The Heroes: Team RWBY | Team JNPR | Ozpin and Oscar
Remnant: Sanus (Eastern) | Sanus (Western) | Anima | Solitas
Antagonists: Salem's Faction (Salem | Cinder Fall) | White Fang | Grimm Bestiary
Beyond Remnant: The Ever After
Spoilers for all works set prior to the end of Volume 8 are unmarked.
The World of Remnant: Sanus (Western)
Remnant is a harsh landscape inhabited by the Creatures of Grimm that dominate the skies, land and oceans. There were once many kingdoms scattered across the continents of Sanus, Solitas and Anima. However, most have fallen to the Grimm, leaving behind only four survivors. By combining technological advancement with local topography, civilisation flourishes within the protected boundaries of these four kingdoms.
Sanus is the largest continent on Remnant and boasts two surviving kingdoms, the Kingdom of Vale to the east and the Kingdom of Vacuo to the west. The Great War began on the continent's east coast as a result of clashes between the Kingdoms of Vale and Mistral, but ended in the deserts of the Kingdom of Vacuo, where the forces of Vale and Vacuo triumphed over the forces of Mistral and Mantle. While the eastern portion of the continent boasts favourable terrain for protecting the Kingdom of Vale, the western deserts of Vacuo are much more inhospitable.
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Kingdom of Vacuo
Vacuo's emblem
The Kingdom of Vacuo is located at the western end of Sanus. It was originally a paradise and, at the centre of the kingdom, was a rich oasis that was surrounded by jungle and strong geographic defences. Boasting rich natural resources, including the largest Dust deposit ever found, the kingdom thrived.
The Great War changed everything. Stripped of its natural resources, and the battleground for years of human conflict, the paradise was reduced to desert where people lived in makeshift homes, forced to constantly travel to obtain enough resources just to survive. As the location of the final campaign that ended the Great War, Vacuo experienced the most devastating conflict of the entire war and, eighty years later, still hasn't recovered.
While a government does exist in Vacuo, the only real source for order in the kingdom comes from the elite Huntsman Academy that protects it, Shade Academy. However, the kingdom only has one real rule to speak of: if you can survive, you're welcome. Even the humans and Faunus respect each other in Vacuo.
Shade Academy
One of the four great Huntsmen Academies of Remnant, this elite school is based in the Kingdom of Vacuo and dominates the skyline of the City of Vacuo. Not only is it the kingdom's main source of protection, it's also Vacuo's main source of law and order, too.
Headmaster Theodore
Headmaster Theodore
Debut: RWBY: After the Fall *
- Affectionate Nickname: Rumpole refers to him as "Theo". Sun keeps calling him "Theo" as well, shocking other students; even though both Theo and Rumpole reprimand him, he still uses it behind Theo's back.
- Asskicking Leads to Leadership: Theodore is the central figure in the kingdom of Vacuo, and considered the strongest Headmaster. In the harsh desert kingdom, Theodore trains his students to be able to survive anything and even welcomes challenges from them. He's gone so far as to offer his position to anyone that can defeat him, though it isn't clear how serious this offer actually is.
- Blood Knight: Theodore is a passionate fighter, always eager to test his strength against others. He even offers to let students challenge him, if they disagree with his decisions or simply want to test themselves against him. He's earned a reputation as the strongest of the four Headmasters, in a kingdom that values strength.
- Boisterous Bruiser: Theodore is a physical powerhouse, full of youthful energy and always eager to spar with his students. This contrasts heavily with the other Headmasters and their more restrained personalities.
- Boxing Battler: His fighting style is based on Boxing, in contrast to the more flashy and weapon-based styles common in the series.
- Bunny-Ears Lawyer: Theodore is a flamboyant man with a childish enthusiasm, easily distracted by his love of fighting and incredibly casual about the rules. It contrasts heavily with the other three headmasters, who appear far more mature and professional in comparison. But Theodore demonstrates a keen intellect when necessary, making a point to research any student that comes to his school, and far more aware of what is going on than it seems. Though he operates differently from his allies, he proves to be a capable Headmaster and force against Salem.
- Gender Flip: Theodore is based on the iconic heroine, Dorothy Gale. He's clearly no Judy Garland, though.
- The Ghost: In RWBY: After the Fall, he is revealed to be the headmaster of Shade Academy. However, while he is discussed by the characters, he doesn't personally appear and therefore remains a mysterious figure in the background of the setting. Averted as of RWBY: Before the Dawn where he appears in the flesh.
- Insistent Terminology: Theodore doesn't like being called "Professor", insisting on his title of Headmaster if people don't use his name.
- Kung-Fu Sonic Boom: His Gravity Dust-infused gloves can create a thunderous noise and either hurl targets through the air or leave massive cracks around him. At the end of Before the Dawn, he uses this to launch Yatsuhashi through the air so that he can get close to Jax, although Yatsuhashi is extremely alarmed to be on the receiving end of such a punch.
- Large Ham: Headmasters are expected to make speeches to their students. Theodore takes this up to eleven, actually surprising the transfer students with his delivery in comparison to the likes of Ozpin and Ironwood. Theodore doesn't need a stage! He doesn't need a microphone! His speeches to the student body are physical events, with him leaving the stage to physically engage with them and using his gloves to create a loud Shockwave Clap to draw attention.
- Magical Accessory: Theodore's distinctive accessories are all (at least) allusions to the magical items worn by Dorothy Gale. His gloves allude to the magical Ruby Slippers of the film, his boots are the Silver Shoes of the novels, and his silver belt is a nod to the magical Belt taken from the Nome King. Whether his boots and belt have any special attributes remains to be seen.
- Tricked-Out Gloves: Instead of his inspiration's Ruby Slippers, Theodore wears a pair of eye-catching red gloves. They're infused with Gravity Dust, enhancing his already powerful blows.
- We Used to Be Friends: His office is decorated with photographs and portraits of the people important to him, notably the other members of Ozpin's inner circle. When Teams CFVY and SSSN first arrive in Vacuo, he has portraits of the other headmasters on the walls. However, the next time the students see his office, the portraits of Lionheart and Ironwood have both been taken down, and the portrait of Ozpin has been moved into a more prominent location. Theo, who has a habit of digging for information, is implied to know about how Ozpin's inner circle has collapsed as a result of betrayal and in-fighting.
