AZRE: Vale
The kingdom found on Eastern Sanus, Vale is the remains of what once was the Ancietn Valerian Empire; an empire that stretched across the entire kingdom and was considered the start of humanity's development into the inventions they use to this day. During the empire's long life, the king had built his home and capital in the cliffsides within the Emerald Forest, where it stood for centuries before the Great War.
During the Great War, Vale, alongside Vacuo, fought against the kingdoms of Atlas and Mistral, winning with the help of their new allies. Afterwards, the previous home of the king was converted into Beacon Academy, one of four Huntsmen Academies in Remnant.
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Beacon Academy
One of four Huntsmen Academies in Remnant, Beacon Academy is located in the capital of Vale with Ozpin as its headmaster.
Ozpin
- “We’re similar people, Adam. Fighting for others. Would you have laid down your sword if your health started failing you? If someone asked?”
Headmaster of Beacon, Ozpin is mysterious and secretive. From unknown origins, he leads Beacon and its students with wisdom and care, being mindful of just what people he is cultivating into future Huntsmen and Huntresses. Yet, he is not the invincible figure he spent years cultivating, as he holds back the secrets of a greater evil lurking within the depths of Remnant itself.
- Anger Born of Worry: While he tries to keep his calm demeanor with Adam in Fractures, Ozpin eventually starts to become strict and stern when it's apparent that Adam will not stop endangering himself in his mission after Roman. This anger is quick revealed to be because he doesn't want to bury another student and is worried for Adam's safety.
- Beneath the Mask: To his students, Ozpin upholds this mask of mysterious calmness, having an answer for whatever problem came to them and to the kingdom. When he's with his inner circle, Ozpin allows himself to show far more emotion, even going as far as shouting at Eliana and Ironwood when they argue one too many times.
- Big Good: He's ultimately this. While the story follows team AZRE and their adventures, it's Ozpin that's working towards protecting all of Remnant from Salem, along with few allies he entrusts with the truth.
- Body Surf: How his curse works. When he dies, his soul moves onto a new host. A lot of the tension between him and Ironwood is the latter's desire to avoid this and keep him around for the incoming war.
- Broken Pedestal: Adam loses all trust in him after Ozpin is forced to suspend him from Beacon.
- Childhood Friends: He was close friends with Bruno Rex, the Police Chief Commissioner, since childhood. However, their friendship fell apart when Ozpin became Headmaster of Beacon Academy, as his secretive personality and new responsibilties, as well as multiple instances of his students acting out of line, drove a wedge between the two men.
- Color-Coded Characters: Despite his name not actually meaning a colour, Ozpin uses a lot of green not only in his design, but in his office and how Beacon Academy is decorated.
- Cool Old Guy: While Adam jokes that Ozpin isn't as old as he has others believe, he is still considerably older (being revealed to be fifty three by Eirian), and is a fair, caring headmaster who tries to push his Academy to being inclusive for all races and nationalities. So, he has little tolerance for racism and tries to be knowledgeable in different cultures. However, he fumbles with the intricacies of racism and as such is seen as ignorant by Blake and untrustworthy by Adam.
- Covered in Scars: Though hidden by his jacket and turtleneck, Ozpin has many faint scars on his arms and hands, and hinted to be over his body, because of his magic. After experimenting on his tissue samples, Ironwood tells Ozpin and the circle that the magic he wields is far more potent than semblances or Maiden powers, and so seriously harms him when in use.
- Dark Secret: He and his inner circle are the only ones to know about Salem.
- Determinator: He refuses to stop fighting even when his body starts to break down because of his magic. When Adam suggests that he retires, he turns around and asks Adam himself if he would've done the same thing, even if it was his health that was deteriorating. Adam doesn't answer it.
- Fairytale Motif: The titular character; the Wizard of Oz.
- Glass Cannon: He holds the most raw power out of anyone, but using it causes severe damage onto his own body.
- Heroic RRoD: His body belongs to a human who comes from a second generation of humanity, whereas Ozpin's soul and magic comes from those who came before. Because humanity has evolved away from this kind of magic use, rather evolving specific traits to deal with their personalised Semblances, his magic is too powerful to wield without serious backlash, and Oz pin finds his health deteriorating severely because of it.
- Honor Before Reason: His attitude towards his incoming death can be seen as this. Ozpin refuses to let his hosts be seen as despensable, going as far as to reject Ironwood's plan to simply put his soul into an android that could withstand his potent magic, negating the need for reincarnation. Somewhat justified, since Ozpin knows it won't work and Ironwood's insistence on using machines to fight against his curse will only end in misery.
