TV-Series
Description
In the visual novel and anime series Fate/stay night, the Servant summoned in the Caster class is the legendary figure Medea from Greek mythology. Known to the other characters simply as Caster, her true identity is that of the princess of Colchis, a powerful witch from the Age of Gods whose tragic life was marked by betrayal and manipulation.
Caster's background is one of relentless tragedy. She was the daughter of King Aeëtes, a powerful magus, and she herself was a talented practitioner of magic. Her fate was sealed when the hero Jason arrived at her homeland seeking the Golden Fleece. The goddess Aphrodite, wishing to aid Jason, cast a spell on Medea that made her fall blindly in love with him. This forced love led her to betray her own father and country, using her magic to help Jason steal the Fleece. Her descent into the role of a "witch" continued when Aphrodite again compelled her to kill and dismember her own brother to aid their escape. After years of further manipulation and murder on Jason's behalf, he ultimately abandoned her for another woman, leading her to kill his new bride and her own children in a final act of revenge. From that point on, Medea was branded a witch by the world and came to accept that role, becoming the bitter, cynical, and immensely powerful sorcerer she is as a Servant.
In the story of the Fifth Holy Grail War, Caster is initially summoned by a magus from the Mages' Association. Her first Master was a cautious man who dreamed of victory but refused to take any risks. He did not trust her and kept her magical energy low, treating her coldly. Caster, in turn, had no respect for him. She played the role of a docile Servant, tricking him into wasting his three Command Spells on meaningless orders. The moment his final Command Spell was used, she killed him with her Noble Phantasm, Rule Breaker, and was left on the verge of disappearing due to the broken contract.
Moments before her spiritual form could dissipate, she stumbled upon Souichirou Kuzuki at the base of Ryuudou Temple. Kuzuki, a man of unusual disposition, agreed to form a new contract with her without any hesitation or apparent ulterior motive. For Caster, who had only ever been used and betrayed by others, Kuzuki's genuine and unconditional aid was transformative. She fell deeply in love with him, as he was the first person to ever show her such sincerity and loyalty. Her motivation in the Holy Grail War shifted entirely. No longer did she seek the wish-granting Grail for her own purposes; her sole desire became to preserve her peaceful, if fleeting, time with Kuzuki at any cost.
To achieve this, she established a massive magical stronghold on the grounds of Ryuudou Temple. She used its spiritual alignment to amplify her power and began siphoning magical energy from the souls of Fuyuki City's residents to sustain herself and her territory. She also took command of the Assassin class Servant, binding him to the temple gate to serve as her guardian. Her role in the Holy Grail War is that of a powerful, scheming antagonist. She prefers to operate from her fortified base, manipulating events from the shadows and avoiding direct confrontation whenever possible. Her primary weakness is her poor physical parameters, which make her vulnerable in close-quarters combat against powerful Servants like Berserker or Saber.
Caster’s key relationships define her actions. Her relationship with Kuzuki is the core of her character; she is utterly devoted to him and sees him as her sole salvation. In her eyes, she is not a witch but a woman preparing for marriage, and she presents herself as Kuzuki's fiancée to the monks at the temple. Her relationship with other characters is largely antagonistic. She sees other female magi, particularly mature ones, as rivals and shows little mercy toward them. She also holds a distinct dislike for overly muscular men, which is a point of contention with the hulking Servant Berserker, whom she considers her greatest enemy.
Throughout the narrative's different routes, Caster's character development varies, though she consistently meets her end. In the Fate route, she is killed swiftly by Gilgamesh. Her most substantial role is in the Unlimited Blade Works route, where she successfully uses Rule Breaker to sever Saber's contract with Shirou Emiya and claims Saber as her own Servant. She also manipulates and forges an alliance with Archer after he betrays Rin Tohsaka. In this route, her love for Kuzuki is most clearly demonstrated when she sacrifices herself to shield him from a fatal attack by the traitorous Archer, confessing her love for him with her dying breath. In the Heaven's Feel route, she is killed early on, and her body is later desecrated and used as a puppet by Zouken Matou.
Caster possesses a range of notable abilities that make her one of the most formidable magical threats in the war. As a magus from the Age of Gods, her sorcery is on an entirely different plane from that of modern mages; she is considered a magus infinitely close to a true Magician. She possesses the skill High-Speed Divine Words, which allows her to activate powerful spells in a single action, without the need for long incantations. Her class skills include Territory Creation at rank A, which allowed her to create a temple superior to a standard workshop, and Item Construction at rank A, letting her create a variety of magical items, including powerful healing potions. Her other skills include the ability to teleport, fly, and summon hordes of skeletal warriors to attack her enemies.
Her most famous ability, however, is her Noble Phantasm: Rule Breaker. This is a bizarre, ritualistic dagger that possesses no combat utility; its blade is so weak it can barely harm a normal person. Its true power is its anti-magic property: any magical contract, bond, or enchantment it stabs is instantly severed and returned to its component parts. Caster uses this to break the contract between a Master and their Servant, effectively stealing the Servant for herself. She also holds the Golden Fleece as a Noble Phantasm, which can summon a dragon, but she never utilizes this power during the Fifth Holy Grail War.
