Kirin (Azure Striker Gunvolt)

==Summary==
Kirin is an adept shrine maiden who works for the counterpart to Sumeragi, Shadow Yakumo as their battle priestess. Her unique Septima, Radiant Fetters allows her to seal enemy Septimas and take them for herself. One day, Shadow Yakumo sends her to investigate Sumeragi activity, importing a massive amount of Glaives to a newly built Sumeragi Futures Institute of Technology. Finding out this was to keep Gunvolt's newfound power under control, Shadow Yakumo orders her to seal and purify Gunvolt. 
She discovers the Azure Striker, Gunvolt ascended as a being beyond Adepts and their Septimas, a "Primal Dragon". Ever since he was awakened to this new power, he emitted "Dragon Radiation", turning other Adepts into Berserk "Primal Dragons". Their fight ends with her sealing Gunvolt away with her Septima, "Radiant Fetters", and the two team up to seal away these Primal Dragons before terrible consequences occur. 
As they recruit more sealed Primal Dragons, now united as a group called the "Dragon Saviors" led by Kirin, they discover the schemes of an organization named ATEMS. Their leader, ZEDΩ, seeks to rule the world as a benevolent dictator to finally solve the everlasting conflicts between humans, Adepts, and now the chaotic mess of the Primal Dragons. To do that he wants to evoke the fate manipulating powers of the true ruler of the Primal Dragons, "Moebius", before it decides to wake up and choose a terrible fate with its Octima, "Astral Order". Kirin and the Dragon Saviors go to thwart this plan and stop Moebius himself before he chooses a terrible fate upon the world. At the cost of Gunvolt disappearing with Moebius, Kirin and the Dragon Saviors stop the Octima user and secured the fate of their world. Now leading the Dragon Saviors to seal away any more remaining Primal Dragons, Kirin promises Gunvolt that she will secure the peace of the world he once called home.
==Powers and Stats==
Tier: , higher with Offensive Skills, various Image Pulses, even higher with Djinn's Wish and Golden Trillion
Name: Kirin
Origin: Azure Striker Gunvolt
Gender: Female
Age: Likely a teenager (Has stated to have skipped a few grades of her high school education)
Classification: Adept
Powers and Abilities: 
<tabber widths=200>
|-|Base=
|-|Djinn's Wish & Golden Trillion=
All previous, in addition to:
*Unlimited Talismans, meaning unlimited Prevasion and further Layered Sealing (4D - Multiversal+, suppressed and sealed away Moebius-Gunvolt's Astral Order, despite normal Moebius being able to resist her previous attempt to seal him)
*Forcefield Creation (Zed's Aura is increased in size and now is a forcefield that blocks physical projectiles- an aura which he had given to Kirin), Fire Manipulation, Light Manipulation, Radiation Manipulation (Zed had given Kirin the power of his Septima). 
*Limited Resistance to Fate Manipulation and Probability Manipulation (4D - Multiversal+, Astral Order allows the user to see innumerable and countless fates and futures, and then choose one to their liking, described as choosing from a wide sea of countless stars- it's user Moebius being called "omnipotent" and being assumed it could make any future possible, including terrible world destroying outcomes to an ideal world in ATEMS's exact vision.)
*Djinn, being the same type of Septima as the Muse likely gives her: Regeneration (High End Mid-Godly, scaling to Gunvolt's Anthem. Allowed Kirin to come back from being killed by Astral Order) and Immortality (Type 3)
*Possibly Regeneration Negation (High End Mid-Godly, managed to kill Moebius-Gunvolt in the bad ending, although this could be because Gunvolt suppressed his regenerative powers, being psychic in nature to allow this). 
