Create-A-Servant 3

[Vididii]

Finally, a lancer that can satisfy Medb…

[Random]

inb4 it's another Beast III that we're talking about.

[DelRey]

inb4 it's another Beast III that we're talking about.

lol, i am laughing out loud because Idk if he did that in his career too, so I googled if he played any of those kind, and at that moment the background music of my Opera GX stopped playing like "wtf dude"

literally:

[jishara]

Source: Siriuflong

Class: Rider
Other Classes: N/A
True Name: Ayrton Senna
Alignment: Neutral Good
Place of Origin: Brazil (20th Century)

Parameters:

STR: D
END: B
AGI: B
MGI: C
LCK: E
NP: C

Height: 181cm
Weight: 120lbs
Likes: Racing, perfection
Dislikes: Imperfection
Talent: Racing cars
Natural Enemy: Francis Drake, Christopher Columbus
Attribute: Man
Traits: Humanoid, Male, Weak to Enuma Elish
Armament: Cars produced by Affection of Nippon
Catalyst: His helmet

Class Skills:

Riding C+: He was noted as a racecar driver. He gains this rank, permitting him to ride average vehicles with a decent skill. This ranks up severely with cars, allowing him to perform utterly ridiculous feats with them.

Magic Resistance E: Senna never actually came across magic in life, and as such, gains a minimal rank in this skill.

Personal Skills:

Affection of Nippon A: He was utterly adored by Japan, becoming one of the most famed people from outside of Japan within it, surpassing even Da Vinci, Napoleon, Miyamoto Musashi, Gandhi, Mozart, Zhuge Liang, and Murasaki Shibiru in terms of popularity. As a skill, all Japanese-related heroic spirits will gain an immediate affection for him and he will have a higher chance of obtaining their true name. In addition, he can ask for almost any nonmagical item and it will float down on a paper lantern, though this costs mana and time. He prefers to use this to collect his cars.

Berserk C: He went berserk many times in his life, entering a screaming rage and attacking. As a skill, whenever he is in an extremely stressful situation this activates, ranking up his Strength and making him close to immune to mental interference below B for a duration, but causing him to attack without any sence of control.

Precision Driving A: He was noted for his extremely precise driving to create the maximum possible speed and the minimum possible time, though this came with the flaw that if he miscalculated he would crash, such as in the Dallas Grand Prix, where he collided with a wall because it was a few millimeters off. As a skill, this allows him to relatively easily calculate situations for the "perfect" moving and easily complete it as long as all of the factors he entered are correct.

Noble Phantasm(s):

Atravesse Tunel
I Enter A Trance

Type: Support
Rank: C
Range: 0 meters
Max Targets: Self

He notably "went into a trance" during his greatest races, envisioning it as entering a tunnel. This noble phantasm is the sublimation of that, causing him to, when activated, enter that tunnel, nullifying outside distractions such as Mental Interference and magic that would stop him in order to "create the perfect race".

Lore: Ayrton Senna was one of the most famous Formula 1 drivers of all time, noted for his extreme precision and speed, gaining record numbers of championships in many grand prixes including the Monaco grand prix. He became famed around the world, but most notably in Brazil, his home, and Japan, where his sports fame has never been eclipsed.

Personality: A perfectionist who adores making the perfect run. He dislikes anyone who doesn't strive for perfection or somehow, no matter whether that was unintentional or even unknowably happening, harms his perfection. But he loves to help everyone else. His wish for the grail would merely be to ensure perfection in every run, especially his last, his greatest regret.

Relationships:

Astolfo: "...Hippogriffs exist? Odd. What is your most favorable run?"

Francis Drake: "First person around the world, huh? It would be interesting to race you."

Christopher Columbus: "...Utterly vile...you were revered, but you shouldn't be..."

Barthomelew Roberts: "Impressive strategies, especially your Noble Phantasm."

Boudica: "I truly admire your kindness... even through it all."

[BnEl15]

Assassin of the Flourishing Château
-- Empress of the Rose Garden --

"Ah, so it's that time again, huh... Servant Assassin, Joséphine Bonaparte, Duchess of Navarre, once Empress of France, and former wife of Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte, at your service... or so I'd like to say. As of now, I am but a simple gardener and a patron of all things beautiful. I bear no responsibility whatsoever for what happened in the Revolution, nor that man's... questionable military decisions afterward. Truth be told, I'd rather not have you address me as Empress. Or as Joséphine for that matter. My childhood name, Rose should suffice. I swear, those titles will be the death of me one day. If not on my previous life, on this one..."
~ ♬ ~


Source

Ascension 2

Source

"I wasn't always a member of royalty, you know. My father was a knight, and my mother was a housewife. We were relatively well-off thanks to my family's sugarcane plantation, but we're not exactly super wealthy either. So that gave me an idea; if I return to those days and start wearing less conspicuous clothes again, would that be enough for the world to leave me alone? ...No, I suppose not."

Ascension 3

Source

"​Eh? What..? Excusez-moi, Maitre, but do you seriously something this flashy is fit for an Assassin? Er, not that I have any experience on that front either. Don't you think this whole thing would just make me an easier target for angry mobs looking for someone to guillotine? People lost their heads for less back then, you know? As much as I love beautiful things, this is... well, I suppose I can appreciate the craftsmanship on this one, if nothing else. This dress looks like something sown by the great Miss Bertin herself! Ahem, anyway, I have no clue why you would expect anything of me, yet here we are. I shall be troubling you for a while longer, it seems."

Final Ascension

Source

"For the longest time, I've loved beautiful things. Paintings, sculptures, furniture... I loved my rose garden most of all, of course. A long time ago, I foolishly thought that marrying the most powerful man in the country would allow me to see even more beautiful things. For a while, that was true. Several wars, assassination attempts, and political uprisings later, I realized that I was wrong. I wanted to spend the afternoon tending to my garden, away from all that mess. Still... it doesn't seem like you'll let me run away that easily, hm, Maitre? Fine. You've pushed me this far, so I might as well try a little, just to return the favor. I'll still demand a lot from you, though. I plan to indulge myself in my hobbies to the fullest here, so... the construction of an atelier or the introduction of new plants in the garden should be a good place to start."

"Why am I an Assassin, you ask? Hm... Why not? When you have class advantage against the most powerful man in France, you should be set for practically everything else, right?"
...
"W-Wait, what do you mean he's not here as a Rider!? What happened to that Grande Armée he boasted so much about!?"
...
"I see, I see, so that's how it is! Fufu, my deepest apologies, Maitre, but I just remembered I have something to take care of in the garden! Can you call me again in... never?"

Class: Assassin
Other Classes: Caster
True Name: Joséphine Bonaparte
Alignment: Neutral Evil
Origin: France (18th century)

Parameters:

STR: E
END: D
AGI: D
MGI: E
LCK: B
NP: C

Likes: Roses, paintings, sculptures, her dog, staying far, far away from the battlefield
Dislikes: People who would drag her away from her "safe space" (garden), guillotines, standing out
Talent: Gardening, acting, recognizing art, collecting and cultivating new types of roses
Natural Enemy: Napoleon Bonaparte
Armament: Roses, military pistol, ornamental dagger, Fortune
Catalyst: A light pink rose named after her, the Impératrice Joséphine

Class Skills

Presence Concealment (D)

The capacity to hide one's presence as a Servant. However, the level of concealment drops sharply the moment one prepares to attack. At this rank, it's suitable for spying as long as no sudden movements are made. Assassin has no feat pertaining to stealth. On the contrary, she was a beautiful member of high society who turned heads wherever she went. As someone who only qualified for the Class thanks to some loosely-interpreted technicalities, her Presence Concealment is roughly comparable to a celebrity's mediocre attempt at going incognito.

"I'd rather stay home and tend to the château if I can help it, but I suppose you just can't avoid some public appearances no matter how much you try... Ahem, on another note, if you want to a more specific explanation for my Class, I suppose there two main reasons for it. First, the perception that Napoleon may have started that war partially for my sake, or that I at least profited from it in some manner. That makes me indirectly responsible for the men who died there. Second, the idea that I, um... I may have, sort of, possibly, technically 'assassinated' the country's economy for the construction of the Château de Malmaison, which I... cannot entirely dispute. Anyway, these sentiments painting me as an 'indirect murderer' was quite prevalent back then, which granted me access to this Class through a process similar to Innocent Monster."

Personal Skills

Affection of the First Consul (A+)

"The only thing that ever came between us was my debts; certainly not his manhood."

A variation of Imperial Privilege born of Assassin's status as Empress of the French, as well as Napoleon's intense love for her. The Emperor wrote her many letters even during his expeditions, of which only a few she actually wrote back (usually in a less-than-passionate manner). He kept a picture of her in his pocket and gave it kisses at every hour, while she hardly ever looked at his picture. Even after their relationship soured and they divorced, he still gave her an influential title, along with a considerable amount of wealth.

