Rider (Fate/Zero)

Rider (ライダー) is the Rider-class Servant of Waver Velvet in the Fourth Holy Grail War of Fate/Zero.

Identity
Rider's identity is, also known as Iskandar and Al-Iskandar, the King of Conquerors (征服王) who almost ruled the world. During his youth, he had a close friend who would drag him around everywhere with a personality similar to Taiga Fujimura. He attributes having expanded his horizons thanks to the friend and notes that the friend began to truly show his talent after Alexander's death. Usurping the throne of Macedonia in the far west part of Greece, the young king had since then subdued the neighboring countries in the blink of an eye. His ambition crossed over the Straits, and he had wanted to extend his insolent neck into this great empire of Persia.

The King spoke of his reasons. His goal was to reach the end of the world. His destination the furthest border of the East. He wanted to behold Oceanus with his own two eyes. He wanted to leave his footprints at the beach beside that endless sea. No one believed him, but this man brought his army away with him continuing towards the East. The defeated generals finally understood... the tyrant wasn't lying.

Even looking pitiful and deplorable, the soldiers suddenly thought. What would they see behind that mountain –? What would they see at the other side of the sky –? And they went after the back of the great king traveling to the east. The army of the King increased endlessly with his victories on his road of progress, towards the east, towards Oceanus, the endless sea. Until, together with the king, they behold the legendary beach. Across boiling deserts, over chilling snow-capped mountains, fording billowing rivers, chasing away ferocious beasts, and fighting for their lives for times out of count with those foreign tribes never seen before and the unknown weapons and strategies they deployed, they continued towards Oceanus.

Even when they died in battle after giving all they had, their faces still held a proud smile until the end. They’d be able to return to the image in their dreams, the evening-mist-covered seashore that they had once seen. A scene that they continued to long for in their hearts during their heroic crusading lives.



Their bodies may return to ash but they are loyal followers, they are true companions, one flawless cooperation with their king. The king had stronger desires than anyone else, was more magnificent than anyone else, was more easily angered than anyone else, pure and chaotic, a man who was more real than any other man.

At his death, Alexander's empire became four separate warring factions that quickly disappeared into the sands of history. He can grieve for it, he can shed tears... but never regret.

Appearance
Rider is a tall man standing over two meters in height. He has large muscles that give the impression of being able to kill a bear with his bare hands. He has sternly chiseled features with eyes that give off a dazzling glow, able to overtake Waver's soul in an instant with their sharpness, and burning red hair and beard. He wears bronze armor with cuffs and greaves with fringes that leaves his arms and thighs unprotected. He wears a thick mantle, with fringes like his cuffs, dyed in a similar red to his hair. It is luxuriously decorated, and looks like a curtain wrapping the stage of a theater. Takashi Takeuchi feels that without his mantle, Rider gives off an intimate feeling that puts him in style with commoners.

While historical records called him short because he couldn't reach the foot stool of Darius' throne after conquering the Persian empire and had to swap it for a table to sit on the throne, he claims that it is because he was truly short when compared to Darius. Towering over three meters tall, Rider calls him a emperor of majestic caliber and figure, fitting as a ruler over the mighty Persian Empire. In the end, he considers that history written by random people cannot completely and accurately describe the situation back then, so he has no problems with the inaccuracy.

During life, Alexander took the lead in wearing Asiatic clothing due to his interest in cultures of his conquered land, causing his followers to avert him like the plague. He does the same in the present, changing into contemporary styled clothes while in public because of trying not to lag behind Saber and her suit. He orders an XL sized t-shirt based on the "The Admiral’s Great Tactics" videogame he takes to playing in his free time. It is white shirt with the logo of the game imprinted on top of the world map, looking much like a cheapskate product from the games segment published on the front page of the special edition a magazine.

He is very happy with it because it gives him "the effect of having the whole world on my chest" and goes well with the conqueror outfit. Due to his pride in the shirt, he first attempts to move around in public without any pants or undergarments, which he doesn't find to be strange in the least. He refers to pants as "that thing that causes you to stumble", and hates the idea of having to wear them. Takeuchi felt like a loincloth may have been suitable for him. Waver eventually buys him large jeans, so that he can actually go out without troubles. Out of his initial designs, Takeuchi likes the one with the "three feelers" in the center.

