Dust and Echoes Main Character Index
Remnant | UNSC | Covenant | Other Characters

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Remnant

General

A mysterious world found on the outskirts of UNSC territory. Not only does it feature its own native version of humanity, but it has numerous other unique “facets” - from the Creatures of Grimm to the Faunus to Dust to so much more - that makes it clear Remnant is no ordinary planet. After the UNSC happens upon them and initiates First Contact, the peoples of Remnant are quickly forced to work with the UNSC to stand united against the Covenant - And Remnant might actually offer the key to victory over the genocidal aliens...

Absurdly Sharp Blade: Sufficiently skilled Huntsmen and Huntresses have the ability to extend their Aura into their weapons, not only making them nigh-unbreakable, but allowing their bladed components to become impossibly sharp, able to cut through their surrounding environment, Grimm armor and even Covenant technology with ease. There's even a darkly amusing moment where Qrow Branwen is fighting against a Special Ops Elite during the Battle of Peponi, and the Elite in question has its equivalent of a Jaw Drop when its attempt to slice Qrow in half with their Energy Sword is successfully parried by Qrow's use of Harbinger.
Adaptational Expansion: More Worldbuilding is given to Remnant here, such as the existence of an Apocalypse Cult worshipping Salem called the "Cult of the Ash Bride."
Adaptational Origin Connection: The Action Prologue to the fanfic reveals that Remnant is actually a Forerunner Shield World, and the extinction of the first iteration of humanity is implied to actually be a side effect of the Halo Array having been fired to destroy the Flood.
Alien Sky: Remnant prominently features a massive, partially shattered moon in its night sky.
Animesque: As befitting RWBY itself being heavily based after various anime/anime-inspired works, Remnant features numerous aspects inspired by anime (most notably natural hair colors that include pink, blue, green, et cetera).
Applied Phlebotinum: Dust reappears from RWBY here. Interestingly, it's implied to have some connection to the Forerunners, with the Prophets and Arbiter both referring to them as "Elemental Crystals" in a way that implies that the Covenant already knew of them prior to Remnant's discovery by the UNSC.
Colorful Theme Naming: Ever since the Great War, Remnant's culture dictates that names are related, in some way, to a color. This is purposeful as one of the causes of the Great War was the Kingdom of Mantle's attempts to stifle art and creativity in a misguided effort to keep the Grimm from attacking them, theoretically reducing negative emotions in the process.
Cultural Chop Suey: Each of the Kingdoms of Remnant are (admittedly loose) parallels to multiple different cultures from Earth. It is also implied that specific cultures without a direct analogue in one of the Kingdoms still exist on Remnant, just with less prominence and being found within a pre-existing Kingdom (I.e. Maria Calavera showcases how Remnant features a Fantasy Counterpart Culture version of Latin America, even if no specific analogue seems to exist as its own Kingdom on Remnant).
- Vale — The United States during its period of isolationism prior to the First World War along with various European nations, particularly in terms of architecture and geography for the latter.
- Atlas — The modern United States following the Cold War and the British Empire at its height, the former in regards to the intertwining of the military-industrial complex in Atlas Academy and the latter in regards to the Schnee Dust Company's intertwining with the Atlesian government being more than a little reminiscent of the intertwining of the British East India Company with the British Empire.
- Mistral — Dynastic China (in terms of a being a vast Vestigial Empire slowly collapsing under its sheer ungovernable size), Japan (mostly in terms of architecture and general culture), and Singapore (in the sense of Mistral being home to the biggest Black Market on the entire planet). In general, Mistral seems to serve as an analogue to the Far East for most of Remnant.
- Vacuo — The Middle East (Syria in particular) and the African Congo following the end of Western imperialism, with it being mentioned that Vacuo used to be a beautiful oasis-kingdom prior to being first savaged during the Great War and then falling into political and environmental ruin following its ruthless exploitation at the hands of the Schnee Dust Company.
- Menagerie — Australia, to a rather obvious extent. Menagerie's founders were forced to settle there (though Australia's non-native settlers were British prisoners, while Menagerie was settled to serve as a continent-wide Fantastic Ghetto for the Faunus), it's located at the bottom right of the map, it's two-thirds desert, and its wildlife is noted to be far deadlier than what is found on than the rest of the planet.
Culture Clash: There's understandably a lot of it going around between Remnant and the UNSC. Generally, the Kingdoms of Remnant are all shown to be visibly uncomfortable with the highly militarized and conformist UNSC (with the exception of Atlas, whose own militarized society leads to them quickly working fairly well with the "aliens"), who understandably butt heads with Remnant's incredibly individualistic and non-conformist cultures based around personal independence and artistic expression. As an example, Johnson is clearly unsettled when Qrow informs him that Huntsmen are ultimately mercenaries in all but name, and is shown to be still struggling to wrap his head around the concept when the Grimm attack Amity Colosseum.
Death World: The proliferation of the Creatures of Grimm makes life a daily struggle on Remnant. This was something the UNSC who landed on Remnant found out the hard way when the Creatures of Grimm attacked them — Every team that had been sent out to explore Remnant were forced to run back to their ships or, in some cases, ended up dead.
- As a result of this, when the First Contact Summit occurred the UNSC took no chances and brought nearly their entire force to bear, which comes in handy when Salem sends a horde of Grimm to attack them to test the skill of the UNSC.
- It's directly lampshaded by Thel 'Vadamee (the Arbiter), who after hearing of the Grimm utterly savaging the Covenant's forces on Remnant, muses that their presence easily explains why the Huntsmen are all such dangerous Super Soldiers.
Deflector Shields:
- The primary benefit granted by Aura for Huntsmen and Huntresses is that it manifests as a colored field of energy around the user, and it serves as a personal force field protecting them from harm. While it must be consciously activated (meaning they can still be killed if they are attacked before they can consciously bring their Aura up to protect themselves), virtually all Huntsmen & Huntresses are forced to practice in activating & using their Aura to the point where accessing it becomes second-nature. Sufficiently powerful Huntsmen and Huntresses are essentially Nigh-Invulnerable, as shown in Haki Felt being able to shrug off getting shot multiple times with high-caliber assault rifles by Blue Team, with her reacting as if the Spartans were utilizing water pistols.
  - Aura has two caveats, through — the first is that it does not protect the user from feeling pain (i.e., an Aura user can shove their hand into a fire and not suffer any injury, but they will still feel the agony of their hand being burned). The second is that Aura is a finite resource that is also consumed to "power" someone's Semblance, and it is whittled down more and more for every injury its user takes. After a certain point, the Aura will "break" (represented by the aforementioned field of colored energy across the user's body seemingly shattering like glass), and the Aura user will now become just as vulnerable as any ordinary human in their situation. Aura will recharge given sufficient time, but until it is back up, that person can be killed fairly easily.
- Hard Light Dust also exists; while it's almost prohibitively expensive to produce, it allows for the creation of nearly indestructible glowing teal force fields of burning light that can be projected from special generators. Unfortunately, the generators that create them are still highly vulnerable to being sabotaged and/or destroyed unless sufficiently guarded.
Dirt Forcefield: One of the more "minor" advantages provided by unlocked Aura is that it protects its users from the surrounding environment, making sure that they themselves and their clothing both stay clean and sanitary no matter if they'd just been dunked in Grimm ichor or the like.
Elemental Powers: Even ignoring the powers of certain Semblances, part of what makes Huntsmen and Huntresses so powerful is that their possession of an active Aura allows them to selectively trigger the various forms of elemental Dust and use them in their arsenal. As an example, the Huntress Dew Gayl utilizes Wind Dust crystals in her spear to let her create powerful cyclones for use against her enemies. Known forms of elemental Dust include Fire, Lightning, Rock, Ice, Gravity, Plant, Wind and Hard Light.
Enlightenment Superpowers: Downplayed; Aura can be unlocked with sufficient meditation and focus by a desired user, but can also be unlocked by either sufficient mental/emotional stress and turmoil or through the magical aid of another Aura user.
Exposed to the Elements: Many Huntsmen and Huntresses enjoy wearing skin-baring clothing despite hailing from dangerous environments (i.e., the sun-bleached deserts of Vacuo and the freezing tundra of Atlas). However, this is justified as an unlocked Aura protects its user from the surrounding environment, making it so that they won't suffer from sunburn, hypothermia and/or other environmental-related conditions so long as it stays active.
Fairy Tale Motifs/Mythical Motifs/Shout-Out: As per RWBY canon, virtually all of the most important characters that make Remnant their home are inspired by (in at least some way) by a character/plotline from a fairy tale, myth or famous story throughout human history.
Fantastic Racism: The bitter distrust and hatred between the native humans of Remnant and the Faunus is unfortunately still alive and well. It's to the point where the "alien" UNSC actually shows the Faunus more respect than the native Remnant humans.
Flash Step: Skilled users of Aura can move at Super Speeds, letting them seemingly appear and disappear in a flash of color. In the midst of the battle between the Grimm and the UNSC & Huntsmen forces of Remnant at Amity Colosseum, Sergeant Johnson describes Qrow Branwen as moving so fast that he only appears to be a "black blur" when he's simultaneously severing the stinger of a Deathstalker Grimm and hurling it away from a downed UNSC Warthog.
Floating Continent: The city of Atlas levitates on a massive plot of land over the city of Mantle on Solitas. Publicly, the city is floating thanks to an advanced application of Gravity Dust, but in reality Ozpin's predecessor used the Staff of Creation to generate limitless power to let Atlas float in the sky so as to give the Kingdom of Mantle a source of aspiration & hope after their humiliating defeat in the Great War.
Forever War: The humans and Faunus of Remnant have had to fight against the Grimm for longer than recorded history just to ensure their continued survival.
Functional Magic: Aura is effectively "weaponized" Soul Power, and its understanding is surprisingly well-understood and intricate in terms of Remnant scholarship.
Gaia's Lament: Remnant was "lightly" glassed by the Covenant during their invasion, and while the damage is noted to be relatively minor, it's still pretty hideous. Most of the western desert of Sanus was turned to glass, as was the unnamed northwestern continent, and enough of the glaciers of Solitas were melted away to cause a massive rise in sea level. Most notably, however, Lake Matsu on Mistral was completely boiled away... revealing extensive Forerunner structures below on the lakebed.
Had to Be Sharp: Thanks to Remnant being such a hellish Death World because of the Grimm, the native humans and Faunus have developed superior strength, speed, endurance, agility, and reflexes compared to the "ordinary" humans from Earth and her colonies. Heck, the UNSC A.I. Hannibal argues that even a Remnant civilian has strength on par with a UNSC Marine.
Hard Light: Remnant has access to the "beginnings" of this technology thanks to the use of Hard Light Dust, a highly expensive form of artificial Dust created in the Kingdom of Atlas. While mostly used for the creation of Deflector Shields, it can also be weaponized and used to create either deadly laser beams or entire physical objects.
Healing Factor: While a person's Aura is active, it can be used to quickly heal someone from minor injuries. It's not perfect, though, and can't do much (if anything) against otherwise lethal attacks.
Hidden Elf Village: The entire Oum System — the solar system home to Remnant — is one, due to being abnormally "high above" the standard z-axis plane of the rest of the Milky Way galaxy compared to everyone else. Ironically, it's actually only 40 light-years away from Earth, making them (relatively speaking) fairly close to each other, with the Smart A.I. Hannibal musing that if it wasn't for the Insurrection and Covenant, the UNSC would've found the system decades ago.
Human Aliens: Discussed and lampshaded, with both the UNSC and Remnant being understandably baffled by how the "aliens" they've encountered are virtually identical to that of ordinary humans.
Human Subspecies: After dissecting the bodies of both a Faunus and some Remnant-native humans, Hannibal comes to the conclusion that while Remnant's inhabitants might be almost identical from a biological makeup (and even DNA perspective) to Earth humans, there are enough taxological differences that they're still not quite "human" either. Not only do the Faunus' various Little Bit Beastly attributes actually work (i.e., a cat Faunus' additional set of feline ears can actually pick up and interpret sound even better than their human ears can, leading to them having significantly superior hearing when compared to "normal" humans), but Remnant humans have denser and more tightly packed muscles, sturdier and denser bones, neurons that are more receptive to electrical signals, and more robust walls for their hearts and circulatory systems. Hannibal muses that Remnant's Death World nature is probably responsible for these differences, comparing it to the different environmental pressures that resulted in brown bears and grizzly bears becoming different species.
Innate Night Vision: Most Faunus are mentioned as being able to easily see in the dark and/or low-light conditions with as much skill as any ordinary person during the daytime.
Ki Manipulation: Aura, as it's based around the manipulation of the soul itself for use in combat.
Little Bit Beastly: The Faunus in a nutshell. They all look like ordinary humans with the exception of one (relatively) minor alteration to their bodies that resembles some part of an animal. As an example, cat Faunus can have a set of cat ears coming out of the top of their head, a cat tail emerging from the base of their spine, or even just have a lot more hair on their bodies along with sharp, retractable claws.
Made of Iron: While a person's Aura is active, they can shrug off otherwise serious injuries with nary a care. Just as an example, Abby Redwall gets hit in the head by a Covenant laser sniper rifle, but instead of having her head explode into gore like any other ordinary human in that situation, because of her Aura being active she's just disoriented and basically has the effects of a severe concussion until it wears off over time (which isn't exactly helped by how the laser blast was still strong enough to effectively one-shot her Aura).
Mage Species: Downplayed with the Remnantians, who all can "unlock their souls" to gain access to Aura and Semblances, but it is typically only Huntsmen and Huntresses who ever need to do so.
Magic A Is Magic A: The rules and understanding regarding the usage of Aura and Semblances are all widely understood across Remnant society.
Mana: Aura can be used as fuel for Semblances by Huntsmen and Huntresses.
Non-Indicative Name: None of the Kingdoms of Remnant are actually kingdoms, featuring no monarchic leaders, and (for the most part) each Kingdom instead seems to be organized into semi-oligarchical representative democracies. As such, it can be assumed that the main governments of Remnant are only still called "Kingdoms" due to the heavy cultural significance the ancient kingdoms had for Remnant's people in that they offered sanctuary from the Grimm & elements.
One Person, One Power: Virtually all Semblances are unique to a single person. There are exceptions, most notably the Schnee family's hereditary semblance of Glyphs, but they are the exception that proves the rule (so to speak).
Outside-Context Problem: Remnant as a whole serves as this in regards to both the UNSC and Covenant. There are multiple times throughout the fanfic where the latter two factions will be preparing for a fight in the manner akin to a Space Opera only to be completely blindsided when the Remnantians get involved and promptly turn the plot into an epic High Science Fantasy Shōnen tale.
Points of Light Setting: The Creatures of Grimm are found everywhere throughout Remnant. In the countless years that humanity had roamed the planet, there have only been four locations that have survived throughout the centuries — Those being the four Kingdoms of Vale, Vacuo, Mistral and Atlas, with them only surviving due to a combination of humanity's tenacity and the regions' natural barriers (such as mountains and frigid temperatures) keeping Grimm away. Although small villages have also been built, most don't last long thanks to the Grimm. There is also the small continent of Menagerie, which is designated as a safe haven for the Faunus, but two-thirds of it is covered in desert and there is deadly wildlife keeping people from expanding.
Schizo Tech: Remnant's reliance on Dust and Forever War with the Grimm has resulted in them having a very eclectic technology base. On the one hand, Remnant doesn't have artificial satellites since Dust doesn't work in outer space, but their weaponry in general is insanely advanced, consisting of different forms of Retractable Weapons that easily implement various forms of traditionally obsolete weapons into their design while also using Dust to punch far above their normal weight class (i.e., Haki Felt's weapon Dormouse being a flail-teapot that spews out fire, rocks and lightning, and Thel 'Vadamee noting how the usage of Dust ammunition - such as Fire, Ice and Lightning Dust - allows Remnantian firearms to compete on an almost-even footing with the Covenant's Energy Weapons). Additionally, Remnant also has access to humanoid combat robots, at least one Humongous Mecha, floating battleships and tilt-jet aircraft.
Soul Power: Aura is defined as a physical manifestation of a person's soul, and can be used for a wide variety of uses.
Space-Filling Empire: Subverted with the Kingdoms of Remnant. While each of them claim ownership over large swathes of the surface of their planet, the Grimm make it so that most of the Kingdoms consist of uninhabited Wild Wilderness interrupted by assorted city-states.
Super-Reflexes: As Huntsmen and Huntresses train and improve their control over their Auras, they become incredibly agile and skilled in terms of quickly reacting to changes in combat. This lets sufficiently skilled Huntsmen be able to perform Nonchalant Dodges in the midst of combat, easily dancing around the blows of their enemies.
Super-Senses: As one's skill over their Aura grows, their sight, hearing, and other tactile senses are enhanced, significantly aiding them in combat (i.e., allowing a Huntsmen to easily fire their weapon with the skill of a professional marksman even in unfavorable, murky weather). Additionally, Faunus with animal traits that augment certain senses have said senses operate on a superhuman level (i.e., a cat Faunus with an additional set of cat ears has superhuman hearing and is far more adept in picking out individual sounds than even the most highly skilled human tracker).
Super-Soldier: The Huntsmen and Huntresses of Remnant can rival and in some cases even surpass Spartan-IIs as combatants. Also unlike Spartans, they can be prepared much quicker and don't require enormously expensive equipment and extremely dangerous surgery.
Super-Speed: Even putting aside certain Semblances which grant someone the ability to move at super-fast speeds (i.e., Harriet Bree and Ruby Rose's Semblances), all Huntsmen and Huntresses with sufficient practice can move with superhuman haste, to the point where they can easily pull off a Flash Step against their foes and appear as nothing more than a colored blur to their allies.
Super-Strength: Sufficiently trained Huntsmen & Huntresses possess incredible strength, easily on the level of even a Covenant Brute. Just as an example, during the battle between the Grimm and the UNSC & Huntsmen forces of Remnant at Amity Colosseum, Qrow Branwen is described as easily turning over an upturned Warthog (read: a three-ton armored vehicle) like it was nothing, a feat Sergeant Johnson openly compares to something he'd only expect a Spartan to be able to do.
Sword Beam: Sufficiently skilled Huntsmen and Huntresses can project their Aura "off" of their bladed weapons in the form of devastating blasts of force and light. Against a Grimm that is sufficiently fragile, it can sever them in half, and against a Covenant soldier, it can override their personal Deflector Shields and make them explode.
Terminally Dependent Society: Remnant's society is completely based around Dust, with it serving as their primary source of defense against the Grimm along with their sole source of electrical power. This has started to change thanks to the UNSC, though, with them introducing alternate resources like water-fueled nuclear fusion generators.
Transplanted Humans: Dr. Halsey suspects that the ancestors of Remnant's inhabitants originated on Earth and were transferred to the planet by unknown forces (possibly the Forerunners) in the distant past.
Warfare Regression: Thanks to older Grimm usually being tough enough to close the distance provided by ranged weapons and then engage humans/Faunus in melee, virtually all weapons on Remnant utilized by Huntsmen and Huntresses are constructed with mechashift technology to incorporate melee weapon forms (i.e. swords, spears, knives, and scythes) that would normally be obsolete on a modern battlefield.
Wild Wilderness: Thanks to the Grimm, the vast majority of Remnant is unpopulated, virginal wilderness, meaning that most of the planet still has yet to be truly explored and numerous sources of natural resources have been left untouched by humanity and the Faunus.
Wrong Genre Savvy: The lack of widespread armies by the Kingdoms of Remnant (Atlas excluded) is understandable in that it helps prevent inter-kingdom conflict and leaves the Huntsmen to tackle the Grimm head-on, but Johnson quickly realizes that the corresponding reliance on local militias will leave them proverbial sitting ducks for the Covenant during an invasion.

