Fanfic / Fate/Zero Paradox

Fate/Zero Paradox (Fanfic.net link, Archive of Our Own link) is a Mass Crossover fanfic of Fate/Zero written by Praxus84: on Spacebattles, inspired by Fate/Zero Sense, though having long surpassed it in word count. Once again, a Holy Grail War starts, blood gets ready to be shed, only this time, something's.. off. Why does every Master have two Servants? Why is the Grail drawing upon the Kaleidoscope's parallel worlds? What’s providing the extra mana?

The new servants are

• Saber X/Qrow Branwen from RWBY, summoned by Waver.
• Archer X/Agent Tex from Red vs. Blue, summoned by Kayneth.
• Lancer X/Jade from Mortal Kombat, summoned by Tokiomi.
• Caster X/Gandalf the Gray from The Lord of the Rings, summoned by Kariya.
• Assassin X/Kakashi Hatake from Naruto, summoned by Kiritsugu.
• Rider X/Megatron from Transformers: Prime, summoned by Kirei.
• Berserker X/Kenpachi Zaraki from Bleach, summoned by Ryuunosuke though that didn’t last very long.
  • and Avenger X/Darth Maul from Star Wars, summoned by Zouken.

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This fanfic shows examples of:

• Above Good and Evil: Several characters fit this, the Waver Team being the most obvious example.
  • Member #1, Iskandar, is a conqueror who desires the Grail to incarnate himself on Earth and lead a conquest to take over the entire planet, maybe even the stars above. He is very much willing to do as much as it takes to do so and disregards morality, even if he is a nice person.
  • Member #2, Saber X, is a prime example of someone who was Born Unlucky. His horrible bad luck ability that brings calamity on him and those around him all the time leads to him being obsessed with getting the Holy Grail to let him start his life over again entirely without his calamity. This is even though he knows that his family was in trouble when he died, and he could use the Grail to help them out. He’s just choosing his desires above their safety.
  • Member #3, Berserker X, is a Blood Knight who fights only to find strong opponents to grow from. While he has some scruples, such as not harming children, he’ll gladly pick a fight with anyone he thinks is strong enough to challenge him, whether good or evil.
• Adaptational Badass: Several of the Masters become this due to how the war plays out. This is most notable in the last Master battle of the War where Kiritsugu & Kirei both admit that if even if they were at the best of their abilities before gaining their new powers, they wouldn't have stood a chance against their opponent.
  • Ryuunosuke is given a tentacle arm to replace the one Berserker X cut off. Though he doesn't manage much with it before dying. Zouken also has some of his Crest Worms gnaw a little on Gilles' book to mutate them.
  • Saber X teaches Waver how to throw an actual punch & later gives him Aura in his dying moments. A little travel through the globe and a Time Skip later, and he also learned how to use his Semblance, has a name for himself after dealing with all kinds of people, and overall gained a whole lot of balls, as seen when he hits Bram, even though he knows he will be in hot water after that.
  • Assassin X teaches Kiritsugu, Irisviel, & Maiya his Ninjutsu & Hound summoning.
  • Rider X infuses Kirei with Dark Energon.
• Adaptational Wimp: Justified. Caster X, Assassin X, Rider X, and Berserker X are not in the prime of the strength that they had in their stories for different reasons. For Caster X, it's because he's explicitly based on the stories told about Gandalf the Gray in Middle-Earth, not being equal to Olorin the Maia. Meanwhile, the latter three were each taken of spots where those characters could have feasibly died in their respective stories - Kakashi during the Pain arc, Megatron during his first death, and a Kenpachi in his duel with Ichigo. Another factor in Berserker X's case is that the shoddy summoning ritual Ryuunosuke used contributed to him being summoned at his "weakest."
• All for Nothing: Zouken doesn't get the Grail, he doesn't get to kill Caster X or punish Kariya, and most disastrously for him, he loses Sakura, severely damaging his plans for the next Grail War. Zouken gets nothing he wanted from the Grail War.
• Alternate Self: Caster X is Gandalf based on the stories told of him in Middle-earth and is not the same as Olórin the Maia, with his memories only going to his death fighting Durin's Bane and not his return as Gandalf the White.
  • Saber X is a version of Qrow Branwen that dies because of Tyrian's poison.
  • Berserker X is a version of Kenpachi Zaraki that died from the wounds he amassed in his fight with Ichigo, meaning he lacks his Shikai from Thousand Year Blood War.
  • Rider X is the Transformers: Prime incarnation of Megatron from after his original death, lacking the memories of his resurrection by Unicron and his Heel Realization.
  • Assassin X is a version of Kakashi Hatake who died during Pain's invasion and remained dead rather than live through the end of Naruto.
• Asshole Victim: Few people shed a tear when Jade blows Uryuu's body apart. Likewise, Sola-Ui is not a good person by any means - however, she garners some sympathy because of how horrific her ending is.
• Archenemy: Several Examples.
  • Archer X and Assassin X. The two have the most fights of any Servant pair, leading to Archer X loathing Assassin X. Assassin X for his part views Archer X as a murderous thug who thinks she's a soldier. Ultimately, Assassin X manages to come out on top in their final fight.
  • Caster X is one for Caster/Giles de Rais. Caster loathes him for his connection to the divine, referring to him as the "wretched monk", for stopping his attempted child murder, and calling out his sick devotion to Jeanne's memory as an excuse for his crimes while committing atrocities. By contrast, while Caster X despises him, it's nowhere as personal.
  • Rider X and Iskandar, as they are each conquerors, but both view conquest in a very different light. One represents the awe and inclusion of new cultures inherent to a conqueror’s ways: the other one represents the brutality and oppression. Though Megatron succeeds in defeating the King of Conquerors, he fails to break his spirit and Iskandar is spared of becoming a slave to the Decepticon's Dark Energon thanks to Gilgamesh.
    • Really, Rider X antagonizes all the three kings of Zero. He's cocky with Gilgamesh, with both promising to slay each other at the end of the war and Archer wanting to expel the "upstart" from his garden. Meanwhile, Saber and Rider X are antagonistic to each other for their very diverting views about leadership, and it doesn't help that they hold blades that naturally hate each other.
  • Caster X to Zouken. Zouken hates things he can’t account for and plan around, and Kariya having a sane partner who helps stabilize his mana flow in the face of the Crest Worms destroying his body is very much an unplanned development for him. Caster X is disgusted by him on principle and was willing to kill him in their first meeting. In the end, though Zouken lives, Caster X is successful in ruining his plans for the future, up to and including cleansing Sakura from the influence of the Matou magecraft.
