Fate/Zero/Characters: Difference between revisions

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Characters may overlap with those from ''Fate/stay night''. Go to [[Fate/stay night/Characters|its own characters page]] for their role in the Fifth Holy Grail War.

 

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== Masters ==

 

=== Kiritsugu Emiya (Master of Saber) ===

 

 

Hitman and "[[Mage Killer|Magus Killer]]" Emiya. Father of ''[[Fate/stay night]]'' protagonists Emiya Shirou (adopted) and Illyasviel von Einzbern, and [[Anti-Hero]] of this story. Standing on the Cynical side of the [[Sliding Scale of Idealism Versus Cynicism]], he believes that it is impossible for everyone in the world to be happy; in order to be a true hero, one must eliminate the destructive factors which would in turn threaten the survival of humanity as a whole. Killing one to save a hundred, dozens to save thousands.

{{spoiler|He orders Arturia to destroy the Grail, setting the entire city on fire. Wandering aimlessly through the destroyed city, he finds a small boy, miraculously still alive. And thus ''[[Fate/stay night]]'' officially begins.}}

* [[Anti-Hero]] - Unfettered and willing to kill the few to save the many.

* [[Ascended Extra]] - Went from a minor, backstory and flashback exclusive character in ''[[Fate/stay night]]'' to a major one in the prequel.

** [[Badass Longcoat]]

* [[Break the Cutie]] / [[Troubled Backstory Flashback]] - His backstory, revealed in Volume 4, involves {{spoiler|watching his childhood friend turn his entire village into vampires after she drank a potion which turned her into a failed [[Our Vampires Are Different|Dead Apostle]], since he refused to [[Mercy Kill]] her; killing his own father, who was responsible for the potion in the first place; and taking down a plane with his mentor and mother-figure on it after they attempt to stop an outbreak of vampirism on said plane}}.

* [[Byronic Hero]]

* [[Cold Sniper]]

* [[I Have Your Wife]] - Uses this against {{spoiler|Kayneth}}.

* [[Irony]]: Kiritsugu's wish for the Grail is to save the world, but instead ends up inadvertently destroying a section of the city.

* [[Jedi Mind Trick]] - He is capable of convincing a bellboy that he is Kayneth and that "he" and "his wife" Sola-Ui have evacuated said bellboy's building.

* [[Jerkass Facade]]

* [[The Needs of the Many]] - His main principle in saving people -- "kill one to save tens", "kill ten to save hundreds". This gets deconstructed in-universe by {{spoiler|Angra Mainyu}} in the fourth novel, who shows Kiritsugu an illusion of two sinking ships, one with 300 people and the other with 200 people. Both boats are sinking, so Kiritsugu chooses to save the 300. The 300 people are then separated into two boats with 200 and 100 people respectively, which then start sinking again. This continues until there are only two people left (Irisviel and Illya), and Kiritsugu realizes that he has killed 498 people to save two.

* [[Parental Abandonment]] - Him to Ilya.

* [[Pre-Mortem One-Liner]] - {{spoiler|"For me, anyway."}} Changed to [[Bond One-Liner]] in the anime.

* [[Self-Made Orphan]] - Killed both his father and his mother-figure.

* [[Shadow Archetype]] - To Saber of all people. While much is made about how Kiritsugu and his servant are at odds, on a fundamental level they share many of the same ideals and much of the trauma they endure comes from the fact that they have been betrayed by their devotion to those ideals.

* [[Silly Rabbit, Idealism Is for Kids]] - {{spoiler|But only later in life, after the war. While he was quite cynical before too, it was [[Well-Intentioned Extremist|in]] [[I Did What I Had to Do|a]] [[The Needs of the Many|different]] [[Necessarily Evil|way]].}}

'''Kiritsugu:''' Hmm, it is rather regrettable. Heroes have a time limit too, and it’s hard to keep being one once you become an adult. It would have been better if I realized that earlier. }}

* [[Start of Darkness]] - The start of volume 4 in the novels, and episodes 18 and 19 in the anime. It starts with {{spoiler|Kiritsugu killing his father after the old man triggers a [[Zombie Apocalypse]] that wipes out their island home}}. It ends with him {{spoiler|sacrificing his surrogate mother figure to prevent another, much larger outbreak}}.

* [[Smoking Is Cool]]

* [[The Stoic]]

* [[Theme Music Power-Up]] - In the Drama CD, a [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8kqls64aYUs remixed version] of ''[[Crowning Music of Awesome|EMIYA]]'' plays during his fight with {{spoiler|Kirei}} near the end.

* [[Totalitarian Utilitarian]]

 

=== Tokiomi Tohsaka (Master of Archer) ===

 

 

Father of Rin Tohsaka and Sakura Matou, husband of Aoi, and head of the Tohsaka family. Being close friends with the overseer Risei, they plotted together to have Kirei become Tokiomi's pupil in magecraft, so that he can assist Tokiomi during the upcoming War.