Team RWBY

Ruby Rose

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ikthkuz.jpg

by Papercroft

Kingdom: Vale (Patch)

Birthdate: October 31, 2535 / 64 AGW

The future leader of Team RWBY, Ruby Rose is the daughter of Taiyang Xiao Long and Summer Rose, both of which were legendary Huntsmen in their own right. Although she is only a child when the UNSC makes contact with Remnant, fate has grand designs for her that will shape the destiny of her world and the galaxy as a whole.

Her Semblance is Petal Burst, which allows Ruby to disassemble herself into rose petals and move at inhuman speeds, making it appear as if she can essentially teleport/fly. Her weapon is Crescent Rose, a high-caliber sniper-scythe which can turn into a war-scythe, a high-powered bolt-action sniper rifle, or a "standard" scythe. Unbeknownst to her at the start of the story, she is one of the last of the Silver-Eyed Warriors, an ancient line of magically-enhanced guardians of the innocent who can emit blinding silver light from their eyes when focusing on the need to protect their loved ones, disintegrating or petrifying any Grimm in their line of sight. She is based after Little Red Riding Hood from the titular fairy tale.

Children Are Innocent: When a young Ruby first finds out about aliens coming to Remnant, her reaction isn't the panic that most of Remnant feel but excitement at the thought of making alien friends.
BFG: Her future weapon, Crescent Rose, has a powerful sniper rifle configuration that's strong enough to punch through an Elite's shield in just one or two shots.
Friendly Sniper: A cheerful, energetic young girl who dreams of being a hero and carries a rifle capable turning Elite heads into clouds of purple blood at long range with a single shot.
Honorary Uncle: By the Battle of Remnant, Ruby and her half-sister Yang have come to regard Sergeant Johnson as "Uncle Avery," a sentiment he happily reciprocates. This also applies to Qrow Branwen, as while he is Yang's maternal uncle, he has no actual blood relation to Ruby herself, not that it stops them from viewing each other as niece and uncle.
Not Quite Flight: Ruby cannot actually fly, but her Semblance lets her move with such speed through her surroundings and around/over obstacles that the difference is largely academic.
Worthy Opponent: During the prologue, Ruby is forced to fight against a highly experienced Elite assassin that was able to sneak into Beacon and tries to murder her after she snipes a few of the leaders of the invasion force attacking the Academy. While Ruby is ultimately defeated, she still gives the fight of her life and the Elite openly regards her as this, being visibly impressed by her furious screaming and repeated hits against his arm as he holds her against the wall and prepares to gut her.

