placeholder for Yatsuhashi
still working on him; I need to finish re-reading After The Fall
still working on him; I need to finish re-reading After The Fall
[RWBY] Hunters' Souls - Semblance workshop thread
- Thread starter Sunder the Gold
- Start date
- Discussion
Sun Wukong (as interpreted by Sunder the Gold)
Sun Wukong
Via Sun
When Sun Wukong employs his Semblance, he must find a safe place to stand very still, and begin to concentrate with all of his focus. In so doing, he creates up to two clones of himself in a flash of light.
These clones are transparent and made of golden light, and at least one of them may bear a facsimile of his weapon. It is possible that the vast majority of Grimm – being young and inexperienced – would not be able to recognize what these clones really are, which could allow Sun to use them as decoys. However, no one else will be fooled, so it is fortunate that Sun's clones can do so much more.
By maintaining concentration and stillness, Sun can control up to two clones from a distance. They seem to have a form of mass, as they are subject to gravity and need to run and jump rather than simply fly to their destination. Sun can have both of them perform completely different, complicated acrobatic and offensive actions at the same time, using his own skills through them. They appear to be capable of exerting most if not all of Sun's own physical strength.
Sun can also detonate his clones as bombs of explosive force. This is not an involuntary reaction to major impacts, because the clones were capable of landing on speeding cars after making large jumps, yet these impacts did not cause them to blow up. Further, the first clone struck Roman Torchwick's Paladin with its staff.
It is unknown what else Sun Wukong could do with his Semblance before the beginning of Volume 4. Perhaps he could create more than two clones if he saw fit. Perhaps he could create just one clone, and thereby spare himself enough concentration to move and fight alongside of it.
Sun once used his Semblance to pin Ilia – effectively a huntress – to the ground. Presumably, she might have been able to use her Aura-born super-strength to throw off one Sun, but two Suns working together was apparently too heavy for her. Doing this greatly exhausted him, however.
It is possible but far from confirmed that Sun draws power from sunlight, and the reason why pinning Ilia with two clones exhausted him was because he tried at night without any sunlight to use.
Via Sun
When Sun Wukong employs his Semblance, he must find a safe place to stand very still, and begin to concentrate with all of his focus. In so doing, he creates up to two clones of himself in a flash of light.
These clones are transparent and made of golden light, and at least one of them may bear a facsimile of his weapon. It is possible that the vast majority of Grimm – being young and inexperienced – would not be able to recognize what these clones really are, which could allow Sun to use them as decoys. However, no one else will be fooled, so it is fortunate that Sun's clones can do so much more.
By maintaining concentration and stillness, Sun can control up to two clones from a distance. They seem to have a form of mass, as they are subject to gravity and need to run and jump rather than simply fly to their destination. Sun can have both of them perform completely different, complicated acrobatic and offensive actions at the same time, using his own skills through them. They appear to be capable of exerting most if not all of Sun's own physical strength.
Sun can also detonate his clones as bombs of explosive force. This is not an involuntary reaction to major impacts, because the clones were capable of landing on speeding cars after making large jumps, yet these impacts did not cause them to blow up. Further, the first clone struck Roman Torchwick's Paladin with its staff.
It is unknown what else Sun Wukong could do with his Semblance before the beginning of Volume 4. Perhaps he could create more than two clones if he saw fit. Perhaps he could create just one clone, and thereby spare himself enough concentration to move and fight alongside of it.
Sun once used his Semblance to pin Ilia – effectively a huntress – to the ground. Presumably, she might have been able to use her Aura-born super-strength to throw off one Sun, but two Suns working together was apparently too heavy for her. Doing this greatly exhausted him, however.
It is possible but far from confirmed that Sun draws power from sunlight, and the reason why pinning Ilia with two clones exhausted him was because he tried at night without any sunlight to use.
Turns out that I missed part of Ruby's Semblance with the "Scatter" article, that I have now added to my post on her Semblance.
This is the technique that I feel qualifies for the Deception-type category.
This is the technique that I feel qualifies for the Deception-type category.
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Flynt Coal (as interpreted by Sunder the Gold)
Flynt Coal
Killer Quartet
When Flynt Coal activates his Semblance, he creates up to four clones of himself, each identical to himself and each other save for the the color of a few pieces of his clothing. His trumpet-weapon is likewise copied.
Flynt has only been witnessed creating these clones in a straight line extending from himself, either directly to his left or right, or else diagonally behind him to either side, and always facing the same direction without any rotation. Flynt's first clone precisely mimics his actions, but one moment after he performs those actions. Each clone after the first likewise mimics the actions of the clone before it with the same delay, such that Flynt's third clone acts three moments behind him.
Given the wide cone-of-fire possible with his trumpet-weapon, Flynt can use his clones to strike multiple targets within overlapping blasts. It is unknown whether Flynt must pay the Aura cost of each clone's actions, or if the only cost he pays is the creation and maintenance of the clones' existences.
Flynt's Semblance is indeed mighty when employed together with his particular weapon, but it is also highly specialized for that weapon alone.
First of all, the level of visual similarity between him and his clones is almost purely stylistic rather than functional. The differences are enough to prevent most any opponent from attacking the wrong target, especially since Flynt's position does not change, and the mimicry of the clones further gives him away. There is absolutely no deception there.
Further, if Flynt's clones cannot be formed out of line or face in different directions from himself, they will be extremely inefficient and awkward to use in a fist-fight. Likewise, using a firearm with no significant cone-of-fire means that even a correctly-aimed shot from Flynt will be echoed as three shots that will not hit the same mark; more than acceptable if he is merely aiming at the proverbial broadside of the barn, but not so effective against more demanding targets.
Additionally, even movements that Flynt takes involuntarily, such as being tackled from behind by Weiss Schnee, are echoed by his clones even though no actual force is acting upon them. If Weiss had instead tackled the first clone, would knocking it over have affected the two other clones? Would it have affected Flynt? Would she have found the clone solid at all, or merely pass right through it?
Finally, though Flynt could presumably extend his clones directly behind or before himself, since they all face the same direction and mimic his actions exactly, one of them is going to end up shooting the others in the back unless they're all aiming up at an airborne target. But if actions taken upon his clones do not affect Flynt, he could at least project his clones ahead of him to act as shields against attack.
In the end, Flynt's familiar-type Semblance is so rigid, so restricted, and so specialized to maximize the firepower of his weapon, it behaves more like a Conjuration-type Semblance which conjures destructive blasts of energy.
Killer Quartet
When Flynt Coal activates his Semblance, he creates up to four clones of himself, each identical to himself and each other save for the the color of a few pieces of his clothing. His trumpet-weapon is likewise copied.
Flynt has only been witnessed creating these clones in a straight line extending from himself, either directly to his left or right, or else diagonally behind him to either side, and always facing the same direction without any rotation. Flynt's first clone precisely mimics his actions, but one moment after he performs those actions. Each clone after the first likewise mimics the actions of the clone before it with the same delay, such that Flynt's third clone acts three moments behind him.
Given the wide cone-of-fire possible with his trumpet-weapon, Flynt can use his clones to strike multiple targets within overlapping blasts. It is unknown whether Flynt must pay the Aura cost of each clone's actions, or if the only cost he pays is the creation and maintenance of the clones' existences.
Flynt's Semblance is indeed mighty when employed together with his particular weapon, but it is also highly specialized for that weapon alone.
