing so, a phenomenon known as Siren Sisterhood. As this "Seventh" has yet to manifest across recorded time, it is possible that they were sealed away due to their power, or exist in a place that is so threatening to the larger universe that Nyriad is urging future civilizations not to go looking for her.

It remains to be seen just how Nyriad's writings will manifest in Borderlands 4, but the ancient Siren is likely to play a major role in one way or another. With the re-emergence of the Destroyer looming, her powers again released by Tyreen's defeat, and the existence of the Seventh Siren revealed, Nyriad is the springboard for the Borderlands series' future. While Nyriad may be dead, she could return in some fashion with the Destroyer's escape. Nyriad is shaping up to be among the most important figures in Borderlands' lore, and the series' next entry could see the Siren play an enormous role in saving the universe, whether living or dead.