- Wild Card: In RWBY: Amity Arena, James Ironwood's bio indicates that Ironwood doesn't know whether or not Theodore can be trusted; to Atlas, Theodore's status is considered "uncertain". However, in Volume 6, Salem sends Tyrian and Watts to Atlas to ensure Ironwood can't make contact with Vacuo because that would ruin her plans for unknown reasons. The removal of Ironwood's portrait from Theodore's office further indicates a fracture in their alliance.
- World's Best Warrior: The headmaster of Shade Academy holds a reputation as the "Strongest Headmaster", a title that Theodore may or may not actually deserve. But his reputation serves him well in the kingdom of Vacuo, where physical strength and the ability to survive are valued above all else. Theodore is a respected leader, considered the central figure of authority in the kingdom, and admired by his students. His willingness to spar with his students and offer his position to anyone that can defeat him helps solidify his reputation as a peerless Huntsman.
Professor Rumpole
Professor Rumpole
Debut: RWBY: After the Fall *
A teacher at Shade Academy, and the headmaster's right-hand woman. Her Semblance allows her to turn anything she touches into gold.
- Arsenal Attire: The decorative, golden cord woven into her hair is actually part of her weapon.
- Batman Gambit: She implements the team reshuffling plan because she needs the students to behave in a specific way and feels this will achieve that aim. After summoning them early in the morning while they're tired and hungry, she informs the upset students that the arrival of the newcomers has created too much division between Shade and non-Shade teams. As a result, she'll be mixing everyone up to break down those divisions. The announcement makes the students resentful of each other and the teachers and this is when the reinitiation is triggered, sending the angry students out into the desert alone to compete with each other. Upon their return, the new teams are assigned. She's actually brainwashed when she comes up with this plan. The true purpose is to keep the students off-balance, mistrustful and divided so that the Crown can attack the school while it's weak and in utter disarray. To achieve this, she even forces students to fight their own teammates after the new teams are formed, sabotaging their ability to bond as new teams. It completely destroys Shade's morale and discipline in preparation for the Crown's attack. She's snapped out of it by Yatsuhashi's Semblance and the original teams are reassembled just barely in time for the attack.
- Brainwashed and Crazy: At one point, she becomes vulnerable to a brainwashing technique that reorders her opinion on who friends and enemies are. While investigating the Crown, she was ambushed by Carmine Esclados and brainwashed by Carmine's employers. Her instructions were to impede Shade Academy as long as possible, causing her to instigate a team swap program and encourage students to keep fighting even after their Auras have broken. Yatsuhashi manages to free her with his Semblance while fighting her.
- Gold Makes Everything Shiny: She braids her hair with golden cord; her dark brown longcoat is covered in golden flecks and it contains an inner lining of golden silk. Coco thinks it shines like either pyrite in rock or possibly yellow Dust, and gives the coat both a gaudy and rustic air at the same time. Her first name even means gold.
- Hidden Weapons: She conceals her weapon with her enormous, floor-length braid. The wheel is simply hidden beneath the braid, while the cord is woven into her hair.
- I Know Your True Name: In a reference to her inspiration, Rumpole offers to let Fox, Neptune and Yatsuhashi go if they can guess her first name, Xanthe. It seems even Theodore didn't know it, until then.
- Killer Yo-Yo: Rumpole's weapon is a wheel on a cord, used alternately as a shield and a yo-yo like tool to strike or bind her opponents.
- The Magic Touch: Her Semblance allows her to turn anything she touches to gold, though the transformation is permanent. It's useful for disabling opponents by turning their clothing to metal, or rendering their weapons more decorative than useful.
- Mysterious Past: Rumpole is an incredibly secretive woman, with very little known about her. Her office doesn't have anything that could reveal personal information, no one seems to know her age or where she comes from. Even Theodore didn't know her first name until Fox figured it out.
- Pint-Sized Powerhouse: Rumpole is a tiny woman, standing a mere four feet in height. In spite of this, she's strong enough to challenge Yatsuhashi in a physical fight and shatters part of the courtyard when she stomps her foot in anger.
- Slipknot Ponytail: Her weapon is woven into her braid, requiring her to let her hair down to fight.
- Vague Age: She's four feet tall, with fine features and always wears a mischievous expression. She seems young, but her background is a mystery, as is her age.
Team CFVY
For more information on Team CFVY, please see RWBY: Eastern Sanus.
Team SSSN
For more information on Sun Wukong, please see RWBY: The Heroes.
For more information on the rest of Team SSSN, please see RWBY: Anima.
For more information on the rest of Team SSSN, please see RWBY: Anima.
Team BRNZ
Team BRNZ
Debut: Round One*
From Left to right: Roy Stallion, Nolan Porfirio, Brawnz Ni, and May Zedong
A rival team from Shade whom Team JNPR fights in the tournament. Pronounced 'bronze'. Consists of Brawnz Ni, Roy Stallion, Nolan Porfirio, and May Zedong.
- All There in the Manual: Kerry revealed Roy and May's names on twitter
. - Guys Smash, Girls Shoot: May never uses her rifle's axe component, and Roy, Nolan, and Brawnz primarily fight using their melee capabilities (though Roy does shoot his buzzsaw blades in close quarters).
- Killed Offscreen: During the Battle of Beacon, Roy is last seen being carried away in the talons of a Nevermore. RWBY: Before the Dawn confirms that the whole team was killed except for Nolan, who struggles to cope with being the Sole Survivor.
- Mauve Shirt: The entire team are shown as one of the competitors in the Vytal Festival, facing off against JNPR, and are infrequently shown looking around the festival stands, Roy in particular shown in a crowd by Weiss and Blake during Cinder's speech. After the Fall of Beacon began, Roy was shown being carried away by a Nevermore. RWBY: After the Fall and RWBY: Before the Dawn would later confirm that while Nolan survived, Branwz, Roy, and May were all KIA during the Fall of Beacon.
- Never Found the Body: During the Battle of Beacon, some of the team can be seen in the background being grabbed in the jaws of the Grimm they're fighting. RWBY: After the Fall mentions that they're presumed dead, with RWBY: Before the Dawn confirming that all but Nolan perished during the Fall.