First of all, the level of visual similarity between him and his clones is almost purely stylistic rather than functional. The differences are enough to prevent most any opponent from attacking the wrong target, especially since Flynt's position does not change, and the mimicry of the clones further gives him away. There is absolutely no deception there.
Further, if Flynt's clones cannot be formed out of line or face in different directions from himself, they will be extremely inefficient and awkward to use in a fist-fight. Likewise, using a firearm with no significant cone-of-fire means that even a correctly-aimed shot from Flynt will be echoed as three shots that will not hit the same mark; more than acceptable if he is merely aiming at the proverbial broadside of the barn, but not so effective against more demanding targets.
Additionally, even movements that Flynt takes involuntarily, such as being tackled from behind by Weiss Schnee, are echoed by his clones even though no actual force is acting upon them. If Weiss had instead tackled the first clone, would knocking it over have affected the two other clones? Would it have affected Flynt? Would she have found the clone solid at all, or merely pass right through it?
Finally, though Flynt could presumably extend his clones directly behind or before himself, since they all face the same direction and mimic his actions exactly, one of them is going to end up shooting the others in the back unless they're all aiming up at an airborne target. But if actions taken upon his clones do not affect Flynt, he could at least project his clones ahead of him to act as shields against attack.
In the end, Flynt's familiar-type Semblance is so rigid, so restricted, and so specialized to maximize the firepower of his weapon, it behaves more like a Conjuration-type Semblance which conjures destructive blasts of energy.
Neon Katt (as interpreted by Sunder the Gold)
Neon Katt
Rainbow Trail
Neon's Semblance provides an educational contrast against Ruby Rose's. She is proof that no Semblance is totally unique, while also showing how Semblances do ultimately remain unique through their differences.
Like Ruby, Neon can generate velocity independent of her muscles. This generation of super-speed is always marked by a trail of rainbow light that follows after her.
Unlike Ruby, Neon can use her Semblance constantly with no notable signs of exhaustion, suggesting that it is much cheaper to use. However, this seems to come with numerous trade-offs.
Unlike Ruby, Neon is never moving so fast that she becomes briefly invisible to other hunters-in-training (and thus, we the viewers). She seems incapable of using her Semblance alone to generate enough velocity to leap straight up into the air, let alone execute a mid-air leap to return to the ground or travel over unfavorable terrain. Neither does Neon seem capable of using her Semblance to ascend, or even to accelerate any upward velocity she currently enjoys.
However, by using roller-blades, Neon avoids the need to lift her weight off the ground while still reducing her friction and enabling efficient travel. Further, since Neon's feet remain in contact with the ground, she is able to employ her legs more thoroughly than Ruby, which likely gives her an easier time adjusting her course and no doubt contributes to the apparent cost-economy of her Semblance. I would be willing to bet that Neon can use her Semblance perfectly well while running with normal shoes.
Additionally, while Neon cannot air-dash, her rainbow trail can continue working even when she goes airborne, such as for the duration of an entire leap. This allows her to extend the distance of her jumps, as well as alter the arc of her jumps in ways that can confuse the aim of enemies shooting at her.
Rainbow Trail
Neon's Semblance provides an educational contrast against Ruby Rose's. She is proof that no Semblance is totally unique, while also showing how Semblances do ultimately remain unique through their differences.
Like Ruby, Neon can generate velocity independent of her muscles. This generation of super-speed is always marked by a trail of rainbow light that follows after her.
Unlike Ruby, Neon can use her Semblance constantly with no notable signs of exhaustion, suggesting that it is much cheaper to use. However, this seems to come with numerous trade-offs.
Unlike Ruby, Neon is never moving so fast that she becomes briefly invisible to other hunters-in-training (and thus, we the viewers). She seems incapable of using her Semblance alone to generate enough velocity to leap straight up into the air, let alone execute a mid-air leap to return to the ground or travel over unfavorable terrain. Neither does Neon seem capable of using her Semblance to ascend, or even to accelerate any upward velocity she currently enjoys.
However, by using roller-blades, Neon avoids the need to lift her weight off the ground while still reducing her friction and enabling efficient travel. Further, since Neon's feet remain in contact with the ground, she is able to employ her legs more thoroughly than Ruby, which likely gives her an easier time adjusting her course and no doubt contributes to the apparent cost-economy of her Semblance. I would be willing to bet that Neon can use her Semblance perfectly well while running with normal shoes.
Additionally, while Neon cannot air-dash, her rainbow trail can continue working even when she goes airborne, such as for the duration of an entire leap. This allows her to extend the distance of her jumps, as well as alter the arc of her jumps in ways that can confuse the aim of enemies shooting at her.
Glynda Goodwitch (as interpreted by Sunder the Gold)
Glynda Goodwitch
Telekinesis
The deputy headmistress of Beacon is a shining example of a huntress who has either won the lottery of life with the most broken Semblance in canon… or a huntress who explored and experimented with her Semblance more than anyone else, building it into a powerful and versatile fighting style and multi-purpose tool.
She can propel bodies of air with enough force to kill a Beowolf in one strike, and do so with a negligent wave of her riding crop without even bothering to look behind her at the monster she killed. Generating this much force creates a flash of purple light.
She is not limited to affecting the soulless Grimm, either. Against Cinder's last surprise attack in Volume 1, Chapter 1 "Ruby Rose", Glynda used a wave of her wand to pick up Ruby and throw her safely away from the explosions at their feet.
Glynda's control is amazing. She can not only rearrange all of the tables and chairs of a school cafeteria back into place at once, she can also reconnect the molecular bonds of broken materials in order to repair shattered concrete and wood.
Between her ability to generate lethal force at a distance, block any ranged attacks, and kill charging opponents before they reach her, Glynda is an unapproachable, untouchable goddess of the battlefield. Her ability to grasp and control many disparate pieces and people at once and arrange them into exactly the places she wants them, or even to reassemble them back into pristine condition, further reinforces her queen-like status.
This is all very fitting her demeanor and apparent personality as a woman who prefers to remain aloof, unaffected, and in control, while ensuring that the world around her runs in a neat and orderly fashion, with everything in its proper place.
However, Glynda's power is not limitless. As we are reminded at the end of Volume 3, Chapter 12 "End of the Beginning", Glynda can be exhausted like any other mortal, especially when severely demoralized.
Levitation?
While it is possible that Glynda's ability to lift and hurl other people does not extend to herself because of some magical, arbitrary limitation, it is also possible that she can, in fact, fly under her own power. We may simply have never seen her need to do so. Especially not when it would have been a good idea.
For example, flying up to Cinder's Bullhead in "Ruby Rose" probably wouldn't have been a good idea. Using her power for personal levitation would have left her less power and control for self-defense, and Cinder would certainly attack Glynda with full force if she tried to fly on up to her. Rather, Glynda's efforts were focused on forcing the Bullhead to land.
Glynda's greatest feats of control were reordering the cafeteria and repairing the Breach. The first was off the battlefield. The second was after the students and Ironwood's forces had cleared the area of Grimm, and Glynda had already killed the few which were left in her area, leaving her free to focus her full efforts on the hole in the ground.
Attempting to grab the entire Bullhead, rip its wings off, keep all of the falling pieces from crushing the city property below (let alone any people who might have entered the scene when she wasn't looking), prevent the two criminals inside from being harmed, and defend herself and Miss Rose from any more desperate attacks by Cinder… Well, she didn't even try, so we can safely assume that she wasn't confident in her ability to accomplish all of that at once.
