Holy Grail War

Biodata

Feature	Value
Name	Holy Grail War
Alias(es)	Great Holy Grail War; Heaven's Feel
Occupation/Role	Ritual competition centered on the Great Holy Grail, a device intended to fulfill participants' wishes
Status	Destroyed in the Fuyuki conflict; no further Holy Grail Wars are expected in that world 216
First Appearance	1

Background / History

The Holy Grail War is described as a competition rather than a conventional war: its participants fight over the Great Holy Grail, a “wish-granting machine of all creation.” The original Grail was an artificial magical construct made by the Tohsaka, Einzbern, and Matou families, with the homunculus Justeaze Lizrich von Einzbern serving as its core. Its connection to the Third Magic places it in the realm of miracles. 49

In one Third Holy Grail War, Darnic Prestone Yggdmillennia and Justeaze colluded with the military to steal the Great Holy Grail. The theft led to the later Sub-Holy Grail War, in which Lord Kayneth died. 49

The Grail’s original purpose was compromised when the Einzberns summoned Angra Mainyu as an illegal eighth Servant in the Third War. After Angra Mainyu died and was collected by the Grail, his soul contaminated it; the Grail thereafter interpreted wishes through “the deepest malice.” Kiritsugu Emiya’s wish for world peace, for example, was answered with the proposal to kill all humanity. 165

During the conflict in Romania, Yggdmillennia possessed the stolen Greater Grail and conducted a factional war against the Red Faction. The expected four Black Servants became five when the summoning ritual produced Saber, Archer, Rider, Berserker, and Alter Ego-class Servants. 49

After seven Heroic Spirits were eliminated, the Greater Grail activated. Amakusa Shirou Tokisada entered it to enact his wish, while Shirou remained committed to destroying the Grail regardless of whether Amakusa succeeded. 127

A later Fuyuki Holy Grail War escalated beyond normal class limits, with multiple Servants occupying the same class and Shadow Servants appearing. Shirou identified these anomalies as the Greater Grail’s self-protection programs. 160 181

The final battle centered on Ryuudou Temple and the Greater Grail. Irisviel used her Noble Phantasm to destroy the black Holy Grail at the cost of her Spirit Core, after which the golden Grail appeared. 215 Artoria ultimately destroyed the Grail itself with Excalibur under Kiritsugu’s three Command Spells, though the remaining “orifice” containing the Evil of This World survived the initial strike. 253

Structure and Operation

Great Holy Grail

The Great Holy Grail is the central mechanism and ultimate prize of the ritual. It does not determine a formal victor; whoever gains access to it when activation conditions are met can make a wish. 93 127

Its wish-granting is not omnipotent. It can accelerate a goal when the petitioner knows a method to accomplish it, but it cannot freely achieve impossible requests such as reviving the dead or altering history without an available method. 165 215

• It activates after enough Servants have been eliminated; seven Heroic Spirit deaths met the activation threshold in the Romanian conflict. 127
• It can be physically seized or relocated, as Semiramis extracted Darnic’s Greater Grail into the Hanging Gardens of Babylon. 101
• Its contamination by Angra Mainyu causes malicious interpretations of wishes. 165
• It manifests self-protection measures, including unusual Servant deployments and Shadow Servants. 181 188

Lesser Holy Grail

The Lesser Holy Grail functions as the vessel that receives defeated Heroic Spirits before the Greater Grail manifests. The vessel must be filled by Servant deaths, though this process can be forcibly manipulated by retrieving an “empty cup.” 188

• Irisviel is a Lesser Holy Grail whose continued human form is supported by Avalon. 246
• A homunculus’s heart can be used to complete a Lesser Holy Grail. 188
• Shirou removed Irisviel’s heart—the Lesser Grail—to prevent the Grail’s intended birth in Fuyuki. 247

Servants and Masters

Masters summon Heroic Spirits as Servants through ritual circles, form contracts with them, and supply them with magical energy. Command Spells can reinforce or compel Servants. 49 93

• Servants and Masters may share memories through dreams while sleeping, unless either party resists; heavily Mad Enhanced Berserkers cannot do so. 76
• Servants normally disappear when the Holy Grail War ends unless their contracts are renewed by capable Masters. 116
• The system is not always stable: multiple Servants may occupy the same class, and nonstandard classes can appear. 49 160

Known Conflicts

Conflict	Key circumstances	Outcome
Third Holy Grail War	Darnic and Justeaze stole the Great Holy Grail; the Einzberns illegally summoned Angra Mainyu as an eighth Servant. 49 165	Angra Mainyu contaminated the Grail after his death. 165
Sub-Holy Grail War	Emerged after the Greater Grail’s theft; Lord Kayneth participated. 49	Kayneth died. 49
Romanian faction war	Yggdmillennia’s Black Faction fought the Red Faction over the stolen Greater Grail. 49 101	The Grail activated after seven Servants fell; Amakusa entered it before Shirou moved to destroy it. 127
Fuyuki Holy Grail War	Multiple Servants per class, Shadow Servants, Angra Mainyu, and the Grail’s defensive programs destabilized the ritual. 160 181 188	The Greater Grail was destroyed, ending future Holy Grail Wars in that world. 216 253

Rules and Secrecy

The Church of the Holy Temple commonly serves as the supervisor of Holy Grail Wars, though its representative in the Romanian conflict, Shirou Kotomine, instead covertly controlled the Red Faction. 87

The Mage’s Association conceals the collateral damage of Grail Wars with mundane explanations; “gas explosion” is cited as its recurring cover story. 70

Although combatants often invoke rules about avoiding civilian involvement, those rules are frequently violated. Shirou identifies Jack the Ripper’s attacks on magi for mana replenishment as a breach that could eventually threaten ordinary people as well. 77

Wishes Entrusted to the Grail

• Kiritsugu Emiya — World peace; the contaminated Grail answered with humanity’s extermination. 1 165
• Fiore Forvedge Yggdmillennia — To heal her legs and stand as a magus. 59
• Caules Forvedge Yggdmillennia — To revive Fiore should she die in the war. 58
• Chiron — To reclaim the immortality he entrusted to the gods. 59
• Amakusa Shirou Tokisada — To materialize souls and save humanity. 127
• Marisbury Animusphere — To establish Chaldea. 181
• Artoria Pendragon — To re-elect the King of Britannia, a wish the Grail cannot fulfill because it would alter history. 215
• Shirou — To resurrect Irisviel and Okita; he concludes that even the Grail cannot return the dead to life. 215

Notable Quotes

“You want eternal peace? Then kill all the humans in this world!” 1

“The so-called Holy Grail is a shortcut to achieving a goal. It can speed up the process of doing something.” 165

“To completely end the Holy Grail War!” 215