Weiss Schnee

Kingdom: Atlas

Birthdate: May 15th, 2533 / 62 AGW

The future second-in-command of Team RWBY, Weiss Schnee is the second-born and youngest daughter of the wealthy Schnee family of Atlas and, therefore, in line to inherit the Schnee Dust Company, arguably Remnant's wealthiest and most successful corporation. A child when the UNSC arrives at Remnant, she will grow into a mighty warrior worthy of the Schnee name she so desperately strives to live up towards.

Her Semblance is Glyphs, the Schnee family's hereditary Semblance which allows Weiss (and the rest of her blood relatives - not including her father, Jacques, who married into the family) to create a flat glyph which has a wide variety of effects, from moving to summoning avatars of the Grimm she has previously slain to creating Dust formations. Her weapon is Myrtenaster, a multi-action Dust rapier that is fitted with Dust cannisters and can be used in conjunction with Weiss' Semblance to a wide variety of effects. She is based after Snow White from the titular fairy tale.

Famous Ancestor: Weiss idolizes her grandfather, Nicholas Schnee. Unsurprising, considering how he almost singlehandedly founded the SDC and brought the family from humble miners and soldiers to one of the most wealthy and powerful families on Remnant.

Blake Belladona

Kingdom: Menagerie (Kuo Kuana)

Birthdate: January 19th, 2533 / 62 AGW

A future member of Team RWBY, Blake Belladonna is the daughter of Ghira and Kali Belladonna, the former of whom is the current leader of the White Fang, and thus very involved in the fight for Faunas equality. Like the rest of her team, Blake was only a little girl when the UNSC arrived, witnessing firsthand how their influence affects her and her people. In time, she will grow into a skilled huntress who will hold the fate of her people in her hands.

Her Semblance is Shadow, which allows Blake to create temporary clones of herself, which push her in whatever direction she wants (even in mid-air); she also can infuse her "shadows" with Dust to get the drop on her foes. Her weapon is Gambol Shroud, a variant ballistic chain scythe which can turn into a cleaver, a sword, and a semi-automatic pistol or a sickle; Blake can also use the ribbon attachment on Gambol Shroud as an impromptu Grappling-Hook Pistol. She is based after both Belle and the Beast from the fairy tale Beauty and the Beast.

Bizarre Human Biology: Has a secondary pair of feline ears sitting atop her head while still having normal human ears. Both work in tandem with each other to give Blake excellent hearing.
Cat Girl: Blake is a Cat Faunas, evidenced by the two cat ears crowning her head.
Expressive Ears: Blake's feline ears' position indicates her present mood. They fold and flatten when she's distressed, perk up and focus toward anything that catches her attention, and twitch when she's surprised, among other things.

Yang Xiao Long

Kingdom: Vale (Patch)

Birthdate: July 28, 2533 / 62 AGW

A future member of Team RWBY, Yang Xiao Long is Ruby's older half-sister through their father, Taiyang, and his first marriage to Raven Branwen, who abandoned her family and her team years prior. While Yang is only a child when the UNSC makes contact, she will grow into a mighty huntress whose life will shape the fate of humanity and the galaxy itself.

Her Semblance is Burn, which allows Yang to absorb energy from the damage she has taken, and redirect it twice as hard at her opponent through converting said energy into Super-Strength. Her weapon is Ember Celica, a pair of dual ranged shot gauntlets that can be used as both shotguns and boxing gauntlets. She is based after Goldilocks from the fairy tale Goldilocks and the Three Bears.

Big Sister Instinct: Yang is very protective of her little sister Ruby.
Flaming Hair: Whenever Yang's Semblance activates, her hair transforms into fire. The more power Yang receives from her Semblance, the brighter her hair burns and glows.
Missing Mom: Two of these. The first is her biological mother, Raven Branwen, after she abandoned her team and family to rejoin her bandit tribe, and the second is her stepmother, Summer Rose, when she went on a mission and never came back.
Nobody Touches the Hair: Yang is very proud of her mane of golden hair and refuses to let anyone touch it, with the first time she activated her Semblance being when her parents tried to cut her hair for the first time.
Red Eyes, Take Warning: When her Semblance activates, her eyes change from violet to crimson.

Team JNPR

Jaune Arc

Kingdom: Unknown

Birthdate: March 2nd, 2533 / 62 AGW

The leader of Team JNPR and partner to Pyrrha Nikos, Jaune Arc hailed from a long line of heroes in the Arc family. Growing up along with his seven sisters hearing tales of their exploits, he resolved to follow in his family's footsteps and become a hero himself, regardless of whether his family believes in him or not. Although he was only a child when the UNSC found Remnant, he will find his chance to become the hero he always wanted to be, even if the road taken turns out to not be what he expected.

His weapon is Crocea Mors, a family heirloom originally used by his great-great-grandfather. Unlike the weapons of his contemporaries, Crocea Mors is simply a sword and shield, with the shield collapsing into a sheath for easy storage. Unbeknownst to him (and most others) at the start of the story, his Semblance is Aura Amp, which allows Jaune to amplify his own Aura or that of others, increasing the amount of damage their Aura can withstand and heal along with the strength/effect of his/their Semblance. He is based after Joan of Arc, the patron saint of France and military personnel in the Roman Catholic faith.

Ancestral Weapon: In contrast to the rest of his friends who made their weapons, Crocea Mors is a family heirloom he simply inherited.
Heroic Lineage: The men in Jaune's family, from his father to his great-great-grandfather, were all heroes whose examples he strives to live up to. Unfortunately for him, his efforts had been mixed.
Healing Hands: Jaune's Semblance allows him to enhance the Auras of others, meaning that he can quickly bring someone's broken Aura back up to full and allow them to heal themselves from otherwise lethal injuries.
Heroic Wannabe: Even from a young age, Jaune wanted to be a hero. But due to the fact that his family never trained him, the most he could do was play pretend with a stick.
Massive Numbered Siblings: Jaune has seven sisters, and he's one of the younger ones.
Support Party Member: Appropriately enough, while he's The Leader of his team, his Semblance is best used in helping support and strengthen his allies (such as enhancing their Semblances to allow them to almost singlehandedly turn the tide of battle or heal someone back from the brink of death through rebuilding their broken Aura). Notably, he can also apply this ability to himself, making it so that he can enhance the abilities naturally granted by unlocking Aura to incredible levels (like further rebuilding and/or strengthening the power of Aura-granted Super-Strength in himself so he can slice through obstacles with nary a care).

Kingdom of Vale

Qrow Branwen

A veteran Huntsmen who prefers to work solo, Qrow Branwen divides his days between spending time with his brother-in-law and teammate Taiyang and his nieces Ruby and Yang, and doing secret missions for Ozpin as part of the Forever War between him and Salem. Is chosen as leader of the Vale Delegation of Huntsmen and Huntresses sent to verify the Covenant threat as part of the Alliance between Remnant and the UNSC.

His Semblance is Misfortune, which passively causes bad luck to always materialize around himself. His weapon is Harbinger, which can turn into a one-handed double-barrel shotgun, a two-handed greatsword, or a scythe. He is based after both the Scarecrow from The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and Muninn, one of Odin's two ravens from Norse Mythology.

The Ace: Is considered one of the finest Huntsmen in Remnant and was part of arguably the greatest team to graduate from Beacon Academy, Team STRQ.
Affectionate Gesture to the Head: Is fond of giving these to his nieces.
The Alcoholic: Due to all the grief his Semblance and his experiences have caused him, such as his sister Raven abandoning him and the rest of their family and the loss of his team leader Summer Rose, he tends to deal with it by drinking. Johnson notices this after a mission to locate survivors of a Covenant glassing only resulted in a Jackal Ambush and a pile of skulls, and tries to steer him clear of the bars for a while until he can drink for fun instead of to deal with his problems.
Becoming the Mask: Initially entered Beacon Academy with his twin sister with the goal of learning how to fight Huntsmen. He instead left the toxic Branwen Tribe behind to become Ozpin's top field agent and one of, if not the, best Huntsmen on Remnant.
BFS: When in its sword or scythe configuration, Harbinger is as big as he is.
Blade Lock: Thanks to his Aura, he can block an energy sword with Harbinger, much to any Elite's surprise as normally an energy sword is hot enough to cut through anything.
Blessed with Suck: Firmly believes his Semblance to be this, particularly because he can't turn it off. His time on the Midsummer Night, which saw its onboard AI Shakespeare having to use dedicated runtimes to prevent it from accidentally messing something up on the ship, only further reinforces this mindset.
Brutal Honesty: Does not hold back his opinions, particularly towards the darker sides of the UNSC and Atlas that he witnesses or infers.
Cain and Abel: The Abel to Raven's Cain. While they both grew up as part of the Branwen bandit clan and even joined Beacon Academy for the express purpose of learning how to kill Huntsmen, Qrow came to abandon his roots to instead become a genuinely heroic, if hard-edged, defender of humanity, whereas Raven abandoned her family in favor of returning to the Branwens as their leader. Although the two have remained in contact with one another, they've been at odds ever since.
Cool Uncle: When not working on the field, he acts as this to Yang and Ruby, whom he adores.
Cynic–Idealist Duo: Is frequently paired with Sergeant Johnson. While Qrow is a dour and cynical loner, Johnson is an enthusiastic and upbeat marine with a commanding presence both on and off the battlefield. The two quickly strike up a friendship despite their differences, which ultimately leads to Johnson becoming an unofficial uncle to Ruby and Yang.
Dark and Troubled Past: Used to be a member of the notorious Branwen Tribe before coming to Beacon Academy where he turned his life around.
Defector from Decadence: He used to be a bandit as part of the infamous Branwen tribe, but after attending Beacon Academy and joining team STRQ, coming into contact with Professor Ozpin, he changed his ways and became a Huntsman.
Drowning My Sorrows: Attempts to do this after witnessing the horrific aftermath of what the Covenant do to human worlds. Johnson tries to prevent him from doing so to the best of his ability.
Functional Addict: Despite being an alcoholic, Qrow is mostly able to keep a lid on his condition, enabling him to continue performing at his best.
I Need a Freaking Drink: Has this reaction following their expedition to Eridanus II, and especially after the Fall of Vyraj.
I Work Alone: Prefers to work by himself more often than not, meaning he doesn't get too close to the other three members of the Vale delegation. Tragically, this ends up being a good thing when two of them end up being the first Huntsmen to be killed by the Covenant, as while he is saddened, he doesn't shut down like the other surviving Vale Hunter, who had been working with them since all three were on a team at Beacon.
Parental Substitute: To his nieces, Ruby and Yang, following Summer Rose's death and Raven abandoning her family. Despite officially only being their Cool Uncle, Qrow has become their second parent alongside Taiyang and loves them as though they were his daughters.
Parrying Bullets: Can do this both to human and Covenant weapons, although he does note that the heat of Covenant plasma makes it taxing on his Aura.
Power Incontinence: The main reason why his Semblance makes him Blessed with Suck rather than a Game-Breaker; sure, he can exert at least some measure of control to allow for certain events like a plasma grenade falling into a Covenant ammo storage area and blowing it sky-high, but more often than not it causes situations like his cryo-tube aboard the Midsummer Night suffering countless malfunctions that would've likely killed him without Shakespeare's constant supervision.
Sword Beam: Hurls one towards a Jackal Sniper who ambushed them on Khembalung, throwing the alien off long enough for a marine sniper to kill him.
One-Man Army: As one of Remnant's most skilled Huntsmen, Qrow can take on swarms of Grimm and Covenant by himself without even breaking a sweat.