Usable Skills include Object of Devotion, Golden Rule, and several of Napoleon's Skills (although their rank is low, considering Assassin's inexperience with military affairs). Furthermore, her mere presence causes a powerful compulsion for men in positions of power to protect her.

"Rather one-sided, isn't it? Romance was never my forte, but do you think that man simply loved the 'me' in his head, rather than the actual me? He loved the Joséphine who replied to his letters in flowery words and kissed his picture at every waking moment. He waged wars and plundered countries for her sake, a Joséphine who never existed. When you look at it that way, it's honestly tragic that..."
...
"Waaait a second! That would be a far too generous interpretation of his character! I just remembered that one time he said 'Power is my mistress' with that usual cocky smirk on his face! Wherever he goes, he turns his brain off in exchange for that irresponsible sense of idealism he has! Forget what I said earlier! There's absolutely no use trying to sympathize with that man! He's just that insufferable!"

Information Obfuscation (D)

A Skill that can be considered one level higher than your average Information Erasure. Rather than simply "removing" information, Assassin "replaces" bits and pieces of them, scrambling the original message and misleading others into a false interpretation of the facts. A Skill she received based on a minor feat of reducing her age by 4 years and increasing Napoleon's by 18 months in their marriage certificate, so that they would appear roughly the same age. It is theorized that one reason she chose to do this was to prevent gossip of the Emperor marrying a widow six years his senior, which would paint her as a seductive, morally-depraved woman who only married him for his wealth. Whatever the case, this lie successfully lasted several years and protected her public image for a time.

At this rank, this Skill is limited to making small "edits" to written text and manipulating the placement of small objects or other minor details. Its practical usage is quite limited, but it can still be very useful if applied cleverly in certain scenarios.

"Is there something inherently contradictory about an Empress not wishing to stand out, you ask? When you put it like that, I suppose you have a point. Still, believe it or not, everything worked out just fine for a while! That man is out there fighting his wars, while I'm free to develop my garden as I see fit and marvel at the finest pieces of art Europe has to offer. I thought I was living the life... until some people showed staunch opposition to that idiot's military campaigns. Apparently all that chaos he brought across the continent in the name of his ambitions came back to bite him in the arse! My, who could have ever seen that coming? And worse, these people soon deemed me guilty by association! Seeing just how things unfolded back then, it's only natural that I'd want to remove myself from the spotlight and stay as far away as possible from the guillotine, right!?"

Aesthetic Appreciation (A)

A Skill denoting one's infatuation with works of art. Assassin was best known for her interest in horticulture, but her passion towards the artistic world was undeniable. She surrounded herself with creative people whose work ranged from paintings and sculpture to furniture and the architecture all around her. Using her wealth, reputation, and connections, she came to know many notable artists of the time and familiarized herself with their different styles. She became a patron the several of these artists, whose careers soon flourished in the art scene, in part thanks to her assistance. She even spent time studying the works of old masters, as well as looking for budding talents whose styles were bold enough to challenge the accepted standards of the time. Eventually, she became one of Europe's leading collectors of the arts, on a scale that surpassed most of her contemporaries.

If Assassin happens to witness a Noble Phantasm containing artistic anecdotes (European art in particular), there is a high chance that she would be able to deduce the user's True Name.

"Oh yes, I am a fan of all things beautiful. On the rare occasions I actually leave the château, I did so to visit museums and galleries. I was fascinated by the skills of the old masters, and I looked forward to seeing new faces at the exhibitions. It's just that, um... at the time, France had no place for such things. I wish we could all just forget the sorrows of the world and bask in its beauty, but I suppose it's hard to do when you're hungry, the economy is in shambles, and the 'Emperor' out there picking fights with our neighbors. Art must be the last thing on their minds, not that I blame them for it."

Familiar (Fortune) (D++)

"Do you see that gentleman? He is my rival. He was in possession of the Madam's bed when I married her. I wished to remove him but it was quite useless to think of it. I was told that I must either sleep elsewhere or consent to share my bed. That annoyed me considerably, but I had to make up my mind. I gave way. The favorite was less accommodating..."

- Napoleon Bonaparte to his friend, Antoine-Vincent Arnault, as he pointed to the pug lying innocently on the sofa

Assassin's beloved pug, one that she absolutely refuses to be summoned without. Apparently she loved the dog so much that she allowed him to sleep on her bed, going so far as to kick the legendary Man of Possibilities off the bed should the little one show any sign of discomfort towards him (which he's all too happy to show. From then on, the two were engaged in bitter rivalry for her affections, and it was said that the dog would often purposefully disrupt whatever "intimate moments" the Emperor tried to set up with his wife, be it by barking loudly, peeing on furniture, or simply biting him should he get too close. And he did so with confidence, knowing his mistress would most likely take his side regardless. This rivalry finally met its untimely end when the pug recklessly picked a fight with a much larger dog belonging to a servant. When the smaller dog lost his life in the ensuing scuffle, Assassin mourned him for weeks. Afterwards, the servant bought her a new pug as a replacement, and promised to keep her dog caged. It was said that Napoleon jokingly responded with "Let him out. Perhaps he can rid me of this new one as well.".

As a familiar, Fortune... does not amount to much. He's highly protective of her mistress, but he barely has any combat potential, and he's prone to picking fights with foes much larger than he is. He can be used to scout or infiltrate certain areas, but like most dogs, he'd most likely get distracted and abandon his orders partway through. Besides, even if his "mission" is a success, there's no way for him to effectively communicate his observations beyond several vague growls and gestures that Assassin could vaguely understand. Thus, it can be said that this dog is closer to a dead weight that Assassin insists on accompanying her rather than any kind of helpful familiar.

...At least, that is the impression one would get until he encounters his lifelong rival. Such a thing would reveal his true nature: the ultimate autonomous Anti-Napoleon Noble Phantasm (Assassin insists that this is not actually a Noble Phantasm, but the effects are roughly equal to one). He holds an absolute conceptual advantage against the Man of Possibilities. After all, there were only three battlefields- three impossibilities- that he was unable to conquer during his lifetime. The first was the freezing winters of Russia. The second was the plains of Waterloo. The third... was his own bedroom, and its fearsome guardian. The pug would go absolutely berserk at the mere mention of his name. In battle, his more docile instincts would disappear as he single-mindedly pursues the man with the intensity of a hardened killer. He would only stop if his mistress ordered it so, and even in a place like Chaldea where all-out confrontations between the two are frowned upon, he would still spend every possible moment performing casual murder attempts at the man, such as "accidentally" knocking down objects to trip him up or mixing random ingredients to his food... accidentally, of course. Other individuals who exhibit character traits similar to Napoleon may also incite this reaction, albeit to a much lesser degree.

Source

"Who's a good boy? Who's a good boy!? You are! Yes you are! I swear, you're honestly better than that blockheaded idiot. At least you'd actually listen when I tell you to stop picking fights with the other dogs... except for that one time. Maybe the two of you are actually more similar than... Nope! I won't ever acknowledge that! That'd be an insult to a good boy like you, wouldn't it?"
...
"Hm? Why I got summoned with him? Well... I asked for it. I can't exactly remember the specifics of what happened in the Throne, but in terms you can understand, um... when the person in charge announced that I qualify as a summonable Heroic Spirit, I refused to be summoned unless he gets to come along. It took a bit of arguing, but in the end, you really can get anything you want if you speak to the manager! Who knew, right? I doubt it was the strangest request the Throne ever accommodated, considering what happened to Monsieur, er... Mademoiselle Da Vinci, to name an example. Anyway, don't worry, Maitre, if his casual murder attempts on that man ever feel too much for you, I can tell him to stop anytime."

Bonus: Fortune, after "accidentally" luring Napoleon into the range of an Anti-Army Noble Phantasm

Source

Noble Phantasm(s)

The Rose is a Mirror to the Heart
Impératrice Joséphine

"Ah, must I really bring out my collection now? You just love making me work, don't you, Maitre? I don't give out my roses to just about anyone, you know?"
...
"Eh? This isn't the same thing? W-Well, in principle, it sort of is, okay!?"

Type: Anti-Unit
Rank: D
Range: -
Max Targets: 1 person

A species of rose dedicated to her name, as a horticulturist who aimed to collect every rose in existence through the use of artificial, controlled pollination. This ambition led to her reputation as the "Godmother of modern rosomaniacs", as well as one of the pioneers of modern rose hybridization. Through her methods, roughly 200 new rose cultivars were discovered in her garden throughout her lifetime, while a further 1000 were discovered within 30 years following her death. She also redefined the naming conventions of roses, from Latinized, pseudo-scientific names to simpler, vernacular ones (such as the R. alba incarnata, which she renamed into the Cuisse de Nymphe Emue). Lastly, her hobbies soon kickstarted a trend among members of Europe's high society, and her gardening styles were adopted by countless people in decades to come.

