Gilgamesh in Fate Stay Night

The Epic of Gilgamesh has inspired many works of literature, art, music, as Theodore Ziolkowski points out in his book Gilgamesh Among Us: Modern Encounters With the Ancient Epic (2011). It was only after the First World War that the Gilgamesh epic reached a wide audience, and it is only after the Second World War that it begins to feature in a variety of genres.

Besides, the epic of Gilgamesh also been animated in Fate Stay Night.

Gilgamesh

Servant Stats

Spirit: Gilgamesh

Japanese name of spirit: ギルガメッシュ

Master: Kotomine Kirei

Gender: Male Height: 182cm Weight: 68kg Hair color: Golden Eye color: Red

Alignment: Chaotic Good Agility: C Endurance: C Luck: A Mana: B N. Phantasm: EX Strength: B

Class skills: Independent Action: A+                        Magic Resistance: E

Personal skills: Charisma: A+                               Divinity: B (A+)                               Golden rule: A

Noble Phantasms: Ea: Anti-world: EX                                     Enkidu: Anti-unit: ~                                     Gate of babylon: Anti-army: E~A++

 GILGAMESH

Gilgamesh (ギルガメッシュ) is an enigmatic Archer-class Servant. He appears familiar with Fuyuki City and claims to have a past relationship with Saber. Typically clad in an ornate golden armor, he possesses an immense number of Noble Phantasms, though none are representative of his true identity.

Appearance

            Gilgamesh is a tall and dignified young man with golden hair standing up like a blazing flame. He is described as handsome with an elegant face, and his eyes, crimson like blood, are visibly not those of a human and give off a mysterious radiance that makes people wither. He has a "perfect, Golden-proportioned body" described as emanating majesty that makes flames surrounding him afraid to come close. He normally wears golden armor that makes a heavy first impression on those he encounters. He is often referred to as the "golden Archer" and the "golden-sparkling Servant," and Rider generally calls him "Goldy." Rin also calls him "goldie", but it has less to do with the color of his hair and more simply due to the fact that she thinks he looks like he is living a rich and luxurious life.

He likes to wear casual clothes, "playing attire" to ward off boredom from being in spirit from, when not in battle, such as a modern match-up of a leather jacket with furs and fashionable leather pants. He looks like a regular foreigner to both Rin and Archer, and he doesn't openly give off the impression of a Servant or Master due to his body being made of flesh after the Fourth Holy Grail War.

After drinking his potion of youth, he takes the form of a young child. He has the same blood-red eyes and golden hair that makes him stand out from others. Shirou is unable to identify him from sight, and he finds it hard to believe they're the same person even after being told.

Identity

Gilgamesh is the great half-god, half-human king that ruled the Sumerian city-state of Uruk, the capital city of ancient Mesopotamia, in the years before Christ. He was an ultimate, transcendent being so divine as to be two thirds god and one third human, and no others in the world could match him. He was a despot possessing high divinity who believed he was invincible. He is not merely a legend, and is said to have actually existed and ruled during the Sumer Dynasty five thousand years ago. He was the King of Heroes who possessed all things in the world, whose tale is recorded in mankind's oldest epic poem, the "Epic of Gilgamesh."

Gilgamesh was originally a tyrant who did not care about his people, but his behavior slowly changed after he gained a friend considered to be an equal, Enkidu. Enkidu was created by the goddess Aruru in response to the prayers of the people who suffered under Gilgamesh's oppression and tyrannical policies. He is described as a foolish and ridiculous fellow whom, despite having a body made of mud and soil, set his heart to stand shoulder to shoulder with gods. The two met as was fated, and they strongly affected each other even though Gilgamesh feared Enkidu as an enemy at first. While Enkidu was released to fight against Gilgamesh, and they met and battled as enemies, they eventually came to understand each other soon after, recognized each other as equals, and worked together to rule the country.