But ask yourself: How did she and Qrow get from Beacon down into the City of Vale to fight the Grimm and robots there? Qrow could turn into a bird to fly. Glynda might have flown alongside him under her own power. Or she could have just taken an air-bus.
Telekinesis
The deputy headmistress of Beacon is a shining example of a huntress who has either won the lottery of life with the most broken Semblance in canon… or a huntress who explored and experimented with her Semblance more than anyone else, building it into a powerful and versatile fighting style and multi-purpose tool.
She can propel bodies of air with enough force to kill a Beowolf in one strike, and do so with a negligent wave of her riding crop without even bothering to look behind her at the monster she killed. Generating this much force creates a flash of purple light.
She is not limited to affecting the soulless Grimm, either. Against Cinder's last surprise attack in Volume 1, Chapter 1 "Ruby Rose", Glynda used a wave of her wand to pick up Ruby and throw her safely away from the explosions at their feet.
Glynda's control is amazing. She can not only rearrange all of the tables and chairs of a school cafeteria back into place at once, she can also reconnect the molecular bonds of broken materials in order to repair shattered concrete and wood.
Between her ability to generate lethal force at a distance, block any ranged attacks, and kill charging opponents before they reach her, Glynda is an unapproachable, untouchable goddess of the battlefield. Her ability to grasp and control many disparate pieces and people at once and arrange them into exactly the places she wants them, or even to reassemble them back into pristine condition, further reinforces her queen-like status.
This is all very fitting her demeanor and apparent personality as a woman who prefers to remain aloof, unaffected, and in control, while ensuring that the world around her runs in a neat and orderly fashion, with everything in its proper place.
However, Glynda's power is not limitless. As we are reminded at the end of Volume 3, Chapter 12 "End of the Beginning", Glynda can be exhausted like any other mortal, especially when severely demoralized.
Levitation?
While it is possible that Glynda's ability to lift and hurl other people does not extend to herself because of some magical, arbitrary limitation, it is also possible that she can, in fact, fly under her own power. We may simply have never seen her need to do so. Especially not when it would have been a good idea.
For example, flying up to Cinder's Bullhead in "Ruby Rose" probably wouldn't have been a good idea. Using her power for personal levitation would have left her less power and control for self-defense, and Cinder would certainly attack Glynda with full force if she tried to fly on up to her. Rather, Glynda's efforts were focused on forcing the Bullhead to land.
Glynda's greatest feats of control were reordering the cafeteria and repairing the Breach. The first was off the battlefield. The second was after the students and Ironwood's forces had cleared the area of Grimm, and Glynda had already killed the few which were left in her area, leaving her free to focus her full efforts on the hole in the ground.
Attempting to grab the entire Bullhead, rip its wings off, keep all of the falling pieces from crushing the city property below (let alone any people who might have entered the scene when she wasn't looking), prevent the two criminals inside from being harmed, and defend herself and Miss Rose from any more desperate attacks by Cinder… Well, she didn't even try, so we can safely assume that she wasn't confident in her ability to accomplish all of that at once.
But ask yourself: How did she and Qrow get from Beacon down into the City of Vale to fight the Grimm and robots there? Qrow could turn into a bird to fly. Glynda might have flown alongside him under her own power. Or she could have just taken an air-bus.
Raven Branwen (as interpreted by Sunder the Gold)
Raven Branwen
Portals
Raven Branwen has the ability to tear holes into the fabric of space, creating swirling black-and-red portals large enough for at least two people riding a motorcycle to enter.
These portals seem to be one-way tunnels that stretch for some amount of distance (perhaps proportional to the distance being bypassed), and do not seem to tear out an entrance into the destination until the traveler draws near to it.
Raven created a portal for Yang and Weiss, then held a conversation with them, and then waited long enough for Yang to retrieve her bike from outside the camp. So it was definitely open on Raven's side much longer than it was open on Qrow's side, as Qrow only had time to notice the portal, question whether Raven would come through, and then hear the distant-but-approaching sound of a motorcycle engine.
Raven can only create portals that lead to people with whom she has formed "bonds".
We still don't know precisely what that requires or means. Some have speculated that this process refers to emotional bonds, and is therefore involuntary on her part. This hypothesis also posits that this bond is empathic, allowing her to intuit the feelings of the people to whom she is bonded, which allows her to know when they are in danger and thus use a portal to fly to their side for a rescue.
She explicitly has bonds with her brother Qrow, her former lover Taiyang Xiao Long, and her daughter, Yang. We don't know if she ever had such a bond with her former team-leader, Summer Rose, or with anyone in her gang of bandits.
If her tunnels allow for quick travel between shorter distances, then in a battle with bonded teammates, Raven essentially has an extremely team-oriented form of teleportation which allows her to assist any ally at a moment's notice. Truly, a formidable power… for someone willing to stay and fight together with a team at all.
Portals
Raven Branwen has the ability to tear holes into the fabric of space, creating swirling black-and-red portals large enough for at least two people riding a motorcycle to enter.
These portals seem to be one-way tunnels that stretch for some amount of distance (perhaps proportional to the distance being bypassed), and do not seem to tear out an entrance into the destination until the traveler draws near to it.
Raven created a portal for Yang and Weiss, then held a conversation with them, and then waited long enough for Yang to retrieve her bike from outside the camp. So it was definitely open on Raven's side much longer than it was open on Qrow's side, as Qrow only had time to notice the portal, question whether Raven would come through, and then hear the distant-but-approaching sound of a motorcycle engine.
Raven can only create portals that lead to people with whom she has formed "bonds".
We still don't know precisely what that requires or means. Some have speculated that this process refers to emotional bonds, and is therefore involuntary on her part. This hypothesis also posits that this bond is empathic, allowing her to intuit the feelings of the people to whom she is bonded, which allows her to know when they are in danger and thus use a portal to fly to their side for a rescue.
She explicitly has bonds with her brother Qrow, her former lover Taiyang Xiao Long, and her daughter, Yang. We don't know if she ever had such a bond with her former team-leader, Summer Rose, or with anyone in her gang of bandits.
If her tunnels allow for quick travel between shorter distances, then in a battle with bonded teammates, Raven essentially has an extremely team-oriented form of teleportation which allows her to assist any ally at a moment's notice. Truly, a formidable power… for someone willing to stay and fight together with a team at all.
Cinder Fall (as interpreted by Sunder the Gold)
Cinder Fall
Silica
Ruby didn't think that "glass" was Cinder's Semblance, but according to the Q&A panel in Germany, apparently she was close enough.
Cinder has the power to manipulate silicate minerals – sand, basically. At least to the extent of fashioning it into glass, after which she has a brief window of time in which she can telekinetically control the glass enough to hurl it at her enemies.
Against Amber and Ozpin, she used super-heated earth or stone as a source from which to fashion a volley of glass shards, which she launched with a wave of her arm. She executed a similar attack against Ruby in the CCT tower with vials of simple sand.
Her black glass swords might be made from special mineral sands conjured from Earth Dust, possibly with some Fire Dust mixed in to help heat the sand to create extra-durable blades.
Merging the swords together and conjuring a flexible string between them might have also been thanks to her ability to control sand; she could alter the structure of the glass constructs.
Cinder's ability to use Fire Dust to turn the ground into a shrieking explosive may be a technique that relies upon this Semblance. Perhaps her ability to annihilate Glynda's stone projectiles comes from the same synergy.