- Incurable Cough of Death: After it's revealed that he's dying in Chapter 30, Ozpin's health start deteriorating more rapidly from the stress finally getting on top of him. It's gotten to the point that the other students have noticed this, whereas before he did everything to hide his ill health from them.
- Last-Name Basis: He's referred to as Headmaster Ozpin, or simply Ozpin, with his first name currently unknown.
- Many Spirits Inside of One: He's an amalgamation of countless souls residing in one body.
- Meaningful Name:
- Unlike everyone else, Ozpin's name isn't actually a name nor does it mean a colour. Rather, it's an acronym of the names of the man who was the Wizard of Oz in the books; Oscar Zoroaster Phadrig Isaac Norman Henkel Emmannuel Ambroise Diggs, or O.Z.P.I.N.H.E.A.D
- "Not So Different" Remark: He notes that he and Adam aren't so different despite their clashing ideals and personalities. Deep down, they're both determined men who fought for what they believed is right despite suffering from self-doubt deep down, not letting anything stop them even if it's their own health.
- Really 700 Years Old: He's a combination of souls that have passed for thousands of years, appearing as a fifty three year old man.
- Secretly Dying: Threats Beyond the Horizon reveals that, because of the potent magic that Ozpin wields damaging his host's body, his life expectancy is drastically shortened. Despite his inner circle's best efforts, Ozpin has accepted this inevitability and only works to making sure they're prepared for the time when he dies and reincarnates into a new host.
- Technicolor Eyes: He has naturally gold eyes. It's unclear if the gold eyes are a result of his magic, or if Ozpin was born with them before becoming the latest host.
Glynda Goodwitch
- “If you don’t believe you have what it takes to complete said tests, then please... don’t get off the ship.”
The Deputy Headmistress and Ozpin's right hand woman, Glynda Goodwitch is as powerful as she is strict. Overlooking Beacon's day to day operations, she teaches combat lessons and often overlooks exams that the students partake in, all while making sure Beacon and its kingdom is safe from the Grimm, the White Fang and Salem.
- Alliterative Name: Glynda Goodwitch.
- Badass Teacher: She is the Combat Instructor, often teaching the students and overlooking their practical lessons, and has the most powerful Semblance in Beacon.
- Brutal Honesty: She doesn't bother to hide what she thinks behind a kind attitude, especially when faced with arrogance in the case of Weiss and Adam.
- Deadpan Snarker: Just as her quote shows, her prim and proper appearance is offset only by her dry wit.Glynda after lifting Adam up with her Semblance: “I assure you, it won’t take long.”
- Fairytale Motif: Glinda the Good Witch of the South from Wizard of Oz.
- Good Is Not Nice: A stark contrast to the more palatable Ozpin, but while Glynda is an accomplished Huntress and trusted friend of the headmaster, she is by no means a nice teacher and will admonish any student that has broken the rules or behaved in any way she believes is unfitting for a future Huntsman.
- Hidden Depths: Despite her strict and cold exterior, Glynda does show moments where she deeply cares for her students. One of the biggest reasons she was angry at Adam for going to Sasnak Docks wasn't because he got in trouble or broke her trust, but because he put Eirian and himself in danger.
- Magic Wand: Her crop works as one, as she uses it whenever she uses her Semblance.
- Meaningful Name:
- Glynda is a variation of the name Glenda, which is Welsh "fair", referencing the colour white.
- Goodwitch directly references Glynda's allusion; Glinda the Good Witch of the South.
- Mind over Matter: She has a Telekinesis based Semblance, which she uses for anything from fighting to cleaning up her office to picking up students that try to run away from her.
- Prim and Proper Bun: Contrasted to Ozpin's more casual wear and matching attitude, Glynda is a woman of high class and serious nature, and so wears her hair in a bun to reflect that.
- Psychologist Teacher: Just as Port had done in RWBY, Glynda serves just when Weiss comes to her and demands that she overrides Ozpin's decision on making Ruby the leader over her. While she is blunt and sternly denies Weiss' demands, she also manages to get through to her by acknowleding the stress Weiss is put under by her father, but steering her away from her previously childish attitude. When Weiss leaves Glynda's office, she's more receptive to Ruby's attempts to better herself.