|-|Resistances=Resistance to Life Manipulation (Powerful Adepts are able to resist the effects of Ferrous Fangs, which instantly kill all organic beings), Organic Manipulation and Limited Absorption (sufficiently strong Adepts can survive Stratos's bugs), Limited Brainwashing (Since Septima is greatly influenced by an Adept's mental state, it is difficult to perform brainwashing without the power of the Muse on a rampaging Adept), Limited Macro-Quantum Manipulation (Primal Dragon State Gunvolt is unable to affect Kirin's electrons as she Prevades, a primary reason why Azure Strikers can bypass Prevasion not wielded by other Strikers. This is supported by how Blade or a Berserk Anthem GV can bypass Prevasion despite being in a berserk state like Primal Dragon Gunvolt. However, more advanced Azure Strikers can still bypass this), Heat Manipulation and Radiation Manipulation (can fight ZEDΩ and not be affected by his nuclear fusion based abilities, along with his nuclear fire attacks- as well as fight in extremely hot areas such as Sistina's stage), Limited Soul Manipulation (Can take up to four hits from Black Badge's Deadly Wraith without Prevasion, each dealing damage down to the soul, before being instantly killed, can survive Wonder-Ice Prison, which involves a stronger variant of Tenjian's Seven Slashes), Time Stop (Is unaffected by Copen's tagged Cryo Flash), Timeline Manipulation, Existence Erasure, Time Manipulation, Spatial Manipulation, Soul Manipulation, Death Manipulation, Conceptual Manipulation (Type 3) (4-D - Multiversal+, can survive Moebius's Damnatio Memorie, which erases every possible past of a victim that would lead them to that point in time, which upscales from Wonder-Ice Prison, which she also survives, a stronger variant of Tenjian's Seven Slashes that targets those "existences" that Damnatio Memorie should also be able to erase due to its real name in JP being "Erasing Existence"), Greater Mind Manipulation/Madness Manipulation (4D - Type 2; Uniquely to her, Kirin can fight Primal Dragon Gunvolt in melee combat without being affected by his "Dragon Radiation", which suddenly turns Adepts berserk and into other Primal Dragons after long period of time if only exposed to the small amounts of the energy generated from Gunvolt used in households- as well as resist the radiation of any other Primal Dragon's radiation, who use a more heavy dose and direct exposure that quickly subjects all other beings to it due to being in a public space instead of through simple electricity generated energy. She states that she is the only person who can seal away Primal Dragons without succumbing to Dragon Radiation), Below Absolute Zero (can take hits from Tenjian), Spatial Manipulation and Existence Erasure (can take a hit from Jota's Phosphatorium), Limited Fate Manipulation and Probability Manipulation (4-D - Multiversal+; Momentarily survived the effects of Astral Order before eventually succumbing to it), possibly Poison Manipulation (Kirin is unaffected by the seemingly poisonous gasses of certain enemies in Sistina's stage)
|-|Image Pulses=Memory Manipulation and Summoning (Kirin can summon "Image Pulses": memories past foes and allies conjured by Gunvolt's Azure Striker, like Demerzel, and are then permanently sealed into Kirin's Talismans via Radiant Fetters- turning them into resummon-able familiars to assist in battle, added to her collection forever). They possess the ability to ignore Prevasion (Layered 4D - Multiversal+; can pierce even Moebius-Gunvolt's and Zed's Vibratio with Image Pulses, likely because of them being made out of Gunvolt's Septima, which can ignore Prevasion. Gunvolt himself was able to Prevade Moebius's Damnatio Memorie)
*A showcase of all Image Pulses can be shown here and here
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Attack Potency: Multi-Continent level (Defeated a weakened and just waking up Primal Dragon Gunvolt on her own. Defeated Djinn's Wish Black Badge- who should be comparable to a boost from the Muse. Fought iX2 Copen. Defeated ZEDΩ at full power and Moebius alongside Gunvolt, who is more powerful than Primal Dragon Gunvolt. Managed to hold her own against Moebius-Gunvolt, who can destroy the world, before the latter used Astral Order. Able to fight Copen during Luminous Avenger iX 2), higher with Offensive Skills and various Image Pulses (Divine Ruin Heresy, Divine Ruin Arc, and Pale Mist Refined are all capable of majorly damaging the previously mentioned foes. Various Image Pulses summon other Adepts that use their SP Skill- their ultimate attacks), even higher with Djinn's Wish and Golden Trillion (Defeated Moebius-Gunvolt mostly due to the power boost received by the Djinn.)