- This Is Gonna Suck: The team's reaction to anything Nora does after Nolan unwittingly buffed her shows that they're aware that despite their fighting prowess, it's still going to hurt.
- You Have GOT to Be Kidding Me!: They (especially Brawnz) are incredulous that Team JNPR stopped the fight unofficially to have a trivial team meeting.
Brawnz Ni
Voiced by: Blaine Gibson
The leader of the team, he uses a pair of claws reminiscent of tekko-kagi claws as his main weapon.
- Wolverine Claws: Brawnz Ni's weapons are short claws strapped to the back of each hand.
Roy Stallion
A member of Team BRNZ that uses a pair of bracers with detachable saw blades as his main weapon.
- Deadly Disc: Roy wields buzzsaw bracers that can launch their blades as projectiles before returning to him. A Freeze-Frame Bonus shows that the blades have a small purple center, implying a use of Gravity Dust to return them to him.
- Difficult, but Awesome: Invoked in RWBY: Amity Arena. The In-Universe developers note that the proficiency with which he uses his saws to be impressive, then found one of their interns trying to use them himself, only to cut off the top of his hands and destroy two Atlesian Knights.
Nolan Porfirio
Voiced by: Aaron Marquis
A member of Team BRNZ that uses an electric tipped stick akin to a cattle prod as his main weapon.
- Ambiguously Gay: Nolan is implied to be gay in RWBY: Before the Dawn, though he's too pre-occupied with the fate of his team to ever confirm for sure his attraction.
- Ascended Extra: He gets two one word lines of dialogue in the series proper, and is largely just used to demonstrate Nora's Semblance. In RWBY: Before the Dawn, he has a much bigger presence, being the Sole Survivor of Team BRNZ and a member of the "Beacon Brigade" at Shade Academy, as well as forming a camaraderie with the members of Team SSSN.
- Curtains Match the Window: Nolan has magenta eyes and hair. Even his sunglasses are pink.
- Know When to Fold 'Em: Nolan realized that once Beacon was attacked by Grimm, it was Run or Die. So he ran away, and was the Sole Survivor of his team. He suffers for it in Vacuo, however, and being the only survivor haunts him.
- Shock Stick: Nolan uses a collapsible cattle prod. It doesn't do him any good against Nora who has the power to absorb electricity.
- Sole Survivor: RWBY: Before the Dawn reveals that Team BRNZ was wiped out during the fall of Beacon, leaving Nolan the only survivor. He's barely able to function, struggling with his grief and guilt over living when so many others died.
- Survivor's Guilt: He begins the novel still deeply traumatized over losing his team, having lost weight and even blaming himself for surviving. He eventually manages to turn his grief into motivation to become stronger, to protect his new home.
- The Worf Effect: Nolan's purpose in the battle with Team JNPR is specifically to demonstrate Nora's Semblance. While he does hold his own against Ren before then and even manages to knock him down, once Nora gets involved and her Semblance is explained, he's quickly knocked around by her.
May Zedong
A member of Team BRNZ that uses a sniper rifle with an axe blade on the stock as her main weapon.
- Eyepatch of Power: May's left eye is obscured by her beanie, limiting her vision to a single eye: the one for her sniper scope.
- The Smurfette Principle: Among the members of Team BRNZ which is predominately male, May is their only female member.
- Swiss-Army Weapon: May Zedong's rifle has a bladed stock, which can transform into an axe-like weapon for close-combat fighting.
Team NDGO
Team NDGO
From left to right: Dew Gayl, Gwen Darcy, Octavia Ember, and Nebula Violette
A rival team from Shade whom Team SSSN fights in the tournament. Pronounced 'indigo'.- Punny Name: On top of being a color, NDGO is also a reference to the fact that it was created by Indiegogo backers.
Nebula Violette
Voiced by: Grace Bono, Kate Warner (additional lines)
Debut: New Challengers...*
"Alright, home field advantage."
The leader of the team, Nebula wields a crossbow/sword weapon.
- Bottomless Magazines: Her crossbow is able to shoot multiple physical bolts without any apparent reloading and nary a quiver.
- Bow and Sword in Accord: Of the 'bow and sword are the same weapon" variety. Bolts are shot out of a shelf inside the barrel of the crossbow, which slides out to become a melee weapon.
- Color Motif: She prefers purple and blue: nearly all her clothing and her hair are shades of purple/blue, most of which are close to indigo and inspired her team's name.
- Dirty Coward: Velvet calls Nebula out for having fled from the battle at Beacon, being among the first on a transport out of the kingdom. Nebula justifies having run away, insisting that she knew Beacon was a fight they couldn't win.
- Everyone Has Standards: After Velvet gets buried in sand and is unable to fight, Nebula ends the fight. When Rumpole tries to get the fight to continue, Nebula objects that she won and even reaches a hand down to help Velvet up.
- Fashionable Asymmetry: Wears armor on her right shoulder with a strap going across her chest from it, as well as a lopsided belt. Her longcoat's sleeve on her left arm is also rolled up almost to her shoulder instead of covering her arm.
- The Leader: Besides official confirmation, several of her actions allude to her leading Team NDGO. She's the one who orders the charge after everyone is distracted by Neptune "gaining higher ground", and she frees her teammate Gwen from Scarlet's snare while Sun diverts his attention to Neptune.
- Swiss-Army Weapon: Her weapon can transform between a sword and crossbow.
Dew Gayl
Voiced by: Kim NewmanForeign VAs
Debut: New Challengers...*
A member of NDGO who fights with a spear and tornado attacks.
- Blow You Away: By rotating her weapon in a circle over the ground, Dew can create tornadoes with which she can attack the enemy. She can create and control multiple tornadoes at once.
- Didn't See That Coming: When the fight officially starts, Neptune immediately races towards Dew's team and then past them, climbing the mountains on the girls' side of the arena to take refuge there. He's fleeing his own team's side of the arena, which is full of water, because he is terrified of water. When Sun yells at him, he tries to excuse himself by claiming he's taking the higher ground and Team NDGO would never expect it. Dew openly admits that Neptune's not wrong about that one.
