Questions thread

[Tyrnek]

I see. Would it be reasonable to assume that Shirou has one, though?

[Alice]

He has one in Hollow/Ataraxia if I remember correctly (it could have been Rin's too, but I doubt it). Rin and Shirou get trapped in a chest at Rin's place, and they try using it to call somebody to get them out of there.   

[Tyrnek]

Cool, thanks!

[Cherry Lover]

I see. Would it be reasonable to assume that Shirou has one, though?

Again, it's never mentioned in the original VN but, as Alice says, it is mentioned in HA.

[Tyrnek]

Potentially stupid question about Magic Resistance here. Obviously, it lets Servants resist/negate the influence of magic attacks (physical, mental, etc).

My question is whether or not "Magic" here means "things infused with prana via thaumaturgy". For instance, say we had a cannon that used a charged gem as propellant in place of black powder. Would Magic Resistance influence the shot if the cannonball was otherwise normal?

[Cherry Lover]

Magic resistance prevents direct damage from magic. It doesn't prevent damage from physical attacks with magical weapons, hence why Archer is capable of harming Saber despite his weapons being magically created.

However, I don't think a cannonball shot by a cannon could harm a servant, even if magic was used to propel it. Servants aren't supposed to be harmed by mundane weaponry. But, then, Nasu was never overly clear on exactly what that means, since a servant slamming another servant into a wall does cause them damage....

[Tyrnek]

Magic resistance prevents direct damage from magic. It doesn't prevent damage from physical attacks with magical weapons, hence why Archer is capable of harming Saber despite his weapons being magically created.

So, would negative effects like really loud sounds taking out someone's hearing conceivably count as physical damage, not direct magical damage?

However, I don't think a cannonball shot by a cannon could harm a servant, even if magic was used to propel it.

I'm aware, it was a hypothetical scenario.

But, then, Nasu was never overly clear on exactly what that means, since a servant slamming another servant into a wall does cause them damage....

Walls are mundane, but usually not used as weapons. Hence, they do not fall under the purview of the category of "mundane weaponry."

[Cherry Lover]

Magic resistance prevents direct damage from magic. It doesn't prevent damage from physical attacks with magical weapons, hence why Archer is capable of harming Saber despite his weapons being magically created.

So, would negative effects like really loud sounds taking out someone's hearing conceivably count as physical damage, not direct magical damage?

I would say that is probably the case, yes, but I doubt servants are really prone to such things anyway. Certainly you couldn't permanently deafen them.

However, I don't think a cannonball shot by a cannon could harm a servant, even if magic was used to propel it.

I'm aware, it was a hypothetical scenario.

Ah, OK.

But, then, Nasu was never overly clear on exactly what that means, since a servant slamming another servant into a wall does cause them damage....

Walls are mundane, but usually not used as weapons. Hence, they do not fall under the purview of the category of "mundane weaponry."

Lol, I wouldn't put that past Nasu, honestly....

[Tyrnek]

Alright. Thanks for the clarification.

[Willy Vereb]

Potentially stupid question about Magic Resistance here. Obviously, it lets Servants resist/negate the influence of magic attacks (physical, mental, etc).

My question is whether or not "Magic" here means "things infused with prana via thaumaturgy". For instance, say we had a cannon that used a charged gem as propellant in place of black powder. Would Magic Resistance influence the shot if the cannonball was otherwise normal?

Like Mike said, magic resistance is the ability to shrug off damage and other afflictions caused by magecraft.
Magically propelled or not, a cannonball is still a damn cannonball.
Depending on type there might be magic resistance skills that prevent the cannonball's magic to accelerate the projectile any further once that entered the Servant's proximity.
But it won't do anything to the cannonball's already huge momentum.
You'd need a skill completely different from magic resistance.
For example Araya Souren's special boundary field (which uses his origin of "stillness" or "quintessence" and can stop things dead on their tracks).

It also worths noting that despite some Servants have excellent magic resistance, most Noble Phantasms can effect them just the same. Hell, the Servants' physical attacks are technically could be considered "magic", as well.
This would imply that they're either:
1.) Too powerful (think of Excaliblast)
2.) Too advanced (more exotic and refined compared to what magic resistance was supposed to handle, ie: Gae Bolg's causality manipulation)
3.) Both of these at once.

The ceiling for an A class magic resistance seems to be at Caster(Medea)'s level. She's a witch from the Age of Gods with techniques far more refined than a modern magi's. But otherwise she's just a regular magus and her thaurmaturgy doesn't exceed the limits of modern magecraft (like how her attacks were a mass of A class spells). Except when she does, like it occurred in Hollow Ataraxia. And then her magic attack became so powerful that not even Saber would've been able to block it.

And as for the "magic" of regular attacks bypassing Saber's resistance, I guess it has something to do with intensity.
Just like how a smaller and harder bullet is more penetrating, Servants might be channeling their attacks into the very edge of their weapons. Energy-wise they could be insufficient but it compensates by being much more concentrated.
In principle it's like narrowing down the exit of the water hose to spray its content faster.

[Cherry Lover]

Depending on type there might be magic resistance skills that prevent the cannonball's magic to accelerate the projectile any further once that entered the Servant's proximity.