Dust and Magic
Someone once asked me what Cinder Fall's Semblance might be. I wasn't really able to answer them, because Cinder is a deceptively multifaceted character by design; both hers and the writers'.
First, we would need to eliminate all of the abilities she displays which arise from Dust and Fall Seasonal Maiden magic.
Before I go any further, though, I'd like to remind everyone that the Volume 3 DVD Commentary revealed that the Four Seasonal Maidens were not originally a planned part of the story back in Volumes 1 and 2. They were a change made to the background plot before Volume 3 began, by Monty Oum himself before he died.
Yet clearly, this was not something totally different from whatever they originally had planned. The Volume 2 opening featured Pyrrha with an autumn leaf motif, and Cinder Fall had a similar motif as well as a flaming eye very much like the kind we would later see associated with the powers of the Fall Maiden. So, rather than an addition to the plot, the Seasonal Maidens seem like they might be a refinement or expansion of an idea that was already in place.
What this means is that the stolen half of Seasonal Maiden power that Cinder held in the beginning of Volume 3 might have been something different from the source of power that Cinder had in Volumes 1 and 2, which could lead to certain inconsistencies. Or there was no real change at all.
Just something to consider.
Volume 1, Chapter 1 "Ruby Rose"
* The Dust woven into the sleeves of Cinder's dress lights up, and she summons a blast of fire to hurl down upon Glynda; we don't see Cinder's eyes yet.
* Glynda blocks the fireball with a "magic circle"; the remains of the fire strike the ground around and behind Glynda.
* We now see Cinder's eyes, brightly glowing gold in the dark; they remain that way for the whole fight.
* The Dust in Cinder's sleeves is still glowing, and Cinder gestures to command the fire embedded into the ground to rise up as a Screaming Eye Portal that erupts into an explosion of fire.
* Cinder throws more bolts of fire to destroy the debris that Glynda is throwing right back at her.
* When that doesn't work, Cinder pulls more power from her sleeves, creating an array of "magic circles" around her to create what seems to be a "counter-magic / spell-breaker" effect that destroys Glynda's projectiles.
* Cinder blocks Ruby's bullets with her bare hand; her eyes and sleeves are glowing as she does this.
* With a wave of her hand and no previous fire, Cinder creates five Screaming Eye Portals in a half-ring behind Ruby and Glynda. The purpose of the placement is clear when Ruby doesn't even seem to realize what's going on; only Glynda notices, and then has to make sure they're both moving to safety.
Note: "Magic circles" do not reappear after this episode. Was it an early element of the setting which might have been dropped so that the Schnee Semblance would be more distinct, or have we simply not seen anyone need to use one since?
Volume 1, Chapter 18 "Black and White"
* Cinder makes an intimidating show of glowing eyes and a flaming hand to remind Torchwick who is boss.
Volume 2, Chapter 1 "Best Day Ever"
* Torchwick is starting to ask questions about Cinder's operation; she traces Torchwick's jaw with her hand and tells him, "You'll know what you'll need when you need to know." Then her eyes begin to glow, but not just her eyes — the Dust in her sleeves becomes a little bit brighter, but the gold of her earring becomes especially brighter, with the black crystal (glass?) gaining a whitish sheen. Someone told me that they thought she was burning Torchwick with her touch… but he doesn't jerk away as if from a source of harm, and the sound (which is actually part of the background music) isn't actually a sizzle, nor is there any sign of heat distortion, flame, or smoke.
* After Cinder's eyes, Dust, and earring begin to glow, she maintains eye contact with Torchwick for only a split second more before she looks down, as if at her hand on his chin, and her expression slackens as if she's concentrating on something before her eyes flicker back up to resume eye contact; Torchwick gives up the line of thought.
Volume 2, Chapter 7 "Dance Dance Infiltration"
* The Dust in Cinder's clothing flares up as she creates glass swords from fire. Her eyes do notglow.
* Cinder pulls a canister of yellow Dust (or simple sand?) from her thigh, tosses it into the air as a cloud, and then condenses it into transparent crystal/glass shards with jagged yellow veins. They shatter without noticeable effect when Ruby parries them.
* Cinder blocks Ruby's rifle shots with her palm again, and the Dust in her sleeves lights up when she does so, which suggests that it is a Dust technique.
* Cinder repeats her trick of using Dust to create glass swords from fire as her clothes light up. Then both her clothes and her eyes light up as she creates three arrows. Her eyes and clothes rapidly dim before she fires the arrows, which create a fiery explosion when they hit the ground where Ruby was standing. There is no shrieking hell-portal.
Volume 2, Chapter 8 "Field Trip"
* Ruby said, "I know she fought with glass. I don't think that was her Semblance, though."
Volume 3, Chapter 7 "The Beginning of the End"
* Cinder used a powerful glass attack against Amber. So it isn't a magical power.
Volume 3, Chapter 13 "The End of the Beginning"
* After Cinder becomes a Full Fall Maiden, the last time the Dust in her sleeves is ever used on screen is her big final (?) attack against Ozpin, when she presumably wanted to throw everything she had at him to put him down. But against Pyrrha? No Dust-glowing. Either Cinder used it all on Ozpin or, since she clearly didn't consider Pyrrha a threat, Cinder just didn't care to use it.
* Cinder tries to soothe the Dragon, or perhaps even hypnotize it. Her eyes do not glow. The Grimm squawks back at her in a softer tone than its previous shriek, as though it suddenly felt less hostile, and RoosterTeeth's official closed captioning confirms that this was their intent. Yet Cinder's expression falls into a frown, she backs away from the monster, and she summons a flame into her hand, as though she were about to fight the beast before Pyrrha's arrival distracts her. Did her attempt at controlling it fail, or is controlling the Grimm a two-step process that requires her to first soothe it into defenselessness and then defeat it?
* Pyrrha's sword in Cinder's hands starts to glow where she holds it, with her eyes starting to glow a moment afterwards. Not "Flaming Maiden Eyes", but just the simple glowing irises we've seen from the beginning. The Dust in her sleeves does not glow. As a reminder, by this point we've seen Cinder use Maiden powers to levitate and jet-fly around without revealing Flaming Maiden Eyes.
In fact, there doesn't appear to be a rhyme or reason about when when Cinder does either the Glowing Eyes thing or the Flaming Maiden Eyes thing.
When Amber went "Avatar State", her eyes kept flaming until her Aura broke, and then they started flaming again when she recovered enough to keep fighting back with her Maiden powers. After she put Emerald down, her eyes went back to normal — presumably, whatever non-Aura fuel her Maiden powers used must have run out, because Amber grabbed her staff and limped over to Emerald to cave her skull in, as opposed to hitting her with another fireball or lightning bolt.
But with Cinder, the Flaming Maiden Eyes come and go. They never appear when she's only flying or floating with fire, and they don't always appear when she's hurling fireballs or conjuring shards of glass. At one point, as I mentioned earlier, Cinder's eyes glow rather than flame when she's melting Pyrrha's sword in her hands.
What's funny is that both kinds of special eye could be stacked together. Flaming Maiden Eyes are just flames around a Maiden's eyes; their irises remain unchanged. Cinder's irises seem like they could glow noticeably even while surrounded with flames.
Silica
Ruby didn't think that "glass" was Cinder's Semblance, but according to the Q&A panel in Germany, apparently she was close enough.