- Purple Is Powerful: Her cape, Aura and Telekinesis Semblance all have purple effects.
- Reasonable Authority Figure: Despite her strict nature, Glynda is flexible and above else just wants her students and city to be safe. Even with Weiss' terrible attitude and selfish reasons for wanting to oust Ruby as leader, Glynda, though with some annoyance, explains to Weiss clearly why she could not and would not allow the decision to go through; as removing Ruby would upset the team dynamics, and since Weiss had done nothing to help her relations with her team, making her the leader instead would just further unstable team RWBY.
- Tranquil Fury: Her talk with Weiss has Glynda never raising her voice, but she eventually loses her patience when Weiss calls Sun an ape, warning her to rethink her bigoted attitude before she punishes her.
- Teeth-Clenched Teamwork: She makes it very clear that she despises working with the Vale Police Force, especially Chief Commissioner Rex.
- Tranquil Fury: She never lets herself burst with anger, rather preferring to show she's mad through this. It's especially noticeable when she talks to Adam in his hospital room in Caught In the Crossfire, feeling hurt and infuriated by his betrayal of her trust.
- Undying Loyalty: To Ozpin. Despite her stoic appearance, Glynda cares deeply for Ozpin, and refuses to undermine his authority regardless of her own feelings. When Weiss demands that she makes her the leader over Ruby, blaming Ozpin for making a mistake, Glynda is not amused and immediately refuses, even though she admits that she wouldn't have picked Ruby either.
Cassandra "Cas" Melina
- “Huntsmen are some of the most skilled and powerful fighters in Remnant. With Aura and Semblances that put us over even those in the police, we are the elite, and we are dangerous.”
Beacon's professor of Law, Cassandra Melina was once one of Vale's best lawyers, working as ADA for the VPD, before they were given a position at Beacon Academy.
- Affectionate Nickname: Glynda, of all people, calls Cassandra the shortened "Cas" as a nickname, with the two seen together and appear to enjoy each other's company.
- Dark and Troubled Past: Though still hidden, Cas did answer Eirian's question during the lesson on vigilantism, that she has personally lost students before because they had taken matters into their own hands and were killed for it. While they don't dwell on it, they are visibly saddened over the loss.
- Deadpan Snarker: They're certainly more sarcastic with their students compared to Oobleck or Glynda, especially if they are caught after class.
- Fairytale Motif: Cassandra Truth from Greek mythology.
- Living Lie Detector: Their Semblance is truth. If Melina asks a question, the person affected has to answer them, but can only answer all that they personally know.
- Meaningful Name:
- Cassandra, which is the name of the woman that Cas is alluded to.
- Melina is Greek for "Honey", with Cas wearing a honey coloured suit jacket. Given that they're also a lawyer and have a truth Semblance, they also speak with "honeyed words", or can convince people with just conversation.
- Omnidisciplinary Lawyer: They are the only lawyer in the cast, and so comes to the rescue regardless of the crime actually committed. While Cas seems to have specialised in Huntsmen Laws for the four kingdoms, teaching Law in Beacon, they also appear to get Adam off the hook with the police, despite it having nothing to do with Huntsmen Law but rather national security and public safety.
- Small Role, Big Impact: Despite just being one of the teachers at Beacon, and not even a member of Ozpin's inner circle, Cas' actions in Volume 1 has a big impact since not only did they find out about Adam's searches, bringing the school's attention onto Adam and Junior, but was also able to keep Adam from being arrested for his crimes, which would've kicked him out of Beacon and disrupted the entire story.
Bartholomew Oobleck
- “I can only form my opinion on those around me, and from history itself has to say. It is always best to learn from the actions of your ancestors, class, as they will stop you from repeating them.”
Beacon's professor of History, Bartholomew Oobleck is a doctor of science, preferring to educate those rather than fight.
- Fairytale Motif: Bartholomew and the Oobleck from the Dr Seuss book series.
- Flash Step: He conducts his lessons in a speedy manner, often rushing through the lectures to the point that others find it hard to keep up with him. This is especially true for Ruri, who for most of her first year had to rely on lip reading to understand what people were saying, before she got her hearing aid at the end of the year.
- Hidden Depths: While he clearly loves history and science, Oobleck is a huge fan of Vikelan culture and history. He happily accepts Eirian's invitation to join her coming of age ceremony and is thrilled to see an actual Vikelan drum, as opposed to the replicas that are kept in Vale's museums.
