Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Added DiffLines:
* AlternateContinuity: [[AllThereInTheManual As later revealed]], this novel is similar to ''VisualNovel/FateHollowAtaraxia'' in that ''Zero'' is not the exact version of events preceding the ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'' routes. ''VideoGame/FateGrandOrder'' features yet another continuity in the "Fate/Accel Zero Order" event, where [[spoiler:Irisviel and Kiritsugu never met, resulting in Iri actually being Saber's Master and Kiritsugu becoming a different version of Counter Guardian EMIYA]].
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 143 (click to see context) from:
* DepletedPhlebotinumShells: Kiritsugu's Origin Bullets contain ''his own'' powdered ribs, which he uses sparingly with his Contender. Because each bullet contains Kiritsugu's origin of severing and binding, a bullet used on a mage will irreparably ruin their magic circuits. Most targets are permanently crippled or killed by what this does to their body.
to:
* DepletedPhlebotinumShells: Kiritsugu's Origin Bullets contain ''his own'' powdered ribs, which he uses sparingly with his Contender. Because each bullet contains Kiritsugu's origin of severing and binding, a bullet used on a mage will irreparably ruin destroy, then incorrectly heal their magic circuits. Most targets are permanently crippled or killed by what this does to their body.the resulting "short circuits".
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 125 (click to see context) from:
* ContrivedCoincidence: Ryuunosuke's entire involvement in the Holy Grail War is this. He, a completely mundane serial killer, just so happens to have family who are Mages, who in turn happen to have a book containing the summoning ritual for Servants. Ryuunosuke then finds this book and preforms a summoning ritual in Fuyuki city, right at the onset of the Fourth Holy Grail War, while the role of Master of Caster is still remaining to be filled.
to:
* ContrivedCoincidence: Ryuunosuke's entire involvement in the Holy Grail War is this. He, truly the twist of fate: he is a completely mundane serial killer, but just so happens to have some mage blood, unbeknownst to him. He happens to find an old family who are Mages, who in turn happen to have a book containing the summoning ritual for Servants. Ryuunosuke then finds this book grimoire, and preforms on a lark, decides to model his murder scene after a summoning ritual in Fuyuki city, ritual, at just the right at the onset of the Fourth Holy Grail War, while the role of Master of Caster is still remaining place and time for it to be filled.actually work.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Added DiffLines:
* ContrivedCoincidence: Ryuunosuke's entire involvement in the Holy Grail War is this. He, a completely mundane serial killer, just so happens to have family who are Mages, who in turn happen to have a book containing the summoning ritual for Servants. Ryuunosuke then finds this book and preforms a summoning ritual in Fuyuki city, right at the onset of the Fourth Holy Grail War, while the role of Master of Caster is still remaining to be filled.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
Trope is now Definition Only
Deleted line(s) 268 (click to see context) :
* OffModel: Many shots in episode 11 of the anime, due in large part to most of the budget going into animating [[spoiler:Ionioi Hetairoi]].
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Added DiffLines:
* HollywoodBoardGames: On two occasions in the ''Franchise/FateSeries'' a modified TabletopGame/{{chess}} board can be seen -- 7x7 grid, Masters as the pawns, Servants as the other pieces, and a Holy Grail in the middle. Each time, its presence signifies different things. Although, in both cases, the Masters are the pawns not only because they are more plainly designed than the Servants but also because the power plays between the Servants have as much of an impact on the Wars' outcomes as the interactions between the Masters. Gilgamesh is seen idly playing with a golden set of this board, although it appears to only have one side. That is golden is a nod to how Gilgamesh only owns the very best of everything because he considers himself king of everything. On the other hand, this also gives ChessMotifs to him in the sense of him being a massive ManipulativeBastard who treats people as pawns because [[ItAmusedMe it entertains him]]. Curiously enough, his class (Archer), is not positioned in the center. That position belongs to the Saber class. Plot-wise, this makes sense as Saber is TheProtagonist and also the most powerful class.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Added DiffLines:
* WeakBossStrongUnderlings: {{Exaggerated}} with Kariya Matou and his Servant. While having been born with an affinity for magecraft, Kariya never received any training. Consequently, when he wants to participate in the Fourth Holy Grail, he's forced to let Crest worms inhabit his body so he can output enough prana to maintain a Servant, with the downside of the works severely debilitating his health. Therefore turning him into the weakest Master in the war. The Servant he summons is a Berserker, a class known for consuming an obscene amount of prana just to maintain in exchange for greatly boosting the Servant's stats. Now, this Berserker in particular has retained his ability to wield weapons (which he's very skillful at) and has three Noble Phantasms -- one to obscure his stats, another to [[EnemyExchangeProgram appropriate weaponry]], and the last one to further boost his abilities. All in all, Berserker is one of the most powerful Servants out there.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 1 (click to see context) from:
[[redirect:LightNovel/FateZero]]
to:
[[caption-width-right:350:''Top register from left to right (Masters)'': Ryuunosuke Uryuu, Waver Velvet, Tokiomi Tohsaka, Kiritsugu Emiya, Kayneth El-Melloi Archibald, Kariya Matou, Kirei Kotomine; ''Bottom circle, counterclockwise from upper left (Servants)'': Berserker, Archer, Lancer, Saber, Caster, Rider, Assassin.]]
->''"Let us tell the story of a certain man. The story of a man who believed in his ideals more than anyone else, and by them was driven to despair."''
There exists a [[TheLifestream plane beyond human conception]], within which resides the Throne of Heroes. Here, the souls of both [[IdealHero famous]] (and [[ByronicHero infamous]]) individuals throughout history are stored and recorded, to be used as eternal guardians of mankind. The definition of "hero" is broad--[[AntiHero even the most ruthless and heartless may have benefited the greater good]] in the end.
Centuries ago, three families of mages -- the Einzbern, Makiri, and Tohsaka -- conducted [[AncientConspiracy a dark and bloody ritual]]; Heaven's Feel, the Holy Grail War of Fuyuki. A [[MeleeATrois battle between seven mages]], competing for a chance to wish upon a "Holy Grail", the 726th such artifact branded by TheChurch. [[SummoningRitual Heroic Spirits from the Throne are summoned]] and bound to the material world, becoming "Servants" to their summoning "Masters". To keep their true names hidden, the seven Servants are sorted into one of seven Classes: Saber, Archer, Lancer, Rider, Caster, Berserker, and Assassin. In addition, each Servant is armed with the mysteries that symbolize their legend and embody their fame -- Noble Phantasms, legendary armaments and abilities.
As each Servant falls, the [[MacGuffin Holy Grail]] receives their power, [[ThereCanBeOnlyOne until only one remains]] and the Grail is able to manifest in the physical world to grant the winners' wishes.
''Fate/Zero'' is the story of the Fourth Holy Grail War.
[[AntiHero Kiritsugu Emiya]] grew up wanting to be a hero who could save anyone and everyone... but he learned the hard way that for every person he saved, another had to die. The only way to be a hero was to act [[TheNeedsOfTheMany for the good of all humanity]]; to destroy the factor that would destroy even more humans in turn if left unchecked. And if that factor was humanity itself, then [[NecessarilyEvil he would kill every single one who threatened the peace of another]]. Despised, feared, branded as a murderer, a contract killer, a hitman -- still he goes on, [[IDidWhatIHadToDo believing that this is the best way to serve humanity]].
Due to his immense skill, Kiritsugu is adopted by the Einzbern family as an honorary family member. However, the Einzberns' real motive is to send him to Fuyuki City, his old home, to participate in the Fourth Holy Grail War on their behalf. Despite finding love and happiness with his new family -- his wife, Irisviel, and their daughter, Ilya -- he knows the battle isn't over. As one of the seven Masters, he must return to Japan to obtain the Holy Grail of Fuyuki for the Einzbern family.
''Fate/Zero'' is a collaboration, a series of four illustrated novels written by Creator/GenUrobuchi (of Creator/{{Nitroplus}} and [[Anime/{{PuellaMagiMadokaMagica}} Madoka Magica]] fame) and illustrated by Takashi Takeuchi of Creator/TypeMoon, under the direction of Kinoko Nasu. Set in the Franchise/{{Nasuverse}}, it is the prequel to acclaimed VisualNovel ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight''. The first volume was released in December 2006 and the last was released in December 2007. It was first adapted into a Drama CD, with music by ZIZZ Studio (composers for the majority of Creator/{{Nitroplus}} works). A manga adaptation illustrated by Shinjirō was serialized between 2010 and 2017, and a TV series (by Creator/{{ufotable}} of ''LightNovel/TheGardenOfSinners'' fame, with music by Music/YukiKajiura, and starring the Drama CD cast) aired its first season in Fall 2011 and concluded in Spring 2012.
The anime was streamed for free with subtitles in eight different languages by Aniplex on [[Website/NicoNicoDouga Nico Nico]] as it aired. The episodes are available on [[http://www.crunchyroll.com/fate-zero Crunchyroll]], in both English audio and Japanese audio with subtitles. The English dub by Creator/AniplexUSA, Creator/VIZMedia's and Creator/NeonAlley service is also currently available on Netflix.
!!Since this is a prequel series to ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'', expect major {{Late Arrival Spoiler}}s for that series as well, as ''Fate/Zero'' ends with a ForegoneConclusion. Administrivia/YouHaveBeenWarned.
----
!!These books provide examples of:
* TwoDVisualsThreeDEffects: In the anime.
** Various examples of architecture, vehicles, attack effects, and Berserker in general.
** The odd organic character/creature, including Matou's worms in Episode 1, the tentacles in Episode 2, and Saber in certain shots during Episodes 22 and 23.
* TheNineties: The Fourth Grail War is set sometime in the 1990s. A mention of [[UsefulNotes/BillClinton a certain U.S. President]] places the story at 1994 or later.
* AbilityMixing: Two variations:
** Kiritsugu possess a magic called Initiate Time Control, which allows him alter his body's speed depending on how high he needs to. However it's initially AwesomeButImpractical because using it damages his body [[NecessaryDrawback due to such a thing]]. He eventually gets around this by using [[spoiler:Avalon since it makes him NighInvulnerable.]]
** Kotomine uses a martial arts style called Baji Quan, which allows him to augment his strength with very minimal amounts of magic. Later he uses [[spoiler:the Command Seals given by his dead father]] to augment his abilities, allowing to initially NoSell Kiritsugu's AntiMagic bullets.
* AdaptationalAttractiveness: Kariya isn't going to land any modeling gigs any time soon, but the BodyHorror inflicted on his body by the worms in the anime looks like a bad skin rash in comparison to his appearance in the light novels, where he resembles Two-Face from ''Franchise/{{Batman}}''.
* AdaptationalModesty: The manga features a fair bit more nudity than the anime. Most strikingly, Iskander's no-pants scene in the anime gives him a pair of mysteriously-acquired boxer briefs. In the manga, he's got no underwear, so we pretty much see his junk.
* AdaptationExpansion:
** At one point, one of Rin's friends is kidnapped by Uryuu and Caster. Not realizing the danger, Rin decides to go look for her. In the book, Rin nearly enters their lair before being attacked by one of Caster's monsters; Kariya rescues her and takes her home. In the anime, Rin enters their lair, confronts Uryuu, and actually manages to break Caster's hypnosis on the children before going back outside and getting attacked by a monster, where Kariya rescues her as in the book. [[SparedByTheAdaptation Rin's successful intervention in the anime means that all the children are rescued and return home; the same can't be said for the book.]]
** The anime expands on the flashbacks to Kiritsugu's past, particularly Shirley's relationships with both preteen Kiritsugu and his father.
* AdaptationExplanationExtrication:
** The anime leaves out a lot of Gilgamesh's reason for obsessing over Saber, which is mainly because she reminded him of his DeadSidekick Enkidu, who was Gilgamesh's MoralityChain in life.
** Berserker's motivations. While the anime, like the light novels, eventually reveals that [[spoiler:Lancelot was essentially trying to commit SuicideByCop by obsessively targeting Saber as Berserker, it skips the story of Lancelot and Guinevere's affair in the [[VisualNovel/FateStayNight Fate universe]], and how it led to the fall of Arturia's kingdom]]. As a result, the reason behind Berserker's guilt complex is left a little unclear.
* AesopCollateralDamage: [[spoiler:Kiritsugu]] learns that [[KnightTemplar one man living by and cultivating the best intention imaginable]] isn't justification for its realization in this life, [[spoiler:and the lesson comes at the price of over 300 people either burning alive or dying from wounds made by falling debris, as the Grail - being the fullness of desire itself - rejects him by his decision to reject it, and allows the desire of the self-unaware Kirei to be granted instead]].
* AffectionateGestureToTheHead: Rider roughly ruffles Waver's hair while they're leaving Caster's destroyed lair, which just annoys him. In the light novel, it's explained that he thinks Rider is deliberately trying to make him feel short.
* AimlesslySeekingHappiness: Kirei's problem is he's been selected as a contestant for the Holy Grail War, and if he wins he gets to wish for whatever he desires. But having lived a passionless life with nothing appealing to him, Kirei doesn't know what would make him happy. It takes him being paired with the indulgent king Gilgamesh, who's tasted every pleasure in life, to awaken Kirei to his subconscious sadism and discover real happiness from witnessing others suffer.
* AlasPoorVillain:
** [[spoiler:Caster having a hallucination of Jeanne d'Arc]] reaching out to him while smiling and [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone realizing]] just what kind of monster he has become before dying.
** After agreeing to quit the war, [[spoiler:Kayneth is summarily executed by Kiritsugu alongside his fiancee through use of a loophole. Because Kiritsugu cannot pull the trigger himself, he even has to bleed and beg for death on the ground until a disgusted Saber has to perform a MercyKill.]]
* AllForNothing: Thanks to ForegoneConclusion, [[spoiler:very few positives result of the Grail War, with most major characters dead or dying, and several antagonists and the future issues in ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'' being set up. Kiritsugu is hit especially hard with this, as everything that he stands for falls apart as his sacrifices and loss ultimately mean ''nothing'' due to the corrupted Grail, slapping him with a DownerEnding that will kill him in short time. The only positive he manages to eek out? [[SequelHook Saving a certain red-haired boy in the aftermath...]]]]
* AllLoveIsUnrequited: Most of it, anyway.
** Kariya has loved Aoi, who is both oblivious and married, since they were both young.
** Maiya has feelings for Kiritsugu, but acknowledges that Irisviel is the woman he loves. She's still TheMistress, but only because of Kiritsugu's masochistic need to "practice" betraying his wife for the Grail.
** Caster ''might'' count, since his "Jeanne" doesn't respond to his feelings largely because she's ''not'' Jeanne. The specifics of Gilles' feelings before Jeanne's death is currently unclear.
** In the backstory, Kirei's wife Claudia was devoted to a man who was literally incapable of loving her.
** Kayneth loves Sola-Ui and does whatever he can to make the best of their ArrangedMarriage. Sola-Ui becomes obsessed with Lancer, who's summoned as Kayneth's Servant. And if [[UndyingLoyalty loyalty]] is a type of love, Lancer rejects Sola-Ui because he's devoted to his Master Kayneth, despite receiving only disdain ([[KickTheDog at best]]) in return.
** Averted with Kiritsugu and Irisviel. [[spoiler:Until she dies.]]
** In his own arrogant and dark way, Gilgamesh comes to love the idealistically tragic Saber, but [[KnightInShiningArmor she]] wants nothing to do with someone so cruel and selfish. Unfortunately for Saber, [[ILoveYouBecauseICantControlYou her rejection just makes Gilgamesh want her more]]; in fact, he views it as part of her appeal.
* AllMythsAreTrue:
** Heroes of history and legend are enshrined as Heroic Spirits, eligible to be summoned as super-powerful Servants in the war.
** Armaments and abilities which are symbolic of the legend (for example, Myth/KingArthur and Excalibur) become the Noble Phantasms of the Servant.
* AllThereInTheManual:
** The original game, side material, information volumes, etc.
** Likewise, the details on the previous Grail Wars. The Third is mentioned as having taken place in UsefulNotes/WorldWarII, with [[ThoseWackyNazis Nazi]] [[{{Ghostapo}} agents]] getting in the way of the Grail.
** The Servants' actual physical parameters, powers, and skills are all listed in their [[RPGMechanicsVerse character sheets]].
* AnachronicOrder: The second episode detailing Kiritsugu's backstory freely hops between him as a child and him as a young man.
* AncientConspiracy: The true purpose of the Heaven's Feel ritual is to [[spoiler:recreate the Third Magic, the eponymous Heaven's Feel, which deals with immortality of the soul]].
* AnimalEspionage: Kiritsugu Emiya at a few points uses bat familiars with cameras rigged to their chests for recon, [[PostModernMagik because the cameras (not being alive) can see through the illusion spell of other Mages]].
* AnimeCatholicism: Certain high-ranking members of the Church are quite young, married with children, [[ChurchMilitant demon-hunting warriors]], and fluent in Japanese.
* AnyoneCanDie: Every other Servant ''must'' die to power the Grail so it can grant the victor's wish. ThereCanBeOnlyOne, after all.
* ArrogantGodVsRagingMonster: Gilgamesh is by far the most powerful of the Servants invoked, and in general, of the whole Fate universe. Still, even if not capable of beating him, the anger-crazed Berserker is one of the few able to not only keep up with him, but of angering Gilgamesh enough to make him lose his cool, forcing him to open the Gate of Babylon almost entirely. Arriving to a point where Gilgamesh has to struggle to even land a hit on him, while Berserker struggles to even get near Gilgamesh.
* TheArtifact: The [[RPGMechanicsVerse RPG-style character sheets]] for the Servants as introduced in ''stay night'' were explicitly the Grail magically presenting Shirou with this information in a way he could easily understand, due to his familiarity with video games. Nothing about Kiritsugu's background, along with ''Zero''[='s=] earlier setting in time, would suggest that this also applies to him, but the character sheets are an iconic quirk of the franchise.
* ArtifactOfDoom: The [[spoiler:Holy Grail was so thoroughly corrupted during the Third Grail War that it will misinterpret ''any'' wish as one for the extinction of humanity]].
* ArtificialHuman: A homunculus is used as the vessel of the Holy Grail.
* BadassArmy: Rider's Noble Phantasm can materialize the army he led in life, ''every member'' of which is a Heroic Spirit. [[spoiler:Not that this helps them fight Archer, who kills them all effortlessly.]]
* BadassBaritone: Tokiomi Tohsaka, Kiritsugu Emiya, and Kirei Kotomine are all competent mages and/or fighters with deep voices.
* BadassCape:
** Rider, but his design is just badass in general. [[http://otakuism.animeblogger.net/wp-content/uploads/2007/04/zeroiskandar.jpg Just look at the guy!]]
** Gilgamesh has a badass red cape as well, though the upper half of it is inside his armor.
* BadassFamily: The Einzberns and the Tohsakas. The Matous kinda counted, before all their magic disappeared.
* BadassInANiceSuit: Being the hitman he is, Kiritsugu certainly looks the part of a professional, but the real standout is Saber in her black suit.
* BadassLongcoat: Kiritsugu wears one.
* TheBadGuyWins: [[spoiler:Kirei and his servant Gilgamesh]] are the last pair standing at the end of the Holy Grail War. They also get their wish for destruction, albeit not on the scale they would hope for.
* BaitAndSwitchCharacterIntro: When we're introduced to Caster, a legendary figure accidentally summoned by Ryunosuke Uryuu, a depraved serial killer. To Uryuu's displeasure, Caster speaks kindly to the child whose family was murdered for the summoning ritual, telling the boy that he's free to go. The boy gets to the door...and is then grabbed and brutally ripped to pieces by ethereal tentacles. Caster then reveals that he just wanted the boy to experience a HopeSpot, as it makes the realization of their death even more satisfying. Naturally, this establishes Caster as an even worse villain than his summoner.
* BaitAndSwitchCredits: The opening sequence features a clip where Saber faces off with Assassin. In the story proper, these two never come to blows.
* BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor: [[spoiler:As Kiritsugu learns, the Holy Grail has been corrupted to work on this principle: any wish made on it will be granted through destruction and suffering. Kiritsugu wants the Holy Grail in order to grant world peace, but when he finally has the chance to make his wish the corrupted Grail explains how it intends to grant it: by ''killing off all of mankind but Kiritsugu and his daughter'', because humans would always fight. Then it's subverted when Kiritsugu [[ScrewDestiny destroys the Grail]].]]
* BeeBeeGun: Used as a vampire infection vector by Odd Vořák, a Dead Apostle mage in Kiritsugu's backstory.
* BeenThereShapedHistory: All of the Servants are, by definition of their nature as Heroic Spirits, people who are well-known for the historical events they were a part of in life before being summoned by the Masters.
* BeYourself: Deconstructed with Kirei, who, with encouragement from Gilgamesh, finds that he [[EvilFeelsGood enjoys causing and watching the suffering of others]].
* BigBadEnsemble: There initially appears to be between [[SerialKiller Ryuunosuke Uryuu]] and Caster (Literature/{{Bluebeard}}[=/=][[UsefulNotes/JoanOfArc Gilles de Rais]]), and [[TheAce Tokiomi Tohsaka]]; the deadliest competitors of the Fourth Holy Grail War. However, [[HijackedByGanon Kirei, Gilgamesh, and Zouken]] are, as in ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'', the true masterminds manipulating the war to get the Holy Grail.
* BigDamnHeroes: Several. Rider is a favorite for it. Even Gilgamesh gets one, [[spoiler:saving Saber from Berserker during the fight with Caster's monster.]] But he was [[IWasJustPassingThrough mad at Berserker...]]
* BigNo: [[spoiler:Saber, as she's forced to swing down Excalibur on the Grail.]]
* BittersweetEnding: The Einzbern Consultation Room [=OVAs=] end with [[spoiler:Taiga being separated from Irisviel, but not before Irisviel gives her the Einzbern Dojo sign. Taiga wakes up and begins wondering if her time in the dojo with Irisviel was AllJustADream. Taiga discovers that she still has the sign, and although she'll never see Irisviel again, decides to start working towards teaching people how to overcome any and all [[VisualNovel/FateStayNight "Bad Ends"]].]]
* BlackAndGrayMorality:
** The only "white" moral characters are [[ChildrenAreInnocent children]]: Ilya, Rin, Sakura ([[spoiler:at least until her crest worm treatments leave her [[CreepyChildren devoid of empathy]]]]), and the victims of Caster and Ryunosuke's [[FateWorseThanDeath kidnappings and experiments]].
** With a single surprisingly successful subversion, considering just how dark and cynical the series is. Saber, styled the "King of Knights", remains steadfastly honorable in all her engagements (even going so far as to cripple herself needlessly because she felt it fair), is willing to go to great risk to [[NeverHurtAnInnocent protect the innocent]], disobeying the commands of her own Master and strategic sense, and is [[BattleButler uncompromisingly loyal]] to [[LadyAndKnight Irisviel]]. All of this occurs in spite of her ideals being [[EvilGloating openly mocked]], [[TheReasonYouSuckSpeech mercilessly rebuked]], coming face-to-face with [[spoiler:the [[MyGreatestFailure greatest failure]] of [[MistreatmentInducedBetrayal her code]] ([[WeUsedToBeFriends Lancelot]])]], and being forced by bad luck and fate to work with a person who most [[SillyRabbitIdealismIsForKids personifies the deconstruction]] of her ideals -- with Kiritsugu being a ruthless CombatPragmatist and KnightInSourArmor. For Saber, the battle to retain her ideals amongst such BlackAndGrayMorality is just as real as the war itself. Of course, seeing [[Myth/KingArthur who she really is]], it's to be expected.
* BlandNameProduct: There's a "Ramasonic" brand Jumbotron in Episode 12 of the anime.
* BloodFromEveryOrifice: [[spoiler:Happens to Irisviel when she gets corrupted by the Holy Grail. Though instead of blood, she bleeds Angra Mainyu's mud.]]
* BloodFromTheMouth: Several characters get this when they are severely injured, sometimes before they die.
* BloodierAndGorier: The manga adaptation makes full use of its run in a genuine {{Seinen}} magazine, some of the explicit brutal things narrated in the novels (but not heavily shown in the anime, just implied) like Uryuu and Caster's "fun" times of torture and general sickening actions, are shown ''in great detail'' page-by-page in the manga; in fact, it is taken up to eleven via AdaptationExpansion by giving ''more background'' on what Uryuu likes to do with his victims, as well as graphically portraying young Sakura's brutal rape by the Matou Crest Worms.
* BluffTheImpostor: Glen Mackenzie [[spoiler:asks Waver if he remembers watching the stars with him when he was younger. After Waver says he remembers, Glen informs him that his real grandson never used to watch the stars with him. He forgives him, though, since it's not like their real grandson ever visits anyway.]]
* BreatherEpisode: "Rin's Big Adventure" isn't nearly as light as the name makes it out to be, but is still an aside that has basically nothing to do with the Grail War and while it has to do with a murderer kidnapping children, Rin manages to survive and find her friend alive. The following episode, "Discussing the Grail," is a straighter example. Three servants spend most of the episode waxing philosophical with each other, despite being nominal enemies.
* BroadStrokes: Officially, this story is acknowledged as taking place in a slight AlternateContinuity from ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'' - not because of a differing outcome from the Fourth Holy Grail War, but instead because certain details in ''Zero'' don't exactly mesh with how characters in ''stay night'' described the Fourth War. For example, Saber mentions drying up the Mion River with her usage of Excalibur in ''stay night'', but when she uses it here [[spoiler:to annihilate Caster's gigantic horror]] the river does not dry up. The anime adaptation does take pains to line up with is version of ''Unlimited Blade Works'' and ''Heavens Feel'', though.