The two eventually defeated the Humbaba, the guardian of the forest and beast of the gods. He became the greatest and richest king on Earth, who eventually acquired all the treasure in the world. Uruk became unprecedentedly prosperous, and Gilgamesh was considered so powerful that even the gods could not ignore his existence. One goddess, Ishtar the goddess of fertility, even fell in love with Gilgamesh and proposed marriage to the perfect king. He rejected her immediately because he knew her to be a witch who was unfaithful, cruel, and the corruptor of all men. She became furious, feeling that he had insulted her, and went to her father, the god Anu, to get revenge. She persuaded him to unleash the Bull of Heaven.

The unopposable beast of the gods caused seven years of starvation and destruction on the earth. Gilgamesh and Enkidu cooperated, faced the Bull of Heaven, and they successfully defeated it after Gilgamesh bound it with the Chains of Heaven. Ishtar's reputation was once again crushed, and her fury did not abate. She complained before the Gods to give death to one of the men, as it was a sin for human to kill the beast of the gods. Her wish was granted, and since the gods created him, Enkidu could not resist the command. Due to his hubris and disrespectful arrogance that offended the gods in heaven, he suffered divine retribution that caused him to slowly weaken to death.

Gilgamesh is unable to forget the way Enkidu passed away with tears streaming down his face. He asked Enkidu "Why are you crying? Could it be that, only now, you are regretting having taken my side?", to which Enkidu responded “Who would understand you after I die? Who else would march forward by your side? My friend… when I think that you will live on all alone henceforth, I can’t help but shed tears…” As he saw Enkidu taking his last breaths, he realized that the way the man who was human but wanted to surpass humanity had lived was even more precious and more brilliant than all the treasures he had collected. His final words to Enkidu were “You fool who stretches your hand towards realms not of men… There is only one person in heaven or earth who’s worthy of appreciating your destruction, and that is none other than I, Gilgamesh. Sink into my embrace, oh you glorious and illusionary man. That is my decision.” As Enkidu's golden majestic brilliance disappeared in the night mist, there was only an evil laughter left echoing long after.

Enkidu's death began Gilgamesh's downfall. He was shocked by the fact that death could come to even a friend who was his equal, and he was tormented by the fear of this "death." He finally traveled to the underworld in search of immorality, and obtained the miraculous elixir of immortality at the end of a long journey and many hardships. A snake on his way stole it back while he was bathing. While it is said he eventually died of grief, he personally claims to Saber that immortality was nothing he needed, so he casually gave it to the snake. It is said that the snake begins its life again in a new body after shedding its skin because it stole Gilgamesh's medicine and drank it. The skin shed by the first snake in the world in ancient times was later fossilized and remained in existence for countless eons before being used as a catalyst by Tohsaka Tokiomi to summon Gilgamesh as Archer in the Fourth Holy Grail War.

Personality

Gilgamesh is extremely arrogant and selfish. He claims that everything in the world is his possession and he's the one and only king. He cannot acknowledge the authority of anyone, even from the gods. He's incredibily proud, especially of his collection of treasures. He views everyone as inferior and does not care for their feelings at all. After he saw enough of the modern world, he decided to cleanse it from humans since they have become weak and unworthy of his rule. On the course of the 4th Grail War he took interest in Saber and developed an obsession with her. In battle, he's prone to underestimate his opponents and views fights as a game of amusement. His gigantic pride prevents him from acknowledging his opponent as a real threat and he does not fight him/her seriously. As such he prefers to severely handicap himself and just mindlessly shower his incredible volume of Noble Phantasms.

After he consumes the potion of youth, he becomes a little boy. Surprisingly, the child version of Gilgamesh is well-mannered, polite and amiable, not to mention perfectly sane and rational, complelety different from his extremely haughty, rude (and sometimes irrational and violent-tempered) adult counterpart. He becomes popular and an idol among children in Fuyuki, as he is seen leading a football team with amazing leadership. In his child form, he not only retains his memory but his royal and divine charisma as well. He remembers Shirou and greets him politely. Shirou initially wonders whether he is Gilgamesh's younger brother before being corrected, though child Gilgamesh wished he had brothers and sisters, showing that he is the only son of King Lugalbanda and goddess Ninsun. He also expresses his uneasiness of how he grows up becoming someone so unpleasant, referring to his adult form's personality. He also approves of Shirou's relationship with Saber and states that Saber is not suitable for someone of his age. It is likely that the Golden King was a better person when he was a child. Seeing him with the children, Shirou wonders how Gilgamesh will eventually grow up to become someone so unpleasant.

