Shielder (Fate/Grand Order)

Shielder (シールダー) is a Shielder-class Servant contracted with the Protagonist in the Grand Orders of Fate/Grand Order.

Identity
Shielder's True Name is Mashu Kyrielight (マシュ・キリエライト), a Demi-Servant human fused with the Servant Galahad. She herself initially does not know the identity of the Servant fused with her.

She is actually a Designer Baby, a magus genetically engineered under the orders of Chaldea's late director, ‎Marisbury Animusphere, to be a prime vessel for a Heroic Spirit's soul. The project aimed to control the powers of Heroic Spirits by binding them to a compatible mortal vessel in order to produce Demi-Servants.

While the project succeed in summoning and binding a spirit to Mash, the spirit failed to awaken or perhaps as Dr. Romani had theorized refused to awaken due to being aware of Mash's fate should it awaken.

After the research team deemed the project a failure, Mash was left to Chaldea's care. However, due to being a genetically engineered organism not dissimiliar to a Homunculus, her life-span was set since her conception. She was given eighteen years to live and while she was aware of this fact, she kept it a secret between herself and Dr. Romani her physician. By the start of the story, Mash has already lived sixteen years of her life giving her a mere two years left, at best.

Personality
Mash is a mysterious, kind-hearted girl. She refers to the Protagonist as her senior (先輩). However, behind that smile belies a deep sorrow and resolve that has accepted her fate as a person with a set life-span since day one.

Fate/Grand Order
Mash works at the Chaldea Security Organization.

Fuyuki: The Contaminated City in Flames
She encounters Ritsuka Fujimaru, when she was walking with Fou.

During the Grand Order conflict in Fuyuki City, Shielder encountered Shadow Assassin and Shadow Lancer but was saved by Cú Chulainn. Fujimaru and Shielder defeated both and entered a short skirmish with Caster. Shielder and the protagonist later encountered and fought Saber, who attempted to kill both of them with Excalibur Morgan but it was blocked by Shielder's Noble Phantasm.

Camelot: The Sacred Round Table Realm
Romani Archaman explains to the protagonist about Mash. A flashback of Mash's first meeting with Dr. Romani was told. She has been assigned with her full name, rather than her original code name "Summoning experiment 2". In their first meeting with Dr. Romani, he teaches Mash about senpai and kouhai relationship. It's revealed by Romani that Mash is a designer baby and has limited life. The continual battle and Demi-Servant status put a further strain on her body. Her possessing the power of Galahad is revealed by Bedivere and Sherlock Holmes. The realization ultimately allows her to activate Galahad's real Noble Phantasm.

Solomon: The Grand Time Temple
She is told that she has only three days of life left, but nonetheless accompanies her Master to the final battle. When invited by Goetia to a new world, she denies life to be worthless due to its destined termination, and stand her ground when Goetia launches its Noble Phantasm capable of annihilating anything on Earth. Even though her body could not withstand the immerse heat and is vaporized, her will to protect is indestructible. Her shield remains unscathed and continue to guard her Master.

However Cath Palug, Beast IV, having traveled with her for extensive period, admires her. Since death within the Time Temple is not registered in the real world, Cath Palug is able to transform its prana gathered through centuries into her fate, giving her the lifespan of a normal human and reviving her. She later reappears in the crumbling Time Temple and pulls Fujimaru out.

After passing over seven singularities and overcoming many battles, she grew up as a single fully-fledged human, a Servant that is not merely a borrowed article. The battle surrounding the incineration of the anthropic principle will soon come to an end. What sort of conclusion will her journey reach? The beast of the planet continues to silently watch over that snowflake-like scenery.

Other appearances
Before her identity is revealed, she is called Child of Shield (盾の子) in Fate/GUDAGUDA Order. Demon Archer guesses Shielder's identity to be one of the, while Sakura Saber randomly guessed Shielder to be Pearl the Iron Wall.

Abilities
Mashu is a product of Chaldea's genetic engineering, a designer baby crafted to be born with a particularly strong set of Magic Circuits so as to become a suitable vessel for a Heroic Spirit. However due to her nature, her life-span has been set to only eighteen years with her body cells increasingly deteriorating.

Since awakening the spirit sleeping inside her, her body has become more resilient, but that has done nothing to stop her deterioration.

Servant mode
Shielder carries a large cross-shaped shield as her primary weapon. She is apparently has a sword but it is unknown if Shielder can use it. Her Noble Phantasm is Lord Chaldeas and Lord Camelot.

Self-Field Defense (自陣防御) is a power displayed when protecting allies or an allied camp. Exhibits damage reduction surpassing the defensive limit value, but she herself is not included as a target. Also, the higher the Rank more the protective range spreads.

Possession Inheritance (憑依継承) is an unique Skill that Demi-Servants possess. Succeed Phantasm. One of the Skills that the possessing Heroic Spirit owns is inherited and sublimated in a self-taught manner. In Mash's case, it is "Mana Defense". A Skill of the same type as "Mana Burst", magical power is translated directly into defensive power. For a Heroic Spirit possessing a huge magical power, it would probably become a sacred wall that protects a whole country.

Transient Wall of Snowflakes (今は脆き雪花の壁) is the ability to apply defense buff to the entire party. The user's mental fortitude is converted into physical defense. Because Mash misunderstands how to use her Noble Phantasm, it's true worth cannot be shown. The skill updates to Valiant Wall of Snowflakes (誉れ堅き雪花の壁) in Camelot.

Obscurant Wall of Chalk (時に煙る白亜の壁) is a defensive skill that allows one to arbitrarily apply invincibility to someone in the party. Noble Phantasm also increases a bit. Following how it is called "hazy," the target temporarily shifts out of the time axis to avoid an attack. If the rank was higher, attacks from a higher order dimension could also be ignored. That principle is close to a certain defensive self-targeted Noble Phantasm.

Shield of Rousing Resolution (奮い断つ決意の盾) is a skill that temporarily raises one's own defensive power and draws in an opponent's attack. It is only bestowed upon those who muster their courage and protect the back of those who egress before anyone else. This is not a skill that comes from the Noble Phantasm, but rather the form Mash's mentality takes.

Development
In 26th September 2016, announced she will retire from voicing acting Mash, due to her health condition. It was announced that will take the role of Mash.

Creation and Conception
Known as the Stray Servant (はぐれ サーヴァント), Shielder was a heroine candidate during the development of Fate/stay night who was left unused in the final version. She was considered along with Rider and Caster to be a possible heroine, but she was cut due to the plot beginning to stray so as to keep it manageable for the player. As Saber is a "Servant of the Sword", she was to be her rival as a Shielder, "Servant of the Shield." She would have been an "abandoned puppy" type heroine who killed her Master during the Fourth Holy Grail War and went on a rampage, surviving into the Fifth Holy Grail War in a similar manner to Gilgamesh.

Her role was originally only detailed in Fate/side material, but it was planned that she would be a character in what was to be the original story of 's Fate/stay night adaptation. Her character design by Takashi Takeuchi was completed at that time, but the anime was later changed to an adaptation of the Fate route and the character was again abandoned. The design was later revived for Grand Order for Kinoko Nasu to allow her to be one of the main heroines along with Saber and Ruler. Nasu wrote her scenario in Fate/Grand Order.