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* [[Abusive Parents|Abusive Parent]] - Actually subverted, he has both of his daughters' best interests at heart...though people outside the tradition of mages have a hard time understanding why he does what he does; see below.

* [[Anti-Villain]] - See [[Pet the Dog]].

* [[Arch Enemy]] - Of Kariya.

* [[Blue and Orange Morality]] - This technically applies to all the proper magi in the [[Nasuverse]], who live in a very different world with its own rules, but is especially prominent with Tokiomi as it comes into play through his actions and his confrontation with {{spoiler|Kariya}}.

* [[Blue Eyes]] - Blue-green, exactly like his daughter's.

* [[Call Forward]] - Similar to his daughter Rin, he also summons an Archer {{spoiler|who later betrays him}}, and also makes an alliance with Saber's Master. Oddly enough, Tokiomi's Archer is the ''first'' Heroic Spirit, while Rin's is the ''latest'', and both Archers have opposite powers with similar uses.

* [[Curb Stomp Battle]] - Delivers one to {{spoiler|Kariya}}.

* [[Didn't See That Coming]] - Gilgamesh and Kirei's betrayal, as well as the fact that Gilgamesh would be summoned as an Archer-class Servant, giving him the Independent Action ability and making him absolutely uncontrollable.

* [[Hard Work Hardly Works]] - Totally averted. He became such an outstanding magus through sheer determination and hard work.

* [[Hot Dad]] - well, his elemental attribute -is- fire...

* [[Irony]] - Tokiomi eventually realizes the possibility of his death in the Grail War, but fails to realize that it will come from betrayal rather than battle.

* [[Magic Staff]] - His ruby-topped cane is one.

* [[Pet the Dog]] - His last meeting with Rin. He also showed concerns over their safety during the ritual, tried to take them away from the battlefield, and he's visibly upset when innocents are caught in magical accidents. Along with Waver, he's also the only Master that is shown to be visibly upset by the actions of Caster and Ryuunosuke.

* [[Playing with Fire]] - Tokiomi's elemental attribute.

* [[Reasonable Authority Figure]] - When it comes to Rin.

* [[Smug Snake]] - Tokiomi tries hard to set himself up as a [[Magnificent Bastard]], summoning the strongest Servant, secretly having alliances with both the Church and another Master, and acting servile to Archer despite {{spoiler|intending to kill him in the end}}, all to make him the most likely to win the Grail War. Despite correcting his overconfident, arrogant attitude {{spoiler|after Risei's death}}, he fails to realize the treachery of his Servant and pupil.

* [[Weapon of Choice]] - His Mystic Code is a staff with a ruby embedded in the top.

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=== Lord Kayneth Archibald El-Melloi (Master of Lancer) ===

 

 

Renowned magus and a Noble of the Magi Association, where he is a lecturer at the Department of Euryphis. Fiancé of the department head's daughter, Sola-Ui. The teacher of Waver, whose controversial thesis was torn to pieces without a second thought. Upon discovering that Waver stole his artifact, an enraged Kayneth uses a second artifact to enter the War.

* [[Guns Are Worthless]] - Until Kiritsugu showed their effectiveness, after which he {{spoiler|[[Pragmatic Villainy|kills Risei with a handgun to frame the Magus Killer (though it fails)]]}}.

* [[Hoist by His Own Petard]] - The fate of any magus who tries to throw down with Kiritsugu, since Kiritsugu's own Mystic Code is a gun that shoots an anti-magus bullet that destroys the target by shorting out their magic circuits and blowing out their bodies with their own overloaded prana. When Kayneth, a powerful mage, pours all his power into his already-powerful Mystic Code, Kiritsugu's bullet nearly tears Kayneth apart from the backlash.

* [[Improbable Weapon User]] - Volumen Hydragyrum, his Mystic Code, is 140 kg of weaponized mercury. He can shape it according to his will, creating anything from [[Combat Tentacles]] to [[Razor Floss]]. He can even use it to scout out his environment, locating enemies through their heat signatures and vibration.

* [[Insufferable Genius]]

 

=== Waver Velvet (Master of Rider) ===

 

 

A talented student at the Clock Tower of the Magi Association. He developed a revolutionary concept on increasing magical potential with methods that go against the ancient tradition of bloodline inheritance. This prompted Kayneth (his teacher) to rip apart his manuscript. In retaliation, he steals Kayneth's summoning artifact and enters the War, intending to win the Grail to prove his own genius.

