Bram Thornmane is the main antagonist and final boss of RWBY: Arrowfell. He is introduced as a guardian of the village of Essen at the end of the first chapter of the game. As the game progresses, his malicious intentions come to light, with the events of the game caused by his plot to overthrow James Ironwood.
Following a battle with Team RWBY, he was imprisoned by the Atlas Military. However, with the destruction of Atlas in “The Final Word”, his current status is unknown.
Appearance[]
Thornmane shares the red and white color scheme of many Atlas operatives such as the Ace-Ops, though rather than a primary color of white, his outfit is primarily red. He has a very formal appearance, wearing a red jacket with golden accents, and golden brooches on his shoulders. The left brooch holds a golden chain connected the lapel of his jacket. Beneath the jacket is a black vest with gold accents tucked in beneath his beige slacks. Under the vest is a white dress shirt and a darker red tie.
Personality[]
When Team RWBY first encounter him, Thornmane is initially shown to act noble and caring towards the people of Essen, telling Team BRIR to leave since they were done with paying them for protection. He was also helpful towards Team RWBY since he took the mysterious device off their hands and recommended they consult with Atlas Military Lieutenant Colonel Olive Harper to learn more about it.
In truth however, Thornmane is the leader of a conspiracy against General James Ironwood due to him not being chosen as a member of the Ace Operatives. Thornmane was revealed to be a manipulative individual due to threatening Hanlon Fifestone to work with him and tricking Team BRIR into believing that Team RWBY were the ones actually behind stealing the orbs from Fort Arrowfell. He is also shown to laugh after attacking and let's his guard down, something Team RWBY take advantage of in order to defeat him. Right before he is defeated by the team, he revealed that he wanted to join the Ace Operatives so he could be seen as a hero and admired by the people, revealing that he is a glory seeker in the process.
Thornmane was also an observant judge of character, as he seemingly noticed Ironwood's deteriorating mental state before anyone else, stating that it would only be a matter of time before the rest would notice as well. Though due to his hatred towards Ironwood, it is unknown if he truly noticed or simply stated it in anger due to being captured and arrested, but his words later became true when Ironwood decided to abandon Mantle and later planned on destroying it.
History[]
Thornmane was once a student of Atlas Academy and trained under James Ironwood in the hopes of becoming an Ace Operative. This did not work out for him, as Ironwood rejected him due to not having a strong enough Semblance. He departed the academy sometime after, resentful toward Ironwood due to the rejection.
He spent some time as a Huntsman before retiring to live in the village of Essen where he acted as the village's guardian.
Over time, his resentment towards Ironwood eventually grew into a conspiracy to show him in a bad light to the public using technology from the abandoned Atlesian Military base Fort Arrowfell. Among the individuals involved with the conspiracy were Huntresses Team BRIR, Lieutenant Colonel Olive Harper, Mantle union leader Hanlon Fifestone, and Amoncio Glass, a member of the Atlesian elite.
RWBY: Arrowfell[]
Thornmane is first seen after Team BRIR kill the Megoliath around Essen after Team RWBY weaken it. After this, he tells Team BRIR that he already said for them to never come back due to not wanting to deal with them harassing the people for payment. After they leave, Thornmane introduces himself to Team RWBY and tells them about Team BRIR being rouge Huntresses who only protect people in exchange for payment. He also learns that they have a strange orb-like device that could apparently attract the creatures of Grimm. Under the guise of assisting them and due to not wanting his plot to be discovered so soon, Thornmane takes the device off of Team RWBY's hands and directs them to his mole in the Atlas Military, Olive Harper, to assist them with uncovering what the device is as they leave.
Following this, Thornmane met with Team BRIR again and framed Team RWBY as the ones who stole the orbs from Fort Arrowfell.
After Team RWBY defeat Amoncio Glass in Downtown Atlas, Thornmane is shown in Ironwood's office as Harper tells Ironwood what just transpired as Team RWBY return. As everyone present discuss the situation, they come to the conclusion that Glass got the Atlas Military Technology from someone currently in the military with Thornmane and Harper keeping it secret that the latter was the one that gave it to him. They also realize that the person who has been extracting emotions to power the orbs was Mantle's most celebrated union leader Hanlon Fifestone as they leave Team RWBY to deal with him.
Once Thornmane is revealed to be the mastermind behind the conspiracy, he and Harper retreat to Fort Arrowfell in order to deal with Team RWBY and the Atlas Military. When Team RWBY reach him, they engage in battle until Thornmane is defeated. He is then restrained by Atlas Soldiers after learning that Team BRIR and Olive abandoned him. Before being arrested, Thornmane yells at Ironwood that it wouldn't be too long before the people see who he really was.
Powers and Abilities[]
Weapon[]
Thornmane wields a silver bow that can be split into two daggers, similar to Cinder Fall's Midnight. His weapon allows him to fire arrows in multiple directions and can even remote control certain arrows he fires.
Semblance[]
Thornmane's Semblance seemingly allowed him to dash as fast speeds and control the arrows that he fired from his weapon.
Trivia[]
- His first name Bram is a shortened version of the word bramble, which is a type of green vine. His last name Thornmane references the thorns on vines as well.
- It's implied by Harper that one of the reasons Ironwood didn't choose Thornmane as a member of the Ace-Ops was due to his problematic personality.
- Thornmane's last words in the game foreshadow how Ironwood would end up becoming an antagonist at the end of Volume 7.
- His ability to amplify his speed and control the trajectory of his arrows is very reminiscent of Coco Adel's Semblance, "Hype".