Speed: Relativistic+ travel speed with FTL+ combat speed and reactions (Should be comparable to Gunvolt, her swordplay is this fast), higher with Dash, even higher with Talismans, Arc Chain, and Offensive Skills (her talismans are thrown far faster than Kirin can move, her Arc Chain slows down the world significantly from her perspective, allowing her to dodge attacks that require high precision to of ones movement to dodge, all of her Offensive Skills involve moving at extremely high speeds compared to normal, freezing the game's time as she performs them)
Lifting Strength: Class P (Able to escape Grazie's sand tornados while using her SP Skill- one of her strongest attacks, who can create the Sunrise Palace)
Striking Strength: Multi-Continent level
Durability: Multi-Continent level, far higher with Djinn’s Wish and Golden Trillion, Prevasion and various Healing methods makes her very difficult to kill
Stamina: Superhuman (can fight her way up a sand filled tower filled with various obstacles, fight four Adepts with the power of the Binding Brands, one of which summoned Sumeragi and Eden bosses from previous games to fight her simultaneously, fought ZEDΩ, who was then boosted by Djinn, and fought Moebius, and an even more powerful Gunvolt possessed by Moebius right after that, all in the same battle back to back. Can fight with a lack of oxygenSistina's Mid-Stage Dialogue)
Range: Extended Melee Range with sword; at least Tens of Meters to Hundreds of Meters by throwing paper talismans (her throwing distance should have similar range to Gunvolt's Bolts); Tens of Kilometers with Gunvolt's teleportation; Varies with Image Pulses
Standard Equipment: Sword, countless paper talismans, the Lumen Image Pulse which enables Prevasion, Azure Striker Gunvolt (as her dog)
Intelligence: Gifted, likely Genius
Trained as one of Shadow Yakumo's Battle Priestesses in "Shadow Yakumo Swordfighting", who are implied to have a substantial amount of training- so much so that fighting through one of the most heavily guarded Sumeragi facilities, the Sumeragi Futures Institute of Technology that houses the most dangerous being in the world and the power source of the entire country,Azure Striker Gunvolt 3; 2022; Post Intro Stage Cutscene and Sistina's Mid-Stage Dialouge, where it is explained that the electricity Gunvolt gives off was used to power the entire country, called "Gunvolt Electric"- shutting off the need for fossil fuels entirely only reminded her of her "early training days".Azure Striker Gunvolt 3; 2022; Intro Stage Mid-Stage Dialouge Kirin has been trained as a Battle Priestess throughout most of her entire life,This is evidenced as Kirin mentions that thanks to being part of Shadow Yakumo, she was already able to finish her education at a high school level due to extralegal measures, meaning that she must have been in Shadow Yakumo for most of her life to skip those grades in the first place to make time for her training, she also describes the internet as her "lifeline" due to Shadow Yakumo's location being in the middle of nowhere; Azure Striker Gunvolt 3; 2022; Conversations with Cayman at the mission select menu, Apollo's Mid-Stage Dialogue building up a fighting style completely unique to her.Azure Striker Gunvolt 3; 2022; Conversations with Gunvolt at the mission select menu Is an extremely skilled swordswoman despite wielding a blade that is implied to be rather dull, skilled enough to deflect or even reflect projectiles out of the air with her swordswomanship despite her blade being nothing but a well-crafted sword.Azure Striker Gunvolt 3; 2022; Conversations with Apollo at the mission select menu Has more knowledge about the world related to Shadow Yakumo that even Gunvolt, who has been around for decades, such as Glaives, Binding Brands, and the Dragon Veins. Smart enough to skip grades and is fully educated to a high school level. Can fight and seal away Primal Dragons who have power beyond those of simple Adepts, one of which has the most powerful Septima in the world and capable of destroying the entire world and is constantly shown to be superior to Kirin in strength, before she even had her Arc Chain and Prevasion abilities- which she used to defeat the most powerful Primal Dragon of all. Most Boss Enemies she fights use incredibly