This Noble Phantasm... does not represent Assassin's grand feats in the field of modern rosology. Rather, it stemmed from a simple habit she developed during her gardening days. It is said that she used to talk to her plants, a technique that some modern botanists believe to be helpful in fostering plant growth. She did not know such a fact back then, of course. She simply saw them as a place to vent out her frustrations. In a time when her husband was constantly away, the nobility was rife with treacherous conspiracies, and the common folk cursed her name, these roses were the only one to listen to her woes without judgment. Rather than mere words, these roses contain emotions and memories, as the only ones who ever "saw" Joséphine Bonaparte for the woman she truly was.

This Noble Phantasm allows Assassin to conjure these roses through magical energy. Their colors start out simple, symbolizing basic emotions; yellow (joy), red (rage), blue (sorrow), purple (fear), green (disgust), and orange (surprise). Coming into contact with these roses would briefly assault the target with a wave of the associated emotion, accompanied by a vivid memory and mirage images that best pertain to the emotion in question. By "hybridizing" two or more roses together, Assassin can create new, different-colored ones representing more specific emotions that cannot be fully described using the initial six. While this Noble Phantasm can be used to influence the target's actions to a certain extent, it has little practical use in combat beyond providing simple distractions. In dire circumstances, Assassin can also "detonate" these roses in a manner similar to Mana Burst (Petals), increasing their range in exchange for slightly reducing their potency.

"I see, I see! So these roses contain the essence of my heart and soul, which... wait. Waaait a second. Um, isn't this essentially the same as me ripping off pages of my diary and using them as projectiles? Some sort of 'emotion grenade' made using my deepest secrets..?"
...
"AAAAH, THIS IS SO EMBARRASSING! I WANNA GO HOME!"

Source

Wistful Domain, Garden of Cherished Days
Château de Malmaison

"Haha, nope, I'm going back to my garden! Deep breaths now, deep breaths... yup, there we go! Nothing bad ever happens here!"

Type: Anti-Unit (Self)
Rank: C
Range: -
Max Targets: 1 (Self)

Assassin's perceived "safe space". Throughout the country's turbulent reconstruction period following the Revolution, the Napoleonic wars, the unsavory rumors, the riots, the assassination attempts, the backstabbing nobles seeking to integrate themselves into the new government... the grand Château de Malmaison had always been Assassin's one respite from the troubles of the world. To her, it was a paradise on earth; a residence filled with exotic plants and animals, as well as various works of art curated by Europe's finest artists. No matter how miserable or dangerous the world outside may be, so long as she remains within the château, she is safe... or at least that's what she believes.

By temporarily retreating into this "safe space", Assassin weakens her presence in the world, temporarily flickering in and out of existence. For a few moments, attacks will harmlessly phase through her, although she won't be able to move either during this fleeting daydream (as she is treated as if she is "in the garden" as opposed to the living, revolving world around her). As the summoning system chains her into the world upon her initial manifestation, this Noble Phantasm is extremely mana-intensive and can only be activated for a few seconds at a time. Most of the time, it simply amounts to a single dodge.

That's all there is to this Noble Phantasm. It does raise some questions as to why such legendary structure can only manifest in Assassin's imagination as opposed to creating a massive reality marble, bringing her inner world outside, but she attributes it to the Class, claiming that such extravagant, eye-catching manor would be ill-suited to a Class most commonly associated with stealth and sneaky murders.

...At least, that is what Assassin insists.

Avaricious Domain, Garden of Starvation
Château de Malmaison

"Hey... I really tried, you know? I spent every second telling you just how much I don't want to be here. I kept trying to resolve things the peaceful way... well, maybe the emotional manipulation from my other Noble Phantasm was a bit much, but I only did that so we don't have to fight, I swear! I'm perfectly aware of my powerlessness, and I'd be more than happy to let you have the Grail or whatever else you desire so long as you can leave me alone to my garden."
..
"...And yet! And yet! You really are just beyond help, aren't you? You rejected my kindness, and continued to see me as some sort of depraved villain to overcome despite my best efforts. So be it. This is fine. This isn't the first time people considered me as the second coming of Antoinette despite my objections. Theatrics isn't really my thing, and I really hoped it wouldn't come to this, but if you're so insistent on making me the villain, then... kneel. Your Empress commands you."

Type: Anti-Territory
Rank: C
Range: 1-500
Max Targets: -

In truth, the Château de Malmaison was something of a double-edged blade. It was a "safe space" that shielded Assassin from the sorrows of the world. That much is true. Yet at the same time, it also served as a constant reminder of her greatest fault in the eyes of her enemies, one that allowed her to qualify for the Class. The "assassination" of France's economy. The Revolution already did a number on the country's economy as prices skyrocketed and starvation ran rampant. Soon afterwards, the country just barely started to rebuild when the construction of a massive château sent it back into economic collapse. Not only did the Emperor allocated a large portion of the country's existing resources (which... barely existed after the chaos to begin with) for its construction, he also funneled the wealth he acquired from his campaigns there, as opposed to the more urgent stabilization of the newborn republic. While the Empress' role amidst this incident- whether she was the one who urged her husband to build the manor, or if she had little to no involvement in the entire process- is unclear, the fact that the château was Napoleon's "gift" to her was enough to channel the public's outrage. It was honestly a miracle that neither the new Emperor nor the Empress ended up guillotined following the manor's establishment.

This Noble Phantasm is one that Assassin is deeply ashamed of. It reminds her of her own selfishness, which indirectly led to the deaths of many. It is a reminder that no matter what she does to atone, some will still consider her as an unrepentant villain. A second Antoinette hiding away in her second Versailles. Thus, Assassin normally refuses to unleash this Noble Phantasm, limiting its release into the simple "safe space" that she considers the château as. That is the true nature of Assassin's "inner world".

The true release of this Noble Phantasm can only be done under another established territory, be it a reality marble, a bounded field, or any other form of recognized "territory" that is not her own. Upon its activation, Assassin hijacks this territory with her own laws, forcing the initial territory owner to maintain said territory, as well as preventing them (as well as other affected targets) from escaping. Upon its activation, a spotlight seemingly shines down within a small radius of Assassin, denoting the "garden". Within this light, her recovery capabilities are boosted, while all incoming damage is partially reduced. Outside this "garden", however... the mana cost for every action is tripled, and said mana is periodically siphoned to empower Assassin. In this state, even small movements would take a significant toll on the body. Finally, skeletal hands may randomly burst from the ground, madly grasping at anything they perceive to be responsible for their suffering. While Assassin herself is not immune to damage from these hands, enemies caught in them will have an even harder time breaking free, until this Noble Phantasm sucks them dry.

The length of time at which Assassin can maintain this Noble Phantasm varies from several minutes to an entire hour, depending on the territory that served as its basis (she tends to have trouble managing larger territories). Since the initial territory owner loses their ability to deactivate said territory at will throughout this Noble Phantasm's duration, the only way to forcibly deactivate it would be to kill said territory owner, or at least severely injure them (or make them lose consciousness) to the point they won't be able to keep it active anymore. Servants with the conceptual ability to "escape" things may also be able to leave without much effort. Ultimately, it's important to note that the whole mana-drain aspect is the single most dangerous thing about this Noble Phantasm. The hands are slow-moving and have limited range, while Assassin herself receives no offensive boost from the "garden". So long as one has some method to circumvent the drain, one may be able to weather this Noble Phantasm with little problem.

Source

Lore

The Empress of France following the bloody Revolution. A pioneer who started a new artistic renaissance throughout Europe. At the same time, a selfish ruler who imposed dreadful economic burdens upon the populace for the construction of her personal residence. Her life was filled with controversies, and people who praised her for one thing may curse her for another. Her portrayal ranged anywhere between a generous woman known for her warmth and kindness, to a deceptive manipulator whose marriage to the most powerful man in France only served as a means to an end, a way to satisfy her endless desire for riches and influence.

Act 1

Marie Josèphe Rose Tascher de La Pagerie was born in 1763 to a wealthy family of sugarcane plantation owners. At first, it seemed as if Rose- a name she was known in her youth- was set for a privileged, if uninteresting life. Her father once served as a knight under a local nobleman, which granted the family some beneficial connections, and the family's plantation business was a successful one. By sheer coincidence, that future never came to pass. In 1766, a series of hurricanes destroyed the plantation and sent the family into poverty. Thus, Rose spent most of her childhood working to make ends meet with her younger sister Catherine. A decade later, her aunt finally came up with a way to escape their poverty. Rose's younger sister would be married off to the son of a nobleman, a close acquaintance of her aunt. Unfortunately, 12-year-old Catherine died of illness in October 1777, two years before the planned wedding. Thus, the family replaced her with her older sister Rose.

