History Visualnovel / FateStayNight

* MythologyGag: Shirou awakens to an UnfamiliarCeiling and is introduced to his savior and mentor-to-be, a self-styled Magician. This is a reference to Shiki and Touko's first meeting in ''Literature/TheGardenOfSinners'', though not to the extent of [[CallBack basically recreating the scene]] as in ''VisualNovel/{{Tsukihime}}]]''.
* NeutralInNameOnly: The Church is supposed to remain neutral. However, Kotomine Kirei, the overseer, is a master working for his personal gain against the rules.

* MurderByProxy: Attempted. In one arc and the first anime adaptation, Caster tries to get Sakura to murder Rin by reminding her of how the Tohsaka Family sent her away to the Matou Family to be subjected to torture and rape, while Rin was the chosen of the Tohsaka Family. However, Rin's fondest wish was always to be reunited with her sister, and she's able to stop her without either being killed, though Rin does note that she can no longer chastise Shirou for going easy on his foes.

** ''Fate:'' As the first, and main default route, Shirou is almost entirely a passive character for the first few days. [[spoiler:As he does nothing to prevent Saber from attacking Archer, Archer is near-fatally injured, essentially excising him from most of the plot so he can heal. Rin is temporarily deprived of her Servant and her second Command Spell, which forces her into a passive mentor role and being an early ally to Shirou. The fight with Illya and Berserker soon after thus results in Saber fighting solo and nearly losing horribly - a sight that sparks Shirou's obsessive desire to protect her, and thus their central character conflict.]]
** ''Unlimited Blade Works:'' The ''sole'' difference between this route and the ''Fate'' route is Shirou's decision to [[spoiler:use a Command Spell to stop Saber from injuring Archer, meaning both him and Rin are able to become ''much'' more active in the Holy Grail War. Rin is no longer shoved into a mentor role, and Archer is able to further his personal goals. The pair are even able to independently foil Caster's machinations in the city, forcing the normally-passive Caster to take the spotlight as the mid-story villain. Additionally, Archer's support and better terrain means the Berserker fight goes ''far'' better for Saber, putting Illya in the plot backseat and allowing Shirou to accept his partnership with Saber with almost zero hang-ups, completely removing the conflict between them as seen in the ''Fate'' route.]]
** ''Heaven's Feel:'' The changes in this route involve [[spoiler:Shirou paying closer attention to Sakura, and eventually personally walking her home. This single action gets him spotted by and draws the interest of Sakura's grandfather Zouken, who is normally a non-entity in the other routes. Zouken's noticing of Shirou's relationship with Sakura results in his renewed interest in the current Grail War, and deciding to take matters into his own hands. He makes a ''single'' additional remark about Rin's high odds of victory to Sakura in order to stoke her jealousy and will to fight - which releases the Shadow within her, allowing both it and Zouken to completely hijack the Grail War and wipe out half its combatants within less than a week. Additionally, Zouken's early mention of Illya to Shirou results in him recognising her name later - a chain of events that causes Shirou to actively pursue learning more about Illya herself, and eventually learn the circumstances behind the previous Grail War literally the ''day after'' he joins the current War (once a major plot reveal of the ''Fate'' route).]]

* HGame: The original release of the game is one, featuring [[NotSafeForWork multiple explicit sex scenes]] between characters who are both visually depicted and vividly described in text. These scenes were removed in later releases of the game to ensure broader market appeal, with the subsequent franchise eventually becoming known more for its actual plot than for its pornographic origins.

* ShipTease: Oddly enough, [[spoiler:''[[LesYay Rider and Rin]]'' in the True Ending. With Shirou and Sakura teaching OfficialCouple status, and Rin being canonically bi (see the ''Fate'' route), fans noticed Rider was ''very'' happy to see Rin, and Rin spent a ''very'' long time thinking over how "beautiful" Rider is in her [[SweaterGirl casual outfit]]...]]

* OffModel: The film shows almost none of this, although Shinji's "rape face" EvilLaugh looks less like him and more like a character from ''VisualNovel/HigurashiWhenTheyCry'' about to do something horrible.

* AnimationBump: The sheer quality and fluidity of the animation in the ''Fate/Zero'' anime adaptation by Creator/{{ufotable}} is astounding, especially compared to the 2006 anime series.
** The 2011 prequel anime is still considered to be the best despite the efforts of the later 2014 ''Unlimited Blade Works'' anime adaptation.

* CityOfAdventure: Fuyuki City, [[http://punynari.wordpress.com/2009/10/31/real-life-fate-stay-night-locations-in-kobe/ which is based on Kobe]]. However, there isn't a single character with the KansaiRegionalAccent one would expect almost everyone to have in the heart of that region.