* CallForward:
** Interestingly, this one was entirely ''by accident'', as ''VisualNovel/FateHollowAtaraxia'' wasn't fully planned out at that stage, but somehow, Gen Urobuchi was able to get the mechanics behind [[spoiler:Avenger/Angra Mainyu's method of "possession" ''entirely by chance''.]] Nasu and Takeuchi found the coincidence kinda freaky.
** The magic circle Irisviel and Saber draw in the shed of the operations base Kiritsugu provided them will end up saving Shirou's skin from Lancer [[VisualNovel/FateStayNight ten years later]] by serving as the summoning circle for Saber.
* CallingYourAttacks: If a Noble Phantasm has to be manually activated, its "true name" must be called. Doesn't apply for those that are always active.
* TheCameo:
** Caster sees Jeanne d'Arc when he dies, who would go on to play a major role in ''LightNovel/FateApocrypha''.
** In the anime's first ending sequence, the art of Saber at the Battle of Camlann features her killing her daughter, Mordred. Like Jeanne d'Arc, Mordred was a main character in ''Fate/Apocrypha''.
** Episode 18 of the anime highlights Kiritsugu's backstory where his childhood friend Shirley [[spoiler:inadvertently causes an epidemic of [[OurVampiresAreDifferent Dead Apostles]] on their island.]] Among the responding mages sent by the Mage's Association is fire mage [[LightNovel/TheGardenOfSinners Cornelius Alba]].
** In the last episode of the anime, a high school girl is shown in the background waving a shinai around. That's most likely Taiga Fujimura, a supporting character from ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight''.
** In the manga version, Irisviel is discussing the Executioners and we are shown a panel with [[VisualNovel/{{Tsukihime}} Ciel using Black Keys]].
* CastFullOfPrettyBoys: Not totally surprising, considering outside of Saber and Irisviel all the major characters are male. Lancer, Gilgamesh, Waver, and Ryuunosuke stand out as particularly {{Bishonen}}, although Kiritsugu and Kirei are no slouches in the MrFanservice department. Most of the Masters and Servants are easy on the eyes.
* CheatersNeverProsper: The only Master who ''doesn't'' cheat over the course of the War is Waver (Kirei cheats by seeking sanctuary under false pretenses. Ryuunosuke, who doesn't know or care about the War, breaks the rule about preserving the Masquerade. Everyone else breaks the rule about not fighting each other until Caster is beaten). Although Waver doesn't win the war, he does survive it, and is indisputably better off at the end of the War than he was at the beginning, which is more than can be said about Kirei and Kiritsugu, the only other two who are even still alive.
* ChekhovsSkill: During Kiritsugu's first scene after coming to Fuyuki City, he practices reloading his Thompson Contender, noting that the process takes about two seconds. [[spoiler:This speed is put to the test during his final battle with Kirei, where on two occasions he needs to reload the gun before his opponent can get back into melee range.]]
* ChronicallyKilledActor: Joked about in the bonus materials, where it's noted that being played by Creator/HikaruMidorikawa severely reduces Lancer's probability of survival.
* ClapYourHandsIfYouBelieve: Belief is a powerful weapon in Franchise/{{Nasuverse}}; the more people believe in something, the more power it has. Accordingly, the more well-known the legend, the more powerful the Servant. However, the older the mystery is, the more powerful it is, which offsets if it is not as famous.
* ClicheStorm: In-universe example, when Kirei Kotomine [[spoiler: frames Kariya Matou for Tokiomi Tohaska's death with his wife, Aoi as a witness.]]
--->'''Archer/Gilgamesh''': [[LampshadeHanging It was trite and full of cliches]]. [[Administrivia/TropesAreTools But still, not bad for your first script.]]
* CliffHanger: The first season of the anime ends as Saber, Rider, and Lancer are about to engage Caster and his Cthulhu knockoff, leaving them hanging until the second season picks up where it left off.
* CombatPragmatist: Kiritsugu specializes in killing mages, and he does not fight by their rules. This means that he will use modern weapons, misdirection, hostage taking, and lying to get his way. Kirei comes in a close second, since he figures out a way to abuse the rules and similarly lacks compunction about going after his opponent's loved ones.
* ConservationOfNinjutsu:
** Averted during the fight between [[spoiler:Assassin and Rider]], in which the former can't take the latter's ''extremely'' powerful army.
** Played straight with the Assassins. They had to split the power and combat prowess of the regular Assassin-class Servant[[note]](which is the weakest Servant class to begin with)[[/note]] between all personas somewhat equally.
* ContinuityNod: Since this takes place just ten years before ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'', far too many to list. Let's just say that many events in the Fourth Grail War have consequences for the Fifth.
* CoolVersusAwesome:
** Episode 14 features [[spoiler:Ancient Indian flying machine]] vs. [[spoiler:Possessed F-15 fighter jet-turned-Noble Phantasm]].
** The Finale features [[spoiler:A SinisterMinister with throwing swords, command seals, and superhuman kung-fu (Kirei) versus a BadassLongcoat-wearing assassin with a HandCannon, HealingFactor, and time manipulation powers]]. At the same time, we have [[spoiler:King Arthur versus Sir Lancelot]].
* TheCorrupter: Gilgamesh does this to Kirei, though not in the typical fashion. He coaxes the loyal, selfless, but otherwise apathetic and ExtremeDoormat Church Executor to find himself and [[BeYourself be true to his desires]], making Kirei into the [[EvilFeelsGood sadistic bastard]] who tortures others ForTheEvulz that he is in ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight''.
* TheCorruption: The blackness flowing from the corrupted Grail, a manifestation of "all the world's evil".
* CradlingYourKill: This is Kiritsugu's method of killing women. [[spoiler:Before he destroys the plane Natalia is flying, he lets her divulge what she feels about him, her current state, and her hopes for the future via radio; under his orders, Maiya waits until Sola-Ui sits on Kayneth's lap before she shoots both of them through the back, and she kills her instantly; finally, within the Grail, after deciding to kill the apparition of Illya, he caresses her head, tells her he'll never pick buds with her again, and says goodbye before he shoots her through her chin and brain, and, after the apparition of Irisviel protests, he grabs her by the throat but allows her to protest and curse him before he snaps her neck.]]
* CrazyPrepared: Kiritsugu (he... really took a lot of things into account, to say the least) and Kotomine (seriously? Kevlar-reinforced priests' robes?).
* CryLaughing: Once Kotomine sees that [[spoiler:the burning of Fuyuki City and [[ManOnFire three hundred of its inhabitants]] is his most practical and truest desire, as realized by the Grail]], he laughs; then, he laughs harder; then, he cries as he laughs. The contradiction entertains him so thoroughly that he resolves to repeat his participation in the next Grail War, so as to see what else he's hiding beneath his head.
* CurbStompBattle:
** Tokiomi vs. Kariya is ''very'' one-sided. One is a man who has spent a lifetime diligently learning to master the secrets of magic. The other is a runaway who had just one year to prepare with forbidden magecraft implanted in him by his sadistic ancestor that his body can hardly take, and who is too berserk with pain and rage to use even that properly. Tokiomi hardly has to lift a finger to defend against all the swarms of bugs that Kariya can muster, and then send him falling from the roof engulfed in flames.
** [[spoiler:Rider vs. Assassin]]. Cue [[spoiler:[[BadassArmy Ionioi Hetairoi: Army of the King]]]], and the fight becomes such a ridiculously one-sided slaughter that the author ''doesn't even bother describing it.''
** Any fight Gilgamesh participates in could be this if he took any of the other servants seriously (not that he has to, seeing as he's easily one of the most powerful things in the Nasuverse, including ORT, Ado Edem and Archetype Earth). It only actually happens, though, when he deems [[spoiler:Rider]] worthy of his judgment and pulls out a couple of stops. Creator/GenUrobuchi says that he could single-handedly end the fourth Holy Grail War ''in a single night'' if he bothered to go all-out.
* DarkerAndEdgier: Lampshaded in the authors' notes section, and in commparison with its predecessor, ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight''. While FSN translates the base elements of the original eroge game into its narrative ([[spoiler:i.e., two Masters attempting to kill TheProtagonist at the outset culminates in their disqualification from the Grail War and in their living with TheProtagonist in competition with each other for his love]]), FZ is a pure plot of support and setup, specifically dealing women and children (of which, in FSN, two of the Masters are both) [[CruelAndUnusualDeath the worst]] [[AndIMustScream fates]] [[ColdBloodedTorture within]] [[EatenAlive its narrative]].
* DeathFromAbove: The anime has Gilgamesh raining down his Noble Phantasms from the sky like beams of shining light, invoking the image of a god passing judgement on the unworthy.
* DeathOfAChild: Painfully, horrifically, and blatantly. Caster and Ryunosuke are serial child-murderers who treat their crimes like art.
* DeathSeeker: [[spoiler:Ryuunosuke]] without realizing it. [[spoiler:He is a serial killer specializing in children, because he finds the organs and blood of his victims beautiful. Only after Kiritsugu shoots him through the chest does he realize that the perfect, beautiful blood and organs he had been searching for all along were his own.]]
* {{Deconstruction}}: What does it really take to be a [[IdealHero hero of justice]], and [[ShootTheDog just how far would you be willing to go]] to find out?
* DepletedPhlebotinumShells: Kiritsugu's Origin Bullets contain ''his own'' powdered ribs, which he uses sparingly with his Contender. Because each bullet contains Kiritsugu's origin of severing and binding, a bullet used on a mage will irreparably ruin their magic circuits. Most targets are permanently crippled or killed by what this does to their body.
* DidntSeeThatComing: Kiritsugu's father is taken completely offguard when [[spoiler:Kiritsugu suddenly stabs him with intent to kill. He's too shocked to get up before Kiritsugu fires a couple of rounds into him.]]
* DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything:
** The anime version of the scene where [[spoiler:Kariya strangles Aoi]] manages to summon implications of rape by the way of their relative positioning, the way she struggles, putting attention to their ragged breathing, and placing his knee between her legs. His line of "Then I may as well" carries implications of SexIsEvilAndIAmHorny.
** The entire subplot between Gilgamesh and Kotomine, in which [[TheVamp Gilgamesh]] attempts to be a ClosetKey to get Kotomine to fall prey to his carnal urges. Granted, the closet here turns out to be of ''morality'', but the point is illustrated through the use of metaphorical SexIsEvilAndIAmHorny undertones.
* DoomedByCanon: Pointed out early on that you probably don't want to get too attached to anyone. While the characters who appear in ''stay night'' [[SavedByCanon are safe]], everyone else is fair game. [[spoiler:By the end, the only people left from the main cast are Kiritsugu, Kirei, Waver Velvet, Gilgamesh, and Saber.]]
* DownerEnding: ForegoneConclusion means it's not going to go well for many characters.
** Kiritsugu sacrifices [[spoiler:his wife and trusted partner to achieve his goal of world peace, only to find that the Grail is corrupted. He orders Saber to destroy it, causing its contents to spill out into the town and kill hundreds of civilians. To Kiritsugu's Einzbern sponsors, this apparent betrayal permanently costs him access to his daughter, leaving her to be raised as a weapon for the next war.]] Finally, [[spoiler:he is cursed by the Grail, gradually losing his powers and senses until he dies several years later.]]
** Saber's ideals get so thoroughly crushed by Kiritsugu's ruthless actions, Rider pointing out the mistakes of her rule and [[spoiler:seeing one of her closest friends driven to madness from a decision she made]] that she changes her wish from redoing her reign to having someone else rule in her place instead.
** Kiritsugu's arch-nemesis Kirei [[spoiler:survives, and outlives him to threaten his son and daughter in the next war]].
** Kariya [[spoiler:dies having failed to save Sakura, serving only as a nightmarish reminder of what happens to those who disobey her grandfather]].
** Sakura remains with the Matou family, enduring experimentation and sexual abuse over the next decade.
** Rin [[spoiler:is orphaned and mostly unaware of her sister's situation so they never reconnect.]]
** Major villain Gilgamesh also survives; his [[spoiler:exposure to the Grail's corruption leaves him with a permanent body and slight insanity]].
** The Grail, which [[spoiler:is damaged, corrupted, and has failed to grant a wish yet ''again'', reactivates a mere ten years later despite Kiritsugu's efforts to sabotage Fuyuki City's ley lines]].
** And to top it all off, Rin's mother, Aoi, ends up [[spoiler:wheelchair bound and brain-damaged due to the oxygen deprivation she suffered from being strangled by Kariya, not understanding what her husband being dead truly means, and being reduced to someone her daughter must care for.]]
* DualWielding:
** Diarmuid uses dual ''spears'', though not always at the same time.
** The Black Knight's tendency to grab whatever is on hand also leads to this, and at one point he dual-wields [[spoiler:sub-machine guns]]!
** During his climactic fight against [[spoiler:Kirei]], Kiritsugu dual-wields his Calico and Contender [[spoiler:until he runs out of ammo for the former]]. It's also presented in a fairly realistic manner, with Kiritsugu firing one gun at a time, and switching hands depending on what he wants to do; the Calico for broad sprays to keep his opponent occupied, and his Contender for precision work and firepower.
* DungeonBypass: Kayneth El-Melloi Archibald is in the thirty-second floor of a hotel--his bounded field covers ''twenty-four'' floors (even going over the drainage pipes), there are three magical furnaces for his use, and he has ten summoned evil spirits and apparitions--a mage's veritable fortress. How does Kiritsugu deal with this? [[spoiler:Apply a small amount of C4 to the supports and bring the entire place down.]]
* DyingDream: [[spoiler:Irisviel]] has [[NightmareDreams an extremely creepy one about the Grail having become corrupted]].
* DyingMomentOfAwesome: [[spoiler:Alexander the Great, a.k.a Rider]] dies the glorious, poetic, and fitting death of which he was historically deprived during the height of his achievement in his heroically-qualifying life.
* EarlyBirdCameo: Jeanne d'Arc, who later shows up in ''LightNovel/FateApocrypha'', appears in Caster's final moments.
* EldritchAbomination:
** Summoned by Caster in the form of tentacled monster hordes and a massive, Cthulhu-like beast. Normally, a mage only summons something of a certain level of strength or they can't control it, so at first the others don't understand... until they realize that Caster couldn't care less if the horror he summoned is under control or not.
** Then there's [[spoiler:Angra Mainyu, the corrupted Servant-turned-conceptual entity corrupting the Holy Grail]]. When it just ''partially'' manifests, the thing appears as black mud that literally curses and burns everything in its path. [[spoiler:Which is what causes the Great Fuyuki Fire. ''If'' fully manifested, the thing will probably wipe humanity off the face of the Earth.]]
* EnemyMine: Crops up several times during the early part of the Holy Grail War. [[WorthyOpponent Saber and Lancer]] are the most common allies, and [[ConflictKiller Caster]] is the most common target.
* EnsembleCast: Although Kiritsugu is officially the main protagonist, the omniscient third-person narration provides enough rotational CharacterFocus on the others that Kiritsugu spends as much time relegated to the background as he does the lead.
* EpisodeZeroTheBeginning: This series is a prequel to ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'', portraying events alluded to in the latter.
* EpisodeOfTheDead: Kiritsugu's backstory in Episodes 18 and 19 involves [[spoiler:his father's research inadvertently causing]] a ''vampire'' outbreak on Alimango Island [[spoiler:that took his FirstLove as its PatientZero]]. However, the situation plays out very much like a ZombieApocalypse because the contagion only induced low-level vampiric traits on its victims that makes them act much more like mindless zombies, with tropes like ThePlague, HorrorHunger, ZombieInfectee, HeroicSacrifice, and TrappedWithMonsterPlot making an appearance. PlayedWith because, despite these creatures only appearing in those two episodes, the incident is very much PlayedForDrama because [[spoiler:it completely shapes Kiritsugu into TheUnfettered battle-hardened mage he is in the present, someone who sees his child self's inability to MercyKill Shirley as [[MyGreatestFailure his greatest failure]].]]
* EveryoneCallsHimBarkeep: Servants are referred to by their Class, even when their real names are revealed. Berserker, whose identity is hidden until the last novel, is dubbed the "Black Knight".
* ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin: There's a 24-hour hotel in Fuyuki called "24-Hour Hotel in Fuyuki."
* ExactWords: "Killing you is impossible now... [[spoiler:for ''me'', that is." Cue [[{{Sidekick}} Maiya]] gunning down Kayneth and Sola-Ui with a Steyr [=AUG=].]]
* ExtraLongEpisode: The first episode is 47 minutes long, which is about double the length of the subsequent episodes.
* FacelessGoons: Bluebeard's summoned tentacle-things from AnotherDimension, literally without faces.
* FaithHeelTurn: The novel explains how Kirei transitioned from an upstanding Executioner to the SinisterMinister seen in ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight''.
* FanDisservice: Seeing Sakura (who is underage, mind you) naked and crawling with monstrous worms is not a pleasant sight.
* {{Fanservice}}: The final episode has Gilgamesh stark naked during most of his conversation with Kirei. [[spoiler:It makes sense, though, since he was drenched in Angra Mainyu's corruption and his body is now flesh and blood as opposed to a spirit given bodily form by his master's mana.]]
* FatalFlaw: Almost every character has one key personality flaw, but most outwardly obvious are Kiritsugu's determination to ShootTheDog and sacrifice what he loves for ideals that turn out to be empty, and Arturia's belief that the fall of her country was her fault, and that she has to erase her mistake no matter what the cost to herself.
* FateWorseThanDeath:
** [[spoiler:Aoi after she suffers brain damage as a result of being strangled by Kariya. She is reduced to a state similar to that of a young child, unaware of her husband's death and still believing Sakura is living with them. To add onto it, Rin is forced to become her own mother's caretaker until her death, as she is the only mentally sound one still in the family.]]
** The children kidnapped by Caster and his Master are subjected to pungent emotional torment with [[ColdBloodedTorture physical torture and disfigurement]] almost universally accompanying it before they are murdered (this final act being painted [[EatenAlive with]] [[ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice several]] [[YourHeadAsplode different]] [[ChestBurster colours]]).
* FemaleGaze: Episode 8 provides viewers with a lingering shot of Kirei's well-sculpted ass. And Kariya is naked in his dream in Episode 20, although what happens in the dream and what we see of him after he wakes up is pure FanDisservice.
* FinalExchange: When Kiritsugu rejects the Grail after finding out its true nature, Kirei protests, wondering how Kiritsugu could reject it after sacrificing so much. Kiritsugu responds with a gunshot to the heart.
-->'''Kirei''': It's so foolish I don't understand it! Give the damn thing to me then! You may not think you need it, but I most certainly do!
-->''(gunshot)''
-->'''Kiritsugu''': No...you're the fool... I cannot understand.
* FiringOneHanded: Kiritsugu frequently one-hands both his .30-06 Thompson Contender and the Calico submachinegun, the latter on full-auto.
* {{Flanderization}}: Saber's overly chivalrous attitude and HonorBeforeReason tendencies are highly exaggerated compared to her more pragmatic ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'' characterization. She consistently handicaps herself in battle out of a sense of nobility and has little retort against Rider and Gilgamesh's criticisms of her method of ruling. Possibly justified if one interprets her actions in ''Stay Night'' as a result of her growing more cynical due to the events of ''Zero'', abandoning some of her more LawfulStupid tendencies in favor of actions that get results.
* FloweryElizabethanEnglish: Mostly LostInTranslation, but Rider's speech can smack of the Japanese equivalent of this at times, and it is pretty much the default mode of speech for Gilgamesh. Even native speakers of Japanese sometimes have trouble with following Gilgamesh's conversations, as he uses archaic versions of just about every noun and verb, even simple ones.
* ForegoneConclusion: The novels are written as a prequel to ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight''. A fairly early author's note warns that you really shouldn't be expecting a happy ending, and that the writer will probably have to kill his entire cast in order to fit his ending into the timeline established in the previous story.
* FreezeFrameBonus: In the scene where Saber and Irisviel get their passports checked at the airport, you can see their fake documents say they were born in New Orleans, Louisiana. Two episodes later [[spoiler:Caster will [[MistakenIdentity confuse Saber]] for UsefulNotes/JoanOfArc, who's widely known by the nickname of "The Maid of Orléans."]]
* FunctionalMagic: ''Fate/Zero'' expands the {{Canon}} considerably regarding magecraft concepts.
* GameplayAndStoryIntegration: A strange version, considering that it's not a video game, but the novel still uses the stat sheets found in ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight''. Several of the passive skills and stats listed there have an effect on the plot, such as Saber's "Riding", Lancer's "Eye of the Mind (True)", Rider's "Divinity", Archer's "Independent Action" and Caster's "Mental Pollution".
%%* GeneticMemory: Irisviel.
* GhostAmnesia: In one of the Einzbern Consultation Room shorts, the recently deceased [[spoiler:Lancer]] can't remember how he died. Zecchan initially convinces him that [[BlatantLies he died in a very heroic and fair duel.]]
* AGodAmI: Gilgamesh considers the whole world his garden and considers the other Heroic Spirits, including Myth/KingArthur and UsefulNotes/AlexanderTheGreat, as peons and false kings compared to him. He is partially justified in-universe by his status as the first Heroic Spirit and "King of Heroes," and by the fact that his power does, in fact, dwarf that of all the other Heroic Spirits.
* GoKartingWithBowser: Rider charges into Saber's castle without any prior warning... and invites Saber to go drinking with him and Gilgamesh. Somewhat subverted in that Gil has ulterior motives for visiting, and mostly just trolls Rider and Saber while is there anyway.
* {{Gorn}}: The manga displays the grisly "artwork" of Caster's lab in graphic detail.
* GoryDiscretionShot: Caster's segments in the anime are heavily censored, at least in the regular broadcast. In the novel, the author goes into some description that's not too gory, but just enough to give an idea of [[FateWorseThanDeath what's happening to the children]]. The manga adaptation is not so kind, giving us full view of wacky contraptions like the "human umbrella".
* GratuitousEnglish: And [[GratuitousLatin Latin]], and in the first episode of the anime, ''Armenian''.
* GratuitousGerman: At one point Rin opens one of her father's grimoires, which angrily chants German at her.
* GreaterScopeVillain:
** Ultimately, [[spoiler:the Grail itself, corrupted by Angra Mainyu]].
** In the long term, [[spoiler:Matou Zouken]], who bides his time and maintains his quiet participation in the Holy Grail War until its final iteration in [[VisualNovel/FateStayNight ten years]].
* GunPorn: Gen Urobuchi gave a whole lot of detail to the weapons that Kiritsugu uses. To wit, Kiritsugu's weapons are a Calico M950 sub-machine gun, a Walther [=WA2000=] sniper rifle (with night scope and heat vision sensors), and his Mystic Code the [[HandCannon Thompson Contender]], loaded with his custom [[DepletedPhlebotinumShells Origin Bullets]]. The anime also shows other weapons in a couple of [[LockAndLoadMontage lock-and-load montages]].
* GunsAkimbo: Kiritsugu dual-wields his Contender and Calico. [[spoiler:Also Berserker later, with two ''[=MP5=] submachine guns''.]]
* GunsAreWorthless: Played with. Mages tend to disdain technology and consider it inferior to magic, to the point that they almost never bother defending against it. Kiritsugu exploits this complacency to great effect, using guns, mines, missile launchers, and demolitions to take out his targets.
** However, Kayneth's liquid metal artifact protects him from Claymore mines, a skyscraper collapsing around him, and automatic fire at point-blank range, while Kirei [[DodgeTheBullet outright dodges bullets]], and when he isn't, he parries them with his Black Keys.
** Firearms, just like anything non-spiritual, are completely ineffective against Servants.
* GunsVsSwords: [[PlayingWithATrope Exaggerated and deconstructed]] during Kirei and Kiritsugu's first and last confrontation: Kirei commences the fight with six of his twenty Black Keys (throwing swords), and Kiritsugu responds with one shot from his [[HandCannon Contender]], using his Calico as support. [[spoiler:By the last bout, Kirei's Black Keys are being thrown at and making contact with Kiritsugu faster than Kiritsugu can reload and fire his Contender, [[PlayingWithATrope finally subverting the trope.]]]]
* HandCannon: Kiritsugu's preferred weapon is a single-shot Thompson Contender handgun, which, even when not accounting for his special Origin Bullets for use against magic targets, is chambered in .30-06 Springfield, a full-sized rifle round.
* HermeticMagic: The Servant summoning process is an elaborate ritual involving the use of detailed sigils, magic incantations, and various magical reagents. As it turns out, the Holy Grail War itself [[spoiler:is one giant ritual whose true purpose is to recreate the miracle known as the Third Magic in disguise]].
* HighAltitudeBattle: The absolutely glorious battle between [[spoiler:Gilgamesh and Berserker]] during the battle with Caster is this.
* HistoricalGenderFlip: Myth/KingArthur, a young woman. Explained in ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'': [[spoiler:when she was a young woman, Arturia Pendragon was able to pull Caliburn out of the rock according to the legend, and in her subsequent coronation, she was crowned ''king'' instead of ''queen'' because Caliburn's (and later Excalibur's) magic made everyone see her as ''The King'', a spell that did not disappear until the moment she was claimed by the Grail as a Heroic Spirit.]]
* HomoeroticSubtext:
** Urobuchi compares Gilgamesh's desire to seduce Kotomine into giving into his more evil desires to that of TheVamp. The anime chose to represent this desire of his by portraying his metaphorical seduction of Kotomine using imagery that was a tad [[DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything more literal]].
