Set Roth

Set Roth
Country of Origin	Germany
Date of Birth	November 28, 1881, Stuttgart, Germany
Date of Death	1970's
Age	62 (Return to Castle Wolfenstein) 64 (Wolfenstein 2009) 65 (The Old Blood) 79 (The New Order) 80 (The New Colossus)
Hair	White
Eyes	Blue
Sex	Male
Nationality	German -Jewish ancestry
Race	Jewish
Occupation	Watchmaker (Formerly) Member of the Da'at Yichud Member of the Kreisau Circle Member of the American Resistance
Fate	Deceased; passed away of old age.
Portrayer	Mark Ivanir
Appearance(s)	Wolfenstein: The New Order Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus Wolfenstein: Youngblood (Mentioned)

"Like a new man, Yingele, a new man. Oh, look at you, I'm so happy you're back."

―Set to B.J. after getting his new body.

Set Roth is an German Jewish scientist and a member of the Kreisau Circle in Wolfenstein: The New Order, Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus, and briefly mentioned in Wolfenstein: Youngblood.

Personality

Set is a genius-level man who has improved the resistance's chances of beating the Nazi war machine. He was a brilliant inventor, creating machines that could even disintegrate anyone inside it. In addition, he was a skilled doctor, saving Blazkowicz's life twice. He was also quick to anger and irritation, notably showing this to Sigrun Engel when she sings, and losing to Max Hass by chess. When losing at chess, Set shows childish behavior such as name calling and throwing some chess pieces.

History

To the outside world Set Roth lived as a watchmaker in Stuttgart, Germany. But secretly he was a member of the Da'at Yichud, performing amazing research in a variety of scientific fields. He managed to hide for many years when the Nazis took control, but eventually they caught up with him and shipped him off to the labor camps. According to other inmates, he is the longest-surviving member in the camp due to his scientific knowledge.

The Über Concrete was developed by Set with Da'at Yichud's knowledge under Nazi supervision. Unknown to his "patron", Set did his part of resistance by adding a flaw to the formula, which causes the Über Concrete, which is supposed to be tough as steel, to deteriorate over time and grow mold. Its structure in turn weakened and even caused buildings built with it to crumble. The Nazi authority never discovered the sabotage, but insisted it was caused by something else.

Camp Belica

Since 1941, Set remained detained in Camp Belica where the flawed Über Concrete was being manufactured by the camp's forced labor population under Nazi supervision. B.J. Blazkowicz managed to infiltrate the camp disguised as a prisoner and found Set in Block 4 of the prison after switching uniforms with Milo. Set refers to B.J. as "Shimshon", which is Hebrew for "Samson".

Set was found in the camps barracks where he was attending to the wounds of another prisoner. Set was convinced by B.J. that the Kreisau Circle required his assistance because of his knowledge of the Da'at Yichud. Set agreed but only if B.J. would help him shut the camp down and retrieve a detronic battery for his custom made remote for the Herr Faust. Agreeing, B.J. helped shut down the camp's security systems and ended up retrieving the battery for Set; however, he was captured before he could deliver it. Eventually put up for execution for the members of Block 4, B.J. tosses Set the stolen battery and he places it into the controller, causing Herr Faust to injure Frau Engel and set him free.

He and Blazkowicz boarded the Herr Faust and fought their way through the heavily guarded camp where he released the prisoners and escaped with Blazkowicz in a truck.

Kreisau Circle Headquarters

Upon arriving at the headquarters of the Kreisau Circle in Berlin, Set explained the technology of the Da'at Yichud to the Kreisau Circle and revealed to them that the Nazis only took the technology from one of many safe keeps that they had scattered over the world. Knowing what was needed, Set required a U-Boat and also helped repair the Tunnel Glider in order for Blazkowicz to hijack a train in the underground railroad.

Da'at Yichud Vault

After Blazkowicz hijacked the Eva's Hammer, Set assisted in the opening of a vault containing some weapons and technology developed by the Da'at Yichud. Blazkowicz and either character (Fergus Reid or Probst Wyatt) accompany him and take a couple of inventions such as the Spindly Torque, a Power Suit, and the generator upgrade for the LaserKraftWerk.

Deathshead's Compound

After the Nazis' raid of the Kreisau Circle HQ in Berlin, Set was captured along with the other resistance members and taken to Deathshead's Compound. After B.J. infiltrated Deathshead's Compound for the second time, he inadvertently encountered Set and his fellow resistance members attempting to leave the compound. In the cutscene after B.J.'s showdown with Deathshead, the critically wounded B.J. watches the resistance members making their escape, including Set.

Wolfenstein: The New Colossus

Set returns in Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus. At the beginning of the game, he is fighting against the Nazis after they attack the the Eva's Hammer by setting microwave emitter booby traps. Later on, he helps Fergus replace his right arm. In addition, and most importantly, he rescues B.J.'s head after Irene Engel beheaded him on live-television. He replaces B.J.'s broken body with a Super Soldier's body, which allows B.J. to fight again.