* GoldColoredSuperiority: The most powerful Servant one can summon is Gilgamesh, the King of Heroes. As the [[TheVerse The Nasuverse]] runs on OlderIsBetter, Gil is more powerful than all other heroes that came after him and naturally has gold-colored hair, frequently wears gold earrings and other jewelry, and has his infamous NighInvulnerable gold armor. It is unknown if the armor is actually ''made'' of gold but it can take a direct hit from Excalibur like it's nothing. For bonus points, his Noble Phantasm — Gate of Babylon — creates gold-colored rifts in the the sky to fire his many fantastically powerful treasures upon his enemies from.

* MusclesAreMeaningles s: A trope that applies to the Nasuverse in general. Almost all of the physical powerhouses rely primarily on Prana (analogous to "chi") rather than muscle to perform their physical feats.

* MusclesAreMeaningless: A trope that applies to the Nasuverse in general. Almost all of the physical powerhouses rely primarily on Prana (analogous to "chi") rather than muscle to perform their physical feats.

* LateArrivalSpoiler:Many of the Servants' identities, particularly Saber's as [[spoiler:a gender-flipped King Arthur]], aren't really heavily guarded spoilers anymore.

In 2005, it received a (sort-of) sequel titled ''VisualNovel/FateHollowAtaraxia'', and in 2006, a 4-volume light novel prequel titled ''LightNovel/FateZero'' which was adapted into an anime in 2011-2012. For other derived and related media set in the same universe, see Franchise/{{Nasuverse}} or Franchise/FateSeries. A light novel prequel detailing events in Saber's life, ''LightNovel/GardenOfAvalon'', was written by Nasu and included in the bluray release of the ''Unlimited Blade Works'' anime.

* ElementalPowers: Very exceptional ones, they are attributes linked to the "Origin", explained in ''LightNovel/TheGardenOfSinners''; Shirou has "Sword", Rin has all the basic five ("Average One"), and [[spoiler:Sakura has "Imaginary Numbers" and artificially "Binding".]]

* SoulEating: Servants can do this to replenish their {{Mana}}, though the more wholesome ones are understandably quite averse to it. In [[LightNovel/FateApocrypha one]] [[UsefulNotes/JackTheRipper case]], the Servant – a ChaoticEvil[[invoked]] AntiVillain – expressed a preference for ''evil'' souls, because their foulness makes them that much tastier, and souls of similar alignment are easier to digest.

** [[LightNovel/TheGardenOfSinners A certain puppetmaker]] is mentioned as [[spoiler:having constructed Shirou's new body in the True End.]]

* FreezeFrameBonus: Near the start of the opening video of the [[UpdatedRerelease Vita port]], the backsides of four people can be seen reflected on a puddle of water. The figures are upside-down, a bit distorted, and remain on screen for less than half a second — probably just enough to tell they're a family of four: father, mother and two kids — but those who have [[spoiler:watched/read ''LightNovel/FateZero'']] before will realize they're [[spoiler:the Tohsaka family as they were 11 years ago.]]

* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: A few rules established in this and maintained for ''LightNovel/FateZero'' were quietly swept under the rug or adjusted in later installments such as ''VideoGame/FateExtra'' and ''VideoGame/FateGrandOrder'', in the interest of creating more varied and interesting Servants. These include the Assassin class being relegated exclusively to different incarnations of a single hero ([[spoiler:Hassan-i Sabbah]]) unless exceptional circumstances are at work ([[spoiler:see Kojiro's case]]);[[note]]A ''lot'' of interesting real-life personalities fit into that class, but not necessarily any others, wasting potentially great Servant concepts. The retcon used was that the ''specific incarnation'' of a Grail War in Fuyuki required that class be filled by the Hashashin[[/note]] Berserkers being so consumed by their madness they can't talk;[[note]]Increases the difficulty of making such characters interesting[[/note]] the Berserker class in-general being available to heroes of all backgrounds, existing primarily as a means of powering up weaker Servants at the cost of their sanity;[[note]]This is still done on occasion, but most Berserkers nowadays are heroes whose backstory already includes some form of madness or rage, making the class more consistent with the others[[/note]] and there being a ban on Asian Servants.[[note]]Initially stated to be a war exclusively for Western heroes because of the Grail being a concept rooted in Western civilization, again with Kojiro and [[spoiler:EMIYA]] being the singular anomalies. Like the Hassan clause, it was retconned to be a specific quirk of the Fuyuki system.[[/note]]

* PressXToDie: In ''LightNovel/FateZero'' and ''Fate/stay night'', Masters have command seals (three 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.