- History Repeats: A firm believer in this. He makes a point to remind Adam that anyone who refuses to learn from the past mistakes of their people are just doomed to repeat them.
- Insistent Terminology: It's Doctor, not Professor.
- Motor Mouth: He's known to be this, connecting to his favourite student; Eirian.
- Mr. Exposition: Justified in that he's a teacher, so he lectures his class on the history of Remnant and the specific kingdoms.
- Running Gag: No matter how many times he corrects Team AZRE, they always call him "Professor" rather than his actual title, "Doctor".
- Super-Speed: His Semblance seems to be a speed one.
Kaseya Tabi
- “Stealth! Espionage! As future Huntsmen, you can’t just run into a fight, guns ablazing. Sometimes, you’ll need to strike from shadows, and that’s how today is gonna happen.”
Beacon's professor of Security and Espionage, Kaseya Tabi is a Mistral-born Huntress with a fiery personality to match her fiery apperance.
- Chest Insignia: She has tattoos all over her chest and arms, with the Japanese Kanji "火" for "fire" in the centre.
- Fairytale Motif: Two. The Kasha from Japanese folklore, and also Puss in boots.
- Fiery Redhead: She has reddish orange hair, and has the loud, in your face, personality to match.
- Gender-Blender Name: Kaseya is a male name, while Kaseya is a woman.
- Genki Girl: Her first appearance wastes no time in showing her positive and enthusiastic nature, especially compared to the rest of her class.
- Large Ham: Her loud and boisterous personality sticks out amongst the other, more subdued teachers, minus Oobleck. Given that her students are often tired from the school day, her attempts to get them energised often falls flat.
- Little Bit Beastly: She's a cat Faunus, with ears under her signature hat and a pair of feline legs rather than human ones. Her legs are noted to be very unusual for a Faunus, as Tabi is the only Faunus in the story to have this specific trait.
- Meaningful Name:
- Kaseya has the kanjis for "fire" and "star", connecting to her fiery personality, the kanji for fire on her chest, and her first allusion being a cat demon that drags people to hell.
- Tabi is the name of a Japanese shoe, which is often popularised with ninjas or shinobi. Kaseya teaches Espionage and stealth, which are the go to practices of the shinobi. When connected to the fact that she's a cat Faunus, she's literally Puss in boots.
- The Nicknamer: She gives nicknames to some of her students, with Adam being "Cherry bomb" to reference his red hair and explosive temper.
Steven Rosewater
- “Not many people think that way here in Beacon. Headmaster Ozpin had made great strides to close the gap between humans and Faunus.”
A student in the year above Team AZRE, Steven is the leader of his own team and a person with silver eyes, having come to Beacon to study towards becoming a Huntsman.
- Devil's Advocate: A flaw of his, since he tried to downplay Gustave's racist attitude as simply being "outdated", something that angered Adam.
- Fairytale Motif: He seems to be Le Fou from Beauty and the Beast.
- Hard Light: His wand in his tournament match with Roxanne allowed him to use Hard Light to write runes that cast different effects.
- Magic Eye: Unbeknownst to everyone in his school, he was born with silver eyes.
- Nice Guy: He's very sweet and doesn't hold a grudge against anyone, letting Adam's spiteful jabs slide off him and still remains his friend, even telling him and his team of the rumours that Gustave was spreading after Adam's affliation with the White Fang was revealed.
- What You Are in the Dark: He seems to be this for Adam. When he fell over and was laughed at by other students on the ship, Adam could've easily ignored it and left, but decided to go and help even though Steven was a human and it meant Adam missed the ship down to the city.
Gustave Rouge
- “Should I be scared by this new you? It’s a little hard when you barely come to my chin.”
A student in the same year as team AZRE, Gustave is a student originating from Atlas, with all the outdated beliefs to come from it. His racist behaviour eventually catches up to him when he's expelled from Beacon.
- Bad Boss: Not a good leader, to the point where he nearly hit one of his teammates while throwing his weapon and showed no regret over it.
- Break the Haughty: By the end of the rumours arc, he finds himself facing an angry Cas Melina and tricked by Team ZRE into confessing that he was the one spreading rumours and called the students racial slurs, ending with him panicking over being taken to Ozpin's office.
- The Bully: This to Adam, though it's less he's picking on someone weaker, but pushing Adam's short fuse with the racial abuse he inflicts on him.
- Fairytale Motif: He's Gaston from the Disney adaptation of Beauty and the Beast.
