“Spyro, your place is here. Your destiny is here. But mine is somewhere out there for me to find.”
—Cynder
Cynder is a black dragon who appeared in The Legend of Spyro series and became the primary love interest of the main character, Spyro. Originally a servant of the Dark Master Malefor, Cynder was the main antagonist in The Legend of Spyro: A New Beginning until she was defeated and freed by Spyro. She now seeks to find her own destiny, evolving into a heroine in the process.
Cynder was one of the rare opportunities for Krome Studios to create a female villain character in The Legend of Spyro series that was both unique and fresh design wise. However, they also felt as if she had been a part of the Spyro mythology for quite some time. The story for the first installment of the trilogy, A New Beginning, called for "a powerful and shadowy dark dragon" to be Spyro's nemesis, beyond that no specification was given and the starting point was very loose. Bruno Rime, Cynder's character designer and art lead of the project in Krome Studios, determined that this villain be female and a black dragon, as the previous dragon villain in the earlier Spyro titles (Red) was generally red coloured.
For both Bruno Rime and Jared Pullen, another artist who worked on A New Beginning, from the get go presence was paramount, and the black dragon Maleficent from the Disney movie Sleeping Beauty had that in spades. They used the villainess's reference in terms of her lithe, sinuous form, which they adopted for Cynder's overall body structure. But pretty soon, Bruno was exploring Gothic overtones in keeping with the visual cues of Concurrent Skies, the environment that Cynder was first encountered in. The platinum jewelry was evident as a personal touch for the 'evil' version of Cynder and served to signify her as both feminine and regal, but also gave the impressions of servitude, as if the decoration about her throat was less a necklace and more a manacle, indicating her enslavement to Malefor's thrall. The development team later went on to call Cynder a "Midnight Dragon," owing to this Gothic nature, and all the design work was handled by Bruno. There were about three or four iterations on her design from memory, as Bruno had a strong vision for who Cynder was visually.
During development, Cynder was referred to as "The Anti-Spyro" and the Apes were known as "Anti-Spyro Soldiers." Knowing that they couldn't ship the game with those names in place, the development team ran an internal competition for the final name for the female dragon villain at both Krome Studios and Vivendi Universal (now branded Activision) and after about three weeks, they chose the name Jared Pullen called the black dragon: Cynder.[2]
During the story's development, Spyro and Cynder weren't originally intended to fall in love with each other. This is supported by their lack of interest in each other up until the final battle in Dawn of the Dragon. However, seeing the fans wanting Spyro and Cynder to be together prompted Krome Studios and The Legend of Spyro producers to consider making the pairing canon. Jared Pullen stated, "...it's more that them getting together wasn't a thing we'd intended originally - it's pretty much something that emerged from fan conversations... like I've marveled at with appreciation now for years: Cynder and Spyro have a life all their own. They've grown up, flown the coop, and have nested comfortably. Seeing the fans delight in wanting Spyro and Cynder to get together prompted me and the team to consider it.... it only seems natural to me. I think it's now common-place belief (if not unwritten lore) that they are an item. It's the way I would have eventually gone with it."[3]
Appearance
Cynder is a black dragon with jade-green eyes, black wings with ruby membranes and one curved blade on each of the wing-carpals, a ruby underbelly, and a lengthy tail that ends with a scythe-like blade. She has six silver-white horns on her head and a matching crest runs down the back of her neck. Unlike other Dragons shown in the series, Cynder has pointed bony protrusions sticking out from the back of her hocks and ankles; as well as behind her elbows and carpal joints on her arms. Her muzzle is narrow and her mouth is beaked but contains teeth. The bottom of Cynder's chin is white before the color merges down with her ruby underbelly. Three symbols are marked on her forehead and under her eyes, with a small diamond-shaped one in between her eyes. These markings are a result of Malefor's corruption.[3]
When in her adult corrupted form in The Legend of Spyro: A New Beginning, Cynder is much larger than usual. Some other attributes of that form are her longer neck, long and lean body, larger wings, and a more pointed, adult-looking face. An additional pair of horns can be seen growing on her cheeks to join in with her existing six horns. Cynder wore two platinum bracers on her wrists, a platinum choker on her neck, and another pair of bracers on her long tail. She retains the symbols on her forehead and under her eyes, but has a different symbol marked on her shoulders and back.