- Elemental Weapon: Dew wields a spear that she uses to channel tornados at her targets. It can also empower anything she hits with Dust as well, such as surrounding Sun's dual coconut attack with fire Dust as she hits them back at him.
- Meaningful Name: Dew is the condensation of atmospheric water. A gale is a type of strong wind that gusts at high speeds. A tornado forms when high winds form a vortex that comes into contact with the ground, often made visible when a condensation cloud (which is made up of atmospheric water) is caught up in the vortex. Dew can use her weapon to create and control multiple tornadoes.
Gwen Darcy
Voiced by: Mylissa Zelechowski[[labelnote:Foreign VAs]]Konomi Fujimura
Debut: New Challengers...*
A member of NDGO who uses knives as her main weapon.
- Blade Enthusiast: She wields dozens of knives for throwing at her opponents, all stored in her skirt. When Scarlet hangs her upside-down using his pistol-rope, so many fall from her skirt that he finds himself in the middle of a Flechette Storm.
- Dance Battler: She twirls around like a dancer while throwing her knives. She even appears to be wearing ballerina slippers.
- Flechette Storm: Accidentally occurs when Scarlet hangs her upside-down, causing all of her throwing knives to slip free and rain down in this fashion.
- Minidress of Power: Like many other female Huntresses she wears a combat skirt.
Octavia Ember
Voiced by: Claire Hogan
Debut: New Challengers...*
A kris wielding member of Team NDGO. Her Semblance lets her move more freely on sand as if she's ice-skating.
- Combat Pragmatist: Uses children as bait to defeat a grim. She considers it a good lesson for the children in fighting the grim.
- Dirty Coward: She criticizes Velvet by suggesting she would run from a fight, but Octavia and her team were the ones to run when Beacon was attacked. She's not above abandoning others or using them as bait, to save herself.
- Doomed Hometown: Her clan sheltered in the wrong place once, costing them a third of their numbers.
- Everyone Has Standards: She may be abrasive around non-Vacuo students, but even she objects to Rumpole's demands that Octavia continue the fight on an incapacitated Velvet, saying she's standing up for her new teammate.
- Fragile Speedster: She skates around the desert effortlessly, but even taking the brutal kick that Sun landed into account, he takes her out in seconds.
- Meaningful Name: Her surname is Ember, a term for a small flame, and she specializes in using Fire Dust.
- Minidress of Power: A native of Vacuo, Octavia is a skilled Huntress-in-training that wears a short dress with a full skirt into combat.
- Pet the Dog: Has small moments sprinkled throughout the book, mostly centering on Velvet, like freeing her from the parachute, insisting she gets to claim the relic they're after, defending her from Rumpole and even complimenting the fight she had with Octavia.
- The Stoic: Maintains a stoic facade when recounting the death of a third of her clan. Velvet notes this is a common characteristic of Vacuans
- Sugarand Ice Personality: Velvet find that she has a softer side underneath a lot of the hostility she shows.
- Super Sliding: Her Semblance allows her to move swiftly across the surface of sand as though she is skating. This gives her the dual advantage of being able to move very fast without becoming bogged down in the sand.
- Would Hurt a Child: During a mission with her new team, Octavia uses a group of children as bait to distract the Grimm. Although the children are very young teenage combat students at Shade Academy's feeder school, they're not ready for this level of exposure to the Grimm. Octavia justifies her actions as "strategy" and isn't too concerned about them being terrified and suffering minor injuries, but the children are strongly implied to have been left quite traumatised by the experience.
Umber Gorgoneion
Umber Gorgoneion
Debut: RWBY: Before the Dawn *
A student at Shade Academy, temporarily assigned to a team under Fox's leadership.- Cool Shades: She wears a pair of mirrored sunglasses at all times, to protect others from her Semblance.
- Deadly Gaze: Her Semblance, "Stone Gaze", allows her to paralyze victims for a period of time.
- Dreadlock Warrior: A skilled fighter, she wears her hair in dreadlocks that resemble her namesake's serpentine hair.
- Logical Weakness: Her Semblance requires her to maintain eye contact with her target, meaning that she cannot use it on multiple targets. Forcing her to change targets will release her previous victim, and she cannot use her Semblance on someone who is blind.
- The Mole: When Velvet and Sun go undercover to investigate the Crown at a fight club, they discover that one of the cage fighters representing the Crown is Shade student Umber. As the fight club is being used to identify fighters with powerful Semblances, Velvet and Sun make it their mission to rescue Umber from the Crown's service. They discover that she's Not Brainwashed when Yatsuhashi uses his Semblance to free her of the Crown's mind control power; she's serving them of her own free will and therefore really has been a genuine mole for the Crown inside Shade.
- Power Incontinence: Her Semblance is always active, forcing her to wear mirrored sunglasses to protect others.
City of Vacuo
Home to Shade Academy, the city of Vacuo is a confusing labyrinth of ever-shifting streets and alleys that newcomers frequently struggle to navigate. No matter where in the city a person is, the tall building of Shade Academy can always been seen.
Finn Asturias
Finn Asturias
Debut: RWBY: Before the Dawn *
The father of Jax and Gillian Asturias, a lonely man fascinated by history.- Birthmark of Destiny: He has a birthmark that resembles a crown, and claims this is evidence of his family's royal heritage.
- The Legend of Chekhov: Professor Ozpin's argument that all stories have a grain of truth to be found inspired Finn to believe in his family's old story. In turn, he raised his children to believe in their royal lineage.
- Royal Blood: He believes in the old family legends that their family are the rightful rulers of Vacuo.
- Technophobia: He refuses to use anything associated with Dust or Atlas, choosing to live an extremely low-tech lifestyle and even telling Sun to leave when he pulls out a Scroll. His children were taught to feel the same way, though they take it to a greater extreme.
- Unwitting Instigator of Doom: He raised his children to believe they were descended from royalty, and taught them to despise the other kingdoms. Even so, he's horrified to learn what his children have decided to do with those teachings.
Desert of Vacuo
The desert is a vast expanse of the kingdom, containing villages and tribes. Due to the Grimm, scarce resources and unstable terrain, villages and tribes frequently find themselves forced to move, resulting in many people being forced to live a nomadic or semi-nomadic lifestyle.