 

{{spoiler|1=After Kayneth's death, he is forced to take up the title of Lord El-Melloi II, eventually becoming one of the top lecturers of the Magi Association. He is quite close to Rin as a teacher, and is the man who, outside of ''HF'', dismantles the Fuyuki Grail system after the [[Fate/stay night|Fifth Grail War]]. In the ''All-Around TYPE MOON'' crossover Drama CD, he is also revealed to be ''Cafe Ahnenerbe'''s mysterious customer, and the narrator.}}

* [[Adorkable]] - It shows all the more since he's a straight-laced type A [[Tsundere]] Master with a [[Boisterous Bruiser]] for a Servant.

* [[Boring but Practical]] - Being incapable of more spectacular spellwork, he has to resort to clever applications of simple magic. He sees it as something to be ashamed of until Rider, who considers resourcefulness more impressive than raw strength, commends him.

* [[Butt Monkey]] - Iskander is pretty abusive.

* [[Character Development]] - Goes from a self-centered, obnoxious, arrogant brat to a true man, {{spoiler|dignified and loyal follower of the great King of Conquerors that even ''Gilgamesh'' somehow considers worthy of living}}.

* [[Cheaters Never Prosper]] - He's the only Master in the war who ''doesn't'' cheat at some point, {{spoiler|and while he doesn't win, he makes it through the war alive, and is the only one of the surviving Masters who is better off at the end of the war than he was at the start.}}

 

=== Ryuunosuke Uryuu (Master of Caster) ===

 

 

A [[Serial Killer]] who accidentally enters the War after finding a grimoire and completing the rituals contained within while morbidly decorating one of his crime scenes. Has no concern for the War or the Grail; he looks up to his Servant as an utmost expert of the art of killing, and the two spend most of their time finding new ways to inflict pain and suffering. Upon discovering the activities of the murderous duo, Risei announces to the other Masters that their elimination is of greatest priority.

** [[Card-Carrying Villain]]

** [[Complete Monster]] - In-universe he is called by the news services as a demon. Not that he minds though. His introduction has him giving a little speech casually contemplating whether he likes that title.

** [[Evil Duo]] - With Bluebeard.

** [[Evil Is Cool]] - He really thinks this in-universe.

* [[Freaky Is Cool]] - Ryuunosuke is incredibly happy to be friends with someone who shares his ''unique'' hobby.

* {{spoiler|[[Go Out with a Smile]]}} - {{spoiler|In Volume 3, when Kiritsugu snipes him.}}

** {{spoiler|While his head still remains intact when he's killed in the anime, the last expression we see on his face is still a smile.}}

* [[In Love with Your Carnage]] - To Bluebeard.

* [[The Sociopath]]

* [[Villainous Friendship]] - A type 1 with his Servant. The two seem to be genuinely fond of each other.

* {{spoiler|[[Your Head Asplode]]}} - {{spoiler|In Volume 3, courtesy of Kiritsugu's second rifle bullet.}}

** {{spoiler|Downgraded to [[Pretty Little Headshots]] in the anime.}}

 

=== Kariya Matou (Master of Berserker) ===

 

 

The black sheep of the Matou and the first in many generations to be capable of magecraft, who severed ties with the family ten years prior out of disgust; this earns him the ire of Matou Zouken, the family head. Having loved Aoi since they were childhood friends, all he wished for was for her and her daughters Rin and Sakura to be happy. Upon finding out that Tokiomi gave Sakura away to the Matou, knowing that she will suffer torture and abuse, he makes a deal with Zouken to win the war in return for Sakura's freedom.

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* [[Big Damn Heroes]] - He manages to destroy one of Caster's familiars right before it can kill Rin.

* [[Byronic Hero]]

* [[Dark Is Not Evil]] - Contrary to what his sinister appearance might suggest, he's a pretty decent guy whose reason for entering the Holy Grail War is the most selfless of all the Masters (excepting, perhaps, Kiritsugu, who just wants to fix the world).

* [[Despair Event Horizon]] - {{spoiler|When Aoi, never realizing Kariya's love for her, accuses him of never having loved someone, ''he snaps''.}}

 

=== Kirei Kotomine (Master of Assassin) ===

 

 

An [[Church Militant|Executor]] and magecraft apprentice of Tohsaka Tokiomi; his wife committed suicide and he received the Command Spells in the same week. A skillful young man who unfortunately cannot gain pleasure from anything except the pain of others. Fittingly or ironically, his magecraft specializes in surgery.

Initially uninterested in the Grail, after advice from Gilgamesh, he decides to investigate why the other Masters are participating. He finds Kiritsugu's wish - saving the lives of all others - to be the opposite extreme of his; therefore, he wants to face him personally, asking, "What is the worth, of a worthless being?"

 

* [[Arch Enemy]] - To Kiritsugu.