In The Legend of Spyro: Dawn of the Dragon, Cynder was given a design overhaul due to the change in game developers from Krome Studios to Étranges Libellules. To take advantage of the next generation consoles of the Playstation 3 and Xbox 360, she was aged up to a teenager with bigger wingspan[4] and slightly larger body proportions than her younger self. The symbols on her forehead are smaller, and the ones that were on her shoulders and back while in her corrupted adult form have returned, but are redesigned smaller. Cynder wears a platinum choker on her neck, bracers on her arms, and single bracer on her tail that are similar to the ones she wore while under Malefor's control. Her mouth is still beaked, but it's no longer as small as before. For unknown reasons, mostly because of the decision made by the game director[5], Cynder's signature black scales are changed to dark purple. The silver crest on the back of her head is now separated into pointed spikes, and the sickled blades on her wings now face the outward instead of inward. She is also very lithe, more so than her corrupted larger form.
Personality
While within the same clutch of dragon eggs as Spyro, Cynder was stolen by Malefor's dark forces and born under his influence. Malefor's powerful magic transformed Cynder into a lithe, monstrous dragon who was the classic femme fatale; unstable, alternately calm, but explosive; caring about nothing but the return of her master. After she was freed from Malefor's control, Cynder felt guilty about all of the things she had done while under his corruption.
In the game itself, she harbors intense guilt over being Malefor's puppet, believing she doesn't belong at the Dragon Temple after all she had done. When she was met with the possibility of Malefor taking her back for being a "faithful servant" or kill her when he returns, Cynder showed no intention on returning to Malefor's side and was willing to help fight against her former master, putting her at odds with her previous dark ally, Gaul the Ape King. She was shown to be bold and cunning during her interactions with Spyro in the midst of danger, planning ruses with her purple companion to distract their surrounding enemies while secretly planning out their next move. In addition, Cynder displayed a sense of loyalty, refusing to leave without Spyro, even when she was in danger of being entombed along with him and Sparx inside the Well of Souls.
In Dawn of the Dragon, a different take on Cynder's personality is displayed. In the game, she is intelligent, witty, resourceful, brave, spirited, determined, independent, and isn't afraid to speak her mind. Despite her damsel-in-distress role in the previous two games, Cynder is portrayed as far from passive and doesn't enjoy such roles of frail and weak heroines. For instance, when Spyro was instructing Cynder to follow his lead, she immediately responded in an indignant tone, "Why should you lead?". Although she was soft-spoken in the previous game, Cynder was given a irritable temperament, mostly acting snappy towards Spyro over the course of their journey, before her tone towards him softened after Ignitus's death.
Cynder's time as Malefor's puppet traumatized her deeply that she quickly becomes upset whenever anyone mentions her dark past or the possibility of her still being evil and returning to Malefor's side; something that happens quite often. Cynder strongly dislikes being chained in any form (physical or psychologically) as seen by her desire to find her destiny and frequent irritation over the green snake collars keeping her tethered to Spyro. Cynder shows strong determination to help others and prove that she isn't the monster she once was. Her feelings are so strong that she wants to do all she can to keep those she cares about safe, and becomes brave enough to show Spyro hints about her romantic feelings before fully revealing them at the end of the third game.
Abilities
When first introduced in A New Beginning, Cynder was made to age at a much quicker rate than an ordinary dragon as a result of Malefor's corruption, giving her the body of an adult dragon despite being the same age as Spyro. In this form, Cynder possessed enormous power, being able to defeat and subdue a powerful dragon like Ignitus. Her true abilities aren't seen until near the end of the game, though she is hinted to be incredibly powerful, as the Guardians (all of whom are masters of their respective elements and rather powerful dragons) spoke of her in a fearful manner and her assault caused Spyro (a dragon known for his bravery) to flee in fear. Cynder's hide is apparently strong enough to withstand lava as she was seen emerging from a lava pool atop Munitions Forge and flying through lava in her pursuit of Spyro.
During her fight with Spyro, she reveals that she has excellent melee combat abilities, being able to attack Spyro at any angle he approaches from. Cynder also displayed a unique ability known as Shadow Fire, a darker variation of the Fire element that is powerful enough to cause rock to catch fire and deal significant damage to Spyro. She seemed to have lost most (if not all) of these abilities upon being purged of Malefor's influence and returning to her natural form. Despite this, throughout The Eternal Night, Cynder has been implied to be a capable fighter. She displayed enough confidence in her skills to travel the realms alone, and both the Skavengers and the Ape King appeared confident enough in her skills to pit her against Spyro, despite possessing no elemental abilities at the time (though in the latter case, Spyro had his elemental abilities drained in addition to being physically weakened by the Ape King's staff).