- Fantastic Racism: He doesn't hide his racist opinions at all, and is shown to hate mixed race people like Eirian even more. It ultimately bites him in the butt when Ozpin expels him from Beacon, sending him back home to Atlas.
- Meaningful Name:
- Gustave is the French spelling of the Scandinavian name Gustaf, sounding similar to Gaston; his allusion.
- Rouge is the French word for "red", connecting to Gustave's red colour theme and the fact that Gaston was connected to the colour red in the Disney adaptation.
- Satellite Character: He doesn't grow or mature during the arc he's involved in, rather being the personified issue of Adam's affiliation to the White Fang being revealed to the school. By the end, he was expelled by Ozpin, without even meeting Adam who was too depressed to do anything.
Team STRQ
A Huntsman team long graduated from Beacon, they had disbanded years prior with each going their own way.
Summer Rose
Once the leader of Team STRQ and Qrow's teammate, Summer Rose was the mother of Ruby and Yang, and an active Huntress who disappeared over a decade ago.
- Action Mom: An active Huntress like Qrow, Summer was remembered fondly as a good mother by Yang, and is an inspiration to Ruby despite not really remembering Summer properly.
- In the Hood: Her cape and hood is directly homaged in Ruby's cloak, though Summer's is white while Ruby's is red.
- The Leader: She was the leader of Team STRQ.
- Magical Eye: She had silver eyes, which her daughter Ruby inherited, which allows her to summon light that harms Grimm.
- Missing Mom: She vanished on a mission years ago, with her body not being found. Whether she is dead or not is contested; Qrow confesses that he saw her die in front of him, with Ruby seemingly accepting that her mother is dead, but Yang is still adamant that Summer is alive and has been searching for her for years.
- Never Found the Body: Despite Qrow having apparently witnessed her death, her body was never brought home and her ultimate fate is left ambiguous.
- Strong Family Resemblance: Ruby definitely took after Summer. Both have black hair with red tints, silver eyes, and even share similar fashion styles. However, it's downplayed from how they resemble each other in RWBY, as Ruby has tanned skin and fluffy textured hair, while Summer is pale with long, wavy hair.
- The Tragic Rose: Summer is symbolised by the rose, with her emblem a rose and thorned stem, and her allusion being "The Last Rose of Summer"; a poem about loss and the burden of carrying on after the death of your loved ones. She's the driving force behind Ruby becoming a Huntress, and is fondly remembered by her friends and loved ones, her death is a catalyst to many of their problems; including Yang's feelings of abandoment, Qrow's alcoholism, and Taiyang's brief emotional breakdown.
Qrow Branwen
- “‘Cause unfortunately, Jimmy, being on recon and trying to make sure no one knows you work for Ozpin himself makes communication a bit difficult.”
An experienced Huntsman, Qrow was once a member of Team STRQ, along with his sister and friends, before he was brought into Ozpin's inner circle to work as a spy. After losing all of his team, he has grown jaded and callous, preferring to work and live alone.
- The Alcoholic: He drinks regularly, with most of his time shown either having him drinking, going to get a drink, or having a flask in hand. This makes him somewhat of a Broken Pedestal to Zanthus, who already struggles with alcoholism because of his father.
- But Now I Must Go: He leaves to carry on his work in What Lies Underneath, rather than return to Shade with Icheku and Team AZRE.
- Cynic–Idealist Duo: He's this to Icheku, having known the other Huntsman from before and works with him during the investigation around Gaza. Qrow is the cynic, believing in keeping everyone away because of how dangerous his Semblance is, and has a pessimistic attitude to everything around him. Icheku is the idealist, still retaining a positive attitude despite all the loss he's witnessed, and preferring to work in teams with an insistence in teaching strength through numbers.
- Dark and Troubled Past: Not much is revealed, but he originally came from a bandit tribe along with his sister; Raven, who returned after Beacon. As a Huntsman, he later witnessed the death of Summer Rose, his leader and close friend, which in turn sent him spiralling into a deep depression and alcoholism.
- Disappeared Dad: He's this to an unborn Winijay, due to his guilt over apparently letting Summer die and Semblance. Ironwood calls him out for betraying Winter's trust in him.
- The Dreaded: He's this to Salem's group. Not only does Carmine treat him as the most dangerous threat to their operation, but the mere mention of his name leaves Merlot a nervous wreck.
