Jaune Arc, Lord of Hunger
This page contains unmarked spoilers! You Have Been Warned.
Darth Nihilus
- The fic draws many parallels between Darth Nihilus and Ozpin/Ozma, to the point where it gets lampshaded by several characters.
- Both were once heroic warriors who used magic and lived thousands of years ago. While Ozma remained a hero, Nihilus gradually fell to the Dark Side. Ozma died from a mundane disease, while Nihilus "died" a glorious death in the heat of battle. Ozma was gifted his powers by the God of Light with the express purpose of saving humanity, whereas Nihilus received his powers from a superweapon activated by a mortal woman with the intent of causing death.
- Both are spirits that grant Powers via Possession and implant their memories into their hosts. Neither Ozma nor his hosts have any control over the process, and the host is chosen randomly for them. Nihilus can decide who he does and doesn't want as a vessel, and his hosts have to be Willing Channelers.
- Ozpin genuinely cares about his hosts' wellbeing and feels guilt for what he's putting them through. Nihilus sees his hosts as nothing but pawns and emotionally manipulates them until they're no longer of use to him.
- The entire process through which Nihilus possesses someone is a complete reversal of Ozpin's. Ozpin possesses his hosts first and then implants his powers and memories later on. In contrast, Nihilus starts by empowering Jaune and implanting his memories into his mind. The actual possession part comes last for Nihilus.
- While Ozpin cooperates with his hosts and eventually undergoes a Split-Personality Merge with them, Nihilus dominates his host's minds before erasing them entirely.
- To Salem. Both are an Ancient Evil that dresses in black, used to be human, and have passed themselves off as gods to Remnant's inhabitants.
- Salem has pale-white skin, white hair, and Glowing Eyes of Doom with red irises. Nihilus is Hades Shaded with black hair and monochromatic Black Eyes of Evil.
- Salem is a long-term chessmaster who uses careful manipulation and psychology to slowly break down her enemies. In contrast, Nihilus is rather short-sighted and prefers to directly overpower his enemies with brute force.
- While Salem operates from the shadows and keeps her existence a secret, Nihilus works out in the open and doesn't even bother hiding his existence after taking control of Jaune's body.
- Both are also able to control the Grimm, but while the Grimm naturally follow Salem, Nihilus has to use Mind Control in order to get the Grimm to obey him.
- While both possess a form of immortality, they have differing feelings about it. Salem is a Death Seeker who wants to end her immortality. Nihilus enjoys being an immortal Force spirit and wants to prevent himself from perishing by any means necessary.
- Salem is native to Remnant and spent eons on the planet, whereas Nihilus is an alien from outside Remnant and he's only been on the planet for under two centuries at most.
- Their relationships with Ozpin are also very different. Ozpin has known Salem for eons and is intimately familiar with her tactics and motivations. Nihilus is a complete unknown to Ozpin and he knows nothing about Nihilus's origins, powers, or goals.
- To Glynda Goodwitch. Both have the power of telekinesis and act as a mentor for Jaune. Glynda takes a hands-on approach to teaching and tries to teach Jaune to restrain his powers and not rely on his emotions to control them. Nihilus, by contrast, is very hands-off with his mentoring and is content to let Jaune figure it all out by himself. He influences Jaune to embrace all his emotions and use them to fuel his ever-growing powers.
- The Maidens are all foils to Darth Nihilus. Like Nihilus, the Maidens are all-powerful Force spirits who grant Powers via Possession. However, whereas Nihilus hijacks control of his host's body, the Maidens are each controlled by their respective hosts. Nihilus chooses who he wants as a host, while the Maidens' new hosts are usually determined by their previous hosts.
- To Cinder Fall. Both are power-hungry egomaniacs who believe that their respective powers make them invincible. Both are driven by the fear of being weak and were the servants of a greater evil (Traya for Nihilus, Salem for Cinder). However, while Nihilus eventually overthrew Traya, Cinder remained loyal to Salem. Both outwardly project being calm and composed. But while Nihilus is genuinely The Stoic, Cinder is wearing a Mask of Sanity to hide her psychotic and temperamental nature. Their fighting styles are also polar opposites. Cinder prefers using very flashy attacks that show off her power while Nihilus tends to hold back in a fight and relies on a Boring, but Practical style of fighting.
Jaune Arc
- As Jaune's connection to the Force grows stronger, he develops into a clear foil for Cinder. Both went From Nobody to Nightmare, both are pawns to a greater Ancient Evil, both seek to become "strong", both use magic that is considered unusual for the setting (Jaune with his Force-sensitivity and Cinder with her Maiden powers), and both are identified as sociopaths. However, Jaune is driven by his desire to protect the ones he loves and sees himself as a Protectorate to his team. Cinder, meanwhile, is driven solely by her lust for power and is an egomaniac who only cares about herself. Cinder idolizes Salem and desire to become just like her, while Jaune is (initially) horrified by Nihilus and swears to never become anything like him. Both also end up killing themselves, but Cinder commits suicide to spite Nihilus by denying him her powers, while Jaune kills himself in order to protect his friends and defeat Nihilus.