December 1779, Rose married Alexandre-Francois-Marie, Vicomte de Beauharnais, granting her the title Vicomtesse de Beauharnais. The couple had two children, but their marriage was not a happy one. Alexandre frequently abandoned his family to visit brothels, which led to a court-ordered separation during which Rose and her children lived at Alexandre's expense in an abbey run by a group of Bernardian nuns.

1793, during the height of the Reign of Terror, Alexandre was deemed a royalist sympathizer by the Committee of Public Safety. His wife was arrested at around the same time under the same vague charges. The couple was imprisoned separately, and during her imprisonment, Rose could only communicate with her children in secret by scrawling letters on the laundry list, which the jailers soon prohibited. Finally, Alexandre was sentenced to face the guillotine on July 23, 1794. The Vicomtesse was scheduled to meet the same fate a week later... until Robespierre was guillotined first on the 28th, mere days before her execution. The Committee rapidly lost influence following his death, and Rose was released soon after. Furthermore, a law allowed her to recover most of her late husband's assets.

A year later, Rose first met with the young artillery commander, Napoleon Bonaparte, six years her junior. The man was instantly smitten with her and showered her with love letters. Napoleon proposed to her In January 1796 and they married three months later. It was also at around this time that she came to be known as Joséphine, and the name Rose gradually faded into the past.

"I'm honestly not quite sure why he called me that. Historians theorized that it stemmed from my middle name Josèphe, but I'm not convinced. Knowing him, it's more likely that he just woke up one day and thought 'Hey, you look like a Joséphine to me, so that's what I'm going to call you from now on!' It's either that, or... wait a second... maybe he mistook me for some other mistress this whole time!? Or he just forgot my full name at one point and defaulted to Joséphine as an affectionate nickname to cover up his mistake!? N-No way, he may be thickheaded, but he can't be that stupid, right!? W-Well, in any case, I... eventually just learned to roll with it, for better or worse."

Act 2

Napoleon left for his Italian campaign not long after the wedding, leaving his wife free to enjoy her new privileges as the most powerful woman in France. During this separation, Napoleon sent Joséphine many love letters. Supposedly, he also kept a picture of her in his pocket, which he would plant kisses on at every passing hour. Joséphine... did not seem to reciprocate these feelings. She rarely wrote back, and when she did, her replies appeared dry in comparison to her husband's grand gestures of affection. She did not love Napoleon as much as he loved her, and it took years before she properly warmed up to his affections. Even so, Napoleon continued to shower her with gifts, the grandest one being the extravagant Château de Malmaison, which he constructed using the country's funds, as well as the spoils he recovered from his Egyptian campaign in 1798. It was a controversial move that awakened considerable public animosity towards the couple.

In the coming years, it soon became clear that another war was brewing. One that would throw the entirety of Europe into disarray. The new Emperor of France, Napoleon Bonaparte, stood at the center of the coming war in the name of his ambitions. The populace grew to resent their Emperor for waging another massive war when the country had barely even recovered from the scars of the Revolution. This hatred soon extended to his wife, as many believed her to be enabling this war for the sake of her lavish lifestyle. It was at around this time that Joséphine began having affairs with several members of high society. Napoleon retaliated by having affairs of his own. Ultimately, while Napoleon had several recorded mistresses, there are no clear records of Joséphine's lovers. According to contemporary accounts, their relationship seemed the same at surface level, but how either of them truly felt about this development is unknown.

"Tragic, isn't it? I won't deny these affairs, but I stand by the claim that they were... necessary. I told him multiple times to cease the war, but when it was clear that he would place his grand ambitions above everything else, above the fate of an entire country, above myself... I had to prepare contingencies. Special connections to rely on if another Revolution were to happen. As for whether I take any pleasure in them... who can say? Ever since my first marriage, pleasure was never the first thing on my mind whenever I had to make important decisions. I did what I had to in order to survive. At first to protect my family, then myself. After all, I am as selfish and cowardly as they come."

While the Napoleonic wars raged, Joséphine spent most of her time in her château. She aspired to transform the large estate into "the most beautiful and curious garden in Europe, a model of good cultivation". She bought exotic plants and animals to enhance her garden. She also began her ambition to collect all of the world's known roses by asking botanists, merchants, and explorers to bring her any rose they can find from any corner of the world. Through hybridization, she discovered roughly 200 new types of roses, and her gardening techniques were adopted by later experts in the field. At the same time, Joséphine also gained renown as a patron of the arts. The château became a hub for both new and veteran artists, including sculptors, painters, architects, musicians, and craftsmen of all kind. While the Empress herself never specialized in any single type of art, her wealth and connections greatly helped many who did.

Act 3

Several years later, Napoleon began to consider an annulment to his marriage, citing Joséphine's inability to provide him with an heir ("Succession by birthright? In our republic? A perfectly valid system! I'm sure nothing bad could ever possibly happen as a result of this policy! It's not like our people had any justified reason to despise the monarchy and all it stood for. Why, surely they had neither the raging bloodlust nor any trigger-happy execution device ready to be used on anything that remotely reminds them of the monarchy. Nothing of the sort, I tell you!"). The final straw happened when Joséphine's eldest grandson, Napoléon Charles Bonaparte (previously dubbed as the Emperor's heir), died of illness at the young age of five. Thus, the two divorced in 1810, and Napoleon married Marie-Louise of Austria a year later.

Following the divorce, the two remained in amicable terms. Napoleon insisted for Joséphine to keep her title as Empress, but when she refused, he simply created a new title for her, the Duchess of Navarre. The former Empress spent most of her final years in her château, tending to her garden and her artistic hub. She died on May 1814 at the age of 50. Napoleon learned of her death through a French journal during his exile in Elba. The news devastated him, as he locked himself in his room for two days straight and refused to see anyone. He remarked to a friend that "I truly loved my Joséphine, but I did not respect her.". Even in his deathbed, it was said that his final words were "France, the Army, the Head of the Army, Joséphine." ("France, l'armée, tête d'armée, Joséphine.").

Description

"Fufu, another day, another pile of letters to reject. With all the legendary queens, goddesses, and heroines here, you'd think my 'popular phase' would've passed a long time ago, but that doesn't seem to be the case. You should really take responsibility for dragging me back into the spotlight, you know? It doesn't look like I'll get my peace and quiet anytime soon. Ahem, on the bright side, you actually managed to enter my room without Fortune trying to maul you! Now that's what I call development!"


Source

Likes

"Nothing special, really; staying alive, avoiding conflict, some precious alone time to tend to my garden and add to my collection... You'd be mistaken if you think I have some deep, profound idea pertaining to my likes and dislikes. After all, I'm no hero; I'm but a simple gardener who desires the boring life and death of an NPC character, yup! On that note, since little old me would just become a liability on any battle you may come across... mind if I skip this week's farming session and cheer on you from the sidelines? I promise to do my best on that department!"
...
"Eh? No? ...Well, it was worth a shot."

Dislikes

"Allow me to set the record straight; while I never did fully reciprocate that man's affections in the way he expected me to, it's not like I absolutely, seriously despised him either. It's just that the word 'no' does not exist in his vocabulary. When he kept ignoring my repeated warnings, the people's outraged demands, and practically all of the country's numerous issues to charge blindly towards his ambitions... that did not help me endear myself to him. Ugh, talking about that muscle-brained blockhead really puts me in a bad mood. While we're at it, I actually have a story exactly about this topic! Would you like to hear it?"

Extra lore (kinda long)

"You would? Excellent, because I'll never let him live this down. It was the Christmas Eve of 1800. That man invited me to attend a showing of The Creation, one of Haydn and Steibelt's most famous works. Being a fan of opera myself, I accepted the invitation, taking my daughter Hortense and my sister-in-law Caroline with us. At first I thought we were in for a relaxing evening at the Opera House. Then on the way there, a bomb went off. It was a royalist plot dubbed as La Machine Infernale- the Infernal Machine. Quite the intimidating name, isn't it? Said bomb killed five pedestrians, one carriage horse, and a shard injured poor Hortense's hand. The rest of us managed to escape with little injuries, but had we noticed the bomb just a few seconds later than we did, I'm certain we would have died a gruesome death then and there. And what did that idiot do afterwards? You'd expect him to cancel the trip, pursue the interlopers, or at least increase our escorts. Instead, he just blew off the whole thing and told the driver to carry on to the theater! WE WERE LITERALLY SECONDS AWAY FROM DEATH! We were fortunate this wasn't the case, but what if the plot wasn't over by then!? What if the royalists had an assassin inside the theater, just waiting to ambush us like that American President!? The opera itself was wonderful, but I couldn't help but look over my shoulder every few seconds throughout the show. Anyway, I think this incident describes him best in my eyes; once he has his sights on something, he'll charge forward with no concern for his surroundings, and other people that his decisions may impact."