complex screen clearing attacks that require strict timing and use of her Arc Chain's full potential to dodge. Can defeat ZedΩ, who should be more powerful than she is, often being somewhat compared to Gunvolt, ZedΩ often employs hit and run teleportation ranged attacks mid-flight, a counter to her grounded melee style, as well as ranged homing attacks and screen clearing projectiles. Can defeat Shiron, who's Overclock Septima allows him to make faster than light-speed mental calculations and predict every move she does, along with attacking using light beams that are reflected off orbs to attack in unpredictable angles, along with teleportation. Kept track of Apollo's fast and tricky movements, being quite difficult to dodge and land a hit on at times. Defeated Cayman, a dedicated martial artist that specializes in fighting in close range, while being forced to fight in said close range due to his abilities forcing her to do so. Can fight and defeat Serpentine, who summons four illusions of her allies to attack her at all times, all while fighting through impenetrable fog and against Serpentine herself, being grossly outnumbered. Can beat Grazie in a desert, whose Septima revolves around manipulating sand, giving her a homefield advantage- Grazie's Sandstorm Emperor entwining sand to the molecular level to form seemingly impenetrable armor. Even after Gunvolt was being possessed by Moebius, making him the strongest character in the franchise, Kirin still manages to keep up with his massive AoE attacks- only requiring assistance due to his Astral Order ability. Knows 92 Rites, which are implied to be extremely powerful sword techniques, and constantly makes use of the 88th and 92nd. Managed to figure out the phenomena that is Image Pulses and use it to her advantage for new powers. Created the Arc Chain technique, and many techniques after her opponents fight to add new attacks to her style a short while after that manage to fluently implement into her style without causing problems. She makes up these new techniques by simply observing a person's fighting style and make it effective in battle. Is the boss of Sumeragi's Bureau of Dragon Saviors. Is particularly good at card games, with intuition in spades- even against a pro gamer, Shiron, who's Overclock Septima was able to calculate the real time trajectory and coordinates of five ballistic missiles on short notice while communicating it to Gunvolt so he can transport himself and Kirin on top of them- as well as comb through huge datasets of the spread of Dragon Radiation instantly. Has experienced battles and conflicts from other worlds, including a fight against Copen, who has constantly fought battles against various Adepts for over a century, able to easily, consistently, and completely counter his Bullit Dash, his signature and primary attack he has honed for those hundred years in battle, with her Prison Blade / Warden Flash technique. Copen in ASG2 was considered by Gunvolt to be his most menacing opponent,Azure Striker Gunvolt 3; 2022; BB’s Mid Stage Dialogue who is a century less experienced in combat than the Copen Kirin fought.
Standard Tactics
Like with other playable characters in the franchise, it's difficult to really understand how Kirin truly fights. To get a better idea of what she is likely to do in a fight, we'll not only have to use gameplay of Azure Striker Gunvolt 3 as the primary source, but also her boss fight as she appears in Gunvolt Chronicles: Luminous Avenger iX2 to fill in any gaps, as it is not an appearance the player gets to control, but rather how she fights as the designers intend.
Kirin at almost all times, based on her primary appearance in Azure Striker Gunvolt 3 immediately starts off with her Talisman Sealing- building up "damage" with the "tags" they provide. After that, if available Kirin instantly uses her Arc Chain to teleport and instantly damage her foes as shown in Gunvolt Chronicles: Luminous Avenger iX2- otherwise it's likely she'll simply rush in and slash the old fashioned way. 
However, Kirin also uses the Arc Chain defensively- there are a number of attacks in Azure Striker Gunvolt 3 that require wise use of the technique in order to dodge otherwise completely impossible attacks from the enemy, such as Danmaku and Area of Effect attacks.