- To his ancestor Alixandre Arc. Both are latent Force-sensitive Remnantians who fell under the Mask of Nihilus's influence. While Alix managed to break resist Nihilus and break free, Jaune becomes corrupted by Nihilus.
- To Meetra Surik. Both are wounds in the Force. While Jaune developed the same Horror Hunger that Nihilus did, Meetra didn't. Both unknowingly influences their friends with the Force. While Meetra became a Magnetic Hero, Jaune ends up alienating and destroying his friends. Jaune winds up falling to the Dark Side, while Meetra remained on the Light Side.
Others
- Pyrrha Nikos and Nora Valkyrie. Both are female teammates of Jaune's and are Secret Keepers regarding his powers and dreams. While Nora encourages Jaune's use of the Force and approves of his increased aggressiveness under the Dark Side's influence, Pyrrha is uncertain about Jaune's new powers and finds herself disturbed by how different Jaune becomes under Nihilus's influence.
- Jacques Schnee to Jaune's parents. Both were controlling towards their children's lives and were unsupportive of their children's desire to enroll at Beacon Academy. However, Jaune's parents were of the My Beloved Smother kind, genuinely loving him and their extreme overprotectiveness being the product of a misguided desire to keep their son safe. Jacques, meanwhile, was emotionally abusive towards Weiss and cared more about his wealth and reputation rather than his own family. Also, while Jacques did grudgingly allow Weiss to attend Beacon, Jaune had to run away from home in order to enroll.
- Sando and Collan Eislo. Sando is a female Rodian pirate who leads a gang of lowly criminals. Eislo is a male human nobleman who leads a cult consisting of high-born nobles. Both are after the Mask of Nihilus but have different motivations. Sando is unaware of the mask's supernatural properties and only wants it for its value on the black market. In contrast, Eislo has extensively studied the ancient Sith and is fully aware that the mask is a container for Nihilus's soul. Unlike Sando, he wants the mask because he seeks to reawaken Nihilus's spirit and serve him as his Sith apprentice.
- Alpha/Church to Penny Polendina. Both are military androids with human-like traits. Alpha identifies as male and has a very cynical personality. In contrast, Penny has the appearance and mindset of a cheerful teenage girl. Alpha is the most sociable of his team and acts as The Face, while Penny has No Social Skills. While Alpha is a sarcastic Deadpan Snarker, Penny tends to be Literal-Minded. Whereas Alpha is a Jerkass who shows a Lack of Empathy for others, Penny is a Nice Girl who is empathetic towards everyone around her.
- Petros Krizoz to Collan Eislo. Both were the leader of cults that worshipped Nihilus. While Collan possessed minor Force-sensitivity, Petros lacked a connection to the Force entirely. While Collan had extensively studied the Mask of Nihilus and knew of its dark history, Petros barely understood the mask and mistook it as a gift from the Brother Gods. Collan was motivated by a selfish desire for power and fame, while Petros was driven by his strong faith and religion. Collan knew exactly who Nihilus was, whereas Petros thought he was the God of Darkness. While Nihilus rejected Collan's worship and killed him, he accepted Petros's worship and made him his chief follower. Their respective cults also differ as while Collan's Apex Society sought to become the new Sith Order, Petros's Temple of Shadows winds up becoming an evil expy of the Jedi Order.
- Alixandre Arc and the canon version of James Ironwood. Like Ironwood, Alixandre is the leading general of a kingdom's military who served one of Ozma's incarnations. Whereas canon!Ironwood believed that only he knew best and was partially driven by the desire to be validated, Alixandre remained a Humble Hero who put the needs of his kingdom ahead of his own desires. While canon!Ironwood often questioned Ozpin's decisions and ultimately turned against him after Salem preyed on his vulnerabilities, Alixandre kept his Undying Loyalty to Osmund and resisted Nihilus's influence. Canon!Ironwood is incapable of accepting fault and always pins the blame on others when things go wrong. After breaking free of Nihilus's influence, the first person Alix blamed was himself for allowing to Nihilus to influence him in the first place. This is also reflected in their choice of weapons. Alixandre uses a sword and shield (close-range weapons) while Ironwood used a pair of pistols (long-range weapons).
- Salem and Kreia/Darth Traya. Appearance-wise, the two are nearly identical. Both have chalk-white skin and white hair, both dress in a Black Cloak and wear a gem on their forehead, and both make use of a Red and Black and Evil All Over color motif. However, while Kreia is elderly, blind and physically frail; Salem is immortal, has the body of a woman in her prime, and possesses Super-Strength. Both also have beef with their setting's deity. But while Kreia wanted to kill the Force because she's a Well-Intentioned Extremist who truly believed that doing so would benefit the galaxy in the long run, Salem only cared about herself and tried to destroy the Brother Gods out of petty revenge and spite. Finally, both play a mentor role to a member of the Big Bad Ensemble. However, Traya underestimated Nihilus and was ultimately overthrown by her apprentice. Salem, in contrast, is able to keep her control over Cinder.
