Cardin Winchester

Cardin Winchester is an attendee of Beacon Academy, and the leader of Team CRDL. His weapon of choice is a large, black mace.

He was first seen in the episode The First Step, in which he prepares to be launched into the Emerald Forest. In Players and Pieces, Cardin is made leader of Team CRDL.

Appearance
Cardin has burnt-orange hair that is combed backwards with a slight peak at the front and indigo eyes. He wears silver-gray armor with gold trim.

The chestplate sports a bird with its wings outstretched. Underneath the armor, he wears a black shirt with red trimmings and black pants with a red belt tied around his waist.

It should also be noted that Cardin is very tall. He stands at least a head above the rest of his teammates.

Personality
Cardin's personality can be compared to the classic stereotype of the "school bully". Such characters are often found in school dramas and teen movies. He and his team enjoy hurting and picking on others. This is shown when he picks on Velvet Scarlatina for being a Faunus, which could also reflect some prejudice and hate towards the humanoid species.

He is also shown to excessively pick on Jaune. In Jaunedice, Pt.2, Cardin further showed his racism and discrimination towards the Faunus by saying it is easier to train an animal than a soldier, which reflects on how he sees the Faunus as nothing but complete animals, leaving Professor Oobleck disappointed.

Cardin has shown to get offended quite easily, such as when he clenched his fists in anger when Blake Belladonna commented on General Lagune's failure, which is how he will be remembered by. This implies that Cardin may have looked up to, or approved of, General Lagune. However, it's possible that he was angered by Blake's remark about General Lagune not paying attention in class, a trait which he and Cardin have in common, being the cause of him being remembered as a failure.

Cardin is shown to be quite manipulative, as seen when he blackmails Jaune in order to have Jaune do his work. Cardin himself has proven to be quite cunning, shown when he calls Jaune a "friend", stating he wouldn't reveal his secret.

However, this may have been Cardin's way of getting Jaune to do everything for him, in return to not tell the secret, or a trick in fooling Jaune long enough until the secret is revealed. He also seems to be very lazy, as are his teammates, as they frequently ask Jaune for favors.

He is also shown to hold a grudge and may have a tendency to exact revenge on others by whatever means necessary, not caring about the consequences for the target. In Episode 13, he asks that Jaune bring him some Rapier Wasps the night before the field trip. He then has Jaune find some extra red sap while in the forest.

He plans to use both of these to get revenge on Pyrrha for humiliating him in a class by answering a question he could not. This may also show that he finds pleasure in hurting others, or having others hurt people they are close to. This can be seen with his constant teasing of Jaune, Velvet, and many others at Beacon. Cardin is also seen to be somewhat of a coward, almost just like the rest of his team.

Abilities
As of Jaunedice, he is shown to be physically superior to Jaune during their battle, as he overpowers him easily, able to swing his weapon one-handed and disarm Jaune's shield in one hit. His current weapon is a mace. However, he is overpowered by an Ursa in Forever Fall, Pt.2 while trying to escape He most likely would have been killed by the Grimm if not for Jaune's intervention.

Cardin is also rather opportunistic, as he quickly noticed an exploitable piece of info to use against Jaune.

Trivia

 * The inspiration for Cardin's name is Henry Beaufort, the Bishop of Winchester and a cardinal, who presided over the trial of Joan of Arc (namesake of Jaune Arc) prior to her being burnt at the stake. Miles Luna has commented that the inspiration for Cardin's name comes from history, rather than stories, lending further credence to this allusion.
 * In Episode 13, Cardin's number is shown to be 1374-BEAUFORT. Henry Beaufort was born in 1374.
 * The relics chosen by Team CRDL were the Black Bishop pieces.
 * In keeping with his team's bird-themed naming, his first name is likely also derived from the cardinal, an American bird species.