He retains his boy alter ego and amiable personality even when he reverts back to an adult, as he is seen fishing with several of his chidren companion (dubbed Gil's Brigade) at Fuyuki Dock, along with Archer and Lancer. He is also less arrogant than usual, showing that his personality has improved greatly somehow, even though he is boasting of his superior quality fishing rods compared to Lancer's and Archer's own. At some point, he also authors a manga that called Ju-Op that one of the children eagerly asked for.

Gilgamesh had an extremely close relationship with Enkidu. He responds to Rider's request to join him as an ally by saying "It is unfortunate, but I do not require a second friend. Past and future, my companion will only be one."

Role

Gilgamesh was summoned by Tohsaka Tokiomi in the Fourth Holy Grail War. While the relic used as the catalyst looked like the broken fragment of a mummy, it was actually claimed to be the fossil of the first skin ever shed by a snake.

He dislikes the presence of Saber and Rider because they were kings like he was before they became heroic spirits. After the three Kings meeting Gilgamesh opinions on the other Kings changes especially how he develops a fascination for Saber, whom he views as weak-minded because of her ideals and desires to see her despair after he crushes them. Gilgamesh even remarked that he would be the one to kill Rider after witnessing his Noble Phantasm.

In the 4th Holy War Gilgamesh finds Tokiomi the typical boring mage and much to Tokiomi's displeasure, the arrogant and materialistic Gilgamesh has difficulty acting covertly. But he is intrigued by Kotomine Kirei's participation in the war. The Servant suggests that to overcome his emptiness, Kirei should determine backgrounds and the motivations of the other Masters and Servants as to why they wish to obtain the Holy Grail.

After Gilgamesh learns from Kirei that Tokiomi would use his last command spell to order Gilgamesh commit suicide so Tokiomi would gain the Holy Grail, Gilgamesh and Kirei would scheme together to betray his former master/mentor.

With Tohsaka's death, Gilgamesh co-operated with Kirei to obtain the Holy Grail, intending to cleanse the world of humanity, which he felt had become corrupted and vile, thus not worthy of his reign (he wanted to rule a world inhabited with strong and dignified creatures, according to the Unlimited Blade Works scenario).

Gilgamesh was responsible for delivering the deathblow to the Rider-class Servant Iskander, King of Conquerors. Though he had been at odds with the King of Conquerers, Gilgamesh expressed considerable respect for Rider, despite Gilgamesh's extreme pride. Out of respect for Iskander, he spares Waver Velvet, Rider's Master, and dismisses him for the remainder of the war.

The last two remaining Servants are Saber and Gilgamesh but out of surprise, Gilgamesh propose Saber to be his Queen however, during their final confrontation, their battle is interrupted by the destruction of the Holy Grail at the hands of Saber, forced to comply because of the commands issued by Kiritsugu via his Command Spells.

When Emiya Kiritsugu killed his Master, Gilgamesh remained in the physical world long enough to be drenched by the pollution within the tainted Holy Grail. Contact with this ichor normally corrupts a Servant's ego, but Gilgamesh resisted submission to the evil influence. However, the saturation converted his spiritual body to one of flesh and blood, and Gilgamesh also become more eccentric and excitable.

Although able to exist independently of Kotomine, Gilgamesh continued to co-operate with his old Master, which had been resurrected by the Grail's malevolent power. With Kotomine's aid, he was able to stockpile prana for his Noble Phantasms through the consumption of human souls from children orphaned by the fire at the end of the war. Gilgamesh also retrieved a potion of temporary youth from his vault that reduced his physical age and allowed him to smoothly blend in with society.