Personality
Rider is noble and physically overbearing. He is not pragmatic, but is a person who lets history run its course and acts according to his impulses. While he is wild and somewhat inconsiderate to others, his greed inspired his subjects and ultimately resulted in their happiness. He is always jovial, values friendship highly, and he regards the bond with all of his followers in Ionioi Hetairoi as his greatest treasure. They all, being inspired by such a magnificent king, in turn gives him their undivided loyalty and adoration. He also admires people who treat friendship with sincerity, such when he meets Taiga Fujimura. He is compassionate to those with whom he bonds, such as telling Waver that it is natural to be sickened by Caster's atrocities and that he would strike anyone who would feel nothing from the sight.

He was adventurous and had the goal of reaching the edge of the world during his life, and he looks forward to conquering the world now that he has found out it is a sphere, and how small his empire that he spent his life conquering was compared to the size of the world. He desires to conquer the world as a human, so that is his only wish for the Holy Grail. He is not overly cruel as would be expected from a tyrant, but tries instead to keep bloodshed to a minimum despite his love for battles and destruction. He is fine with not actually winning the battle outright, and even attempts to recruit the other Servants as his followers after witnessing their prowess for himself. He prefers to conquer his enemies by winning without killing and controlling without humiliating them. He admires Saber's abilities as an individual and believes that she would be an amazing asset to his army. He is seen as a unique individual with strange ideas unbefitting of his legacy, but Waver is able to understand the meaning behind his conquest. He sees Rider as deserving of title of "King of Conquerors" because that which he strives to conquer most is not lands or material wealth, but the hearts of people, the toughest conquest that can be undertaken by anyone.

His way of kingship is his greatest pride and as such, he despises Saber's way of kingship, the direct antithesis. He calls her naive for considering sacrificing herself to save her kingdom, and goes so far as to denounce her as a king. He insists that a king should be setting vivid examples to be followed, bond with his subjects at personal level, and his way of living should be something inspiring to and envied by all under his rule, not a distant ideal or martyr whose deeds would be praised yet whose path is so full of sorrow and pain that it would only inspire a sense of dread. To him, a selfless king who isolates himself from his people to die for ideals is nothing but a fool, which is worse than a tyrant. He is also in opinion that a king should be vibrant, a figure who is inspiring and leading his people, instead of being a distant loner who concerns himself only with protecting and saving his people. Ultimately, he would grieve and weep over his losses and mistakes, but he would stay true to himself and never regret decisions made as a king.

He has a mutual rivalry with Gilgamesh, and offers for a joint conquest to take over the world. Despite all Servants who have first seen him thought him to be stupid and preposterous for a conqueror of his reputation, he eventually earns their respect, even Gilgamesh who rarely shows any respect to anyone, but he claims that he will only ever have one friend. The respect Iskander inspired in Gilgamesh is great enough that the King of Heroes deems him worthy enough to be faced with Ea and Enkidu in their final fight, eventhough Gilgamesh can easily win without using them.

Despite his Master's shortcomings and their vast differences in goals and personalities, Rider is very quick to start bonding with Waver on a personal level like he would with anyone during his reign, admiring his wit and determination despite Waver having the lowest of opinions of himself. During their first encounter with the other Servants, Kayneth Archibald El-Melloi, who was originally planning to summon Rider, begins to berate and torment Waver by calling him incompetent and weak. Rider instantly defends Waver's dignity by rebuffing Kayneth for only speaking to them while in hiding. Despite being timid, at least Waver would ride with him and Rider notes that only someone who will ride onto the battlefield with him is worthy of being his Master, so a coward who only hides in the shadows is a true shame to their battle.

Rider is bisexual, so it is possible he would have attempted sexual relationships with both Kayneth and Sola-Ui Nuada-Re Sophia-Ri if he had been summoned by them.

Rider takes a great interest in the modern world, often spending his free time eating crackers and watching videos to learn about the new world around him. He is also especially eager to go outside and experience things as a human. He especially takes a great liking to the video game called, Admirable Tactics: The Melancholy of Doctor Porsche, the fourth installment of a war game series. It is set during World War II, and the player operates a superhero in the war between the Axis and the Allies. The series hit a dead end with its rules and difficulties, so the expansion added more warring countries, stages and maps. It adds Triebflügel, Vergeltungswaffe 3 [V-3 Cannon], and clones of the President and other distinguished figures as new units. It is a melting pot of chaos that has surpassed the scope of a mere war game, and boasts of changes to a hard-to-describe game balance. It has a deal of popularity among a certain group of maniacs.