Settlement of Coquina
The largest settlement outside the City of Vacuo, it's one of the few places with a court and prison system and has become a haven for displaced desert villagers. It is also home to Oscuro Academy, the combat school that prepares students for Shade Academy.
Slate
Slate
Debut: RWBY: After the Fall *
The mayor of a village of desert-dwellers who have been forced to move from village to village due to repeated Grimm attacks. It's her responsibility to lead the survivors to Coquina.
- All-Loving Hero: Slate doesn't care who people are, where they're from or what their story is. She believes that all people are equal. If someone needs her help, she'll offer it freely. In Vacuo, her attitude is the kind that gets a person killed very quickly. The fact she has survived for so long and without losing her optimistic view of people makes Coco realise that she's either an extremely lucky person or an extremely strong one. Even a when a mystical Emotion Bomb drives everyone to turn on each other, it doesn't appear to affect Slate; her emotions are so focussed on helping others that the Emotion Bomb enhances her positive emotions instead of her negative ones, making her care even more for the people she's trying to protect.
- Cool Old Lady: She's an elderly woman surviving under harsh circumstances, and a natural leader that unites the people around her. Team CFVY are given a warm welcome thanks to her presence, and Coco admires Slate's ability to bring people together.
- Heroic Sacrifice: Team CFVY meet her after she attempts such a sacrifice to save her village from some giant sand crabs. She manages to keep them off of the village, but Team CFVY save her before the "sacrifice" part ends up coming to pass.
- Humble Hero: When Team CFVY save her from the mole crabs, she tells them she's alone because her people abandoned her to save themselves. It's only when they all meet up with those people that Team CFVY learns the truth: Slate deliberately used herself as bait to give her people time to escape. She always puts the lives of others before her own and has put her life on the line to save her people multiple times. However, she hates the attention and believes people shouldn't be giving her credit for just doing her job.
- Universally Beloved Leader: It's rare for Vacuans to rely on leaders in their harsh environment, but Slate is a strong, protective woman who cares deeply for the people she's looking after. She's generous with praise and, if she orders people to perform tasks for her, she will make sure they're compensated; when she orders two children to ration out the meat they've collected from a group of dead mole crabs, she offers them an extra share for their trouble. Cocoa concludes that people rally to her because she's organised, protective and caring to a degree not common in Vacuo's harsh climate; as a result, she's become the undisputed leader of refugees from four completely different villages, some of which had originally had their own leaders.
Edward Caspian
Edward Caspian
Debut: RWBY: After the Fall *
A retired Huntsman from Vale who travels through the desert to Coquina with Slate's village. He is accompanied by his grandson August and two Huntsmen he's hired to protect them.
- Emotion Bomb: His Semblance amplifies the emotions of everyone in a nearby area. The truth is that Gus is amplifying emotions while Edward tries to block them; Edward told Gus to lie because he was afraid the villagers would kill Gus if they found out.
- Luckily, My Shield Will Protect Me: Even though he's retired, Edward still keeps his Hunstman weapon nearby, a buckler shield. The outer edge of the shield can detach, becoming a bladed chakram for long-range fighting.
- Papa Wolf: His drive to protect Gus is so strong that Fox picks it up without even trying to use his telepathy.
- Power Incontinence: His inability to control his Semblance is what has been causing all of the Grimm attacks. More accurately, it's preventing him from being able to block Gus's Semblance, which is the true cause of the attacks.
- Scatterbrained Senior: Played for Drama. His senility has deeply affected his life and his grandson. His memory lapses can leave him staring into nothing for some time and even forgetting those close to him for a while.
August "Gus" Caspian
August Caspian
Debut: RWBY: After the Fall *
Edward's pre-teen grandson, who is better known as "Gus". His parents were killed by Grimm.
- Power Incontinence: His inability to control his Semblance has kept him from being able to block his grandfather's Semblance. In reality, it's his Semblance that's causing the Grimm attacks and has led to four villages becoming displaced refugees. He's absolutely terrified of hurting people, as a result.
- Power Nullifier: His Semblance allows him to nullify the semblances of others. Except he was lying. He's the one who can create an Emotion Bomb, and his grandfather is the one who can block Semblances.
- Superpower Lottery: Team CFVY remarked that Gus's Semblance could be very powerful in any fight if he had some Huntsman training and learned how to apply his Semblance in a good way. The mysterious villain who is after powerful Semblances wants Gus's Semblance for unknown reasons.
The Crown
A mysterious individual or group, active in the novels RWBY: After the Fall and RWBY: Before the Dawn, the Crown has been connected to disappearance of people all over Vacuo. Who they are and what they're up to is something Teams CFVY and SSSN decide to investigate.
In General
Fight for your Kingdom and Crown.
An extremist group comprised of rogue Huntsmen, they are advocates of the long since abolished monarchy, and seek to overthrow Shade Academy and restore their leaders, the self-proclaimed rightful heirs, to power. Based in a hidden location within the Wastelands, they have been kidnapping people with strong semblances and brainwashing them into being their footsoldiers dubbed "Crownsmen".
- Brainwashed and Crazy: One of their leaders possesses a Mind Control Semblance, and with the aid of his sister's Aura-siphoning Semblance, uses it to subjugate people with powerful Semblances into their obedient slaves, the "Crownsmen". Crownsmen are denoted by a silver band they wear on their arms. The only means known to free people from their brainwashing is with another mind-manipulating Semblance, or by Fighting from the Inside. Rumpole is revealed to be a Mole in Charge via this method, having been ambushed by Carmine and ordered to keep Shade from interfering. Sun and Velvet are captured and also enslaved, but freed thanks to Yatsuhashi and his Semblance. He too would have been captured and enslaved, but broke free under his own power.
- Evil Luddite: The Crown as an organization abolishes the use of Dust in any of its forms, including technology that is powered by Dust. The Crown sees Dust as the symbol of Vacuo's downfall. It was the country's natural wealth in Dust that led the other Kingdoms to strip mine it all and reduce the once verdant land to nearly inhospitable desert.
