Board Thread:Speculation House/@comment-25555436-20150628193417

So, I was playing Final Fantasy Type-0, about to finish the 1st playthrough. After stopping before the final mission, I thought about the 4 kingdoms in Type-0, each with a crystal named after the 4 chinese gods and based in different things. Then I remembered RWBY's Kingdoms.

So after some thinking, I think that each Type-0 kingdom may have an analogue of sorts in RWBY. While I doubt that was the intention of Monty, it could help us have a more close look to each kingdom (besides, this wouldn't kill). Let's begin:

1-First comes the Suzaku/Vermillion Bird Peristylium in Type-0. Their crystal grants them the ability to use Magic. It manifests in one's youth and decreases as they grow older, as a result many of the soldiers are teenagers and young adults (mostly improvised, they don't focus on military strength). What's the analogue to this one? Vale. Just switch "mage" to "Hunter".

While becoming weaker as they grow older is doubtful (thanks to Aura), both the Suzaku peristylium and Vale didn't focus on large armies but on groups of cadets, specialized cadets trained to the best of their capabilities (in Type-0 to become Agito/Messiahs, in Vale to become great Hunters). Most of the active Hunters shown so far are teenagers or young adults with great skill, and actively sent on missions, even hard ones. And also, thanks to Aura and Dust, Hunters can be Remnant's mages.

2-The Byakko/White Tiger Peristylium in Type-0. Their crystal granted them Magitek armor. In simple terms, big robots and great technological advancement. It's kingdom also has one of the, if not the strongest army in Type-0, and also one of the largest, following a more autocratic, military government. You know I'm talking about Atlas as well. Both possess the most advanced technology available, are military-focused, and have both number and strength advantage. Sure, Atlas also has Hunters, but it's not their focus, instead prefering to use soldiers, if possible robot soldiers to decrease casualties, supported by an almost-as-large number of machines, both aerial and terrestrial. They both seem to like the color White too.

However, these are the ones we know about so far. Which is why the rest is less theory and more assumption and conclusion.

3-The Genbu/Black Tortoise (with dragon head). In Type-0, not much is seen about it, as they are wiped out quickly with a mega-nuke. From what is seen about them however, they are strong, determined people that live in barren, deserted, rough environments. They show a noticeable amount of military strength, but unlike the Byakko Peristylium, it wasn't focused on higher technology or numbers, but on teamwork, military cohersion not unlike the ones shown by the ancient Greek and Roman empires.

Which is why I assume their analogue is Mistral. If Pyrrha and Neptune's names and weapon names are any indication, Mistral is based on, or at least gets any inspiration, from ancient Greco-Roman cultures. It's possible that Mistral, just like the Genbu Peristylium, places a greater emphasis on teamwork, especially to survive the rough environments and/or tougher Grimm. It is even reflected in 2 small, but possibly significant things:

-Pyrrha's speech, especially the last sentence: "....Infinite in distance and unbound by death, I release your soul, and by my shoulder, protect thee".

-Neptune and Pyrrha's weapon choices and personalities (this one leaning more towards Pyrrha). Neptune has a rather precise rifle that can turn into a trident and halberd/guan dao, a combination that allows him to be a pretty versatile companion perfectly capable of fighting alongside you or covering your back, nearby and far away. Personality wise, he, despite his cheap attempts and trying to look cool, seems like an honestly-nice guy and friend.

Pyrrha's weapon alternates between Rifle, Sword and Spear. Like Neptune's, this gives her a very versatile set, and thanks to her big shield and Semblance, she can easily fit almost-every possible role in a team with good-enough effectiveness, equally fighting alongside and protecting with effectiveness her allies. Personality wise, we know she's a caring girl that despite being painfully terrible at the love department, is perfectly willing to help others even if they are barely acquantainces with her.

4-The Soryu/Azure Dragon. In Type-0, the people of the Soryu Peristylium were granted by their crystal the capability of taming with ease the wild monsters, and as such they conform both a part of their daily lives and a great deal of their military. As there is no kingdom left, Vacuo would fall under this one, though it's the one closest to assumption compared to the others. And, no, I'm not saying people in Vacuo tame Grimm or anything, that is bullshit. (Though taming normal animals is fair game).

The idea of taming the beasts is symbolic; it doesn't mean humanity can control nature. It means humanity is one with nature. They have learned to live by it's rules, to take each of it's gifts and instead of crushing nature, they embrace it's laws to survive and prosper. Which I could make some assumptions for it to fit Vacuo.

Vacuo is described as a harsh area with people learning adapt to survive there. The name Vacuo also means "Isolation" in Latin, more or less. This could mean that Vacuo has been by itself longer than any other kingdom. In an area that compared to Vale, Atlas and Mistral, is considered tough. And yet, there they stand. How? Simple, the same way the american tribes survived for centuries before America was discovered. How? Embracing nature's gift.

They learned to follow nature's rules, to praise it's gifts instead of crying for it's dangers, and by adapting to nature's harsh heart, they have become just as tough as it, which is how they have survived for so long. The same applies here with Vacuo, with inferior technology compared to the other kingdoms as their tech only truly started getting noticeable development after contacting other nations. Their Hunters's choice for casual clothing may just be economical decision; why bother making uniforms for every single student? Why not just let them use whatever they want to wear? The result is the exact same thing: education, and it saves on money that way. 