  • Berserker X and Gilgamesh. One is a constantly bloodthirsty, partially insane swordsman who is always willing to go all out against strong foes and has a gutter mouth from his time in the streets during life. The other is the strongest Servant in the Paradox Grail War, refuses to go all out against strong foes until pushed to the brink, had everything from birth, and is arrogant with strength to match in the form of hundreds of weapons that would normally one shot most weaker Servants. No wonder Gil gets antagonized by Berserker X so often. In the end, Berserker X is slain, but he manages the feat of winning Gilgamesh's respect, to the point he keeps one of the battle wounds on his person after the struggle.
• The Archmage: Caster X is a very powerful wizard whose skills put his counterparts, Masters and Servant, to shame.
• Badass Adorable: Assassin X's summons, the ninja hounds. Even the unflappable Maiya agrees that they are very cute - even Pakkun. However, they are dogs trained as shinobi and will not hesitate to kick someone's ass when needed.
• Big Bad: Rider X serves as the main antagonist of the story, as the leader and most powerful of the Rogue Servants and arguably the most ancient as well.
• Big Badass Battle Sequence: Ionioi Hetairoi against Megatron's Dark Energon army.
• Big Bad Duumvirate: After realizing how odd things were in Fuyuki, Zouken decides to form one, composed of himself and Rider X, and the two of them leading the surviving Gilles de Rais, Darth Maul and, later, Archer X. By the end of story, Megatron and Zouken reaffirm their previous pact for the Fifth war.
• Big Bad Wannabe: Archer X. While she is a legitimately dangerous opponent, she never approaches Rider Xs threat level due to not only him being far more powerful and cunning than her, but her bad temper, emotional instability, and obsession with Lancer thanks to the Love Spot severely affect her combat effectiveness.
  • Avenger X is also this. He has an impactful first appearance by killing Qrow, and he's noted to be a skillful opponent. Still, the Force is not as effective in this setting because of the presence of Servants with Magic Resistance neutering its efficacy. While he tries to turn Sakura to the Dark Side, he's unable to do so by the time teams Tokiomi and Kariya launch their joint assault. And although skillful with the lightsaber, he ends up facing Lancelot, The Ace of the Round Table Knights who's currently wielding Glamdring, against whom he meets his end.
• Big Damn Heroes:
  • Caster X shows up to stop Caster from murdering children.
  • Qrow Branwen shows up after his death as part of Ionian Hetairoi to save Waver one last time.
• Birds of a Feather: Saber and Assassin X become quick friends thanks to their strong sense of camaraderie and code of duty. Parallely, Assassin X and Kiritsugu become closer thanks to a similarly tragic past and a willingness to go under the cover to reach their objectives. This contrast is what arguably makes him The Heart of Team Kiritsugu.
• Bittersweet Ending: Many elements of the original ending of Zero are still present, like Angra Mainyu cursing Kiritsugu, leading to the man ordering the destruction of its receptacle and Kirei still living thanks to said evil spirit. However, this final is considerably more hopeful than the original story: Artoria manages to part in relatively neutral/good terms with her Master thanks to Kakashi allowing them to reach an understanding; said knight makes peace with Lancelot and manages to have an honorable bout with Diarmuid; Sakura is rescued and returned to her family; Aoi never gets crippled and is more proactive as a mother, meaning Kirei won't be able to abuse the riches of the Tohsaka family so easily; and Zouken leaves the war considerably wounded - but not out of the picture.
• Blood Knight: Berserker X with his sheer enjoyment of combat. Part of it seems to rub off on Archer if the final fight against Team Kiritsugu is to be taken at face value - he nearly draws Ea, after all, which is not something he would do normally.
• Brought Down to Normal: The Flame of Anor seems to do this, eradicating Sakura's Magic Circuits alongside Zouken's Crest Worms inside her... but it's subverted as later scenes show she still has powers, so it becomes more a case of Discard and Draw.
  • This also seems to be the fate of Rider X following the final battle. Having been blasted by several of Kiritsugu’s Origin Rounds, by the time Angra Mainyu reached him, there was barely anything left of him to rebuild. Thus he was remade with an entirely human body save for a missing eye, and completely bereft of any of his Servant abilities aside from slightly enhanced strength.
• Both Sides Have a Point: Deliberately invoked by Caster X during the Banquet, as he points out that each King's path to ruling has valid arguments to it and there is no one approach to kingship. He further points out that their reigns occurred in very different times and conditions from each other.
• Bullying a Dragon: Kayneth chooses to cruelly mock the trauma of Archer X’s past. Archer X happens to be a Servant with a very bad temper, who happens to hate him already, and this is happening while Kayneth is currently immobile and unable to defend himself against a Servant, and Lancer is not in the same room. It gets him killed.
• Butterfly Effect: Inevitable, considering the number of Servants brought to this world and its diversity.
  • Assassin's X efforts allow him to serve as a bridge between Kiritsugu and Artoria. While they still clash often, they manage to keep their head in the game and avoid letting their ideological differences interfere with their actions. As an addendum, Assassin X also teaches the mage members of the team his brand of ninjutsu once Irisviel discovers it's possible by accident, expanding their arsenals quite a bit.
  • The presence of a more abrasive figure in Team Kayneth in the form of Archer X makes the group fall apart faster than canon, leading to Tex executing her Master after the fight in the Einzbern Forest because of a heated argument. On the flip side, however, this sets a chain of events that leads to Diarmuid finding a more honorable end than his canon demise, albeit still bittersweet. On yet another flipside, it also eventually leads to Zouken abducting Sola-Ui, which is a Fate Worse than Death.
  • Waver learns many lessons from his two later three Servants, leading to him gaining much more experience. And before his demise, Qrow unlocks his Aura as a last gesture, meaning he has something of a unique magecraft to his name.
  • Rider X ensures that Kirei's personal journey goes faster than before and he also eventually forms a faction of rogue Servants to wreak havoc throughout the war. He also corrupts Kirei with Dark Energon, giving him additional power and malice.
  • Lancer X questioning Tokiomi's actions allows him to reflect on certain aspects of the war. Combine that with Caster X's attempts at making Kariya give up on getting revenge on the Tohsaka, and you get a team-up between both groups to raid Zouken's mansion and rescue Sakura - and, in the process, make her lose her Magic Circuits but gain something else from the Flame of Anor.
  • As mentioned above, Caster X tempers Kariya's hatred against Tokiomi to make him open to an alliance. He also tempers Lancelot's madness, allowing for him and Artoria to talk things out over what happened in Camelot in a healthy way and come to terms.
  • Assassin X's determination to never betray a friend and to win the War leads to him trying to remove Angra from the Grail using Kamui. Kiritsugu then follows suit and uses his remaining Seals for Saber to help her fend off Gilgamesh and for Kakashi to remove the darkness inside. While it ultimately fails, this means Artoria doesn't leave on bad terms with her Master, as she never is betrayed by him. Also on the subject of the Grail Mud, besides Gilgamesh, Megatron is also incarnated to the world - in the form of a human, much to his displeasure - and allies with Zouken and Angra Mainyu.
• Byronic Hero: Kiritsugu, of course, but Assassin X slowly manages to help him look beyond this line of thought.