** Kotomine's obsession with Kiritsugu is rich with FoeRomanceSubtext, to the point that Urobuchi himself argued that Kiritsugu would play the {{Uke}} to Kotomine's {{Seme}}.
** Caster is canonically bi, and stated to be attracted to tomboyish women and [[{{Bishonen}} beautiful boys]], of which Ryunosuke is one himself. Takeuchi stated that he thinks the two of them should get married.
** Waver and Rider, enough that TYPE-MOON themselves made a parody called ''[[Literature/TrainMan2004 Sensha Otoko]]'' where the two are a ({{Het}}) couple, as well as a 4koma about them having sex. It's mentioned early on that Waver's initial reaction to Rider was a near-JizzedInMyPants moment, and in general he behaves like a WetBlanketWife towards Rider. It's much more overt in the anime, where he's shown blushing at Rider, and is shown waking up in the morning in Episode 13 [[DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything in a manner akin to]] TheirFirstTime, all of which have been humorously acknowledged by the animators who describe the two as a boyfriend/girlfriend duo.
* HopeSpot: Caster deliberately gives one to children before killing them.
* IHaveYourWife: Kiritsugu and Maiya ''successfully'' pull this off in a way that would make any villain proud.
* ImmortalityImmorality: Kiritsugu's dad can make plants immortal! [[TemptingFate Just think of the possibilities if the same potion worked on humans!]] [[spoiler:Side effects may include [[OurVampiresAreDifferent vampirism.]]]]
* ImmuneToBullets: Servants in general, except when Berserker turns the bullets into Noble Phantasms. Kayneth's Mystic Code initially had the same effect, but Kiritsugu managed to get around that pesky problem.
* ImprobableWeaponUser: Berserker, one of whose abilities is to transform whatever he picks up into a Noble Phantasm, be it the discarded Noble Phantasms of other Servants, or pieces of a sliced-apart telephone pole. At one point, he even uses [[spoiler:an ''F-15J'' from the JASDF investigating a massive fight between the Servants. When the jet crashes, [[RuleOfCool he rips off the entire M61 Vulcan unit and fires from the hip. In mid-air.]]]]
* ImproperlyPlacedFirearms: A [=WA2000=][[note]]only 176 were ever made, most of which are in private collections[[/note]]with thermal ''and'' night-vision scopes; none of the characters mention how these guns were smuggled into ''Japan'', of all places.
* InfoDump: Occasionally the audience is treated to large chunks of explanation in one sitting so that they'll understand. For example, episode one of the anime is longer to accommodate all the discussion of the rules of magic and of the Holy Grail War.
* IronicEcho: In the third book, Saber in the narration admits to herself that Kiritsugu is the most suitable Master to receive the Holy Grail (upon realization of how [[WellIntentionedExtremist despite his methods]], [[WideEyedIdealist his wish and intention for world peace is genuine]]). In the fourth book, [[spoiler:Angra Mainyu ([[DemonicPossession in the shape of Irisviel]])]] says this exact thing to him... and this line takes a ''much'' darker meaning in this context as it refers to [[spoiler:his method of saving people by killing other people, because the tainted Grail's method of granting wishes is likewise destruction and murder.]]
* ItHasBeenAnHonor: Saber and Lancer have great respect for each other as fellow knights of chivalry, and part this way at the end of the first round of their duel. Also, Gilgamesh (Archer) and Iskandar (Rider) part this way when [[spoiler:Rider dies]]. Indeed, Gilgamesh's attitude and parting words to Iskandar convey exponentially more respect than he's shown to anyone up to that point.
* ItWasWithYouAllAlong: Parodied with [[spoiler:Ryuunosuke's death, when he realizes that blood and guts were inside him all along.]]
* JediMindTrick: Made more explicit in the novel, when it was explained how [[spoiler:Kiritsugu convinces the bellboy that he was Kayneth and that he and Kayneth's wife Sola-Ui have already left the hotel]].
* JizzedInMyPants: In the light novel, this is apparently nearly Waver's reaction to summoning Rider:
-->''The moment he saw the silhouette of the big frame slowly rising from the summoning circle, behind the white smoke, Waver was so exalted he almost came in his pants.''
* KarmaHoudini: Ryuunosuke, in a sense. [[spoiler:He gets killed by Kiritsugu, but he is so thrilled at the sight of his own blood that it doesn't really feel like actual punishment. It is stated in the novel that he dies with a smile of total bliss. Kirei, Zouken and Gilgamesh are all straightforward examples.]]
* LampshadeHanging:
** From the Einzbern Consultation Room specials: "You probably think Assassin is just there to get killed."
** When Kirei Kotomine [[spoiler: frames Kariya Matou for Tokiomi Tohaska's death with his wife, Aoi as a witness.]]
--->'''Archer/Gilgamesh''': [[LampshadeHanging It was trite and full of cliches]]. [[Administrivia/TropesAreTools But still, not bad for your first script.]]
* LaserHallway:
** In the anime, the wards around the Tohsaka estate, despite being more like invisible rotating cages of magic, invoke all the contortions and careful maneuvers that come along with this trope when Assassin infiltrates them.
** Kayneth claims an entire hotel floor as his base and laces it with an absurd number of traps and wards. [[spoiler:So Kiritsugu [[StuffBlowingUp levels the entire building]] instead.]]
* LeaningOnTheFourthWall: Caster and Ryuunosuke's discussion on the nature of God. It appears that Creator/GenUrobuchi is aware of his reputation.
* LighterAndSofter:
** The anime works hard to avert this, like soft blurring or making clever use of camera focus on the most questionable scenes, but there are some things that just couldn't be shown in great detail. Uryuu and Caster's moments with their victims are the most notable examples, since the most sickening lines in the novels did not make its way to the anime.
** The Einzbern Consultation Room [=OVAs=], on the other hand, are designed to be sweet moe goodness to counter the very dark and horrifying narrative. Zecchan even somewhat invokes this, saying that they should "pretend all that Urobuchi-style stuff never happened".
** ''Fate/Zero'' itself, while cynical and dark enough to compete with ''Heaven's Feel'', is rather light on the horror elements when compared to its parent work.
* LostInTranslation: The way Gilgamesh [[UsefulNotes/JapanesePronouns addressed]] [[WorthyOpponent Rider]] in their last confrontation was a heartwarming moment that doubled as a PetTheDog moment... for Japanese audiences, at least.
* LovecraftLite: Caster summons {{Eldritch Abomination}}s, but they are mainly used to highlight his existing insanity and lack of control rather than inflicting any visible effect on the world or other characters. The Servants, being mystical beings of enormous power themselves, are able to injure and slay the creatures he summons.
* MaleGaze: During the Einzbern Consultation Room, Irisviel adjusts her kimono in such a way as to titillate male viewers.
* {{Mana}}: Often referred to as Prana, a mystical energy used to perform magic. One of the main weaknesses of Servants is that they must have mana to continue existing; since they're technically dead, they are not "a part of the World", so the World itself will try to crush this contradiction.
* {{Masquerade}}: Enforced by the Magic Association and the Church, who are responsible for manipulating the media and covering up evidence of the war to prevent it from spilling over into everyday life. It is uncommon for Masters to fight in broad daylight, for the same reason.
* MaximumHPReduction: Lancer's Gáe Buidhe places a curse on whomever it wounds, making a WoundThatWillNotHeal. When asked to define this [[RPGMechanicsVerse in gaming terms]], WordOfGod said that its effect would be basically this trope (which can be seen with his Gáe Buidhe special in ''VideoGame/FateUnlimitedCodes''). Also, Kiritsugu Emiya was cursed by the contents of the [[LightIsNotGood Holy]] [[ArtifactOfDoom Grail]], which was the ultimate cause of his demise, as it drained his life force slowly but steadily.
* MaybeMagicMaybeMundane: Sola-ui ought to be magically powerful enough to resist Lancer's Love Spot, but she falls in love with him all the same. Whether she failed to resist the Love Spot's power, did resist it but fell in love with Lancer legitimately, or some blend of the two is never explained.
* MeaningfulName: Alimango Island. If you know the meaning of Alimango (Crab), then you're either someone who's fluent in Tagalog or someone with Philippine roots.
* MindcontrolEyes: Caster makes Ryuunosuke a bracelet that allows him to easily abduct children; the effects of the enchantment naturally involve this trope.
* MistakenForBadass: In the novels, Kiritsugu is impressed by Waver's choice of home base. Appropriating an anonymous home in the middle of nowhere and mind-controlling two disposable pawns to gain their assistance shows a level of ruthlessness and dedication to secrecy that the Mage Killer cannot help but appreciate. The fact that Waver just didn't possess the resources to do any better never even occurs to him. Fortunately Kiritsugu is not staking out the house when the delivery truck arrives with a package for "Mr. Iskandar, King of Conquerers", so his impression of Waver's tactical ability remains positive.
* MoodDissonance: In the anime, Kirei recites [[http://www.esvbible.org/Psalm+23/ Psalm 23]], a psalm expressing peace and trust in Divine guidance and protection as scenes play ([[spoiler:Waver crying ManlyTears after being spared by Gilgamesh, Saber getting a NoHoldsBarredBeatdown from Berserker, Kariya in agony, and, with "In the presence of my enemies you prepare a table for me...", Irisviel's corpse laid down on a table one floor above where he will be fighting Kiritsugu]]) at the end of the episode. In particular, the line "My cup overflows" in the psalm is supposed to refer to an abundance of blessings, but the camera focuses on a cup that's [[spoiler:overflowing with curses.]]
* MoreThanMindControl: Waver hypnotizes the Mackenzies into thinking he's their grandson. Later, Glen mentions that he knows Waver isn't related to them, but he's a nice young man and they enjoy his company.
* NeutralInNameOnly: The Holy Church is supposed to be a neutral referee of the Holy Grail War. In ''Zero'', Kotomine Kirei, who is the son of the current church overseer and a member of the Church, is a Master in the war. While that in itself falls under a loophole (the Grail chooses the Masters), his father assigns him to secretly assist Tohsaka Tokiomi, another master. That is DEFINITELY against the rules.
* NiceJobBreakingItHero:
** In the finale, [[spoiler:Kiritsugu barely fails to kill Kirei, who outlives him to eventually to become the nemesis of Kiritsugu's son. He commands Saber to destroy the corrupted Grail, which only results in its contents spilling out into the town and causing an inferno that kills hundreds of civilians. The damaged and corrupted Grail is unable to grant a wish to the victor, causing it to reactivate prematurely a mere ten years later.]] See DownerEnding for even more fun details.
** In Kiritsugu's backstory, the vampire Odd Vořák is easily dispatched by Natalia... releasing all of the [[BeeBeeGun bees]] he was hiding within his body and turning the entire plane cabin into a bloodbath. Kiritsugu is then forced to shoot down the plane with his mentor/mother figure on it to prevent the monsters from [[ZombieApocalypse reaching the civilian population]].
* NightVisionGoggles: Kiritsugu uses the thermal scope on his rifle to observe Masters who, because of their [[SuperpowerfulGenetics Magic Circuits]], have a different heat signature.
* NoHistoricalFiguresWereHarmed: Ryuunosuke is somewhat similar to François Prelati, Gilles de Rais' historical partner in crime and possible lover. Much like Ryuunosuke, Prelati was young, good-looking and deeply amoral. What makes them different is the fact that Prelati was a liar who manipulated Gilles for his own benefit, whereas Ryuunosuke's affection for Caster appears to be completely sincere.
* OffModel: Many shots in episode 11 of the anime, due in large part to most of the budget going into animating [[spoiler:Ionioi Hetairoi]].
* TheOnlyOneAllowedToDefeatYou:
** Claimed by Lancer as he saves Saber from Caster's monsters.
** Gilgamesh stating that he will be the one to defeat Rider during the Banquet of Kings. [[spoiler:He makes good on his word.]]
* OurVampiresAreDifferent: Kiritsugu's past, featuring [[VisualNovel/{{Tsukihime}} Dead Apostles]], who come off more as mindless, slow-moving zombies than anything else.
* ParentalAbandonment: Tokiomi towards Sakura and [[spoiler:Kiritsugu and Irisviel towards Ilya]].
* PassThePopcorn: A fairly low-key example. During a dramatic scene where [[spoiler:Kariya goes insane and nearly kills Aoi]], Gilgamesh and Kotomine are enjoying the scene from a distance while drinking wine.
* PlaceOfPower: Ley lines intersect in Fuyuki, making it possible to hold the Heaven's Feel ritual here.
* PlayingTheHeartStrings: ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IZwK3kTqVQo&fmt=18 Dream of Eternity]]'', which in the Drama CD plays [[spoiler:as Alexander dies]].
* PoliticallyIncorrectHero: Saber suspects that Kiritsugu won't interact with her because she turned out to be a different gender than expected of King Arthur. In reality, Kiritsugu knows that he and his chivalrous Servant have an extreme philosophical divide, so he chooses not to operate alongside her. When she finally sees how he operates, she is enraged and disgusted by his callous pragmatism.
* PoorCommunicationKills: Tokiomi seems to be under the impression that Zouken was a distinguished and upstanding mage, and was happy to turn Sakura over to him to save her from the cruelty of Mage society. Kariya knows Zouken is a literal monster whose depravity knows no bounds, but due to his mental instability and grudge fails to tell Tokiomi what Zouken is doing to Sakura during their confrontation. As such, Tokiomi dismisses Kariya as nothing more than a raving madman and a pathetic excuse for a mage, blames him for anything bad that might happen to Sakura, and tries to kill him. It doesn't help that Tokiomi also says that he's fine with the possibility of Rin and Sakura fighting each other in the next Grail War.
* PowerBornOfMadness: Berserker Servants get the Mad Enhancement skill, which increases their power at the cost of their reasoning. The Black Knight is notable for retaining his ability to fight skillfully despite its effects. Caster also has a Mental Pollution skill, where his madness prevents others from mentally influencing him but this never really comes into play.
* PowerGlows: In particular, Excalibur being charged (the sword converts {{Mana}} into light).
* PowerLevels: As with ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'', character sheets of Servants quantify and list their abilities and tools.
* PreOrderBonus: In-universe example. Rider's T-shirt is a pre-order bonus for a video game.
* {{Prequel}}: ''Fate/Zero'' is set ten years before ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'', and tells the story of what took place in the Fourth Grail War.
* PressXToDie: In ''LightNovel/FateZero'' and ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'', Masters have Command Seals (3 per contract) that force their Servants to do exactly what the Masters say, even if the only possible outcome of said action is losing the Holy Grail War. [[spoiler:Kayneth]] forces his Servant [[spoiler:Lancer]] to commit suicide, as part of the deal to let him walk away unmolested[[note]]Unmolested by the other party of the contract, [[LoopholeAbuse but not necessarily from anyone else.]][[/note]] from the war after he's crippled. Later, [[spoiler:Kiritsugu]] forces [[spoiler:Saber to destroy the Holy Grail itself]], although in that case he had to use ''two'' Command Seals since said Servant's [[AntiMagic Magic Resistance]] and willpower was high enough to resist the first one.
* ProductPlacement: PlayedForLaughs in the Einzbern Consultation Room [=OVAs=]. Taiga's questions about the Servants at one point basically sum up to "Buy the novels to learn more, in stores now!"
* PurpleProse: Invoked by Tokiomi in a lame attempt to kiss up to Archer and get him to take out Caster:
-->'''Tokiomi:''' "King, that monster is a destructive pest that tears apart your gardens. I implore you to execute it."\\
'''Archer:''' "That would be a gardener's work. Or, Tokiomi, do you dare imply that my Noble Phantasm is nothing more than a gardener's shovel?"
* RayOfHopeEnding: Despite all the tragedy that the fourth Holy Grail War brought, Kiritsugu was able to save and pass down his ideals to Shirou, with whom Saber will have a chance to reconcile her ideals and accept her past mistakes in VisualNovel/FateStayNight.
* RaysFromHeaven: They fall on a mourning Saber in her standby pocket dimension (a hill in a battlefield, completely covered in corpses) as Shirou declares his intent to fulfill Kiritsugu's dream of becoming a hero and Saber declares her determination to acquire the Holy Grail, symbolizing hope for her[[spoiler:/their]] success in [[Anime/FateStayNightUnlimitedBladeWorks the next Grail War]].
* ReadTheFinePrint: The geis Kiritsugu drew up [[spoiler:in exchange for Kayneth killing his own Servant]] prohibits him from ever killing/harming or acting with intent to kill/harm [[spoiler:Kayneth or Sola-Ui. However, his assistant Maiya can still kill them in his stead.]]
* TheReasonYouSuckSpeech:
** [[{{Ubermensch}} Rider]] delivers a particularly brutal one to Saber, concerning the destruction of her kingdom and the people she saved, her entire identity and her moral code, and her ideal of what a "king" should be.
** Kiritsugu's speech against Saber qualifies as well, see WarIsHell below or the quotes page.
* RecurringRiff: Melodies from ''Point Zero'' and ''Let The Stars Fall Down'' pop up all over the soundtrack.
* {{Roboteching}}: Both Berserker and Archer's projectiles during their dogfight.
* RPGMechanicsVerse: Dates back to ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight''. Servants have "character sheets" that are visible to masters, describing their attributes in terms such as "STR/CON/AGI" and "Class Skills", and quantifying the power of attacks and weapons. This is a remnant of the creator's early attempts to create a strategy RPG.
* RuleOfCool: Saber rides a magically armored motorcycle while chasing Rider, who is on a flying lightning chariot. They smash heavy items at each other with swords. Really.
* RuleOfDrama: In the ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'' anime adaptations, Gilgamesh simply pulls Ea out of a random portal in the Gate of Babylon. In the anime of ''Fate/Zero'', where he's engaging in an epic battle at the time, he opens a portal to retrieve the key to undo the elaborate lock Ea is under.
* RuleOfSymbolism:
** The crashing of Oceanus' waves was the beating of Rider's own heart. One may take this as a metaphor that one should spend one's life doing what one loves, or that the journey is its own reward.
** Wine is used to symbolize desire. Gilgamesh mentions Tokiomi has more than Kirei but Kirei's wines that he never drinks are of higher quality, symbolizing how Tokiomi has more he enjoys (his family, magecraft, his friendship with Father Risei) but Kirei has deeper desires (EvilFeelsGood) and doesn't partake of them.
* SavedByCanon: Human characters who show up in ''Fate/stay night'' -- Kirei and the child characters -- are sure to survive this one. Played with in Archer and Saber, who are major characters in that one, too -- but they're Servants, not humans, so what happens to them in this war is still up in the air.
* SaveTheWorld: This is Kiritsugu's wish, and aptly so. He takes practical measures to win the Grail War so that he might request that it be done[[spoiler:, but, once he wins, the Grail explains that a wish is not a command, as Kiritsugu must use a method he knows will grant what he desires. Once it suggests they use Kiritsugu's methodology in life to realize his dream, Kiritsugu rejects the Grail]].
* SceneryPorn: In the anime, no expense was too high, best described by one reviewer as "...a budget big enough to buy Belgium." This gives the anime some of the best art and animation in the entire industry, and the Blu-Ray 1080p editions just laugh at attempts to match them. [[http://fuckyeahanimescenery.tumblr.com/image/23432632762 Take]] [[http://fuckyeahanimescenery.tumblr.com/image/23375464568 a]] [[http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m49x97XA5P1rpby4qo1_500.gif look]]
* ScreamingWarrior:
** Rider's battle yodel when charging his chariot over something. Which, surprisingly, is [[ShownTheirWork an actual Ancient Greek warcry]].
** Berserker never speaks [[spoiler:until his helmet comes off]], only roars.
* SelfDeprecation: In the Einzbern Consultation Room specials, Disciple Zero attempts to reassure Lancer that there would be no "[[Creator/GenUrobuchi Urobuchi]]-type drama". The ''Fate/Zero'' novel was written by Gen Urobuchi himself.
* ShooOutTheClowns: Waver and Rider are the series' primary source of comic relief and lighthearted moments in the first half, and their CharacterFocus is heavily reduced as the plot gets darker.
* ShootTheDog:
** Kiritsugu is forced to shoot down [[spoiler:the plane Natalia is in since it is infested with ghouls that could cause innumerable casualties if the plane managed to land in New York City.]]
** He shoots [[spoiler:''his own father'' after finding out his immortality research turns people into [[OurVampiresAreDifferent Dead Apostles]]]].
* ShootTheHostage: [[spoiler:Kiritsugu takes El-Melloi's fiancée hostage, but signs a magical contract that should he harm either of them, he will lose all his magecraft. El-Melloi agrees to Kiritsugu's terms, then prepares to leave the city with her while they're both alive. Then Maiya shows up with an [[MoreDakka assault rifle.]]]]
* ShownTheirWork:
** In the anime's first ending, the Servants are depicted in scenes that are based on actual paintings or sculptures of their historical counterparts. This overlaps with SpoilerOpening for Berserker, since he's the only one whose identity isn't revealed right away.
** Many details of the Servants' legends had to have required substantial research, ArtisticLicense notwithstanding.
* SinisterGeometry: The summoning of [[http://imgur.com/a/WX7BK Ea]], Archer's ultimate weapon.
* SlidingScaleOfIdealismVersusCynicism: Heavily cynical. A considerable amount of plot demonstrates idealistic characters having their principles challenged or even shattered.
* SoundtrackDissonance: "Starlit Faith", from the ''Return to Zero'' soundtrack album, [[http://www.justsomelyrics.com/2126047/Watanabe-Kazuhiro-Starlit-Faith-Lyrics reads]] and [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_0DylPp5E6A&feature=plcp sounds]] like a rock ballad about finding one's way to one's loved one. One could be forgiven for hearing this and not guessing that the setting of the soundtrack is extremely dark.
* SparedByTheAdaptation: See AdaptationExpansion.
* SpiritedCompetitor: Saber and Lancer's duel is shaded with this.
* SpoilerOpening:
** The anime's second opening shows the [[spoiler:Grail corruption leaking from Irisviel's orifices]] and later implies that she will die.
** The first ending makes [[spoiler:Berserker's]] identity fairly obvious after his first appearance shows [[spoiler:he knows Arturia]].
* SquishyWizard: Subverted in the Franchise/{{Nasuverse}} in general; mages can use Reinforcement and other physical spells to boost their bodies to the limits of human capability, in addition to the physical and martial arts training that most modern mages undergo.
** However, it applies to Waver for the standard reason that he's too busy studying to get any exercise, or at least so he says. He's almost just as weak magically as he is physically, though, which is why he studies like a madman all the time, but he can't use his magical abilities to compensate for being weak, because he basically doesn't have those either!
* SummoningRitual: The method by which each Servant is brought into the world.
* SupernormalBindings: One of Archer's Noble Phantasms is Enkidu, a special chain that was created to restrain the gods, its strength is proportional to the divinity of their opponent, so while it can easily overpower gods, when used against normal person, it simply acts as a tough chain.
* SuperReflexes:
** Kiritsugu has a spell called "Innate Time Control" that he uses to control the flow of time within his own body.
** Kirei dodges bullets.
* SurprisinglyGoodEnglish: Or German, in this case.
** Besides ''"Starlit Faith"'' above, the ''Return to Zero'' album also contains ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FA3b9wSC4GU "Beginning Oath"]]''.
** Kiritsugu's dossiers on the other Masters are shown in the anime to be in clear English.
** Not to mention Kirei's prayer in the last episode, which, while a little stilted, is perfectly clear English, and in Jouji Nakata's voice, downright creepy.
** Zigzagged. The voice actor seems to know enough pronunciation to approximate proper German (making it a huge improvement over Rin or Archer), but the grammar is still gibberish.
** Natalia's fax messages are in passable German. Creator/ShowHayami also gets to recite a spell in German.
* SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome: Berserker hijacks a fighter jet mid-flight using his Noble Phantasm then starts performing intense maneuvers during his dogfight with Archer. While the superhuman Servants are tough enough to ignore the immense g-force experienced, the poor human sap in the fighter jet doesn't have the same luxury and instantly dies once Berserker starts pushing the plane beyond normal human operating limits.
* TearsOfBlood: [[spoiler:Lancer]] begins to cry these after he's [[spoiler:commanded to impale himself on his own spear]]. The blood stains his sclera red, giving him quite a demonic appearance in his death throes.
* TeleportSpam: In one anime scene, Gilgamesh prefers to simply teleport several times to dramatically appropriate areas of the room instead of walking around.
* ThereCanBeOnlyOne: In a Holy Grail War, the last Servant standing wins.
* ThereIsOnlyOneBed: Rider avoids switching to his intangible spirit form as much as possible, so in the novel specifically it's spelled out that he and Waver have to share the bed (until Rider meets the Mackenzies, who provide a futon). Waver realizes Rider must be getting into trouble when he wakes up with no one snoring in his ear.
* ThrowingYourSwordAlwaysWorks:
** Church Executors fight using the Black Keys, ''throwing swords'' held between the knuckles, in a [[ComicBook/{{Wolverine}} Wolverine]]-esque manner.
** To be fair, the swords are explicitly designed for throwing with their long length and weighting making it difficult to use as an actual sword. On top of this, it is stated in the novels that they require great skill to wield effectively and, despite it being the signature weapon of the Executors, few make them their preferred weapon. Kirei is one of those few.
* TomeOfEldritchLore: Caster's Noble Phantasm, Prelati's Spellbook. Not only is its cover made of human skin, it's actually ''alive'' and Caster merely "commands" it. It summons [[EldritchAbomination Lovecraftian tentacle monsters]].