Malefor's corruption granted Cynder abilities most uncommon among Dragons. She has the ability to use the elements of Poison, Fear, Wind, and Shadow as her breath attacks, which were given to her in Dawn of the Dragon. Aether is also one of the abilities that was unwillingly bestowed upon her by Malefor.[6] It is interesting to note that Cynder appears to have greater reserves of magic than Spyro, despite the latter being a purple dragon (who are renowned for their enormous elemental and magical potential), though this may due to the fact she was exposed to the dark magic of a fallen purple dragon.
Cynder has also displayed great skills in melee combat (exceeding Spyro in terms of skill and speed, although not as physically strong) and favors using quick strikes and dodging using her natural speed and agility, performing complex and highly acrobatic attacks within close proximity.
Story
The Legend of Spyro: A New Beginning
A young Cynder in chains being corrupted by Malefor's dark powers.
Cynder originated from the same clutch of other various dragon eggs that Spyro was in during the Year of the Dragon, making her and Spyro the same age. On the night the Dark Armies raided the Dragon Temple, the Ape King Gaul kidnapped Cynder's egg, choosing her to be the dragon who would free the Dark Master Malefor from his prison in Convexity. Cynder grew up in the company of Gaul and his servants, until it became the time when she was corrupted by Malefor's dark powers which transformed her into a monstrous and horrific, adult dragon brainwashed to do the Dark Master's bidding. Becoming the general of Malefor's army, Cynder led the Apes in the war against the Dragon race and the Guardians. She captured three of the Guardians in battle in order to drain their elemental energies into a crystal that would be used as a key to free Malefor. The Fire Dragon Ignitus was the only Guardian who managed to escape and hide from Cynder. Eventually, the Dragons lost the war due to Cynder's intervention. The evil dragon took control over all of the islands and the surrounding land, putting them under her iron rule, all the while searching for Ignitus in order to drain his elemental power. Cynder's terrifying fury and the war's aftermath led to the deaths of many Dragons, dwindling their numbers and driving them to near extinction.[7]
Years later, Cynder was informed of Spyro's existence in a Swamp by an Ape Leader and she immediately scoured the area in search of the young dragon, but failed to locate him. While in Dante's Freezer later on, Cynder was seen flying high in the clouds above the area, leaving the island after draining the elemental energy from the Electric Guardian Volteer, whom she left under the unknowing watch of the Ice King. She later appeared on Tall Plains, allowing her forces to enslave the Atlawa tribe and disrupting the shrine of the island's god, the Stone Sentinel. Once she had extracted the elemental power of Ice from the Ice Guardian Cyril, Cynder flew off with the crystal in tow, leaving the Atlawas to deal with their enraged god, who inadvertently became Cynder's guard to Cyril.
Moments after Spyro saved Terrador on Munitions Forge, Cynder emerged from a lava pool and retrieved the crystal charged with the Earth Guardian's elemental energy. Terrador attempted to stop her, but Cynder defeated him with relative ease. When Cynder caught sight of Spyro, she immediately chased after him through the Forge as the volcano of Boyzitbig erupted. As she was about to catch Spyro, Ignitus intervened to save the young dragon. A brief aerial struggle between the two large dragons ensued until both Cynder and Ignitus descended towards the unknown. Cynder emerged as the victor, capturing Ignitus and taking him to her fortress in Concurrent Skies where she began draining his energy into the crystal.
Cynder faces Spyro in a final showdown in Convexity
After learning how to utilize the element of Earth, Spyro ventured to Concurrent Skies to rescue Ignitus. Cynder soon became aware of Spyro's presence within her fortress and confronted the young dragon at the very peak of her lair where Ignitus was being held, stopping Spyro from destroying the crystal before engaging him in battle to buy time for the crystal to be charged. After a brief fight, she escaped to Convexity with the crystal in tow after it was fully charged. Spyro soon learned about Cynder's past from Ignitus and became determined to stop Cynder from freeing Malefor and followed her to the altar in Convexity. However he arrived too late, as the evil dragon had already activated the portal and provided Malefor's essence with a means of escape. Once she saw Spyro, Cynder engaged him in battle once more, willing to fight the young purple dragon to the bitter end.
After a fierce and climatic battle, she was ultimately defeated by Spyro's Light Aether fury attack, and Cynder's body was freed from Malefor's influence, reverting her back to her true form: a young dragon the same size as Spyro. However, the portal to Malefor's prison began to open and it began pulling debris towards it, including Cynder's unconscious form. Despite a difference of opinion between him and Sparx, Spyro rescued Cynder and escaped from Convexity, making a narrow escape. Cynder was returned to the Dragon Temple, where the four Guardians apologized to her for not guarding her on the night of the raid. That evening, Cynder found Spyro at one of the temple's balconies looking for signs of Malefor's return. She joined him, and they both knew that Malefor wasn't defeated yet.