Cinder has the power to manipulate silicate minerals – sand, basically. At least to the extent of fashioning it into glass, after which she has a brief window of time in which she can telekinetically control the glass enough to hurl it at her enemies.
Against Amber and Ozpin, she used super-heated earth or stone as a source from which to fashion a volley of glass shards, which she launched with a wave of her arm. She executed a similar attack against Ruby in the CCT tower with vials of simple sand.
Her black glass swords might be made from special mineral sands conjured from Earth Dust, possibly with some Fire Dust mixed in to help heat the sand to create extra-durable blades.
Merging the swords together and conjuring a flexible string between them might have also been thanks to her ability to control sand; she could alter the structure of the glass constructs.
Cinder's ability to use Fire Dust to turn the ground into a shrieking explosive may be a technique that relies upon this Semblance. Perhaps her ability to annihilate Glynda's stone projectiles comes from the same synergy.
Dust and Magic
Someone once asked me what Cinder Fall's Semblance might be. I wasn't really able to answer them, because Cinder is a deceptively multifaceted character by design; both hers and the writers'.
First, we would need to eliminate all of the abilities she displays which arise from Dust and Fall Seasonal Maiden magic.
Before I go any further, though, I'd like to remind everyone that the Volume 3 DVD Commentary revealed that the Four Seasonal Maidens were not originally a planned part of the story back in Volumes 1 and 2. They were a change made to the background plot before Volume 3 began, by Monty Oum himself before he died.
Yet clearly, this was not something totally different from whatever they originally had planned. The Volume 2 opening featured Pyrrha with an autumn leaf motif, and Cinder Fall had a similar motif as well as a flaming eye very much like the kind we would later see associated with the powers of the Fall Maiden. So, rather than an addition to the plot, the Seasonal Maidens seem like they might be a refinement or expansion of an idea that was already in place.
What this means is that the stolen half of Seasonal Maiden power that Cinder held in the beginning of Volume 3 might have been something different from the source of power that Cinder had in Volumes 1 and 2, which could lead to certain inconsistencies. Or there was no real change at all.
Just something to consider.
Volume 1, Chapter 1 "Ruby Rose"
* The Dust woven into the sleeves of Cinder's dress lights up, and she summons a blast of fire to hurl down upon Glynda; we don't see Cinder's eyes yet.
* Glynda blocks the fireball with a "magic circle"; the remains of the fire strike the ground around and behind Glynda.
* We now see Cinder's eyes, brightly glowing gold in the dark; they remain that way for the whole fight.
* The Dust in Cinder's sleeves is still glowing, and Cinder gestures to command the fire embedded into the ground to rise up as a Screaming Eye Portal that erupts into an explosion of fire.
* Cinder throws more bolts of fire to destroy the debris that Glynda is throwing right back at her.
* When that doesn't work, Cinder pulls more power from her sleeves, creating an array of "magic circles" around her to create what seems to be a "counter-magic / spell-breaker" effect that destroys Glynda's projectiles.
* Cinder blocks Ruby's bullets with her bare hand; her eyes and sleeves are glowing as she does this.
* With a wave of her hand and no previous fire, Cinder creates five Screaming Eye Portals in a half-ring behind Ruby and Glynda. The purpose of the placement is clear when Ruby doesn't even seem to realize what's going on; only Glynda notices, and then has to make sure they're both moving to safety.
Note: "Magic circles" do not reappear after this episode. Was it an early element of the setting which might have been dropped so that the Schnee Semblance would be more distinct, or have we simply not seen anyone need to use one since?
Volume 1, Chapter 18 "Black and White"
* Cinder makes an intimidating show of glowing eyes and a flaming hand to remind Torchwick who is boss.
Volume 2, Chapter 1 "Best Day Ever"
* Torchwick is starting to ask questions about Cinder's operation; she traces Torchwick's jaw with her hand and tells him, "You'll know what you'll need when you need to know." Then her eyes begin to glow, but not just her eyes — the Dust in her sleeves becomes a little bit brighter, but the gold of her earring becomes especially brighter, with the black crystal (glass?) gaining a whitish sheen. Someone told me that they thought she was burning Torchwick with her touch… but he doesn't jerk away as if from a source of harm, and the sound (which is actually part of the background music) isn't actually a sizzle, nor is there any sign of heat distortion, flame, or smoke.
* After Cinder's eyes, Dust, and earring begin to glow, she maintains eye contact with Torchwick for only a split second more before she looks down, as if at her hand on his chin, and her expression slackens as if she's concentrating on something before her eyes flicker back up to resume eye contact; Torchwick gives up the line of thought.
Volume 2, Chapter 7 "Dance Dance Infiltration"
* The Dust in Cinder's clothing flares up as she creates glass swords from fire. Her eyes do notglow.
* Cinder pulls a canister of yellow Dust (or simple sand?) from her thigh, tosses it into the air as a cloud, and then condenses it into transparent crystal/glass shards with jagged yellow veins. They shatter without noticeable effect when Ruby parries them.
* Cinder blocks Ruby's rifle shots with her palm again, and the Dust in her sleeves lights up when she does so, which suggests that it is a Dust technique.
* Cinder repeats her trick of using Dust to create glass swords from fire as her clothes light up. Then both her clothes and her eyes light up as she creates three arrows. Her eyes and clothes rapidly dim before she fires the arrows, which create a fiery explosion when they hit the ground where Ruby was standing. There is no shrieking hell-portal.
Volume 2, Chapter 8 "Field Trip"
* Ruby said, "I know she fought with glass. I don't think that was her Semblance, though."
Volume 3, Chapter 7 "The Beginning of the End"
* Cinder used a powerful glass attack against Amber. So it isn't a magical power.
Volume 3, Chapter 13 "The End of the Beginning"
* After Cinder becomes a Full Fall Maiden, the last time the Dust in her sleeves is ever used on screen is her big final (?) attack against Ozpin, when she presumably wanted to throw everything she had at him to put him down. But against Pyrrha? No Dust-glowing. Either Cinder used it all on Ozpin or, since she clearly didn't consider Pyrrha a threat, Cinder just didn't care to use it.
* Cinder tries to soothe the Dragon, or perhaps even hypnotize it. Her eyes do not glow. The Grimm squawks back at her in a softer tone than its previous shriek, as though it suddenly felt less hostile, and RoosterTeeth's official closed captioning confirms that this was their intent. Yet Cinder's expression falls into a frown, she backs away from the monster, and she summons a flame into her hand, as though she were about to fight the beast before Pyrrha's arrival distracts her. Did her attempt at controlling it fail, or is controlling the Grimm a two-step process that requires her to first soothe it into defenselessness and then defeat it?
* Pyrrha's sword in Cinder's hands starts to glow where she holds it, with her eyes starting to glow a moment afterwards. Not "Flaming Maiden Eyes", but just the simple glowing irises we've seen from the beginning. The Dust in her sleeves does not glow. As a reminder, by this point we've seen Cinder use Maiden powers to levitate and jet-fly around without revealing Flaming Maiden Eyes.
In fact, there doesn't appear to be a rhyme or reason about when when Cinder does either the Glowing Eyes thing or the Flaming Maiden Eyes thing.