* TooDumbToLive: Local {{muggle}}s get killed due to their own lack of caution around obviously supernatural phenomena:
** If a giant, sentient ball of mercury appears out of nowhere, you probably shouldn't shove your hand into it like one cleanup worker near the aftermath of Kayneth and Kiritsugu's battle did.
** Is that a gargantuan, tentacled monster in the river? Maybe I can get a better look if I fly closer to it!
* {{Tragedy}}: The story is a tragedy which ends up destroying the lives of everyone involved save for Waver Velvet. The opening line warns that Kiritsugu will end up in despair and that his fatal flaw is his belief in an ideal; what follows is build up to the final catharsis when he [[spoiler:destroys the Grail]] and sees the consequences of his actions.
* TranslationWithAnAgenda: In a [[AudioPlay Drama CD]], Team Rider meets Taiga. Since she doesn't speak English and Waver doesn't speak Japanese, but [[TranslatorMicrobes Servants can speak any language necessary]], Iskandar translates between them... but since he becomes a ShipperOnDeck for them, he makes it sound like Waver is flirting with her, which Waver only realizes when she starts flirting back.
* TraumaInducedAmnesia: Lancer shows up in an Einzbern Consultation Room special unable to recall anything that happened in [[spoiler:Episode 16]]. Zecchan encourages him to "pretend that none of that [[SignatureStyle Urobuchi-style]] stuff ever happened", but Irisviel won't let him off the hook that easily.
* WarIsHell: The focus of Kiritsugu's lamenting monologue in the third novel. He also [[TakeThat disparages]] [[WarIsGlorious heroes, their actions, and their legends]], which cause people to glorify war.
* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: The anime is unclear about what happened to the unlucky pilot of the fighter jet that Berserker hijacked. The light novels explicitly state that he was killed by the extreme g-force created by Berserker's piloting.
* WhatTheHellHero: Saber, and to a lesser extent Irisviel, after Kiritsugu [[spoiler:has Kayneth and Sola-Ui executed after promising that ''he'' wouldn't harm them]].
* WholeEpisodeFlashback: Two episodes of season 2 are dedicated to Kiritsugu's backstory.
* WineIsClassy: Gilgamesh, being the arrogant king he is, is often shown drinking wine [[AGlassOfChianti to highlight this fact.]] His [[HyperspaceArsenal Gate of Babylon]] also [[MundaneUtility contains a high-class wine cellar]] with wine vinted by the gods themselves. This trope is about the only thing Gilgamesh shares with his summoner, as Tokiomi is also fond of red wine and is generally acknowledged as a particularly classy fellow.
* WizardingSchool: Waver Velvet is studying magecraft at the Clock Tower at the start of the story.
* TheWorfEffect: Discussed by one of the fighter pilots sent against Caster's EldritchAbomination.
-->'''Pilot:''' If this were a monster movie, we'd be the first to go. You know, the ones who make the bad guy look tough.
* WorthyOpponent:
** How most Servants see each other, especially once learning their respective heroic identities.
** Gilgamesh in particular feels this way towards [[spoiler:Rider, even awarding him with feelings of geniune admiration (in the light novel, at least) upon his death]]. Worth mentioning since this being Gilgamesh, who thinks of even the other heroic spirits as little more that mongrels, it is the most respect he has been shown to feel and possibly ever felt towards anyone not called Enkidu.
* WouldHurtAChild:
** Ryuunosuke and Caster are '''serial child murderers''' who like to give their victims a HopeSpot before brutally killing them. The collateral damage risks breaking the {{Masquerade}} and becomes so severe that a reward is offered to whoever can kill Caster first, putting the entire war on hold (in theory) until then. Cue nearly everyone doing an EnemyMine to take these two down. Really, REALLY helped by [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gilles_de_Rais Caster's true identity]].
** What Zouken does to five-year-old Sakura is beyond contempt.
* WoundThatWillNotHeal: Lancer's Gae Buidhe inflicts a curse on wounds so they won't heal, which is described as [[RPGMechanicsVerse akin to reducing maximum hit points (i.e. healing will have no effect, since Saber would be at "full HP" despite the wound). Saber gets afflicted by this early on due to a lapse in battle judgment]]. This becomes Saber's DramaPreservingHandicap until Volume 3, where [[spoiler:Saber, Lancer, and Rider team up to battle the EldritchAbomination that Caster set loose upon the city]]. Even then, during her rematch with Lancer, Saber fights Lancer using only her right hand.
* YouAreTooLate: Poor, poor Sakura. Kariya rushes to save her from being made into the Matou heir, but finds out the process has already started.
-->'''Matou Zouken:''' There were terrible cries for the first three days, but by the fourth day, she was silent. Today, she was thrown at dawn in the worm storage to test how well she would last, but, ho ho, she endured it for half a day and is still breathing. What do you know, the Tohsaka material isn't defective.
* ZombieApocalypse: Or rather, [[spoiler:a ''[[OurVampiresAreDifferent Vampire]]'' Apocalypse happened on Kiritsugu's island home in his backstory.]]
----
->''"Being a hero is a limited-time thing. When you grow up, it becomes harder to call yourself one. I wish it hadn't taken me so long to realize that"''
----
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 1 (click to see context) from:
[[re*direct:LightNovel/FateZero]]
to:
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 1 (click to see context) from:
[[redirect:LightNovel/FateZero]]
to:
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 1,172 (click to see context) from:
[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/FateZero_TVTropes_6779.jpg]]
->''Let us tell the story of a certain man. The tale of a man who, more than anyone else, [[WideEyedIdealist believed in his ideals]], [[FatalFlaw and by them was]] [[DespairEventHorizon driven into despair]].''
There exists a [[TheLifestream plane outside of human concepts]], and within there is the Throne of Heroes. Here, the records of [[DesignatedHero famous]] (and [[DesignatedVillain infamous]]) individuals throughout history are kept, to be used as eternal guardians of mankind. The definition of "hero" is broad -- even the most ruthless and heartless are the [[SlidingScaleOfIdealismVersusCynicism heroes]] of [[ProtagonistCenteredMorality their own tales]].
Centuries ago, three families -- Einzbern, Makiri, Tohsaka -- conducted [[AncientConspiracy a dark and bloody ritual]]; Heaven's Feel, the Holy Grail War of Fuyuki. A [[MeleeATrois battle between seven magi]], competing for a chance to wish upon a "Holy Grail", the 726th branded by TheChurch. [[SummoningRitual Epic Spirits from the Throne are summoned]] and bound to the material world, becoming "Servants" to their summoner "Masters". To keep their true names hidden, the seven Servants are sorted into one of seven Classes: Saber, Archer, Lancer, Rider, Caster, Berserker, and Assassin. In addition, each Servant is armed with the mysteries that symbolize their legend -- Noble Phantasms, legendary armaments and abilities, the very concepts that embody their fame.
As each Servant falls, the [[MacGuffin Holy Grail]] receives their power, [[ThereCanBeOnlyOne until only one remains]] and the Grail is able to manifest in the physical world to grant the winners' wishes.
''[[Literature/FateZero Fate/Zero]]'', the prequel to famous VisualNovel ''[[FateStayNight Fate/stay night]]'', is the story of Heaven's Feel IV. From the viewpoints of the Servants and their Masters, it shows the War in all its ruthlessness -- greed, ambition, murder, betrayal; the weak succumb, the strong live on to see another battle.
[[MeaningfulName Kiritsugu Emiya]] grew up wanting to be a hero who could save anyone and everyone... but he quickly realized that for every person he saved, another had to die. The only way to be a hero is to act for the good of all humanity; to destroy the factor that will, in turn, destroy even more humans if left unchecked. And if that factor is humans themselves, then [[NecessarilyEvil he will kill every single one who threatens the peace of another]]. Despised, feared, branded as a murderer, a contract killer, a hitman -- still he goes on, [[IDidWhatIHadToDo believing that this is the best way to serve humanity]].
Due to his immense skill, he is taken in by the Einzberns as an honorary family member. However, the Einzberns' real motive is to send him to Fuyuki, his old home, to participate in the Fourth Heaven's Feel on their behalf. Although he loves his new family -- his wife, Irisviel, and their daughter, Ilya -- he knows his battle is not yet over. As one of the seven Masters, he must return to Japan to obtain the Holy Grail of Fuyuki for the Einzberns.
''Fate/Zero'' is a collaboration, a series of four illustrated novels written by GenUrobuchi (of [[{{Nitroplus}} Nitro+]] fame) and illustrated by Takashi Takeuchi of [[TypeMoon TYPE-MOON]], under the direction of Kinoko Nasu. Based in the {{Nasuverse}}, it refers to [[FunctionalMagic concepts and ideas]] of other Nasu works, mainly ''Fate/stay night''. The first volume was released in December 2006, while the last was released in December 2007. It was first adapted into a Drama CD, with music by ZIZZ Studio (composers for the majority of [[{{Nitroplus}} Nitro+]] works). A manga adaptation has begun serialization, and a TV series (by {{ufotable}} of ''Anime/KaraNoKyoukai'' fame, with music by YukiKajiura, and starring the Drama CD cast) aired its first season in [[Fall2011Anime Fall 2011]] and will continue in [[Spring2012Anime Spring 2012]].
The anime will be streamed for free with subtitles in eight different languages by Aniplex on NicoNico as it airs. The latest episode can be found [[http://ch.nicovideo.jp/channel/fate-zero here]], and previous episodes are available on [[http://www.crunchyroll.com/fate-zero Crunchyroll]].
The {{Character Sheet|s}} can be found [[Characters/FateZero here]], for tropes specific to the cast.
All four volumes of the novels have been fully translated by Baka-Tsuki. You may find them [[http://www.baka-tsuki.org/project/index.php?title=Fate/Zero here]].
!!Since this is a prequel series to ''FateStayNight'', expect major {{Late Arrival Spoiler}}s for that series as well, as ''Fate/zero'' ends with a ForegoneConclusion. YouHaveBeenWarned.
----
!!These books provide examples of:
* AdaptationDecay: Averted like the plague with the anime. All the episodes so far, including the hour-long premiere have been spectacular pieces that are almost 100% loyal to the source material. It probably helps that the writer of the light novels is directing the anime.
* AdaptationExpansion: At one point, one of Rin's friends is kidnapped by Uryu and Caster. Not realizing the danger, Rin decides to go look for her. In the book, Rin nearly enters their lair before being attacked by one of Caster's monsters; Kariya rescues her and takes her home. In the anime, Rin enters their lair, confronts Uryu, and actually manages to break Caster's hypnosis on the children before going back outside and getting attacked by a monster, where Kariya rescues her as in the book. [[SparedByTheAdaptation Rin's successful intervention in the anime means that all the children are rescued and return home; the same can't be said for the book.]]
* AllLoveIsUnrequited - Most of it, anyway:
** Kariya has loved Aoi, who is both oblivious and married, since they were both young.
** Maiya has feelings for Kiritsugu, but acknowledges that Irisviel is the woman he loves.
** Caster ''might'' count, since his "Jeanne" doesn't respond to his feelings largely because she's ''not'' Jeanne. The specifics of Gilles' feelings before Jeanne's death is currently unclear.
** In the backstory, Kirei's [[NoNameGiven nameless wife]] was devoted to a man who was literally incapable of loving her.
** Kayneth sincerely loves Sola-ui and does whatever he can to make the best of their ArrangedMarriage, but she'll have none of it. Sola-ui loves her fiancé's Servant, who does not reciprocate her feelings. And if [[UndyingLoyalty loyalty]] is a type of love, Lancer rejects Sola because he's devoted to his Master Kayneth despite receiving only disdain ([[KickTheDog at best]]) in return.
* AllMythsAreTrue - All Epic Spirits are eligible for summoning, as long as they are remembered in legends. Armaments and abilities which are symbolic of the legend (for example, KingArthur and Excalibur) become the Noble Phantasms of the Servant.
** It's actually the myth more than the truth that is important. The fame of the hero decides their power.
* AllThereInTheManual - The original game, side material, information volumes, etc.
* AncientConspiracy - The true purpose of the Heaven's Feel ritual is to [[spoiler:recreate the Third Magic, the eponymous Heaven's Feel, which deals with immortality of the soul]].
* AnimeCatholicism
* AnyoneCanDie - All the Servants ''need'' to die to power the Grail, but the easiest way to take out the Servant is to cut the power source (ie. the Master). ThereCanBeOnlyOne, after all.
** There is a second purpose to this, as well - if a Servant is killed before the Master is, the Master's Command Spells revert to the Grail, which can reassign them to another Master. And those who were selected previously as Masters get preferential treatment.
* ArtifactOfDoom - The Grail of Fuyuki.
* ArtificialHuman - A homunculus is used as the vessel of the Holy Grail.
* BadassArmy - Rider's EX-ranked Noble Phantasm.
* BadassCape - Rider, but his design is just {{badass}} in general. [[http://otakuism.animeblogger.net/wp-content/uploads/2007/04/zeroiskandar.jpg Just look at the guy!]]
* BadassFamily
* BadassInANiceSuit: Being the hitman he is, Kiritsugu certainly looks the part of a professional, but the real standout is Saber in her [[HotChickInABadassSuit black suit.]]
* BadassLongcoat - Kiritsugu
* TheBadGuyWins
* BaitAndSwitchCredits - The opening sequence features a clip where Saber faces off with Assassin. In the story proper, these two never come to blows.
* BiggerBad - Ultimately, [[spoiler:the Grail itself, corrupted by Angra Mainyu]]. Its corruption is what likely causes it to [[spoiler:choose Kirei as a Master]] despite him having no interest in it, or even knowing what it was up to that point, simply because it's attracted to [[spoiler:Kirei's [[ObliviouslyEvil hidden evil desires]]]]. It also likely had a hand in choosing a serial killer as the last Master when there were no more volunteers.
** On a lesser note, Zouken Matou is one. Even in ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'', he doesn't do much until the final route of the game. He does, however, continue to observe how things are proceeding in this war despite not directly participating.
* BlackAndGrayMorality - The only white in this series comes from Ilya, Rin, and the children Caster and his master have a habit of kidnapping and subjecting to a FateWorseThanDeath. ChildrenAreInnocent indeed. Irisviel might count as well.
* BlandNameProduct - There's a "Ramasonic" brand Jumbotron in episode 12 of the anime.
* BloodFromTheMouth
* CallingYourAttacks - If a Noble Phantasm has to be manually activated, its "true name" must be called. Doesn't apply for those that are always active.
* ChekhovsGun - The magic circle Irisviel and Saber drew in the shed of the operations base Kiritsugu provided them (for the purpose of aiding Iri in sustaining herself) [[spoiler: will end up saving Shirou's skin from Lancer [[FateStayNight ten years later]] by serving as the summoning circle for Saber]].
* ClapYourHandsIfYouBelieve - Belief is a powerful weapon in {{Nasuverse}}; the more people believe in something, the more power it has. Accordingly, the more well-known the legend, the more powerful the Servant. However, the older the mystery is, the more powerful it is, which offsets if it is not as famous.
* CliffHanger - The first season of the anime ends as Saber, Rider, and Lancer are about to engage Caster and his Cthulhu knockoff.
* CombatPragmatist - Played straight, but mostly averted. Kiritsugu is the incarnate of this, with Kotomine one level below him. Most mages, however, have too much pride/ego to [[TooDumbToLive realize that a mage can die from non-magical methods or from a surprise attack in the middle of a warzone]].
* ConservationOfNinjutsu - Subverted to hell and back during the fight between [[spoiler:Assassin and Rider. ]]
** Well, ConservationOfNinjutsu works when a few (or 1) protagonist face a FacelessGoons army, well [[spoiler: Alexander's army was so detailed that all soldiers (btw Servants, ie: Heroic Spirits) had faces drawn, while the assasins all had the same mask, and besides the female one, all looked the same, so its easy to easy why the ConservationOfNinjutsu was subverted like that. ]]
* ConspicuousCG - Various examples of architecture, vehicles, and attack effects and Berserker as a whole in the anime.
** The effect with Berserker is intentional due to the faithfulness of the adaption to the original Light Novel it was based on. Said light novel depicts Berserker as being very alien/out of place.
* ContinuityNod - Since this takes place just ten years before ''FateStayNight'', far too many to list. Let's just say that many events in the Fourth had consequences for the Fifth.
* ContractualImmortality - Everyone that ''doesn't'' get killed off pretty much only survives for [[FateStayNight obvious reasons]].
* CoolVersusAwesome - [[spoiler:Ancient Sumerian flying machine]] vs. [[spoiler:F-15 fighter jet-turned-Noble Phantasm]]. It is every bit as glorious as it sounds.
* TheCorruption - The blackness flowing from the corrupted Grail, a manifestation of "all the world's evil".
* CrazyPrepared - Kiritsugu (he... really took a lot of things into account, to say the least) and Kotomine (seriously? Kevlar-reinforced priests' robes??).
* CurbStompBattle - Tokiomi vs Kariya is ''very'' one-sided. One is a man who has spent a lifetime learning to master his craft. The other is a runaway relying on ad-hoc sorcery implanted in him by his sadistic ancestor who is too berserk with pain and rage to use even that properly. Guess which one wins without having to hardly lift a finger.
** Before that there was [[spoiler:Iskander]] vs. Assassin. [[spoiler:All of the Assassins, counting in the dozens]]. Cue [[spoiler:Ionian Hetaroi: Army of the King]], and the fight becomes such a ridiculously one-sided slaughter the author doesn't even ''bother telling you about it'' though in the anime [[spoiler:we see the Assassins either attempt to run away, fight to their deaths, or directly face their deaths without fighting.]]
* DarkerAndEdgier - Lampshaded in the authors' notes section. Think this is a Grail War which [[FateStayNight mucks around]] with "women and children"? Haha no.
* DepletedPhlebotinumShells - Kiritsugu's special bullets containing ''his own'' powdered ribs, which he uses sparingly with his Contender.
* DoomedByCanon - Pointed out early on that you probably don't want to get too attached to anyone. [[spoiler:By the end, the only people left are Kiritsugu, Kotomine, Waver Velvet, Gilgamesh and Saber from among the main cast and after the [[FateStayNight FIFTH Holy Grail War]], Waver is the last remnant of Literature/FateZero who is guaranteed to survive.]]
* DownerEnding - Kiritsugu sacrifices [[spoiler:his wife and trusted partner]] to achieve his goal (World Peace), only to find that the Grail is corrupted and, thus, that he has to destroy it ([[spoiler:in the process, losing access to his daughter and leaving her to be raised by her mother's evil family]]), and even this does not prevent the Grail War from repeating itself ten years later. Further, his arch-nemesis is still alive, and outlives him to threaten his son (and daughter) in the next war. Meanwhile, Sakura is still stuck with Zouken, completely abandoned except by Rin (whose concern for her is limited and does not override the rules their father Tokiomi set down). Rin herself is now an orphan. Kariya dies having failed to save Sakura, and actually makes her situation ''worse'' by acting as a reminder to her of what happens to people who oppose her grandfather or try to run away. All of the major villains (except Caster and his master) are still alive, and essentially no-one else survives, except Kiritsugu, who dies as a result of the corruption caused when he destroyed the Grail. Whilst, if one takes ''FateStayNight'' into account, his adoptive son fixes some of these things, [[spoiler:Sakura isn't guaranteed to be saved and nor is Ilya, and none of the dead people (Aoi, Kariya, Kiritsugu, Iri) can be brought back]].
* DualWielding - Diarmuid uses dual ''spears'', though not always at the same time. The Black Knight's tendency to grab whatever is on hand also leads to this, and at one point he dual-wields [[spoiler:sub-machine guns]]!
* DungeonBypass - Kayneth El-Melloi Archibald is in the thirty-second floor of a hotel - his bounded field covers ''twenty-four'' floors (even going over the drainage pipes), there are three magical furnaces for his use, and he has ten summoned evil spirits and apparitions - a veritable magus' fortress. How does Kiritsugu deal with this? [[spoiler:Apply a small amount of C4 to the supports and bring the entire place down.]]
* EldritchAbomination - [[spoiler:Summoned by Caster. Normally, a magus only summons something of a certain level of strength or they can't control it, so at first they don't understand... until they realize the Caster couldn't care less if the horror he summoned is under control or not.]]
* EnemyMine - Crops up several times during the early part of the Holy Grail War. [[WorthyOpponent Saber and Lancer]] are the most common allies, whilst [[ConflictKiller Caster]] is the most common target.
* EpisodeZeroTheBeginning
* EveryoneCallsHimBarkeep - Servants are referred to by their Class, even when their real names are revealed. Berserker, whose identity is hidden until the last novel, is dubbed the "Black Knight".
* ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin - There's a 24-hour hotel in Fuyuki called 24-Hour Hotel in Fuyuki.
* ExactWords - [[spoiler: "Killing you is impossible now... for ''me'', that is." Cue [[{{Sidekick}} Maiya]] gunning down Kayneth and Sola with a Steyr [=AUG=].]]
* [[FacelessGoons Faceless]] EvilMinions - Bluebeard's summoned tentacle-things from AnotherDimension, literally without faces.
* FanNickname
** Ganondorf - Zero!Rider; for being a large swarthy redhead.
*** Also known to some as Broskander the Great.
** [=GARserker=] - for obvious reasons
* FatalFlaw - Quite a few, but most outwardly obvious are Kiritsugu's ideals and Arturia's regret over her country's fall.
* FiringOneHanded
* ForegoneConclusion - ''Literature/FateZero'' is written under the assumption that the reader has already finished ''FateStayNight''. A fairly early author's note warns that you really shouldn't be expecting a happy ending, and that the writer will probably have to kill his entire cast in order to fit his ending into the timeline established in the previous story.
** To wit: [[spoiler:Iskander fails to save Arturia from her ideals, Kiritsugu fails to completely destroy the Grail, Kariya loses the war and therefore cannot stop Zouken from torturing Sakura and Gilgamesh sticks around until the next war after being doused in the mud of the tainted Grail. All the Servants die except Gilgamesh and Saber as well as all the Masters except Waver Velvet and Kotomine because Kiritsugu is badly cursed.]]
* FourLinesAllWaiting - Unlike ''FateStayNight'', which was written primarily from Shirou's point of view, ''Literature/FateZero'' is written in third person omniscient, following the stories of all the Masters, and as a consequence, frequently leaves TheHero Kiritsugu OutOfFocus.
* [[FunctionalMagic Functional]] HermeticMagic - ''Literature/FateZero'' expands the {{Canon}} considerably regarding magecraft concepts.
* GameplayAndStoryIntegration - A strange version, considering that it's not a video game, but the novel still uses the stat sheets found in ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight''. Several of the passive skills and stats listed there have an effect on the plot, such as Saber's "Riding", Lancer's "Eye of the Mind (True)", Rider's "Divinity", Archer's "Independent Action" and Caster's "Mental Pollution".
* GenderFlip - KingArthur, young lady.
* GeneticMemory - Irisviel.
* GoryDiscretionShot - Caster's segments in the anime are heavily censored, at least in the regular broadcast. In the novel, the author goes into some description that's not too gory, but just enough to give an idea of [[FateWorseThanDeath what's happening to the children]]. The manga adaptation is not so kind, giving us full view of wacky contraptions like the "human umbrella".
* GrandFinale - The previous three volumes slowly but steadily killed off the cast, so naturally, the fourth is a WhamEpisode.
* GratuitousEnglish: And [[AltumVidetur Latin]], and in the first episode of the anime, ''Armenian''.
* GratuitousGerman: At one point Rin opens one of her father's grimoires, which angrily chants German at her.
* GunsAkimbo - Kiritsugu dual-wields his Contender and Calico. [[spoiler: Also Berserker later, with two ''[=MP5=] submachine guns''.]]
* GunsAreWorthless - Played with. Because Magi have a tendency to view technology with disdain and consider it inferior to their own magecraft, Kiritsugu uses it against them to great effect. On the other hand, Kayneth's magecraft protected him from Claymore mines, a skyscraper collapsing around him, and automatic fire at point-blank range, while Kotomine can [[DodgeTheBullet outright dodge bullets]].
* GunPorn - Gen Urobuchi gave a whole lot of detail to the weapons that Kiritsugu uses. To wit, Kiritsugu's weapons are a Calico M950 sub-machine gun, a Walter [=WA2000=] sniper rifle (with night scope and heat vision sensors), and his Mystic Code the [[HandCannon Thompson Contender]], customized with his [[DepletedPhlebotinumShells Origin Bullets]]. The anime also shows other weapons in a couple of {{lock and load montage}}s.
* HighAltitudeBattle - The absolutely glorious battle between [[spoiler:Gilgamesh and Berserker]] near the end of the war is this.
* HopeSpot - Caster deliberately gives one to children before killing them.
* IHaveYourWife - Kiritsugu and Maiya ''successfully'' pull this off in a way that would make any villain proud.
* ImmuneToBullets - Servants in general, except when Berserker [[UpToEleven turns the bullets into Noble Phantasms]]. Kayneth's Mystic Code initially had the same effect, but Kiritsugu managed to get around that pesky problem.
* ImprobableWeaponUser - Berserker, whose Noble Phantasm is to literally turn whatever he picks up as a Noble Phantasm, from the discarded Noble Phantasms of other Servants to pieces of a sliced-apart telephone pole. And at one point, he even uses [[spoiler:an ''F-15J'' from the JASDF investigating a massive fight between the Servants. When the jet crashed, ''[[BeyondTheImpossible he ripped off the entire M61 Vulcan unit and fired it braced against his hip. In mid-air.]]'']]