Either way, should an enemy survive this combination, Kirin typically follows up with a "combo" of sword strikes, which can range from two swings all the way up to an entire sequence using all of her offensive techniques, such as a grounded triple slash to Tensho Slash to double aerial swings to Ressen Slash to finally a Fierce Issen Dash. Otherwise, if there are multiple enemies, she instantly throws another talisman at a new target(s) to repeat the process, teleporting from foe to foe as she traverses a stage at high speeds from beginning to end without even touching the ground.
Aside from the reliance on Arc Chain, Kirin has trained for years as a battle priestess without the technique- and is more than capable of fighting without it as shown in Gunvolt Chronicles: Luminous Avenger iX2, where she seems to rely on her sword techniques more than usual compared to her showings in Azure Striker Gunvolt 3- taking on the style of a more traditional swordswoman, while throwing talismans in the mix after using her sword techniques such as after Fierce Issen Dash and Rising Dragon.
With Gunvolt alongside her, Gunvolt explicitly states that he would like to help Kirin as much as possible, and will likely always switch in with her when possible. However, there is little evidence to prove whether he waits for the "Fetters Gauge" to reach maximum capacity so he can stay on the field for longer, or switch out soon as the Gauge allows him to take over. Either way, it is completely up to Kirin's choice whether or not Gunvolt can be sealed or not.
As for how Image Pulses fit into this equation, Kirin for sure uses Lumen's Image Pulse for Prevasion, so it is not far fetched to assume she wouldn't use the others in some fashion. It is best assumed that she does not rely on them as much as her other abilities, but can and will use them based on the situation, such as using a Healing Image Pulse while at low health.
Weaknesses: A little susceptible to seasickness much like Zed, or plausibly any other normal person, although the intense waves of Apollo's stage were not enough to hinder her combat ability. Needs Gunvolt to use her Arc Chain, although she no longer does during the final events of the Azure Striker Gunvolt 3. Refuses to kill at all costs, even needing Gunvolt to stab himself with Kirin's blade rather than her doing it herself in the Bad End of Azure Striker Gunvolt 3.
===Notable Attacks/Techniques:===
<tabber>
|-|Septima: Radiant Fetters=
A unique Septima capable of nullifying and sealing off other powers, including Septima. Perfect for taking down those with a "next-level power". Kirin's abilities are extraordinarily potent to the point where they can seal powerful opponents such as Gunvolt, the most powerful Primal Dragon, beings that are more powerful than any Adept with a Septima- transforming him into a mere canine that assists her in battle and as her main companion. Gunvolt required a 1000 Glaives and massive Sumeragi facility to achieve the same result.
Radiant Fetters shows extraordinary potential, able to borrow the Septima of her sealed victims, even combining their Septima with hers and accessing their memories to materialize allies and foes from their past known as an "Image Pulse". Even more so, she is shown capable of storing concussive energy, duplications, herself, and other abilities into her talismans or sword. The Septima is even implied stabilize rather unstable bodies such as Asimov's to prevent him from dying.
|-|Basic Capabilities=
In order to compliment her Septimal powers, Kirin has a unique fighting style which involves her enchanted talisman and sword combat in conjunction with each other. She has three different ways to attack with her sword: Slashing at her foes, boosting those attacks with Talismans first, or performing an Arc Chain with those Talismans. All of these together create an extremely slippery combat style that is very effective at dodging attacks while approaching to deal lots of damage over time with sword "combos".