  • Calling Archer X a hero is a bit dubious considering her past as a mercenary, but she still is technically one right until her Face–Heel Turn.
• The Cameo: A young Shirou appears at one moment during Rin's Day in the Limelight episode, and again briefly in "The Price of Dignity."
  • In the aftermath of the assault in the Matou manor, there is a cut to a shop in London where a blonde shaggy-haired man watches Gandalf burn away Sakura's Crest Worms (and Magic Circuits) with some fascination. It's heavily implied - and later confirmed - that this man is Kisuke Urahara.
• Cassandra Truth: Zouken begins to tell Lancer X how all the Servants need to die for the Grail to work. She doesn’t believe him due to Zouken being a complete monster, and ironically, Rider X predicted that she wouldn’t believe it.
• Chekhov's Skill: Assassin X’s Sharingan’s copy ability is initially out of focus due to nobody else using Jutsu, but it shows itself in the final battle where he imitates the styles of every other fighter in the War, including Lancelot's Knight of Owner.
• The Chessmaster:
  • Tokiomi tries to be this, however, his plans are very transparent, and the more perceptive Servants and Masters easily see through them.
  • Rider X on the other hand is a true master, having thousands of years worth of experience, and quickly manages to assemble his own team of Rogue Servants.
  • Another with the first X Servant, Kisuke Urahara, a man who has been waiting for decades to put his plot in motion.
• Combination Attack: Assassin X & Caster X are both very capable of working together with others for special moves.
  • During the forest battle Lancer runs through a flaming tornado made by Saber's Invisible Air & Caster X's fire magic while Assassin X uses his hounds to dig underground & pin Caster.
  • In the river battle Assassin X uses Fire Dragon Bomb with Invisible Air to roast Caster's Gigantic Horror & a giant twisting water geyser for Rider to electrocute with his chariot while Caster X adds on holy magic to make the elements twist around it.
  • Assassin X & Saber also manage to combine Lightning Blade & Invisible Air to create an electric chain between them that they use against the Dark Energon imbued Assassins.
• Combo Platter Powers: Assassin X. He may not be able to destroy entire cities or span armies like Rider X, Gilgamesh, Rider, and Saber, and his most powerful Noble Phantasm is so draining that he can only use it 2-3 times a day, but he more then makes up for it by having such a wide variety of skills and powers. These include stealth, hypnosis, elemental attacks, creating copies of himself, walking on water, and many more.
• Cool Big Sis: Lancer X to Rin. She idolizes the woman, as her presence, power, and kindness impress the young girl, to the point she trusts her fully to keep her father safe during the war. It may have become a case of Broken Pedestal, as Kirei tells her that Jade wasn't even in the room when Tokiomi was killed (which is technically true but he omits some key details).
• Cool Old Guy: Caster X, a wise and kind-hearted wizard. Following the Grail Dialogue, all the more heroic Servants grow to like and respect him. Even Gilgamesh gains some respect for him after a conversation following the defeat of Caster. This is partially because of his similarity to Enkidu as a Living Creation of the Divine.
• Cool Versus Awesome: Well, any Grail War is this in principle, but where else can you see the fallen in the campaigns of Alexander the Great get their revenge in a Reality Marble desert? Or an Arthurian knight duel a Sith and later a Decepticon who happens to wield Evil Excalibur? Or a battle between a Sociopathic Church Militant doped up on Alien Satan Blood & an Assassin with a Hand Cannon, Time Manipulation & Ninjutsu?
• The Corruption: Dark Energon as per usual. Megatron uses it to warp Ionian Hetairoi to his ends, first by raising the dead of Iskander's campaigns, and then twisting his beloved soldiers against him. He also corrupts Kirei earlier - if there was anything good to corrupt in the first place - and later the Dark Energon is used to corrupt Irisviel - though there are still no signs of lasting effects as of the time of writing.
• The Corruptor: Gilgamesh as per usual tries to get Kirei to listen to his urges as a human being, no matter how twisted they are. The difference this time is Rider X, Kirei’s other Servant, is also attempting to do so through not just talking... but also more physical means like stabbing Kirei with Dark Energon to corrupt him...well, whatever good Kirei still had on him, anyway.
• A Day in the Limelight: Rin has her anime one, this time in the shape of "Rin's Viridian Adventure."
  • Another canon one comes in the form of the side story "The Outsider's Performance", concerning the meeting between a young Taiga Fujimura and Team Waver. They also get a conjoint one with Archer and Rider X in "War & Conquest" which ends up being Team Waver's final battle.
  • "How the Light Gets In" is a dual one for Teams Kariya and Tokiomi, as they deal once and for all with the Rogue Servant alliance and rescue and cleanse Sakura of the Matou's Crest Worms (and her own Magic Circuits by accident). At the end of the chapter, Tokiomi, Jade, and Gandalf are killed, setting the stage for the final day.
• Discard and Draw: Berserker's Knight of Owner, which turns anything he touches into Noble Phantasms. Combine this power with his lethal martial prowess, and he's a terrific force. He also has another example with Arondight, as he can't use Knight of Owner and For Someone's Glory while he wields it.
  • Sakura has an involuntary one. With the Flame of Anor purifying her from the Matou magecraft and her Magic Circuits disappearing in the process, she gains the ability to use Lord of the Rings sorcery, even carrying a fragment of Gandalf inside her being.
• Disproportionate Retribution: Sure Archer X, Kayneth is being a huge dick to you and tapdancing over your Berserk Button, but did you need to kill him?
• The Dreaded: Rider X, almost every team is wary of him, even his allies. Not only he's amongst the most cunning heroes in the war but is powerful, can fly, and possesses a blade that matches Excalibur in quality.
  • Berserker X, whose raw power is so great that even Gilgamesh is affected by it. Quite a few of the other Servants are hesitant to try and take him on.
  • And of course there is Gilgamesh itself, arguably the strongest Servant overall, even if you consider the X Servants.
• Dream Episode: Chapter 17, What Dreams May Come, uses this as a plot device for the narrative, in which Masters (and sometimes Servants) see the dreams of their partners, giving additional insight into their pasts.
• Drives Like Crazy: Irisviel much to Saber & the hounds' dismay. Berserker is also this for Kariya & Caster X, to the point he weaponizes an SUV against Caster with Car Fu.
• Dying as Yourself: In his last moments, Lancelot gives way to the Mad Enhancement again in one last struggle to overcome Megatron before being fatally wounded. He dies sane in the arms of Artoria, his King consoling him until his death.
• Entertainingly Wrong: Crossing over with Dramatic Irony. Kirei's thoughts after being revived by the Grail. He considers Gilgamesh as a friend while the latter only sees Enikdu as a friend & would kill anyone who would try to put themselves in that place. He believed Kiritsugu and he never had anything in common, but now is devoted to finding answers to his questions no matter what, much like Kiritsugu pursued peace at any cost. Finally, the destruction unleashed was primarily the Grail's spiteful act against Kiritsugu, Saber & Kakashi, not his wish.