- Fairytale Motif: The Scarecrow from the Wizard of Oz.
- Family Theme Naming: He and his sister are named after Covids, with his daughter following the trend with Winijay, or "Jay" for short, connecting to the blue jay.
- Hero of Another Story: Turns out, he was the Huntsman that saved Zanthus when he was just a child, leaving a lasting impression on the boy to the point that Zanthus even based his cape on Qrow's. It later becomes a Broken Pedastal when he meets Qrow again in Shade Academy.
- I Let Gwen Stacy Die: Summer's death is this to him. Not only does he blame himself for not helping her, she's one of the main reasons he keeps away from everyone, as he believes his Semblance will get everyone he cares about killed.
- I Work Alone: Has this attitude towards his work as a Huntsman. As he's working for Ozpin and the inner circle, he tends to take missions alone to work as a spy, and is shown to be annoyed when he has to work with others except Icheku.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: He's rude, irresponsible, and tends to enjoy annoying everyone around him, or just shows little guilt when people are upset. However, Qrow does deeply care about his loved ones. He clearly wants to be a good father to Winijay, but is terrified of getting her or Winter killed, gives solid advice to an injured Roxanne when she shows doubt in her abilities, and does seem disappointed that Zanthus once looked up to him but can't anymore because of the alcoholism.
- Meaningful Name: Both Qrow and Branwen, meaning "White/blessed crow", reference crows. As crows are symbols of bad luck, it connects to Qrow and his Semblance of Misfortune, as well as referencing his surname ironically.
- The Mentor: He somewhat adopts this role with Roxanne. He may seem like he's slacking off and not taking the job seriously, but it's his way of pushing Roxanne to make decisions for herself without anyone holding her hand, ironically mirroring how Roxanne herself did the same to Adam.
- Pet the Dog: He has a few moments amongst the dickish ones.
- Despite leaving her to go through the pregnancy and potentially raise Winijay on her own, Qrow does ask Ironwood how she's doing, and is interested in his child to the point of asking what name Winter was thinking of picking.
- While he obviously doesn't like working with other people, he does go out of his way to comfort a worried Roxanne after she was injured, telling her that she wasn't at fault for what happened and to not be so hard on herself. Given that everyone else holds Roxanne up to almost impossible standards, he's the only one to acknowledge that she's just a kid like everyone else.
- Technicolor Eyes: He has natural red eyes.
City of Vale
The capital of the Kingdom of Vale, the city of Vale is described as the "mixing pot" of the kingdoms, a place where civillians of different cultures and places come to live and share their customs together. Because of this, much of the customs, cuisine and cultures are influenced by the vast array of people that live there.
Chief Commissioner Bruno Rex
- “Only to do what your supervisors tell you. For these next two weeks, I’m legally responsible for all four of you, so if you really want to repair the relations between Beacon and the VPD, now’s as good a place as any to start.”
The Chief Commissioner of the Vale Police Department, Bruno is responsible for the actions of every policeman and woman in his force, and won't let Beacon Academy forget the rules they have to follow to. Despite his negative attitude towards Beacon and Huntsmen, he does allow students work with his department, having Team AZRE work for him during their first year of mock student missions.
- Animal Motifs: Dogs. He's a German Shepherd Faunus working in the police force, and is strongly loyal, aggressive and protective to those under his leadership.
- Aw, Look! They Really Do Love Each Other: Despite their tense conversations, Melina and Rex do care about each other, with Rex sending multiple requests for Melina to come back to the police force.
- Broken Pedestal: The way he talks about Ozpin and Beacon can be this. He knows enough about both to know that Ozpin holds a deep belief in the innate good of people, and built his Academy as a place of redemption on top of training Huntsmen to protect the people. However, Rex doesn't agree with either and even bitterly calls Ozpin's ideas "a load of shit".
- Brutal Honesty: He doesn't hold back his opinions for anyone.
- Childhood Friends: He was this with Ozpin, though their friendship has long since ended.
- Deadpan Snarker: When he's not annoyed, his responses are very dry wit.Rex: I’m happy you four were able to work here after all.Eirian: Really?Rex: No.
- Jerkass Has a Point: Yes, he's introduced as an angry and confrontational asshole, but his anger is pretty justified in that, not only did Adam break countless laws with his actions, endanger the public, and lie to the authority figures in charge of him, but this isn't the first time Beacon students have done so. With Melina confessing that students have even died because of vigilantism, he's not wrong in that Ozpin and Glynda behave as if they and their Academy are above Vale's laws.