Caster's background is one of relentless tragedy. She was the daughter of King Aeëtes, a powerful magus, and she herself was a talented practitioner of magic. Her fate was sealed when the hero Jason arrived at her homeland seeking the Golden Fleece. The goddess Aphrodite, wishing to aid Jason, cast a spell on Medea that made her fall blindly in love with him. This forced love led her to betray her own father and country, using her magic to help Jason steal the Fleece. Her descent into the role of a "witch" continued when Aphrodite again compelled her to kill and dismember her own brother to aid their escape. After years of further manipulation and murder on Jason's behalf, he ultimately abandoned her for another woman, leading her to kill his new bride and her own children in a final act of revenge. From that point on, Medea was branded a witch by the world and came to accept that role, becoming the bitter, cynical, and immensely powerful sorcerer she is as a Servant.
In the story of the Fifth Holy Grail War, Caster is initially summoned by a magus from the Mages' Association. Her first Master was a cautious man who dreamed of victory but refused to take any risks. He did not trust her and kept her magical energy low, treating her coldly. Caster, in turn, had no respect for him. She played the role of a docile Servant, tricking him into wasting his three Command Spells on meaningless orders. The moment his final Command Spell was used, she killed him with her Noble Phantasm, Rule Breaker, and was left on the verge of disappearing due to the broken contract.
Moments before her spiritual form could dissipate, she stumbled upon Souichirou Kuzuki at the base of Ryuudou Temple. Kuzuki, a man of unusual disposition, agreed to form a new contract with her without any hesitation or apparent ulterior motive. For Caster, who had only ever been used and betrayed by others, Kuzuki's genuine and unconditional aid was transformative. She fell deeply in love with him, as he was the first person to ever show her such sincerity and loyalty. Her motivation in the Holy Grail War shifted entirely. No longer did she seek the wish-granting Grail for her own purposes; her sole desire became to preserve her peaceful, if fleeting, time with Kuzuki at any cost.
To achieve this, she established a massive magical stronghold on the grounds of Ryuudou Temple. She used its spiritual alignment to amplify her power and began siphoning magical energy from the souls of Fuyuki City's residents to sustain herself and her territory. She also took command of the Assassin class Servant, binding him to the temple gate to serve as her guardian. Her role in the Holy Grail War is that of a powerful, scheming antagonist. She prefers to operate from her fortified base, manipulating events from the shadows and avoiding direct confrontation whenever possible. Her primary weakness is her poor physical parameters, which make her vulnerable in close-quarters combat against powerful Servants like Berserker or Saber.
Caster’s key relationships define her actions. Her relationship with Kuzuki is the core of her character; she is utterly devoted to him and sees him as her sole salvation. In her eyes, she is not a witch but a woman preparing for marriage, and she presents herself as Kuzuki's fiancée to the monks at the temple. Her relationship with other characters is largely antagonistic. She sees other female magi, particularly mature ones, as rivals and shows little mercy toward them. She also holds a distinct dislike for overly muscular men, which is a point of contention with the hulking Servant Berserker, whom she considers her greatest enemy.
Throughout the narrative's different routes, Caster's character development varies, though she consistently meets her end. In the Fate route, she is killed swiftly by Gilgamesh. Her most substantial role is in the Unlimited Blade Works route, where she successfully uses Rule Breaker to sever Saber's contract with Shirou Emiya and claims Saber as her own Servant. She also manipulates and forges an alliance with Archer after he betrays Rin Tohsaka. In this route, her love for Kuzuki is most clearly demonstrated when she sacrifices herself to shield him from a fatal attack by the traitorous Archer, confessing her love for him with her dying breath. In the Heaven's Feel route, she is killed early on, and her body is later desecrated and used as a puppet by Zouken Matou.
Caster possesses a range of notable abilities that make her one of the most formidable magical threats in the war. As a magus from the Age of Gods, her sorcery is on an entirely different plane from that of modern mages; she is considered a magus infinitely close to a true Magician. She possesses the skill High-Speed Divine Words, which allows her to activate powerful spells in a single action, without the need for long incantations. Her class skills include Territory Creation at rank A, which allowed her to create a temple superior to a standard workshop, and Item Construction at rank A, letting her create a variety of magical items, including powerful healing potions. Her other skills include the ability to teleport, fly, and summon hordes of skeletal warriors to attack her enemies.
Her most famous ability, however, is her Noble Phantasm: Rule Breaker. This is a bizarre, ritualistic dagger that possesses no combat utility; its blade is so weak it can barely harm a normal person. Its true power is its anti-magic property: any magical contract, bond, or enchantment it stabs is instantly severed and returned to its component parts. Caster uses this to break the contract between a Master and their Servant, effectively stealing the Servant for herself. She also holds the Golden Fleece as a Noble Phantasm, which can summon a dragon, but she never utilizes this power during the Fifth Holy Grail War.