• Even Evil Has Standards: Hundred Faces is by no means a good person, but they still seek the greater good of the world. When faced with the full weight of Rider X's acts and the realization of what the world will become if he's allowed to triumph, they decided to, in one final act of defiance, warn team Emiya of his plans right before they're enslaved by the Dark Energon.
• Everyone Has Standards: While Berserker X may be a fight-loving Blood Knight, part of that is he loves the challenge of going up against those stronger than him. As such, he’s disgusted by Ryuunosuke and Caster, and cuts ties with them literally a minute after being summoned.
  • Gilgamesh might not be the most pleasant of individuals and has a sadistic side, but he is disgusted by Rider X's Dark Energon and Dark Star Saber.
• Evil Weapon: Rider X's Dark Star Saber, which is described as a twisted version of a Divine Construct and the antithesis of Excalibur. Assassin X, Saber, and Gilgamesh are all disgusted at the sight of it, with the latter who had taken some interest in some of the X Servants' weapons thinking he would sooner destroy the Gate of Babylon before letting the sword near it. Heck, even Excalibur - the weapon itself - shows a wish to destroy that thing when Megatron reveals it.
• Exact Words: An unintentional example, Rider X fulfills his bargain with Zouken of killing Gandalf, but only after the latter has managed to rescue Sakura & completely cripple his resources.
• Fatal Flaw: Kiritsugu's inability to trust Saber as much as he does Assassin X prevents them from winning the war according to Word of God.
• Fate Worse than Death: Zouken ends up kidnapping Sola-Ui not only to control Diarmuid temporarily, but also to get a new vessel for himself - one with high grade Magic Circuits, mind you.
  • For Rider X, he turns into one of the things he loathes the most - a human.
• Fighting from the Inside: Irisviel brings up the possibility of Dark Energon while inside the Grail to convince Kiritsugu to reject it.
• Forgotten First Meeting: Rin mentions being barely able to remember the days during the War so she's likely forgotten when Shirou saved her from getting hit by a car.
• Freudian Excuse Is No Excuse: Assassin X agrees that Archer X has a right to desire a normal life, unburdened by the pain and pressures of being a Freelancer, an AI copy or anything else, but still points out that it’s a pitiful excuse for murdering her Master, betraying her original partner Lancer, joining the Rogues and murdering quite a few innocent civilians.
• Foil: One can argue most of the partnerships between X Servants and Servants are this:
  • Saber and Assassin X. Both are figures that heavily value the bonds they create. Both died in defense of their homes, one by stomping a rebellion led by Mordred, the other sacrificing himself to protect a comrade. Whereas Saber began as a warm Wide-Eyed Idealist that slowly grew colder and less human for the sake of her kingdom, Assassin X started out cold and bitter because of what happened to Sakumo, but then became more open after Obito's apparent death. Saber is a frontline fighter, she stands against the enemy head-on, not privy to fighting dirty, and would rather have honorable bouts with other heroes, whereas Assassin X, while more than capable of doing the same, prefers to stay in the back and support his allies by other means.
  • Lancer and Archer X. Both are figures with overall tragic lives and who had issues with their respective factions Diarmuid thanks to his affair with Fionn's wife and Tex with other Freelancers, as she kept pushing to be better more and more. Both have very diverging views about honor, with Diarmuid holding it in the highest regards, and Archer X regarding it as something worthless that would only lead Lancer and Kayneth to their deaths. Whereas Diarmuid remains loyal, even when being abused and dismissed as an annoyance by Kayneth, Tex rebels when pushed too far and kills him in cold blood, which leads to the downfall of their faction.
  • Archer and Lancer X. Both are connected to large kingdoms - Uruk and Edenia. respectively - and regarded as their best defenders. Gilgamesh is arrogant to a fault, but has the most firepower in the whole war, while Lancer X is Weak, but Skilled and has the unique trait of being the only Servant with a Double Summon skill, leading to her also being capable of acting as an Assassin. Their attitudes towards Tokiomi are also heavily divergent: where Gil acknowledges him as master of the lair and a good host, he otherwise has little love for him and thinks of him as dull and would rather focus his attention on Kirei. Meanwhile, Lancer X goes out of her way to learn more about her Master and is better able to form a genuine bond with him, to the point she manages to make him change his mind on killing her to feed the Holy Grail (though Lancer X never learns about any of this) and help him see that Zouken was not keeping his part of the deal over Sakura.
  • Assassin and Rider X. Both are Servants that tend more to an Evil alignment and that can hide their presence of others - Assassin with their Presence Concealment and Rider X with it's ability to morph into a jet plane. Assassin is obedient and follows dutifully the orders given by Kirei while Rider X is unpredictable and only obeys when it is convenient for him. The Hassans have a strict code of duty: while they kill people, they are not usually cruel in their executions, and other materials show that Hundred Faces has a kinder side. Rider X is consistently evil in all the incarnations he appears and would go to extreme depths to obtain anything he wants - including messing with Dark Energon, one of the most dangerous substances in his universe.
  • Rider and Saber X. The common thread between them is how different their life styles are: one lived always surrounded by soldiers, men he was prideful of calling comrade in arms that all held their king to the highest standards. Meanwhile, Qrow is a loner, who found a small family in his old team - which then shattered after Summer's death, leaving him all alone once more, not helping the fact that his Misfortune doesn't distinguish friend from foe. Their lessons to Waver are also contrasting: while Rider encourages his Master to become more confident, Saber X's lessons are more about standing up for himself and making the most out of what he has.
  • Berserker and Caster X. Both are defined as champions of good, but held back by circumstances: Lancelot by his madness and Gandalf by the circumstances of his summoning. One is, most of the time, a ravening assault dog that is barely under Kariya's control in canon, while Caster X is calm and collected and uses his wisdom to help Kariya, and his mere presence is enough to help Berserker keep some control of himself most of the time. They both have noble hearts, but Lancelot can't see that under all the guilt he holds for his part in Camelot's fall, which leads to Gandalf setting things up so that his knight friend and Artoria could talk about that without killing each other. Both also are slain by Megatron: Gandalf as he covered the retreat of Kariya, Lancelot and Sakura, and Lancelot when he tries to avenge his Caster friend.
  • Caster and Berserker X for all that makes a difference, considering how little they interact. Both of them are crazy, but are unusual in how that madness manifest: Gilles via his Mental Pollution skill and Berserker X is just naturally that insane - keep in mind his Mad Enhancement rank is E. They are both crazy for killing, but take very divergent stances on that: Kenpachi wants to fight other people in battles to the death while Gilles is a serial killer who occasionally uses that blood for his spells - but it's mostly because he feels delighted at going and killing others. They do share one major detail in that their lives were shaped by a woman important to them: Jeanne who Gilles followed & lost his purpose, falling into despair, losing all faith in God & what they believed in after her death, and becoming an insane killer; Berserker X actually found purpose when he fought Unohana the first time, discovering what it meant to truly enjoy battle, but feared losing it so much that he avoided killing her & stifled his strength.