*Kirin's main combat flow involves "tagging" with her talismans first, before closing in and slashing away at her enemy or utilizing the Arc Chain instead to teleport to them. Once up close, she proceeds to chain multiple normal slashes together in a "combo" to deal maximum damage.
|-|Image Pulses=
An ability that requires the combined powers of the Azure Striker and Radiant Fetters Septimas, allowing Kirin to summon allies and foes of Gunvolt's past and present to aid her in battle. Gunvolt creates people of his past with his Azure Striker while Kirin uses her Radiant Fetters to seal them within her Talismans to use them permanently from then on before they dissipate.Official Azure Striker Gunvolt 3 Website They come in two varieties, Skill Image Pulses that directly summon the Adept created in question to attack or provide an effect, and Passive Image Pulses that give permanent buffs to Kirin's abilities dependent on the abilities of the Adept. There are over a 150 varieties of Image Pulses in Azure Striker Gunvolt 3, but only the most notable ones will be included here:
|-|Skills=
88th Rite - Pale Mist: At enormous speeds, Kirin zips around the area, slashing all to pieces upon sheathing her sword. Can do this multiple times. 
Kirin88.gif
Kirin880.gif
Kirin881.gif
*After her many battles, including her battle against Copen, it has evolved into 88th Rite - Pale Mist Refined, likely more powerful than before albeit simpler.
92nd Rite - Divine Ruin Arc: Without even being able to see her unsheathe her blade, Kirin slashes all within the area with an electrically enhanced blade- carving Shadow Yakumo's flower insignia all over the enemies who have crossed her.
*Hidden 92nd Rite - Divine Ruin Heresy: The same technique, but with Gunvolt at her side, the attack becomes more powerful than ever. This is her primary Offensive Skill, and her most powerful.
thumb|center|400px
|-|Anthem=
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Note 1: Kirin for the majority of Azure Striker Gunvolt 3 is paired with Gunvolt, who is needed for the Arc Chain technique to be successful until the end of the game, where can do it freely on her own. However, Arc Unleash is entirely dependent on the fact if Kirin is paired with Gunvolt or not. In a Versus Debate please specify if Kirin is paired with Gunvolt or not. If she is without Gunvolt, his version of Anthem will, by proxy, also be unavailable as the Lumen that uses Anthem is created by his power.
Note 2: Just like with Gunvolt and Copen, Kirin does not require the Prevasion Image Pulse to fight effectively, and thus, Prevasion can be restricted in matches despite it being standard equipment, as it is a disable-able option as an Image Pulse.
*On another note on Prevasion, it should be noted that simply being able to attack electricity or other elements bypass its Intangibility is not equivalent to attacking matter as small as electrons. There are instances where attacks that affect other types of matter and energy which would also qualify for elemental intangibility are unable to get past Prevasion. These examples include Gunvolt's and by extension Asimov's Flashfields being capable of destroying Stratos's "bugs", Copen's Doppler Desire, and Gibril's metallic heavy blood, and Copen's lasers Demerzel's electrical constructs. As well, Kirin's variant of Prevasion is superior to other versions of Prevasion, such as Gunvolt's from Azure Striker Gunvolt 1 & 2, allowing her to Prevade attacks that normally go through Prevasion.
Note 3: Much like Prevasion, other optional Image Pulses (except for Prevasion, which is a default Image Pulse that Kirin canonically uses at all times) as listed in the Powers & Abilities section do not affect Kirin's ability to fight to the point where she needs them to battle effectively, and can be restricted in matches. The same can be said for any form of Anthem, including Djinn's Wish.
Note 4: Image Pulses, while created by Gunvolt, are sealed within Kirin's Talismans permanently as they dissipate almost immediately without said seal.Azure Striker Gunvolt 3; 2022; Image Pulse cutscene right after the Intro Stage Gunvolt does not need to create it another time afterwards to use them, as Image Pulses are reusable or passive. Thus, even without Gunvolt, Kirin can still use Image Pulses as demonstrated against Moebius-Gunvolt.
==Gallery==
==Notable Matchups==
Victories:
Losses:
Inconclusive:
*Sephiroth (Final Fantasy VII) Sephiroth's Profile (Bizarro/Reborn Sephiroth from FFVII was used. Kirin had access to Prevasion, Djinn's Wish, and Golden Trillion. Speed equalized. 100 Meter distance)
==References==
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