Possibly, but the standard "Magic Resistance" skill doesn't do that.

The ceiling for an A class magic resistance seems to be at Caster(Medea)'s level. She's a witch from the Age of Gods with techniques far more refined than a modern magi's. But otherwise she's just a regular magus and her thaurmaturgy doesn't exceed the limits of modern magecraft (like how her attacks were a mass of A class spells). Except when she does, like it occurred in Hollow Ataraxia. And then her magic attack became so powerful that not even Saber would've been able to block it.

Medea's magic is way ahead of modern magecraft. A normal magus couldn't do "A-rank spells" at anything like the rate she can. And, Saber can block pretty much anything Medea throws at her, even so.

[Willy Vereb]

Yeah, standard magic resistance only works on magics that directly try to effect Saber or whoever other Servant has it.
For example it didn't neutralize the spell that was animating the Dragon Tooth Warriors and Caster abused this by having Saber caught by them physically.

And if we're at magic-neutralizing effects, curiously enough Diermuid's Gae Dearg doesn't seem to effect the body of Servants.
Despite the fact its explicit effect is to cut off the circulation of prana until the spear is in contact.
Perhaps it could be a safety measure because Diarmuid is a Servant too.
Also Gae Dearg seems to be limited to only "constantly on" type of magics.
So he cannot just thurst his spear forward and neutralize Saber's Excalibur.

Medea's magic is way ahead of modern magecraft. A normal magus couldn't do "A-rank spells" at anything like the rate she can. And, Saber can block pretty much anything Medea throws at her, even so.

I think you have a misunderstanding here.
I didn't say that Medea's magecraft aren't above the capability of modern mages.

But what she does in FSN isn't impossible by magus standards. It would just require far more effort from them.
For example to cast an A rank spell modern magi generally require a huge ritual. Caster can spam these A-rank spells with ease.
If I have to use a comparison it's like we have a dude who can barely bench press 200lbs.
And then another who can do 100 reps with the same weight.
That would be more or less the relation between modern magi and Medea.
And yeah, if we have a dude who can do 100 reps with 200lbs, you can bet he can bench press even more weight than that.
And precisely that's what happened in Hollow Ataraxia. Caster channeled a really powerful attack. And the narration asserted that not even Saber would be able to block that.
I was referring to this.

[Cherry Lover]

Ah, OK.

I've never played through HA, so I don't really know what's in it to that level of detail....

[Tyrnek]

Alright... inane detail work time.

1) How far is Shirou's house from the school? I need to figure out Fuyuki City distances, because I'm getting them very, very wrong.

2) What day does Bazett summon Lancer, and what exactly happens between her and Kirei when he betrays her? Does she have feelings for him or something?

3) Post-HF good, what can Sakura actually do? Is the Greater Grail still around, or did the Excaliblast take care of it? Not sure if he destroyed the Lesser or Greater Grail there.

4) When we say that Sakura has like a trillion units of prana, does that mean that it's all stored in her body? Or is it more like she can access it, but the prana's still in the Lesser Grail? Is it something else entirely?

5) What has Nasu told us about the nature of souls?

I'm almost positive I'm gonna have more questions later. Thanks in advance.

[Cherry Lover]

Alright... inane detail work time.

1) How far is Shirou's house from the school? I need to figure out Fuyuki City distances, because I'm getting them very, very wrong.

Hmm, I'm not sure it is ever specifically stated, but it's a reasonable distance (half an hour walk or so). His house is also not on the route to school from Sakura or Rin's house.

2) What day does Bazett summon Lancer, and what exactly happens between her and Kirei when he betrays her? Does she have feelings for him or something?

I don't think it's ever said when Lancer is summoned, but it's very early, most likely before the prologue.

As for her betrayal, Kotomine befriended her prior to the war, and she came to trust him. Then, after she summoned Lancer, he attacked her when she wasn't expecting it and cut her arm off. And, yes, she very definitely does have feelings for Lancer. She is absolutely besotted with him.

3) Post-HF good, what can Sakura actually do? Is the Greater Grail still around, or did the Excaliblast take care of it? Not sure if he destroyed the Lesser or Greater Grail there.

It's not entirely clear what Sakura is capable of post-HF. However, she would still have excess prana, and she'd probably be capable of using most of the things she is capable of in her Dark form with sufficient practice. It would be difficult, though.

As for the Great Grail, it's destroyed. The Excaliblast destroys it and the cavern it is in.

Also, do you mean HF True or HF Normal? There's no such thing as "HF Good", and I'm never 100% sure which people are talking about, since HF True is a much happier ending than HF Normal is. I assume you mean HF Normal, though, since you're talking about the Grail being Excaliblasted.

4) When we say that Sakura has like a trillion units of prana, does that mean that it's all stored in her body? Or is it more like she can access it, but the prana's still in the Lesser Grail? Is it something else entirely?

It means she can access it, not that she has it stored inside her. Her body, like Rin's, can only store and use 1000 units at a time.

I believe that, as a former Grail, Sakura has a connection to Akasha, and thus infinite prana. She can't use it to access the source (at least normally), but she can draw prana from it.

5) What has Nasu told us about the nature of souls?

Can you clarify what you're asking here? It's too vague to answer at the moment.