• Giant Space Flea Out Of Nowhere: What Maul is to the other Servants. His mere presence is one, as he takes the role of Avenger X, with Avenger being one of the Extra classes that were not supposed to be summonable in the Grail War. He soon also shows he means business by being responsible for killing Qrow during the chaos in the Mion River battle.
• Go Out with a Smile: Averting the tragic nature of his death in Zero, here Kariya, while not being able to end Zouken once and for all, achieved his goal of saving Sakura and is able to rest, in his last moments seeing Gandalf one last time.
  • Kiritsugu dies, happy that Shirou will carry on his dream to be a Hero of Justice. He also spends time with Sakumo Hatake in the afterlife, speaking of his friend's deeds.
• Headbutting Heroes: Lancer X REALLY doesn’t want to be this with Tokiomi, but his stubborn insistence on acting as he believes a proper magus should continuously go against her more heroic principles ESPECIALLY once she learns about Sakura.
  • The differing moralities of Saber and Kiritsugu sometimes make them this, but Kakashi's presence stabilizes both sides to the point they can keep functioning effectively as a unit.
• Healing Factor: Due to Dark Energon, Kirei gains one, which allows him to survive Maiya's clone bomb, alongside some treatment on the part of Hundred Faces.
• The Heart: Assassin X is this for his team, being the only reason why there is an actual “team” at all. He's liked and respected by Saber, Irisviel, Maiya, and even he and Kiritsugu form something of a friendship. Notably, he finds a middle ground between Saber’s honor and Kiritsugu’s practicality, allowing them to work together. It's telling that even after his departure, Kiritsugu keeps imagining what Kakashi would say about given situations.
  • Caster X. His actions help Kariya slowly move past his hate for Tokiomi to the point of an alliance between both men to save Sakura became a possibility and his spells reduce the burden that Mad Enhancement put on his fragile body as well as temper Berserker's insanity, eventually leading to Lancelot fully recovering his mind. No wonder both men agree to avenge their friend after his death at the hands of Rider X.
• Hero Killer: Avenger X makes his debut by engaging and slaying Qrow in battle.
  • Rider X has a particularly big list of kills: he's directly responsible by the deaths of Lancelot, Iskandar and Gandalf, and sets up the death of Tokiomi and Jade.
• Heroic Sacrifice: Caster X dies holding off Rider X, allowing Berserker to escape with Kariya and Sakura.
• History Repeats: Crossing over with Ironic Death regarding what happens with the X Servants.
  • Qrow is killed protecting someone else (Ruby, Saber) by an insane murderer who wants to cause absolute death & destruction (Tyrian, Maul).
  • Tex ends up failing her objective to win the War or avenge Diarmuid & ends up dying due to Kamui's spatial warp, an entirely new way to die to add onto her previous ones.
  • Kenpachi is killed by an extremely powerful Hybrid who was created to surpass all others (Ichigo, Gilgamesh).
  • Maul is killed by a Master Swordsman who isn't blinded by hatred like him (Obi-Wan, Lancelot).
  • Jade is killed suddenly by someone she trusted (Sindel, Tokiomi under Kirei's control).
  • Gandalf dies holding off a powerful foe so his allies can escape.
  • Kakashi nearly dies saving Maiya & Irisviel from Tex by using Kamui much like how he saved Choji, but survives. Later, a similar scenario occurs when trying to stop the Grail Mud but fails.
  • Megatron suffers fatal injuries at the hands of someone he dismissed as irrelevant (Bumblebee, Kiritsugu), but is saved by the mud before he can perish - which can be seen as an allusion to his canon fate in Prime, where he's resurrected by a dark power (Dark Energon, the Grail Mud) and bound to their master (Unicron, Angra Mainyu).
  • A more subtle one with Kiritsugu. What led to the zombie plague spreading through his home island was his hesitance in slaying Shirley. Here, he hesitates in trusting Saber at first, and, while he switches plans when Assassin X partially hijacks the idea, it's already too late as Angra Mainyu kills both Servants of Team Kiritsugu and causes the Fuyuki Fire. Once again, his hesitance caused a tragedy.
• Hope Spot: All is well that ends well: Tokiomi and Kariya ally to end Zouken, Avenger X is killed by a sane Lancelot, Gandalf stops Zouken from influenciating Sakura with the Flame of Anor...what could ruin things? Oh, hello, Kirei...
  • Lancelot seems able to fatally wound Megatron...and then it's revealed Kariya died a moment before he could give the finishing blow, allowing Megatron to run him through.
• Hope Springs Eternal: Angra Mainyu destroys part of Fuyuki, Megatron, Gilgamesh, Zouken and Kirei are still running around, but Saber retains her determination, promising to keep fighting for the sake of those who put faith on her, Urahara is behind the doors preparing for the Fifth War by allying with Waver and Maiya, and Kiritsugu passes his dreams of being a Hero of Justice on to Shirou, along with bits of the Will of Fire.
• Humanity Ensues: Megatron. After having his body lacerated by a hail of Origin Bullets - originals and cloned - his mechanical body is unusable. So, when Angra helps him, he has to make a human body for him to keep living.
• Hyper-Competent Sidekick: Lancer X to Tokiomi. Lancer X repeatedly shows she is far more perceptive and cautious than her master. Most notably she starts to grow suspicious of Kirei while Tokiomi is still convinced he is a loyal student.
• Infinity -1 Sword: Rider X’s ultimate Noble Phantasm: the Dark Star Saber. It’s an A++ rank Phantasm with power on par with Excalibur, which allows him to survive the Excaliblast that obliterates Caster and the Gigantic Horror, but since it’s Anti-Unit and not Anti-Army, it can’t generate a Sword Beam of its own to match the Excaliblast. As the story itself states, he cannot neutralize the attack, the best he can hope for is to survive. Word of God says that if summoned as a Saber, the blade would be Excalibur's equal.
• In Spite of a Nail: Saber still gets her hand injured by Lancer during the dock fight, disabling the usage of Excalibur's true power for a long time.
  • Most conflicts involving Gilles still happen in this version of events. However, the children in the forest fight don't die, Uryuu is Killed Off for Real by Lancer X before the battle at Mion River, and the circumstances leading to the Gigantic Horror are a bit different.
  • A young Taiga still crosses ways with Waver and Iskandar, but she also meets Saber X and Berserker X...and learns a few neat tricks from the latter. Considering how she already was kendo's The Dreaded without those techniques...
  • Diarmuid still has his spear broken in the final fight against Gilles, leading to his rematch with Artoria. Contrary to canon, he manages to have an honorable fight between knights, and, although ashamed he didn't manage to avenge his lord, he still feels satisfied with having a noble battle with the King of Knights.