* IneptMage
** All three of the traditional mages (Kayneth, Tokiomi, and Waver) fulfill this to some extent. Kayneth is so prideful that he never really considers battle strategy. [[spoiler:He is [[BreakTheHaughty defeated and broken]] when he challenges Kiritsugu, and would have been killed during the first battle had Kiritsugu not been distracted by Rider.]] Tokiomi had a great plan to win the war, but failed to see the treachery of his apprentice Kirei. Waver simply fails to realize what he's getting himself into, and could have also been killed by Kiritsugu during the first battle had Kiritsugu not been distracted by Kayneth and Assassin.
** All three fail to take into consideration the personalities of their Servants. Kayneth doesn't understand Lancer's UndyingLoyalty and Rider makes it obvious that he would have disapproved of Kayneth as his Master. Tokiomi's failure to consider Archer's personality eventually leads to [[spoiler:his death by Kirei]]. And Waver simply doesn't have the personality to control someone like [[LargeHam Rider]]. Contrast Kiritsugu, whose plan to use Irisviel as a proxy Master makes her and Saber a great team-up, and Kirei, who gets to know Archer on a personal level.
** Kariya, in his desperate attempts to win the war with last-minute preparations that are greatly taxing to him, also qualifies.
* InfantImmortality - Averted ''hard'' by Caster and his master.
** Also averted, although in a [[FateWorseThanDeath non-fatal way]], by Zouken with regards to Sakura, the abuse of whom (starting from the age of ''four'') is described in quite a lot of detail (although it's not explicitly ''shown''). In fact, it is a major plot point (since Kariya's reason for fighting is to free her).
* InfoDump: These pop up from time to time. Particularly in the first episode of the anime adaptation.
* KilledOffForReal - [[KillThemAll The majority of the cast.]]
* LeaningOnTheFourthWall - Caster and Ryuunosuke's discussion on the nature of God. It appears that GenUrobuchi is aware of his reputation.
* LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters - One overseer, seven Masters, seven Servants, plus various assistants, family members, etc.
* MindcontrolEyes: Caster makes Ryunosuke a bracelet that allows him to easily abduct children; the effects of the enchantment naturally involve this trope.
* MoodWhiplash - In a weird way. [[spoiler:The death count has been climbing up, Kotomine's schemes are beginning to play out, the great, depressing finale is already building up, Irisviel has been kidnapped and Saber is desperately trying to recover her...and Saber's mind, and by extension, the author, keeps engaging in DescriptionPorn about how awesome Saber's motorcycle is.]]
* NightVisionGoggles - Kiritsugu uses the thermal scope on his rifle to observe Masters who, because of their [[FunctionalMagic Magic Circuits]], have a different heat signature. His Walther [=WA2000=] has some kind of dual-scope setup, with one night-vision and the other thermal.
* OffModel - The largest complaint for Episode 11, which is due in part to much of the episode's budget going into animating [[spoiler:Ionioi Hetairoi]].
* TheOnlyOneAllowedToDefeatYou - Claimed by Lancer as he saves Saber from Caster's monsters.
* TheOtherDarrin - Completely averted so far. All the cast members from the drama [=CDs=] have come back to reprise their roles for the anime series.
* OurVampiresAreDifferent - Kiritsugu's past, featuring [[VisualNovel/{{Tsukihime}} Dead Apostles]].
* ParentalAbandonment - Tokiomi towards Sakura and Kiritsugu and Irisviel towards Ilya.
* PlayingTheHeartStrings - ''[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IZwK3kTqVQo&fmt=18 Eternal Dream]]'', which in the Drama CD plays [[spoiler:as Alexander dies]].
* PoorCommunicationKills - If Kariya and Tokiomi had been able to put aside their mutual hatred for long enough to explain ''why'' they felt as they do, or if Aoi and Kariya had bothered to talk about their situation ''at all'', then Aoi's death and Sakura's [[spoiler:[[HighOctaneNightmareFuel eleven years of torture]]]] could perhaps have been prevented.
** While they at least TRY to talk in Volume Three, they have no ability to understand each other.
** One might wonder exactly what Tokiomi's reaction might have been had Kariya actually told him exactly why he was fighting.
* PowerGlows - In particular, Excalibur being charged (the sword converts {{Mana}} into light).
* PowerLevels - Following ''FateStayNight'', profile pages of Servants give their abilities and ranks.
* {{Prequel}}
* [[{{Mana}} Prana]] - One of the main weaknesses of Servants is that they must have mana to continue existing; since they're technically dead, they are not "a part of the World", so the World itself will try to crush this contradiction.
* RareGuns - A Thompson Contender and a [=WA2000=] (only 176 of the latter were ever made) with thermal ''and'' night-vision scopes; none of the characters mention how these guns were smuggled into ''Japan'', of all places.
** Contenders have been built for over three decades; they're hardly rare. Kiritsugu's Calico 950 certainly counts higher on the rarity.
** It's not stated directly in the story how they were smuggled into Japan, but with both Kiritsugu and Irisviel being Magi, AWizardDidIt after all.
* TheReasonYouSuckSpeech - [[{{Ubermensch}} Rider]] delivers a particularly brutal one to Saber, concerning the destruction of her kingdom and the people she saved.
** More specifically, her entire identity and her moral code. Her ideal of what a "king" should be.
* {{Retcon}} - Saber in FateStayNight states that Kiritsugu only spoke to her three times ie. the three Command Seals. However, there are numerous points where he's basically having an argument with her and simply doesn't address her directly. Irisviel at times also seems like a way to get around this. The aftermath of [[spoiler:Lancer's suicide and the death of Kayneth]] is probably the most obvious example. Also, contrary to her claims, it's pretty obvious that she's not quite viewed as a tool: She and Kiritsugu clash too much for that.
** It may be more of a case of her bitterness over what she perceives as Kiritsugu's betrayal that's talking in FateStayNight. After going through all those difficult battles and bloody massacres just see Kiritsugu seemingly abandon the ideals he'd supposedly sacrificed everything for by ordering her to destroy the grail may very well have led her to believe that she was a tool all along. Saber doesn't learn about the grail's corruption until the fifth war.
* RuleOfCool - At one point, Arturia (as in, KingArthur) rides a motorcycle to fight Iskander, who is on a chariot. They smash heavy items at each other with swords. Really.
* SlidingScaleOfIdealismVersusCynicism - Leans heavily toward the cynical end.
* ShootTheHostage - [[spoiler:Kiritsugu takes El-Melloi's wife hostage, but signs a magical contract that should he harm either of them, he will lose all his magecraft. El-Melloi agrees to Kiritsugu's terms, then prepares to leave the city with her while they're both alive. Then Kiritsugu's assistant shows up with an [[MoreDakka assault rifle.]]]]
* ShootTheShaggyDog: See DownerEnding above.
* ShownTheirWork: The Servant's scenes in the anime's ending are based on actual paintings or sculptures of their historical counterparts.
** For that matter, the fact that the novels include many details accurately regarding the Servants' legends shows that Nasu and Urobuchi definitely did their research on the original myths and history. The departures in this case are less due to DidNotDoTheResearch and more ArtisticLicense or [[TheyJustDidntCare intentional disregard]].
* SparedByTheAdaptation - See AdaptationExpansion above.
* SoundtrackDissonance - ''"Starlit Faith "'', from the ''Return to Zero'' soundtrack album, [[http://www.justsomelyrics.com/2126047/Watanabe-Kazuhiro-Starlit-Faith-Lyrics reads]] and [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JqbiIuPKQb8 sounds]] like a rock ballad about finding one's way to his loved one. One could be forgiven for hearing this and not guessing that the setting of the soundtrack overflows in GRIMDARK-ness...
* SquishyWizard - Subverted in the {{Nasuverse}} in general; magi can use Reinforcement and other physical spells to boost their bodies to the limits of human capability, in addition to the physical and martial arts training that most modern magi undergo.
* SuperReflexes - Kiritsugu has a magecraft called "Innate Time Control" that he uses to internally affect time.
** Kotomine dodges bullets.
* SurprisinglyGoodEnglish -
** Besides ''"Starlit Faith"'' above, the ''Return to Zero'' album also contains ''[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5j2VyOqvICI "Beginning Oath"]]''. Both also qualify as CrowningMusicOfAwesome.
** Kiritsugu's dossiers on the other Masters are shown in the anime to be in clear English.
* TalkingIsAFreeAction
* ThereCanBeOnlyOne
* ThrowingYourSwordAlwaysWorks - Church Executors fight using the Black Keys, ''throwing swords'' held between the knuckles, in a [[XMen Wolverine]]-esque manner.
* TomeOfEldritchLore - Bluebeard's Noble Phantasm, Prelati's Spellbook. Aside from the whole cover-made-of-human-skin thing, it's actually "alive" and Bluebeard only "commands" it. It seems to summon {{Eldritch Abomination}}s.
* TooDumbToLive - If a giant, seemingly alive ball of liquid silver appears out of nowhere and one of your coworkers compares it to a ball of mercury, you probably shouldn't shove your hand into it.
* WarIsHell - the focus of Kiritsugu's lamenting monologue in the third novel. He also takes potshots at [[WarIsGlorious heroes, their actions and their legends]], which keep men fascinated with war.
--> ''See, just like so – just like you said, Iri. This great Heroic Spirit dares to think that the battlefield is better than hell. What a joke! No matter in what era, the battlefield has always been a veritable hell. \\
In the battlefield, there is no place for hope. What lies there is only cold despair and a sin called victory, built on the pain of the defeated. All those people who met there have wholeheartedly admitted the evil and foolishness of this act called ‘war’. As long as people don’t repent and don’t regard it as the most evil taboo, then hell would endlessly reappear in the world.\\
However, humans did not realize that truth no matter how high they staked their mountains of corpses. That’s because in no matter what era the courageous and fearless great heroes have always bedazzled the eyes of the multitude with their splendid heroic legends. Because of the wistful actions of those idiots and their refusal to admit that bloodshed is by itself evil, the essence of humans has stayed on the same spot since the Stone Age!''
* WeaponOfChoice - Servants are armed with Noble Phantasms, the weapons or abilities that helped make them famous in life. Also, magi are generally armed with one or more "Mystic Codes" which are tools that are designed to be used with their Magecraft. Quite a few are designed specifically for combat.
* WhatTheHellHero - Saber, and to a lesser extent Irisviel, after Kiritsugu arranges the deaths of [[spoiler:Kayneth and Sola-Ui]].
* WineIsClassy: Gilgamesh, being the arrogant king he is, is often shown drinking wine [[AGlassOfChianti to highlight this fact.]] His [[HyperspaceArsenal Gate of Babylon]] also [[MundaneUtility contains a high-class wine cellar]] with wine brewed by the gods themselves. This trope is about the only thing Gilgamesh shares with his summoner, as Tokiomi is also fond of red wine and is generally acknowledged as a particularly classy fellow.
* WouldHurtAChild - Dear God! Caster! To make matters worse, the second episode of the anime shows his child-murdering cruelty in all its horrific glory (thankfully we don't actually see what happens to the poor kid after he gets dragged offscreen, but hearing it is just bad enough).
* WoundThatWillNotHeal - Lancer's Gae Buidhe inflicts a curse on wounds so they won't heal, which is described in RPG terms as akin to reducing maximum hit points (i.e. healing will have no effect, since Saber would be at "full HP" despite the wound). Saber gets afflicted by this early on due to a lapse in battle judgment. This becomes Saber's DramaPreservingHandicap until Volume 3, where [[spoiler:Saber, Lancer and Rider team up to battle the EldritchAbomination that Caster set loose upon the city]]. Even then, during her rematch with Lancer, Saber fights Lancer using only her right hand.
* YouAreTooLate - [[spoiler: [[BiggerBad Zouken]] [[CompleteMonster Matou]]: ''"There were terrible cries for the first three days, but by the fourth day, she was silent. Today, she was thrown at dawn in the worm storage to test how well she would last, but, ho ho, she endured it for half a day and is still breathing. What do you know, the Tohsaka material isn't defective."'']] Poor [[spoiler:Sakura]].
----
->''Let us tell the story of a certain man. The tale of a man who, more than anyone else, [[WideEyedIdealist believed in his ideals]], [[FatalFlaw and by them was]] [[DespairEventHorizon driven into despair]].''
There exists a [[TheLifestream plane outside of human concepts]], and within there is the Throne of Heroes. Here, the records of [[DesignatedHero famous]] (and [[DesignatedVillain infamous]]) individuals throughout history are kept, to be used as eternal guardians of mankind. The definition of "hero" is broad -- even the most ruthless and heartless are the [[SlidingScaleOfIdealismVersusCynicism heroes]] of [[ProtagonistCenteredMorality their own tales]].
Centuries ago, three families -- Einzbern, Makiri, Tohsaka -- conducted [[AncientConspiracy a dark and bloody ritual]]; Heaven's Feel, the Holy Grail War of Fuyuki. A [[MeleeATrois battle between seven magi]], competing for a chance to wish upon a "Holy Grail", the 726th branded by TheChurch. [[SummoningRitual Epic Spirits from the Throne are summoned]] and bound to the material world, becoming "Servants" to their summoner "Masters". To keep their true names hidden, the seven Servants are sorted into one of seven Classes: Saber, Archer, Lancer, Rider, Caster, Berserker, and Assassin. In addition, each Servant is armed with the mysteries that symbolize their legend -- Noble Phantasms, legendary armaments and abilities, the very concepts that embody their fame.
As each Servant falls, the [[MacGuffin Holy Grail]] receives their power, [[ThereCanBeOnlyOne until only one remains]] and the Grail is able to manifest in the physical world to grant the winners' wishes.
''[[Literature/FateZero Fate/Zero]]'', the prequel to famous VisualNovel ''[[FateStayNight Fate/stay night]]'', is the story of Heaven's Feel IV. From the viewpoints of the Servants and their Masters, it shows the War in all its ruthlessness -- greed, ambition, murder, betrayal; the weak succumb, the strong live on to see another battle.
[[MeaningfulName Kiritsugu Emiya]] grew up wanting to be a hero who could save anyone and everyone... but he quickly realized that for every person he saved, another had to die. The only way to be a hero is to act for the good of all humanity; to destroy the factor that will, in turn, destroy even more humans if left unchecked. And if that factor is humans themselves, then [[NecessarilyEvil he will kill every single one who threatens the peace of another]]. Despised, feared, branded as a murderer, a contract killer, a hitman -- still he goes on, [[IDidWhatIHadToDo believing that this is the best way to serve humanity]].
Due to his immense skill, he is taken in by the Einzberns as an honorary family member. However, the Einzberns' real motive is to send him to Fuyuki, his old home, to participate in the Fourth Heaven's Feel on their behalf. Although he loves his new family -- his wife, Irisviel, and their daughter, Ilya -- he knows his battle is not yet over. As one of the seven Masters, he must return to Japan to obtain the Holy Grail of Fuyuki for the Einzberns.
''Fate/Zero'' is a collaboration, a series of four illustrated novels written by GenUrobuchi (of [[{{Nitroplus}} Nitro+]] fame) and illustrated by Takashi Takeuchi of [[TypeMoon TYPE-MOON]], under the direction of Kinoko Nasu. Based in the {{Nasuverse}}, it refers to [[FunctionalMagic concepts and ideas]] of other Nasu works, mainly ''Fate/stay night''. The first volume was released in December 2006, while the last was released in December 2007. It was first adapted into a Drama CD, with music by ZIZZ Studio (composers for the majority of [[{{Nitroplus}} Nitro+]] works). A manga adaptation has begun serialization, and a TV series (by {{ufotable}} of ''Anime/KaraNoKyoukai'' fame, with music by YukiKajiura, and starring the Drama CD cast) aired its first season in [[Fall2011Anime Fall 2011]] and will continue in [[Spring2012Anime Spring 2012]].
The anime will be streamed for free with subtitles in eight different languages by Aniplex on NicoNico as it airs. The latest episode can be found [[http://ch.nicovideo.jp/channel/fate-zero here]], and previous episodes are available on [[http://www.crunchyroll.com/fate-zero Crunchyroll]].
The {{Character Sheet|s}} can be found [[Characters/FateZero here]], for tropes specific to the cast.
All four volumes of the novels have been fully translated by Baka-Tsuki. You may find them [[http://www.baka-tsuki.org/project/index.php?title=Fate/Zero here]].
!!Since this is a prequel series to ''FateStayNight'', expect major {{Late Arrival Spoiler}}s for that series as well, as ''Fate/zero'' ends with a ForegoneConclusion. YouHaveBeenWarned.
----
!!These books provide examples of:
* AdaptationDecay: Averted like the plague with the anime. All the episodes so far, including the hour-long premiere have been spectacular pieces that are almost 100% loyal to the source material. It probably helps that the writer of the light novels is directing the anime.
* AdaptationExpansion: At one point, one of Rin's friends is kidnapped by Uryu and Caster. Not realizing the danger, Rin decides to go look for her. In the book, Rin nearly enters their lair before being attacked by one of Caster's monsters; Kariya rescues her and takes her home. In the anime, Rin enters their lair, confronts Uryu, and actually manages to break Caster's hypnosis on the children before going back outside and getting attacked by a monster, where Kariya rescues her as in the book. [[SparedByTheAdaptation Rin's successful intervention in the anime means that all the children are rescued and return home; the same can't be said for the book.]]
* AllLoveIsUnrequited - Most of it, anyway:
** Kariya has loved Aoi, who is both oblivious and married, since they were both young.
** Maiya has feelings for Kiritsugu, but acknowledges that Irisviel is the woman he loves.
** Caster ''might'' count, since his "Jeanne" doesn't respond to his feelings largely because she's ''not'' Jeanne. The specifics of Gilles' feelings before Jeanne's death is currently unclear.
** In the backstory, Kirei's [[NoNameGiven nameless wife]] was devoted to a man who was literally incapable of loving her.
** Kayneth sincerely loves Sola-ui and does whatever he can to make the best of their ArrangedMarriage, but she'll have none of it. Sola-ui loves her fiancé's Servant, who does not reciprocate her feelings. And if [[UndyingLoyalty loyalty]] is a type of love, Lancer rejects Sola because he's devoted to his Master Kayneth despite receiving only disdain ([[KickTheDog at best]]) in return.
* AllMythsAreTrue - All Epic Spirits are eligible for summoning, as long as they are remembered in legends. Armaments and abilities which are symbolic of the legend (for example, KingArthur and Excalibur) become the Noble Phantasms of the Servant.
** It's actually the myth more than the truth that is important. The fame of the hero decides their power.
* AllThereInTheManual - The original game, side material, information volumes, etc.
* AncientConspiracy - The true purpose of the Heaven's Feel ritual is to [[spoiler:recreate the Third Magic, the eponymous Heaven's Feel, which deals with immortality of the soul]].
* AnimeCatholicism
* AnyoneCanDie - All the Servants ''need'' to die to power the Grail, but the easiest way to take out the Servant is to cut the power source (ie. the Master). ThereCanBeOnlyOne, after all.
** There is a second purpose to this, as well - if a Servant is killed before the Master is, the Master's Command Spells revert to the Grail, which can reassign them to another Master. And those who were selected previously as Masters get preferential treatment.
* ArtifactOfDoom - The Grail of Fuyuki.
* ArtificialHuman - A homunculus is used as the vessel of the Holy Grail.
* BadassArmy - Rider's EX-ranked Noble Phantasm.
* BadassCape - Rider, but his design is just {{badass}} in general. [[http://otakuism.animeblogger.net/wp-content/uploads/2007/04/zeroiskandar.jpg Just look at the guy!]]
* BadassFamily
* BadassInANiceSuit: Being the hitman he is, Kiritsugu certainly looks the part of a professional, but the real standout is Saber in her [[HotChickInABadassSuit black suit.]]
* BadassLongcoat - Kiritsugu
* TheBadGuyWins
* BaitAndSwitchCredits - The opening sequence features a clip where Saber faces off with Assassin. In the story proper, these two never come to blows.
* BiggerBad - Ultimately, [[spoiler:the Grail itself, corrupted by Angra Mainyu]]. Its corruption is what likely causes it to [[spoiler:choose Kirei as a Master]] despite him having no interest in it, or even knowing what it was up to that point, simply because it's attracted to [[spoiler:Kirei's [[ObliviouslyEvil hidden evil desires]]]]. It also likely had a hand in choosing a serial killer as the last Master when there were no more volunteers.
** On a lesser note, Zouken Matou is one. Even in ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'', he doesn't do much until the final route of the game. He does, however, continue to observe how things are proceeding in this war despite not directly participating.
* BlackAndGrayMorality - The only white in this series comes from Ilya, Rin, and the children Caster and his master have a habit of kidnapping and subjecting to a FateWorseThanDeath. ChildrenAreInnocent indeed. Irisviel might count as well.
* BlandNameProduct - There's a "Ramasonic" brand Jumbotron in episode 12 of the anime.
* BloodFromTheMouth
* CallingYourAttacks - If a Noble Phantasm has to be manually activated, its "true name" must be called. Doesn't apply for those that are always active.
* ChekhovsGun - The magic circle Irisviel and Saber drew in the shed of the operations base Kiritsugu provided them (for the purpose of aiding Iri in sustaining herself) [[spoiler: will end up saving Shirou's skin from Lancer [[FateStayNight ten years later]] by serving as the summoning circle for Saber]].
* ClapYourHandsIfYouBelieve - Belief is a powerful weapon in {{Nasuverse}}; the more people believe in something, the more power it has. Accordingly, the more well-known the legend, the more powerful the Servant. However, the older the mystery is, the more powerful it is, which offsets if it is not as famous.
* CliffHanger - The first season of the anime ends as Saber, Rider, and Lancer are about to engage Caster and his Cthulhu knockoff.
* CombatPragmatist - Played straight, but mostly averted. Kiritsugu is the incarnate of this, with Kotomine one level below him. Most mages, however, have too much pride/ego to [[TooDumbToLive realize that a mage can die from non-magical methods or from a surprise attack in the middle of a warzone]].
* ConservationOfNinjutsu - Subverted to hell and back during the fight between [[spoiler:Assassin and Rider. ]]
** Well, ConservationOfNinjutsu works when a few (or 1) protagonist face a FacelessGoons army, well [[spoiler: Alexander's army was so detailed that all soldiers (btw Servants, ie: Heroic Spirits) had faces drawn, while the assasins all had the same mask, and besides the female one, all looked the same, so its easy to easy why the ConservationOfNinjutsu was subverted like that. ]]
* ConspicuousCG - Various examples of architecture, vehicles, and attack effects and Berserker as a whole in the anime.
** The effect with Berserker is intentional due to the faithfulness of the adaption to the original Light Novel it was based on. Said light novel depicts Berserker as being very alien/out of place.
* ContinuityNod - Since this takes place just ten years before ''FateStayNight'', far too many to list. Let's just say that many events in the Fourth had consequences for the Fifth.
* ContractualImmortality - Everyone that ''doesn't'' get killed off pretty much only survives for [[FateStayNight obvious reasons]].
* CoolVersusAwesome - [[spoiler:Ancient Sumerian flying machine]] vs. [[spoiler:F-15 fighter jet-turned-Noble Phantasm]]. It is every bit as glorious as it sounds.
* TheCorruption - The blackness flowing from the corrupted Grail, a manifestation of "all the world's evil".
* CrazyPrepared - Kiritsugu (he... really took a lot of things into account, to say the least) and Kotomine (seriously? Kevlar-reinforced priests' robes??).
* CurbStompBattle - Tokiomi vs Kariya is ''very'' one-sided. One is a man who has spent a lifetime learning to master his craft. The other is a runaway relying on ad-hoc sorcery implanted in him by his sadistic ancestor who is too berserk with pain and rage to use even that properly. Guess which one wins without having to hardly lift a finger.
** Before that there was [[spoiler:Iskander]] vs. Assassin. [[spoiler:All of the Assassins, counting in the dozens]]. Cue [[spoiler:Ionian Hetaroi: Army of the King]], and the fight becomes such a ridiculously one-sided slaughter the author doesn't even ''bother telling you about it'' though in the anime [[spoiler:we see the Assassins either attempt to run away, fight to their deaths, or directly face their deaths without fighting.]]
* DarkerAndEdgier - Lampshaded in the authors' notes section. Think this is a Grail War which [[FateStayNight mucks around]] with "women and children"? Haha no.
* DepletedPhlebotinumShells - Kiritsugu's special bullets containing ''his own'' powdered ribs, which he uses sparingly with his Contender.
* DoomedByCanon - Pointed out early on that you probably don't want to get too attached to anyone. [[spoiler:By the end, the only people left are Kiritsugu, Kotomine, Waver Velvet, Gilgamesh and Saber from among the main cast and after the [[FateStayNight FIFTH Holy Grail War]], Waver is the last remnant of Literature/FateZero who is guaranteed to survive.]]
* DownerEnding - Kiritsugu sacrifices [[spoiler:his wife and trusted partner]] to achieve his goal (World Peace), only to find that the Grail is corrupted and, thus, that he has to destroy it ([[spoiler:in the process, losing access to his daughter and leaving her to be raised by her mother's evil family]]), and even this does not prevent the Grail War from repeating itself ten years later. Further, his arch-nemesis is still alive, and outlives him to threaten his son (and daughter) in the next war. Meanwhile, Sakura is still stuck with Zouken, completely abandoned except by Rin (whose concern for her is limited and does not override the rules their father Tokiomi set down). Rin herself is now an orphan. Kariya dies having failed to save Sakura, and actually makes her situation ''worse'' by acting as a reminder to her of what happens to people who oppose her grandfather or try to run away. All of the major villains (except Caster and his master) are still alive, and essentially no-one else survives, except Kiritsugu, who dies as a result of the corruption caused when he destroyed the Grail. Whilst, if one takes ''FateStayNight'' into account, his adoptive son fixes some of these things, [[spoiler:Sakura isn't guaranteed to be saved and nor is Ilya, and none of the dead people (Aoi, Kariya, Kiritsugu, Iri) can be brought back]].
