RWBY has a new volume in development, but the existing volumes have already provided a decent look into how Remnant works. One of the unique features of this universe are auras, which are a crucial tool for hunters as they provide a measure of protection from damage and manifest semblances. Since a semblance is an ability that’s unique to the user, the way they manifest tends to mean they’re suited for the user’s specific combat or support needs. While not every character’s semblance has been shown, there are enough known semblances to rank them based on their current statuses, as they can evolve as the user adapts and gets creative.
You’ll likely get to see more semblances revealed in volume 10 when it’s eventually released. In the meantime, there’s already quite the mix of semblances to dig into. Some semblances are subtly useful, such as Clover’s passive luck, but others are basically high-risk, high-reward abilities, such as Nora’s ability to strengthen herself with lightning or electricity, as you see how damaging that ability can become when she pushes herself and absorbs too much lightning.
10) Blake’s Shadow
Blake’s semblance provides a fair amount of utility. She creates clones of herself that are left behind at her location. If she uses her semblance with dust, then the clone will have the attribute of that dust type, such as earth dust, making a stone clone, which she’s used at least once to trap her opponent’s weapon. Additionally, Blake is able to use these clones to shift her momentum in the air. While it’s a great fit for her fighting style, it’s not the most powerful semblance you come across. Still, it offers enough diversity and support to Blake that it’s worth mentioning.
9) The burn
Yang’s semblance shares similarities with Adam’s, but unlike Adam, Yang doesn’t need a weapon to redirect attacks. Instead, her body takes the hit, and her semblance lets her then deal increased damage as a result. Naturally, the downside to this is obvious rather early on, as Yang ends up taking damage for the sake of dealing more damage. As a result, she can put herself in a dangerous situation easily if she overestimates herself or underestimates her opponent even slightly, and this is seen during her fight with Adam, as she wasn’t prepared for his semblance to work in a similar way and deal enough damage to remove her arm.
8) Ren’s Tranquility
For a world like Remnant that’s crawling with Grimm, Ren’s semblance can be a game changer, especially if he needs to protect or escort a group of civilians to safety. Tranquility lets Ren basically mask his emotions and the emotions of those around him from Grimm, who are attracted to their targets by feeling their negative emotions. This lets Ren make them invisible to Grimm, which he can then use as a chance to get people past Grimm and to a safe location with the least amount of risk.
7) Ruby’s Petal Burst
Ruby’s semblance fits her need for momentum to carry through attacks with her massive scythe. Petal Burst gives Ruby increased speed, allowing her to take the form of rose petals and get around obstacles while using it, which she started practicing as a use in a later volume, showing that semblances can be evolved over time with practice. Additionally, Ruby can use her semblance on another person if she’s holding them, propelling both of them at an increased speed. It gives her a good balance of offense and defense, and it’s a critical part of her fighting style.
6) Pyrrha’s Polarity
Pyrrha’s semblance is what earned her the title of “Invincible Girl.” Polarity lets Pyrrha control metal objects that are in her area, which lets her perform moves like throwing her shield and bringing it back. Unfortunately, this semblance is used against her during her fight with Penny, as she ends up breaking Penny apart with her being an android made entirely of metal. However, Pyrrha had a decent advantage in most circumstances thanks to her Polarity, as most areas in Remnant that you’ve seen so far tend to have a decent presence of metal structures.
5) Tyrian’s Aura Disruption
You don’t get a lot of time to see Tyrian or his semblance in use, but it’s deadly enough to almost kill Qrow. Tyrian’s semblance is Aura Disruption, which lets him basically turn off his opponent’s aura when he comes in contact with them, opening up the opportunity for him to inflict a fatal wound that isn’t dully by the protection of an aura. The lack of range is the biggest drawback of Aura Disruption, but it might be the deadliest semblance on this list when Tyrian is against an opponent he can make contact with.
4) Neopolitan’s Overactive Imagination
At first, Neo’s semblance looks like it’s just illusions that shatter after a period of time, but later volumes show you how realistic her illusions can be. Rather than simple images, Neo’s illusions come with sound and can even damage the people seeing them. They can also be rather detailed, as she shows Ruby an entire group of people as part of her illusions, using them to speak on her behalf. On top of being used to attack, Neo can also take on the appearance of other people, allowing her to sneak into places she normally shouldn’t be able to enter.
3) Velvet’s Photographic Memory
Velvet’s habit of asking other characters if she can take pictures of their weapons makes perfect sense when you see her semblance. Velvet is able to copy other people’s fighting style, letting her use her weapon to make copies of other weapons based on the photos she’s taken, which she can then use as the original owner uses. This makes her an insanely versatile fighter, but it seems like she has a limited amount of time that she can use each weapon before the photograph of it is used up. While it’s not clear what the limitations actually are, Velvet’s semblance is still one of the strongest as long as she’s able to keep stocked up on weapon photos.
2) Jaune’s Aura Amp
Jaune unlocked his semblance late, but he’s the ultimate support character with it (so far). His Aura Amp works about the way you’d expect it to, given the name. With it, Jaune can amplify the aura of himself or another character that he’s in contact with. This comes with the huge benefit of restoring aura, which saves Weiss from a wound that would likely be fatal otherwise since he can bolster her own body to manage the wound by giving her aura the power to start healing it. On top of that, Jaune can bolster the semblances of others. He’s the best possible support for both offense and defense as a result.
1) Snow glyphs
The only hereditary semblance that’s been included so far, the women of the Schnee family inherit the ability to summon glyphs. The glyphs themselves are insanely versatile, as you can see from Weiss alone. She uses them at various times to accomplish tasks like impacting gravity, speeding up her allies, and even summoning creatures to fight alongside her. It’s likely that Weiss and Winter will continue to showcase what their semblance can actually do as the show pivots back to the normal world after the events of volume 9. With its unique hereditary quality, the Schnee women are able to teach younger generations how to use their semblance, which is normally not the case.
RWBY should hopefully return with its next volume now that it’s found a new home with VIZ Media, and that gives you another chance to see new semblances. The next volume seems like it’ll be set in Vacuo, so the cast should get to meet new characters who are there to help in the fight against Salem as it grows increasingly intense and the stakes continue going up.
Were there any RWBY Semblances you feel deserved a spot on the list? Let us know in the comments below!