  • Tokiomi still gets killed by Kirei, but the circumstances are even more tragic than before because it happens immediately after Sakura's rescue.
  • Kirei still captures Irisviel for his purposes - mainly to draw out Kiritsugu for a fight.
  • The Servant cast of Zero still goes out in relatively the same order: Gilles, Diarmuid, followed by Iskandar/Lancelot, who died around the same time in Zero but have around the difference of one day between each death in this story, leaving Saber and Archer. The only anachronism is Hundred Faces because Kirei decides to keep some of the faces alive rather than sending everyone to ambush Iskandar, with the last face dying during the kidnapping of Irisviel.
  • Even with all of Kakashi's efforts, it is impossible to cleanse the Holy Grail from Angra's corruption, which leads to the Avenger blowing everything away and causing the Fuyuki Fire, with Gilgamesh, Kirei and Kiritsugu surviving the aftermath.
• Ironic Echo: Kiritsugu’s words to Angra Mainyu when it curses him & says it will never forgive him: “Like you said… I can bear you.”
• Ironic Name: Masao means "goodness". Megatron is anything but good.
• Jerkass: Both Kayneth and Archer X are deeply unpleasant people even at their best. Ironically, this is probably why Kayneth summons Archer X in the first place, though neither side recognizes it.
• Jerkass Has a Point: While many of the things Archer X says to Lancer and Kayneth are abrasive and insulting, that doesn't make them wrong. Kayneth did plenty of stupid actions throughout the Grail War such as not getting into cover during the Dock Fight, revealing his location to taunt Waver, and underestimating a man known as the Mage Killer. Archer X's assertion that Lancer's Honor Before Reason tendencies would have gotten him killed is also exactly what happens in canon.
• The Juggernaut: Berserker X, and how. He wants a good fight, will kill to get it, and good luck killing him because he's one tough nut to crack. To give an idea of how resistant he is, he barely defends against the weapon waves of Gate of Babylon, and Gil is still forced to bring out Enkidu and Ea to take him down. And even then, he manages to live long enough after an Enuma Elish to protect Waver one last time - and Enuma Elish is usually the type of thing that can put down almost any Servant with one swing.
• Killing Intent: Every time Berserker X enters the battlefield, he releases a huge cloud of this. On the first time he entered a fight with other Servants, his killing intent was so strong that EVERY SINGLE MASTER, regardless of the actual location in terms of the battlefield, some not even being on the battlefield itself, all felt themselves getting sliced or stabbed to death in various ways before snapping back to normal.
• Laser-Guided Karma: Sure Kayneth, keep insulting your trigger-happy Servant that is also mentally altered by the Love Spot. I'm sure nothing wrong can come out of that...
  • After causing nothing but trouble to every team in the Grail War, seeing Megatron getting his just deserts so close to the finish line is incredibly satisfying.
• The Last Dance: Kariya and Lancelot have no shots of winning the Grail War by the final day, as, without Gandalf, the Master's condition is degrading quickly and, even without Mad Enhancement, the Berserker is too much for his body to handle. Yet, they still march in the hopes of avenging the old sorcerer by slaying Rider X.
• Loophole Abuse: A Shadow Clone carries the exact same weapons that his owner has at the moment of casting, provided they're not too complex. This includes magical items like the Origin Rounds, which Kiritsugu eagerly abuses in a key moment to nail Megatron with enough shots that he would be affected by their magical properties.
• Mama Bear: At the end of the Grail War, Aoi proves to be just as fierce as Tokiomi, fending off the Mage Association representative attempting to question about Sakura's condition and being suspicious of Kirei.
• Master Swordsman: Ironically enough the best sword fighter in the story isn't either of the Sabers but Berserker (who's supposed to Unskilled, but Strong). When he fights Avenger X using Caster X's sword Glamdring, the Sith outright states that no swordsman he fought when he was alive could compare to Berserker.
• Mechanically Unusual Fighter:
  • Archer X is technically a Gunner, a modern variation of the Archer class specializing in guns.
  • Lancer X has the skill Double Summon like Semiramis, meaning she has traits both of the Lancer and Assassin classes.
  • Caster X lacks the Territory and Item Creation skills that are signature of his class, instead having Archer's Independent Action and Saber and Rider's Riding. Also, one of his main Noble Phantasms is a sword.
• Mentor Occupational Hazard: And a triple one, no less, as all three Servants that Waver had served as mentors for him in some capacity. But the most egregious one is Qrow, who dies at the hands of Darth Maul, who is also known for killing another mentor, Qui Gon Jinn.
• Me's a Crowd: Archer X’s second Noble Phantasm: 100 Tex Battle: “The Director’s Many Attempts” is a manifestation of the countless Tex Drones the Director made in trying to resurrect Allison. Tex hates using it, both because the drones are all weaker than she is while relying on her mana and arsenal, and because their artificial nature reminds her of her nature as yet another clone of Allison.
  • The Shadow Clone jutsu to a lesser extent. It's not as powerful as the example above, but it's easy to use, has near universal utility, and the fact that, while it will dissipate in a single blow, it otherwise replicates things that a user has including Mystic Codes, provided they're not too complex like modern technology or firearms. Moreover, the memories and experiences of any clone accumulate in the original once they disperse.
• Mercy Kill:
  • Archer X is prepared to do this to Sakura but Avenger X stops her.
  • Gilgamesh mortally wounding Iskandar before the Dark Energon can corrupt him.
• My God, What Have I Done?: Like in Canon seeing Excalibur’s light & recalling his X counterpart's words has this effect on Caster.
• My Greatest Failure: Comes up at the Banquet.
  • For Saber, it's her failure to save Britain.
  • For Assassin X, it's his failures as a teacher for Sasuke, Sakura, and Naruto with his wish being a chance to start again.
• Mythology Gag: The face of Hundred Faces that warns Assassin X of Megatron's assault is the child face that appeared in Fate/Grand Order, who was designed for the initial draft of Fate Zero as part of Waver's storyline but discarded in the end product.
• Not Me This Time: Angra may have actively suppressed the summoning of a Ruler Servant to the War, but he isn't the one responsible for the calling of the X Servants.
• Not So Above It All: Even the cold-blooded killers Kiritsugu and Maiya take a liking for Kakashi's ninja hounds. The feeling is mutual.
  • For all his pride, Gilgamesh starts to take a heavy liking to battles after his bout with Berserker X, even nearly pulling Ea on Team Kiritsugu in the final battle.
• Normal Fish in a Tiny Pond: Part of why Archer X is an irritable ass to virtually everyone is because she feels she’s this. In her home universe, she was at the top of the leaderboard for Project Freelancer, well-regarded as some of the best soldiers in the universe. But in the World of Badass that is Nasuverse, that doesn’t mean much, to her bitter frustration.