* DualWielding - Diarmuid uses dual ''spears'', though not always at the same time. The Black Knight's tendency to grab whatever is on hand also leads to this, and at one point he dual-wields [[spoiler:sub-machine guns]]!
* DungeonBypass - Kayneth El-Melloi Archibald is in the thirty-second floor of a hotel - his bounded field covers ''twenty-four'' floors (even going over the drainage pipes), there are three magical furnaces for his use, and he has ten summoned evil spirits and apparitions - a veritable magus' fortress. How does Kiritsugu deal with this? [[spoiler:Apply a small amount of C4 to the supports and bring the entire place down.]]
* EldritchAbomination - [[spoiler:Summoned by Caster. Normally, a magus only summons something of a certain level of strength or they can't control it, so at first they don't understand... until they realize the Caster couldn't care less if the horror he summoned is under control or not.]]
* EnemyMine - Crops up several times during the early part of the Holy Grail War. [[WorthyOpponent Saber and Lancer]] are the most common allies, whilst [[ConflictKiller Caster]] is the most common target.
* EpisodeZeroTheBeginning
* EveryoneCallsHimBarkeep - Servants are referred to by their Class, even when their real names are revealed. Berserker, whose identity is hidden until the last novel, is dubbed the "Black Knight".
* ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin - There's a 24-hour hotel in Fuyuki called 24-Hour Hotel in Fuyuki.
* ExactWords - [[spoiler: "Killing you is impossible now... for ''me'', that is." Cue [[{{Sidekick}} Maiya]] gunning down Kayneth and Sola with a Steyr [=AUG=].]]
* [[FacelessGoons Faceless]] EvilMinions - Bluebeard's summoned tentacle-things from AnotherDimension, literally without faces.
* FanNickname
** Ganondorf - Zero!Rider; for being a large swarthy redhead.
*** Also known to some as Broskander the Great.
** [=GARserker=] - for obvious reasons
* FatalFlaw - Quite a few, but most outwardly obvious are Kiritsugu's ideals and Arturia's regret over her country's fall.
* FiringOneHanded
* ForegoneConclusion - ''Literature/FateZero'' is written under the assumption that the reader has already finished ''FateStayNight''. A fairly early author's note warns that you really shouldn't be expecting a happy ending, and that the writer will probably have to kill his entire cast in order to fit his ending into the timeline established in the previous story.
** To wit: [[spoiler:Iskander fails to save Arturia from her ideals, Kiritsugu fails to completely destroy the Grail, Kariya loses the war and therefore cannot stop Zouken from torturing Sakura and Gilgamesh sticks around until the next war after being doused in the mud of the tainted Grail. All the Servants die except Gilgamesh and Saber as well as all the Masters except Waver Velvet and Kotomine because Kiritsugu is badly cursed.]]
* FourLinesAllWaiting - Unlike ''FateStayNight'', which was written primarily from Shirou's point of view, ''Literature/FateZero'' is written in third person omniscient, following the stories of all the Masters, and as a consequence, frequently leaves TheHero Kiritsugu OutOfFocus.
* [[FunctionalMagic Functional]] HermeticMagic - ''Literature/FateZero'' expands the {{Canon}} considerably regarding magecraft concepts.
* GameplayAndStoryIntegration - A strange version, considering that it's not a video game, but the novel still uses the stat sheets found in ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight''. Several of the passive skills and stats listed there have an effect on the plot, such as Saber's "Riding", Lancer's "Eye of the Mind (True)", Rider's "Divinity", Archer's "Independent Action" and Caster's "Mental Pollution".
* GenderFlip - KingArthur, young lady.
* GeneticMemory - Irisviel.
* GoryDiscretionShot - Caster's segments in the anime are heavily censored, at least in the regular broadcast. In the novel, the author goes into some description that's not too gory, but just enough to give an idea of [[FateWorseThanDeath what's happening to the children]]. The manga adaptation is not so kind, giving us full view of wacky contraptions like the "human umbrella".
* GrandFinale - The previous three volumes slowly but steadily killed off the cast, so naturally, the fourth is a WhamEpisode.
* GratuitousEnglish: And [[AltumVidetur Latin]], and in the first episode of the anime, ''Armenian''.
* GratuitousGerman: At one point Rin opens one of her father's grimoires, which angrily chants German at her.
* GunsAkimbo - Kiritsugu dual-wields his Contender and Calico. [[spoiler: Also Berserker later, with two ''[=MP5=] submachine guns''.]]
* GunsAreWorthless - Played with. Because Magi have a tendency to view technology with disdain and consider it inferior to their own magecraft, Kiritsugu uses it against them to great effect. On the other hand, Kayneth's magecraft protected him from Claymore mines, a skyscraper collapsing around him, and automatic fire at point-blank range, while Kotomine can [[DodgeTheBullet outright dodge bullets]].
* GunPorn - Gen Urobuchi gave a whole lot of detail to the weapons that Kiritsugu uses. To wit, Kiritsugu's weapons are a Calico M950 sub-machine gun, a Walter [=WA2000=] sniper rifle (with night scope and heat vision sensors), and his Mystic Code the [[HandCannon Thompson Contender]], customized with his [[DepletedPhlebotinumShells Origin Bullets]]. The anime also shows other weapons in a couple of {{lock and load montage}}s.
* HighAltitudeBattle - The absolutely glorious battle between [[spoiler:Gilgamesh and Berserker]] near the end of the war is this.
* HopeSpot - Caster deliberately gives one to children before killing them.
* IHaveYourWife - Kiritsugu and Maiya ''successfully'' pull this off in a way that would make any villain proud.
* ImmuneToBullets - Servants in general, except when Berserker [[UpToEleven turns the bullets into Noble Phantasms]]. Kayneth's Mystic Code initially had the same effect, but Kiritsugu managed to get around that pesky problem.
* ImprobableWeaponUser - Berserker, whose Noble Phantasm is to literally turn whatever he picks up as a Noble Phantasm, from the discarded Noble Phantasms of other Servants to pieces of a sliced-apart telephone pole. And at one point, he even uses [[spoiler:an ''F-15J'' from the JASDF investigating a massive fight between the Servants. When the jet crashed, ''[[BeyondTheImpossible he ripped off the entire M61 Vulcan unit and fired it braced against his hip. In mid-air.]]'']]
* IneptMage
** All three of the traditional mages (Kayneth, Tokiomi, and Waver) fulfill this to some extent. Kayneth is so prideful that he never really considers battle strategy. [[spoiler:He is [[BreakTheHaughty defeated and broken]] when he challenges Kiritsugu, and would have been killed during the first battle had Kiritsugu not been distracted by Rider.]] Tokiomi had a great plan to win the war, but failed to see the treachery of his apprentice Kirei. Waver simply fails to realize what he's getting himself into, and could have also been killed by Kiritsugu during the first battle had Kiritsugu not been distracted by Kayneth and Assassin.
** All three fail to take into consideration the personalities of their Servants. Kayneth doesn't understand Lancer's UndyingLoyalty and Rider makes it obvious that he would have disapproved of Kayneth as his Master. Tokiomi's failure to consider Archer's personality eventually leads to [[spoiler:his death by Kirei]]. And Waver simply doesn't have the personality to control someone like [[LargeHam Rider]]. Contrast Kiritsugu, whose plan to use Irisviel as a proxy Master makes her and Saber a great team-up, and Kirei, who gets to know Archer on a personal level.
** Kariya, in his desperate attempts to win the war with last-minute preparations that are greatly taxing to him, also qualifies.
* InfantImmortality - Averted ''hard'' by Caster and his master.
** Also averted, although in a [[FateWorseThanDeath non-fatal way]], by Zouken with regards to Sakura, the abuse of whom (starting from the age of ''four'') is described in quite a lot of detail (although it's not explicitly ''shown''). In fact, it is a major plot point (since Kariya's reason for fighting is to free her).
* InfoDump: These pop up from time to time. Particularly in the first episode of the anime adaptation.
* KilledOffForReal - [[KillThemAll The majority of the cast.]]
* LeaningOnTheFourthWall - Caster and Ryuunosuke's discussion on the nature of God. It appears that GenUrobuchi is aware of his reputation.
* LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters - One overseer, seven Masters, seven Servants, plus various assistants, family members, etc.
* MindcontrolEyes: Caster makes Ryunosuke a bracelet that allows him to easily abduct children; the effects of the enchantment naturally involve this trope.
* MoodWhiplash - In a weird way. [[spoiler:The death count has been climbing up, Kotomine's schemes are beginning to play out, the great, depressing finale is already building up, Irisviel has been kidnapped and Saber is desperately trying to recover her...and Saber's mind, and by extension, the author, keeps engaging in DescriptionPorn about how awesome Saber's motorcycle is.]]
* NightVisionGoggles - Kiritsugu uses the thermal scope on his rifle to observe Masters who, because of their [[FunctionalMagic Magic Circuits]], have a different heat signature. His Walther [=WA2000=] has some kind of dual-scope setup, with one night-vision and the other thermal.
* OffModel - The largest complaint for Episode 11, which is due in part to much of the episode's budget going into animating [[spoiler:Ionioi Hetairoi]].
* TheOnlyOneAllowedToDefeatYou - Claimed by Lancer as he saves Saber from Caster's monsters.
* TheOtherDarrin - Completely averted so far. All the cast members from the drama [=CDs=] have come back to reprise their roles for the anime series.
* OurVampiresAreDifferent - Kiritsugu's past, featuring [[VisualNovel/{{Tsukihime}} Dead Apostles]].
* ParentalAbandonment - Tokiomi towards Sakura and Kiritsugu and Irisviel towards Ilya.
* PlayingTheHeartStrings - ''[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IZwK3kTqVQo&fmt=18 Eternal Dream]]'', which in the Drama CD plays [[spoiler:as Alexander dies]].
* PoorCommunicationKills - If Kariya and Tokiomi had been able to put aside their mutual hatred for long enough to explain ''why'' they felt as they do, or if Aoi and Kariya had bothered to talk about their situation ''at all'', then Aoi's death and Sakura's [[spoiler:[[HighOctaneNightmareFuel eleven years of torture]]]] could perhaps have been prevented.
** While they at least TRY to talk in Volume Three, they have no ability to understand each other.
** One might wonder exactly what Tokiomi's reaction might have been had Kariya actually told him exactly why he was fighting.
* PowerGlows - In particular, Excalibur being charged (the sword converts {{Mana}} into light).
* PowerLevels - Following ''FateStayNight'', profile pages of Servants give their abilities and ranks.
* {{Prequel}}
* [[{{Mana}} Prana]] - One of the main weaknesses of Servants is that they must have mana to continue existing; since they're technically dead, they are not "a part of the World", so the World itself will try to crush this contradiction.
* RareGuns - A Thompson Contender and a [=WA2000=] (only 176 of the latter were ever made) with thermal ''and'' night-vision scopes; none of the characters mention how these guns were smuggled into ''Japan'', of all places.
** Contenders have been built for over three decades; they're hardly rare. Kiritsugu's Calico 950 certainly counts higher on the rarity.
** It's not stated directly in the story how they were smuggled into Japan, but with both Kiritsugu and Irisviel being Magi, AWizardDidIt after all.
* TheReasonYouSuckSpeech - [[{{Ubermensch}} Rider]] delivers a particularly brutal one to Saber, concerning the destruction of her kingdom and the people she saved.
** More specifically, her entire identity and her moral code. Her ideal of what a "king" should be.
* {{Retcon}} - Saber in FateStayNight states that Kiritsugu only spoke to her three times ie. the three Command Seals. However, there are numerous points where he's basically having an argument with her and simply doesn't address her directly. Irisviel at times also seems like a way to get around this. The aftermath of [[spoiler:Lancer's suicide and the death of Kayneth]] is probably the most obvious example. Also, contrary to her claims, it's pretty obvious that she's not quite viewed as a tool: She and Kiritsugu clash too much for that.
** It may be more of a case of her bitterness over what she perceives as Kiritsugu's betrayal that's talking in FateStayNight. After going through all those difficult battles and bloody massacres just see Kiritsugu seemingly abandon the ideals he'd supposedly sacrificed everything for by ordering her to destroy the grail may very well have led her to believe that she was a tool all along. Saber doesn't learn about the grail's corruption until the fifth war.
* RuleOfCool - At one point, Arturia (as in, KingArthur) rides a motorcycle to fight Iskander, who is on a chariot. They smash heavy items at each other with swords. Really.
* SlidingScaleOfIdealismVersusCynicism - Leans heavily toward the cynical end.
* ShootTheHostage - [[spoiler:Kiritsugu takes El-Melloi's wife hostage, but signs a magical contract that should he harm either of them, he will lose all his magecraft. El-Melloi agrees to Kiritsugu's terms, then prepares to leave the city with her while they're both alive. Then Kiritsugu's assistant shows up with an [[MoreDakka assault rifle.]]]]
* ShootTheShaggyDog: See DownerEnding above.
* ShownTheirWork: The Servant's scenes in the anime's ending are based on actual paintings or sculptures of their historical counterparts.
** For that matter, the fact that the novels include many details accurately regarding the Servants' legends shows that Nasu and Urobuchi definitely did their research on the original myths and history. The departures in this case are less due to DidNotDoTheResearch and more ArtisticLicense or [[TheyJustDidntCare intentional disregard]].
* SparedByTheAdaptation - See AdaptationExpansion above.
* SoundtrackDissonance - ''"Starlit Faith "'', from the ''Return to Zero'' soundtrack album, [[http://www.justsomelyrics.com/2126047/Watanabe-Kazuhiro-Starlit-Faith-Lyrics reads]] and [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JqbiIuPKQb8 sounds]] like a rock ballad about finding one's way to his loved one. One could be forgiven for hearing this and not guessing that the setting of the soundtrack overflows in GRIMDARK-ness...
* SquishyWizard - Subverted in the {{Nasuverse}} in general; magi can use Reinforcement and other physical spells to boost their bodies to the limits of human capability, in addition to the physical and martial arts training that most modern magi undergo.
* SuperReflexes - Kiritsugu has a magecraft called "Innate Time Control" that he uses to internally affect time.
** Kotomine dodges bullets.
* SurprisinglyGoodEnglish -
** Besides ''"Starlit Faith"'' above, the ''Return to Zero'' album also contains ''[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5j2VyOqvICI "Beginning Oath"]]''. Both also qualify as CrowningMusicOfAwesome.
** Kiritsugu's dossiers on the other Masters are shown in the anime to be in clear English.
* TalkingIsAFreeAction
* ThereCanBeOnlyOne
* ThrowingYourSwordAlwaysWorks - Church Executors fight using the Black Keys, ''throwing swords'' held between the knuckles, in a [[XMen Wolverine]]-esque manner.
* TomeOfEldritchLore - Bluebeard's Noble Phantasm, Prelati's Spellbook. Aside from the whole cover-made-of-human-skin thing, it's actually "alive" and Bluebeard only "commands" it. It seems to summon {{Eldritch Abomination}}s.
* TooDumbToLive - If a giant, seemingly alive ball of liquid silver appears out of nowhere and one of your coworkers compares it to a ball of mercury, you probably shouldn't shove your hand into it.
* WarIsHell - the focus of Kiritsugu's lamenting monologue in the third novel. He also takes potshots at [[WarIsGlorious heroes, their actions and their legends]], which keep men fascinated with war.
--> ''See, just like so – just like you said, Iri. This great Heroic Spirit dares to think that the battlefield is better than hell. What a joke! No matter in what era, the battlefield has always been a veritable hell. \\
In the battlefield, there is no place for hope. What lies there is only cold despair and a sin called victory, built on the pain of the defeated. All those people who met there have wholeheartedly admitted the evil and foolishness of this act called ‘war’. As long as people don’t repent and don’t regard it as the most evil taboo, then hell would endlessly reappear in the world.\\
However, humans did not realize that truth no matter how high they staked their mountains of corpses. That’s because in no matter what era the courageous and fearless great heroes have always bedazzled the eyes of the multitude with their splendid heroic legends. Because of the wistful actions of those idiots and their refusal to admit that bloodshed is by itself evil, the essence of humans has stayed on the same spot since the Stone Age!''
* WeaponOfChoice - Servants are armed with Noble Phantasms, the weapons or abilities that helped make them famous in life. Also, magi are generally armed with one or more "Mystic Codes" which are tools that are designed to be used with their Magecraft. Quite a few are designed specifically for combat.
* WhatTheHellHero - Saber, and to a lesser extent Irisviel, after Kiritsugu arranges the deaths of [[spoiler:Kayneth and Sola-Ui]].
* WineIsClassy: Gilgamesh, being the arrogant king he is, is often shown drinking wine [[AGlassOfChianti to highlight this fact.]] His [[HyperspaceArsenal Gate of Babylon]] also [[MundaneUtility contains a high-class wine cellar]] with wine brewed by the gods themselves. This trope is about the only thing Gilgamesh shares with his summoner, as Tokiomi is also fond of red wine and is generally acknowledged as a particularly classy fellow.
* WouldHurtAChild - Dear God! Caster! To make matters worse, the second episode of the anime shows his child-murdering cruelty in all its horrific glory (thankfully we don't actually see what happens to the poor kid after he gets dragged offscreen, but hearing it is just bad enough).
* WoundThatWillNotHeal - Lancer's Gae Buidhe inflicts a curse on wounds so they won't heal, which is described in RPG terms as akin to reducing maximum hit points (i.e. healing will have no effect, since Saber would be at "full HP" despite the wound). Saber gets afflicted by this early on due to a lapse in battle judgment. This becomes Saber's DramaPreservingHandicap until Volume 3, where [[spoiler:Saber, Lancer and Rider team up to battle the EldritchAbomination that Caster set loose upon the city]]. Even then, during her rematch with Lancer, Saber fights Lancer using only her right hand.
* YouAreTooLate - [[spoiler: [[BiggerBad Zouken]] [[CompleteMonster Matou]]: ''"There were terrible cries for the first three days, but by the fourth day, she was silent. Today, she was thrown at dawn in the worm storage to test how well she would last, but, ho ho, she endured it for half a day and is still breathing. What do you know, the Tohsaka material isn't defective."'']] Poor [[spoiler:Sakura]].
----
to:
->''Let us tell the story of a certain man. The tale of a man who, more than anyone else, [[WideEyedIdealist believed in his ideals]], [[FatalFlaw and by them was]] [[DespairEventHorizon driven into despair]].''
There exists a [[TheLifestream plane outside of human concepts]], and within there is the Throne of Heroes. Here, the records of [[DesignatedHero famous]] (and [[DesignatedVillain infamous]]) individuals throughout history are kept, to be used as eternal guardians of mankind. The definition of "hero" is broad -- even the most ruthless and heartless are the [[SlidingScaleOfIdealismVersusCynicism heroes]] of [[ProtagonistCenteredMorality their own tales]].
Centuries ago, three families -- Einzbern, Makiri, Tohsaka -- conducted [[AncientConspiracy a dark and bloody ritual]]; Heaven's Feel, the Holy Grail War of Fuyuki. A [[MeleeATrois battle between seven magi]], competing for a chance to wish upon a "Holy Grail", the 726th branded by TheChurch. [[SummoningRitual Epic Spirits from the Throne are summoned]] and bound to the material world, becoming "Servants" to their summoner "Masters". To keep their true names hidden, the seven Servants are sorted into one of seven Classes: Saber, Archer, Lancer, Rider, Caster, Berserker, and Assassin. In addition, each Servant is armed with the mysteries that symbolize their legend -- Noble Phantasms, legendary armaments and abilities, the very concepts that embody their fame.
As each Servant falls, the [[MacGuffin Holy Grail]] receives their power, [[ThereCanBeOnlyOne until only one remains]] and the Grail is able to manifest in the physical world to grant the winners' wishes.
''[[Literature/FateZero Fate/Zero]]'', the prequel to famous VisualNovel ''[[FateStayNight Fate/stay night]]'', is the story of Heaven's Feel IV. From the viewpoints of the Servants and their Masters, it shows the War in all its ruthlessness -- greed, ambition, murder, betrayal; the weak succumb, the strong live on to see another battle.
[[MeaningfulName Kiritsugu Emiya]] grew up wanting to be a hero who could save anyone and everyone... but he quickly realized that for every person he saved, another had to die. The only way to be a hero is to act for the good of all humanity; to destroy the factor that will, in turn, destroy even more humans if left unchecked. And if that factor is humans themselves, then [[NecessarilyEvil he will kill every single one who threatens the peace of another]]. Despised, feared, branded as a murderer, a contract killer, a hitman -- still he goes on, [[IDidWhatIHadToDo believing that this is the best way to serve humanity]].
Due to his immense skill, he is taken in by the Einzberns as an honorary family member. However, the Einzberns' real motive is to send him to Fuyuki, his old home, to participate in the Fourth Heaven's Feel on their behalf. Although he loves his new family -- his wife, Irisviel, and their daughter, Ilya -- he knows his battle is not yet over. As one of the seven Masters, he must return to Japan to obtain the Holy Grail of Fuyuki for the Einzberns.
''Fate/Zero'' is a collaboration, a series of four illustrated novels written by GenUrobuchi (of [[{{Nitroplus}} Nitro+]] fame) and illustrated by Takashi Takeuchi of [[TypeMoon TYPE-MOON]], under the direction of Kinoko Nasu. Based in the {{Nasuverse}}, it refers to [[FunctionalMagic concepts and ideas]] of other Nasu works, mainly ''Fate/stay night''. The first volume was released in December 2006, while the last was released in December 2007. It was first adapted into a Drama CD, with music by ZIZZ Studio (composers for the majority of [[{{Nitroplus}} Nitro+]] works). A manga adaptation has begun serialization, and a TV series (by {{ufotable}} of ''Anime/KaraNoKyoukai'' fame, with music by YukiKajiura, and starring the Drama CD cast) aired its first season in [[Fall2011Anime Fall 2011]] and will continue in [[Spring2012Anime Spring 2012]].
The anime will be streamed for free with subtitles in eight different languages by Aniplex on NicoNico as it airs. The latest episode can be found [[http://ch.nicovideo.jp/channel/fate-zero here]], and previous episodes are available on [[http://www.crunchyroll.com/fate-zero Crunchyroll]].
The {{Character Sheet|s}} can be found [[Characters/FateZero here]], for tropes specific to the cast.
All four volumes of the novels have been fully translated by Baka-Tsuki. You may find them [[http://www.baka-tsuki.org/project/index.php?title=Fate/Zero here]].
!!Since this is a prequel series to ''FateStayNight'', expect major {{Late Arrival Spoiler}}s for that series as well, as ''Fate/zero'' ends with a ForegoneConclusion. YouHaveBeenWarned.
----
!!These books provide examples of:
* AdaptationDecay: Averted like the plague with the anime. All the episodes so far, including the hour-long premiere have been spectacular pieces that are almost 100% loyal to the source material. It probably helps that the writer of the light novels is directing the anime.
* AdaptationExpansion: At one point, one of Rin's friends is kidnapped by Uryu and Caster. Not realizing the danger, Rin decides to go look for her. In the book, Rin nearly enters their lair before being attacked by one of Caster's monsters; Kariya rescues her and takes her home. In the anime, Rin enters their lair, confronts Uryu, and actually manages to break Caster's hypnosis on the children before going back outside and getting attacked by a monster, where Kariya rescues her as in the book. [[SparedByTheAdaptation Rin's successful intervention in the anime means that all the children are rescued and return home; the same can't be said for the book.]]
* AllLoveIsUnrequited - Most of it, anyway:
** Kariya has loved Aoi, who is both oblivious and married, since they were both young.
** Maiya has feelings for Kiritsugu, but acknowledges that Irisviel is the woman he loves.
** Caster ''might'' count, since his "Jeanne" doesn't respond to his feelings largely because she's ''not'' Jeanne. The specifics of Gilles' feelings before Jeanne's death is currently unclear.
** In the backstory, Kirei's [[NoNameGiven nameless wife]] was devoted to a man who was literally incapable of loving her.
** Kayneth sincerely loves Sola-ui and does whatever he can to make the best of their ArrangedMarriage, but she'll have none of it. Sola-ui loves her fiancé's Servant, who does not reciprocate her feelings. And if [[UndyingLoyalty loyalty]] is a type of love, Lancer rejects Sola because he's devoted to his Master Kayneth despite receiving only disdain ([[KickTheDog at best]]) in return.
* AllMythsAreTrue - All Epic Spirits are eligible for summoning, as long as they are remembered in legends. Armaments and abilities which are symbolic of the legend (for example, KingArthur and Excalibur) become the Noble Phantasms of the Servant.
** It's actually the myth more than the truth that is important. The fame of the hero decides their power.
* AllThereInTheManual - The original game, side material, information volumes, etc.
* AncientConspiracy - The true purpose of the Heaven's Feel ritual is to [[spoiler:recreate the Third Magic, the eponymous Heaven's Feel, which deals with immortality of the soul]].
* AnimeCatholicism
* AnyoneCanDie - All the Servants ''need'' to die to power the Grail, but the easiest way to take out the Servant is to cut the power source (ie. the Master). ThereCanBeOnlyOne, after all.
