Fate/Stay Night

Eposodes:24
Type: Action, Contemporary Fantasy, Fantasy, Magic, Seinen, Super Power, Swordplay, Tragedy, Violence - similar

Story

Fate/stay night chronicles a two-week period in the life of Shiro Emiya, an amateur mechanic who attends school called Homurabara Gakuen in Fuyuki City. Ten years ago, Shiro was caught in a massive fire hazard that incinerated his parents and consumed a large portion of the city as he was dying, an enigmatic man discovers and treats him. This man, Kiritsugu Emiya, decides to adopt him, though the two maintain a distant relationship because of Kiritsugu's frequent departures from Fuyuki City. One moonlit night, Kiritsugu and Shirō had a discussion outside of their home, and Shirō discovers a fact about his father that Kiritsugu was actually a mage.

I have a secret that I haven't told you--- I'm a Mage.

Through their conversation, Shiro learns of his foster father's failed life ambition to become a "Hero of Justice", a guardian of mankind who could protect the weak and innocent. Touched by Kiritsugu's conviction, Shiro affirms to his foster father that he intends to devote his life to achieving that distant ideal, much to Kiritsugu's chagrin. To do this, Shirō pleads with a begrudging Kiritsugu to teach him sorcery but being born without the capabilities of a magus, Shiro proves to be talentless in almost all the fundamental sorcerous disciplines.

Kiritsugu warns his son that the life of a sorcerer is one that leads to destruction, but if he is truly set on benefiting people, he should apply his knowledge in secret and hone his craft in private. After Kiritsugu dies, Shiro becomes frustrated with his progress, feeling inadequate about his good deeds through sorcery and is unsure of how to orient his future to contribute more.

Unknown to Shiro, Fuyuki City is the setting for a secret and violent war among competing magi. For the past two centuries, seven sorcerers have gathered and engage in a Battle Royale, each gambling his or her own life to obtain the Holy Grail, a legendary chalice capable of granting wishes. The past four Holy Grail Wars have typically occurred every sixty years, with the most recent concluding a decade ago, but the fifth war has started prematurely.

Each of the sorcerers, better known as Masters, is aided by one of the seven summoned spiritual familiars known as Servants, who are the reincarnations of legendary souls from all across time. These resurrected Epic Spirits, possess superhuman characteristics and wield powerful artifacts or abilities called Noble Phantasms. A Noble Phantasm's hidden abilities may be released by invoking its true name, but casual brandishing of a Noble Phantasm is best avoided, for symbolic Noble Phantasms usually belie a Servant's identity, diminishing that Servant's competitive advantage. Specific legends may be summoned with the aid of catalysts, which are artifacts, ideas, or experiences similar or of value to the desired Servant. Only one Servant can be summoned in each war from one of seven classes: Saber, Archer, Lancer, Berserker, Rider, Assassin, and Caster.

As only astral entities are physically capable of retrieving the Holy Grail, Master and Servant are forced to cooperate. Masters control Servants with three Command Mantra, which are crystallized miracles issued by the Holy Grail that manifest on a Master's body. When activated, Command Mantra permit a Servant to accomplish an incredible feat, or alternatively provide Masters with the authority to issue an irrevocable and absolute order to a Servant. When all three Command Mantras are used up, Servants are no longer obliged to serve their Masters, and as such, may freely choose to turn upon their ex-partner. In the event of a Master's demise, a Servant may choose to bind him or herself to another Master if a Servant is slain, a Master may ally with a wayward Servant or pursue sanctuary with the Holy Grail War's impartial supervisor, who is traditionally a delegate of the Roman Catholic Church.

The Holy Grail materializes fully only when there is one Servant left standing; therefore, it is not necessary to vanquish Masters in order to win the war. However, as many Servants possess powerful Noble Phantasms and are grueling to defeat, many participants have chosen instead to eradicate Masters, who are responsible for maintaining a Servant's presence through the supplication of Mana.

After cleaning his school's kyūdō (archery) dojo late one night, Shiro stumbles upon two Servants, Archer and Lancer, battling in the school courtyard. To avoid compromising the war's secrecy, Lancer hunts down and pierces Shiro's heart with a spear. For an unknown reason, Shirō's classmate, Rin Tohsaka, uses an heirloom filled with concentrated magic, Mana, to resuscitate him. Shaken and dazed, Shiro returns home only to be assaulted a second time by Lancer. Shirō weakly defends himself against Lancer, but is soon overwhelmed by the powerful Servant's attack, and is sent flying into his shed's storage room. Cornered, Shiro prepares for the worst; but before Lancer can inflict another fatal blow, a young woman outfitted in alabaster armor blocks Lancer's spear. After driving Lancer away from Shiro, she introduces herself as Saber, and greets him with the words:

I ask of you, are you my Master?