The Legend of Spyro: The Eternal Night
Weeks had passed since Cynder's defeat at the hands of Spyro. During that time period, she lived at the Dragon Temple with Spyro, Sparx and the other Guardians. Every day that went by however, Cynder felt guilty for all the things she had done while under Malefor's control. That guilt eventually was what drove the black dragon to leave the Dragon Temple one night to find her own place in the world, despite Spyro's pleas for her not to.
Cynder was later captured by Skavengers, who recognized her as the "former queen of conquer", and intended to have her as a combatant in their fighting arena, Fellmuth. Spyro was soon taken prisoner as well and forced to fight other opponents. After defeating his lastest combatant, he was shocked to find out that Cynder was to be his next challenger. Despite appearing that she was willing to fight Spyro, the black dragon reassured him by telling him to fake the fight so they could figure out on what to do next. However, the fight was interrupted when Gaul's Ape army launched an attack on Fellmuth, and in the midst of the chaos, Cynder was taken by the Apes.
Spyro and Cynder circle one another in the Fellmuth Arena
Within the main chamber of the Well of Souls, Cynder was brought before Gaul, who planned to leave her fate in the hands of the Dark Master Malefor. The Ape King told Cynder that Malefor would either take her back for being a 'faithful' servant, or destroy her. Spyro, who was told of Cynder's chosen path by the Chronicler, travelled to the Mountain of Malefor to save the black dragon from returning to Malefor's side. When he arrived at the Well of Souls, Gaul ordered Cynder to attack a weakened Spyro, and it seemed that she apparently wanted to fight him. However, this was proven to be another ruse when Cynder quietly instructed Spyro to line her up with Gaul's staff. As the fight started, she made an effort to snatch the staff, but Gaul caught Cynder by the neck and threw her at a wall for her defiance, knocking her out.
As Gaul and Spyro battled one another, the floor gave way underneath them and they fell to the lower level. The Celestial Moons eclipsed each other, and its evil energy zapped through Spyro, transforming him into Dark Spyro, who swiftly and cruelly destroyed Gaul. Cynder regained consciousness sometime before the battle's end, and along with Sparx, peered into the hole Spyro and Gaul fell through, wondering what was happening down below. After Spyro flew back to the chamber's upper level, Cynder was horrified to see Spyro as a creature of darkness, and quickly knocked him out of the Lunar Alignment's energy beam, returning Spyro to normal. Spyro apologized for his inability to control his Dark form, though Cynder forgave him, stating that he was with friends. However, as a result of Spyro's battle with Gaul, the mountain began to collapse. Cynder spotted an opening big enough for all three of them to escape through, but Spyro was left weakened from his battle with Gaul and urged Cynder and Sparx to go without him, to which they both refused to do so. The opening soon collapsed, trapping the three within the crumbling Well of Souls.
Spyro recalled the Chronicler's words as he utilized his Time Fury to freeze him, Cynder, Sparx inside a crystal, protecting them from harm as the mountain crumbled around them. In the post-credits scene, the Well of Souls had since became a ruin, with the crystal that contained the frozen forms of Cynder, Spyro and Sparx still embedded with the debris. As the scene pans out, Hunter of Avalar was seen nearby discovering them.
The Legend of Spyro: Dawn of the Dragon
After three years of being trapped in the time crystal, Spyro, Sparx and Cynder were broken free of their prison by a group of Grublins inside the ruins of the Well of Souls. A pair of magical collars in the shape of snakes were placed on their necks while they laid unconscious, tethering Spyro and Cynder together with a magical chain and preventing them from being able to move freely or away from each other. They were taken away to the Catacombs to be sacrificed to a Golem under Malefor's orders, and were then chained to the floor of a large platform. Cynder was the first to awaken from her three-year long slumber before rousing Spyro from his sleep as well. They both noticed that they were in a large chamber with Grublins at opposing sides anticipating the arrival of the Golem. When they attempted to leave, Cynder and Spyro found out they were both chained to the floor and were forced to fight waves of Grublins, until the large Golem arrived and scared the Grublins away from them.
Cynder looks to Spyro as they try to think of a way to escape from the Golem while tethered together.
Spyro and Cynder managed to break free of the platform holding them down, but remain chained together by the snake collars they wore, and they attempted to repel the Golem. When they failed to defeat it, Hunter, a cheetah warrior, saved the two dragons by driving away the Golem, telling them that he had been sent by Ignitus to find them three years ago, much to their disbelief. On their way to the Dragon City of Warfang where Ignitus was expecting their arrival, Hunter explained to Spyro and Cynder that the Dark Master, Malefor, had returned immediately after their disappearance and proceeded to shroud the world in darkness.
