History Recap / RWBYV4WorldOfRemnant

* HollywoodGenetics: Qrow explains that two Faunus of the same breed will produce a baby of that breed. A child of a human and a Faunus could be either, but Qrow implies that it might take time for some Faunus traits -- such as sharp teeth -- to manifest, so even the parents might not know for a while if their child is human or Faunus. However, if two Faunus of different types produce a child, that child could be any type of Faunus; it's completely random. Qrow finds it amusing just how confused scientists are over Faunus genetics.

* TheApocalypseBringsOutTheBestInPeople: Vacuo is a ruined remnant of what it once was and people have to struggle just to survive. There are barely any laws in place, and the few that exist are maintained by Shade Academy rather than the Council. There's only one rule that matters in Vacuo: if you can survive, you're welcome. Because they're in the same boat, people who survive in Vacuo have a mutual respect for each other. This means that the Human/Faunus racism that exists elsewhere on the planet is almost non-existent here.

* HollywoodGenetics: Qrow explains that two Faunus of the same breed will produce a baby of that breed. A Human and a Faunus could be either, but Qrow implies that it might take time for some Faunus traits -- such as sharp teeth -- to manifest, so even the parents might not know for a while if their child is Human or Faunus. However, if two Faunus of different types produce a child, that child could be any type of Faunus; it's completely random. Qrow finds it amusing just how confused scientists are over Faunus genetics.

* SettlingTheFrontier: People very often don't want to live in the kingdoms: they don't want the kingdom's problems, the kingdoms have problems with then, they want a different way of life. Whatever the reason, they're willing to enter the wilderness to build a new way of life from scratch, even if it means having to deal with Grimm and bandits.

* HollywoodGenetics: Qrow explains that two Faunus of the same breed will produce a baby of that breed. A Human and a Faunus could be either, but Qrow implies that it might take time for some Faunus traits such as sharp teeth to manifest, so even the parents might not know for a while if their child is Human or Faunus. However, if two Faunus of different types produce a child, that child could be any type of Faunus; it's completely random. Qrow finds it amusing just how confused scientists are over Faunus genetics.

* HollywoodGenetics: Qrow explains that two Faunus of the same breed will produce a baby of that breed. A Human and a Faunus could be either, but Qrow implies that it might take some time for some Faunus traits like sharp teeth to manifest, so even the parents might not know for a while if their child is Human or Faunus. However, if two Faunus of different types produce a child, that child could be any type of Faunus; it's completely random. Qrow finds it amusing just how confused scientists are over Faunus genetics.

* HollywoodGenetics: Qrow explains that two Faunus of the same breed will produce a baby of that breed. A Human and a Faunus could be either, but Qrow implies that it might take some time for Faunus traits to manifest, so even the parents might not know for a while if their child is Human or Faunus. However, if two Faunus of different types produce a child, that child could be any type of Faunus; it's completely random. Qrow finds it amusing just how confused scientists are over Faunus genetics.

* TheEmperor: Mistral was ruled by an Emperor who was responsible for most of the tension triggered the Great War. With the help of its trading partner, Mantle, the Mistral Emperor conquered Anima, selectively enforcing Mantle's decree of suppressing the population's emotions as a way to fight the Grimm, and engaging in practices such as exploiting the people and using slave labour. When the Emperor decided to expand into Sanus, clashes with Vale began. This triggered the Great War, with Mistral and Mantle trying to conquer Vale. Only when they tried to force Vacuo to supply them with Dust for their own good, did Vacuo decide that they needed to be stopped -- entering the war on Vale's side.

* CivilizationDestroyer: It is possible for towns and villages to survive a bandit attack, but it's impossible to survive them without extensive negative emotions being left in their wake. A bandit attack therefore always attracts the Grimm, destroying the beleagured society completely. It's occurence is so likely, bandit clans are usually nomadic to ensure they don't become victims of their own activities.