Professor Ozpin

The current headmaster of the prestigious Beacon Academy and overall head of the global Huntsmen community, Professor Ozpin is perhaps one of the most powerful and influential people in the world. He is also a mysterious man with an unknown past, hidden even to his most ardent supporters as they strive to protect the world from those who wish it harm.

His weapon is Long Memory, a cane built and maintained over countless lifetimes to store kinetic energy for later use. He is based after both the Wizard of Oz from The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and the god Odin from Norse mythology.

Big Good: For the people of Remnant. Ozpin, and his many incarnations over most of recorded human history, has done more than any single human alive to keeping humanity safe from the Grimm and the immortal witch Salem. Remnant's current political system, the Huntsmen and the Academies, and the decades of peace and prosperity enjoyed by Remnant's people following the catastrophic Great War were all orchestrated by him.
Cane Fu: Uses his cane, Long Memory, in combat as though it was a sword, and proves to be quite skilled in its use.
The Chosen One: Was selected by the God of Light to unify humanity into a global and peaceful community, otherwise humanity would be destroyed when the Brother Gods return. Unfortunately for him, a combination of human nature and Salem has made his assigned task all but impossible.
Clock Punk: Fitting with his immortality, Ozpin likes to decorate his possessions and surroundings with clock motifs.
Fatal Flaw: While Ozpin expects others to trust him, countless lifetimes have unfortunately jaded Ozpin to trusting others completely. As such, he withholds critical and need-to-know information from his subordinates out of fear that knowing the truth would either result in them losing hope completely or, at worst, betray him.
Guile Hero: Ozpin's greatest strength is his sheer friendliness, empathy and charisma, making it remarkably easy for him to convince people to work for him. Just as an example, he's able to easily get the "captured" ODST Ethan Graves to recognize the Remnantians aren't a potential threat to the UNSC and help them work towards piercing the Language Barrier between the two peoples through just sitting down, offering him some chocolate-chip cookies and handing over the recovered dog tags of Graves' fallen comrades while treating him with genuine respect & kindness.
Magic Knight: Was one in his first life as Ozma, and retained his magical ability throughout his reincarnations while the rest of humanity lost theirs. Over the years, however, Ozpin has given away most of his magical power to various projects such as creating the Maidens, leaving him a shadow of his former self in terms of raw magical power (though still highly formidable).
Odd Name Out: While the rest of Remnant have names that, in some way, evoke a color - a tradition started after the Great War - Ozpin's name is notable for not referring to a color in any way, a hint towards his true age.
Oh, Crap!: Has this reaction when the UNSC informs him about the threat of the Covenant, prompting him to send Qrow and other Huntsmen out into space to verify their claims.
Reasonable Authority Figure: Thanks to his ability to keep a calm head in even the most stressful circumstances and his lifetimes of experience, Ozpin can take charge in any given situation and lead effectively.
Resurrective Immortality: Was granted a form of immortality by the God of Light when he was known as Ozma. While his physical body can and will die, his spirit will pass on and join with another like-minded individual. In time, both personalities will merge and become one, with the old personality fading away while the new retain the memories, skills, and experiences of the old. After countless years and lifetimes of constant reincarnations and mergers, the man originally known as Ozma arguably no longer exists.
Time Abyss: Not nearly to the extent of his ex-wife Salem, but regardless Ozma themselves has been alive for longer than civilization has been recorded on Remnant, making him several millennia old.
Trademark Favorite Food: Has a clear affection for chocolate-chip cookies.

Kingdom of Atlas

Leadership

James Ironwood

The leader of Atlas' military and the current headmaster of Atlas Academy, General James Ironwood is a strong and dutiful man. Respected by his friends and peers while hated by his enemies, Ironwood has dedicated his life to the protection his people. But when the UNSC arrives, bringing the threat of the Covenant armada along with them, he is suddenly faced into a scenario no man can truly handle, threatening to break him under its crushing weight.

His weapon is Due Process, a pair of high-powered revolvers. His Semblance is Mettle, which hardens his resolve when he comes to a decision, making him unwilling and unable to deviate from his course. He is based after the Tin Woodsman from The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.

Appeal to Force: Ironwood uses the threat of force, implied or express, as his default option for getting what he wants. As the headmaster of Atlas Academy and the general of the Atlesian military, he holds considerable sway and influence within the Kingdom of Atlas and Remnant at large, making him a mighty figure.
Boring, but Practical: Ironwood's demeanor, weapons, and fighting style are highly simple and utilitarian, contrasting the flashy and flamboyant style the rest of Remnant uses.
Control Freak: Has genuinely good intentions but doesn't like to let others take charge if he believes his way is better. Only Ozpin can typically talk him down to a more reasonable path.
Cyborg: Half of his body has been replaced entirely by cybernetics following some undisclosed injury.
Determinator: Once Ironwood sets his mind on something, he will refuse to deviate from it no matter what. His Semblance, Mettle, only reinforces this mindset, making him a valuable ally to his friends and a dangerous opponent to his enemies.
Fatal Flaw: James Ironwood is an incredibly paranoid man, seeing threats everywhere even when they don't actually exist. He nearly attacks the UNSC Everest when it arrives over Remnant out of fear that it was a warship preparing to invade the planet. Luckily, Ozpin was able to talk him down, but his paranoia remains ever present.
Friendly Address Privileges: Allows his friends to call him "James" whereas everyone else has to refer to him as "General".
Heroic Safe Mode: Ironwood's Semblance is Mettle, which causes him to hyper-focus on achieving his goal no matter what obstacles stand. Which can easily become a double edged sword if what happened in canon wasn’t proof enough…
Hidden Depths: Despite being a hard-edged military man, Ironwood has a genuine love for astronomy, being one of the principal proponents of the advanced Weltraum Observatory both to show off Atlas' scientific advances and greatly increase Remnant's understanding of the universe. Ironically, the creation of this observatory allowed Remnant to notice the UNSC Everest arriving in the system when he was inspecting.
Properly Paranoid: For all his flaws, he is correct to be suspicious of the UNSC. While most of them are fine, some of the leadership do have plans that run counter to Remnant's best interests: Ackerson wanted to invade Remnant before being immediately shot down and was deemed a horrible idea by Cole, and Parangosky is plotting to peacefully annex Remnant by making the Kingdoms economically dependent on the UNSC, and despite not being connected to Earth views their continued independence as a threat to the stability of the UNSC, believing they could become a symbol to independence movements. Dr. Halsey even lampshades this, noting to Admiral Cole that Ironwood would've been completely in the right to try and shoot down the dropships released by the Everest since the UNSC ship had established a state of complete radio silence with Remnant, and by Remnant's perspective it was only by sheer dumb luck that the Everest didn't turn out to have been the vanguard of a hostile Alien Invasion.
Reasonable Authority Figure: Tries to be this, but his paranoia and heavy-handed approach limit his success.
Screw the Rules, I Make Them!: A limited example. Ironwood holds two seats on the Atlesian Council and holds considerable sway with the other members due to a combination of genuine charisma and years of goodwill on account of his service. As such, he can generally do whatever he wants should he feel it is necessary for Atlas' protection, such as drastically increasing Atlas' military following First Contact with the UNSC before finding out about the threat of the Covenant.
When All You Have Is a Hammer…: His default solution to any problem is using overwhelming force. This tends only to exacerbate current or even create entirely new problems.

The Ace-Operatives

General

The most elite Huntsmen and Huntresses from the kingdom of Atlas, the Ace Operatives, or Ace-Ops, are a group of five Huntsmen and Huntresses handpicked by General Ironwood himself to serve as his personal hand. Each member is specifically chosen both for their personal skills and how they mesh with other members of the team, and all are loyal to Atlas above everything else.

Consummate Professional: The Ace-Ops pride themselves in being highly professional in their duties as Huntsmen and Huntresses, preferring to get the job done and not let anything distract them from doing so. Unfortunately, this professionalism extends to their interpersonal relationships, causing them to view their teammates as valuable comrades-in-arms rather than genuine friends like most other Huntsmen teams. Qrow notes that their response to Harriet being crippled by Atriox shows that, despite their claims to the contrary, this is nowhere near true.
Birds of a Feather: In contrast to the rest of the Huntsmen Delegation on the Midsummer Night, the Ace-Ops have no issues conforming with the UNSC's strict and militaristic guidelines and operating procedures. This is because they are part of the Atlesian military rather than independent Huntsmen, and such procedures are the norm rather than the exception.
Custom Uniform: While the Ace-Ops' uniforms follow a general trend, each one is unique from each other's and the rest of the Atlesian military.
Elites Are More Glamorous: Are selected from and held up as the best of the best in Atlas, being given the best equipment, gear and support while undertaking the most dangerous missions the kingdom has to offer. For this reason, Ironwood selected the Ace-Ops to accompany the UNSC into space to determine whether the threat of the Covenant is accurate.

Clover Ebi

The charismatic leader of the Ace-Operatives and one of the finest Huntsmen Atlas Academy has ever produced, Clover Ebi was handpicked by General Ironwood to lead the Ace-Ops into battle. When news of the Covenant spreads to Remnant, Clover was an instant pick by Ironwood to verify the UNSC's claims along with the rest of his team.

His weapon is Kingfisher, a fishing pole he uses to snag and trip up his enemies. His Semblance is Good Fortune, which manipulates good luck for him and his allies. He is based after Aesop's Fables — specifically the titular character from "A Fisherman's Good Luck".

