Weiss

Weiss Schnee is a titular protagonist of RWBY. She is a Huntress, a former student of the now-defunct Beacon Academy, and former heiress of the Schnee Dust Company. Her weapon of choice is a Multi-Action Dust Rapier (MADR) named Myrtenaster.

As the former heiress of the vastly influential Schnee Dust Company, Weiss made her first appearance in the "White" Trailer. After enrolling in Beacon against the wishes of her father, Jacques Schnee, she becomes a member of Team RWBY alongside Ruby Rose, Blake Belladonna and Yang Xiao Long. Being the middle of the three Schnee siblings, Weiss is the younger sister of Winter Schnee and the older sister of Whitley Schnee.

Weiss is a pale-skinned young woman with pale blue eyes and long white hair that is often pulled back into an off-center ponytail or braid on the right side and pinned with a silver, icicle-shaped tiara. She stands at 4' 11" (1.5 meters), but typically wears heels that raise her height to 5' 3" (1.6 meters). Weiss has a scar which runs vertically down her left eye and face, gained during her battle against an Arma Gigas in the "White" Trailer.

During her attendance at Beacon, she wears a thigh-length strapless dress with a faint color gradation from white to pale blue at the hem. A small piece of black lace sits in the front of her neckline and the hem of the dress is scalloped and stitched to resemble snowflakes, with layers of white tulle under the skirt. Over this, she wears a bell-sleeved bolero with the same color gradation as her dress from shoulder to wrist, lined in red and with a ruffled collar. On the back of the bolero is the Schnee Crest.

She also wears a small apple pendant on a silver chain and thin, rectangular silver earrings. Her boots are white, wedged heeled, and higher at the back than the front. They have a small silver decoration across the top of the foot and are lined in red. A thin white sash is tied around her waist with a pouch attached to the back.

Monty Oum had said that everything has been decided for Weiss in her life and because of it, she is a bit of a rebel. This manifests itself in her physical appearance as she wears her ponytail to the side of her head, disrupting the symmetry of the rest of her outfit. When Professor Peter Port states that Weiss has received everything she wanted in life, she responds that it is not entirely true, thinking of her father's attitude. She takes pride in her name and the company, though, as seen when she first meets Blake, when she discusses it with her team in Mountain Glenn and when she confronts her father over it.

Considering the lyrics of her leitmotif "Mirror Mirror", it is very likely that Weiss has felt lonely throughout her life, which translated into a cold nature. Constant attacks by the White Fang added heavy strain to her life, explaining her often difficult personality. Her strict upbringing has also given her a tendency to keep quiet about her own desires, likely not to be seen as vulnerable. After warming up to people, she places a great deal of trust in her friends and confides in them when she feels the need. While she doesn't abandon her prickly attitude completely, she gradually becomes nicer and more compassionate to people, especially her friends.

According to her voice actress, Kara Eberle, Weiss is "nice but can also be a little bit bitchy." She is irritable and confident in her abilities, though also acknowledges her deficiencies and the need to hone her skills further. Her confidence in her skills and intellect often comes off as arrogance to others. This is also mentioned by Kara, who called her the "know-it-all" type of person who can also become best friends with her acquaintances.

Weiss takes her time at Beacon more seriously than her teammates, taking notes even when the topic is not related to the knowledge she seeks. She equates such dedication in the classroom with dedication in the field. Thus, she is annoyed at those who do not take things seriously, especially when it comes to becoming protectors against the Grimm. Weiss remains calm and tactical during encounters and mentally coaches herself. She is thoughtful and fights with precision and coordination.

After speaking with Professor Port, Weiss' attitude appears to change, as she takes his suggestion to "be the best person [she] can be" to heart. She opens up to Ruby, though she does not halt future criticisms. Weiss' development carries into her whimsical and humorous side as she joins her team in a food fight against Team JNPR and a board game. In "Painting the Town...", Weiss attempts to joke but is met with negative criticism from Yang and Blake. Weiss also enjoys planning and participating in certain events, such as the Beacon Dance.

Most notably, Weiss frequently utilizes Dust in battle. She has shown a preference for Ice Dust, only switching types if it provides her with an advantage, such as using Wind Dust against sonic-based attacks or creating certain types of glyphs such as black or time dilation glyphs. She has used Ice Dust to trap enemies, create a trail to push enemies from a height, create a slippery sheet of ice and form pointed ice chunks to use as projectiles.

Weiss' weapon of choice is Myrtenaster, a Multi-Action Dust Rapier. The rapier has a revolving chamber inside the guard, which has six slots in total, each of which contains a vial of powdered Dust. The revolving chamber is constantly stocked with red, cyan, purple, white, yellow, and blue Dust.

Weiss utilizes the Dust in combat, either in raw form or in conjunction with her Semblance to create various effects that suit the situation. When not using Myrtenaster as a Dust supplier, Weiss utilizes her speed to dodge attacks and her sword to deliver damage through quick thrusts that leave little room for counters.

Weiss has the Schnee family Semblance of Glyphs, allowing her to create glyphs that can be used in a variety of ways: create a slippery platform to skate on at high speed, generate midair platforms to manipulate her trajectory in the air and perform limited time dilation that can speed up actions, to name a few.