Xerneas is a blue and black, quadrupedal, cervine Pokémon with an eight-horned set of antlers extending out from its head, four on each side. In Active Mode, each horn is pale gold and adorned with a colorful, three-part glowing protrusion twining through the horn (orange, red, purple, and teal-blue), one side mirroring the other. The colors gradually turn lighter to darker when moving from base to tip. In Neutral Mode, the horns are pale blue and the protrusions the same blue as its upper body. Xerneas's head is blue with two horns on either side of its head, and the root of its horns mark its face, just below the eye and over the nose. Its eyes are the same color as its fur, and its pupils are X-shaped. The blue portion of its body ends at the chest area where the "fur" juts outward to the side, similar to the blue horns on its face. On its breast is an inverted V-shape that is also pale gold in Active Mode and pale blue in Neutral Mode. The inside of the V-shape is black and extends into its lower body.
The rest of its body is black with a blue stripe running along its spine; when it is in Active Mode, the shine from its horns decorate its back in small, multicolored spots. It has a slim, fluffy black tail where the blue stripe ends. Its legs are fashioned like blades with forward-pointing "hooks" at the tips, creating a cross shape, with the main "edges" trimmed with the same color as the horns (pale gold in Active Mode, pale blue in Neutral Mode); the trim on its forelegs further map a crude sword-like pattern. Xerneas has the power to share eternal life.
- Xerneas has the highest Attack base stat and the highest base stat total of all Fairy-type Pokémon.
- Xerneas has the same stat distribution as Yveltal.
Origin
Xerneas's appearance is based on a cervid in the shape of the letter X (known as a saltire in heraldry) or an X mark. It may incorporate elements of Eikþyrnir and the four stags Dáinn, Dvalinn, Duneyrr and Duraþrór. Eikþyrnir resides in Valhalla eating the foliage of Læraðr with glowing horns that drip with dew. According to the Poetic Edda, the four stags resided in the trunk of the World Tree Yggdrasill and ate its branches and fresh shoots.
Xerneas, along with Yveltal, was designed by art designers Ken Sugimori and Yusuke Ohmura. Initial design for the two legendary Pokémon was started by Sugimori, but he encountered 'artist's block', having a hard time coming up with concepts. For the first time, he gave the work over to another designer, Ohmura. Ohmura furthered the designs, after which Sugimori resumed to finish them.[1]
Name origin
Xerneas comes from the letter X. It may be derived from cervus (Latin for deer), Cernunnos (horned Celtic god), and Ceryneian Hind.