The Ace: As the leader of the Ace-Ops and one of the best Huntsmen Atlas Academy has ever produced, he more than lives up to his reputation thanks to his talent, experience, charisma, and tactical acumen.
Born Lucky: His personal attire incorporates a lot of luck motifs, such as clovers, horseshoes, rabbit's foot, and more. His Semblance, Good Fortune, allows him manipulate probability to give himself and his allies good luck.
By-the-Book Cop: As with the rest of the Ace-Ops, he tries to follow the letter of the law, regardless of whether it is Atlesian or UNSC.
Good Luck Charm: Carries plenty of them on his person, and with his Semblance, he is a living one to his allies.
Improbable Weapon User: Even more so than other Huntsmen; his weapon, Kingfisher, is just a fishing pole. That doesn't stop him from using it in battle to significant effect, such as flinging a grenade up several stories to land beneath a Shade turret or snagging a Banshee trying to escape and thereby using its momentum to slam the Covenant aircraft straight into the ground. The UNSC Marines aboard the Midsummer Night are shown to be understandably skeptical about its merits until they seen him on the battlefield (with them being understandably awed/humbled in response).
The Leader: Is in charge of the Ace-Ops.
Positive Friend Influence: He is genuinely a good man who tries, and often does, to bring out the best in people around him.

Harriet Bree

A competitive woman and one of the latest members of the Ace-Operatives, Harriet Bree has a chip on her shoulder with much to prove. She and the rest of her team are among the Huntsmen chosen by the Kingdoms to verify the UNSC's claims about the Covenant, where she finds a new enemy even greater than the Grimm she trained all her life to destroy.

Her Semblance is Super-Speed, which increases her velocity to superhuman levels (even exceeding that of an "ordinary" Huntsman/Huntress). Her weapon is Fast Knuckles, a prototype exoskeleton that increases the power of her punches. She is based off of Aesop's Fables — specifically the Hare from "The Tortoise and the Hare".

An Arm and a Leg: Loses her right arm and has her legs mangled by a plasma mortar, but is likely to get cybernetic replacements later on.
Can't Take Criticism: Doesn't take too kindly to criticism whatsoever, not from her teammates and especially from those outside of the Ace-Ops.
Close-Range Combatant: To the point where she doesn't even bother going into combat with a firearm, instead relying purely on her Semblance, Super-Speed, and her combat exoskeleton, Fast Knuckles, to destroy her targets. Making her a Lightning Bruiser which has its advantages yet also disadvantages in a battlefield
Colorful Contrails: Leaves a trail of lightning in her wake when using her Semblance.
Competition Freak: Is by far the most competitive member of the Ace-Ops.
Fast as Lightning: Her Semblance, Super-Speed, allows her to move with such great speed that everything else moves in slow motion in her perspective. This is also what barely managed to save her from being killed by a Covenant plasma mortar that was fired.
Fury Fuelled Foolishness: Harriet tends to get angry quite easily, which leads her to make incredibly risky decisions.
Hit-and-Run Tactics: Thanks to her Semblance, she can literally run circles around her opponents with them unable to react.
Jerkass: Harriet is not an easy person to get along with, particularly with the Happy Huntresses after they sneak aboard the UNSC Midsummer Night. While both the crew of the Midsummer Night and even the rest of the Ace-Ops come to view and treat the Happy Huntresses, she refuses to treat them as anything less than stowaways.
Jerkass Has a Point: That being said, Harriet is correct in that Robyn Hill and the Happy Huntresses snuck aboard the Midsummer Night when they weren't supposed to be there at all, given how the Ace-Ops were meant to represent the entire Kingdom of Atlas which includes Mantle. Their actions, while good intentioned, could've jeopardized both the mission and Atlas' standing with the UNSC.
Jerk with a Heart of Gold:
- Despite otherwise being a By-the-Book Cop, Harriet ultimately agrees with Robyn's plan to sneakily scout and sabotage the defenses around the Covenant excavation site on Peponi so that less UNSC Army soldiers perish in the assault.
- She also risks her life trying to save Thomas and Sepia from Atriox's plasma mortar bombardment.
Power Fist: Her weapon, Fast Knuckles, is a combat exoskeleton that significantly increases the power of her punches. Combine that with her Semblance, and she becomes a terrifying enemy to fight against.
Principles Zealot: Is extremely loyal to the Kingdom of Atlas and General Ironwood, ignoring many of the flaws within both that Robyn Hill and the Happy Huntresses are more than happy to point out. It's one of the reasons why she doesn't like them.
Required Secondary Powers: All sufficiently experienced Huntsmen have Super-Reflexes, but Harriet has some exceptionally good reflexes even for an experienced Huntress as a consequence of her Semblance being based around Super-Speed.
Token Evil Teammate: Downplayed; While far from a bad person, Harriet is by far the most competitive and antagonistic member of the Ace-Ops.

Vine Zeki

A veteran Huntsman defined by his calm personality even in the face of danger, Vine Zeki is a distinguished member of the Ace-Ops. Wielding a bladed chakram named Thorn and possessing the ability to create extensions of his limbs using his Semblance Aura Vines, he proves to be both a stabilizing and deadly force on the battlefield. When the threat of the Covenant was revealed to Remnant, he was among the many chosen to verify the UNSC's claims.

His Semblance is Aura Vines, which extends his Aura through his limbs and grants him extreme reach and maneuverability. His weapon is Thorn, a chakram he can throw or use a melee weapon. He is based after Aesop's Fables — specifically the vine from "The Elm and the Vine".

Facial Markings: Has tattoos trailing down his forehead to the space between his eyes, and another pair beneath his lower lips and chin.
Hidden Depths: Vine is far more emotionally aware than his calm personality lets on, which comes out most apparently in his interactions with Harriet.
Icy Blue Eyes: They compliment his calm and relaxed personality.
Ornamental Weapon: Mostly uses his Aura Vines in combat.
Red Oni, Blue Oni: The Blue Oni to both Elm and Harriet's Red Oni. He is calm and quiet, rarely showing emotion and acting as logically as possible whenever he can. In contrast, Elm and Harriet (whom he is frequently partnered with) show their emotions much more quickly and let themselves get controlled by them.
Rubber Man: Can achieve this effect with his Semblance.
The Spock: Tries and often is the most rational member of the Ace-Ops, preferring to make his decisions based entirely off of logic. He also tends to ask any important follow-up questions or make astute observations about any situation they find themselves in and how to best use said information against their opponents. It's one of the reasons why he agrees with Casper Marine's plan to infiltrate the Covenant Citadel on Peponi with her Teleportation Semblance, reasoning that doing so would both catch the Covenant entirely off guard and vastly increase the UNSC's chance of success.
The Stoic: Although Atlesian culture highly values acting off of logic and reasoning, Vine takes it to a whole new level.
Warrior Monk: His style and attitude marks him as one.

Elm Ederne

Another member of the Ace-Ops and the partner to Vine Zeki. Elm is physically the most powerful Huntress on the team, wielding her massive rocket launcher-hammer Timber to significant effect while using her Semblance Aura Roots to anchor herself to the ground. She was an obvious choice by General Ironwood to verify the threat of the Covenant to her homeworld, and she takes the fight to the alien invaders with gusto.

Her Semblance is Aura Roots, which extends her Aura through the soles of her feet into the ground and roots her in place. Her weapon is Timber, a rocket launcher that can turn into a rocket-powered hammer. She is based off of Aesop's Fables — specifically the elm from "The Elm and the Vine".

The Ace: Second only to Clover himself.
Amazonian Beauty: Like in canon, Elm is a tall, brawny and well muscled woman, and easily what you’d call the figurative and literal “muscle" of the Ace Ops. In fact her bulk is alongside her weapon Timber and Semblence is what lets her fight toe to toe with physical powerhouses like Brutes and even the likes of Atriox, albeit roughly given his terrifying intellect as he fought her.
BFG: Timber can turn into a shoulder-mounted rocket launcher that's powerful enough to completely destroy Covenant armor.
Boisterous Bruiser: In contrast to her calm and collected partner alongside her other hotheaded speedster partner, Elm is an excitable and enthusiastic woman who eagerly lives in the moment.
The Heart: Serves as the pillar that the entire Ace-Ops relies upon, with only Clover being more instrumental in their team dynamic.
Logical Weakness: Her Aura Roots require stable ground to anchor into. If the ground is broken, they're functionally useless, something Atriox quickly notices and takes advantage of during his duel against Elm, allowing him to effectively win.
Red Oni, Blue Oni: The Red Oni to Vine's Blue Oni, being much more emotional and passionate both on and off the battlefield.
Rocket-Powered Weapon: When not literally turned into a rocket launcher, Timber's rocket engines can be activated to boost the momentum and power of her swings. Making a blow from her weapon absolutely devastating when hit at the right moment.
Statuesque Stunner: She is a towering woman compared to her teammates, that it is likely she matches the height of a Spartan.
Sticky Situation: How her Semblance works. Her Aura extends out of the soles of her feet and clamps into the ground or any solid surface, anchoring her in place and allowing her to use her vast strength to even greater effect.

The Happy Huntresses

Robyn Hill

The leader of the Happy Huntresses. Once a promising graduate of Atlas Academy, Robyn decided against taking a military career in favor of being an independent Huntress working on behalf of Mantle. She emerged as its greatest advocate against the stark class divides and injustices both wittingly and unwittingly thrown against the city of Mantle by Atlas. Although she wasn't initially selected to join the joint UNSC-Remnant mission to verify the UNSC's claims about the threat of the Covenant, she and her team snuck aboard to serve as Mantle's ambassadors.

Her Semblance is Lie Detection, which can tell her when someone in physical contact is lying or telling the truth. Her weapon is a semi-automatic fan crossbow mounted to her wrist which can also turn into a saw blade for close-quarters combat. She is based off of the legend of Robin Hood.

