Lina is the primary protagonist and the only character that appears in all incarnations of Slayers. She is an adolescent but very powerful sorceress, with a great love of money, treasure (especially the magical sort) and food. In the anime and manga (but not the light novel) Lina uses overly destructive magic recklessly (but comically), often with little provocation. She is reputed to be an evil, powerful, destructive, diminutive sorceress (the evil part isn't true)
Lina has many different nicknames, one of them being "Dragon Spooker", a name that she isn't too fond of. This is rumored to have appeared because of an incident in the first episode, in which the Leader of the Dragon Fangs’ pet black dragon escapes. Just when it appears that the beast is going to crush Lina (and Gourry, who was knocked out on top of her in a compromising position), it blanches in disgust and steps over her, a blush along its snout, much to her shock, and thereafter rage. However, the nickname was mentioned before the black dragon met her, thus leading to a possible earlier incident.

Another nickname Lina encounters is the "Dragon Nester." This comes from a rhyme: "Little girl with little breasts, scares the dragon from its nest." This takes off from a running gag, in which characters constantly comment on the small size of Lina's breasts. She generally takes offense to these comments, and often responds with violence. This nickname only appears in the English dub but small breast jokes are a staple of the franchise.