Gilgamesh is one of the antagonists in each scenario of Fate/stay night. He first appears before the start of the Fifth Holy Grail War around Sakura's house. He identifies her as “the other Grail” and comes to tell her “Go die right now.” It is just a suggestion rather than a command, as he believes that the matter will develop into some sort of entertainment regardless of the situation. When asked about the encounter, Sakura just claims that he was asking for directions and that “It was English” in order to hide the truth. In Fate, he kills Caster as she assaults Shirou's residence, and later ambushes Shirō and Saber during their date. Ultimately, he is killed in a climatic battle with Saber at the Ryuudouji Temple atop Mount Enzō. Gilgamesh is more active in Unlimited Blade Works, and reprises his role as the final antagonist; He is "lent" to Shinji Matou after Shinji's Servant, Rider, is killed by Sōichirō Kuzuki and later easily killed Ilya and Berserker. Gilgamesh attempts to use Shinji as the core of the Holy Grail, but he is killed by Archer after being cornered by Shirō. Gilgamesh has a small role in Heaven's Feel  scenario, where he lacerates Dark Sakura with Gate of Babylon. However, he underestimates her regenerative abilities and is devoured by her shadows.

In Fate/hollow ataraxia, Gilgamesh once again consumes his potion of youth, and holds a low profile in Fuyuki City to avoid interacting with previous Servants or Masters. As a child, he is extremely popular with other children, retaining his royal charisma but also affable and amiable. When Shirou reunited with this younger Gilgamesh, Shirou did not recognize him and was dumbfounded as to how Gilgamesh would eventually grow into such a haughty and selfish person. It is possible that Gilgamesh is a better person when he is still a child, or the potion he consume to revert to child affects his personality as well as his age. Furthermore, he still remembers the events in Fate/Stay Night as he recognizes Shiro and greets him politely.He also awares of his adult alter ego and wonders why he grows up becoming someone so unpleasant. During the Fuyuki eclipse, he reverts to his adult form and assists the other Servants in slaying the endless horde of Shadow Wolf Beasts, providing the opportunity for Avenger to make his way to Heaven's Feel. He also seems to retain his pleasant personality even after he turns back as adult as he is seen fishing at Fuyuki Dock with several children, with golden fishing rods that his children companions think very cool albeit being slightly silly-looking.

Fate/strange fake features another incarnation of Gilgamesh separate from the version summoned during the Fuyuki Holy Grail Wars.

Abilities

Gilgamesh is placed into the Archer class because of his main Noble Phantasm, Gate of Babylon. It grants him access to all of the world's treasures that he collected during his life, which include prototypes of other heroes' Noble Phantasms, and he can launch them as the strongest arrows towards his opponents. While he may sometimes choose to wield them as regular weapons, he mainly fights by raining down an infinite amount of weapons on his opponents. The most trusted Noble Phantasms contained within include Enkidu and Ea. While he has numerous Noble Phantasms, none are indicative of his true identity, and the only person through both Holy Grail Wars to figure out his identity without being told is Rider.

He is rarely serious while fighting, describing his going all out in hollow ataraxia as a once in a lifetime whim, and it is said he could have ended the Fourth Holy Grail War in a single night if he wished. He is extremely perceptive of magecraft, allowing him to see through Caster's fake death and tell the exact number of spells a magus is preparing just by looking at them. He is able to predict the exact number of Projections prepared by Shirou, and asks what kind of hero he would be if he could not see through a magus.

He normally wears golden armor materialized from magical energy much like Saber's armor. It is extremely strong to the point that Shirou initially assumes that it is his main Noble Phantasm. It has a strong innate Magic Resistance, and it is durable enough to block Tsubame Gaeshi and numerous strong blows from Invisible Air simply by protecting his head with his hands. While it is completely free from damage after Saber's attacks, he claims it is at its limit and that any more would be bad even if his armor doesn't give out to attacks often. Shirou believes she would have been able to slash through it if she were to relaunch her barrage of attacks.