The Freeshooter
Name: Unknown
Class: Archer
Alternate Classes: None
Alignment: Chaotic Neutral
Parameters:
STR: E
END: D
AGI: D
MGI: E
LCK: E
Background:
The Freeshooter, more accurately known as Freischütz in the native Germanic tongue, is a folktale of a hunter who makes a deal with the devil to gain magical bullets, perfect for hunting elusive prey and gaining fame for performing impossible shots. As a folkloric creation, there never was a single specific Freischütz in history, but rather a number of simple huntsmen who did make some form of deal, contract or desperate plea to any number of demons, faeries or other nonhuman beings for assistance in their hunt. As a result of there never having been a single famed freeshooter there was never a Heroic Spirit who reached the Throne, but there are a number of wraiths who fit the description of the freeshooter well enough to be called upon with the correct catalyst or an incorrect ritual. This particular wraith, as a normal human, was notably weak and would never have stood a chance at even becoming a wraith were it not for the demonic contract that keeps a copy of his spirit lingering in the records, and it is only through the base parameters of the Archer container boosting up his levels that the Freeshooter is able to even rank at a superhuman level.
Morose and grim, the Freischütz is a simple man with not much to say in a world far beyond his own little sphere of forest hunting. He misses his wife terribly and feels a deep guilt and self-hatred for it was his own magical bullet that killed her, as the devil’s payment for giving the hunter the bullets in the first place. He is a religious man as well, and deeply mistrustful of anything that might be construed as demonic or evil, but aside from all of his layman’s baggage the hunter has a genuinely good heart, and is honest and direct about his intentions. His great wish is to slay the demon that gave him the enchanted bullets in the first place.
Class Skills:
Magical Resistance [E]: The minimal level of magical resistance, forcibly provided to the hunter by way of the Archer class. It will not stop any magic at all, but can lessen the effects of weaker magecraft somewhat.
Independent Action [D]: Freischütz was a hunter and as an Archer manages some degree of independence from his Master but he has a low enough Magic parameter that even then he can’t last more than an hour without a supply of prana.
Personal Skills:
Clairevoyance [E]: As a hunter, the Freeshooter has a talent for picking out small movements and oddities at a reasonable range. He is able to notice even small movements within a hundred meters of himself and has superior visual perception, being able to see accurately out to about half a kilometer. Additionally, he has a slightly greater ability to see through obstructions such as mist, foliage or other non-solid interference than normal humans.
One With Nature (Forest) [C]: The hunter is intimately aware of the conditions of European-style forests and can use this to his advantage to blend in and better conceal himself in such environments, as well as track others through forests. Additionally, his ability to avoid or escape movement-constraining techniques is enhanced somewhat while in a forest.
Noble Phantasm:
Der Freischütz
The Devil’s Hunting Bullets
Type: Anti-Unit
Rank: C+
Description: Aside from the hunting knife that the Freeshooter always carries on him, this is the only real weapon he has, as the devil’s contract requires that any projectile weapon he uses should become the magic bullets that were given to him. To this end, the hunter does not actually begin with any bow or gun, rather it must be supplied to him after he has been called upon. Any projectile weapon he uses automatically becomes this Rank C+ Noble Phantasm, and he has no choice in the matter. Each projectile he fires bears the demonic concept of “hitting the target” and as such the Phantasm functions much like Gae Bolg, materialising in a killing strike and then unwinding back to the point of firing in a variation of inverted causation. After the fact the whole scene is reversed and played out in a format that allows perception of the altered reality as a normal timestream, essentially like watching a video in rewind. Because of how the projectile manifests first in the killing point and then unwinds before the whole scene is reversed there are very few Phantasms that can defend against the bullets. To do so would require strong conceptual defenses such as Godhand or its ilk.
However, there are other ways to avoid the killing strike. Firstly, much like Gae Bolg, one can overturn their fate by having a high enough LCK parameter, with Rank C being sufficient to give the Servant a narrow chance at attempting a saving throw. Rank A LCK will always guarantee a saving roll can be made, but does not guarantee the outcome of the roll in and of itself. Secondly, as a demonic enchantment, it is possible to avoid being killed, or perhaps being hit altogether, if one has high enough ranks in Protection of the Faith, Saint or other skills related to overcoming demonic taints.
The greatest downside to this Phantasm is that when the deal with the devil was first struck, seven bullets were cast and the devil claimed the last as his own. After six projectiles have been fired by the Freischütz, the seventh will, without fail, warp reality so that it kills his Master instantly and causes him to vanish moments after, completely negating his Independent Action skill. He will never fire the seventh projectile of his own volition, and only something on the level of a Command Seal can prompt him to fire that bullet, but unfortunately the curse of the magical bullets means that the Freeshooter is completely incapable of telling anyone the conditions of the seventh bullet until after it is fired, or revealing his nature as “Freischütz”. He can only hope that any Master, upon finding out his identity, will bother to research the folklore enough to figure out the terrible curse laid upon the seventh bullet by themselves.
Notes: Everybody loves a Servant that can potentially one-shot every other Servant in a war, right? Right? Okay, that's a lie, but this one I think is interesting enough and has enough of a downside on him that he'd make an interesting Servant nonetheless. Weak, no weapon aside from his limited-use Phantasm, somewhat easy-ish to avoid the killing shot. There are probably other ways to avoid the killing shot that I didn't list or think of, and if even one shot misses he's pretty much screwed unless he's willing to take other Servants on with his hunting knife.
Originally Posted by Seika