While resting in the Enchanted Forest, Spyro, Cynder, and Hunter were captured by Hunter's tribe, whose leader Chief Prowlus was distrustful of Dragons because of Malefor and Cynder when she was under the latter's control. After saving the village, Spyro volunteered to find a missing member of the cheetah tribe, and Cynder went along. Along the way, they encountered an old hermit, who Cynder didn't recognize. The Hermit insisted that he knew her, however recognizing her as the monstrous dragon she was from A New Beginning by her eyes, warning the black dragon of a fate she may very well suffer for being in service to Malefor, and that the Dark Master would find her for betraying him. Cynder became visibly upset over this, but Spyro reassured her by telling her not to listen to the Hermit. The two dragons soon departed, not wanting to hear anymore of the Hermit's words.
When they arrived in the dragon city of Warfang, Cynder assisted in the city's defense. Shortly after the Golem's defeat, Spyro and Cynder were happily reunited with Ignitus and the other Dragon Guardians. Cynder then revealed to Ignitus the snake collars that tethered her and Spyro together while stating that it was the only reason she returned, but the Fire Guardian replied that it was irremovable. As Cynder appeared frantic that the chain could not be removed, Ignitus added that the chain was more than a hindrance, but a reminder of the bond Spyro and Cynder shared, and that their destinies were intertwined. Cynder and Spyro turned to each other, and shared what seemed to be a loving glance.
After Malefor declared his plan to end the world and released The Destroyer, Cynder accompanied Spyro to the Ruins of Warfang to open the city gates to let the troops inside. Once they intercepted the Destroyer, Cynder came up with a plan to stop the immense golem in its tracks: destroying a nearby dam holding back the sea water. With the Destroyer momentarily halted as a result, Spyro and Cynder tried to destroy it, only to discover that it was unstoppable, and the Destroyer was able to complete its circle needed to initiate the world's destruction. They decided the only other course of action was to face Malefor himself.
Cynder comforting Spyro after the death of Ignitus.
Ignitus escorted the two young dragons through the Belt of Fire, sacrificing himself in the process in order to get them through. Spyro became devastated and nearly went back into the fire to save Ignitus, transforming into Dark Spyro in his grief. However Cynder brought him back to his senses and comforted him in his despair, reminding him that he wasn't alone. While treking through the Burned Lands, Cynder felt uneasy as she didn't know if she wanted to face Malefor, deciding at first to give up, but Spyro reminded her that they mustn't, otherwise their journey would be all for nothing. She agreed on his behalf, claiming that she was only coming along because she wanted to get rid of the chain that binded her and Spyro together. Together, they ventured through to the Floating Islands and finally arrived at Malefor's Lair. There, Cynder told Spyro that she was scared, but despite that, they both confronted Malefor after Spyro instructed her to stay close to him.
Inside, Malefor began the task of Spyro's verbal corruption, stating that they have more similar qualities than just their color. Spyro immediately began to deny Malefor's words, and Cynder told Spyro to not listen to anything the evil dragon said. Malefor proceeded to release Spyro and Cynder from the magical snake collars linking them, and it is then that the Dark Master claimed that his influence over Cynder had not been extinguished, saying he had caused her to lead Spyro to him and that she tricked Spyro into resurrecting Malefor. Cynder at first denied his words, but gradually grew unsure over her actions in the past, allowing Malefor to once again unlock the darkness within her and Cynder back to his cause. As Dark Cynder, she began to attack Spyro, who only shrank away whilst Malefor continued to taunt him, claiming that there had been many purple dragons before them, and that their destiny was to destroy the world, not save it. He went on to say that, during each age, the purple dragon would call upon the Destroyer and the Golems of the Deep to bring about "the Great Cleansing". Spyro refused to believe Malefor, while Dark Cynder continued to attack the young dragon relentlessly.
After striking him several times, she growled at Spyro to fight back before demanding to know why he wouldn't do so. Disheartened, Spyro told Cynder that losing her had left him with nothing to fight for. Upon hearing those words and discovering Spyro's feelings, Cynder broke free of Malefor's hold, reverting back to normal and lovingly replied to Spyro that there was always something. Enraged by the turn of events, Malefor chained Cynder back to Spyro with the snake collars, and declared that she would share his fate, before battling both dragons.