* [[Badass]]

** [[Badass Abnormal]] - Average as a magus, but an experienced Executor.

* [[Batman Gambit]] - {{spoiler|After killing Tokiomi, he places the latter's corpse together with an unconscious Kariya in order to [[Kick the Dog|set Aoi against him]], then [[Manipulative Bastard|manipulates Kariya into kidnapping Irisviel]] with Berserker disguised as Rider using the former's Noble Phantasm ''For Someone's Glory''. This provokes Saber to attack Iskander, whose chariot is destroyed in the process. Gilgamesh then moves to finish off Iskander while Berserker duels Saber, ensuring that Kirei faces Kiritsugu alone.}}

* [[Battle Butler]] - To Tokiomi, in whose service he is obedient, dutiful, and effective. {{spoiler|Until he's not.}}

* [[Big Bad]] - While it was [[Fate/stay night|foretold by canon]], {{spoiler|as of ''zero'' he doesn't know it yet.}}

* [[Charles Atlas Superpower]] - Master of the Baji Quan martial art, and capable of keeping up with Kiritsugu's attacks when Kiritsugu is using time manipulation to speed himself up to three times past the human limit.

* [[Contractual Immortality]]

* [[Genius Bruiser]]

* [[Healing Hands]] - Kirei finds it ironic, given his dispostion, that his natural talent - and the ''only'' area of magic in which he's naturally above-average - is healing.

* [[Irony]] - [[Invoked Trope|Invokes]] it, killing Tokiomi with the Azoth dagger he gave to Kirei ''as a parting gift'', and then ''gives it to Rin as a gift''. It comes full circle in the next Grail War when Shirou kills him with the same dagger in one of the three routes.

* [[Karma Houdini]] - Avoids the consequences for his various evil deeds until ''[[Fate/stay night]]''.

* [[Treacherous Advisor]] - To Tokiomi, again.

* [[Unusual Eyebrows]]

 

== Servants ==

=== Arturia Pendragon (Saber) ===

 

 

[[King Arthur|Arthur]], the King of Knights, in fact a disguised young woman. Summoned using the sheath Avalon as a catalyst, after it was excavated by the Einzberns. Partnered with Irisviel due to the incompatibility between Arturia and Kiritsugu. She is engaged in nearly every battle of the War.

{{spoiler|After defeating Berserker, she faces Gilgamesh, the last Servant remaining, amidst the sea of fire that covers Fuyuki. Kiritsugu, fighting off Kirei, orders Arturia to destroy the Grail with two Command Spells. Without knowing the reasons behind Kiritsugu's actions, she disappears.}}

 

 

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* [[Action Girl]]

* [[Hot Chick with a Sword]]

* [[I Did What I Had to Do]] - Her own justification to herself for {{spoiler|declaring war on Lancelot and starting a civil war. She personally wanted nothing more but for Guinevere and Lancelot to be happy, but as a king, had to declare war and bring them to justice.}}

* [[Idiot Hair]]

* [[Kicking Ass in All Her Finery]]

* [[Knight in Shining Armor]]

* [[Lawful Good]] - In-universe alignment.

* [[Let Them Die Happy]] - To {{spoiler|Lancelot}} as he's dying in her arms. {{spoiler|She wanted so badly to reassure him that he's always been a loyal and just knight, and that he has nothing to atone for. However, she chose not to say anything, because she knew that by doing so, it would torment him even more.}}

* [[Mercy Kill]] - To {{spoiler|El-Melloi}} in Volume 3, {{spoiler|after Maiya perforates him with a [[More Dakka|Steyr AUG]] and Kiritsugu refuses to finish him off}}.

* [[Mistaken Identity]] - Caster refuses to believe that she is not Jeanne d'Arc.

* [[Theme Music Power-Up]] - In the Drama CD, a remixed version of ''[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kxV5oLFtwj8 "The Sword of Promised Victory"]'' starts up as {{spoiler|she prepares to Excaliblast Caster}}.

** Done again in the anime, with Yuki Kajiura nailing one of the three most epic songs of ''Fate'' (spoiler-in-video warning): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=[[M 1 Al Mgopg KQ]]

* [[What the Hell, Hero?]] - To Kiritsugu after he {{spoiler|offers a mage's contract to Kayneth that forces Lancer to kill himself and then has Maiya to shoot down Kayneth and Sola-Ui}}.

* [[The Woman Wearing the Queenly Mask|The Woman Wearing The Kingly Mask]]

 

=== Gilgamesh (Archer) ===

 

 

The King of Heroes; [[The Epic of Gilgamesh|the oldest, most venerable]] Heroic Spirit participating in the War. Summoned using the fossil of 'the first snake to shed its skin' as a catalyst, relating to his quest for immortality.

He possesses the Gate of Babylon, [[Hyperspace Arsenal|a portal that contains the prototypes of all the Noble Phantasms]], [[Cool Ship|an Ancient Babylonian Spaceship]], [[Arson, Murder, and Jaywalking|and his wine cellar]]. He also has Ea, a [[Sword Beam|wave-motion]] ''[[This Is a Drill|drill sword]]'' which he uses for his finishing move ''Enuma Elish''.