- Feeling Oppressed by Their Existence: The Crown is an extreme result of Vacuo's resentment towards the other Kingdoms, viewing outsiders and their influences as something that needs to be driven out. Their leaders promise to return to the kingdom to the "old ways", restoring the old monarchy and eventually conquering the other kingdoms. Although most of the Crownsmen are only serving because they've been brainwashed into supporting this belief, there are some members of the group who are not brainwashed and who genuinely believe in this cause.
Jax Asturias
Jax Asturias
Debut: RWBY: Before the Dawn *
The twin brother of Gillian, a rogue Huntsman that claims to be descended from Vacuo's true monarchy.- Arc Villain: While he technically forms one half of "the Crown" with Gillian, he's by far the most driven and dangerous of the two. While she's primarily motivated by love and loyalty, willing to sacrifice her training and career for him, he is cruel, ambitious, and utterly determined to not let anything stand between him and his goal — even if he has to turn on her to achieve it. When their plans start falling apart and they're losing the battle to defeat Shade Academy, Gillian eventually turns on Jax because he'd rather they die fighting than surrender. That's a step too far even for her, so she uses her Semblance to weaken him just enough for the heroes to defeat him.
- Birthmark of Destiny: Jax was born with a mark on his body in the shape of an upsidedown crown. The family legend is that the reason one member in each generation has this inherited birthmark is because they are a royal lineage that can claim descent from the first King of Vacuo. Unusually, the twins each have the birthmark, making them the first generation that has ever had two members of a single generation that has been born with the birthmark.
- Deceptive Disciple: He was one of Rumpole's students, but ended up kicked out of the Academy. She recalls him as an arrogant, self-important young man with little actual potential.
- Distinguishing Mark: It's claimed the king's descendants are marked with a crown-like mark somewhere on their body (though a 'once-in-a-generation' situation where only one inherits it) which the twins' father claims they both have. Interestingly, it's noted that Gillian's looks more like a brand than a birthmark, implying either that it's all a story or that Jax was the one born solely with it and their father branded Gill to make them believe they were both born with it.
- Dramatic Irony: The Crown has been kidnapping people with powerful Semblances for their own purpose. One Semblance in particular interests Jax, but his speculation about what it can do eventually comes back to bite him in the ass. Before he brainwashes Yatsuhashi, he marvels over his Semblance, postulating that if Yatsu tried hard enough, he could wipe someone's mind entirely. That exact thing happens towards the end of the book when the two are fighting and Gillian boosts Yatsuhashi with the Aura she had accumulated, taken back from him after he had forced her to give him it, effectively lobotomizing Jax.
- Evil Cripple: Jax was born with an incredibly weak Aura, caused by his sister's Semblance draining him in the womb. He was a frail child in a society that valued strength, and his father speculates that Jax was twisted by his resentment. Once Gillian learned to control her Semblance fully, Jax began using her to keep him super-charged with stolen Aura. It's mentioned that he once used his Semblance to get her to give him all of her Aura so he wouldn't have to rely on her anymore (which would effectively be a death sentence for her), but it didn't work because she needs Aura to transfer Aura, her Semblance shuts off when it's too low.
- The Evil Prince: Jax is an ambitious, extremely selfish man that believes himself to be the rightful King of Vacuo.
- Fate Worse than Death: Jax is willing to fight to the death for what he wants. And, if he can't get it, he's willing to go out in a blaze of glory. However, his own actions ensure his fate is not one he would ever have wanted. When fighting to take over Shade, he pushes Yatsu so far that Yatsu is forced to use his Semblance. Unfortunately, Yatsu doesn't have full control and uses more power than he intended. Jax's mind is fully wiped, leaving him in a vegetative coma. Yatsu is horrified.
- Green-Eyed Monster: He's envious of Yatsuhashi as soon as he meets him, admiring his physical strength and believing it's what he should have been born with if not for his sister.
- Hidden Disdain Reveal: Jax looks down on everyone, but there are one or two people he cares about... at least until he reveals otherwise. His last words to Gillian, after he had forced her to transfer all of her accumulated Aura to him and leaving her to die on the battlefield, is to say that he is only doing what she would do, and already had done before they were born, making it clear that he blames her for his fragility due to her Aura-draining Semblance, despite that she had no control over it.
- It's All About Me: Jax doesn't have a particularly good reputation. The teachers don't remember him fondly, feeling that he was holding Gill back because he got her to focus on him so much, damaging her development as a Huntress as a result. While Gillian is motivated by her love for her brother, he only relies on her because he has to, and would much rather rule on his own. This is exemplified in how he is willing to take Gill down with him in a last-ditch attack when their plans have failed, regardless of how she feels about it or her own desire to survive. He also uses his Semblance to make her give him all of her accumulated Aura, which would leave her extremely vulnerable, and it's noted that he had done this once before when they were younger, in an attempt to make her give him all of her Aura so he would no longer have to rely on her, even though it would more than likely kill her. The only reason it didn't work is that her Semblance needs Aura to run, meaning she can't transfer everything she has.
- Mind Manipulation: His Semblance allows him to brainwash others, bringing them under his control. He creates a psychic link with his victim to always influence their thoughts.
- Mythology Gag: Jax fell into a sandpit as a child, suffering a concussion that warped his mind into the monster he is now. Like in the nursery rhyme, "Jack fell down and broke his crown."
- Non-Action Big Bad: Jax did attend Shade Academy for a time, but was noted to have very little talent. As the leader of The Crown, he briefly wields a sword to challenge Yatsuhashi but it's merely for show. During the Crown's attack on Shade Academy, he arrives being carried by brainwashed bodyguards and hides behind them throughout the battle. In fact, he has a deep resentment towards people like Yatsuhashi that were born with strong, powerful bodies and dreams of stealing strength from others.
- Powered by a Forsaken Child: Jax's ambitions to revive sit on the throne of Vacuo rest heavily on his sister's ability to transfer Aura from one location to another. By supercharging people with powerful Semblances and boosting Jax's own Aura so that he can brainwash his followers, Jax obtains an extremely powerful army that is completely loyal to him. However, the transferred Aura has to come from somewhere, requiring them to kidnap people they call 'Aura vessels' to use as 'batteries'; she drains the Aura from these people to supercharge themselves and their followers. They are also willing to use anyone they feel has outlived their use to them.