During their first phase in the battle, the Destroyer managed to throw itself back into the volcano from whence it came, thus completing its circuit and beginning the destruction of their world. Spyro, Cynder, and Malefor continued to fight however, and the Dark Master was soon thrown down to the planet's heart, a giant purple crystal, by a joint Fury attack. Malefor declared that he cannot be defeated as he was eternal. However, dragon spirits emerged from the purple crystal upon these words, and proceeded to drag Malefor into the planet's crystal core and sealed him away, much to his dismay and the awe of Spyro and Cynder.
A glimpse of Spyro and Cynder flying in the skies above the Valley of Avalar.
With Malefor gone, the snake collars that chained Spyro and Cynder's together disappeared along with his dark magic, freeing them at last. But Malefor's plan was still underway as the planet was breaking itself apart. Cynder apologized to Spyro for her past actions, and Spyro forgave her, telling her that she shouldn't be sorry now that it was all over. She then wondered if this was the end, as pieces of the world was breaking apart around them. With Ignitus's words in his head, Spyro realized what he had to do to save the world, and instructed Cynder to escape, not wanting to risk her life should he fail. Cynder chose to remain with him, and as Spyro used his powers to try and prevent the world's end, she whispered to Spyro that she loved him. The world was then restored by Spyro's desperate endeavor as it was slowly being put back together, but it seemed that both Spyro and Cynder were killed as a result.
After the credits, the Chronicler chose the spirit of Ignitus to be the next Chronicler of the new age. Before passing his mantle, the Chronicler informed Ignitus that though he has tried his best, but he couldn't find any trace of Spyro in the book that details dragons who have died. As Ignitus began searching through the book to find where Spyro might be, the scene changes to the scenery of the Valley of Avalar. Glimpses of Spyro and Cynder were seen happily wheeling through the skies above the valley, but their fate is left open to interpretation.[8]
According to the synopsis of the cancelled Spyro movie, Cynder was set to be the main antagonist of the film; a powerful black dragon who was a pawn to the Dark Master.
Relationships
Spyro
After Spyro freed her from Malefor's grasp, Cynder felt responsible for the suffering she caused to everyone, including Spyro, to the point that she wanted to run away and discover herself. At first she saw Spyro as a friend whom she was willing to help but not necessarily work together with (likely coming from her guilt and fear that no one had forgiven her for her actions). She still showed genuine concern for him when he became Dark Spyro and refused to leave without Spyro within the crumbling Well of Souls.
When she and Spyro were chained to one another in Dawn of the Dragon, Cynder was irritable towards Spyro, often snapping at him; a far cry from her calm demeanor in the previous chapter. She claimed that she was only working with Spyro because they were stuck together. However as they spent more time together, she quickly realized that Spyro really cares and has a heartfelt understanding of her, and she started to care about him in the same way. Her friendship with Spyro eventually blossoms into true love as evident in the climax of Dawn of the Dragon. Her love for Spyro became strong enough for her to break free from Malefor's control upon realizing that he has feelings for her.
Spyro frequently reminds Cynder that she isn't responsible for her actions in the past even if the other denizens still remember her corrupted days and despise her, and the young black dragon quickly takes on a more positive attitude. When Spyro was ready to use his power to restore the shattered world which would cost him his life, Cynder was given the choice to leave and save herself, but instead she chose to stay and admitted her love to Spyro before seemingly dying together with him. In the last scene of the trilogy, the two dragons were seen still together flying over the Valley of Avalar.
Sparx
Spyro's companion and foster brother, Sparx, doesn't get along with Cynder very well, mostly because Sparx still thinks that she is evil. In her adaption in Dawn of the Dragon, Cynder always takes a more sarcastic personality when "conversing" with Sparx and commented that she likes Hunter simply because the cheetah warrior told Sparx that he 'was making too much noise'. The argument between the two seemed to have been diminished when Sparx and Cynder agreed to blow the Dam apart. When Sparx couldn't accompany Spyro and Cynder to the Burned Lands to face Malefor, the yellow dragonfly told Cynder that she had to promise him she would look after Spyro, to which she did. It is assumed that Sparx is jealous of Cynder because Spyro is growing more close to her than he did with Sparx.
Malefor
Corrupted into serving Malefor, Cynder was fully loyal to The Dark Master and entirely focused on bringing him back. After being released from his control, she wanted to fight against Malefor and tried to warn Gaul about not letting him return. She became determined to not become Malefor's slave again, and in the third game, she began wearing jewelry similar to the one she had worn when she was his servant as a form of facing her fear of Malefor. However, she was still afraid of him to a certain level, and during the final battle, Malefor easily made her doubt herself, which allowed the dark purple dragon to take control over her for a moment.
