- For the other uses of "Vale", see Vale.
Vale is one of the four kingdoms of Remnant and considered a safe haven from the Grimm. Like the other three kingdoms, Vale is governed by a ruling council to represent and see to its people's needs.
Vale is the primary setting for the first three Volumes of RWBY.
Geography
Vale's natural defenses: mountains protecting the front and shallow waters at its back
Vale is located on the northeastern end of Remnant's largest continent, Sanus. It is bordered to the northwest by shallow waters and to the southeast by steep mountains. These geographic features make Vale a place of relative safety.
The Vale region is known to contain the City of Vale and several coastal cities, as well as Patch, a small island to the west. Beacon Academy, one of the four main Huntsman Academies of Remnant, is located in the City of Vale, while Signal Academy is located on the island of Patch.
An attempt to expand the reach of the region to the southeast resulted in the ill-fated extension Mountain Glenn. Other areas of interest include the Forever Fall Forest and the Emerald Forest. The island of Vytal is situated to the north of the kingdom.
History
Due to the natural barriers of shallow waters to the west and mountains to the east, Vale has managed to endure the onslaught of Grimm and become a beacon of safety in Remnant.
Vale, represented during the Great War by the green figure wielding a sword
Around eighty years before the beginning of the series, a massive ten-year conflict, simply known as the Great War, came to an end. In this conflict, Vale and Vacuo fought Mantle and Mistral. Throughout the century leading up to the Great War, Vale disliked the behavior of Mistral and Mantle. This behavior included the treatment of their own citizens, their use of slavery, their abolishment of the arts and self-expression and their insistence that their way of life was best for everyone.
Eventually, Vale and Mistral both set their sights on settling the small islands and peninsulas on the east coast of Sanus. The king of Vale, in an effort to avoid conflict, decided to share the land with Mistral's settlers, but his citizens disagreed with this choice. A riot broke out between two bands of settlers and devolved into the first battle of the Great War. Due to a prior alliance, Mantle quickly came to Mistral's aid, and for a while, Vale fought them alone, on both Sanus and Anima soil. Vale's enemies pushed for Vacuo to join the war on their side. However, fearing they would be conquered if Vale fell, Vacuo pushed all Mantle and Mistral presence out of their territory and allied themselves with Vale.
During the war, Grimm attacks increased worldwide, and as a result, Vale lost many of its settlements to the creatures, some of which were never reclaimed.
Vale's king at the end of the final battle
The Great War finally came to an end with the deadliest battle in the war's history, when Mistral and Mantle attempted to take Vacuo's Dust mines to cut off Vale and Vacuo's supply. In the ensuing battle, the king of Vale personally led his army alongside Vacuo's. It is said that he laid waste to countless men, thus earning him the nickname the Warrior King. Historians state this to be nothing more than grandiose hyperbole and suggest that this feat was aided by the unusually violent weather and Mantle's inexperience in desert combat.
With the war over, the leaders of the four kingdoms gathered on neutral ground on the island of Vytal to form a treaty and plan the future of Remnant. There, all four kingdoms' governments were restructured, their territories were redistributed, the tradition of the Vytal Festival was begun and the king of Vale founded the Huntsman Academies. Vale's academy, Beacon, was secretly given a Relic to safeguard, and the king of Vale placed one of his most trusted followers in command of the school. As a gift from Atlas, a tower for the Cross Continental Transmit System was set up on Beacon's campus, enabling communication between Vale and the other Kingdoms.
Mountain Glenn was destroyed by Grimm
Sometime before the events of the series, an attempt was made to expand the city of Vale to the southeast, creating a suburb known as Mountain Glenn. However, the attempt proved disastrously unsuccessful when repeated Grimm attacks destroyed the settlement and killed its residents. The failed expansion was sealed off from the rest of the Kingdom. The failure of Mountain Glenn is generally attributed to its lacking the natural defenses of Vale, but the involvement of Merlot Industries was also a factor.
Eighty years after the end of the Great War, the Kingdom of Vale was the host of the 40th Vytal Festival. Due to sabotage, the Festival ended in disaster and the destruction of Beacon Academy and the Cross Continental Transmit tower in Vale. Beacon Academy became overrun with Grimm, and the presence of a petrified Grimm dragon drew in even more Grimm. This made attempts at retaking the campus and repairing the Cross Continental Transmit tower difficult. During the several months between the end of Volume 3 and beginning of Volume 4, Vale's council voted to ban all air traffic not associated with evacuation. In "Of Runaways and Stowaways", a news network reported that Vale's council voted to continue the ban.
Trivia
- As of Volume 3, the kingdom is represented by the color green in the World of Remnant episodes. Vytal Festival tournament contestants from Vale also have Aura monitors with a green background.
Image Gallery
Maps
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Official Graphics
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