- Superhuman Trafficking: The Crown has been kidnapping people from Vacuo for some time, almost always targeting people with strong and unique semblances.
- Rightful King Returns: Jax's claim is... questionable at best, but he's able to gather a following with the promise of restoring the kingdom's true monarchy.
- Royal Blood: Jax claims to be descended from the true monarchy of the kingdom, and intends to claim his "rightful" position as King.
- Squishy Wizard: Jax has a mental Semblance, and has also suffered from chronic low Aura his entire life.
- Villainous Breakdown: Jax does not take defeat well. Realizing the battle is lost, Jax tells Gillian they will die together and take Shade Academy with them. When his sister refuses to go along with his suicidal plan, Jax uses his Semblance on her and orders her to give him all her Aura.
Gillian Asturias
Gillian Asturias
Debut: RWBY: Before the Dawn *
The twin sister of Jax, a rogue Huntress that is allegedly of royal blood.- Affectionate Nickname: While a student at Shade Academy, Gillian had the nickname "Queenie". The nickname was given to her by Carmine.
- Anti-Villain: Gillian is one half of The Crown, but her motivations are very different. While Jax is genuinely cruel and power-hungry, Gillian is simply acting to support and protect her brother out of love.
- Battle Aura: She can drain and hold other people's Aura inside of herself. Storing so much makes it glow as rainbow light, visible even to those who can't sense Aura like Fox.
- Distinguishing Mark: The twins' father, Finn, claims they were both born with a royal birthmark that marks them as supposed heirs to the bloodline of the first King of Vacuo. Only one member of every generation has this inherited birthmark, which looks like an upside-down crown. Unusually, both of the twins have the mark and Finn claims it's the first time there have been two marks in a single generation. However, when Coco gets a good look at the mark on the inside of Gill's wrist, she thinks it looks more like a brand than a birthmark. When she asks if either Finn or Gill did that, Gill stops to study her mark more closely.
- Evil Luddite: Gillian's hatred of Atlas extends to the technological gifts they gave to the world, a mentality inherited from her father. She refuses to use a Scroll, and her childhood home doesn't use Dust power sources.
- Kicking Ass in All Her Finery: Gillian wears a flowing, multi-layered gown said to resemble flowing water, decorated with a silver chain and a delicate crown on her head. She wears this same gown into battle, wielding a non-enhanced bow to fight Huntsmen-in-training and Grimm alike.
- Lady of War: Unlike her brother, Gillian is a talented Huntress and noted for her regal demeanor. She wears a beautiful gown into battle, and leads her forces with a simple bow.
- Love Martyr: Gillian admits to having done everything out of love for her brother. She gave up her own goal of being a Huntress, and cooperated with his scheme to take over the kingdom solely because of their familial bond. Even helping to defeat him was done out of love, as Gillian didn't want him to die even if the alternative has left him in a vegetative state. Needless to say, Jax doesn't return the sentiment, and would absolutely have killed her years ago if he wasn't forced to rely on her to survive.
- Maternal Death? Blame the Child!: Gillian's Semblance activated before birth, draining her mother's Aura and leaving her too weak to survive childbirth. Similarly, Jax was also drained by his sister's Semblance and left a sickly child. In spite of this, their father never resented Gillian and taught her to control her Semblance.
- Raven Hair, Ivory Skin: Gillian is repeatedly described by others as being incredibly beautiful, with black hair and a fair complexion in spite of living in the desert.
- Royal Blood: Gillian claims to be a descendant of the first King, and therefore the rightful Queen of Vacuo.
- The Straight and Arrow Path: Gillian was raised with a hatred of modern technology and even Dust, growing up with a fascination with history and "tradition". In battle, she wields a bow without any sort of technological or Dust enhancements.
- Stronger Sibling: Gillian is the stronger and more capable of the Asturias twins, leading their team when they were at Shade Academy. But she gave up her own ambitions and follows Jax in his ambitions while providing with the Aura he needs to survive.
- Super-Empowering: Her Semblance allows her to transfer Aura, boosting the abilities of others for a limited time. She has to keep feeding the Aura boost to people for them to continue to benefit from it. However, she can only do this by taking the Aura from somewhere else, which means she drains victims first to boost the power of others. She once tried it on a Grimm to see what would happen. The Grimm remained unchanged but she had to break the connection on discovering it was starting to drain her Aura faster and faster the longer she maintained the connection.
- Vampiric Draining: Gillian's Semblance allows her to drain the Aura of others, weakening them in the process (Jax notes that she probably can't kill people with it, for the same reason that her Semblance shuts off when transferring her Aura to him before she loses all of it, which is why he survived at all). Her mother and twin brother were both victims of her Semblance while she was in the womb (her mother dying in childbirth as a result), but her father taught her to control it and even use it to transfer Aura to others. Her role in the Crown is primarily using her Semblance to drain Aura from victims, and use it to super-charge their forces.
Carmine Esclados
Carmine Esclados
Debut: RWBY: After the Fall *
A Huntress from Atlas who is hired alongside Bertilak to protect the Caspians. Carmine fights with two sai that can form a retractable staff. Her Semblance grants her telekinesis over small particles and objects such as sand.
- Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: As a Huntress, she is helping the Caspians, even when Bertilak is making an ass of himself. However, she is capable of being unkind. Her role is a masquerade; she's actually a human trafficker working for an unrevealed boss who is collecting people with powerful Semblances.
- Character Catchphrase: She's always ready with an exasperated "Bertilak" whenever her partner makes an ass of himself.
- Exposed to the Elements: She's currently living and working in a harsh desert environment, constantly exposed to sand and sun. Despite the conditions, she wears mini-shorts and a crop top with no ill-effects such as sand burn or sun burn - the protective element of Aura allows for such aesthetic conveniences.
- Mind over Matter: Her Semblance is some form of telekinesis, which allows her to create dust storms and levitate her weapons.
- Ms. Fanservice: Carmine is a stunning woman who wears an extremely revealing outfit. She is fit, sports a wild mane of hair and wears a crop-top exposing her midriff, along with mini-shorts and thigh-high boots. When Coco first sees her, she can't stop staring.
- Red Baron: During her time in Vacuo she has become known as "The Rattlesnake of the Sands" by the locals.