When Amber went "Avatar State", her eyes kept flaming until her Aura broke, and then they started flaming again when she recovered enough to keep fighting back with her Maiden powers. After she put Emerald down, her eyes went back to normal — presumably, whatever non-Aura fuel her Maiden powers used must have run out, because Amber grabbed her staff and limped over to Emerald to cave her skull in, as opposed to hitting her with another fireball or lightning bolt.
But with Cinder, the Flaming Maiden Eyes come and go. They never appear when she's only flying or floating with fire, and they don't always appear when she's hurling fireballs or conjuring shards of glass. At one point, as I mentioned earlier, Cinder's eyes glow rather than flame when she's melting Pyrrha's sword in her hands.
What's funny is that both kinds of special eye could be stacked together. Flaming Maiden Eyes are just flames around a Maiden's eyes; their irises remain unchanged. Cinder's irises seem like they could glow noticeably even while surrounded with flames.
Neo Politan (as interpreted by Sunder the Gold)
Neo Politan
Holograms
This tiny terror has the power to create stationary constructs of light that present whatever image she desires.
In "Paint the Town", Neo used this power to cover her and Roman's retreat from Team RWBY. She created a hologram that she and Roman were standing and waiting for Team RWBY to come and attack, while on the other side of the hologram, she and Roman were running for a nearby Bullhead to make their escape. At first, the hologram did not move at all, but as Yang closed in to attack, the image of Torchwick put a hand to his hat and the image of Neo moved as if to block Yang's attack; at that point, Neo might have deliberately animated the image (from a distance, which means remote control) in order to maintain appearances – Yang or her allies might have gotten suspicious a critical second too soon if Neo's image had not reacted at all.
When Yang's fist made contact with the holographic construct, a dome-shaped rippling effect could be perceived just before the image visibly and audibly shattered like glass. Only the figures of Neo and Roman shattered like glass, rather than the entire space within the supposed dome; if the entire area of the dome was under a hologram (as it would have to be to block sight of Neo and Roman's retreat), the air inside (or rather, the background seen through that air) would seem to shatter as well. Rooster Teeth disagrees with me? It would probably be harder to animate that way; easier to treat the figures like physical models.
Yang's fist did not encounter an unexpected lack of resistance, judging by how she did NOT need to recover her balance after throwing such a heavy punch. This suggests that Neo's holograms have a form of mass and thus present physical resistance before they shatter.
In "No Brakes", Neo didn't seem to move as Yang reeled back to throw her first punch, but then there was a sudden flash. Neo did not appear to move as Yang flinched back as if struck, but when she looks up, Neo's umbrella is extended as if she had jabbed Yang in the face.
From this I theorize that while Neo's holograms may have mass, Neo herself is capable of moving around inside of her holograms without resistance or disruption. This allows her to create a hologram of herself standing perfectly still even as she winds up to strike… or runs away for her life.
After Raven appears, Neo seems to teleport away in a flash of light, though it is more likely that she created a hologram where she appeared to be absent and the door behind her seemed to remain still even though Neo was actually scrambling to open and exit that door as quickly as possible. Her holograms might be able to mask sound even if they might not be capable of creating it, which would muffle the sound of her running across the metal deck and opening the door… alternatively, Rooster Teeth simply didn't think about that.
Later, in "Heroes and Monsters", Neo apparently takes advantage of the moment in which Ruby twirls Crescent Rose around to create a hologram which features an image of herself moving towards Roman. Ruby shoots at this image, which shatters to pieces but seems to completely block Ruby's shot from continuing on to strike Roman. Which further supports the idea that Neo's holograms have a form of mass, and suggests that Neo can use them as expendable shields.
Even after Ruby destroyed the hologram of Neo, Neo is visually absent from the scene (even when it switches to a bird's eye shot) until after Ruby forces Roman to misfire his weapon and stumble away. Neo was presumably hiding behind another hologram, leaving Ruby to focus on Roman until Neo felt she needed to step back in.
Disguise
Another application of Neo's Semblance is the creation of self-bounded holograms over her own body, which move as she moves. These moving holograms can give her the appearance of completely different coloration and even clothing, though her height, frame, and posture all remain unchanged. She has not been seen to appear significantly taller, shorter, thinner, or thicker than she ought, nor does this application seem capable of obscuring her actions.
Neo can apparently maintain these self-disguising holograms without significant strain or concentration, even in combat, and neither she or Cinder seemed to fear that her disguise would shatter from an unlikely but possible strike from their opponents in their Teams Match. Small as the possibility would be, I don't see Cinder taking such a risk. This suggests to me that Neo's disguise holograms are much harder to break than her free-standing constructs.
Neo's mastery of her Semblance is such that we cannot even be sure we have seen her true appearance. Though the haggard condition of her original costume for the second phase of their Volume 6, in the alley way, suggests to me that really is what she looks like.
Something interesting to note is that Neo's eyes seem to change involuntarily, especially when they both turn white from fear. Neo has nothing to gain from revealing to someone that she's terrified. But the interesting part is that her eyes do not change color in response to her deliberate actions. They do not signify that she is using her Semblance.
Holograms
This tiny terror has the power to create stationary constructs of light that present whatever image she desires.
In "Paint the Town", Neo used this power to cover her and Roman's retreat from Team RWBY. She created a hologram that she and Roman were standing and waiting for Team RWBY to come and attack, while on the other side of the hologram, she and Roman were running for a nearby Bullhead to make their escape. At first, the hologram did not move at all, but as Yang closed in to attack, the image of Torchwick put a hand to his hat and the image of Neo moved as if to block Yang's attack; at that point, Neo might have deliberately animated the image (from a distance, which means remote control) in order to maintain appearances – Yang or her allies might have gotten suspicious a critical second too soon if Neo's image had not reacted at all.
When Yang's fist made contact with the holographic construct, a dome-shaped rippling effect could be perceived just before the image visibly and audibly shattered like glass. Only the figures of Neo and Roman shattered like glass, rather than the entire space within the supposed dome; if the entire area of the dome was under a hologram (as it would have to be to block sight of Neo and Roman's retreat), the air inside (or rather, the background seen through that air) would seem to shatter as well. Rooster Teeth disagrees with me? It would probably be harder to animate that way; easier to treat the figures like physical models.
Yang's fist did not encounter an unexpected lack of resistance, judging by how she did NOT need to recover her balance after throwing such a heavy punch. This suggests that Neo's holograms have a form of mass and thus present physical resistance before they shatter.
In "No Brakes", Neo didn't seem to move as Yang reeled back to throw her first punch, but then there was a sudden flash. Neo did not appear to move as Yang flinched back as if struck, but when she looks up, Neo's umbrella is extended as if she had jabbed Yang in the face.
From this I theorize that while Neo's holograms may have mass, Neo herself is capable of moving around inside of her holograms without resistance or disruption. This allows her to create a hologram of herself standing perfectly still even as she winds up to strike… or runs away for her life.
After Raven appears, Neo seems to teleport away in a flash of light, though it is more likely that she created a hologram where she appeared to be absent and the door behind her seemed to remain still even though Neo was actually scrambling to open and exit that door as quickly as possible. Her holograms might be able to mask sound even if they might not be capable of creating it, which would muffle the sound of her running across the metal deck and opening the door… alternatively, Rooster Teeth simply didn't think about that.
Later, in "Heroes and Monsters", Neo apparently takes advantage of the moment in which Ruby twirls Crescent Rose around to create a hologram which features an image of herself moving towards Roman. Ruby shoots at this image, which shatters to pieces but seems to completely block Ruby's shot from continuing on to strike Roman. Which further supports the idea that Neo's holograms have a form of mass, and suggests that Neo can use them as expendable shields.
