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as a series, RWBY has many traits that have helped make it one of the most unique and successful properties to come out of the YouTube era. One of the more subtle ones is the series focus on “teams.”



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Teams inside RWBY were originally a way for the series’ schools to force students to learn acting in tight-knit squads. But as the series progressed, these teams provided the perfect excuse for bombastic ensemble battles and complex character relationships. Whether it’s their teamwork and synergy or their raw individual strength, some of these teams end up posing a much greater threat.

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7 Team FNKI

Mainly seen during the ‘vytal festival’ tournament, this team consists of Flynt Coal, Neon Katt, Kobalt and Ivori. The last two members haven’t shown much of their abilities, but the team as a whole has put in a respectable performance throughout the series.

They made their way through the vytal festival tournament, before being defeated by team RWBY, but put in a strong performance. The team later joined the Atlas army, probably received much more training, and eventually joined the battle of Atlas as ground forces.

6 Team CFVY

One of the lesser seen teams in the original RWBY series, team CFVY nevertheless made a big impression during their 2 big appearances in the vytal festival tournament and the fall of Beacon Academy. The team consists of Coco Adel, Fox Alistair, Velvet Scarlatina and Yatsuhachi Daichi.

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Of the few that could be seen, Coco and Velvet were the real stars. Coco’s fashion sense and minigun weaponry make her stand out the most, and Velvet’s ability to copy other weapons and fighting styles is extremely interesting. Although not seen on the show for a long time, they did shine as the main characters of the RWBY spin-offsRWBY: After the fall and RWBY: Before the dawn, help shut down a semblance-obsessed group known as ‘The Crown’.

5 Team JNPR

Originally made up of Jaune Arc, Nora Valkyrie, Pyrrha Nikos and Lie Ren, team JNPR has struggled ever since. RWBY part 3, when they lost their strongest member, Pyrrha. After the death of Pyrrha and the fall of Beacon, the team had a bit of an identity crisis, but since then every member has come into their own.

While Pyrrha had the advantages of a strong appearance and a lot of experience, the rest of the team is nothing to rummage around. Nora, in particular, is a tough butcher who seemingly makes her absorb and redirect electricity to further increase her raw strength. Jaune and Ren are less powerful fighters, but the strong utility provided by their appearances helps the team stay strong even in non-combat situations.

4 Team RWBY

The titular team of the series, this team consists of Ruby Rose, Weiss Schnee, Blake Beladonna and Yang Xiao Long. Despite a difficult start, the 4 main protagonists of the series have grown into a strong and reliable unit with great teamwork and great individual strength.

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Despite being the youngest member, Team Leader Ruby is a child prodigy with a talent for crafting weapons and uses them with great success. Combined with Yang’s enduring brawl, Weiss’s powerful summons, and Blake’s elusive disturbances, they’ve managed to take down villain after villain and become truly powerful and reliable fighters.

3 The Ace Ops

By far the most professionally trained and experienced team in RWBY, the Ace-Ops were a recent but good addition to the series’ lineup. Most of all, they work as great examples for team RWBY to strive for and ultimately overcome.

They consist of Clover Ebi, Vine Zeki, Elm Ederne, Harriet Bree and Marrow Amin. Marrow is the least experienced member, but even he has a semblance that can freeze opponents in place. The other members combine strong similarities such as Clover’s Good Fortune and skillful teamwork to accomplish any mission they are tasked with. Although they eventually lost to team RWBY, this was a weakened state after losing their leader Clover

2 Cinder’s team

While probably not a traditional team, Cinder’s main team has attended Beacon for a while and has been a consistent antagonistic unit throughout the story. In between their many appearances, they have consistently kept the heroes in check, both strategically and physically.

Cinder herself is a magical virgin and a strong fighter, and with the help of Emerald and Mercury, it took several seasons before she saw real defeat. Emerald’s illusion powers make it especially hard on their opponents, and Mercury is strong enough to compete with even hard hitters like Pyrrha and Yang.

1 Team STRQ

While this team is long gone by the time the series begins, most of the members are still present in the story, providing insight into how strong they were together. The team consisted of Summer Rose, Taiyang Xiao Long, Raven Branwen and Qrow Branwen. 3 of them are parents of Ruby and Yang form team RWBY.

Raven and Qrow are the best-known members of the team and have collected many accolades in their lifetime. STRQ were star students of Beacon Academy, as was team RWBY, and the Branwen twins performed so well that they were invited into Professor Ozpin’s inner circle. Raven even earned the right to become one of the 4 virgins. Qrow and Taiyang also trained Ruby and Yang to use their respective weapons, placing them at the “skilled master” level as characters such as Avatar: The Last Airbenderis Iroh.

While they may never have been shown at full power, it’s hard to imagine anyone taking out team STRQ at its best.

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