Gaul
Cynder has personally known the Ape King ever since she was hatched and grew up under his watch. Their relationship with one another while Cynder was under Malefor's control is unknown, but they had shared the same goal in bringing back Malefor into the realm. After being purged of the Dark Master's influence, Cynder was brought before Gaul during the events of The Eternal Night, where Cynder attempted to warn Gaul about allowing Malefor to return. The black dragon showed no interest in aiding her former ally and has made attempts to attack and defy the Ape King.
Notes
In the Italian version of The Legend of Spyro Trilogy, Cynder is known as "Cinerea" (a female-gendered word meaning "grey as ashes")
In the Russian version of The Legend of Spyro Trilogy, Cynder is known as "Огара (Ogara)."
In the Finnish version of The Legend of Spyro Trilogy, Cynder has a completely different name, which she is known as: "Kekäle" (in which that is literally Finnish for: "Cinder").
“Hey, this reunion is really touching and everything, but shouldn't we be going? Unless, you want to wait for that thing to climb back up. I'd hate to think what it might do to Sparx.”
Cynder was around 12 years old before the events of The Legend of Spyro: The Eternal Night, sharing the same age as Spyro and Sparx.[9]
Both the introduction cutscenes of The Eternal Night and Dawn of the Dragon has echoing quotes from Cynder and Spyro that retells the story climax of the corresponding previous titles.
In A New Beginning, Cynder was shown using a dark fire element called Shadow Fire, although this ability never appeared after the game.
Her Shadow elemental ability in Dawn of the Dragon, Shadow Fire, shares the same name as her dark fire attack in The Legend of Spyro: A New Beginning.
In Dawn of the Dragon, the sudden appearance of Cynder's platinum jewelry was unexplained and is considered a story plothole, as she wasn't wearing the jewelry before she, Spyro, and Sparx were frozen in time at the end of The Eternal Night.
One of the producers of The Legend of Spyro trilogy, Michael Graham, revealed that Cynder wears the jewelry as a way of facing her fear of becoming Malefor's servant again. There was originally going to be a cutscene for Dawn of the Dragon involving her actually putting the jewelry on, but there was no time in creating and adding the scene in because of the game's budget and rushed production. "Cynder has been through quite a bit. When she was first redeemed, I think her initial reaction was to cast aside everything that reminded her of the past." Michael Graham responded, "She was effectively in denial. But over time, she has begun to come to terms with who she is. Wearing the jewelry that she wore while under Malefor's influence is a subtle way for her to learn to face her fears. Now why does she have them on when she is freed from the crystal? Well it wouldn't make sense to waste a lot of time in a cut scene that shows her putting them back on, so we'll have to consider them to be "magic".[10]
Cynder's permanent black scales, markings, and sinister powers were a result of Malefor's corruption. It is implied by Jared Pullen that her true element was Wind before she was taken and corrupted.[3]
Players can play as Cynder as a character skin in the Nintendo DS version of A New Beginning after completing a certain number of puzzles in the game.
In the Gamboy Advance version of The Eternal Night, it's stated that Cynder left the Temple because she was drawn to the Well of Souls' calling since she was touched by Malefor's darkness.
According to Jared Pullen, in response to Cynder's return to the Dragon Temple, the Guardians were intended to be in a debate over Cynder's stay at the Temple. "Cyril was the most vocal against the decision, and Ignitus strongly supported Cynder's re-inclusion, as he felt he had failed Cynder on levels the other Guardians could not imagine. His guilt, coupled with his understanding of failure prompted him to reach out to Cynder in this way. Terrador seconded the notion, trusting in Ignitus' judgement and out of respect for his close ally. Volteer endlessly debated the pros and cons of Cynder's return until Cyril finally grew tired of all the conjecture and relented!" However due to time restraints, this scene was scrapped.[11]
Throughout Dawn of the Dragon, Cynder was the only one who was greatly irritated that she was chained to Spyro, and wanted to get the snake collars off as soon as possible.
Lead concept artist of A New Beginning and The Eternal Night, Jared Pullen, revealed that Spyro and Cynder weren't originally going to fall in love with each other. But since the fans wanted to see them together, the team obliged and made the pairing canon to the story at the last minute.[3]
In the Nintendo GameBoy Advance version of The Eternal Night, Amaze Entertainment mistakenly labeled Cynder as Spyro's "sibling," making it a developer oversight.[12]
Cynder is one of two roles in The Legend of Spyro series to be constantly recast (the other being Sparx). She is voiced by Cree Summer in A New Beginning, Mae Whitman in The Eternal Night, and Christina Ricci in Dawn of the Dragon.