Even after Ruby destroyed the hologram of Neo, Neo is visually absent from the scene (even when it switches to a bird's eye shot) until after Ruby forces Roman to misfire his weapon and stumble away. Neo was presumably hiding behind another hologram, leaving Ruby to focus on Roman until Neo felt she needed to step back in.
Disguise
Another application of Neo's Semblance is the creation of self-bounded holograms over her own body, which move as she moves. These moving holograms can give her the appearance of completely different coloration and even clothing, though her height, frame, and posture all remain unchanged. She has not been seen to appear significantly taller, shorter, thinner, or thicker than she ought, nor does this application seem capable of obscuring her actions.
Neo can apparently maintain these self-disguising holograms without significant strain or concentration, even in combat, and neither she or Cinder seemed to fear that her disguise would shatter from an unlikely but possible strike from their opponents in their Teams Match. Small as the possibility would be, I don't see Cinder taking such a risk. This suggests to me that Neo's disguise holograms are much harder to break than her free-standing constructs.
Neo's mastery of her Semblance is such that we cannot even be sure we have seen her true appearance. Though the haggard condition of her original costume for the second phase of their Volume 6, in the alley way, suggests to me that really is what she looks like.
Something interesting to note is that Neo's eyes seem to change involuntarily, especially when they both turn white from fear. Neo has nothing to gain from revealing to someone that she's terrified. But the interesting part is that her eyes do not change color in response to her deliberate actions. They do not signify that she is using her Semblance.
Emerald Sustrai (as interpreted by Sunder the Gold)
Emerald Sustrai
Delusion
Emerald's is that rare and dangerous beast among Semblances: The one you'll probably never know she used. Not simply until after it's too late, but ever.
To everyone except her target, nothing appears to happen. No explosion of fire, no flash of lightning. Her target doesn't glow a particular color or otherwise change in appearance in a manner that might reveal they are being affected. Even to someone paying absolute attention to Emerald, it can be hard to realize that she's doing anything to her target at all. The only signs that might betray her are the attention and concentration she is paying to someone else just before they begin to do something inexplicable, and a noticeable drop in her Aura commensurate with the activation of a Semblance. But even if one recognizes that she is doing something, there's precious little clear evidence as to what it is.
Especially as her actions tend to make clear evidence one of its many causalities. You tend to forget the subtle and inexplicable actions of a single foe after witnessing something as shocking as your own trusted ally shooting you in the back without warning or reason. Even if you bear witness to Emerald's curse repeatedly, you may end up destroyed by the consequences before you can piece together the puzzle.
Unlike Neo Politan, who deceives the eye with holograms, Emerald Sustrai deceives the very mind from within. Your senses do not betray you; they are circumvented entirely by the picture that Emerald paints in your mind.
It is unclear to what extent that Emerald can do this. It is known that Emerald can make people see and hear things which do not exist, or fail to see or hear things that do, but it is unknown if she can delude the mind's other sensory centers.
Neither is it known how much control Emerald has over the hallucination. Does she need to provide exact details, or does she merely implant suggestions from which the victim's mind creates its own impressions? If she can make her victim's mind perform the bulk of its own betrayal, then Emerald should be able to fool any and all senses, even ones she doesn't know exist.
Emerald appears to require line-of-sight on her target to affect them with her Semblance, as well as enough concentration that she cannot move and fight at the same time while using it. She used her Semblance to set up an opportunity for an ambush attack against Amber, and the illusion dropped the moment the fight started. After the fight was underway, Emerald doesn't try again until Cinder arrives; Emerald then stands back in order to cloak Cinder and Mercury. The last time she tries the trick is when she's not trying to fight at all, but simply avoid being blasted – Amber blasts the illusion, and then blasts Emerald as soon as she "reappears". When Emerald used her Semblance against Coco, Emerald was safely out of sight. The illusion of Yatsuhashi was long gone by the time that Emerald moved to strike.
The amount of concentration this Semblance requires, however, is more than off-set by its range. Emerald can affect targets in the center of Amity Coliseum from at least as far away as the front row seats, which is a considerable distance. This allows her to use her Semblance in a support role, hanging back from the fight in order to hinder an ally's opponent.
But perhaps the greatest weakness of Emerald's Semblance is the difficulty she experiences when trying to affect more than one target at a time, even to make them experience the same lie. Doing so drains her Aura so drastically as to give her a terrible headache.
Even so, Emerald can sow terrible chaos just by picking the right target at the worst possible time. She can turn allies against each other in unbelievable betrayals that can continue to destroy trust and teamwork long after she is done, without anyone suspecting her involvement. As a character assassin, Emerald's power is terrifying.
Like all other characters in RWBY, Emerald's Semblance has a unique sound effect to show the audience that she's using it. In her case, it is a distinct echoing, ringing tone. However, it is unclear whether this sound is strictly for the benefit of RWBY's audience, or whether the victim actually hears it.
Even should the victim hear it, Emerald's illusions tend to distract the victim quite quickly. Why waste time wondering about an odd, sourceless noise when there is suddenly an Alpha Beowolf charging directly at you from apparently out of nowhere?
If the ringing Tell is as real to the victims as the viewers, then it cannot truly become a worthwhile warning until one understands what Emerald is doing and achieves the clarity of mind to add things up. But doing so would require you to survive the mind-twisting attentions of a trained murderer who makes it a policy to single out her victims and ambush them in numbers.
Further, it can be assumed for now that Emerald's Tell cannot be perceived by non-targets. When she fools the two paramedics who look at Mercury's knee, we do not see the illusion they see, and we do not hear the Semblance's ringing tone. The audience's clue that Emerald is affecting non-viewpoint characters is when we see them react in an unusual way to something – in this case, we already knew from the previous episode that Mercury's knee was actually mechanical, but the paramedics were acting as though his knee was a bloody mess of shattered bone.
Delusion
Emerald's is that rare and dangerous beast among Semblances: The one you'll probably never know she used. Not simply until after it's too late, but ever.
To everyone except her target, nothing appears to happen. No explosion of fire, no flash of lightning. Her target doesn't glow a particular color or otherwise change in appearance in a manner that might reveal they are being affected. Even to someone paying absolute attention to Emerald, it can be hard to realize that she's doing anything to her target at all. The only signs that might betray her are the attention and concentration she is paying to someone else just before they begin to do something inexplicable, and a noticeable drop in her Aura commensurate with the activation of a Semblance. But even if one recognizes that she is doing something, there's precious little clear evidence as to what it is.
Especially as her actions tend to make clear evidence one of its many causalities. You tend to forget the subtle and inexplicable actions of a single foe after witnessing something as shocking as your own trusted ally shooting you in the back without warning or reason. Even if you bear witness to Emerald's curse repeatedly, you may end up destroyed by the consequences before you can piece together the puzzle.
Unlike Neo Politan, who deceives the eye with holograms, Emerald Sustrai deceives the very mind from within. Your senses do not betray you; they are circumvented entirely by the picture that Emerald paints in your mind.
It is unclear to what extent that Emerald can do this. It is known that Emerald can make people see and hear things which do not exist, or fail to see or hear things that do, but it is unknown if she can delude the mind's other sensory centers.