Bond 5

Likes:
"I don't think there's anything I can say that hasn't been said before. I love beautiful things. I love my garden. I love spending my days in the château accompanied by my little Fortune, free to indulge in my hobbies. How I wish people can forget all their sorrows by doing the same. If only I could forever remain blind to the people's curses and gossips... no, I suppose that wouldn't be right either now, would it? As much as I hate to admit it, turning away from it all would just mean more failure from my part. I'm sure those grievances will make themselves known one way or another. Still... I wish those calming days could last for a little while longer."

Dislikes:
"Putting that man aside... justice. Or at least the people's definition of the term. I am by no means blaming the commoners for their suffering, but... what was I supposed to do!? Of course I knew just how expensive my hobbies were! Of course I knew just how much of an economic burden the château was on the country! Of course I harbored feelings of guilt and doubt from time to time, try as I might to sweep them under the rug! But again, what was I supposed to do at that point!? Even if I were to demolish the château, give away my riches, and grovel on the ground to express my sincerest apologies, you think they'd just forget everything and move on!? The guillotine would take my head in the name of 'justice' before I'd even finish the first sentence of my apology! So yes, I am a liar; I lied to both myself and the world at large... all for the sake of my own survival."

Wish:
"I wonder... a way to prevent the Napoleonic war in its entirety? No, knowing that idiot, he'd just cause another war somewhere else. Prevent him from ever gaining power in the first place? There's no guarantee that his replacement wouldn't cause the same problems he did, if not worse. Prevent myself from ever marrying him and building the château? I can't deny that I may have been a part of the problem, but... no. Even now, whether you call it foolishness or sentimentality, there are still things I can't give up, including my memories of that place. Fufu, what a troublesome woman I must be, wouldn't you think so?"

Contemporary sources describe Assassin as a natural beauty full of kindness, generosity, charm, and wit. She was often praised for her elegance, style, and beautiful voice. She also served as an engaging hostess during the many gatherings held in her residence. While these assessments aren't strictly wrong, maintaining that persona tends to drain her social battery real quick, so she generally avoids holding celebrations for long periods of time. The "true" Joséphine Bonaparte describes herself as a selfish and cowardly individual. It is a self-assessment that she admits openly, as a way to convince the Master of how pointless it would be to bring a poor, powerless gardener like herself into any sort of battle.

Assassin is a woman who prioritizes self-preservation above all else. While her fear of death (more specifically guillotines) isn't as severe compared to a certain storyteller, she still chooses to spend most of her days locked in her room or in the garden, away from any sort of conflict. She'd never openly defy the Master or incite hostilities of her own free will, but at the same time, it's extremely difficult to get her to exert anything more than the bare minimum effort required to accomplish any task she's given.

Using a certain modern literary genre, Assassin's entire character can be best described as "that reincarnated villainess character who tries to stay as far away as possible from the gritty main plot to indulge in a boring slice-of-life story". Even in moments where she is absolutely forced to participate in conflict, she prefers to let other people do most of the fighting for her, a feat she can accomplish with ease thanks to her natural charms (read: poor helpless damsel in distress act). Ultimately, though, while she technically has the potential to assume that manipulative chessmaster character, she generally avoids doing so, convinced that it would only lower her life expectancy in the long run should her ploy fail.

Assassin is quite sensitive towards gossip and unsavory rumors about herself. She tries to appear unfazed in front of these rumors, but it's clear that they actually bother her more than what she shows. If sufficiently pushed, she may lash out by getting serious and fully embracing that villainous attribute forced upon her, ruthlessly disorienting enemies through her first Noble Phantasm before ending them with her second, in a manner completely different from the shy, conflict-avoidant lady you usually see. Upon seeing her actions in this stage, you may start to wonder if she's closer to a victim playing the villain, or a villain playing the victim.

"I'm afraid I don't have an answer to that myself... ah, but why should it matter? I don't think any of us can be categorized in such simple terms to begin with. Some people would consider me a saint for the things I did, while others would condemn me for the very same things. This is exactly what makes human relationships so troublesome in the first place. I wish I could just take Fortune with me and live out the rest of our days in a farm somewhere in the countryside..."

Relationships

Napoleon Bonaparte:
"That man is as loud and overbearing as ever. There's something good to be said about his annoyingly tone-deaf can-do attitude, and I won't say I'm perfectly innocent either in all this, but when you have an entire war named after you, can you really say without a doubt that you're the indisputable 'good guy' of said war? On the bright side, with someone as powerful as him on your side, surely this means there's no need for someone like little old me to fight your battles, right? I'm sure you can afford to give me more time away from the battlefield, right? Right!?"

Marie Antoinette:
"Y-Your Majesty! Um, pleasant day we're having, isn't it!? I-If you'll excuse me, I have to-"
...
"You'd... like to accompany me to the garden? Really? I mean, I don't mind, but... Waaait a second! I see you guys over there! There's the Chevalier, Monsieur Sanson, Monsieur Amadeus, and Monsieur Fersen just hiding over by that corner! Do you normally have that large entourage following you wherever you go? Unfortunately for you, my time as the wife of the country's most controversial man has taught me the ability to instinctively sense that 'angry mob energy' within my surroundings! If this is a plan to lure me into an alleyway somewhere and gang up on me before dragging me into the guillotine, you'll have to try harder than that, hahaha!"
...
"I'm... just being paranoid, you say!? A-And what's wrong with that!? A bit of paranoia goes a long way for your own well-being, you know!? Besides, my mob-sensors have never been wrong! Never!"

Hans Axel von Fersen:
"Our relationship is... complicated. On one hand, I can sympathize with him losing a loved one to the bloody masses of the Revolution. On the other hand, I am connected to the person who indirectly ended the monarchy, loosely speaking. So the two of us just implicitly agreed not to acknowledge each other's existence, and that's that! I wonder why we can't have more world leaders doing this sort of simple conflict-resolution method rather than waging savage wars and revolutions."

Maximilien Robespierre:
"You... you're here. Ugh, of course you are. I should've learned by now that the world just can't leave me alone, like I haven't suffered enough. Normally, I'd just leave you here to sulk in the garden, but it doesn't look like you'll let me do that in your present state. A Reality Marble, is it? One where your 'justice' runs rampant? Fine. If you're so insistent on finding 'villains' for your sick pleasure, then I'll give you that villain you so desire. Oh, and for the record; you're the one trapped in here with me. And I reckon there's a vengeful angry mob here just eager to meet you."

Arthur Wellesley:
"I give you my thanks for stopping him at Waterloo. Who knows where else he could've gone and how many more people would die in the name of his 'ambition' had he continued to press onward. Ah, but I'm not saying this because the war ending removed the big red target on my back or anything like that! I was already gone by the time that campaign rolled around. It's just that... the world could do better with less revolutionary bloodlust all around, yup!"

Madame Tussaud:
"I see, so you almost lost your head to the guillotine as well, and you had to leave the country thanks to that war. I suppose we all had to what we can to survive. I'd love to have your sculptures displayed in the château, though! Speaking of which, Madame, do you accept commissions at the moment? I need about... a dozen sculptures of Napoleon Bonaparte. I'll pay you handsomely for it."
...
"I-It's not like that, I swear! It's just that Fortune has taken quite a liking to your first sculpture of the man. As a chew toy. And I realized if he's preoccupied with that, he won't have time to chew on furniture, cause trouble with the other Servants, or scheme bloody murder towards the real deal. Please? I simply don't want to make more enemi- er, I mean, I don't want him to inconvenience Maitre and the others! That's all there is to it!"

Marie-Jeanne Rose Bertin:
"I understand that you may have mixed feelings about enemies of the previous monarchy, but for what it's worth, I really do love your work."

Daniel Steibelt:
"Ah, Monsieur Steibelt! A pleasure to meet you again here! Putting aside that incident with the Machine Infernale, your sonata was absolutely delightful. I... cannot say I perfectly understand what you're going through in this state, but if you ever find that sound you're looking for at the end of your vendetta, I'd be happy to give it a listen."

Pedro I of Portugal:
"Just as I thought, we're absolutely incompatible. I feared the judgment of the masses, while he was the one who delivered judgment upon the masses. I understand why he's like that, but that overly-simplistic, black-and-white morality of his will end up hurting more than they save. He's no different from those guillotine-happy 'revolutionaries' back in the day."

Pedro I of Brazil:
"I see, so you must be my... grandson-in-law, if that's a thing? I didn't get to see my granddaughter often back then, but I do hope little Amélie treated you well."