• Out-Gambitted: Rider X manages to capture Irisviel by making Saber & Assassin X think the corrupted Hassans are still carrying her so they can't properly strategize, when in reality, he had them drop her at a certain point and take up a mannequin with similar clothes & a white wig.
• Outside-Context Problem: The X Servants as a whole. With Heroic Spirits, you can channel the summoning of certain heroes with the usage of catalysts and, in most cases, there's enough material to investigate which Heroic Spirit is confronting you. Not so much with X Servants, whose summon is entirely based on compatibility and are near complete unknowns for the magi population.
• Papa Wolf: Tokiomi is this, much to Kariya's surprise. While he's a magus first and foremost, he allowed the Matou to adopt Sakura under the assumption they would train her to control her magecraft, as, if she didn't have so much potential, he would have allowed her to live a normal life. When he understands that Zouken is going back on his word, he joins forces with Kariya to rescue his daughter.
• Pet the Dog: Gilgamesh Mercy Kills Rider to prevent him from being corrupted by Dark Energon. In addition, not only does he spare Waver after being impressed by his loyalty like in canon, he even protects him from Rider X, making it clear he will eradicate the Decepticon with Ea if he tries to kill Waver. He also makes sure that magi won't target Sakura because of how the Flame of Anor affected her magecraft, as one last favor to Gandalf.
• Playing with Fire: One of Assassin X's go-to maneuvers is using fire jutsu.
  • Caster X has the Flame of Anor as his second Noble Phantasm.
• Positive Friend Influence: Caster X provides this for both Kariya and Berserker, getting Kariya to let go of his hatred for Tokiomi so they can work against Zouken and helping Lancelot regain his rationality. Kariya himself is still fully prepared to kill Tokiomi though if necessary to save Sakura.
• Power Limiter: Berserker X's Eyepatch Seal. It restricts the amount of power he can use at a given time, not because there's a big drawback (other than maybe be taxing to the Master), but because he doesn't want to overpower everyone before he's had the chance to enjoy a good old-fashioned brawl.
  • One could argue Berserker's Knight of Owner and For Someone's Glory are similar, as these two Noble Phantasms restrict the usage of Lancelot's Arondight, by far his strongest Noble Phantasm.
• Power of Trust: Along with teamwork, this is what Assassin X attempts to cultivate in his team: Saber and Kiritsugu are otherwise too morally opposite to get along. They eventually manage to put their trust in each other and Assassin, but as Word of God notes, Kiritsugu doesn't trust Saber as much as he does Kakashi, which indirectly results in them not winning the War at the last stretch.
• Red and Black and Evil All Over: Avenger X. Considering he's Darth Maul, it's pretty easy to see it.
• Restoration of Sanity: Caster X offers this to Berserker, which would disable the bonus granted by Mad Enhancement but would ease the load on Kariya and allow him to think more clearly. He accepts the offer, allowing him to speak properly to Artoria about what happened in the past and make amends over it.
• Roaring Rampage of Revenge: Archer X goes on one in vengeance for Lancer’s death, even though she’d killed their mutual Master which had caused him to swear vengeance on HER. She uses her final Noble Phantasm, steals Kiritsugu’s armory, and plants bombs all over Fuyuki to cause as much damage as possible, even ripping her own Spiritual Core to shreds using a Skill to get as much length out of her Noble Phantasm as possible so that she can keep killing enemy Servants. This works... somewhat, in that while she fails to kill any enemy Servants, and the bombs she attempted to plant on vital areas of Fuyuki like electrical centers or hospitals were disarmed, she still kills thousands of innocent civilians who were completely uninvolved in the Grail War and Lancer’s death through the bombs that aren’t stopped.
• Sanity Slippage: Archer X suffers a gradual one. For starters, Diarmuid's Love Spot slowly makes her fall head over heels for the man, even though he has no interest in her. Then, her constant conflicts with Kayneth lead to Tex killing him in cold blood and going rogue. Then, she finally snaps after seeing Artoria finish off Diarmuid - even though he was supposed to be her enemy - and proceeds to go on a suicide mission to blow up Fuyuki and take as many Servants with her as possible.
• Say My Name: Berserker in his final battle against Megatron with a full scream.
• Scars Are Forever: Berserker X's Zanpakuto allows him to leave a permanent scar on Gilgamesh's forehead during their final clash.
  • Like in canon, Kiritsugu is heavily affected by being tainted by the Grail, which makes his body slowly fall apart until he dies five years after the war.
  • Megatron has a unique twist in this trope, as his new human body is marked in the places where the Origin Rounds pierced his machine body. This includes a missing right eye courtesy of Kiritsugu shooting him in the optic.
• Scissors Cuts Rock: Most magi can't put a dent in a Servant because of how ungodly tough they are. However, Kiritsugu's Origin Bullets directly affect one's Magical Energy, and a Servant is basically made entirely of that. While one is not enough to put a Servant down, ten certainly are to fatally wound even one like Megatron.
• Sequel Hook: Quite a few: how did the X Servants appear? How did Kayneth obtain that device of his? And what is Kisuke Urahara doing in London? To be discovered in Fate/Stay Night: Paradoxical Blade Works.
• Ship Tease: Between Maiya Hisau and Assassin X, Maiya being surprised by how much she's grown to care for him. It only increases after he saves her life.
  • In a Freeze-Frame Bonus during "Rin's Viridian Adventure", you can see Rin and one certain red-haired boy interacting way earlier than in canon, with the girl getting flustered by his actions and vice-versa.
• Signature Move: The Noble Phantasms, of course, serving as a Servant's trump card to win fights - though of course, some have more passive effects. Besides the examples seen in Zero, there are those of the X Servants:
  • Assassin X has three: his signature Jutsu, the Lightning Blade, the Sharingan he received from Obito, and the ability granted by said eye's Mangekyo Sharingan, the Kamui.
  • Archer X has Weapons of War, providing her with an arsenal of weapons at any moment and 100 Tex Battle which allows her to summon clones of herself.
  • Saber X has his Semblance and his mechasword, Harbinger.
  • Rider X has the ability to turn into a fighter jet, the Dark Star Saber at a reduced power and the ability to call upon Dark Energon.
  • Caster X has Glamdring and the ability to call upon the Flame of Anor.
  • Berserker X has his eyepatch seal to contain his true power. It also technically has his zanpakuto, but, as this is Soul Society Arc Kenpachi, he never had the opportunity to learn Nozarashi's name.
  • Lancer X has her staff and her boomerang.
  • Avenger X has his lightsaber, named Crimson Dawn in this fic.
• Spared by the Adaptation: Gilles and Ryuunosuke have a significantly reduced body count compared to their canon selves - of note, the children the Caster used as bait for Saber. It helps that Lancer X rips off Ryuunosuke's head and blows his body apart.