** There is a second purpose to this, as well - if a Servant is killed before the Master is, the Master's Command Spells revert to the Grail, which can reassign them to another Master. And those who were selected previously as Masters get preferential treatment.
* ArtifactOfDoom - The Grail of Fuyuki.
* ArtificialHuman - A homunculus is used as the vessel of the Holy Grail.
* BadassArmy - Rider's EX-ranked Noble Phantasm.
* BadassCape - Rider, but his design is just {{badass}} in general. [[http://otakuism.animeblogger.net/wp-content/uploads/2007/04/zeroiskandar.jpg Just look at the guy!]]
* BadassFamily
* BadassInANiceSuit: Being the hitman he is, Kiritsugu certainly looks the part of a professional, but the real standout is Saber in her [[HotChickInABadassSuit black suit.]]
* BadassLongcoat - Kiritsugu
* TheBadGuyWins
* BaitAndSwitchCredits - The opening sequence features a clip where Saber faces off with Assassin. In the story proper, these two never come to blows.
* BiggerBad - Ultimately, [[spoiler:the Grail itself, corrupted by Angra Mainyu]]. Its corruption is what likely causes it to [[spoiler:choose Kirei as a Master]] despite him having no interest in it, or even knowing what it was up to that point, simply because it's attracted to [[spoiler:Kirei's [[ObliviouslyEvil hidden evil desires]]]]. It also likely had a hand in choosing a serial killer as the last Master when there were no more volunteers.
** On a lesser note, Zouken Matou is one. Even in ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'', he doesn't do much until the final route of the game. He does, however, continue to observe how things are proceeding in this war despite not directly participating.
* BlackAndGrayMorality - The only white in this series comes from Ilya, Rin, and the children Caster and his master have a habit of kidnapping and subjecting to a FateWorseThanDeath. ChildrenAreInnocent indeed. Irisviel might count as well.
* BlandNameProduct - There's a "Ramasonic" brand Jumbotron in episode 12 of the anime.
* BloodFromTheMouth
* CallingYourAttacks - If a Noble Phantasm has to be manually activated, its "true name" must be called. Doesn't apply for those that are always active.
* ChekhovsGun - The magic circle Irisviel and Saber drew in the shed of the operations base Kiritsugu provided them (for the purpose of aiding Iri in sustaining herself) [[spoiler: will end up saving Shirou's skin from Lancer [[FateStayNight ten years later]] by serving as the summoning circle for Saber]].
* ClapYourHandsIfYouBelieve - Belief is a powerful weapon in {{Nasuverse}}; the more people believe in something, the more power it has. Accordingly, the more well-known the legend, the more powerful the Servant. However, the older the mystery is, the more powerful it is, which offsets if it is not as famous.
* CliffHanger - The first season of the anime ends as Saber, Rider, and Lancer are about to engage Caster and his Cthulhu knockoff.
* CombatPragmatist - Played straight, but mostly averted. Kiritsugu is the incarnate of this, with Kotomine one level below him. Most mages, however, have too much pride/ego to [[TooDumbToLive realize that a mage can die from non-magical methods or from a surprise attack in the middle of a warzone]].
* ConservationOfNinjutsu - Subverted to hell and back during the fight between [[spoiler:Assassin and Rider. ]]
** Well, ConservationOfNinjutsu works when a few (or 1) protagonist face a FacelessGoons army, well [[spoiler: Alexander's army was so detailed that all soldiers (btw Servants, ie: Heroic Spirits) had faces drawn, while the assasins all had the same mask, and besides the female one, all looked the same, so its easy to easy why the ConservationOfNinjutsu was subverted like that. ]]
* ConspicuousCG - Various examples of architecture, vehicles, and attack effects and Berserker as a whole in the anime.
** The effect with Berserker is intentional due to the faithfulness of the adaption to the original Light Novel it was based on. Said light novel depicts Berserker as being very alien/out of place.
* ContinuityNod - Since this takes place just ten years before ''FateStayNight'', far too many to list. Let's just say that many events in the Fourth had consequences for the Fifth.
* ContractualImmortality - Everyone that ''doesn't'' get killed off pretty much only survives for [[FateStayNight obvious reasons]].
* CoolVersusAwesome - [[spoiler:Ancient Sumerian flying machine]] vs. [[spoiler:F-15 fighter jet-turned-Noble Phantasm]]. It is every bit as glorious as it sounds.
* TheCorruption - The blackness flowing from the corrupted Grail, a manifestation of "all the world's evil".
* CrazyPrepared - Kiritsugu (he... really took a lot of things into account, to say the least) and Kotomine (seriously? Kevlar-reinforced priests' robes??).
* CurbStompBattle - Tokiomi vs Kariya is ''very'' one-sided. One is a man who has spent a lifetime learning to master his craft. The other is a runaway relying on ad-hoc sorcery implanted in him by his sadistic ancestor who is too berserk with pain and rage to use even that properly. Guess which one wins without having to hardly lift a finger.
** Before that there was [[spoiler:Iskander]] vs. Assassin. [[spoiler:All of the Assassins, counting in the dozens]]. Cue [[spoiler:Ionian Hetaroi: Army of the King]], and the fight becomes such a ridiculously one-sided slaughter the author doesn't even ''bother telling you about it'' though in the anime [[spoiler:we see the Assassins either attempt to run away, fight to their deaths, or directly face their deaths without fighting.]]
* DarkerAndEdgier - Lampshaded in the authors' notes section. Think this is a Grail War which [[FateStayNight mucks around]] with "women and children"? Haha no.
* DepletedPhlebotinumShells - Kiritsugu's special bullets containing ''his own'' powdered ribs, which he uses sparingly with his Contender.
* DoomedByCanon - Pointed out early on that you probably don't want to get too attached to anyone. [[spoiler:By the end, the only people left are Kiritsugu, Kotomine, Waver Velvet, Gilgamesh and Saber from among the main cast and after the [[FateStayNight FIFTH Holy Grail War]], Waver is the last remnant of Literature/FateZero who is guaranteed to survive.]]
* DownerEnding - Kiritsugu sacrifices [[spoiler:his wife and trusted partner]] to achieve his goal (World Peace), only to find that the Grail is corrupted and, thus, that he has to destroy it ([[spoiler:in the process, losing access to his daughter and leaving her to be raised by her mother's evil family]]), and even this does not prevent the Grail War from repeating itself ten years later. Further, his arch-nemesis is still alive, and outlives him to threaten his son (and daughter) in the next war. Meanwhile, Sakura is still stuck with Zouken, completely abandoned except by Rin (whose concern for her is limited and does not override the rules their father Tokiomi set down). Rin herself is now an orphan. Kariya dies having failed to save Sakura, and actually makes her situation ''worse'' by acting as a reminder to her of what happens to people who oppose her grandfather or try to run away. All of the major villains (except Caster and his master) are still alive, and essentially no-one else survives, except Kiritsugu, who dies as a result of the corruption caused when he destroyed the Grail. Whilst, if one takes ''FateStayNight'' into account, his adoptive son fixes some of these things, [[spoiler:Sakura isn't guaranteed to be saved and nor is Ilya, and none of the dead people (Aoi, Kariya, Kiritsugu, Iri) can be brought back]].
* DualWielding - Diarmuid uses dual ''spears'', though not always at the same time. The Black Knight's tendency to grab whatever is on hand also leads to this, and at one point he dual-wields [[spoiler:sub-machine guns]]!
* DungeonBypass - Kayneth El-Melloi Archibald is in the thirty-second floor of a hotel - his bounded field covers ''twenty-four'' floors (even going over the drainage pipes), there are three magical furnaces for his use, and he has ten summoned evil spirits and apparitions - a veritable magus' fortress. How does Kiritsugu deal with this? [[spoiler:Apply a small amount of C4 to the supports and bring the entire place down.]]
* EldritchAbomination - [[spoiler:Summoned by Caster. Normally, a magus only summons something of a certain level of strength or they can't control it, so at first they don't understand... until they realize the Caster couldn't care less if the horror he summoned is under control or not.]]
* EnemyMine - Crops up several times during the early part of the Holy Grail War. [[WorthyOpponent Saber and Lancer]] are the most common allies, whilst [[ConflictKiller Caster]] is the most common target.
* EpisodeZeroTheBeginning
* EveryoneCallsHimBarkeep - Servants are referred to by their Class, even when their real names are revealed. Berserker, whose identity is hidden until the last novel, is dubbed the "Black Knight".
* ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin - There's a 24-hour hotel in Fuyuki called 24-Hour Hotel in Fuyuki.
* ExactWords - [[spoiler: "Killing you is impossible now... for ''me'', that is." Cue [[{{Sidekick}} Maiya]] gunning down Kayneth and Sola with a Steyr [=AUG=].]]
* [[FacelessGoons Faceless]] EvilMinions - Bluebeard's summoned tentacle-things from AnotherDimension, literally without faces.
* FanNickname
** Ganondorf - Zero!Rider; for being a large swarthy redhead.
*** Also known to some as Broskander the Great.
** [=GARserker=] - for obvious reasons
* FatalFlaw - Quite a few, but most outwardly obvious are Kiritsugu's ideals and Arturia's regret over her country's fall.
* FiringOneHanded
* ForegoneConclusion - ''Literature/FateZero'' is written under the assumption that the reader has already finished ''FateStayNight''. A fairly early author's note warns that you really shouldn't be expecting a happy ending, and that the writer will probably have to kill his entire cast in order to fit his ending into the timeline established in the previous story.
** To wit: [[spoiler:Iskander fails to save Arturia from her ideals, Kiritsugu fails to completely destroy the Grail, Kariya loses the war and therefore cannot stop Zouken from torturing Sakura and Gilgamesh sticks around until the next war after being doused in the mud of the tainted Grail. All the Servants die except Gilgamesh and Saber as well as all the Masters except Waver Velvet and Kotomine because Kiritsugu is badly cursed.]]
* FourLinesAllWaiting - Unlike ''FateStayNight'', which was written primarily from Shirou's point of view, ''Literature/FateZero'' is written in third person omniscient, following the stories of all the Masters, and as a consequence, frequently leaves TheHero Kiritsugu OutOfFocus.
* [[FunctionalMagic Functional]] HermeticMagic - ''Literature/FateZero'' expands the {{Canon}} considerably regarding magecraft concepts.
* GameplayAndStoryIntegration - A strange version, considering that it's not a video game, but the novel still uses the stat sheets found in ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight''. Several of the passive skills and stats listed there have an effect on the plot, such as Saber's "Riding", Lancer's "Eye of the Mind (True)", Rider's "Divinity", Archer's "Independent Action" and Caster's "Mental Pollution".
* GenderFlip - KingArthur, young lady.
* GeneticMemory - Irisviel.
* GoryDiscretionShot - Caster's segments in the anime are heavily censored, at least in the regular broadcast. In the novel, the author goes into some description that's not too gory, but just enough to give an idea of [[FateWorseThanDeath what's happening to the children]]. The manga adaptation is not so kind, giving us full view of wacky contraptions like the "human umbrella".
* GrandFinale - The previous three volumes slowly but steadily killed off the cast, so naturally, the fourth is a WhamEpisode.
* GratuitousEnglish: And [[AltumVidetur Latin]], and in the first episode of the anime, ''Armenian''.
* GratuitousGerman: At one point Rin opens one of her father's grimoires, which angrily chants German at her.
* GunsAkimbo - Kiritsugu dual-wields his Contender and Calico. [[spoiler: Also Berserker later, with two ''[=MP5=] submachine guns''.]]
* GunsAreWorthless - Played with. Because Magi have a tendency to view technology with disdain and consider it inferior to their own magecraft, Kiritsugu uses it against them to great effect. On the other hand, Kayneth's magecraft protected him from Claymore mines, a skyscraper collapsing around him, and automatic fire at point-blank range, while Kotomine can [[DodgeTheBullet outright dodge bullets]].
* GunPorn - Gen Urobuchi gave a whole lot of detail to the weapons that Kiritsugu uses. To wit, Kiritsugu's weapons are a Calico M950 sub-machine gun, a Walter [=WA2000=] sniper rifle (with night scope and heat vision sensors), and his Mystic Code the [[HandCannon Thompson Contender]], customized with his [[DepletedPhlebotinumShells Origin Bullets]]. The anime also shows other weapons in a couple of {{lock and load montage}}s.
* HighAltitudeBattle - The absolutely glorious battle between [[spoiler:Gilgamesh and Berserker]] near the end of the war is this.
* HopeSpot - Caster deliberately gives one to children before killing them.
* IHaveYourWife - Kiritsugu and Maiya ''successfully'' pull this off in a way that would make any villain proud.
* ImmuneToBullets - Servants in general, except when Berserker [[UpToEleven turns the bullets into Noble Phantasms]]. Kayneth's Mystic Code initially had the same effect, but Kiritsugu managed to get around that pesky problem.
* ImprobableWeaponUser - Berserker, whose Noble Phantasm is to literally turn whatever he picks up as a Noble Phantasm, from the discarded Noble Phantasms of other Servants to pieces of a sliced-apart telephone pole. And at one point, he even uses [[spoiler:an ''F-15J'' from the JASDF investigating a massive fight between the Servants. When the jet crashed, ''[[BeyondTheImpossible he ripped off the entire M61 Vulcan unit and fired it braced against his hip. In mid-air.]]'']]
* IneptMage
** All three of the traditional mages (Kayneth, Tokiomi, and Waver) fulfill this to some extent. Kayneth is so prideful that he never really considers battle strategy. [[spoiler:He is [[BreakTheHaughty defeated and broken]] when he challenges Kiritsugu, and would have been killed during the first battle had Kiritsugu not been distracted by Rider.]] Tokiomi had a great plan to win the war, but failed to see the treachery of his apprentice Kirei. Waver simply fails to realize what he's getting himself into, and could have also been killed by Kiritsugu during the first battle had Kiritsugu not been distracted by Kayneth and Assassin.
** All three fail to take into consideration the personalities of their Servants. Kayneth doesn't understand Lancer's UndyingLoyalty and Rider makes it obvious that he would have disapproved of Kayneth as his Master. Tokiomi's failure to consider Archer's personality eventually leads to [[spoiler:his death by Kirei]]. And Waver simply doesn't have the personality to control someone like [[LargeHam Rider]]. Contrast Kiritsugu, whose plan to use Irisviel as a proxy Master makes her and Saber a great team-up, and Kirei, who gets to know Archer on a personal level.
** Kariya, in his desperate attempts to win the war with last-minute preparations that are greatly taxing to him, also qualifies.
* InfantImmortality - Averted ''hard'' by Caster and his master.
** Also averted, although in a [[FateWorseThanDeath non-fatal way]], by Zouken with regards to Sakura, the abuse of whom (starting from the age of ''four'') is described in quite a lot of detail (although it's not explicitly ''shown''). In fact, it is a major plot point (since Kariya's reason for fighting is to free her).
* InfoDump: These pop up from time to time. Particularly in the first episode of the anime adaptation.
* KilledOffForReal - [[KillThemAll The majority of the cast.]]
* LeaningOnTheFourthWall - Caster and Ryuunosuke's discussion on the nature of God. It appears that GenUrobuchi is aware of his reputation.
* LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters - One overseer, seven Masters, seven Servants, plus various assistants, family members, etc.
* MindcontrolEyes: Caster makes Ryunosuke a bracelet that allows him to easily abduct children; the effects of the enchantment naturally involve this trope.
* MoodWhiplash - In a weird way. [[spoiler:The death count has been climbing up, Kotomine's schemes are beginning to play out, the great, depressing finale is already building up, Irisviel has been kidnapped and Saber is desperately trying to recover her...and Saber's mind, and by extension, the author, keeps engaging in DescriptionPorn about how awesome Saber's motorcycle is.]]
* NightVisionGoggles - Kiritsugu uses the thermal scope on his rifle to observe Masters who, because of their [[FunctionalMagic Magic Circuits]], have a different heat signature. His Walther [=WA2000=] has some kind of dual-scope setup, with one night-vision and the other thermal.
* OffModel - The largest complaint for Episode 11, which is due in part to much of the episode's budget going into animating [[spoiler:Ionioi Hetairoi]].
* TheOnlyOneAllowedToDefeatYou - Claimed by Lancer as he saves Saber from Caster's monsters.
* TheOtherDarrin - Completely averted so far. All the cast members from the drama [=CDs=] have come back to reprise their roles for the anime series.
* OurVampiresAreDifferent - Kiritsugu's past, featuring [[VisualNovel/{{Tsukihime}} Dead Apostles]].
* ParentalAbandonment - Tokiomi towards Sakura and Kiritsugu and Irisviel towards Ilya.
* PlayingTheHeartStrings - ''[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IZwK3kTqVQo&fmt=18 Eternal Dream]]'', which in the Drama CD plays [[spoiler:as Alexander dies]].
* PoorCommunicationKills - If Kariya and Tokiomi had been able to put aside their mutual hatred for long enough to explain ''why'' they felt as they do, or if Aoi and Kariya had bothered to talk about their situation ''at all'', then Aoi's death and Sakura's [[spoiler:[[HighOctaneNightmareFuel eleven years of torture]]]] could perhaps have been prevented.
** While they at least TRY to talk in Volume Three, they have no ability to understand each other.
** One might wonder exactly what Tokiomi's reaction might have been had Kariya actually told him exactly why he was fighting.
* PowerGlows - In particular, Excalibur being charged (the sword converts {{Mana}} into light).
* PowerLevels - Following ''FateStayNight'', profile pages of Servants give their abilities and ranks.
* {{Prequel}}
* [[{{Mana}} Prana]] - One of the main weaknesses of Servants is that they must have mana to continue existing; since they're technically dead, they are not "a part of the World", so the World itself will try to crush this contradiction.
* RareGuns - A Thompson Contender and a [=WA2000=] (only 176 of the latter were ever made) with thermal ''and'' night-vision scopes; none of the characters mention how these guns were smuggled into ''Japan'', of all places.
** Contenders have been built for over three decades; they're hardly rare. Kiritsugu's Calico 950 certainly counts higher on the rarity.
** It's not stated directly in the story how they were smuggled into Japan, but with both Kiritsugu and Irisviel being Magi, AWizardDidIt after all.
* TheReasonYouSuckSpeech - [[{{Ubermensch}} Rider]] delivers a particularly brutal one to Saber, concerning the destruction of her kingdom and the people she saved.
** More specifically, her entire identity and her moral code. Her ideal of what a "king" should be.
* {{Retcon}} - Saber in FateStayNight states that Kiritsugu only spoke to her three times ie. the three Command Seals. However, there are numerous points where he's basically having an argument with her and simply doesn't address her directly. Irisviel at times also seems like a way to get around this. The aftermath of [[spoiler:Lancer's suicide and the death of Kayneth]] is probably the most obvious example. Also, contrary to her claims, it's pretty obvious that she's not quite viewed as a tool: She and Kiritsugu clash too much for that.
** It may be more of a case of her bitterness over what she perceives as Kiritsugu's betrayal that's talking in FateStayNight. After going through all those difficult battles and bloody massacres just see Kiritsugu seemingly abandon the ideals he'd supposedly sacrificed everything for by ordering her to destroy the grail may very well have led her to believe that she was a tool all along. Saber doesn't learn about the grail's corruption until the fifth war.
* RuleOfCool - At one point, Arturia (as in, KingArthur) rides a motorcycle to fight Iskander, who is on a chariot. They smash heavy items at each other with swords. Really.
* SlidingScaleOfIdealismVersusCynicism - Leans heavily toward the cynical end.
* ShootTheHostage - [[spoiler:Kiritsugu takes El-Melloi's wife hostage, but signs a magical contract that should he harm either of them, he will lose all his magecraft. El-Melloi agrees to Kiritsugu's terms, then prepares to leave the city with her while they're both alive. Then Kiritsugu's assistant shows up with an [[MoreDakka assault rifle.]]]]
* ShootTheShaggyDog: See DownerEnding above.
* ShownTheirWork: The Servant's scenes in the anime's ending are based on actual paintings or sculptures of their historical counterparts.
** For that matter, the fact that the novels include many details accurately regarding the Servants' legends shows that Nasu and Urobuchi definitely did their research on the original myths and history. The departures in this case are less due to DidNotDoTheResearch and more ArtisticLicense or [[TheyJustDidntCare intentional disregard]].
* SparedByTheAdaptation - See AdaptationExpansion above.
* SoundtrackDissonance - ''"Starlit Faith "'', from the ''Return to Zero'' soundtrack album, [[http://www.justsomelyrics.com/2126047/Watanabe-Kazuhiro-Starlit-Faith-Lyrics reads]] and [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JqbiIuPKQb8 sounds]] like a rock ballad about finding one's way to his loved one. One could be forgiven for hearing this and not guessing that the setting of the soundtrack overflows in GRIMDARK-ness...
* SquishyWizard - Subverted in the {{Nasuverse}} in general; magi can use Reinforcement and other physical spells to boost their bodies to the limits of human capability, in addition to the physical and martial arts training that most modern magi undergo.
* SuperReflexes - Kiritsugu has a magecraft called "Innate Time Control" that he uses to internally affect time.
** Kotomine dodges bullets.
* SurprisinglyGoodEnglish -
** Besides ''"Starlit Faith"'' above, the ''Return to Zero'' album also contains ''[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5j2VyOqvICI "Beginning Oath"]]''. Both also qualify as CrowningMusicOfAwesome.
** Kiritsugu's dossiers on the other Masters are shown in the anime to be in clear English.
* TalkingIsAFreeAction
* ThereCanBeOnlyOne
* ThrowingYourSwordAlwaysWorks - Church Executors fight using the Black Keys, ''throwing swords'' held between the knuckles, in a [[XMen Wolverine]]-esque manner.
* TomeOfEldritchLore - Bluebeard's Noble Phantasm, Prelati's Spellbook. Aside from the whole cover-made-of-human-skin thing, it's actually "alive" and Bluebeard only "commands" it. It seems to summon {{Eldritch Abomination}}s.
* TooDumbToLive - If a giant, seemingly alive ball of liquid silver appears out of nowhere and one of your coworkers compares it to a ball of mercury, you probably shouldn't shove your hand into it.
* WarIsHell - the focus of Kiritsugu's lamenting monologue in the third novel. He also takes potshots at [[WarIsGlorious heroes, their actions and their legends]], which keep men fascinated with war.
--> ''See, just like so – just like you said, Iri. This great Heroic Spirit dares to think that the battlefield is better than hell. What a joke! No matter in what era, the battlefield has always been a veritable hell. \\
In the battlefield, there is no place for hope. What lies there is only cold despair and a sin called victory, built on the pain of the defeated. All those people who met there have wholeheartedly admitted the evil and foolishness of this act called ‘war’. As long as people don’t repent and don’t regard it as the most evil taboo, then hell would endlessly reappear in the world.\\
However, humans did not realize that truth no matter how high they staked their mountains of corpses. That’s because in no matter what era the courageous and fearless great heroes have always bedazzled the eyes of the multitude with their splendid heroic legends. Because of the wistful actions of those idiots and their refusal to admit that bloodshed is by itself evil, the essence of humans has stayed on the same spot since the Stone Age!''
* WeaponOfChoice - Servants are armed with Noble Phantasms, the weapons or abilities that helped make them famous in life. Also, magi are generally armed with one or more "Mystic Codes" which are tools that are designed to be used with their Magecraft. Quite a few are designed specifically for combat.
* WhatTheHellHero - Saber, and to a lesser extent Irisviel, after Kiritsugu arranges the deaths of [[spoiler:Kayneth and Sola-Ui]].
* WineIsClassy: Gilgamesh, being the arrogant king he is, is often shown drinking wine [[AGlassOfChianti to highlight this fact.]] His [[HyperspaceArsenal Gate of Babylon]] also [[MundaneUtility contains a high-class wine cellar]] with wine brewed by the gods themselves. This trope is about the only thing Gilgamesh shares with his summoner, as Tokiomi is also fond of red wine and is generally acknowledged as a particularly classy fellow.
* WouldHurtAChild - Dear God! Caster! To make matters worse, the second episode of the anime shows his child-murdering cruelty in all its horrific glory (thankfully we don't actually see what happens to the poor kid after he gets dragged offscreen, but hearing it is just bad enough).
* WoundThatWillNotHeal - Lancer's Gae Buidhe inflicts a curse on wounds so they won't heal, which is described in RPG terms as akin to reducing maximum hit points (i.e. healing will have no effect, since Saber would be at "full HP" despite the wound). Saber gets afflicted by this early on due to a lapse in battle judgment. This becomes Saber's DramaPreservingHandicap until Volume 3, where [[spoiler:Saber, Lancer and Rider team up to battle the EldritchAbomination that Caster set loose upon the city]]. Even then, during her rematch with Lancer, Saber fights Lancer using only her right hand.
* YouAreTooLate - [[spoiler: [[BiggerBad Zouken]] [[CompleteMonster Matou]]: ''"There were terrible cries for the first three days, but by the fourth day, she was silent. Today, she was thrown at dawn in the worm storage to test how well she would last, but, ho ho, she endured it for half a day and is still breathing. What do you know, the Tohsaka material isn't defective."'']] Poor [[spoiler:Sakura]].
----
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 76 (click to see context) from:
* DualWielding - Diarmuid uses dual ''spears'', though not always at the same time. The Black Knight's tendency to grab whatever is on hand also leads to this (spear plus axe).
to:
* DualWielding - Diarmuid uses dual ''spears'', though not always at the same time. The Black Knight's tendency to grab whatever is on hand also leads to this (spear plus axe).this, and at one point he dual-wields [[spoiler:sub-machine guns]]!