- Little Bit Beastly: He's a dog Faunus, having pointed ears and a tail.
- Minority Police Officer: While Vale has made steps in equality for the Faunus, with Adam noticing a few Faunus officers in the precinct, Rex is noticeably the only named Faunus police officer shown.
- Outliving One's Offspring: His son died years prior after a riot at a SDC processing facility went wrong.
- Reasonable Authority Figure: Despite the rough start with Team AZRE, Rex does allow them to work in his precinct and does show concern for Adam and Eirian due to their injuries, keeping them off the streets to keep them safe. By the end of the mini arc, he doesn't chew Adam out for lying, and rather has a mutually respectable conversation about Beacon and Faunus equality with the former White Fang member.
- Teeth-Clenched Teamwork: Just like the VPD and Beacon as a whole, Rex really doesn't get along with Glynda, with every conversation they have quickly becoming tense and unwelcoming.
Grigio Aggeggio
- “Because Melina vouched for you four, and Bruno gave the okay. I don’t care what you guys do, I ain’t gonna trust you, but I trust them. If they wanna throw their lot in for you, then fine.”
A police officer and Captain to Chief Commissioner Rex.
- Beneath the Mask: She holds herself up as professional, strict and unsociable to most, but there are moments underneath where Grigio is hurt and upset with how Huntsmen are behaving in her city, on top of showing complete trust in Rex and Melina, despite the latter having left to work in said Huntsman Academy.
- Broken Pedestal: While most of the city idolises Beacon and Huntsmen in general, Grigio outright hates them, having seen the darker side of powerful fighters who uses the greater good to get away with bending the laws and making it harder for other civil servants to do their jobs.
- Deadpan Snarker: If she isn't being rude, she's being sarcastic.
- Jerkass: Whereas Rex has moments to humanise him, and actually starts to move past his frustration towards the protagonists by the end of the mini arc, Grigio never lets go of her anger towards them.
- Jerkass Has a Point: Despite her attitude, she's not entirely wrong in her behaviour, rightfully pointing out that Beacon Academy actually does little to actively teach their students on how to deal with the public, and that Zanthus ignoring her orders could've ended in him or their suspect he apprehended being injured.
- Undying Loyalty: Even if she doesn't like it, she trusts Rex and Melina completely, which is the only reason why she accepted Team AZRE working in the VPD in the first place.
Hei "Junior" Xiong
- “Lots of people talk. Doesn’t mean they’re right.”
A club owner, Junior runs one of the most infamous information racketeering in Vale, using his business as a front for the more illegal businesses.
- Adaptation Relationship Overhaul: There was no relationship between Junior and the Malachite Twins in RWBY, beyond a employer/employee one. In AZRE, Junior is confirmed to be their father.
- Animal Motifs: Bears. Junior uses a lot of bear imagery in his club, and his name means black bear in Chinese.
- Even Evil Has Standards: Not entirely evil, but while Junior sees no issues in lending men or commiting crimes under the guise of a popular night club, even he refuses to work with the White Fang.
- Fairytale Motif: He's Baby Bear from Goldilocks.
- Knowledge Broker: He'll gather any information, whether it be locations of missing people or secret businesses of other criminals, but it's all for a price.
- Meaningful Name:
- Hei Xiong is Chinese for "Black Bear", alluding to not only his allusion, with black bears being a smaller species of bear, but also to his colour motif being more towards black with white and red accents.
- His nickname, Junior, is a nod to his allusion as Baby Bear.
- Papa Bear: Jokes aside, he gives up any information he has on Blake when Iya threatens to kill Miltia, and threatens Yang and Eirian when it's revealed that Eirian knows Adam, because of the White Fang attack on his daughters.
- Strong Family Resemblance: He and the Malachite twins look very much like each other, although Melanie and Miltia have green eyes while Junior has grey eyes.
- Unfortunate Name: Iya mockingly calls him Baby Bear, a play on his both his name and his nickname.
- Wrecked Weapon: His bat is bent in half when he tries to hit Banesaw with it, only to hit the White Fang lieutenant's metal infused arm.
- Worf Effect: He's played up to being a serious criminal in Vale, connected to dozens of cases, and is someone Zanthus feels that he needs to warn Adam about. All the build up leads to him and his club being thoroughly decimated by Banesaw and Iya, with Junior himself barely able to hit Banesaw once.