Accidental Hero: Her decision to infiltrate and sabotage the Covenant force on Peponi creates a sequence of events that not only forces the Midsummer Night to stay on Peponi for the duration of the battle, it also reveals that the Peponi Cartographer had the location of Remnant on it. Had she stuck to the letter of the mission and not gotten involved, the Covenant might've been able to safely extract with the Cartographer's knowledge and discover Remnant before they would be able even to begin defending themselves. Thankfully, she has bought not only humanity, but Remnant a lot of time to cement their alliances and work to defeat the Covenant.
Animal Motifs: Is strongly associated with birds, with her personal symbol being a bird and her crossbow having wings on both sides.
Automatic Crossbows: Her weapon is a wrist-mounted crossbow that can fire Dust-tipped bolts in fast and rapid succession and turn into a bladed circular saw.
Deadpan Snarker: Is not afraid to let her sharp tongue loose, particularly towards the Ace-Ops and Lieutenant Dare whenever she feels the need to call them out on something, which happens very often.
Didn't Think This Through: Primarily her decision to infiltrate the UNSC Midsummer Night uninvitated in order to join the mission. It nearly got her and team shot, and while she was allowed to participate she was essentially placed under arrest for the duration of the mission. Becomes a far bigger problem when she decides to scout the Covenant position on Peponi. Her plan was to infiltrate the Cartographer site, mark locations of interest, and place Dust IEDs on anything that looked dangerous or important before teleporting back to Casper Marine. She didn't consider that the head of Peponi's Army, General Amari, would launch the attack regardless of whether she returned or not, forcing the crew of the Midsummer Night to participate in the mission in order to extract her and her team.
Fatal Flaw: Her hot-blooded nature often leads her to leap before looking and not fully think her decisions through. This nearly gets her and her team killed or at least nearly caused a political disaster, with Fiona getting wounded, when a Covenant Spec-Ops team hunts them down following their sabotage of Covenant defenses on Peponi, to say nothing of accidentally forcing the Midsummer Night to take part in a perilous pitched battle against an entrenched and well-defended Covenant force.
Fury-Fueled Foolishness: Her passion tends to get her easily angry and can, and has, led to her making hasty decisions that later come to bite her in the ass.
A Hero to His Hometown: Widely beloved in her hometown of Mantle, with many viewing her as their champion.
Hot-Blooded: Very impulsive, which can lead to short-sighted decisions. Such as when she decided to sneak about the Midsummer Night when Mantle wasn’t invited like the other kingdoms were.
The Leader: The leader of the Happy Huntresses, all of whom follow her example with gusto.
Living Lie Detector: Her Semblance, Lie Detection, serves as a lie detector when she locks hands with someone. If her arm flashes green, that means they are telling the truth. If it flashes red, they are lying. It makes her highly effective in interrogations, such as when they capture a Grunt scout named Jamflip and interrogate him for the location and strength of the Covenant forces on Peponi. While he tries to lie about what he actually knows, her Semblance exposes those lies for what they are immediately, convincing him to tell the truth. Her Semblance is limited by what the other believes to be the truth, not the objective truth in and of itself.
Locked Out of the Loop: One of her motivations to joining the mission in the first place. She was able to figure out that something was going on, but all of her efforts to find out what it was were either ignored or rebuffed, which only further convinced her that something was affoot. She ultimately decided to infiltrate the mission in order to find out what had Atlas so spooked.
The Nicknamer: Tends to give nicknames to those she meets, such as calling Thomas Cornell "Pipes" based off of the pipe flute he uses in battle.
Positive Friend Influence: Serves as this to the rest of the Huntsmen, frequently advocating for the path that saves the most amount of lives irregardless of the danger to themselves. Her efforts ultimately culminate in their decision to finish the fight on Peponi rather than immediately extract once they rescue her.
Oh, Crap!: Is horrified when it's discovered the Cartographer on Peponi contains the location of Forerunner artifacts on nearby worlds, which includes Remnant and several UNSC colonies.
Spanner in the Works: Becomes this to the Covenant forces that were infiltrating Peponi. Her presence reveals their location early before the waiting fleet could arrive, and her subsequent sabotage of their defenses allows the UNSC to overwhelm them.

Fiona Thyme

A sheep Faunus and member of the Happy Huntresses, Fiona happily and loyally serves under Robyn Hill to support Mantle in any way possible, to the point where she willingly infiltrated the UNSC Midsummer Night in order to represent her people.

Her Semblance is Pocket Dimensions, which allows her to create a pocket dimension to store anything she wants for later use. Her weapon is a crossbow staff, shared by the rest of her teammates in the Happy Huntresses. She is based after Friar Tuck from the legends of Robin Hood.

After Action Patch Up: Is forced to undergo this despite her protests whenever the crew of the Midsummer Night manage to catch up to her following their botched infiltration of a Covenant camp and she got a grazing hit to the shoulder. Although she insists that her Aura is more than capable of healing her injury, the marine corpsman makes her take it easy and not aggravate it further. She eventually complies.
Badass Adorable: Fiona is cute as a button and is more than willing to put a crossbow bolt in your eye at the drop of a hat.
Dual Wielding: When her weapon, a crossbow staff, isn't in its staff configuration, she wields both halves in one hand each.
Hammerspace: Her Semblance, Pocket Dimensions, allows her to store anything in a pocket dimension centered around her, from small items and Dust to even Ghosts. She can then pull those items out whenever she needs or wants to. It also allows the UNSC to temporarily bypass the issue around Dust going inert when going into space, as any Dust stored in her Semblance was able to maintain its potency. needless to say not only is her Semblence incredibly versatile but also has allowed the UNSC and Remnant to begin learning to get Dust operational outside of Remnant.
Little Bit Beastly: Instead of having human ears, she has a pair of white sheep ears, but is otherwise completely human.
Only a Flesh Wound: Has this reaction following a grazing blow to the back of her shoulder from a plasma rifle bolt. Although the wound wasn't fatal, it still caused severe burns and scorched away a considerable amount of flesh. It ultimately prompted a corpsman to order her into taking it easy for a bit rather than simply relying on her Aura to heal the damage.
Retroactive Wish: In this case is the one who grants it, during the Peponi evacuation the Happy Huntresses come across a tank crew whose tank was destroyed, and when they ask is there anything they can help with the sergeant of the crew says "Unless you can pull a new tank out of your ass, no" and just as he was about to send them off Fiona pulls out a scorched, but usable Scorpion the Happy Huntresses found to the amazement of the crew. This also gives Fiona the nickname of "Tank Goddess".

Joanna Greenleaf

A tall, burly woman who loyally serves under Robyn Hill as a Happy Huntress to represent and support Mantle.

Her weapon is a crossbow staff, shared by the rest of her teammates in the Happy Huntresses. She is based after Little John, the right-hand man of Robin Hood in the old legends.

The Big Gal: The biggest and physically strongest member of the all-female Happy Huntresses.
Brutal Honesty: She does not like to mince words in the slightest and is more than happy to call people out whenever she wants.

May Marigold

Formerly a "son" of Atlas but now a daughter of Mantle, May Marigold is among the most vocal members of the Happy Huntresses in their quest to protect their home.

Her Semblance is Invisibility Field, which allows her to create a bubble around herself that cloaks her and her allies. Her weapon is a crossbow staff, shared by the rest of her teammates in the Happy Huntresses. She is based off of Maid Marion from the legends of Robin Hood.

Invisibility: Can create an invisibility field around herself and her allies. It proves instrumental in the infiltration of the Covenant base near the Peponi Cartographer, and later its destruction.
Queer Establishing Moment: During an argument between her and Harriet regarding the treatment of Mantle by Atlas and whether the Happy Huntresses were justified in sneaking aboard the mission, Harriet reveals that the real reason why she's so hostile to them is that she feels that the Happy Huntresses turned their back on Atlas and everything it provided them. May angrily retorted that Atlas turned its back on her first, and if they didn't accept May as their son, why should she serve them as their daughter?
White Sheep: Serves as this towards the Marigold family in that she actively cares about the downtrodden, particularly those in Mantles, whereas the rest of her family couldn't care less. This ultimately led to them mutually disowning the other.

Menagerie

Leadership

Ghira Belladonna

The current leader of the White Fang, and the father of Blake Belladonna. For nearly his entire life, Ghira has been a steadfast advocate for Faunus equality, and when the UNSC arrives he seizes the opportunity to make a powerful new friend. He is based after Bagheera from The Jungle Book.

Carpet of Virility: Proudly displays a chest covered in hair.
Gentle Giant: Is an absolute mountain of a man, more than capable of tearing things, people, and Grimm apart with his bare hands. But he is also a loving family man who would prefer to have violence be an absolute last resort, if an option at all.
Rank Scales With Ass Kicking: He is the leader of both the White Fang and Menagerie, and is fully capable of putting up a fight, even if he'd rather not have to.
Reasonable Authority Figure: When the UNSC first arrives over Remnant, his people (much like the rest of the planet), are understandably terrified. Rather than let that fear drive him, however, he manages to both maintain his composure and help bring everyone back to a sense of calm. He then manages to leverage his position with the White Fang to personally serve as Faunus representation with the UNSC during the Vytal First Contact Conference, quickly becoming a figure that the UNSC can work with.
Universally Beloved Leader: Zigzagged. Serves as both the leader of the White Fang and the Chieftain of Menagerie. Although there have been rumblings of discontent toward his leadership of the first group due to his ineffectual tactics, there are no challenges whatsoever toward his rule over Menagerie.

White Fang

Sienna Khan

The second-in-command of the White Fang, Sienna Khan is the civil rights group's most effective and direct fighter. Although she loyally serves under Ghira when the UNSC arrives at Remnant, she frequently chafes under his pacifistic vision for the White Fang, desiring a more proactive and violent approach to secure equality for the Faunus. Despite this division, she is chosen by Ghira to lead the White Fang delegation on the mission to verify the UNSC's claims about the threat of the Covenant.

Her weapon is Cerberus Whip, a Dust-tipped chain she whips and stabs into her opponents. Her Semblance is Grudge, making her stronger and faster whenever she damages or breaks someone's Aura. She is based after Shere Khan from The Jungle Book.

Anti-Hero: More than willing to use violence to achieve her goals, but those goals are genuinely to obtain the rights her people have been denied for millennia.
Chain Pain: Her weapon is Cerberus Whip, which is a chain-whip with detachable arrowheads spiked with Dust.
Fantastic Racism: Although she desires equality between humans and Faunus, she doesn't exactly hold humanity in high regard due to the history of racism and subjugation her people have suffered by humans. When she learns of the Covenant, she even tries to claim that Faunus and humans are two entirely separate species, to which the UNSC replies that it wouldn't matter. In fairness, she is shocked to find out about the Covenant's genocidal war, and is clearly saying that in hopes that it is true, as the idea of having to face the Covenant is terrifying.
A Lighter Shade of Black: Sienna openly desires to turn the White Fang into a militant organization which would actively seek out and punish those who harm the Faunus. But she only does so out of a legitimate desire to protect her people, and only desires equality with humans, not subjugation, nor does she want her acts to transgress to a full-out race war. She is also horrified and sickened by the actions of the Covenant and takes great pleasure in killing their soldiers during the Battle of Peponi. She's also outraged by Gron's continued insistence that the Covenant are purely a human problem, and his suggestion that they secretly take some Covenant weapons back to Remnant and use them to subjugate the humans there.
Well-Intentioned Extremist: Pushes for the White Fang to become more proactive and militant in their activism, blurring the line between a civil rights group and a terrorist organization. But she ultimately just wants equality between humans and Faunus after centuries of mistreatment, subjugation, and outright enslavement at times.

Abby Redwall

A young Huntress who graduated from Beacon before joining the White Fang, Abby Redwall is an excitable and easygoing mouse Faunus whom others are able to easily get along with. When the White Fang were selecting a group of Huntsmen and Huntresses to sent out into space with the UNSC to verify their claims about the Covenant, she was chosen to represent her people, a task she seeks out to do with gusto.