Osakabehime:
"​Oh my, a self-proclaimed connoisseur of... modern-day eastern literature, you say? I'm unfamiliar with the art, but it does interest me, on top of your paper-folding skills. 'Origami', is it? In any case, we should talk over tea sometimes! I'd love to hear more about eastern artistry."
*Due to their natures as equally-chronic introverts, neither of them ever ended up meeting again*

Dewi Sri:
"Oh yes, we ran into each other quite often in the garden. She focused more on the agricultural aspect of things, while I mainly concerned myself with the aesthetics, but I learned some valuable gardening tips from her nonetheless. I could do with a little less rice on my croissant, though."

Bond CE

Key to the Malmaison (Chaldea Branch)


Source

For the longest time, I wanted to run away.
I wanted to lock myself in my room, or live in some pocket dimension where my hobbies won't be able to hurt anyone else.
If there's such a thing as an afterlife, I'd want to spend it on some monotonous gardening simulator somewhere.
A boring life in the countryside away from scorn, gossip, and guillotines doesn't sound that bad either.

...Well, so much for that retirement plan, since you summoned a borderline-useless Servant like me here and all that.
I swear, it's like the world shines this invisible spotlight atop my head, and I just can't outrun it no matter what.
If it's not you, I'm sure someone else will have either the luck or the brilliant idea to summon a helpless gardener to a freaking Holy Grail War anyways, so it's not like those plans even matter at this point.

You know what? Fine.
If the world is going to drag me into a second life against my will and put a massive target on my back either way, I might as well make the most of it.
I thought running away was enough back then, but this guilt is going to keep eating away at me unless I do something about it.
If my innocent wish is going to get people hurt either way, I might as well try to maximize the joy and minimize the hurt, right?
I'll just have to make sure the number of people who visit my garden and leave happy constantly exceed those who had to suffer during its construction.
I wouldn't call this "redemption", "atonement", or anything as noble as that.
Besides, it's not like whatever I do here will offset the people's suffering in the past.
If anything, this is a display of my selfishness, to have both my happiness and the people's without having to sacrifice either one of them.

So there you have it!
The Château de Malmaison (Chaldea Branch) is officially open for business! I'm entrusting the key to you as my lead architect!
Huh? You didn't hear anything about this? Well, you can't go against an Empress' orders, so you better get to it!
Eh? I'm just using my authority whenever it's convenient? Why yes, that's exactly what I'm doing right now!
Besides, you went through such lengths already just to drag me outside my room, so what's a few more extra tasks on top of that?

Now that you've come this far, let's create a wonderful garden that brings happiness without sacrifice!

Creator's notes

Well, I've procrastinated on this one long enough. The basic idea was simple enough, but then I hit several walls that stumped me for a while (mainly Class, NP, and personality). I went through several different directions with her before settling on this one, and you may notice a few minor cracks hinting at those "previous versions" here and there.

- So the Class... I didn't know what Class she'd naturally qualify for at first. Most of the standard Classes didn't really fit, Ruler, Avenger, or Foreigner is out of the question, Lover (due to her love for gardening, not Napoleon) sort of makes sense if you stretch the definition a bit, but it doesn't feel right either. Random's Stranger Class miiight work, but I'm still not entirely sure how the Class works, so I'm not touching that one anytime soon. Ultimately at least 50% of the reason I settled on Assassin was because of that Class advantage joke.

- Click on the last line of the second NP if you haven't. That one also came pretty late in the development. The "safe space" NP is originally going to turn into your standard reality marble depicting the beauty of the château, but that doesn't really fit the Class in my opinion. In the end, I believe Assassin represents her with all her flaws, as seen by the common folk (which gave birth to that edgy starvation NP), while the Caster (which I threw out there at the last minute) would represent her more "idealized" aspect as a patron of the arts. She'd have that other château NP in that Class.

- I imagine she carries Fortune in a little handbag and sics him on enemies as her Buster/Extra attack animation. Of course, he's also perfectly capable of running off on his own and become what Fou was to Merlin. In fact, I could probably make a shitpost of a Zerker!Joséphine where it's actually Fortune summoned as the "main component" and Joséphine summoned as the "accessory". You know, like how when you're walking your dog but then something caught their attention and you're the one who ended up getting dragged around by the dog instead of the other way around?

- FE3H players (mainly you, Del), you were expecting Dorothea, but she's actually a mix of Bernadetta and Hilda instead! Also apparently she already has a summer alt in FEH? Well that's convenient.

- Speaking of different Classes and summer alts, a château-turned-waterpark building simulator actually doesn't sound like a bad idea for a summer event.

- Anyway, I'm still out of big brain Servant ideas at the moment, so who knows when I'll post again. I guess I do have one or two vague ideas, but they're hardly workable at this stage

[jishara]

As always, amazing sheet, BnEL, especially that 3rd NP. Out of curiosity, how would she get along with my Marie-Anne Lenormand or King Louis XI?

[RoydGolden]

Ayrton Sena: Pretty solid take on a racecar-driver Servant. I feel Affection Of Nippon could easily be A given how much you hyped him up (still lower than my Alice since he can't call on minor magical items).

---

"Wahahahaa! Get lost all you wannabes, the world's deadliest martial artist has hit the stage! Now then Master, let's go get something to eat! These muscles need calories!"

Berserker of Deadly Hands:

Appearance:


True Name: "Count Dante" (John Keehan)

Alignment: Chaotic Neutral

Alternate Classes: Assassin, Striker, Faker

Summoning Catalyst: One of his pamphlets advertising the Black Dragon Fighting Society.

Strength- D
Agility- C
Endurance- D
Mana- E
Luck- D
NP- E+

Personality

Cocky and hotheaded. Berserker fully believes the martial art named after him to be the greatest in the world and intends on showing it. Upon meeting any martial artist Servant he'll immediately insist on challenging them to prove his style is superior. He disdains more philosophical approaches to fighting, saying that the purpose of martial arts is simply to crush one's enemies rather than anything flowery.

However, Berserker's showboating champion exterior actually buries a more complex and regretful side. Deep down, he recognizes he was a shameless self-promoter and fraud whose pursuit of being the "greatest martial artist" lead to the death of his beloved friend Jim Koncevic in an ill-fated assault on the rival Green Dragon Dojo. Berserker grieves this loss, considering it the true blood staining his hands more than that of any opponents he defeated. If he can't take back the sins he's committed, his wish on the Holy Grail is to atone by turning Dan-te into a true martial art, vowing to at least leave a legacy for those who once stood beside him and supported his dream.

Berserker's pride in his skills is actually for the comrade he lost, as he's determined to not make any of it meaningless by letting his legacy extinguish to nothing. For that reason no matter how outmatched he is, Berserker will always fling himself into the fray with a proud smile, utterly refusing the possibility of defeat or surrender. After all, for a fraud of a martial-artist like he is, the least he can do is fight until his body breaks down, rather than dying ignominiously of a stomach-ulcer as he did in life.

Incidentally aside from martial-arts Berserker has an odd talent for hairdressing. While "on the job" his personality does a 180 as Berserker becomes genuinely considerate and gentlemanly towards his clients, offering them all the options for a good styling. Berserker for his part is unembarrassed over this trait, finding nothing incongruous that the same hands which bring death could also reach out to trim someone's hair gently. He also sometimes mixes it into combat by taunting the opponent over their hairstyle.

Likes: Dan-te, being the best, his comrades
Dislikes: losing, being forgotten, his own fakery
Talents: "sure-kill" techniques, hairdressing
Natural Enemy: Li Shuwen

Class Skills:

Mad Enhancement- EX E-
A Skill that characterizes the Berserker Class, sacrificing sanity in return for raw power. Berserker self-declares to possess this Skill at EX-rank. While able to converse and express himself lucidly, he claims an immense bloodlust simmers within him that he can only barely contain, driving him to kill and brutalize his foes. However this is actually just edginess, as Berserker really only has a much lower E- rank that doesn't rob away any of his sanity and just makes him somewhat rougher than usual. The only thing "insane" about Berserker is his belief that Dan-te is the greatest martial arts system in the world.


Personal Skills:

Dan-te- A+++
Otherwise known as Kata-Dante or the Dance of Death. The street-fighting system Berserker himself developed and taught by integrating elements of other more formal styles and honing them to their most brutal and ruthless extent. While other styles balance attack, defense and spiritual cultivation, Dan-te is a martial art made entirely for killing. Whether striking, blocking or dodging every one of Berserker's motions is focused on snatching the opponent's life. Incidentally while this Skill is proclaimed at rank A+++ that's just because as the style he himself invented, Berserker would naturally be a master of it. Compared to other martial arts his proficiency is only C.

Black Dragon Fighting Society- B
A Skill representing the "secret society" that Berserker founded, promising to pass on the secrets of his deadly arts to any who joined. This allows Berserker to form fliers from his own Mana and offer them to others. Upon accepting one the individual is marked one of Berserker's "disciples" (signified by the symbol of a coiled black dragon appearing over their chest), empowering their stats to the pinnacle of what's reasonably possible for the target's body which may reach up to rank E for a Servant if well-trained.