Melanie & Miltia Xiong-Malachite
- “Don’t… listen to them.”
Twin daughters of Junior, Melanie and Militia work in his club as security guards.
- Adaptation Relationship Overhaul: Their relationship with Junior is strictly professional in RWBY, with the twins just working as his security guards. In AZRE, they're his daughters who work in his club, and his underground crime ring.
- Alliterative Name: Melanie and Miltia Xiong-Malachite.
- Badass in Distress: The twins last longer fighting Iya and Banesaw compared to the goons and even Junior, but while Melanie was slammed into the bar by Banesaw, Miltia was captured by Iya and brutally tortured to force her father to spill all the information he had on Blake.
- Defiant to the End: Even after being brutalised by Iya, Miltia tells Junior not to tell the White Fang members anything. Iya knocks her out by stomping on her head for it.
- Fairytale Motif: They're Rose Red and Snow White from Rose Red & Snow White.
- Meaningful Name:
- Miltia is a personalised spelling of Militia, the Latin name for "military/soldier", connected to her working as a personal bodyguard and soldier in Junior's business.
- Melanie is Greek for "Blackness/Dark", connecting to her black and red colour scheme and coming from her father, Hei, who's name also means "Black".
- Malachite is a green stone connected to security and protection, with the Malachite twins working as bodyguards to Junior.
- Tag Team Twins: While they don't work together to fight Banesaw and Iya, they seemed together otherwise, especially when Junior subtly threatens Adam to pay up or face the real threat of the twins forcing him to.
- Worf Effect: They're shown to be dangerous people that even Adam chooses not to fight them, rather giving his ring to pay for Junior's services. Although they put up more of a fight than the goons or Junior, the Malachite twins are still defeated pretty easily to show just how dangerous Iya and Banesaw are.
Knossos
A settlement far from the capital, Knossos is built into the mountains that run all the way down the western coast of Eastern Sanus. With increased White Fang activity, including attacks on SDC processing facilities and Dust convoys, the settlement is experiencing more and more Dust shortages.
Phoibos
- “I met a lot of liars. Became a pretty good one myself. Out there, trust is one of the only things you got. You gotta question someone’s honesty all the time, and if they get to questioning yours… you’ll be in a lot of trouble.”
A retired Huntsman that found Adam when he ran away from the White Fang, pointing him to Beacon Academy to find a purpose in his life.
- Cool Old Guy: Despite his gruff nature, he lets Adam stay in his house for the night, gives him pretty sound advice, and is sympathetic to the teen's plight and uncertainty about his future and place in the world without the White Fang.
- Brutal Honesty: Unlike his wife, Phoibos doesn't hold back on telling Adam just how badly he and the White Fang have messed up not only settlements like Knossos, but Faunus all over Remnant, with their terrorism.
- Fairytale Motif: Thesus from Greek Mythology.
- Happily Married: This with his wife; Astra. Despite their bickering, they do truly love each other.
- Little Bit Beastly: A Faunus, so he has long, retractable claws.
- Living Lie Detector: Compared to those with actual truth Semblances like Melina, Phoibos seems to be able to pick up on whenever someone is lying, attributing it to his long and eventful life meeting an array of different people. He immediately sees through Adam's attempt to tell him a fake name, and knows that he was with the White Fang despite the teenager's adamance.
- Only One Name: His last name is unknown.
- Small Role, Big Impact: He only appears for two chapters, and is left behind when Adam goes to Beacon, but Phoibos is the one who suggests that Adam finds his purpose as a Huntsman, pushing the former White Fang member to go and for Team AZRE to be formed.
- Wolverine Claws: He's a lynx Faunus, and has retractable claws.
Astra
- “Well, fate always has a funny way of working. You’ll cross paths with her again. It’ll just take as much time as it needs.”
Phoibos' wife.
- Cool Old Lady: She's gotten on in the years, but she doesn't hesitate to mother Adam as soon as they meet, making him a warm meal, making sure he's comfortable for the night, and then giving him money to get to the City of Vale to enrol into Beacon Academy.
- Fairytale Motif: To match Phoibos' Theseus allusion, Astra is Ariadne from Greek Mythology.
- Happily Married: Despite them bickering over dinner and Adam, Astra and Phoibos still clearly love each other and seem to have been together for a long time.
- Little Bit Beastly: She's a snake Faunus, with scales on her face and body.
- Only One Name: She's only known by her first name, same as her husband.