Characters

- Emiya Shiro is the main character of the story. He is a serious yet helpful, hardworking, and honest teenager. His hobbies include fixing a variety of broken things, from VCRs to stoves, as well as cooking and cleaning. He has some slight talent with sorcery, though he was discouraged by his foster father Kiritsugu Emiya from improving his gifts. He is initially confused about the Holy Grail War and attempts to irrationally shield others from danger, including his own Servant, Saber. As the story progressed, Shiro starts to have strong feelings toward Saber and tells her that he loves her.
- Saber is Shiro's Servant, an agile and powerful warrior. Loyal, independent, and reserved, Saber acts coldly but is actually suppressing her emotions to focus on her goals. Her class is considered the "Most Outstanding", with excellent ratings in all categories. Since her Master cannot effectively provide her with Mana, she minimizes her activity to preserve what she has. Saber is frustrated by Shiro's "protective" tendencies, believing his erratic and reckless behavior will jeopardize her chances of winning the Holy Grail War.
- Tohsaka Rin is a model student and idol of Shiro's school who is secretly a sorceress and Master in the Holy Grail War. She is a descendant from a long line of sorcerers, and though she lacks a formal magic education, she is extremely powerful in her own right. Her father was killed in the fourth Holy Grail War, and she has trained since his death to succeed him. She is perceptive, resourceful and avidly competitive. She tried to summon a Saber-class Servant, but she accidentally called Archer instead.
- Archer is the Servant of one of the series' main heroines, Rin Tohsaka. Due to an incomplete summon, he apparently has no memory of his previous life or identity. Archer is sarcastic and cynical - but under his hardened exterior lies a complex and dark personality that unfolds throughout the story. Though skilled with ranged weapons, he can hold his own in mêlée combat. Archer considers Shiro Emiya's idealism to be weak and delusional, recognizing Shiro's mentality of "wanting to save everyone" as naïve and impossible.
- Illyasviel von Einzbern is a young Teutonic aristocrat, she traveled to Japan to participate in the Holy Grail War as a Master. Illyasviel has an angelic appearance and an unsurpassed degree of magical power. She lives in a castle on the outskirts of Fuyuki City, accompanied only by her Servant and two maids. Illyasviel asks those she feels comfortable around to simply call her "Ilya".
- Berserker is the Servant of Ilya, who appears as a swarthy giant with adamantine skin and immense strength. He wields a colossal stone Axe-Club, and is capable of causing massive destruction with the mere backlash of his swings. As a Berserker, he is stripped of his sanity and reason, acting feral and animalistic in combat. Berserkers are praised as members of the "Strongest" class, though they are difficult to control and often turn on their Masters. Ilya appears to have little trouble managing him.
- Mato Sakura is a student in her first year of high school, and the sister of Shinji Mato. After Shiro's father Kiritsugu died, Sakura often visited Shiro's home to help him with his daily chores. Though Sakura is from a family of sorcerers, she asserts that she has no knowledge of her family's craft or history. Sakura is outwardly shy and timid, but possesses great inner strength. She has a long standing and obvious crush on Shiro Emiya. She is actually Rin Tohsaka's younger sister.Sakura does not know it, but Rin does.
- Mato Shinji is Sakura Mato's older brother, and a long-time friend of Shiro. Shinji is very popular as vice-captain of the archery dojo despite being chauvinistic and narcissistic. Like Rin Tohsaka, he is of a distinguished lineage of sorcerers, though the Mato blood has thinned and no longer produces heirs naturally capable of sorcery. Shinji feels uncomfortable with his sister's daily visits to Shiro's home. He has an open crush on Rin, but she does not return his favors.
- Rider is the Servant of Shinji, first seen scouting around Homurabara Gakuen. Rider is silent, sultry, and vigilant, never hesitating to shield her Master from harm. With Shinji incapable of lending Mana to her, she is forced to seek alternative means to augment her abilities. To compensate for her weakness, Rider employs covert battle tactics and takes full advantage of territory around her. Her weapon of choice is a pair of long iron nails fastened to opposite ends of a single chain, which she effectively thrusts from distances.