He also owns a hybrid monkey with a cat head whom he named Shoshana. He found the cat after the Kresiau Circle first captured the Eva's Hammer, and when he found that it was dying of bowel cancer, he transplanted its head onto the body of a squirrel monkey that he found chewing on a blasting cap.

When B.J brings him a Da'at Yichud object which Super Spesh gave to B.J back in Roswell, Set becomes obsessed with figuring out what it is and how it works. He describes himself as being "absorbed and angry" with the artifact and further describes it as "inconceivable" and "incomprehensible" when Fergus and Max are around; all he knows is that it's a key. In the Wyatt timeline, when a detoxing Wyatt asks if the object is a doorknob, Set seems to get a burst of inspiration, but doesn't state what it is.

Legacy

Following the events of the New Colossus, he mentored Abby in Da'at Yichud technology and science and later passed away due to his old age. But not without leaving a project to Abby to complete a new set of Da'at Yichud Power Suit 18 years later at a secret hideout with a significant modification from her, before she gave both Jessica and Sophia Blazkowicz to wear and join them on a mission to look for their missing father in France. Furthermore, he also enables the US and the Global Resistance to access to more Da’at Yichud vaults giving them more technological advantages over the Nazis.

Gallery

Set speaks to B.J. on the Über Concrete.

Set tied behind Engel.

Set and B.J. escaping the camp.

Set Roth having a conversation with the Kreisau Circle.

Set with Fergus in the Da'at Yichud Safe.

Set with Anya and Bombate, being captured by Frau Engel.

Set with Anya and Bombate, reuniting with B.J. in Deathshead's Compound.

Set being helped by Bombate and Anya escape Deathshead's Compound.

Set's Bio in The New Colossus.

Set helping his allies rescue an injured B.J.

Set performing surgery on Blazkowicz.

Set and B.J. while Nazis are killed by Microwave Emitters.

Set Roth with B.J. and Anya.

Set propping Fergus with a prosthetic arm.

Set stopping B.J. from killing Shoshana.

Set with Anya and Fergus.

Set goes to retrieve a contraption for B.J.

Set Roth plays chess with Max Hass.

Set Roth getting furious from losing to Max Hass in a chess game due to his carelessness.

Set's character model.

Set Roth controls the drone that delivers B.J. decapitated head.

Set vomits inside the jar he used to preserve B.J. decapitated head during B.J. birthday.

Set Roth frustrates for not be able to enter the toilet due to being cobbled by Super Spesh a few days ago before his demise.

Set with the group.

Set and Max play chess.

Set with B.J.'s head for Head Transplant.

Set with B.J.'s head for Head Transplant.

Set gets frustrated with the God Key.

Set with the group at the submersible.

Set brings a contraption to B.J.

Set at the surprise party.

Set at the surprise party.

Set with the group.

Set helping B.J. in his wheelchair.

Set with Wyatt and Anya.

Set listening to Anya speak of Caroline's notes.

Set telling B.J. of Wyatt's vitals.

Set listening to Grace readying to start the revolution.

Set Roth as the Episode 2 boss in Wolfstone 3D.

Trivia

• Set's watchmaking may be a reference to Albert Einstein's post-Hiroshima quip, "I should have remained a watchmaker."
• Set tampering with the Über Concrete also likely was a reference to real life construction and/or manufacturing workers/laborers' written memos to allied members that were forced to work under Nazi Occupation during World War II, deliberately tampering or sabotaging very small elements in the manufacturing process of Nazi machinery to cause defects such as metallurgy but too discrete to notice on a first glance.
• He is often calling Blazkowicz "yingele", which means "little boy" in Yiddish.
• Set's name is formed from common Eastern European Jewish names, which combined seem to be a nod toward the Sephirot, a concept taken from the transcendental Jewish tradition of Kabbalah.
• Set's age is given in Who's Who cards for Wolfenstein II, however his birthdate is unknown. So it is not known what age he was in The New Order. He could have been born anywhere between 1880 and 1881.
• While it is revealed in Youngblood that Set had died of old age following the Second American Revolution, his exact date of death is unknown. Since he was apparently able to teach Abby Walker before his passing, it can be assumed that he died sometime in the 1970's, when his student would have been in her early to mid teens.
• He is responsible for perfecting the head transplant technology. He even remarks that it is his greatest scientific achievement.
• Even though he is usually one of the more level-headed and well-mannered members of the Kreisau Circle, Set is shown to be quite prideful, arrogant, and a sore loser when it comes to his intellect as he is enraged when he loses to Max in a chess game due to his carelessness, to the point of calling Max a stupid golem out of spite.
• Beside B.J., he is one of the most wanted men in the world due to his status as a living member of the Da'at Yichud, since the Nazis need his knowledge and expertise to handle Da'at Yichud artifacts after many Nazi scientists and technicians died from handling them improperly.

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