* CivilizationDestroyer: It is possible for towns and villages to survive a bandit attack, but it's impossible to survive them without extensive negative emotions be left in their wake. A bandit attack therefore always attracts the Grimm, destroying the beleagured society completely. It's occurence is so likely, bandit clans are usually nomadic to ensure they don't become victims of their own activities.

* BewareTheNiceOnes: The King of Vale objected to exploitation and slave labour, even trying to peacefully share land when Mistral started settling Sanus. Once war broke out, being threatened by Mistral and Mantle made Vacuo choose what they thought was the better side. The war ended when the King of Vale took the front line, raining down such devastation that every kingdom submitted their crowns to him -- including his own ally, Vacuo. While he refused and instead brought about world peace, Vacuo still hasn't recovered eighty years later.

* BewareTheNiceOnes: The King of Vale objected to exploitation of people and slave labour, and even tried to peacefully share land when Mistral started trying to conquer Sanus. Once war broke out, Mistral and Mantle threatening Vacuo led them to the logical conclusion: side with Vale to stop something worse. The decision ultimately forced the the King of Vale to take the front line where he personally rained down such devastation and loss of life that every single kingdom submitted their crowns to him -- including his own ally, Vacuo. While he refused and instead brought about world peace, Vacuo still hasn't recovered eighty years later. The incident baffles historians.

* BewareTheNiceOnes: The King of Vale objected to exploitation of people and slave labour. Even when Mistral started trying to take Vale's land, the King of Vale tried to find ways to keep the two sides at peace, even sharing land with Mistral to try and avoid war. Once war broke out, Mistral and Mantle threatening Vacuo led them to the logical conclusion: side with Vale to stop something worse. The end result of this decision forced the King of the Vale to eventually take the front line where he personally rained down such devastation and loss of life that every single kingdom submitted their crowns to him -- including his own ally, Vacuo. While he refused the crowns and brought about an era of world peace, Vacuo still hasn't recovered eighty years later. The incident baffles historians.

* TheEmperor: Mistral was said to have had an Emperor who ruled the kingdom of Mistral and conquered most of the Anima continent.

* HonestCorporateExecutive: Nicholas Schnee worked extremely hard to obtain the skills required to locate and develop Dust mining to reverse the economic decline that Mantle was suffering from after the Great War ended. With his combat skills, he personally led the expeditions to locate dust deposits and risked his life to protect the men under his command. He was a highly respected man and when the company started becoming successful it quickly gained a reputation for quality and affordability, triggering an industrial renaissance. Anything stamped with the Schnee logo was therefore highly trusted.

* ScarfOfAsskicking: The episode depicts a heroic figure with a distinctive red scarf. Nicholas was an accomplished soldier and Huntsman, personally overseeing dangerous expeditions and exploring potential Dust mines. His hands-on approach earned him considerable respect, and helped in establishing the Schnee Dust Company as a global brand. That legacy of heroism inspired his granddaughter, Weiss, to follow in his footsteps and become a Huntress.

* GrimUpNorth: The continent of Solitas, home to Mantle and Atlas, is a harsh, frozen land with few natural resources, that required technological innovation to overcome; even the Grimm struggle to survive. It trades heavily with the continent of Anima, whose own northern region is also frozen tundra.

* GrimUpNorth: The continent of Solitas, home to Mantle and Atlas, is a harsh, frozen land with few natural resources, that required technological innovation to overcome; even the Grimm struggle to survive. It has a history of trade with the continent of Anima, whose own northern region is also frozen tundra.

* FantasyCounterpartCulture: Atlas is a combination of America and European (particularly the Italian, German and a bit of Russian) nations. Atlas is a relatively young nation, one whose history is heavily linked to the last major war, with a strong military tradition and is a world leader in technology and science, having advanced particularly quickly as a result of innovation during the Great War. Which also just happens to be where the Internet analogue was invented.
* GrimUpNorth: The continent of Solitas, home to Mantle and Atlas, is a frozen land with few natural resources. The harsh winters and mountainous terrain made life much more difficult than in the other kingdoms, and its people overcame that with advanced technology. Even the Grimm struggle to survive there. It has a history of trade with the continent of Anima, whose own northern region is also frozen tundra.