Theoretically Berserker could amass a school of Servant-level fighters through this Skill but as his Master has to sustain these "secondary contracts" with their own Mana, he can't use it to recruit too many people unless they're gifted in a truly prodigious supply of magical energy. This Skill has no effect on other Servants, who are already "complete existences" and wouldn't gain anything from becoming Berserker's disciple.

Dojo Storming- C-
The anecdote of Berserker crashing the rival Green Dragon Dojo with his students to challenge its members brought forth into a Personal Skill. Grants bonus modifiers to Berserker and his allies fighting in enemy territory and against multiple opponents. However reflecting the disastrous end to the so-called "Dojo Wars", which resulted in the death of Berserker's fellow sensei and best friend Jim Koncevic as well as ruining his reputation, their Luck stats are ranked down and his allies suffer an increased likelihood of taking critical hits.

Noble Phantasm

Dim Mak

Delirious Death Touch

Rank: E+

Type: Anti-Unit (Anti-Mind)

"This hand of mine thrums with a dreadful power, its icy grip tells me to kill you... now take this, Dim Mak!"

Berserker's "special technique" rumored to kill any man in a single blow by disrupting their nervous system with qi. In truth, such a "technique" never actually existed, merely marking another of Berserker's exaggerated claims across his career as a martial artist. Even so, the "Touch of Death" is a recurring legend in the martial arts world, with many claiming unproven to have discovered or invented it. In compensation for his own weakness as a Servant, Berserker is fused with the Phantoms of all martial artists who claimed to have taught or practiced this technique to strengthen his Saint Graph. Thereby crystallizing a facsimile of it as his Noble Phantasm.

As Berserker never mastered the "true" Touch of Death, this Noble Phantasm is simply an overwhelming mental interference projected from any of his attacks that give the impression they're capable of killing instantly. This pressures the opponent into dodging all of Berserker's attacks rather than guarding or tanking them, allowing him to press an unrelenting offense. Even after surviving a few of Berserker's strikes, the intellect recognizes they're not actually that powerful by Servant standards, but the "premonition of death" cloaking his blows still remains unchanged, scrambling Skills like Instinct by making every attack scream as a lethal one that needs to be avoided.

Upon invoking this Noble Phantasm's true name Berserker forms an open palm with his fingers coiled outwards as his hand is enshrouded in the poisonous black aura of a viper's head. Berserker then thrusts at the opponent striking at the same time as the illusory viper pierces its fangs into them. This is inherently no stronger than any of his other attacks but condenses the "aura of death" to incredible levels. Just gazing at Berserker's hand while he readies this technique drives the foe's danger-sense haywire suggesting countless means to defend or evade it only to fail, paradoxically resulting in them standing in place frozen in fear as he delivers the attack.

Successfully connecting this technique can overload the opponent's mind with so much fear they actually enter circulatory shock and die on the spot, without any external cause of death. The mystique of Dim Mak as an "ultimate mortal blow" that ended the careers of several illustrious martial-arts masters sublimated into a Noble Phantasm that kills through reputation alone. As this is a mental interference it can only be defended against psychologically by Skills like Bravery or Soul Of A Martyr rather than simply possessing a stalwart body, which merely protects against the physical blow (that of a Servant with D-ranked Strength).

---

Thanks to NMR-3 for first floating the idea on this figure. I thought of using Mihawk from One Piece for the FC as he's honestly fairly close to how the guy looked IRL, but ultimately couldn't find an art that had the vibe I wanted so I went with one closer personality-wise instead. As usual comments and critique would be welcome. Hope y'all enjoy!

[DelRey]

Haha, I see! My Grand Lancer leaves people speechless!
Peak sheet creation right there, I know.

I get back to reading sheet once i am home

[jishara]

Dantes: Wow that is a fascinating idea, especially the false instant kill NP

And thanks for your comments on Senna, I have bumped Affection of Nippon up to A

[BnEl15]

As always, amazing sheet, BnEL, especially that 3rd NP. Out of curiosity, how would she get along with my Marie-Anne Lenormand or King Louis XI?

Thanks. It's not exactly a third NP, closer to the "true" activation of her second. Basically, it's a seemingly serene "safe space" with horrific implications the more she thinks about it, but she normally doesn't want to do that, so she limits the NP by only thinking of the good things associated with the chateau.

Marie-Anne Lenormand:
"Ah, Marie-Anne! Is that really you? It's wonderful to see you again! We have all the time in the world now. Care to read my fortune again? I'm not a particularly avid believer of occultism, but I do understand just how... fickle fate can be sometimes. I mean, did you ever predict this reunion happening? I certainly didn't. Anyway, here's my first question to the cards: will I... ever get to skip work anytime soon?"

Louis XI:
"A countrywide surveillance system that allows you to control the entire kingdom from behind closed doors... That's not a bad idea, actually. If you know where everyone is, it'd be much easier for you to remove potential threats by... wait, wait, wait! No way! I feel like this is a very slippery slope I'm treading on! Exerting control over the populace sounds nice on paper, but the moment some up-and-coming revolutionary comes around and riles up the masses, everything will come crashing down on you hard! Yup, there is no need for control, no need for conspiracies. I only need my dog and my garden, isn't that right, boy?"
"Bark!"

[DelRey]

empress elizabeth: royal incognito is basically just powerless shell. overall she seems rather tame, boring even to other servants of yours. You couldve done more with the berserk because beauty shtick or her having the longest reign in her country. Perhaps claim that the empress has to be the most beautiful woman in the kingdom and she lasted so long because she was obsessed with her beauty and that title. Charity to keep in the good graces of the people too, idk, i didnt read about her life. Her palace feels unfitting too. She was to be beautiful, so vision should not be obstructed. Those prying eyes are in that castle and mirrors are everywhere so she can see her own beauty, while the mirrors distort the looks of others, lowering beauty related skills and stuff like that.

Jiutian: so if her bird has the benefits of her Coat skill, this means it also has Military Tactics? Can it control an armada of little birds autonomously? Would be kinda funny to imagine.

Ladon: clearly, the highlight here is Hera's letter. i echo pine on the rest. Ladon wouldve qualified alone for one reason: he is a ruler that is summoned to actually do a Ruler job.

Senna: So…a paper lantern comes down from heaven to bring him cars he collects? Would be an interesting view to see a Porsche glide down from the sky. Precision driving seems unneeded when Riding exists.

Count Dante: ah this weirdo as a servant. While Garou is fitting, man you also took a badass like him and put the name of a scammer on it. To grant regular humans ranks E like a Servant feels kinda strong. I mean even E ranked Servants can easily overpower regular people. Idk the magnitude how much stronger they are, but seems pretty strong for a fake master of martial arts. Like, imagine another proper famous teacher. how would they buff their disciples? I think here at max "That what is reasonably possible for a disciples body which may reach up to rank E for a Servant if well trained". I really like NP in concept because it is fake like his stuff was, but I think you overhyped it a bit. What I exactly mean is the line "can only be defended against psychologically by Skills like Bravery or Soul Of A Martyr".
Those skills are pretty rare, meaning that this recent no-name could harm many great heroes. I think thats too strict. This can work against some weak artist/writer Servants and the like who have low END parameter and no fighting experience, but actual heroes who fought to the death? They should always endure. Oh, and the phantom fusion came out of nowhere.

BnEl: its late, i read a bunch of the other sheets and yours are usually long, i get to it later, sowwy

[jishara]

Delrey:

Thanks for your comments

Jiutian: Yes, the bird definitely can and most likely will do that.

Senna: It's not just cars, it can be almost anything And precision driving is basically a flavored variant of another precision skill that I created for Goddard in practice.

Empress Elizabeth: She actually actively disliked the courtly life and her role as empress, building Achilleion to hide away from all prying eyes and allow no one, not even most of her relatives, in.

[Random]

I think Dim Mak being a mental attack isn't too bad. I mean, mental resistance skills as a whole aren't massively uncommon, and it's certainly not as busted as Mata Hari either.

Fair And Balanced seal of approval from Random. It's cool and I like it.

[RoydGolden]

Count Dante: ah this weirdo as a servant. While Garou is fitting, man you also took a badass like him and put the name of a scammer on it. To grant regular humans ranks E like a Servant feels kinda strong. I mean even E ranked Servants can easily overpower regular people. Idk the magnitude how much stronger they are, but seems pretty strong for a fake master of martial arts. Like, imagine another proper famous teacher. how would they buff their disciples? I think here at max "That what is reasonably possible for a disciples body which may reach up to rank E for a Servant if well trained". I really like NP in concept because it is fake like his stuff was, but I think you overhyped it a bit. What I exactly mean is the line "can only be defended against psychologically by Skills like Bravery or Soul Of A Martyr".
Those skills are pretty rare, meaning that this recent no-name could harm many great heroes. I think thats too strict. This can work against some weak artist/writer Servants and the like who have low END parameter and no fighting experience, but actual heroes who fought to the death? They should always endure. Oh, and the phantom fusion came out of nowhere.

