Saber is one of the Fate series’ most popular and well known characters. It wouldn’t be wrong to say that she was the face of the franchise for years. While the popularity of FGO, and with it the inclusion of multiple new servants in the series lore, has allowed for other characters to shine, Saber still stands out.
Not only is Saber one of the franchises most popular characters, she’s also one of its strongest. Though her parameters differ depending on her master’s skill, Saber is shown to be a capable warrior possessing fierce strength in every appearance she’s made. Finding servants she can beat is easy, but determining what kind of servant can beat her in battle is a tough task. Here are 5 servants Saber can beat, and 5 she just can’t.
10 Can: Irisviel von Einzbern (Caster)
There’s definitely some familiarity here. But that’s not the reason why Saber gets the advantage in this match-up. As a servant, Irisviel’s personality is pretty much the same as it was when she was human. She isn’t all that much stronger as a servant either, which bodes well for Saber in this contest.
As a caster, Iri isn’t all that suited to direct combat and is better off using her magecraft. This would make fighting someone as aggressive and adept in close-quarter combat as Saber, a challenge for her. Her noble phantasm, while powerful, is more suited to support rather than head-on battle. This is an easy win for Saber.
9 Can’t: Enkidu
This would be a tough match-up for both involved. While Saber has proven herself to be resilient, and able to adapt to most enemies, Enkidu may very well be too much for her to handle in combat. Though his strength is somewhat tough to assess, he is said to be comparable to Gilgamesh in his prime.
It is worth noting that Enkidu being a lancer seemingly puts him at a disadvantage against Saber class servants. However, his status as a divine construct means he pretty much has no weaknesses. It’s a match-up that Saber just can’t win in most cases.
8 Can: Lancelot
This is a battle we’ve seen play out before, and we all know how it ends. As depicted in Fate/Zero Lancelot may be able to give Saber some trouble in battle, but she’d ultimately come out the victor.
For the sake of consistency, we’ll take Lancelot’s berserker form into account for this match-up – though to be fair, his saber version wouldn’t fare that much better against his king. We know that this would be a hard battle for Saber – emotionally and physically – but as she’s shown in the past, she’d be able to overcome her feelings and get the job done.
7 Can’t: Karna
Karna would certainly be the toughest fight Saber has had on this list so far. Though is lancer classing may lead you to believe he’s at a disadvantage, Karna has some pretty solid defenses that give him all the tools he needs to outlast and outdo Saber in combat.
When examining this match-up you have to look at Karna’s noble phantasms. His Kavacha and Kundala, give him a nearly impenetrable defense, that even Saber would have trouble getting past. Then of course there’s his Vasavi Shakti, which if up against Saber’s Excalibur, would probably just barely manage to beat it in terms of power.
6 Can: Francis Drake
Francis Drake probably wouldn’t last too long in a head-to-head battle with Saber, but luckily she’s a rider class servant, giving her more than enough mobility to move around the battlefield and look for an opening. The battle may not be as cut and dry as you’d expect, but the result would surely be a victory for Saber.
This battle would probably come down to both servants’ noble phantasms. Drake’s Golden Wild Hunt can cover a lot of ground, and as an anti-army ability would surely overwhelm most other servants that go up against it. However, Saber always has her trusty Excalibur up her sleeve, which would be perfect in countering Drake.
5 Can’t: Space Ishtar
Saber is a tough and resilient servant. She’s proven that much time and time again. But even she would have a hard time dealing with Space Ishtar. One of the newer servants introduced to the series, Space Ishtar would prove to be a tough opponent for almost any servant in the series.
With half of her parameters (endurance, mana & noble phantasm) being EX, Space Ishtar is just on an entirely different level than Saber. Even if she were to use Excalibur on her, S Ishtar’s own noble phantasm; Edin Shugra Quasar, would just demolish it. Classified as an anti-planet noble phantasm, Edin Shugra Quasar can absolutely overwhelm Saber and anything she can possibly throw at it.
4 Can: Shuten Dōji
Shuten Dōji may be an assassin, but her parameters don’t reflect that at all – at least not where you’d expect. While most assassin servants are better suited to less direct types of combat, Shuten actually could manage the strength and agility needed to go toe-to-toe with a bunch of different servants – though it wouldn’t be wise to do so against Saber.
Shuten Dōji’s noble phantasm is a pretty intimidating ability that allows her to literally debone her opponents. Of course, she’s had to get close enough to her opponent to pull that off in the first place, and Saber has ways – mainly Excalibur – of making sure that doesn’t happen.
3 Can’t: Altera
This would certainly be fun to watch, as it has two of the strongest servants in the Saber class going up against each other. Altera is pretty similar to Saber in how she carries herself, but most importantly in her abilities.
Altera has superior endurance and agility, with her noble phantasm; Photon Ray being just below Saber’s in terms of strength. However, Altera can utilize and enhanced version of her noble phantasm – named Teardrop Photon Ray – that is on par with Excalibur. Given her superior endurance and speed, Altera gets the slight nod in this contest.
2 Can: Miyamoto Musashi
Yet another well known Saber, Musashi is a great servant and would certainly make for a tough opponent for Saber. But she’s just a step below the King of Knights in a one-on-one fight.
Most of Musashi’s parameters are B, with the exception of her mana, which is E. That last one aside, those aren’t bad stats to have. But compared to Saber she doesn’t really stand out or excel in one particular section. Though powerful, her noble phantasm doesn’t compare to Excalibur – and that’s really the big deciding factor here.
1 Can’t: Beast III/L
Saber is so strong that it’s hard to find that many traditional servants out there that can best her in battle. There aren’t that many Beasty class servants out there – in fact it’s probably one that most fans are unfamiliar with. The only thing you need to know about them is that they’re insanely strong.
With good endurance and agility parameters, Beast III/L would be able to keep up with Saber pretty easily, though she doesn’t possess great strength. The real issue for Saber would be if she unleashed her noble phantasm during battle. Classified as an Anti-world noble phantasm and given an EX parameter, Samsara Kama/Mara Avaruddha isn’t really something you can counter. Even Saber with her Excalibur would be powerless against it.