Fate/Grand Order Tunguska Sanctuary Clear

This is a record of my clear of the post–Lostbelt 6 interlude chapter Tunguska Sanctuary, which I completed earlier this year before moving on to Lostbelt 7. Since I plan to reflect on my experience with Lostbelt 7: Nahui Mictlan in greater depth later on, I think it is worthwhile to briefly revisit this transitional chapter.

Tunguska Sanctuary can be described as a “Lostbelt 6.5” type of chapter, bridging Avalon le Fae (Lostbelt 6) and Nahui Mictlan (Lostbelt 7), much like how Heian-kyo functioned as a 5.5 chapter. It focuses on Koyanskaya’s aftermath following her escape from Lostbelt 6 and lays groundwork for her role going forward in the larger future narrative.

Koyanskaya, initially presented as one of Chaldea’s secondary antagonistic figures and an apparent agent of the Foreign God, is in fact one of the more intriguing recurring characters within the Lostbelt arc. Her relationship with Chaldea has always been inconsistent, never fully committing to the role of a pure antagonist nor aligning herself as an ally. Tunguska Sanctuary serves as the point where this long-standing dynamic is finally confronted and partially resolved.

In this chapter, Chaldea pursues Koyanskaya after her escape from Avalon le Fae, where she had absorbed an essence related to Cernunnos as part of her progression toward becoming a Beast-class existence, an antithesis to humanity. In this pursuit, Chaldea is accompanied by Taigong Wang, a legendary Chinese Heroic Spirit historically associated with the subjugation of Daji, an entity conceptually linked to Tamamo-no-Mae and Koyanskaya.

Prior to Tunguska Sanctuary, Fate/Grand Order had already featured multiple confrontations with Beast-class entities, including Goetia, Kama, and Sessyoin Kiara. However, this chapter subverts expectations by not presenting a straightforward “defeat the Beast” scenario.

Instead, Tunguska Sanctuary functions not only as a confrontation with Koyanskaya but also as a recontextualization of her relationship with Tamamo-no-Mae. While she is often associated with the Tamamo Nine in fan interpretation, she is not truly one of them. At the same time, her existence is not entirely disconnected from the Tamamo archetype either. This ambiguity is one of the more interesting aspects of her character.

Despite being a relatively short chapter and not among the highest peaks of FGO’s storytelling, Tunguska Sanctuary offers a unique form of resolution. While the final confrontation against Koyanskaya’s pseudo-Beast form is a legitimate and challenging boss encounter, the conclusion does not result in her outright defeat or destruction. Instead, it resolves in a more unusual and indirect manner.

While Taigong Wang serves as a central figure in the chapter, his role is not that of a traditional “brute force” victor. Rather, he plays a pivotal part in disrupting Koyanskaya’s attempt at Beast transformation.

Instead of overpowering her, he exposes the logical contradiction in her ambition. Koyanskaya’s attempt to become a Beast is shown to be fundamentally incompatible with her inability to fully reject or coexist with humanity. As a result, she is guided toward an alternative conclusion: rather than completing her transformation, she ultimately separates from Earth along with the lifeforms she has accumulated, becoming something closer to a drifting “orphic egg ark” carrying her own biosphere into the cosmos. This also connects to the popular “Tamago-no-Mae” meme within the fandom.

Interestingly, despite the conclusion of Tunguska Sanctuary, Koyanskaya of Light later returns quickly in Lostbelt 7 to assist Chaldea in a mercenary capacity. Whether Koyanskaya of Darkness will play any significant role in future story developments remains to be seen.

Overall, while Tunguska Sanctuary does not resonate with me as strongly as some of FGO’s more peak storyline arcs, it still holds value in terms of its contribution to the broader narrative of the Fate series. With this chapter concluded, I can now fully turn my attention to Lostbelt 7, which promises a more epic-scale confrontation that, in many ways, surpasses even Lostbelt 6.