- Tattooed Crook: She sports a large tattoo on her hip and upper thigh, showing off by her revealing outfit. It turns out to be a hint of her more dangerous nature.
- Tunnel King: She's able to use her Semblance to create tunnels under the sand, allowing her to strike her opponents unexpectedly from below.
- Undying Loyalty: Carmine can be extremely unkind, but once she gives her loyalty to someone, she stays loyal. Carmine's reason for working for the Crown has nothing to do with money or power. Carmine and Gillian were friends at Shade Academy, and that friendship has made her a loyal follower of the Crown. When Velvet triggers an explosion during their fight in the underground mines, Carmine uses her Semblance to ensure Gillian is able to escape.
Bertilak Celadon
Bertilak Celadon
Debut: RWBY: After the Fall *
A Huntsman in Vacuo. He and Carmine are hired by the Caspians to keep them safe. He fights with a ball-mace with an extendable chain, and his Semblance allows him to amplify temperature in an area around him.
- Anti-Villain: Bertilak is an openly racist and rude person, but he's not actively malicious. Rather, any form of villainy from him comes from the facts he's Only in It for the Money. This is ultimately what separates him from Carmine, as while she is a genuinely awful person and has no standards whatsoever, Bertilak actually has standards and can change despite being seemingly just as bad.
- The Brute: Bertilak is a massive, intimidating man that enjoys using his strength and role as a Huntsman to bully others. He has little patience or intellectual interest, and is the muscle to Carmine's cunning.
- Carry a Big Stick: His weapon's primary form is a large spiked mace.
- Delinquent Hair: He wears a green mohawk and is a rude, insulting man who likes intimidating people with his size and bullying them.
- Epic Flail: His weapon is a large ball mace with an extendable chain and retractable spikes on the steel ball. The handle has a pistol grip, but it can't fire much ammunition at a time.
- Even Evil Has Standards: Bertilak is an ass and willing to commit vile acts since he's Only in It for the Money, but even he is disgusted by the lengths Carmine is willing to steep to.
- Hazy-Feel Turn: Sun and Velvet's attempt to rescue the prisoners from the bunker runs into a few snags. However, Bertilak knows the way out so helps them escape. After being betrayed by The Crown, and more specifically Carmine, he calls a temporary truce with Sun and Velvet before vowing to hunt down Carmine himself. Despite this and showing some respect to them, he shows no remorse for his actions and appears to largely be driven by a personal vendetta.
- Jerkass: Bertilak is first introduced barging past Team CFVY's waitress and insulting her Faunus heritage. He is generally unpleasant, selfish, and bigoted towards everyone. Even his partner Carmine can't seem to stand him. This starts to lessen after he is betrayed and made into an Aura vessel, as he comes to develop a respect for Velvet and Sun, while acknowledging just how vile Carmine truly is and deciding to hunt her down.
- Karma Houdini: By the end of RWBY: Before the Dawn, Bertilak has never been arrested for the crimes he committed in RWBY: After the Fall and has disappeared somewhere into the desert. Bertilak is discovered to have been one of the Aura-drained victims of Gill's attempts to super-charge the Crown's army. He helps Sun navigate the tunnels of the secret base so that he can locate Velvet's team, who brought the tunnels collapsing down on themselves while fighting Carmine. Sun forces himself to stop thinking of Bertilak as an enemy for now because they have bigger issues to worry about that trying to deal with him. As a result, Bertilak is free to leave while the heroes concentrate on saving Shade.
- Mistreatment-Induced Betrayal: Although Bertilak has no problem treating people badly, he doesn't tolerate being treated badly in return and will turn on anyone who tries. After being betrayed by Carmine and turned into an Aura vessal to fuel Jax's semblance, Bertilak develops a seething hatred for both. So when Sun and Velvet free the Aura vessels, Bertilak helps them escape the self-destructing bunker before running off to hunt down Carmine.
- Only in It for the Money: He wears his heart on his sleeve about this: Bertilak is only properly motivated by a good payday.
- Politically Incorrect Hero: He's a Huntsman who's helping protect Slate's village, but he also slings slurs at the Faunus waitress Topaz. However, he's not even a hero at all.
- Playing with Fire: A hot-tempered individual, the temperature always rises when he's around, both literally and figuratively. His Semblance allows him to alter the temperature around him. While he can lower the temperature with it, he tends to favour increasing the heat to make the environment uncomfortable for his opponents.
- The Slacker: When he's first introduced, Carmine states that he barely graduated from Shade Academy. He just claims that the headmaster, Theodore, had it in for him, but Carmine argues that he wouldn't follow the rules. He doesn't care who knows and didn't really care about graduating. Specifically, he tells Fox that it was because he was disillusioned with the institution of Huntsmen as a whole.
- Smug Snake: He's very confident in his ability to get away with his acts of jerkassery because he's a Huntsman, and the villagers need him. His arrogance allows Fox to defeat him, taking advantage of how Bertilak toys with him rather than finishing him off.
Rosa Schwein
Rosa Schwein
Debut: RWBY: Before the Dawn *
A rogue Huntress that works for the Crown.- Boxing Battler: Like her former headmaster, she's a Boxer rather than a martial artist.
- Gas Mask Mook: Initially seen wearing a gas mask, with only her distinctive pink hair sticking out. Sun immediately suspects she's up to no good, since people wearing masks are usually the bad guys.
- Intangible Man: Her Semblance lets her phase her molecules for a brief time, letting objects or attacks pass right through her.
Argento Pocoron
Argento Pocoron
Debut: RWBY: Before the Dawn *
A Pig Faunus that works for The Crown.- Gas Mask Mook: He initially draws Sun's attention because someone wearing a mask is usually up to no good.
- Interface Screw: Sun compares the effects of his Semblance to playing a video game with a broken controller, causing him to react much slower than he should.
- Little Bit Beastly: Argento has the floppy, large ears of a pig.
- Punny Name: "Porco" means "Pig".
- Super-Reflexes: His Semblance makes it seem like he has enhanced reflexes, but it's actually his victim that is slowed down.
- Time Stands Still: Argento's Semblance, "Lag", doesn't actually stop time, but slows it down for his victims so that their movement and reaction is slower.