 

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* [[Above Good and Evil]] - How he defines himself. He is absolute. As a true king, justice is unnecessary to him. An interesting case as it is not really considered an evil point of view, it's actually the opposite. {{spoiler|It might even be taken literally as even all the world's evil is unable to corrupt such an "absolute existence"}}

* [[Badass]] - *ahem* [[Red Baron|King of Heroes]]

* [[Be Yourself]] - His general philosophy, which he's happy to share with all who pass by. [[Jerkass|Particularly and especially those for whom 'being themselves' and following their convictions would be deeply unhealthy.]]

* [[Bishonen]] - [http://straywolfnest.files.wordpress.com/2011/10/1317484451562.jpg You judge.]

** Doubles as [[Poisonous Friend]].

* [[Fatal Flaw]] - His pride.

* [[For the Evulz]] - Whilst this is not the core motive of his behaviour, he's notable for finding it a perfectly valid way to live [[Be Yourself|if that is what truly grants you the most pleasure]].

* [[The Hedonist]] - A rather dark take on it.

* [[Leitmotif]] - ''Two'' of them: ''[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3s3X7K68pDM "The Gilgamesh"]'' and ''[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3u1htX3B_0k "King of Babylon"]''.

* [[Light Is Not Good]]

* [[Manipulative Bastard]] - Is responsible for leading Kirei into realizing that he can only be happy by killing people and messing with their minds. He did so very slowly and with [[For the Evulz|much glee]]. {{spoiler|He also was the one who had Berserker fight Saber simply because he thought it would be amusing to have that "mad dog" as he puts it fight her and this is after he finds out about Berserker true identity.}}

* [[Mundane Utility]] - In addition to all the weapons and cool tools that he keeps in the Gate of Babylon, Gilgamesh also apparently has a first rate wine cellar.

* [[Nietzsche Wannabe]]

* [[Only Friend]] - Gilgamesh turns down Iskander's offer of [[We Can Rule Together|ruling together]] because of this trope. Anyone who's familiar with [[The Epic of Gilgamesh|the epic]] can probably guess who he's talking about.

* [[Person of Mass Destruction]]

* [[Pet the Dog]] - {{spoiler|He honors Iskander's last command to Waver (to live on) by sparing the latter's life after Iskander dies.}}

 

=== Diarmuid Ua Duibhne (Lancer) ===

 

 

Diarmuid of the Love Spot, a hero from the Fenian Cycle of [[Celtic Mythology|Irish mythology]]. Due to his mastery of arms and his nobility, he is respected by both Iskander and Arturia. His loyalty to his Master is both a source of pride and bitterness. He intervenes in many battles throughout the series, dueling Arturia several times.

 

=== Iskander ([[Spell My Name with an "S"|Alexander]]) the Great (Rider) ===

 

 

The King of Conquerors, Iskander. Summoned using his ancient mantle, he in fact has no interest in the Grail; he is far more interested in conquering the world again. However, he does not use violence as his primary method; "victory without elimination, ruling without humiliation, that is true conquest". An impulsive and overbearing man who lives according to his emotions and lets history take its own course.

 

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* [[Badass]]

** [[Badass Beard]]

* [[Big Damn Heroes]] - Saves a wounded Arturia from being overwhelmed by Diarmuid and Berserker.

* [[Boisterous Bruiser]]

'''Waver''': ... }}

** He was kidding, though, and mocks Waver for believing him. But still, drinking party with Saber and Gilgamesh... Wha?

* [[Buffy-Speak]] - How does he describe the [[Storm of Blades|Gate of Babylon]] to his Master? "Showing off with a lot of shiny-goldy things." He also calls stealth bombers "big black B2 thingies."

* [[Dark-Skinned Redhead]]

* [[Defeat Means Friendship]] - His entire ideology, based around conquering without humiliation. Waver occasionally catches glimpses of Iskander's life whilst sleeping and marvels at how those he conquered became swept up in his goal to conquer the world.

* [[Foregone Conclusion]] - Iskander will never be able to convince Saber to give up her wish and regrets, seeing that it is what underlies the conflict of viewpoints between her and Shirou in the ''Fate'' route.

* [[Friendly Enemy]] - He casually suggests that he and Saber have a drinking game and invited Gligamesh to join them when he happened to run across the guy. Until Kirei's Assassins show up, the three of them are sitting around a table, talking about their dreams, kingship and even comparing the quality of wine.

* [[Go-Karting with Bowser]] - He holds Gilgamesh to his promise of the two of them finishing off the remaining wine before {{spoiler|facing off in a deathmatch}}. The two were quite cordial and even clicked their goblets before draining them. Waver was surprised that the two got along quite well.