Neither is it known how much control Emerald has over the hallucination. Does she need to provide exact details, or does she merely implant suggestions from which the victim's mind creates its own impressions? If she can make her victim's mind perform the bulk of its own betrayal, then Emerald should be able to fool any and all senses, even ones she doesn't know exist.
Emerald appears to require line-of-sight on her target to affect them with her Semblance, as well as enough concentration that she cannot move and fight at the same time while using it. She used her Semblance to set up an opportunity for an ambush attack against Amber, and the illusion dropped the moment the fight started. After the fight was underway, Emerald doesn't try again until Cinder arrives; Emerald then stands back in order to cloak Cinder and Mercury. The last time she tries the trick is when she's not trying to fight at all, but simply avoid being blasted – Amber blasts the illusion, and then blasts Emerald as soon as she "reappears". When Emerald used her Semblance against Coco, Emerald was safely out of sight. The illusion of Yatsuhashi was long gone by the time that Emerald moved to strike.
The amount of concentration this Semblance requires, however, is more than off-set by its range. Emerald can affect targets in the center of Amity Coliseum from at least as far away as the front row seats, which is a considerable distance. This allows her to use her Semblance in a support role, hanging back from the fight in order to hinder an ally's opponent.
But perhaps the greatest weakness of Emerald's Semblance is the difficulty she experiences when trying to affect more than one target at a time, even to make them experience the same lie. Doing so drains her Aura so drastically as to give her a terrible headache.
Even so, Emerald can sow terrible chaos just by picking the right target at the worst possible time. She can turn allies against each other in unbelievable betrayals that can continue to destroy trust and teamwork long after she is done, without anyone suspecting her involvement. As a character assassin, Emerald's power is terrifying.
Like all other characters in RWBY, Emerald's Semblance has a unique sound effect to show the audience that she's using it. In her case, it is a distinct echoing, ringing tone. However, it is unclear whether this sound is strictly for the benefit of RWBY's audience, or whether the victim actually hears it.
Even should the victim hear it, Emerald's illusions tend to distract the victim quite quickly. Why waste time wondering about an odd, sourceless noise when there is suddenly an Alpha Beowolf charging directly at you from apparently out of nowhere?
If the ringing Tell is as real to the victims as the viewers, then it cannot truly become a worthwhile warning until one understands what Emerald is doing and achieves the clarity of mind to add things up. But doing so would require you to survive the mind-twisting attentions of a trained murderer who makes it a policy to single out her victims and ambush them in numbers.
Further, it can be assumed for now that Emerald's Tell cannot be perceived by non-targets. When she fools the two paramedics who look at Mercury's knee, we do not see the illusion they see, and we do not hear the Semblance's ringing tone. The audience's clue that Emerald is affecting non-viewpoint characters is when we see them react in an unusual way to something – in this case, we already knew from the previous episode that Mercury's knee was actually mechanical, but the paramedics were acting as though his knee was a bloody mess of shattered bone.
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Hazel Rainart (as interpreted by Sunder the Gold)
Hazel Rainart
Painkiller
Hazel's Semblance can block out pain. This is an active, at-will effect, rather than a passive, constantly-in-effect ability. Even when active, it doesn't seem to render him completely insensate to touch.
Such a humble-sounding Semblance is actually pretty impressive in practice, or at least given how Hazel uses it together with his other strengths and resources.
We know that even trained and experienced warriors feel pain when struck with too much force for their Aura to negate. Free from pain, Hazel can weather such hits without reflexively flinching or his judgment becoming clouded, which would assist him in delivering counter-attacks in the moment when his opponents are most off-balance and unaccustomed to targets striking back.
He does not, however, become any better at maintaining his balance. Large and heavy as he is, he doesn't become any more so. Sufficient force can still push or pull him off of his feet, whether he flinches or not.
Likewise, sufficiently powerful blows can knock the wind out of him. Even if he felt no pain from the injury when a Queen Lancer pierced him through, he still felt the force of the impact, which still kinetically expelled the air from his lungs. A lack of oxygen would deny him strength, and asphyxiation should still render him unconscious.
But taking the metaphorical wind out of Hazel appears much harder. Nora says, "He recharges his Aura faster than anyone I've seen!" Qrow adds, "He's pure willpower!"
It should be no surprise that a mind unclouded by pain is more capable of controlling Aura. With no pain to distract him, Hazel can fuel his Aura and Dust with the strength of his obsessive desire to murder Ozpin and anyone standing with him.
Ozpin claims they need to "get him to his limit"; possibly, to drain Hazel's Aura with enough damage that it falls too low to support his Semblance, which would force him to feel pain and break the focus which allows him to recover.
A mutually inclusive possibility for the speed of Hazel's Aura recovery is simply that he has far more experience with tanking damage than anyone else on Remnant. Even Yang prefers to block or dodge attacks when she can, because she can be hurt. But Hazel's unique ability to ignore injuries would have encouraged him to surprise people by taking a hit directly in order to counter-attack them, and thus he might have spent much more time learning how to use Aura to shrug off and heal away damage rather than avoiding it.
Finally, there's the matter of how Hazel's Semblance allows him to abuse Dust infusion to an extent that no other human being would dare. But not without lasting and cumulative consequences, as the spider-web scars along his arms reveal.
Painkiller
Hazel's Semblance can block out pain. This is an active, at-will effect, rather than a passive, constantly-in-effect ability. Even when active, it doesn't seem to render him completely insensate to touch.
Such a humble-sounding Semblance is actually pretty impressive in practice, or at least given how Hazel uses it together with his other strengths and resources.
We know that even trained and experienced warriors feel pain when struck with too much force for their Aura to negate. Free from pain, Hazel can weather such hits without reflexively flinching or his judgment becoming clouded, which would assist him in delivering counter-attacks in the moment when his opponents are most off-balance and unaccustomed to targets striking back.
He does not, however, become any better at maintaining his balance. Large and heavy as he is, he doesn't become any more so. Sufficient force can still push or pull him off of his feet, whether he flinches or not.
Likewise, sufficiently powerful blows can knock the wind out of him. Even if he felt no pain from the injury when a Queen Lancer pierced him through, he still felt the force of the impact, which still kinetically expelled the air from his lungs. A lack of oxygen would deny him strength, and asphyxiation should still render him unconscious.
But taking the metaphorical wind out of Hazel appears much harder. Nora says, "He recharges his Aura faster than anyone I've seen!" Qrow adds, "He's pure willpower!"
It should be no surprise that a mind unclouded by pain is more capable of controlling Aura. With no pain to distract him, Hazel can fuel his Aura and Dust with the strength of his obsessive desire to murder Ozpin and anyone standing with him.
Ozpin claims they need to "get him to his limit"; possibly, to drain Hazel's Aura with enough damage that it falls too low to support his Semblance, which would force him to feel pain and break the focus which allows him to recover.
A mutually inclusive possibility for the speed of Hazel's Aura recovery is simply that he has far more experience with tanking damage than anyone else on Remnant. Even Yang prefers to block or dodge attacks when she can, because she can be hurt. But Hazel's unique ability to ignore injuries would have encouraged him to surprise people by taking a hit directly in order to counter-attack them, and thus he might have spent much more time learning how to use Aura to shrug off and heal away damage rather than avoiding it.
Finally, there's the matter of how Hazel's Semblance allows him to abuse Dust infusion to an extent that no other human being would dare. But not without lasting and cumulative consequences, as the spider-web scars along his arms reveal.
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