Saber (Fate/Stay Night)

Did You Know?

• Manga artist group Clamp drew their own version of Saber to celebrate the premiere of Fate/Zero.
• Character Nero from Fate/Extra was purposefully designed to visually resemble Saber.

Character backstory

Artoria Pendragon, also known as Altria, Arthuria, or Arturia, is the true name of Saber, a character rooted in the King Arthur legends. At her birth, her father Uther hid her sex and existence, fearing his people would reject a female ruler. Merlin gave the infant to Sir Ector, who raised her as a son. When Uther died without a known heir when Artoria was fifteen, Britain fell into chaos as Saxon invasions threatened.

Merlin told her that drawing the ceremonial sword Caliburn from a stone would make the people see her as their destined king, but it also meant accepting all the burdens of rule. She pulled the sword without hesitation and became king. Only her foster brother Kay and the secretary Agravain knew she was a woman. Throughout her reign, Artoria felt guilt and inadequacy, suppressing her emotions for Britain’s sake, which led many knights and subjects to criticize her coldness.

At the Battle of Camlann, she was fatally wounded by Mordred, a homunculus created from her blood. Before dying, she asked the world to let her relive her life so a more suitable ruler could take her place.

Appearances

In Fate/stay night, Saber is accidentally summoned by Shirou Emiya, stopping the servant Lancer. In the Fate route, Shirou and Saber clash over their fighting methods, but Shirou persuades her that the past cannot be changed. Once Saber discovers the Holy Grail is corrupt, she accepts her wish is impossible and works with Shirou to save the world. They develop romantic feelings but decide to end their relationship after the war.

Shirou passes Excalibur's scabbard to Saber, allowing her to defeat Gilgamesh. Saber destroys the Holy Grail and, after confessing her feelings, returns to her original time and dies. In the PlayStation 2 remake, an extra ending shows Shirou and Saber reunited in Avalon. In the Unlimited Blade Works route, Saber is stabbed by Caster's Rule Breaker and forced to become her Servant.

She resists the spell, giving Shirou and Rin time to escape. After Archer kills Caster, Rin forges a contract with Saber. Saber, Shirou, and Rin decide Shirou should fight Gilgamesh while Saber and Rin stop the Holy Grail. After defeating Assassin, Saber destroys the Holy Grail. In the Good End, Saber lives on as one of Rin's familiars; in the True End, she disappears after destroying the Grail.

Creation and conception

Before writing Fate/stay night, Kinoko Nasu wrote the Fate route for fun as a student. Shirou and Saber's sexes were swapped due to Type-Moon's experience with Tsukihime, but illustrator Takeuchi suggested drawing an armored woman, resulting in Saber becoming female. Takeuchi regarded Saber as one of his favorite Servants and an ideal bride. The relationship between Shirou and Saber was intended to be different from previous fictional romances, fueled by logic as well as instinct.

The team included a dream sequence where Shirou sees Excalibur as foreshadowing of their first meeting. Because Shirou possessed the scabbard Avalon, Nasu wrote this to explain how they become Master and Servant. Nasu originally planned an extended Fate route with an alternative Fifth Holy Grail War where Shirou fights alongside Saber without romance, but Shirou would still become the counter guardian EMIYA. During the anime adaptation, Nasu said the staff intended to make Saber more beautiful than Rin.

Nasu found it difficult to call Shirou's relationship with Saber a man-woman relationship because she had ruled Britain as male and then fell in love with Shirou. Takeuchi stated the relationship is realistic as part of Saber regaining her suppressed humanity and growing as a character.

Reception

In the Type-Moon Fes. 10th Anniversary Event, Saber was ranked the most popular Type-Moon character. A Niconico News poll for Fate/Zero characters listed Saber as the most popular girlfriend choice at 34.1%. She took fourth place in an Unlimited Blade Works poll. In a Charapedia poll, Saber placed fourth among favorite cool women in anime with 498 votes.

A Newtype poll ranked her the second-most popular female character in September 2017, and she was the most popular female character of the 2010s in the same magazine. Saber was voted the best servant from Fate/Zero in 2012. Numerous figures of all versions of Saber and a keychain replica of her sword have been created, along with a replica of her motorcycle from Fate/Zero. Critical reception has been generally positive.

Carl Kimlinger of Anime News Network praised Saber as worth the price of admission and one of the coolest heroines in anime. Chris Beveridge of Mania Entertainment liked her development and team-ups with Shirou. Writers from DVDTalk and IGN found the romantic relationship between Saber and Shirou the most appealing in gaming and anime.