Raven Branwen

"The weak die. The strong live. Those are the rules."

- Raven talking to her brother Qrow. "You won't find it. Because Vernal isn't the Spring Maiden. I am!"

- Raven revealing she is the Spring Maiden.

Raven Branwen is a major antagonist in the American web cartoon series RWBY. She is the mother of Yang Xiao Long, the twin sister of Qrow Branwen, the leader of the Branwen Tribe, and was a member of Team STRQ. She is also the true Spring Maiden.

Taiyang states Raven had a very direct approach, and saw traits that their daughter inherited. Taiyang also revealed that Raven had a number of unspecified faults that greatly contributed to the dissolution of Team STRQ.

She is voiced by Anna Hullum.

Appearance
Raven wears a shallow cut black and red dress, five necklaces with an assortment of beads, a red girdle-belt, and a pair of matching gauntlets. She wears gloves in Volume 2, but in Volume 4 onward she wears fingerless gloves.

An object that looks to be made from feathers hangs from the right side of her skirt. She also wears detached black leggings with a red splatter pattern in Volume 2, but in Volume 4 onwards her leggings are solid black. Under her leggings she wears black boots, which have red high heels and soles. Her most distinctive feature is a fearsome, full-face mask that resembles the face of a Creature of Grimm. The mask has four eye slits, further enhancing the character's inhuman appearance. In Volume 2, Raven's eyes are visible through the lower slits, but in Volume 5, the slits are black and red inside.

Under the mask, she looks very similar to Yang, sharing the same facial shape, though her hair is more ravenous and black with red highlights, her eyebrows are a little bit higher, her complexion is significantly lighter and there are slight age lines under her eyes. Raven's eye color is the same shade of red that Yang's shifts to when enraged. Her hair is loosely done up in a ponytail, tied by a red shawl, with the ends resembling curved black feathers.

Personality
"You’re right. I don’t know you. I only know the Raven dad told me about. She was troubled, and complicated, but she fought for what she believed in, whether it was her team or her tribe! Did you kill her too?"

- Yang to Raven. During a conversation with Yang, Qrow calls his sister a dangerous person whose worldview clashes with his own. Nevertheless, in "No Brakes", Raven saves Yang's life from Neo but later has Qrow warn her daughter not to expect any "further kindness."

In "Family", it is revealed that she has a "survival of the fittest" mentality and, despite having graduated from Beacon Academy as a Huntress, has little issues with taking lives of the innocent or even that of other Huntsmen, indirectly or otherwise. Raven is more serious than her brother and is somewhat demanding, focusing on her mission over family ties. She sees Qrow as a traitor for leaving their tribe. Additionally, Raven is a cynic who claims to have foreseen Ozpin's failure to protect Beacon from its destruction. She believes that Ozpin is not the man her daughter thinks he is and condemns those who trust him, such as Qrow, Ruby and even Taiyang.

In "Two Steps Forward, Two Steps Back", Tai reveals Raven was stubborn during her academy days, had a very direct approach and saw strength as all-important in a fight, traits that her daughter inherited. He adds that Raven was ambitious and gave her all to whatever cause she saw as just. Taiyang also revealed that Raven had unspecified faults that greatly contributed to the dissolution of Team STRQ.

Raven has a penchant for patronizing others. She acts condescendingly toward Weiss and Yang in "Known by its Song" and toward Cinder's group in "A Perfect Storm". Raven credits others' success with their relation to her, especially with Yang after she could handle the trap set at Haven Academy.

Raven's intellect and skill is apparently infamous. Cinder states she has heard numerous stories of her strong and clever reputation before trying to rob Vernal's supposed Maiden powers, only to discover Raven had managed to fool her, for she is the true Spring Maiden.

After defeating Cinder in "Downfall", Raven shows a softer side, taking the time to close the deceased Vernal's eyes and thank her for her service. This side of her is further shown in "Haven's Fate", in which she and Yang share an emotional conversation. After Yang calls Raven out for her cowardice in refusing to fight Salem and for showing a callous indifference to her own daughter's well-being, Raven once more begs Yang to stay out of the war against Salem, to which Yang refuses. Raven subsequently breaks down in tears, her love for her daughter finally showing itself. Raven tearfully apologizes to Yang before departing in her corvid form.

Sword
When Raven connects the hilt with the scabbard, she can switch to a different Dust blade, or if the hilt does not have a blade, she can replace the blade. The Dust blades can also be broken after they have sustained too much damage, prompting her to switch to a new Dust blade during combat.

The scabbard is also capable of ejecting the sword with the press of a button.

Raven is able to create a much larger sword through magic using her Maiden powers that does not use the hilt of her normal sword. It retains the style of blade used in her normal swords, a single edged blade reminiscent of a Japanese katana. The blade she creates in the fight against Cinder Fall is made entirely of ice.

Semblance
Raven's Semblance allows her to create portals to people she has bonded with. So far, Raven has a bond with at least her brother Qrow Branwen, fellow tribe member Vernal, her former teammate and lover Taiyang Xiao Long and her daughter Yang Xiao Long. The portal takes on the appearance of an ovular shape consisting of swirling black and red energy. Her Semblance is first seen in "No Brakes" when she drops from a portal into the train car that Yang and Neopolitan are in. After scaring Neo away, she creates another, longer-lasting portal and slowly exits through it.