* {{spoiler|[[Go Out with a Smile]]}}

* [[The Power of Friendship]] - The reason his Reality Marble, Ionian Hetairoi, exists is the bond between him and his men, who are so devoted to him that even death cannot erase them. At the same time, Iskander considers them to be his greatest treasure. All of this is why even though Iskander himself is not a magus, he, along with all of his men are able to bring out the Reality Marble that recreates the land that they once marched over.

** The Hepburn romanization of the original Japanese Hetairoi Phantasm goes like this: Aionion Hetairoi - which is (most likely badly conjugated) Gratuitous Greek for "Eternal Companions". You can google "aionion" to find a great deal of theological debate on the proper translation of the word.

* [["The Reason You Suck" Speech]] - To Saber, on her views on kingship. Combined with his demonstration of true kingship with his [[Badass Army]], he nearly ended up giving her a [[Heroic BSOD]] and making her lose her motivation to win the war, too.

** Also delivers one to Kayneth in the first real battle of the war when Kayneth starts taunting and intimidating Waver. Rider proceeds to call him out on his hypocrisy on having Lancer do all the fighting while Kayneth himself remains in hiding. He then states that only someone who would ride into battle at his side would be worthy to be his master (Kayneth was originally supposed to be Iskander's Master until Waver stole the needed relic).

** Later on, Waver asks him why he doesn't just wish for immortality. Rider likes this idea, because then he can try to conquer the entire universe.

* [[Too Dumb to Live]] - Subverted. It is explicitly pointed out that even though a lot of his decisions might seem to be foolish, he is simply so badass that it always ends up as a [[Crowning Moment of Awesome]] for him.

* [[To Win Without Fighting]] - Though he never gets to do any of it, his conversations make it clear that he respects this sort of victory greatly as well. He would much prefer having the other Servants join him and go off to do his own thing rather than stick to the 'thou musts' of the Grail War and kill everyone else.

* [[Ubermensch]] - Though less so than Gilgamesh and portrayed much more heroically. Iskander appears to discard conventional social standards and morales for the sake of personal happiness and self-realization, chasing after one's dreams and such. Characters occasionally call him out on the selfish nature of his behaviour, such as invading other countries for shallow reasons, but Iskander (unlike Gil) is shown to be much more willing to compromise in this regard, often trying to assimilate those who oppose him into his own ranks (or just letting them rule themselves in his name) rather than annihilating them as Gilgamesh usually does.

* [[Unusual Eyebrows]]

* [[We Can Rule Together]] - Iskander suggests this to {{spoiler|Gilgamesh}} in the last novel when he tells him that if his [[Badass Army|Ionion Hetairoi]] was equipped with {{spoiler|Gate of Babylon}} that they would be pretty much be unstoppable.

'''Iskander''': Once again, will you not be my ally? If we join together, we can surely conquer as far as the ends of the stars. }}

* [[Worthy Opponent]] - To ''[[It's All About Me|Gilgamesh]]''. Getting Gil to call him this and becoming the only Servant in both the 4th '''and''' the 5th wars that Gil actually respected was arguably Alex's greatest [[Crowning Moment of Awesome]] in the series.

 

=== Gilles de Rais (Caster) ===

 

 

Bluebeard, a French nobleman, one of the commanders led by Joan of Arc, and a comrade of Francesco Prelati, who introduced him to the occult. Mistakenly summoned by Ryuunosuke, he turns out to be as twisted a killer as his Master; in particular, he enjoys giving his victims a brief respite and spot of hope, before torturing them endlessly and turning their still-living bodies into 'amusing' configurations and devices.

 

=== The Black Knight/{{spoiler|Lancelot of the Lake}} (Berserker) ===

 

 

The mysterious "Black Knight" whose identity was only revealed at the end. Summoned by Kariya, but kept the Mad Enhancement voluntarily. Despite being rendered thoughtless, he maintained [[Implausible Fencing Powers|his mastery of arms]]; he becomes an unexpected major threat of the War, rivaling Arturia in skill.

 

=== Hassan-i-Sabbah (Assassin) ===

 

 

The "Old Man of the Mountain", one of eighteen leaders of the Hashshashin. As Kirei was meant to assist Tokiomi, Assassin was 'killed' early in the War to mask their activities, mainly reconnaissance.

** [[Literal Split Personality]]

* [[Zerg Rush]] - How his Noble Phantasm is ultimately put to use by Kirei. {{spoiler|Kirei uses his Command Spell to order all of Assassin's bodies to attack Waver and Iskander (who happen to be with Gilgamesh and Saber at the time). This is obviously a poor way to use a spirit as stealthy and versatile as Assassin. However it's justified since the entire reason for using Assassin like this was so that they could provoke Iskander into using his most powerful Noble Phantasm, which would allow Kirei and Tokiomi to get a reading on his strength.}}

 

== Supporting Characters ==

=== Irisviel von Einzbern ===

 

 

 

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* [[Adorkable]] - She ''really'' blurs the line between sweet-cute-cuddly and sensually-beautiful, and being a ''Mom'' on top of it all.