Her weapon is Mossflower, a claymore passed down her family for generations. Her Semblance is Aura Blade, which allows her to encase Mossflower with an impenetrable Aura field that can cut through anything. She is (admittedly loosely) based off of Mathias from the Redwall book series.

Ancestral Weapon: Mossflower has been passed down her family for generations, with her the latest wielder.
BFS: Her weapon, Mossflower, is a giant claymore which, nonetheless, she's able to swing around with ease.
Beware the Nice Ones: Abby Redwall is, by far, the nicest and most moral member of the White Fang delegation, with everyone on every team and the crew of the UNSC Midsummer Night coming to like her. But, when push comes to shove, and innocent people are in danger, she is the first to throw herself into danger and cleave her opponents in half with Mossflower.
Cast from Hit Points: Her Semblance, Aura Blade, allows her to extend her Aura over the blade of her weapon, Mossflower, as much or as little as she desires. Although the blade is impenetrable when up and can cut through anything, damage taken to it does whittle her Aura down. Once her Aura is expended, the blade disappears.
Close-Range Combatant: To be expected for one who goes into battle with only a sword.
Dare to Be Badass After they manage to rescue Robyn Hill and her team from a nearly botched scouting mission on Peponi, she is the first one to say that they should stick around and finish the fight for the Cartographer, saying that it is their job as Huntsmen and Huntresses to defend people from monsters. To her, even if the Covenant aren't the Grimm, they more than fit the description. She ultimately manages to inspire the other members of the Huntsmen Delegation into contributing to a plan that, ultimately, expels the Covenant from the Cartographer with minimal loss of human life.
Original Character: Does not have a canonical counterpart in RWBY.
The Idealist: Is a firm believer of Ghira Belladonna's vision for the White Fang and the fight for Faunus equality to such a degree that she joined the White Fang as soon as she graduated from Beacon. That being said, she isn't blind to the difficulties such ideals face.
Iron Butt Monkey: Frequently almost dies to plasma fire, a beam rifle headshot, crashing Banshees, and more to a comical degree, yet is able to walk away none the worse for wear.
Running Gag: Abby frequently finds herself in situations that normally would kill someone and nearly results in her death before something happens that saves her life.

Gron Traekke

A gruff veteran of the White Fang, Gron Traekke was chosen by Sienna to accompany her into space to verify the threat of the Covenant. A threat he continues to maintain is a purely human concern, not the Faunus'.

His Semblance is Dragon Scales, which shrouds him in a shield of impenetrable Aura except for one spot on his lower back. His weapon, Gram, is a greatsword with a built-in poison gas injector. He is based off of Fafnir from Norse Mythology.

Achilles' Heel: Has a spot on his lower back that remains unprotected when his Semblance is activated, leaving him completely vulnerable. Gron takes great pains to ensure that nothing hits that spot when in combat. A grunt, of all things, is the one that manages to hit said point.
The Brute: The most violent and bloodthirsty member of the White Fang.
Evil Cannot Comprehend Good: Well, more Well-Intentioned Extremist or Anti-Hero than pure good, but he's shocked that Sienna is against his plan to use Covenant weapons to subjugate the humans of Remnant, needing her to spell out that, while she may be willing to use violence, she still shares Ghira's goal of making Faunus equal to humans, and that she doesn't put much faith in the genocidal aliens who burn entire planets to be reasonable and view Faunus as separate from humans. He also seems to think they could get Fiona, who is extremely loyal to Robyn, a human, and to her fellow Happy Huntresses, who are also human, to help with a plot to subjugate humanity.
Expy: invoked Downplayed, but Word of God states he's supposed to be a proto-Adam Taurus, representing the forerunner to the even more extreme faction of the White Fang Adam belonged to.
Fantastic Racism: Where Sienna has a negative view of humanity but still desires equality, Gron vocally hates humanity and suggests sneaking Covenant technology back to Remnant and using it to subjugate humanity.
The Friend Nobody Likes: Quickly gets on everyone's nerves thanks to his anti-human rhetoric and open desire to avoid facing the Covenant entirely, claiming that it's purely a UNSC or, at most, human concern that doesn't affect the Faunus. By Chapter 27, even Sienna is losing her patience with him.
Heel–Face Door-Slam: After getting wounded by a Grunt, he gets his worldview torn to shreds first by a UNSC squad who cart him off and treat his wounds without hesitation even after seeing his faunus traits up close, followed by the passing Covenant squad still attempting to execute him even after outing himself as a faunus. Before we can find out if his outlook has changed, he decides to take the Covenant Squad with him.
Insane Troll Logic: His arguments about how the Covenant isn't a Faunus problem and the UNSC is trying to drag them into the war can reach this at times, culminating in him trying to blame the UNSC for the Covenant discovering the Peponi Cartographer that contains Remnant's location, despite the UNSC having no idea it was there until the Covenant dug it up, and the fact that the Covenant came to Peponi because they knew there were Forerunner artifacts there. He learns way too damn late that the Covenant is everyone's problem, not just humanity's or the UNSC's, when he's badly wounded in Chapter 28 and at their mercy. Gron tries to surrender and says he's a Faunus, not a human, but they don't care and try to kill him regardless.
The Juggernaut: When Dragon Scales is activated, there isn't anything anyone can do to stop him, allowing Gron to tear through anything in his path.
Nigh-Invulnerability: When his Semblance is activated, except for a single spot on his back, Gron is completely invincible to even Covenant plasma fire.
Original Character: Does not have a canonical counterpart in RWBY.
Poison Is Evil: Incorporates poison into his arsenal and is, by far, the most antagonistic member of the White Fang.
Reptiles Are Abhorrent: He's a reptilian Faunus who is entirely covered in scales, and is also the most bigoted member shown.
Surrender Backfire: After getting badly hurt and at the mercy of some Covenant troops, Gron tries to surrender and thinks they'll spare him since he's not human; they prove him wrong when they call him "a heretic" and a coward for trying to give up and kill him regardless.
Dare: During the early years of the war, many of our soldiers and commanders made that exact same mistake. They believed that, like any other war, the Covenant would take prisoners. We learned the hard way that they don't, that this wasn't like any other war.
Taking You with Me: Critically wounded and with no other options, Gron blankets himself and the Elites and Grunts around him with the poison from his sword. The poison does its job and kills them, but it kills him too.
Token Evil Teammate: By Chapter 27, not only is he still convinced that the Covenant is still solely a human problem, he suggests stealing some Covenant weapons and subjugating the humans of Remnant to Faunus rule, to Sienna's digust. Tellingly, Ghira objected to Sienna choosing to bring him on the mission, and Sienna makes it clear she's starting to regret not listening to Ghira.

Yuri Grammy

Another veteran Huntsman serving the White Fang, Yuri Grammy was chosen to represent the White Fang alongside Sienna Khan to verify the threat of the Covenant.

His Semblance is Future Sight, which foretells him of events which are just about to occur, giving him enough time to react. His weapon, Gamayun, is a bolt-action sniper rifle which can turn into a spear. He is based off the Gamayun from Russian folklore.

Alien Hair: Every hair follicle on his body, most notably the head, is replaced by bright blue feathers.
Cold Sniper: In battle, Yuri keeps himself calm and collected even when his allies lose their composure. He notes that, at one point, he hunted a specific Grimm for days before finally taking a shot.
Futureshadowing: His Semblance, Future Sight, allows him to see what's about to happen seconds before they do, letting him take action.
Hunter of Monsters: Comes with being a Huntsmen.
Original Character: Does not have a canonical counterpart in RWBY.

Salem's Group

Salem

An immortal witch and master of the creatures of Grimm. Salem has been terrorizing Remnant for eons and stands as its greatest threat. With the discovery of Remnant by the UNSC she may now grow into a threat for the entire galaxy. She is based after the Wicked Witch of the West from The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, though her backstory is actually inspired by Rapunzel.

The Archmage: She, Ozpin and the Maidens are the only known people on Remnant who can still practice the Functional Magic that the "first" iteration of humanity previously had widespread access to. Ozpin sacrificed the vast majority of his power to create the Maidens long ago, leaving Salem as the remaining master of arcane power on Remnant — which, given by her causal manipulation of the Grimm and status as a Sorcerous Overlord in the Land of Darkness, is a title she can back up and then some.
Big Bad: Salem is the main antagonist of the story.
Complete Immortality: She was cursed by the Brother Gods with eternal life, meaning that she will live so long as either Remnant exists or until she learns (and properly) accepts the significance of life & death.
Dark Messiah: It's mentioned that there's a fringe religion called the "Cult of the Ash Bride" that worships her and sees her as a way to garner mercy from the Grimm.
The Dreaded: Ozpin and his associates are rightfully terrified of her.
Fatal Flaw: Salem's villainy is primarily born out of a mix of pettiness and a selfish disregard for anyone else. While her main goal for bringing together the Relics is so she can finally rest, it's all but stated that her other primary reason is that she specifically wants to prove her ex-husband Ozma wrong in his belief that Humans Are Special.
From Nobody to Nightmare: While not exactly nobody at the start of the story she was only a threat to Remnant and with her Grimm unable to leave the planet she posed no real danger to the UNSC. Her alliance with the Covenant however makes her a danger to the entire galaxy.
God Guise: Rather then pretending to be a goddess, she instead pretends to be a living oracle of the Forerunners to help the Covenant complete their Great Journey.
Manipulative Bastard: She's terrifyingly good at manipulating people to her side, as seen with Hazel Rainart and Haki Felt (just to name a few).
Pragmatic Villainy: When she first hears about the UNSC she decides to find out more information about them before making any moves.
Suicidal Cosmic Temper Tantrum: Her ultimate goal is to bring together all of the Relics while making sure humanity on Remnant stays divided and corrupt so the Brother Gods will completely destroy the planet, finally freeing her from her immortality.
Time Abyss: She's been alive since before the destruction of the first iteration of humanity on Remnant, which according to Ozpin would make her over 100 millennia old.

Hazel Rainart

One of Salem's current subordinates and man who shares history with Professor Ozpin, Hazel Rainart is a complicated man who is simultaneously an honorable man but also a complete monster. He willingly serves the Queen of the Grimm out of a desire for vengeance and the hope of creating a better world.

His Semblance is Numbing Agent, which completely blocks out pain. He is based off of Hansel from Hansel and Gretel.