  • Maiya is saved from being killed by the remnant bodies of Assassin thanks to Kakashi. It also helps that the alliance between Kariya and Kirei never happens in this continuity, meaning she doesn't have to deal with Lancelot by herself.
  • While Tokiomi and Kariya still die as a result of the war, Aoi never gets strangled by Kariya because of his better mind space and Kirei never sets him up to suffer.
• Teeth-Clenched Teamwork:
  • Averted between Saber and Kiritsugu; thanks to Assassin X, they are willing to tolerate each other and work together, though they are not friends.
  • Kayneth's team, on the other hand, is even more dysfunctional than in canon due to Archer X's presence. She hates Kayneth, never puts up with his insults, and calls him out on his more foolish ideas, while he hates that she uses advanced technology in battle and talks back to him. She also disagrees with Lancer's Honor Before Reason habits and is a Combat Pragmatist. This leads to their downfall as Archer X kills Kayneth in a fit of rage and joins Rider X’s band of Rogue Servants, causing Lancer to swear vengeance on her. Ultimately the Lancer-Archer X team is the first team to lose all their members.
  • Gilgamesh and Lancer X are almost as bad since at least Lancer and Archer X worked together during the dock battle. By contrast, the two of them never fight alongside each other or come to the other's assistance and Gilgamesh makes it clear that he doesn't view Lancer X as anything approaching his equal while Lancer X is annoyed by his arrogance and does not trust him.
  • Thanks to Gandalf's efforts, Kariya and Tokiomi manage such an arrangement: while they both understand each other a bit better, they still don't like each other. However, they care for Sakura, and this is enough to help them ignore their differences for a night and hunt down Zouken Matou.
• Then Let Me Be Evil: Archer X was never the most moral Servant but throughout the story, her continuous Sanity Slippage leads to her taking viler and viler actions. First, she murders Kayneth after the Master pushes her far enough, leading to her going rogue and joining Megatron's faction, and then, after witnessing Diarmuid's murder, she decides to kill everyone in Fuyuki by using 100 Tex Battle and the bombs she stole from Kiritsugu to bombard the city to kingdom come.
• There Is No Kill Like Overkill: Kiritsugu shoots Kirei several times with Origin Rounds throughout their fight, blows his heart out, & destroys his body with his remaining explosives to prevent any more Dark Energon healing. Due to Angra Mainyu, this still doesn't stick.
• Throw the Dog a Bone: After his death, Aoi ensures that Kariya gets a proper burial, even burying him as Kariya Zenjou rather than Matou as a final farewell gift.
• True Companions: Saber and Assassin X. While Saber initially wasn't pleased to have a member of the Assassin class as a partner, she quickly comes to deeply like and admire Assassin X. The two become good friends and develop the best teamwork of any of the Servant teams.
• Unstoppable Force Meets Immovable Object: Gilgamesh as the unstoppable force, Berserker X as the immovable object. In this case, the triumph goes to the unstoppable force.
• Walking Armory: Archer X's first Noble Phantasm Weapons of War: "Only the Best for the Freelancer's Best" enforces this, allowing her to manifest any guns she used in life to great effect, and she's skilled in using all of them. However, at best they are only as strong as C-rank Phantasms.
• Weak, but Skilled: Both Lancers and Saber X. They lack the sheer destructive power several of the other Servants possess but make up for it with their sheer skill in addition to having a few tricks up their sleeves such as Lancer X's Presence Concealment, Lancer's magic-destroying/wound-cursing spears, and Saber X's mechasword and luck altering Noble Phantasm.
• Wham Shot: At the end of Chapter 24, there is a cut to a rundown shop in London that is run by a shaggy-haired blonde man that is all but implied to be Kisuke Urahara, watching as Gandalf's Flame of Anor makes Sakura's Magic Circuits disappear. Related to this shot, a later one shows that Sakura not only has a fragment of Gandalf inside her head, he has taken shapes as an amnesiac Gandalf the White.
  • Megatron emerging from the Grail Mud...as a human.
• "Where Are They Now?" Epilogue: The Epilogue chapter.
  • Kiritsugu still adopts Shirou and goes to live in his canonical house with him and Maiya, who works at a pawn shop and enters in contact with Urahara. They also still keep the dog contracts they earned from their time with Kakashi.
  • Saber leaves the war with a lighter heart than in canon and promises to keep fighting for the sake of those who put her faith in her. It's also implied that Kakashi is in a similar situation to her as a Servant, regretful in not managing to seize victory for him and his allies at the last turn.
  • Aoi changes Kariya's last name to Zenjou as one last gesture before burying him and Tokiomi. She also takes charge as temporary head of the family, meaning Kirei won't have as much influence in Rin and Sakura's growth.
  • On that line of thought, the Flame of Anor had the collateral effect of putting a fragment of Gandalf inside Sakura's mind. While she struggles with some of her inner darkness, she nonetheless wants to keep supporting her sister in the future.
  • Having no other option for an heir, Zouken turns to Shinji Matou to represent the family, intending to use alternative methods to boost his magical abilities and have Megatron, who's now human and going by the name Masao Matou, serve as his instructor.
  • Waver travels the world for two years before returning to London, learning lots of skills during this period including his Semblance, before being interrogated by the El-Melloi and Sophia-Ri families about what happened to Kayneth and Sola-Ui. Then he is bailed out by Urahara - who reveals himself to be the first X Servant.
• The Worf Effect: Completely subverted. The author has stated that one of his goals was to keep the X Servants from dominating the canon ones. The regular servants for the most part can hold their own perfectly well against the X Servants and in several cases have gained the upper hand. Gilgamesh manages to kill Berserker X after a grueling battle. In addition, he outclasses his partner Servant, Lancer X, and counterpart, Archer X, with so much power that it’s not even funny. Later on, Berserker defeats Avenger X. That said, the X Servants also get kills on the heroes of the other side: the most notable offender being Megatron, who defeats Iskandar and kills Lancelot, two of the most powerful Servants in Zero, after lengthy battles in both cases.
• World's Strongest Man: Even with all the X Servants arriving, Gilgamesh is still the strongest Servant of all. Of the X Servants, the only ones that manage to match him are Berserker X via raw power and Rider X with his cunning.
• Worthy Opponent: Gilgamesh acknowledges Kenpachi and Iskandar as this after he defeats them.
• Wrecked Weapon: The Origin Rounds destroy the Dark Star Saber when Kiritsugu shoots Megatron.
• You Remind Me of X: Saber and Iskander both remind Rider X of his old friend and archenemy Optimus Prime: one for his noble spirit and determination, the other with his sense of camaraderie and rivalry of ideals.
  • Gilgamesh compares Caster X to Enkidu because of their condition as Living Creations of the Divine.
  • Archer X is reminded of Carolina (her sorta daughter) when fighting Saber.
  • Waver thinks that Urahara looks familiar despite never seeing him before. Of course, this is because both him and Kenpachi were Soul Reapers.

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