Development
Takashi Takeuchi considers Rider to be the key character of Fate/Zero due to the time and energy that went into his design. He considers it difficult to draw due to its complexity and detail. Gen Urobuchi compares him to a heavy tank and the Rider of Fate/stay night to a racecar. His Gordius Wheel embodies the "tank-ness", but it is too large to enter sewers. The original idea for it was to give it the ability to change sizes by substituting its parts and transforming, but it still would have been too large.

Nasu claims that if he wrote Fate/Zero, Iskander would have been more like Red Saber. In his mind, he viewed Iskander as a worthy opponent to Gilgamesh, but the Iskandar Urobuchi created was an excellent, wild, and unprecedented character that even he could have never thought up.

Fate/Zero
Rider was summoned by Waver Velvet with an artifact; a mantle once worn by Iskander. This artifact was originally Lord El-Melloi's and was stolen by Waver, who intends to prove that his teacher is wrong.

Iskander, the King of Conquerors, is noble and physically overbearing. He is an enormous man who has little interest in the Holy Grail and cares more about conquering the world again, especially now that he realizes the world is much bigger than he was aware of during his life. He is especially fascinated by ordinary aspects of modern life and intends to inform the world of his return, much to Waver's chagrin.

He arranged a King's Meeting at Einzbern castle to discuss with the other Heroic spirit Kings about their desire for the Holy Grail. In the Kings Meeting, he expressed his desire for the Holy Grail isn't for conquering the world but his true incarnation so that he can become a human again and not bound as a servant. However after learning from Saber wish to change the past to save her country, Rider was disappointed and does not acknowledge Saber as a King, addressing her as "little girl" and calling her by her title with little intention other than mocking her.

In a battle with Saber prior to his final engagement with Gilgamesh, Rider gambled using Gordius Wheel against Saber but his chariot was destroyed by Excalibur. Rider would not manifest Ionioi Hetairoi as he saving it for Gilgamesh.

Before the final fight, Rider asked Gilgamesh whether he can join forces together as Rider has his armies and Gilgamesh has his weapons and they can conquer the world easily but Gilgamesh declined, stating that there was only one comrade he would ever have and there could be only one king.

He fought against Gilgamesh on a bridge, Rider used Ionioi Hetairoi: Army of the King as a final move. However, Gilgamesh wipes out half of the army with his Enuma Elish, causing the bounded field to dissipate. As a result of the instability, the rest of the army fades, leaving Rider with no choice but to charge him head on. Rider rushes bathing in the curtain fire of Gate of Babylon. Upon nearing him and right before he can deliver the final blow, Rider is bound stiff by Enkidu, and eventually slain by Ea. Gilgamesh appears to have had great amounts of respect for Iskander, addressing the dying King of Conquerers with the comparatively more respect, and stating that he would be ready to accept his opponent's challenge at any given moment.

Abilities
In combat, Rider mostly uses his Noble Phantasm Gordius Wheel to trample the enemies; the chariot is surrounded by lightning: this factor and its high speed are what make its charge a powerful attack, which takes the name of Via. Even without activating the Noble Phantasm, it is strong enough to almost knock out Berserker after one strike, forcing him to retreat. To summon the chariot, Iskandar slashes the air apart with his sword.

While seemingly preferring to ride into battle, Iskander has shown no hesitation in fighting on foot, showing prodigious ability despite being geared better towards mounted battle. He stands against three Assassins in Caster's sewer lair, skillfully predicting an ambush launched by one, intercepting the attack and killing the said Assassin with ease. He would have taken the other two on if had they not retreated shortly afterwards. He later manages to get within striking distance, potentially capable of a killing blow against Gilgamesh, despite his agility being quite laughable by servant standards.

The sword that Rider wields is a supata (スパタ) referred to as the Sword of the Kupriotes (キュプリオトの剣), gifted to him in life by the King of the Cypriots; its hilt was decorated with the likeness of a lion. Strong and light-weight, the blade can be wielded with great dexterity, and in the course of the story, it was able to deflect the Assassins' dirks with demonstrable ease. Though it is not noted to be a Noble Phantasm itself, it is utilized in the invocation of both of Iskander's known Noble Phantasms. Incidentally, the historical Iskander is said to have used a  instead.

Iskandar's trump card and ultimate Noble Phantasm is Ionioi Hetairoi. Rider summons a Reality Marble that consists in a vast desert under a cloudless sky; in this place makes its entrance an immense army: every soldier is a Servant that, after dying and becoming a Heroic Spirit, still follows Iskander's lead. Exploiting the plain and shelterless battleground, the King of Conquerors rides his horse Bucephalus and charges forward, followed by his army, in order to crush the enemies.