* [[Proper Tights with a Skirt]]

* [[Rapunzel Hair]]

* {{spoiler|[[Senseless Sacrifice]]}} - {{spoiler|She dies for nothing as the Grail was already corrupted.}}

* [[Thigh-High Boots]]

 

=== Maiya Hisau ===

 

 

Gunslinging partner and ''other'' woman of Kiritsugu (sort of). Found as an orphan on the battlefield and saved by Kiritsugu, she dedicated her life to assisting him. Knows what makes Kiritsugu tick, very well.

 

 

* [[Action Girl]]

* [[Friends with Benefits]] - With Kiritsugu in the past, and it's explicitly stated that there's no real emotion involved. Kiritsugu did it as a form of self-punishment, and as a "rehearsal" for {{spoiler|how he'll eventually have to betray Irisviel}}.

* {{spoiler|[[Go Out with a Smile]]}}

* [[Rape as Backstory]] - Revealed in Volume 4 -- She was raped by soldiers in a war-torn battlefield before she was found by Kiritsugu.

* [[Shoot the Hostage]] - Part of a plan instigated by Kiritsugu. {{spoiler|Having crippled El-Melloi, Kiritsugu orders Maiya to kidnap El-Melloi's wife. Kiritsugu gives El-Melloi an offer; quit the War, and Kiritsugu will be magically bound from harming the pair of them. El-Melloi agrees and hurries to leave the city. Maiya guns the pair down.}}

* [[The Stoic]]

* [[Tall, Dark and Bishoujo]] - Thus described.

 

=== Sola-Ui Nuada-Re Sophia-Ri ===

 

The daughter of the head of the Department of Euryphis at the Clock Tower, and the fiancée of Kayneth due to an [[Arranged Marriage]]. Kayneth bent the rules of the War by removing the burden of [[Mana|Prana]] supply to her, allowing him to keep the rights of the Master and still be an effective combatant.

* [[Mad Love]] - She {{spoiler|snaps off one of Kayneth's fingers as he lies paralyzed}} and [[Dissonant Serenity|very calmly]] threatens to keep going unless he gives her his Command Spells so she can become Lancer's Master.

* [[More Than Mind Control]] - A magus of Sola-ui's caliber would be able to resist Lancer's C-Rank "Mystic Face," meaning she willingly gave in to the power of the Love Spot {{spoiler|and assuming those weren't just her own feelings at work}}.

* [[The Ojou]]

* [[Overly Long Name]]

* {{spoiler|[[Shoot the Hostage]]}} - {{spoiler|Kiritsugu has her shot along with Kayneth.}}

* [[Stalker with a Crush]] - Diarmuid has to ''force'' her to stay away out of combat after she takes over, pointing out that she doesn't have Kayneth's training; Sola only gives in because she doesn't want Lancer to think she lacks confidence in him, not out of any concession to her own safety.

 

=== Aoi Tohsaka ===

 

 

Childhood friend of Kariya, wife of Tokiomi, and mother of Rin and Sakura. Despite knowing exactly what was meant by marrying a magus (ie. being used to produce a capable heir) she accepted and was happy with her life. Devoted and unquestioning, who supports all of her husband's decisions and makes no objections; the ideal 'traditional wife'.

* [[Housewife]] - This is basically her assigned role; homemaking and heir-producing. Too bad she proves to be way too good at that...

* [[Oblivious to Love]] - Has no idea of Kariya's feelings for her.

 

=== Risei Kotomine ===

 

 

The father of Kirei and the overseer for the previous and current Wars. Secretly supporting the Tohsaka family, Tokiomi is close friends with him. While he is proud of his son, he does not seem to understand what kind of person he truly is.

* [[Doting Parent]] - He thinks that he knows what makes his son tick very well. Unfortunately...

* [[Eyes Always Shut]]

* [[Horrible Judge of Character]] - Though it's a line from ''[[Fate/stay night|Fate Stay Night]]'' Kotomine once reflects on how his father never really understood him, he only saw his exceptional capabilities and apparent piety. In ''[[Fate/Zero]],'' he has utter faith in Kotomine. However, he is not the only one to misunderstand what drives Kotomine, nor did he ever see Kotomine after he became the villain we know him as. Kotomine was genuinely distressed when Risei died {{spoiler|as he wanted to kill his father himself.}}

* [[Unusual Eyebrows]]

 

=== Zouken Matou ===

 

 

Head of the Matou/Makiri family, grandfather to [[Fate/stay night|Shinji Matou]], father to Kariya Matou, and adoptive grandfather of Sakura Matou. He is actually around two centuries old, having used parasitic worms to extend his life span. He has a minor role in ''[[Fate/Zero]]'' as the one who pushes Kariya to join the Grail War, as well as the one who fosters Sakura's "[[Rape as Backstory|training]]".