Her portals can be created in both horizontal and vertical orientation, and they can be maintained for extended periods of time.

Quotes
"Yang, we have a lot to talk about."

- Raven, to Yang Xiao Long. "I told you Beacon would fall and it did. I told you Ozpin would fail and he has."

- Raven, to Qrow.

"I lead our people now. And as leader I will do everything in my power to ensure our survival."

- Raven, declaring what she cares about most.

"I think… we just hit the jackpot."

- Raven capturing Weiss.

"You were patient, determined, and strong enough to make your dream a reality. Well done, Yang."

- Raven, proud of Yang finding her.

"Family. Only coming around when they need something."

- Raven about family.

"You know, it takes real strength to march in here and demand such a favor of me. I’ve got to say, I’m impressed."

- Raven on Yang's request of her.

"Ozpin is not the man you think he is. And Qrow is a fool for trusting him. I would know, I trusted him once, too."

- Raven warning Yang about "the man behind the curtain".

"If you’re really going after your sister, then you need to know the truth."

- Raven's request of Yang as the episode ends.

"Not all of them. Some people are just in it for the money and the fame, but there’s even more that are just looking to grow stronger. Your Uncle Qrow and I didn’t attend Beacon to become Huntsmen, we did it to learn how to kill Huntsmen."

- Raven, explaining her and Qrow's reason why they attended Beacon to Weiss and Yang.

"I’m giving you a choice. Stay here, with me, and I’ll answer all your questions and more. We can have a fresh start. Or… you can go back to Qrow and join Ozpin’s impossible war against Salem, and meet the same fate as so many others. But can you really go back to trusting someone that’s kept so much from you?"

- Raven, gives Yang a difficult choice to choose from.

"Yang. If you side with your uncle, I may not be as kind the next time we meet…"

- Raven's warning to Yang before watching Yang and Weiss entering her portal.

"I’m not helping Salem, I’m not helping Oz! I don’t want a part in any of this!"

- Raven, to Cinder.

"Of course not. They’ll never leave us alone. Once our purpose has come and gone, we’ll be discarded. Salem only uses people until they are no longer useful. If we want to have any chance of defending ourselves against her, then we need this Relic. If Qrow and those brats want to follow Ozpin, then let them. When the chaos reaches its peak, we’ll grab the Relic and make our escape."

- Raven, to Vernal.

"Man up! You did what you had to do to survive, there is no shame in that."

- Raven, to Lionheart.

"Leo did what any sane person would in his position - he looked at all the information he had in front of him, assessed the situation, and made a choice."

- Raven, defending Leo's betrayal of Qrow.

"You sound just like your mother."

- Raven, dismissing Ruby's heartfelt plea for working together.

"You turned yourself into a monster just for power."

- Raven, to Cinder.

"If you were stronger or more clever, then maybe… you’d remember to watch your back!"

- Raven, to Cinder.

"It’s not that simple. You don’t know me, you don’t know what I’ve been through, the choices I’ve had to make!"

- Raven to Yang.

"I’ve stared death in the face over and over again! And every time I’ve spat in that face and survived, because I’m strong enough to do what others won’t!!"

- Raven to Yang.

"Who do you think you are lecturing me?! Standing there, shaking like a scared little girl?!"

- Raven, to Yang.

Trivia

 * "Branwen" is Welsh, meaning "blessed white raven/crow", which corresponds to her first name. Raven can refer to a number of bird species in the genus Corvus, or in reference to the color black.
 * As well as the fact that their first names, Raven and Qrow (crow), are both black birds in the genus Corvus. Specifically, ravens are a type of crow.
 * During the scene where Yang talks about her search for Raven and being saved by her uncle Qrow in "Burning the Candle", the text on the chalkboard (enlarged) is an extract from a poem about Huginn and Muninn, two ravens from Norse mythology. The text supposedly reads:
 * Hugin and Munin fly each day over the spacious earth.
 * I fear for Hugin, that he not come back, yet more anxious am I for Munin.
 * In Volume 2's post-credits scene, Yang meets Raven, who removes her mask. Raven then tells Yang that they have a lot to talk about, as the screen cuts to black, ending the Volume. However, after the death of series creator Monty Oum and the departure from the previously planned storyline, this scene was later confirmed to not be canon. In continuity, is presumably now a vision or dream.
 * She wears the same necklace as Neopolitan and Coco Adel. Incidentally, she faced off against the former before she retreated.
 * Her mask appears to be a more elaborately-styled version of the Grimm Masks worn by the White Fang.
 * Notably, her mask and feathered hair give her an appearance markedly similar to a Nevermore, likely referencing her name.
 * The red and black portal Raven uses is visually similar to the one created by Cinder's glove in "Beginning of the End". A similar looking portal is seen in both the Volume 1 and Volume 3 Opening animations.
 * In the Japanese dub, she was voiced by Megumi Hayashibara.