Aura


 * For the World of Remnant episode of the same name, see Aura (WoR episode).

Aura is the manifestation of our soul. It bears our burdens and shields our hearts.



Aura is the manifestation of one's soul in the RWBY universe, and can be used for a wide range of abilities. The specific abilities and their strengths differ from individual to individual and are dependent on a number of factors, such as experience, training, and innate skill.

Description


Aura is an ability that all those with a soul can use, at least with enough practice. A person with a strong Aura may radiate bright colors when using it. Because Aura is the manifestation of the soul, it can appear very differently depending on who is using it. For example, the color of Aura differs from person to person: Pyrrha's looks red, Jaune's looks white, and Ren's appears to be a shade of purple.

It is mentioned that anything with a soul has an Aura, but Humans and Faunus seem to be the only beings able to weaponize it for their own protection. However, this fact has been recently subverted with the introduction of the first synthetic person able to generate an Aura in Penny Polendina. Skilled users of Aura can create their own barriers or even increase their own abilities in some way. Weapons and armor can also act as a conduit for Aura, allowing for an even wider range of offensive and defensive capabilities.

It has been shown that the strength of an Aura degrades with continual use. This limits the applications of Aura in combat as, with time or heavy use, a person's Aura will decay to the point where they are left weakened or even incapacitated. Aura being completely depleted is visually represented as a colored sheen passing along the length of a person's body, indicating that they can now be physically injured.

Abilities




Aura is a necessary energy source for all Huntsmen, being a powerful ally in battle. It is also required in order to trigger the use of Dust. Aura, as demonstrated by various characters, has the ability to do the following:
 * Defense: Demonstrated by Lie Ren in the Emerald Forest, and explained by Pyrrha Nikos. Aura is mainly used for defensive purposes. Ren used his to block the fangs of a King Taijitu that was attacking him. While users of Aura will not be hurt as long as their Aura is up, they can still feel sensations such as pain and heat.
 * Offense: Demonstrated by Ren in the forest, as he sends a shock wave of force propelling a fang through the snake's head, causing it to explode. Additionally Pyrrha has stated that all tools and equipment are conduits for a person's Aura.
 * Unlock Aura: One's Aura can be used to 'unlock' the Aura of someone else; as shown by Pyrrha, who unlocks Jaune Arc's Aura. Doing this appears to take a toll on the user however.
 * Healing: It also seems that those with a strong enough Aura can heal minor wounds. Jaune used this directly on a small cut after having his Aura unlocked. However it appears that the healing is automatic and not caused at will. It also seems to wear off after engaging in combat, as Jaune's injuries returned post-battle with an Ursa.

Other specific abilities, known as Semblances, appear to be unique to certain individuals. According to "Aura", the fourth installment of RWBY: World of Remnant, Semblance is the projection of Aura into a more tangible form. In "Extracurricular", it is learned that when a person uses their Aura, they can discover their Semblance afterwards.

Activation
It appears that Aura is able to manifest in different ways when in use and takes on the color of one's inner energy. It appears as a slight glow around the body.

It has been stated that the activation of an Aura requires training and willpower, though someone with considerable training can unlock the Aura of another person.

Capture


The Kingdom of Atlas has been performing serious scientific research into the nature and composition Aura. Their research has yielded experimental technology that is capable of "capturing" Aura from a person and transferring it to something or someone else.

The existence of this technology is highly classified, but many of those who do know of it see it as unnatural and wrong. Regardless, this technology was intended to play a key part in preventing the Fall Maiden power of the Amber, whose power is linked to Aura, from falling into the hands of Cinder Fall by unnaturally transferring the powers to Pyrrha. It is stated that were the plan successful, it might have unknown effects on Pyrrha's psyche and personal identity, merging them with that of Amber.

However, Cinder pre-empted the plan by killing Amber before the transfer could be completed.

Tournaments


In the episode "Jaunedice", it is revealed that Aura strength, as a proportion of maximum potential, can be electronically monitored and displayed on a scroll. This has enabled the development of a competitive sport amongst Huntsmen and others.

Because Aura can protect its user against some of the force of physical blows, it is possible to duel using fully combat-ready weapons without risking death or serious injury. Such tournaments are closely monitored by a referee and, should a combatant's Aura strength fall below a certain red-line where they may no longer be sufficient to protect their users, the match is automatically halted and the combatant with the highest Aura percentile remaining is declared the winner.

The duel between Jaune and Cardin Winchester proves that Aura does not provide 100% protection against concussive blows as Jaune is visibly hurt and left winded by a blow to the abdomen from his opponent's mace. However, Glynda Goodwitch halts the match before Cardin can strike again, indicating that Jaune's Aura at about 20% power would not stop another full-strength blow.

There is at least one known major international competitive tournament, the Vytal Festival, at which students at Beacon Academy are permitted to compete as representatives of the region of Vale. It is possible that the Mistral regional tournament, won by Pyrrha four years in a row, is another Tournament but this has not yet been explicitly confirmed on-screen.



These tournaments and practice duels have revealed that once a person's Aura goes below 15%, protection against fatal blows would no longer be guaranteed. This is why once Aura goes below 15%, contestants are immediately considered knocked out.

However, Aura may occasionally drop to 0% in matches, such as Weiss Schnee's during her fight against Flynt Coal. Mercury Black is also infamously injured by Yang Xiao Long after she attacks him when his Aura is depleted to 0%.

Trivia

 * It is stated by Pyrrha that only those who have souls are able to use Aura, even animals, meaning that creatures of Grimm are unable to use this ability as they lack a soul, and thus, an Aura.
 * It can be compared to Ki/Chi or Chakra in other media.
 * Miles Luna stated that he got the Aura monitor from the shield system in the Halo series. When one's Aura is low, the bar flashes red. The same goes for the shield used by the Spartans. A similar health system (also named "Aura") was later adopted for the RWBY game, RWBY: Grimm Eclipse.