Affably Evil: With the notable exception of Ozpin, Hazel is extremely polite, respectful, and reserved. He abhors unnecessary casualties and strictly desires to do his job as cleanly and professionally as possible. The only problem is that his job involves murdering countless innocent people in the name of his master. While he regrets their deaths, he firmly believes that, in the long run, it would be necessary for the creation of a Remnant without Ozpin's poison.
And This Is for......: Every monstrous and evil act Hazel conducts is ultimately in the memory of his twin sister Gretchen, who tragically lost her life in a training accident. He hopes that, in the end, all the bloodshed will lead to a new Remnant without the Kingdoms and Ozpin, a Remnant where people like Gretchen don't have to throw away their lives in an endless war between immortals.
Angsty Surviving Twin: Had a twin sister named Gretchen who tragically lost her life in a training mission while attending Beacon Academy against his wishes. Hazel blamed Ozpin and ultimately joined Salem to get revenge.
Anti-Villain: Aside from the fact that he murders people and plots to overthrow the Kingdoms, Hazel is by far the noblest and most sympathetic member of Salem's faction. He doesn't enjoy what he's doing; he simply does it due to a combination of grief and what he believes to be noble intentions.
Beware the Quiet Ones: Outside of battle, and even in it, Hazel is calm, collected, and reserved, but that will not stop him from ripping someone apart with his bare hands.
The Brute: Descends into this when Ozpin's involved due to his vehement hatred of the immortal man.
Covered in Scars: His body is absolutely covered in battle-scars, many of which were self-inflicted by him literally stabbing himself with Dust crystals.
Despair Event Horizon: Why he ultimately joined Salem following his sister's death. After trying and failing to kill the immortal witch, he came to believe that there was no hope of defeating Salem no matter what someone tries to do, and that Ozpin, knowing this, is just needlessly throwing lives away. By joining Salem, he hopes that he can finally put an end to their Forever War and stop the bloodshed.
Feel No Pain: His Semblance, Numbing Agent, prevents him from feeling pain at all. Doesn't stop his body from getting injured, though.
Hypocrite: Claims that what he's doing is to prevent more people like Gretchen from needlessly dying, but his actions are only creating more people like Gretchen every single day.
Noble Demon: Hazel is a monster who's murdered countless innocent people in the name of his master, but only does so out a genuine desire to make the world better. He also avoids taking lives needlessly, such as when Salem has him and Haki Felt infiltrate the Vytal First Contact Conference to spy on the UNSC. He didn't take any actions, direct or indirect, against the UNSC and chastised Haki furiously when she took the initiative to sabotage their outer defenses, allowing a Grimm horde to attack.
Revenge Myopia: Hates needlessly killing or hurting people, but willingly does so for Salem in an effort to get revenge on Ozpin.

Haki Felt

Kingdom: Mistral

Birthdate: 2515 / 44 AGW

A young schizophrenic woman, Haki Felt used to be a promising Huntress in Training from Shade Academy. But after a mental breakdown led to the murder of her teammates, she went on the run and ultimately joined Salem who sponsored her brand of chaos. When the UNSC arrived on Remnant, she and Hazel were tasked with investigating them for her master, ultimately meeting her end at the hands of SPARTAN Blue Team.

Her weapon was Dormouse, a teapot she fills with Dust and can use as a flail or Dust-thrower. Her Semblance was Murder the Time, which lets her rewind time in the local area directly around her by a few seconds. She is heavily based off of the Mad Hatter from Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.

Improbable Weapon User: Her weapon, Dormouse, is literally a teapot that she fills with Dust to turn it into a Dust-thrower. It can also extend a long, thick chain from the handle to turn it into a flail.
Insane Equals Violent: Haki suffers from schizophrenia stemming from years of prolonged Lightning Dust exposure. She wasn't always like this, as Shade Academy attempted to give her medication to prevent further degradation, but Haki believed taking the medication was numbing her mind and harming her capabilities. When she snapped and killed her team, she was subsequently taken in by Salem, who fostered and exploited her mental instability to turn her into a deadly monster strong enough to nearly kill the members of Blue Team.
Mugging the Monster: Attempts to, and nearly does, kill Blue Team when they try to apprehend her following her sabotage of the Vytal First Contact Conference's defenses. While both groups initially underestimated the other, with Haki sending the super soldiers running following the first round, Blue Team was able to recover and come up with a strategy to take her down whereas Haki didn't take them seriously until it was too late. It ultimately results in her death.
Not Enough to Bury: Her corpse becomes an unrecognizable mess, courtesy of getting shot dozens of times by Blue Team before getting finished off with a frag grenade.
Original Character: She does not have a canonical counterpart in RWBY.
Tragic Monster: Master Chief ultimately comes to view her as this. At one point, Haki was a promising but eccentric student from Shade Academy. However, after being diagnosed with schizophrenia, the medication given to her numbed her mind and led to a decline in her combat abilities, convincing her to stop taking them, ultimately degrading her mind even further. This culminated in her murdering her teammates when they tried to get her the help she desperately needed, and was later taken advantage of by Salem, who manipulated her into becoming her personal assassin and terrorist. By the time she finally met her end at the hands of Blue Team, she was too far gone to be saved.
You Have No Chance to Survive: Is the recipient of this courtesy of Master Chief, who tells her that with the UNSC knowing exactly who she is and reinforcements about to surround her in a matter of minutes, there is no possibility of her managing to escape so she should just surrender. She doesn't take the offer, resulting in her getting killed.
Your Days Are Numbered: It's noted that, even if Haki had surrendered to Blue Team, years of prolonged Dust exposure had led to severe brain degradation that would've killed her within the next ten years no matter what she or anyone else did, and that's if she immediately stopped using Dust and received medical attention from the UNSC. This is the reason why she's never seen in canon when it rolled around as she would've perished from her deteriorating condition or been slain by someone like Qrow, plus never mentioned as it would've been years ago and more important things simply popped up.

The Creatures of Grimm

A mysterious race of monsters seemingly native only to Remnant, the Grimm are inky-black creatures supposedly created by the God of Darkness as a counterpoint to the various forms of life created by his elder brother, the God of Light. Grimm are naturally drawn to the negative emotions of sapient life and seek nothing else but to destroy all intelligent lifeforms everywhere.

Adaptational Origin Connection: While the jury's still out on what exactly their connection is, The Reveal that Remnant is actually a Forerunner Shield World heavily implies that the Grimm are a form of Forerunner bioweapon meant for fighting the Flood, Endless, ancient humanity or some other foe.
Always Chaotic Evil: The Grimm are, simply put, utterly evil, never once showing mercy and not even seeming to be fully sapient, only desiring to spread as much death and suffering as possible. Gron Traekke even notes at one point that fighting the Grimm is more like handling a natural disaster than waging a war thanks both to the Grimm being The Needless and the Grimm being too “feral” to be effectively negotiated with.
Animalistic Abomination: Most Grimm species take a form that is a mocking parody of a real-world animal, such as Nevermores being massive crows, Beringels being Killer Gorillas, Ursas being monstrous bears, etc.
Bizarre Alien Reproduction: Grimm do not reproduce in the same way actual lifeforms do, with new Grimm instead emerging from spawning pools found deep within the Grimmlands of Remnant.
Bizarre Alien Senses: Grimm have the ability to not just psychically sense the presence of intelligent lifeforms, but can also sense said lifeforms’ negative emotions.
Conservation of Ninjutsu: Inverted; While Grimm are always dangerous, they become exponentially more so in larger groups since Grimm seem to operate under a “gestalt reinforcement” (meaning they all become stronger and harder to injure/kill the more there are of them in a single area).
Dark Is Evil: They're basically human nightmares given physical form, looking like hideous mutated animals and/or mythological monsters forged out of shadow.
Decapitated Army: Wiping out the Alpha Grimm among a horde of the monsters will break their cohesion and make them more manageable to fight as they are no longer sufficiently organized.
Disaster Dominoes: One of the greatest problems with fighting the Grimm is that the longer a given battle goes on, the more fear, frustration & despair the defenders inevitably feel, drawing in even more Grimm from the surrounding area and repeating the process until the Grimm overwhelm their opposition.
Feel No Pain: Downplayed; Grimm can feel pain, but it often doesn't matter for much due to how ridiculously high their pain tolerance is.
Forever War: They have fought against the humans and Faunus of Remnant for longer than recorded history.
It Can Think: The most dangerous Grimm are the "Alphas", elder Grimm who have managed to survive for long enough that they've been Taught by Experience and can lead hordes of lesser Grimm with some resemblance of tactics to cause the most casualties among humanity and the Faunus.
Kill All Humans: Their only desire. Prior to learning what exactly the Grimm were, the UNSC were highly disturbed at just how aggressive the Grimm were, noticing right away that it wasn't anything an animal would naturally do.
Light Is Not Good: Most Grimm have some hideous form of snow-white "bone" plating along their bodies serving as a primitive armor.
Made of Bologna: When Grimm are sliced open, their insides are shown to be a glowing, solid red mass before they begin to dissipate into black smoke or ash.
Magical Eye Streamers: The glowing red eyes of the Grimm manifest glowing red streamers of power that stretch out from their eyes. It can be visible when they're stationary but is most clearly seen when they're in motion. It reflects the strange origin of the creatures and the divine origins of the unnatural way in which they're spawned into existence.
Mooks: Their primary purpose for Salem is to serve as expendable soldiers she can throw at various threats until they've been wiped out via sheer numbers.
The Needless: The Creatures of Grimm do not need to eat, sleep, drink, or even breed — their constant desire to kill sentient life seems to be done solely for its own sake.
No Body Left Behind: Their bodies rapidly disintegrate into dust upon death, resulting in it being impossible to dissect Grimm and figure out their internal anatomy (if any even exists).
Red Eyes, Take Warning: The Grimm typically have red eyes, to go along with their shadowy, oversized appearances and evil nature. They also have pinkish red markings to go along with those glowing eyes.
Scars Are Forever: They can survive quite a bit of punishment, but their lack of an Aura means that when they do they come away with some nasty scars.
The Soulless: All living things possess a soul: plants, animals, and of course, the denizens of the world of Remnant. Even when Ozpin tries and fails to unlock the Aura of ODST Ethan Graves, he's still able to sense that Graves (and presumably, by extension, all other forms of sapient life non-native to Remnant) has a soul. However, the Grimm lack a soul and an Aura, as they're incarnations of elemental destruction.
Spikes of Villainy: Several variants of Grimm have large, bone-like spines protruding from their bodies.
Stronger with Age: Grimm bulk up the longer they live, and their faculties become more refined. As they get older, they become stronger, smarter, more calculating and much more patient.
Unstoppable Rage: It's incredibly easy to anger a Grimm into simply rampaging around and trying to erase whatever its current foe is from existence.
Zerg Rush: Their primary strategy, though unfortunately the smarter Alphas are better in tactics than this.

Characters / Dust And Echoes Remnant

Remnant

Team RWBY

Team JNPR

Kingdom of Vale

Kingdom of Atlas

Leadership

The Ace-Operatives

The Happy Huntresses

Menagerie

Leadership

White Fang

Salem's Group

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Index

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Characters / Dust And Echoes Remnant

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Remnant

Team RWBY

Team JNPR

Kingdom of Vale

Kingdom of Atlas

Leadership

The Ace-Operatives

The Happy Huntresses

Menagerie

Leadership

White Fang

Salem's Group

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Index

Next