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 10,11 (click to see context) from:
''[[FateZero Fate/Zero]]'', the prequel to famous VisualNovel ''[[FateStayNight Fate/stay night]]'', is the story of Heaven's Feel IV. From the viewpoints of the Servants and their Masters, it shows the War in all its ruthlessness -- greed, ambition, murder, betrayal; the weak succumb, the strong live on to see another battle.
to:
Changed line(s) 74 (click to see context) from:
* DoomedByCanon - Pointed out early on that you probably don't want to get too attached to anyone. [[spoiler:By the end, the only people left are Kiritsugu, Kotomine, Waver Velvet, Gilgamesh and Saber from among the main cast and after the [[FateStayNight FIFTH Holy Grail War]], Waver is the last remnant of FateZero who is guaranteed to survive.]]
to:
* DoomedByCanon - Pointed out early on that you probably don't want to get too attached to anyone. [[spoiler:By the end, the only people left are Kiritsugu, Kotomine, Waver Velvet, Gilgamesh and Saber from among the main cast and after the [[FateStayNight FIFTH Holy Grail War]], Waver is the last remnant of FateZero Literature/FateZero who is guaranteed to survive.]]
Changed line(s) 91 (click to see context) from:
* ForegoneConclusion - ''FateZero'' is written under the assumption that the reader has already finished ''FateStayNight''. A fairly early author's note warns that you really shouldn't be expecting a happy ending, and that the writer will probably have to kill his entire cast in order to fit his ending into the timeline established in the previous story.
to:
* ForegoneConclusion - ''FateZero'' ''Literature/FateZero'' is written under the assumption that the reader has already finished ''FateStayNight''. A fairly early author's note warns that you really shouldn't be expecting a happy ending, and that the writer will probably have to kill his entire cast in order to fit his ending into the timeline established in the previous story.
Changed line(s) 93,94 (click to see context) from:
* FourLinesAllWaiting - Unlike ''FateStayNight'', which was written primarily from Shirou's point of view, ''FateZero'' is written in third person omniscient, following the stories of all the Masters, and as a consequence, frequently leaves TheHero Kiritsugu OutOfFocus.
* [[FunctionalMagic Functional]] HermeticMagic - ''FateZero'' expands the {{Canon}} considerably regarding magecraft concepts.
* [[FunctionalMagic Functional]] HermeticMagic - ''FateZero'' expands the {{Canon}} considerably regarding magecraft concepts.
to:
* FourLinesAllWaiting - Unlike ''FateStayNight'', which was written primarily from Shirou's point of view, ''FateZero'' ''Literature/FateZero'' is written in third person omniscient, following the stories of all the Masters, and as a consequence, frequently leaves TheHero Kiritsugu OutOfFocus.
* [[FunctionalMagic Functional]] HermeticMagic -''FateZero'' ''Literature/FateZero'' expands the {{Canon}} considerably regarding magecraft concepts.
* [[FunctionalMagic Functional]] HermeticMagic -
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 67 (click to see context) from:
* CoolVersusAwesome - [[spoiler: Ancient Sumerian Flying Machine VS F-15 Fighter Jet turned Noble Phantasm. Its every bit as awesome as it sounds.]]
to:
* CoolVersusAwesome - [[spoiler: Ancient [[spoiler:Ancient Sumerian Flying Machine VS F-15 Fighter Jet turned Noble Phantasm. Its flying machine]] vs. [[spoiler:F-15 fighter jet-turned-Noble Phantasm]]. It is every bit as awesome glorious as it sounds.]]
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 38 (click to see context) from:
* AncientConspiracy - The true purpose of the Heaven's Feel ritual, [[spoiler:which is to recreate the Third Magic, a form of immortality]].
to:
* AncientConspiracy - The true purpose of the Heaven's Feel ritual, [[spoiler:which ritual is to recreate [[spoiler:recreate the Third Magic, a form the eponymous Heaven's Feel, which deals with immortality of immortality]].the soul]].
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 6,7 (click to see context) from:
Centuries ago, three families -- Einzbern, Makiri, Tohsaka -- conducted [[AncientConspiracy a dark and bloody ritual]]; Heaven's Feel, the Holy Grail War of Fuyuki. A [[MeleeATrois battle between seven magi]], competing for a chance to wish upon a "Holy Grail", the 726th branded by TheChurch. [[SummoningRitual Epic Spirits from the Throne are summoned]] and bound to the material world, becoming "Servants" to their summoner "Masters". To keep their true names hidden, the seven Servants are sorted into one of seven Classes: Saber, Archer, Lancer, Rider, Caster, Berserker, and Assassin. In addition, each Servant is armed with the mysteries that symbolize their legend -- Noble Phantasms, legendary armaments and abilities, the very concepts that symbolize their fame.
to:
Centuries ago, three families -- Einzbern, Makiri, Tohsaka -- conducted [[AncientConspiracy a dark and bloody ritual]]; Heaven's Feel, the Holy Grail War of Fuyuki. A [[MeleeATrois battle between seven magi]], competing for a chance to wish upon a "Holy Grail", the 726th branded by TheChurch. [[SummoningRitual Epic Spirits from the Throne are summoned]] and bound to the material world, becoming "Servants" to their summoner "Masters". To keep their true names hidden, the seven Servants are sorted into one of seven Classes: Saber, Archer, Lancer, Rider, Caster, Berserker, and Assassin. In addition, each Servant is armed with the mysteries that symbolize their legend -- Noble Phantasms, legendary armaments and abilities, the very concepts that symbolize embody their fame.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 10,11 (click to see context) from:
''[[FateZero Fate/Zero]]'', the prequel to famous VisualNovel ''[[FateStayNight Fate/stay night]]'', is the story of Heaven's Feel IV. From the viewpoints of the Servants and their Masters, it shows the War in all its ruthlessness -- greed, ambition, murder, betrayal; the weak succumb, the strong live on to see another day.
to:
''[[FateZero Fate/Zero]]'', the prequel to famous VisualNovel ''[[FateStayNight Fate/stay night]]'', is the story of Heaven's Feel IV. From the viewpoints of the Servants and their Masters, it shows the War in all its ruthlessness -- greed, ambition, murder, betrayal; the weak succumb, the strong live on to see another day.
battle.
Changed line(s) 14,15 (click to see context) from:
Due to his immense skill, he is taken in by the Einzberns as an honorary family member. However, the Einzberns' real motive is to send him to Fuyuki, his old home, to participate in the Fourth Heaven's Feel on their behalf. Although he loves his new family -- his wife, Irisviel, and their daughter, Ilya -- he knows his battle is not yet over. As one of the seven Masters, he must returns to Japan to obtain the Holy Grail of Fuyuki.
to:
Due to his immense skill, he is taken in by the Einzberns as an honorary family member. However, the Einzberns' real motive is to send him to Fuyuki, his old home, to participate in the Fourth Heaven's Feel on their behalf. Although he loves his new family -- his wife, Irisviel, and their daughter, Ilya -- he knows his battle is not yet over. As one of the seven Masters, he must returns return to Japan to obtain the Holy Grail of Fuyuki.
Fuyuki for the Einzberns.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 4,7 (click to see context) from:
There exists a [[TheLifestream plane outside of human concepts]], and within there is the Throne of Heroes. Here, the records of [[DesignatedHero famous]] (and [[DesignatedVillain infamous]]) individuals are kept, to be used as eternal guardians of mankind. The definition of "hero" is broad - even the ruthless and the heartless are the [[SlidingScaleOfIdealismVersusCynicism heroes of their own tales]].
Centuries ago, three families -- Einzbern, Makiri, Tohsaka -- conducted [[AncientConspiracy a dark and bloody ritual]]; Heaven's Feel, the Holy Grail War of Fuyuki. A [[MeleeATrois battle between seven magi]], competing for a chance to wish upon a "Holy Grail", the 726th branded by TheChurch. [[SummoningRitual Epic Spirits from the Throne are summoned]] and bound to the material world, becoming "Servants" to their summoner "Masters". To keep their true names hidden, the seven Servants are sorted into one of seven Classes: Saber, Archer, Lancer, Rider, Caster, Berserker, and Assassin. In addition, each Servant is armed with the mysteries that symbolize their legend - Noble Phantasms, legendary armaments and abilities.
Centuries ago, three families -- Einzbern, Makiri, Tohsaka -- conducted [[AncientConspiracy a dark and bloody ritual]]; Heaven's Feel, the Holy Grail War of Fuyuki. A [[MeleeATrois battle between seven magi]], competing for a chance to wish upon a "Holy Grail", the 726th branded by TheChurch. [[SummoningRitual Epic Spirits from the Throne are summoned]] and bound to the material world, becoming "Servants" to their summoner "Masters". To keep their true names hidden, the seven Servants are sorted into one of seven Classes: Saber, Archer, Lancer, Rider, Caster, Berserker, and Assassin. In addition, each Servant is armed with the mysteries that symbolize their legend - Noble Phantasms, legendary armaments and abilities.
to:
There exists a [[TheLifestream plane outside of human concepts]], and within there is the Throne of Heroes. Here, the records of [[DesignatedHero famous]] (and [[DesignatedVillain infamous]]) individuals throughout history are kept, to be used as eternal guardians of mankind. The definition of "hero" is broad - -- even the most ruthless and the heartless are the [[SlidingScaleOfIdealismVersusCynicism heroes heroes]] of [[ProtagonistCenteredMorality their own tales]].
Centuries ago, three families -- Einzbern, Makiri, Tohsaka -- conducted [[AncientConspiracy a dark and bloody ritual]]; Heaven's Feel, the Holy Grail War of Fuyuki. A [[MeleeATrois battle between seven magi]], competing for a chance to wish upon a "Holy Grail", the 726th branded by TheChurch. [[SummoningRitual Epic Spirits from the Throne are summoned]] and bound to the material world, becoming "Servants" to their summoner "Masters". To keep their true names hidden, the seven Servants are sorted into one of seven Classes: Saber, Archer, Lancer, Rider, Caster, Berserker, and Assassin. In addition, each Servant is armed with the mysteries that symbolize their legend- -- Noble Phantasms, legendary armaments and abilities.
abilities, the very concepts that symbolize their fame.
Centuries ago, three families -- Einzbern, Makiri, Tohsaka -- conducted [[AncientConspiracy a dark and bloody ritual]]; Heaven's Feel, the Holy Grail War of Fuyuki. A [[MeleeATrois battle between seven magi]], competing for a chance to wish upon a "Holy Grail", the 726th branded by TheChurch. [[SummoningRitual Epic Spirits from the Throne are summoned]] and bound to the material world, becoming "Servants" to their summoner "Masters". To keep their true names hidden, the seven Servants are sorted into one of seven Classes: Saber, Archer, Lancer, Rider, Caster, Berserker, and Assassin. In addition, each Servant is armed with the mysteries that symbolize their legend
Changed line(s) 12,15 (click to see context) from:
[[MeaningfulName Kiritsugu Emiya]] grew up wanting to be a hero who could save anyone and everyone - but quickly realized that for every person he saves, another will die. The only way to be a hero is to act for the good of all humanity; to destroy the factor that will, in turn, destroy humans if left unchecked. And if that factor is humans themselves, then [[NecessarilyEvil he will kill every single one who threatens the peace of others]]. Hated, feared, branded as a murderer, a contract killer, a hitman - still he goes on, [[IDidWhatIHadToDo believing that this is the best way to serve humanity]].
Due to his skill, he is taken in by the Einzberns as an honorary family member. However, the Einzberns' real motive is to send him to Fuyuki, his old home, to participate in the Heaven's Feel on their behalf. Although he loves his new family - his wife, Irisviel, and their daughter, Ilya - he knows that his battle is not over. As one of the seven Masters, he returns to Japan to obtain the Holy Grail of Fuyuki.
Due to his skill, he is taken in by the Einzberns as an honorary family member. However, the Einzberns' real motive is to send him to Fuyuki, his old home, to participate in the Heaven's Feel on their behalf. Although he loves his new family - his wife, Irisviel, and their daughter, Ilya - he knows that his battle is not over. As one of the seven Masters, he returns to Japan to obtain the Holy Grail of Fuyuki.
to:
[[MeaningfulName Kiritsugu Emiya]] grew up wanting to be a hero who could save anyone and everyone - everyone... but he quickly realized that for every person he saves, saved, another will had to die. The only way to be a hero is to act for the good of all humanity; to destroy the factor that will, in turn, destroy even more humans if left unchecked. And if that factor is humans themselves, then [[NecessarilyEvil he will kill every single one who threatens the peace of others]]. Hated, another]]. Despised, feared, branded as a murderer, a contract killer, a hitman - -- still he goes on, [[IDidWhatIHadToDo believing that this is the best way to serve humanity]].
Due to his immense skill, he is taken in by the Einzberns as an honorary family member. However, the Einzberns' real motive is to send him to Fuyuki, his old home, to participate in the Fourth Heaven's Feel on their behalf. Although he loves his new family- -- his wife, Irisviel, and their daughter, Ilya - -- he knows that his battle is not yet over. As one of the seven Masters, he must returns to Japan to obtain the Holy Grail of Fuyuki.
Due to his immense skill, he is taken in by the Einzberns as an honorary family member. However, the Einzberns' real motive is to send him to Fuyuki, his old home, to participate in the Fourth Heaven's Feel on their behalf. Although he loves his new family
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 53 (click to see context) from:
* BlackAndGrayMorality
to:
* BlackAndGrayMoralityBlackAndGrayMorality - The only white in this series comes from Ilya, Rin, and the children Caster and his master have a habit of kidnapping and subjecting to a FateWorseThanDeath. ChildrenAreInnocent indeed. Irisviel might count as well.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 6,11 (click to see context) from:
Centuries ago, three families - Einzbern, Makiri, Tohsaka - conducted [[AncientConspiracy a dark and bloody ritual]]; Heaven's Feel, the Holy Grail War of Fuyuki. A [[MeleeATrois battle between seven magi]], competing for a chance to wish upon a "Holy Grail", the 726th branded by TheChurch. [[SummoningRitual Epic Spirits from the Throne are summoned]] and bound to the material world, becoming "Servants" to their summoner "Masters". To keep their true names hidden, the seven Servants are sorted into one of seven Classes: Saber, Archer, Lancer, Rider, Caster, Berserker, and Assassin. In addition, each Servant is armed with the mysteries that symbolize their legend - Noble Phantasms, legendary armaments and abilities.
As each Servant falls, the [[MacGuffin Holy Grail]] receives their power, [[ThereCanBeOnlyOne until only one remains]], and the Grail is ready to grant the winners' wishes.
''[[FateZero Fate/Zero]]'', the prequel to famous VisualNovel ''[[FateStayNight Fate/stay night]]'', is the story of Heaven's Feel IV. From the viewpoints of Servants and Masters, it shows the War in all its ruthlessness - greed, ambition, murder, betrayal; the weak succumb, the strong live on.
As each Servant falls, the [[MacGuffin Holy Grail]] receives their power, [[ThereCanBeOnlyOne until only one remains]], and the Grail is ready to grant the winners' wishes.
''[[FateZero Fate/Zero]]'', the prequel to famous VisualNovel ''[[FateStayNight Fate/stay night]]'', is the story of Heaven's Feel IV. From the viewpoints of Servants and Masters, it shows the War in all its ruthlessness - greed, ambition, murder, betrayal; the weak succumb, the strong live on.
to:
Centuries ago, three families - -- Einzbern, Makiri, Tohsaka - -- conducted [[AncientConspiracy a dark and bloody ritual]]; Heaven's Feel, the Holy Grail War of Fuyuki. A [[MeleeATrois battle between seven magi]], competing for a chance to wish upon a "Holy Grail", the 726th branded by TheChurch. [[SummoningRitual Epic Spirits from the Throne are summoned]] and bound to the material world, becoming "Servants" to their summoner "Masters". To keep their true names hidden, the seven Servants are sorted into one of seven Classes: Saber, Archer, Lancer, Rider, Caster, Berserker, and Assassin. In addition, each Servant is armed with the mysteries that symbolize their legend - Noble Phantasms, legendary armaments and abilities.
As each Servant falls, the [[MacGuffin Holy Grail]] receives their power, [[ThereCanBeOnlyOne until only oneremains]], remains]] and the Grail is ready able to manifest in the physical world to grant the winners' wishes.
''[[FateZero Fate/Zero]]'', the prequel to famous VisualNovel ''[[FateStayNight Fate/stay night]]'', is the story of Heaven's Feel IV. From the viewpoints of the Servants and their Masters, it shows the War in all its ruthlessness- -- greed, ambition, murder, betrayal; the weak succumb, the strong live on.
on to see another day.
As each Servant falls, the [[MacGuffin Holy Grail]] receives their power, [[ThereCanBeOnlyOne until only one
''[[FateZero Fate/Zero]]'', the prequel to famous VisualNovel ''[[FateStayNight Fate/stay night]]'', is the story of Heaven's Feel IV. From the viewpoints of the Servants and their Masters, it shows the War in all its ruthlessness
Changed line(s) 18,19 (click to see context) from:
The anime will be streamed for free with subtitles in eight different languages by Aniplex on NicoNico as it airs. Weekly episodes can be found [[http://ch.nicovideo.jp/channel/fate-zero here.]] Old episodes are available on [[http://www.crunchyroll.com/fate-zero Crunchyroll.]]
to:
The anime will be streamed for free with subtitles in eight different languages by Aniplex on NicoNico as it airs. Weekly episodes The latest episode can be found [[http://ch.nicovideo.jp/channel/fate-zero here.]] Old here]], and previous episodes are available on [[http://www.crunchyroll.com/fate-zero Crunchyroll.]]
Crunchyroll]].
Changed line(s) 24 (click to see context) from:
!!Since this is a prequel series to ''FateStayNight'', expect major spoilers for that series as well, as this novel ends with a ForegoneConclusion. YouHaveBeenWarned.
to:
!!Since this is a prequel series to ''FateStayNight'', expect major spoilers {{Late Arrival Spoiler}}s for that series as well, as this novel ''Fate/zero'' ends with a ForegoneConclusion. YouHaveBeenWarned.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 122,123 (click to see context) from:
* OffModel - The largest complaint for Episode 11. (Not as bad StudioDEEN, though.)
** This is due in part to the amount of budget required to animate Ionioi Hetairoi. (That, and the fact that the OP was removed due to time constraints. WordOfGod confirms that 5 minutes of removed footage, will be added back in the blu-ray release.)
** This is due in part to the amount of budget required to animate Ionioi Hetairoi. (That, and the fact that the OP was removed due to time constraints. WordOfGod confirms that 5 minutes of removed footage, will be added back in the blu-ray release.)
to:
* OffModel - The largest complaint for Episode 11. (Not as bad StudioDEEN, though.)
** This11, which is due in part to much of the amount of episode's budget required to animate Ionioi Hetairoi. (That, and the fact that the OP was removed due to time constraints. WordOfGod confirms that 5 minutes of removed footage, will be added back in the blu-ray release.)going into animating [[spoiler:Ionioi Hetairoi]].
** This
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Added DiffLines:
** For that matter, the fact that the novels include many details accurately regarding the Servants' legends shows that Nasu and Urobuchi definitely did their research on the original myths and history. The departures in this case are less due to DidNotDoTheResearch and more ArtisticLicense or [[TheyJustDidntCare intentional disregard]].
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Added DiffLines:
* LeaningOnTheFourthWall - Caster and Ryuunosuke's discussion on the nature of God. It appears that GenUrobuchi is aware of his reputation.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 168 (click to see context) from:
* WoundThatWillNotHeal - Lancer's Gae Buidhe inflicts a curse on wounds so they won't heal. Saber gets afflicted by this early on due to a lapse in battle judgment. This becomes Saber's DramaPreservingHandicap until Volume 3, where [[spoiler:Saber, Lancer and Rider team up to battle the EldritchAbomination that Caster set loose upon the city]]. Even then, during her rematch with Lancer, Saber fights Lancer using only her right hand.
to:
* WoundThatWillNotHeal - Lancer's Gae Buidhe inflicts a curse on wounds so they won't heal.heal, which is described in RPG terms as akin to reducing maximum hit points (i.e. healing will have no effect, since Saber would be at "full HP" despite the wound). Saber gets afflicted by this early on due to a lapse in battle judgment. This becomes Saber's DramaPreservingHandicap until Volume 3, where [[spoiler:Saber, Lancer and Rider team up to battle the EldritchAbomination that Caster set loose upon the city]]. Even then, during her rematch with Lancer, Saber fights Lancer using only her right hand.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 97,98 (click to see context) from:
* GunPorn - Gen Urobuchi gave a whole lot of detail to the weapons that Kiritsugu uses. To wit, Kiritsugu's weapons are a Calico M950 sub-machine gun, a Walter [=WA2000=] sniper rifle (with night scope and heat vision sensors), and his Mystic Code the [[HandCannon Thompson Contender]], customized with his [[DepletedPhlebotinumShells Origin Bullets]]. The anime also shows other weapons in a couple of {{lock and load montage}}s.
* GoryDiscretionShot - Caster's segments in the anime are heavily censored, at least in the regular broadcast. In the novel, the author goes into some description that's not too gory, but just enough to give an idea of [[FateWorseThanDeath what's happening to the children]].
* GoryDiscretionShot - Caster's segments in the anime are heavily censored, at least in the regular broadcast. In the novel, the author goes into some description that's not too gory, but just enough to give an idea of [[FateWorseThanDeath what's happening to the children]].
to:
Added DiffLines:
* GunPorn - Gen Urobuchi gave a whole lot of detail to the weapons that Kiritsugu uses. To wit, Kiritsugu's weapons are a Calico M950 sub-machine gun, a Walter [=WA2000=] sniper rifle (with night scope and heat vision sensors), and his Mystic Code the [[HandCannon Thompson Contender]], customized with his [[DepletedPhlebotinumShells Origin Bullets]]. The anime also shows other weapons in a couple of {{lock and load montage}}s.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 130 (click to see context) from:
** Lancer MIGHT have wanted to mention to Kayneth that 99% of women immediately fall in love with him due to a curse before Kayneth brought his wife along to the war.
to:
** Lancer MIGHT One might wonder exactly what Tokiomi's reaction might have wanted to mention to Kayneth that 99% of women immediately fall in love with been had Kariya actually told him due to a curse before Kayneth brought his wife along to the war.exactly why he was fighting.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 122 (click to see context) from:
** This is due in part to the amount of budget required to animate Ionioi Hetairoi. (That, and the fact that the OP was removed due to time constraints. WordOfGod confirms that 5 minutes ;of removed footage, will be added back in the blu-ray release.)
to:
** This is due in part to the amount of budget required to animate Ionioi Hetairoi. (That, and the fact that the OP was removed due to time constraints. WordOfGod confirms that 5 minutes ;of of removed footage, will be added back in the blu-ray release.)
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 75 (click to see context) from:
* DownerEnding - Kiritsugu sacrifices [[spoiler:his wife and trusted partner]] to achieve his goal (World Peace), only to find that the Grail is corrupted and, thus, that he has to destroy it ([[spoiler:in the process, losing access to his daughter and leaving her to be raised by her mother's evil family]]), and even this does not prevent the Grail War from repeating itself ten years later. Further, his arch-nemesis is still alive, and outlives him to threaten his son (and daughter) in the next war. Meanwhile, Sakura is still stuck with Zouken, completely abandoned except by Rin (whose concern for her is limited and does not override the rules their father Tokiomi set down. Rin herself is now an orphan. Kariya dies having failed to save Sakura, and actually makes her situation ''worse'' by acting as a reminder to her of what happens to people who oppose her grandfather or try to run away. All of the major villains (except Caster and his master) are still alive, and essentially no-one else survives, except Kiritsugu, who dies as a result of the corruption caused when he destroyed the Grail. Whilst, if one takes ''FateStayNight'' into account, his adoptive son fixes some of these things, [[spoiler:Sakura isn't guaranteed to be saved and nor is Ilya, and none of the dead people (Aoi, Kariya, Kiritsugu, Iri) can be brought back]].
to:
* DownerEnding - Kiritsugu sacrifices [[spoiler:his wife and trusted partner]] to achieve his goal (World Peace), only to find that the Grail is corrupted and, thus, that he has to destroy it ([[spoiler:in the process, losing access to his daughter and leaving her to be raised by her mother's evil family]]), and even this does not prevent the Grail War from repeating itself ten years later. Further, his arch-nemesis is still alive, and outlives him to threaten his son (and daughter) in the next war. Meanwhile, Sakura is still stuck with Zouken, completely abandoned except by Rin (whose concern for her is limited and does not override the rules their father Tokiomi set down.down). Rin herself is now an orphan. Kariya dies having failed to save Sakura, and actually makes her situation ''worse'' by acting as a reminder to her of what happens to people who oppose her grandfather or try to run away. All of the major villains (except Caster and his master) are still alive, and essentially no-one else survives, except Kiritsugu, who dies as a result of the corruption caused when he destroyed the Grail. Whilst, if one takes ''FateStayNight'' into account, his adoptive son fixes some of these things, [[spoiler:Sakura isn't guaranteed to be saved and nor is Ilya, and none of the dead people (Aoi, Kariya, Kiritsugu, Iri) can be brought back]].
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
Not really satisfied with how that\'s worded. Anyone who can do better is free to do so.
Added DiffLines:
** Kariya, in his desperate attempts to win the war with last-minute preparations that are greatly taxing to him, also qualifies.