While Cynder was a black dragon in previous installments, her scales were suddenly made dark purple in Dawn of the Dragon when compared to Spyro in the game. This color change notably clashes with the lore surrounding Purple Dragons in the series, who are born once every ten generations. Despite the obvious sudden color change, the characters (mostly notably the Hermit) still call Cynder "the black dragon".
It is later revealed by one of the concept artists of Dawn of the Dragon that Cynder's final design which depicts her incorrect scale color was chosen by the Étranges Libellules game director of the project for reasons currently unknown.[5]
She is however, black in the cutscenes of the Nintendo DS version of Dawn of the Dragon, and the entirety of the mobile version.
While the faint purple tints appears mostly in previous few concept art of Cynder due to lighting, she was still made black in the final versions of A New Beginning and The Eternal Night developed by Krome Studios.
Taking both the original and The Legend of Spyro series into consideration, Cynder is one of the only other playable dragons who does not have the same elements as Spyro.
Cynder was originally going to breathe green fire. As soon as it was apparent that the Earth element (and its corresponding Guardian Terrador) were to take on the green color, Krome Studios dropped the idea of green fire for Cynder.[3]
Cynder is the only female character who has really proven to Spyro that she is in love with him in Dawn of the Dragon. At the same time, she is the only female character in any game of any continuity that Spyro developed feelings for.
In the first four pre-rendered cutscenes in The Eternal Night, Cynder is missing her wing blades.
In the movie called Dragons: Destiny Of Fire, there is a dragon called Marina who is very similar to Cynder because they have the same horns, the same eyes, both are partners to the main character, and they have almost the same color.
In A New Beginning, Cynder's wings are shown to have a few holes (possibly from the battles she had won), but her wings didn't have any holes in most cutscenes, likely from the pre-rendered cutscenes using models differing from those in the game.
A Skylanders version of the scene from Dawn of the Dragon is adapted as Spyro's first battle against Cynder when she was under Malefor's control
Cynder is the only Legend character to have a different role in each game; in A New Beginning, she was the antagonist, in The Eternal Night she was a deuteragonist, and in Dawn of the Dragon, she was a protagonist.
It should be noted that, like her role, she has a different physical look for each game; as she appears shorter after A New Beginning.
Cynder's corrupted form has two bracers on her tail, while her normal teenage form in Dawn of the Dragon only has one. This is because in her adult form, her tail is long enough to allow enough space for more than two bracers.
The scene when Spyro is being attacked by Dark Cynder in Dawn of the Dragon is later used as a reference in the Skylanders series as one of the scenarios that depicts Skylanders Spyro's first battle with Skylanders Cynder when she was under Malefor's influence.[13]
In the GBA version of The Eternal Night, Cynder does not appear in Fellmuth Arena, instead, Ignitus appears.
Spyro and Cynder's whereabouts at the end of The Legend of Spyro trilogy is intentionally left ambiguous. Although they are seen flying over the Valley of Avalar, whether they are alive or dead is left up to the speculations of the fanbase.[8]
Given the situations, Cynder may have been cast as the damsel in distress: first being under the control of Malefor and almost sucked into the Convexity vortex in A New Beginning, then being kidnapped and held hostage by Gaul in The Eternal Night.
Cynder is one of only two known female characters in the entire Legend of Spyro series, the other being Nina.
She is also the only female dragon, of the eight dragon characters seen in the series.
In the cutscenes and gameplay of A New Beginning and The Eternal Night developed by Krome Studios, the bottom of Cynder's chin appears to be red colored, however, in the actual gameplay and in Dawn of the Dragon, her chin is black.
In promotional material for A New Beginning, Cynder's artwork has glowing white eyes, which doesn't happen ingame. Oddly, in Jared Pullen's original version of the artwork, her green eyes are accurately depicted.
“Regarding your question, when we began working with the new team at EL, we took the opportunity to explore different looks and "ages" for Spyro and Cynder. We also had to make some changes to allow for the new gameplay features, such as needing larger wings to work with the flight feature and to allow the characters to block with their wings. The team came up with a variety of concepts and we settled on what you see in DotD. We didn't want to change it too much, but it was a good opportunity to allow the characters to grow up a bit (just like many of the fans were growing up too). It was also a good time to make this change given that it was the 10 year anniversarry for the Franchise. Had we made the game with Krome, its difficult to say what would have happened, but I'm sure there would have still been some changes. Since this was the first time Spyro was on the next-generation consoles, we had to update the model to take advantage of the new technology on the PS3 and Xbox 360.”
—Chris Wilson, closed-down Sierra Community Forums (mostly inaccessible)