* OutOfTheFryingPan: Grimm are attracted to negative emotions such as fear. Many human settlements have been lost because an attack by a small number of Grimm causes fear and panic, which attracts even more Grimm even if the initial attack is defeated. Early settlers to Solitas ventured there because it was too cold for the Grimm to survive. This also meant that it was too cold for humans as well; they would have frozen to death if not for their creation and use of Dust-based heating technology.

* {{Foil}}: Nicholas was the son of a miner who trained in combat and learned everything he could to better himself. He was motivated by the determination to lift the people of Mantle out of poverty and personally led any risk-taking expeditions in search of lucrative Dust mines, risking himself to protect his men. He built his company from scratch to become a global brand respected for its quality and trustworthiness; giving up adventuring to spend more time with his family, he was a man who was respected for his ethics and whose family loved having him with them. Jacques is a man who assumed control of the company at the height of its fame solely by marrying into the family. He uses shady business practices to maximize profit, drives rival Dust companies out of business, exploits company workers, and keeps the people of Mantle in poverty by driving down wages. Burying his unsavory business practices with aggressive PR, he forces his family to remain with him even at the cost of their own happiness.

* RedIsHeroic: The episode depicts Nicholas, an honest businessman and trained huntsman, wearing a red scarf. The Schnee family is typically associated with the colour white, and the silhouettes of Jacques, his wife and Weiss are depicted as white in this episode. The family these days has a reputation for ruthless business dealings and unethical labor practices but Nicholas forged a reputation as a compassionate leader who looked after his men and worked hard to lift the people of Mantle out of poverty. He is the only member of the family currently associated with red as the dominant color motif, and his silhouette is brown instead of white.

* TerminallyDependentSociety: The whole of human civilisation depends on Dust, fuelling cities, powering machines and helping them fight the Grimm. As a result, Dust is an extremely valuable commodity and is monopolised almost entirely by the Schnee Dust Company. The reason that Nicholas Schnee decided to set out and find Dust deposits around the world was because Mantle's economy and living conditions were suffering due to Mantle's depleting Dust mines. When he found new Dust deposits, he was able to help lift Mantle out of poverty. This changed when Jacques Schnee took over the company and now Mantle is back in poverty, suffering from exploitative working conditions so that Jacques can maximise the company's profits. With no alternative fuel in existence, the world is highly dependent on how the SDC controls the Dust mining business.

* GrimUpNorth: The continent of Solitas, home to Mantle and Atlas, is a frozen land with few natural resources. The harsh winters and mountainous terrain made life much more difficult than in the other kingdoms, and it's people overcame that with advanced technology. Even the Grimm struggle to survive there. It has a history of trade with the continent of Anima, whose own northern region is also frozen tundra.

* ColourCodedForYourConvenience: Every Kingdom and its associated continent is shown on the map with a specific colour:
** Vale and the east of Sanus are green, as are any settlements associated with it.
** Mistral and Anima are blue, along with all associated settlements.
** Atlas and Solitas, along with all associated settlements, are white.
** Vacuo, the west of Sanus and associated settlements are orange.
** Menagerie and all associated settled are yellow. Unlike the other kingdoms, the map shows yellow settlements on Anima, indicating that there are some Faunus settlements outside Menagerie.
** The mysterious unnamed continent in the north-west of the map contains red settlements and appears to be associated with the colour red.

* HoistByTheirOwnPetard: Atlas and Mistral initially left Vacuo alone, content with the kingdom simply keeping to itself. Eventually they tried to pressure Vacuo into joining them which led to Vacuo allying with Vale against them.

* MetaphoricallyTrue: Qrow notes that from a certain point of view, Jacques' assertion that he was the best man to take over the SDC was truthful; under his leadership, the company has expanded into having a near-total monopoly on Dust. However, he has sacrificed the company's soul by using unethical means such as slave labor and dangerous working conditions to reach the top, leaving the Schnee's good name in rather murky waters.