 

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* [[Bigger Bad]] - Though he is a [[Big Bad]] in one of the routes of [[Fate/stay night]], his presence is relegated to the background in ''[[Fate/Zero]]''.

* [[Black Eyes of Evil]]

* [[Evil Old Folks]]

* [[For the Evulz]] - He sends Kariya into the 4th War although he considers Kariya's victory improbable from the very start, just because he wants to torture Kariya, who betrayed his expectations and defected from the Matou clan.

* [[Immortality Seeker]]

* [[Karma Houdini]] - Remember it isn't until ''Heaven's Feel'' in [[Fate/stay night]] when [[Karmic Death|he gets what he deserves]].

* [[Older Than They Look]] - And considering how old he ''does'' look, that's an accomplishment.

* [[The Worm That Walks]] - How he extends his life span.

 

=== Rin Tohsaka ===

 

The eldest daughter of Tokiomi and Aoi. A spunky, outspoken girl who shows a lot of promise as a mage.

 

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* [[A Day in the Limelight]] - Gets a short chapter from her POV in the book. Expanded into a full-fledged episode (fittingly titled ''Rin's Adventure'') in the anime adapatation.

** Although there's no indication that she's aware of the "evil" bit....

* [[Badass Adorable]] - {{spoiler|Only in the anime, though.}}

 

=== Sakura Matou ===

 

The younger daughter of Tokiomi and Aoi. Sakura was given away to the Matou family because the laws of the magus world prevented Tokiomi from training more than one of his daughters to carry on his family's tradition, and Tokiomi didn't want Sakura's potential to go to waste. Kariya made a deal with Zouken to win the Holy Grail in exchange for Sakura's freedom to return to the Tohsaka family.

 

-----

* [[Body Horror]]

 

=== Illyasviel von Einzbern ===

 

The daughter of Kiritsugu and Irisviel.

 

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* [[Artificial Human]]

 

=== Shirley ===

 

A young Philippine woman whom Kiritsugu was friends with in his childhood. Big admirer of Noritaka Emiya's research.

-----

* [[I Cannot Self-Terminate]]

* [[Posthumous Character]]

* [[Unwitting Instigator of Doom]] - She drank one of Noritaka's potions under development out of curiosity, which caused her transformation into a vampire and the destruction of her village.

 

=== Natalia Kaminski ===

 

A freelance mercenary who sold information concerning Noritaka and his research on vampires. She rescued a young Kiritsugu from Arimago Island and took him as her apprentice.

* [[Bob Haircut]]

* [[Cynical Mentor]]

* {{spoiler|[[Go Out with a Smile]]}}

* {{spoiler|[[Heroic Sacrifice]]}} - {{spoiler|A botched assassination forces Kiritsugu to blow to smithereens the plane she's in to prevent a zombie outbreak. The anime [[Go Out with a Smile|implies]] that she's at peace with that and knew it was coming.}}

* [[Mage Killer]] - Kiritsugu learns all his gruesome trade from her, especially marksmanship.

* [[Mentor Archetype]]

* [[Posthumous Character]]

* [[Smoking Is Cool]]

 

 

=== Byakuya Matou ===

 

Father of Shinji, brother of Kariya and eldest son of Zouken Matou. He was passed over as heir to the family due to possessing very few, if any, magic circuits.

* [[Dirty Coward]] - It's Shinji's dad we're talking about...

* [[Freudian Excuse]] - He has few magic circuits, his son is incapable of sorcery and he eventually learned that Sakura was going to be the successor, which is probably is what turned him into broken alcoholic man.

* [[Parental Favoritism]] - In the [[Fate/stay night|Heaven's Feel route]], after (unsuccessfully) trying to hide the nature of the Matou family from Shinji Byakuya starts favoring Sakura.

* [[The Unfavorite]] - Because he is weak as a Magus.

* [[Unwitting Pawn]] - Subverted, since while he is the one in charge of training Sakura in the worms' storage, the novel clearly states that he is fully conscience that he is being used by Zouken, but he doesn't care.

* [[You Gotta Have Blue Hair]]

 

=== Kotomine's wife ===

* [[Hot Mom]] - [[Fate/hollow ataraxia|Caren Ortensia]]'s mother.

* [[Ill Girl]]

* [[Love Martyr]] - She was devoted to a man who was literally incapable of loving her.

* [[No Name Given]] - Her name has not been revealed. However, based on Caren, her surname is presumably Ortensia.