* FromRoommatesToRomance: After being summoned by accident, Saber starts living at Shirou's house because she has the duty to protect her Master 24/7. In the Fate route, they fall in love after a few days.

* DarkFantasy: Compared to the other two routes, ''Heaven's Feel'' is absolutely this. Compared to the other two routes which were largely Shonen-typical UrbanFantasy stories, ''Heaven's Feel'' openly deals with horror relative to numerous plot points, from rape, torture, dismemberment and the omnipresence of an EldritchAbomination that [[spoiler:[[TheCorruption corrupts]] Saber and Sakura into evil parodies of themselves, forces Shirou to abandon his ideals to protect the ones he loves, and manifests in a final clash to stop the birth of the manifestation of all the world's evils]].

* DarkFantasy: Compared to the other two routes, ''Heaven's Feel'' is absolutely this. Compared to the other two routes which were largely Shonen-typical UrbanFantasy stories, ''Heaven's Feel'' openly deals with horror relative to numerous plot points, from rape, torture, dismemberment and the omnipresence of a [[TheCorruption corrupting]] EldritchAbomination that [[spoiler:warps Saber into an evil parody of themselves, forces Shirou to abandon his ideals to protect the ones he loves, and manifests in a final clash to stop the birth of the manifestation of all the world's evils]].

* AgeLift: The Western-released materials come with a disclaimer that [[TotallyEighteen all of the characters are 18 or older]], despite Shirou and Rin being in their second year, and Sakura being in her first year in high school — making them 17 and 16 respectively in the Japanese version — with Saber being physically a year younger.

* BettyAndVeronica: Across the whole franchises Saber and Rin frequently performs this task. Saber as Betty, Rin as Veronica.

* DressedLikeADominatrix: Rider wears a black leotard dress with matching high legging boots and gloves. Her WeaponOfChoice is spike chains that she can wrap her opponents in. She also wears an eye mask. Though, that last bit is justified because she's [[spoiler:Medusa]] and needs to cover her eyes.

* GoodPeopleHaveGoodSex: Although [[TheirFirstTime Shirou and Saber's first time]] is incredibly awkward, [[note]]as they're on the run from Berserker and Illya, and Saber is on the verge of disappearing[[/note]] their subsequent sexual encounter is treated as the best thing ever, despite how inexperienced both are.

* MortonsFork: PlayedForLaughs. After Shirou [[spoiler:receives his BadassTransplant from Archer]] on Day 10, Rin and Illya get in an argument for argument's sake over whose Servant he should be considered now (ItMakesSenseInContext). He can pick either, but both choices will have him labeled as a CovertPervert by the other. If Tohsaka is chosen, Illya will describe her as an "oppressive, greedy and loud" woman and basically wonder aloud if AllWomenAreDomsAllMenAreSubs applies here. If Shirou favors Illya instead, she will [[TheGlomp enthusiastically hug him]] and Tohsaka will give him the stink eye and suspiciously ask him [[LoliconAndShotacon why he's going to such lengths to flatter a little girl]].

* BloodMagic: The runes in the ritual used to summon servants are normally drawn in blood.

* GodOfEvil: In ''Unlimited Blade Works'', we learn that [[spoiler:Angra Mainyu, the devil in Zoroastrianism, lives inside the Holy Grail and has corrupted it]]. As is explained in ''Heaven's Feel'' and further elaborated upon in ''hollow ataraxia'', [[spoiler:it turns out that Angra Mainyu isn't an evil god — he's a Servant whose legend was born of a ritual where a single man was ritually sacrificed to personify all the the sins of his fellow humans so he'd absolve them by being killed. In the Third Holy Grail war, when Angra Mainyu, summoned as Avenger, was killed because he was a horribly weak Servant, the Grail identified him as a human rather than a servant and tried to fulfill his wish. Considering that the Holy Grail is an omnipotent device whose entire purpose is to seek and grant wishes and that Angra Mainyu is the personification of the world's wish for a concrete form of all evil... Let's just say it doesn't turn out well.]]

* LateArrivalSpoiler: Many of the Servants' identities, particularly Saber's as [[spoiler:a gender-flipped King Arthur]], aren't really heavily guarded spoilers anymore.

* SpoilerOpening: In the PS Vita version, this applies to all three routes. ''Heaven's Feel'''s opening in particular spoils [[spoiler:Sakura being a corrupt Grail, and Saber Alter]]. The front cover of said version also prematurely gives away [[spoiler:Sakura's alignment with her servant, Rider.]]

** After two routes of being eliminated first and thought to be a weakling servant, Rider gets to show that she's actually pretty powerful if not being held back by Shinji, and even ''survive the whole scenario''.