Thanks for the feedback. I balanced his second Skill as per your advice. For the NP, I fudged it a bit just saying it can kill through fear, not necessarily that it will do so for any given opponent. The mental-resistance check is only against being affected by the fear aspect at all, not whether it'll kill. That'd be more on a case-by-case/narrative basis.

[NailsInYourFeet]

A/N: I was originally planning to reserve this sheet for a possible future contest, until I felt that I couldn't really get enough content or do enough with him in sheet form alone for him to do that well in one. I still like the idea of an otherwise average person who only just qualifies as a Servant, and a forgotten composer who's come to terms with that in contrast to Avenger Salieri or Morg's Steibelt... only to be shocked upon being summoned anyway.

Gatekeeper of Etudes


(By Pixiv ID 4973222)

True Name: Amedee Mereaux
Alternate Classes: Caster, Berserker?
Source: History
Region: France
Catalyst: Being summoned in a house along the street named for him in Rouen.
Armament: Piano hammers

Description: A 19^th century composer and piano teacher known almost solely for his Opus 63, the ‘Grandes Etudes’.

Gatekeeper seemed born for musical greatness, being the scion of a family that had produced multiple talented musicians already. But for all his musical aptitude, Gatekeeper was never able to gain the runaway fame and acclaim of his contemporaries Liszt and Chopin, or even the devoted cult following of Alkan or Reicha, with the difficulties of 19^th century travel being the last straw that cut his touring career short. Ultimately, Gatekeeper gracefully resigned himself to the cold reality, that he was not destined to be remembered as a musical legend but a footnote at best. Not that he gave up on music, still lending his efforts to the artform any way he could as a teacher and harpsichord revivalist, in the vain hope that if he would never be remembered as a great virtuoso, at least a student of his might.

Then, thanks to but one notorious collection of compositions he wrote, suddenly he was remembered by history and even recorded by the Throne as a Heroic Spirit.

To Gatekeeper, that someone as unnoteworthy as him could even be considered a Heroic Spirit seems like some bizarre joke, and while not averse to the idea of Grail wars and Grand Orders, he feels completely out of place in them, that his summoning must’ve been a mistake. But when asked to teach people piano, he suddenly feels much more in his area, being stern and initially intimidating but ultimately reasonable as a teacher.

(If somehow summoned as Berserker, Mereaux would be warped from a stern teacher to an outright sadistic one, become completely obsessed with the concept of ‘difficulty’ and forcing it onto others.)

Attribute: Earth
Alignment: Lawful Neutral
Likes: Tryers, eager students, pushing people to their musical limits, when people bring up his compositions other than just the etudes
Dislikes: Quitters, travel, unruly students, being a Heroic Spirit
Master: A trainee in musical magecraft, or at least someone willing and open to learn.
Natural Enemy: Slackers like Gilgamesh, envious and discontent musicians like Avenger Salieri

Parameters

• Strength: E
• Endurance: D
• Agility: B
• Magic: E
• Luck: E
• Noble Phantasm: A

Class Skills

Territory Creation

The building of terrain advantageous to one as a Magus.

• Rank C: Creation of a musical ‘classroom’ for the teaching of piano is possible.

Territory Defence

Normally the signature skill of the Shielder class, this is the ability to protect one's allies and homefield from harm.

• Rank E: Damage and interference with students is somewhat reduced.

Personal Skills

Powerless Shell

By lowering Skills and Parameters, can become harder for others to even register as a Servant, at least till the usage of a Noble Phantasm.

• Rank A: It is nearly impossible to distinguish Gatekeeper from a Wraith, given but one sole accomplishment distinguishes him from being but a Wraith.

Protection of the Music God (Fake)

A recognition of supreme musical skill, gained through personal accomplishment rather than divine favour. Makes possible to distinguish all kinds of sounds and play a masterful music performance.

• Rank B: Rank lowered as, while Gatekeeper can distinguish all kinds of sounds and is still able to perform (once alongside Chopin), he is not a noted performer when it comes to music, but a composer, teacher, and preserver.

Technique Elucidation

Interpretation and restoration of formulas.

• Rank B: Gatekeeper was a preserver of harpsichord music and pioneer of what we would now call ‘historically-informed performance’, though he was not without his inaccuracies in this area. With him being an oft in-demand teacher, he can expertly revive musical formulas and instruct others in their playing, including Bardsong music magecraft, but struggles with formulas outside of music.

Noble Phantasm

Opus LXIII – Grandes Etudes
One Who Can Play These Can Play Anything

Rank: A
Type: Support

The series of compositions that single-handedly elevated Gatekeeper to Heroic Spirit status and ensure his pace in collective human memory. His Opus 63 is a collection of what are widely considered to be the most difficult pieces for piano ever composed, said to surpass even Charles Valentin-Alkan in difficulty (his own pieces considered harder than even Liszt’s and Chopin’s). So difficult in fact, that unlike the Concert Etudes that rose in popularity around Gatekeeper’s time, these pieces were intended not so much as performance, but rather a test of utmost musical ability. The intent of them to gauge just how much a student could handle, not to be successfully played (though still perfectly listenable in a concert context), akin to a ‘Kobayashi Maru’ of classical piano.

Following the concept of a Gatekeeper imposing a trial on their Master, if Gatekeeper’s Master or anyone else can gain the ability to successfully play any of these pieces, at the correct tempo and (per classical tradition) without any wrong notes, they will be anointed as achieving the greatest apex of musical performance and be elevated to the status of Heroic Spirit.
If one who is already Servant successfully plays them, their Agility and Endurance will be permanently increased by one Rank and they shall gain or rank up the skill Protection of the Music God (Fake).

[DelRey]

We are stretching what can be a Heroic Spirit. I would take less issues if you just said he is a weak phantom, then thats whatever. The throne has thousands of them as seen in Traum. But you went out of your way to describe him as a Heroic Spirit instead because he had one gimmick which is remembered somewhat. I had to look through several sites that list mereux's as one of the hardest piano pieces but only when they listed 30 in which he was 27th.
It really feels like you were just intrigued by "oh that piece is hard" and wanted to do something with it and then scrambled something together. Class skills are from caster and shielder, neither inspired by the physical GK interpretation of Royd, nor by the teacher interpretation of pinetree, nor by the somewhat canon example of Watcher.
Personal skills are generic and just say "music teacher".
Why he is a GK is also questionable at best for a very rare class. I am more intrigued how he would be as a Berserker because thats memorable, a berserk teacher that forces people to play something impossible? I can dig that, that gives me reason to remember him, even if he is just someone that attacks others by throwing a harpsichord at them.

Assassin Rose: good i waited with reading it. The Pug is the star here, i love the gif. The use of the roses is a smart and unique idea. Assassin does feel the most fitting. Flower magecraft stuff is part of her caster/summer version i guess. Dorothea does have a cool looking summer alt. Your idea of a waterpark reminds me of "Tropical Island", a famous waterpark near Berlin that is built inside a former zeppelin factory. Its huge with a large jungle area inside. I can see her do something similar. And I am glad she is not as annoying as Bernadetta. Fun fact: i did not play 3H, i watched the cutscenes. But I know Morg devoured Three Houses and Three Hopes.

[NielleiN]

Terrible Idea: Gabriel as a conceptual angel (think Maxwell's Demon) using Gabriel's Horn ( the math thing) as a Noble Phantasm.

[Random]

Terrible

why would you lie to my face

[DrStein]

Day 1057

The darkness is closing in. I can feel it. The life, draining from my limbs. Cold fingers gripping my heart, as I creep further into the abyss. I can’t go on much longer.

Suddenly, there is a glimmer of light. Hope, piercing through the darkness. It’s…the final page of the thread. I’ve finally reached it, after so many years. The end has come.

----------------------------------------------

TLDR: I just finished reading the entirety of CAS, going back to the OG thread from 2011, in the days of Shiki and Simo Haiha. Yes, it took years, no, I don't have a life.

If anyone has any questions about past sheets and they don't want to try and parse the forum's wonky search function, I'm your guy.

I may post some sheets of my own, but most of the stuff I've written out is just reworks of canon Servants to make them either more accurate to the source material or my own personal taste, so I'm not sure which if any are worth posting.


Also, I have to say, BnEL's Josephine and Del's St. Jane were some pretty great sheets to end on. I can't describe how much I like Jane, especially as a foil to your Clemont.

[BnEl15]

Dang, talk about dedication. I remember back when I was an account-less lurker and spent hours browsing the first two CaS threads here.