"Fate/Zero" is a story that depicts the Fourth Holy Grail War that took place 10 years before the main story "Fate/stay night", and features eight Masters and eight Servants. Today we will be introducing Rider's Master "Waver", his true identity and how he is portrayed in the story.
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Waver's profile
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Rider's master in the Fourth Holy Grail War. A student at the Clock Tower in London. 19 years old. He had parents, but they died several years ago. He is the third generation of the Velvet family as a magician, but Waver was the first to start studying magic seriously, so he is essentially the first generation. As a result, his magic circuits and markings are poor, and he has a complex about his shallow family background as a magician. He tries to make up for the difference with effort and talent, but is looked down upon.
Divided Evaluation
Therefore, he is harshly criticized by "straightforward" magicians such as Kayneth and Tohsaka Tokiomi in the story. On the other hand, he is highly regarded by heretics or non-standard people such as Kiritsugu Emiya, Iskandar, and Gilgamesh, even though their intentions are different.
Motivation for participating in the Holy Grail War
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His motivation for participating is to make everyone recognize his talent. In the story, he is harshly criticized by normal magicians due to his Magic Circuits and Magic Crests, but he is highly praised by the unconventional characters for his flexible thinking, which will be discussed later.
He participates in the Holy Grail War out of spite?!
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He is a narcissist (or rather, naive) who does not hesitate to believe that he is superior, but in reality he is so immature and untalented that he cannot even perfectly hint at ordinary people.
Many elements of a magician's abilities are determined by heredity, and the more generations a person has, the more magic circuits they have, and the higher the quality of the magic they inherit through their magic crests tends to be.
The target of ridicule
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As a result, the Clocktower at that time was permeated with a corrupted culture that said that even if you were not good at studying, the longer your family history, the more important you were. In order to appeal against this situation, Waver argued that the individual's talent should be recognized rather than hereditary, but he was the target of ridicule from his teacher Archibald and the other students around him. No matter how much knowledge he has of magic, he is born with poor magic circuits and cannot use high-level magic.
Grudge...
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He is jealous of his instructor, Kayneth, because he ripped up the magic theory book he wrote and said it was pointless. Incidentally, it seems likely that the content itself was as bad as Kayneth said. In the anime, he was made a fool of in the auditorium with other students gathered, but it was a completely revengeful act. Still harboring this resentment, he steals the relic that was supposed to be delivered to Kayneth, summons Rider, and participates in the Holy Grail War.
Abilities as a magician
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His abilities as a magician are average. Although not directly related, he is familiar with modern technology and machine operation, which magicians normally dislike, and has flexible values that are not bound by convention. The magic he uses in the story includes hypnotic suggestion, controlling familiars, night vision, and basic alchemy. Although his magic is somewhat inferior to other magicians who appear in the story, his types are diverse.
Analysis using alchemy
Although alchemy is not his specialty, he happened to learn it when he was a student of Kayneth while he was at the Clock Tower. He uses this alchemy to steadily analyze water quality and find the hiding place of Caster's camp. (Actually, Assassin and the Archer camp, who are in cahoots with Assassin, found out about it before Waver did.)
Shows his natural intelligence
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Rider is also impressed by this achievement, saying, "Isn't he actually incredibly talented?", but Waver is dissatisfied that he was praised for a technique that a first-class magician would not have to use. However, in terms of his perspective and the aforementioned flexible values and thinking, Rider's assessment is not entirely wrong.
Waver unintentionally produces a surprising result
Although Waver himself hadn't intended it at all, this method ended up surprising Emiya Kiritsugu, who had a certain fixed idea that "magicians build their own magic workshops (fortresses equipped with barriers and weapons) and use them as their bases." This was also due to the fact that Waver himself did not have the technology or funds to build a magic workshop.
Waver, the owner of great luck
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In addition, Rider's Noble Phantasm, the Gordian Wheel, made it difficult to track him, and Kiritsugu was unable to pinpoint Waver's whereabouts until the end of the Holy Grail War. For this reason, he highly praised Waver, calling him "wiser than Kayneth," and even after locating the base, he was wary of traps and was hesitant to attack. He had conducted reconnaissance and stakeouts several times, but Waver was out at the time, making him a bold move that showed him to be "an enemy not to be underestimated."
Growing Waver
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He is a narcissist who believes himself to be excellent and believes that the people around him do not acknowledge him because they are jealous of his talent. However, in reality, he is an immature, untalented, weak and twisted person who cannot perfectly carry out hints to ordinary people. However, by coming into contact with Rider's overwhelming power, greatness, and charisma, he realizes his own immaturity and smallness, and grows as a person through hardship.
Is he more of a protagonist than the main character?
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At first, he and Rider didn't get along, but they gradually opened up to each other and somehow built a good relationship. As he wins, he is impressed by Rider's charisma and generosity, and grows as a person. As can be seen from episode 23 of the anime, even though he is constantly being pushed around, he does not use a single Command Spell until the end of the series. Also, because of the content of the Command Spell, fans have commented that he is "more of a protagonist than the protagonist himself."
Even Gilgamesh acknowledges it
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At the end of the game, even though he lost Rider, he confronts Gilgamesh without running away, and resolutely vows to Rider, as if his earlier weak behavior was a lie,
showing his growth to the point that he lets Gilgamesh off, saying, "It's loyalty and a righteous cause."
Waver after the Holy Grail War
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During the Holy Grail War, he was made aware of his lack of talent in magic, and took over the research of Kayneth, who was defeated in the Holy Grail War, and came to recognize Kayneth's talent and the necessity of his generation. Although he has many shortcomings as a magician, he is top-notch when it comes to producing others, and later becomes a successful educator. He sent many of his students out into the world as famous magicians, and was given the title "Lord El-Melloi II."
Unchanging Jealousy
However, he does not seem to be proud of his current state of success as a teacher, and is jealous of students who are becoming famous instead of him, and it seems that he still wants to be recognized for his own talent as a magician. After dismantling the Greater Holy Grail together with the head of the Tohsaka family ten years after the Fifth Holy Grail War, he is known as the man who dismantled the Holy Grail War. There are depictions that suggest that the Clock Tower also values the fact that he returned from the Holy Grail War unscathed.
Evaluation from others
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Although he is a magician, his way of thinking is more like that of an ordinary person, and he is somewhat familiar with modern science and technology, which is generally considered unfamiliar to magicians. In addition, his knowledge as a magician is so deep that even experienced magicians are astonished. He makes use of these things and adopts new methods without being bound by old methods, so he is seen as an innovator among the Clock Tower executives. However, in reality, he will adopt any method, old or new, if it is effective, so it is more accurate to say that he is moderate. When he was first promoted as a Lord, he was thought to be a puppet of El-Melloi, but it seems that he soon overturned that opinion.
Evaluation from his students
Perhaps because he never gives up on his students, he is admired not only for his skills as a teacher but also for his personality, and his students have (arbitrarily) given him titles such as "No. 1 man to sleep with in the clocktower." It is said that if he gathers his students together, the balance of power in the Clock Tower will change.
Summary
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There are various feuds between the camps, and the story progresses without being able to resolve them, but the Rider camp is different. Waver, the weakest magician, is servile about his own immaturity and takes out his anger on the Riders. However, by spending time with the bold and carefree Rider, Waver grows as a person. His bravery and the bond he forms with Rider will leave you in tears at the end.
