RWBY/Fanfic Recs

Proof that the remaining 10% is worth dying for.

These are recommendations made by Tropers for RWBY Fan Fics, all of which have been signed. After a few samples, you will be able to judge whether you might be interested in a certain 'fic, based on who recommended it.

Feel free to add a fanfic of your own to the list, but remember to use the template found below. Make sure you sign your recommendation! No-name recommendations may be deleted at other tropers' leisure. Do warn when a fanfic includes sexual situations. Some people just don't like it, and as we all know, Shipping is Serious Business. Likewise, warn if it may head into non-canon territory.

Discussion of the recommendation is welcome on the discussion page. As such discussion is important, do remember to add the discussion page to the watchlist, if need be.

Recommendations Template
Title of the Fanfic by Author OR Fic Trope Page, by Author (Link)
 * Recommended by: Troper Name
 * Synopsis: What's the story about? Give here a brief summary of the plot. It would be also useful to point out in what moment of the series the story takes place. If it's a Gen Fic but it has some romantic elements, note here the characters involved too.
 * Pairing(s): If it's a Shipping Fic, list here the pairings that feature in the fic (warn here if it's het, male slash or female slash). If it's a Gen Fic, remove this line. To tell the difference between the two, notice if the focus of the fic is on a romantic relationship or if it focuses on the other aspects of the story. In case of doubt, classify the story according to the genres it's been tagged: the Romance tag for Shipping, absence of that tag for Gen Fic.
 * Tags: If any are known. This would be things like WAFF, Lemon, Dark Fic, any Trigger Warnings, etc. This is also where you would put character names with Characterization Tags if doing so would be equally indicative.  ("uber!Harry" for Harry Potter, for instance.)
 * Comments: If you want to say something more about why you're recommending the fic, but please, keep it brief. We don't want Conversation in the Main Page.

Authors and Websites
The Works of Coeur Al'Aran
 * Recommended by: Looney Toons
 * As of this writing, Coeur Al'Aran is the author of 25 RWBY fics, some of which are listed below. A talented writer who actually releases on a set schedule and has completed most of his fics -- no Dead Fics here.  He is expert at taking an interesting idea -- Jaune opens a coffee shop instead of attending Beacon, RWBY set in an RPG Mechanics Verse, a dying Salem gives Jaune a Peggy Sue after Ozpin's Pyrrhic victory just to name three -- and spin them into enthralling, absorbing epics that keep you coming back for more.  Five stars, would read again.

General Fics
The Emergence series by Chris7221 (direct link)
 * Recommended by: Looney Toons
 * Synopsis: One by one, the girls from Team RWBY show up in the real world. What effect will this have on them, Remnant, and Earth?
 * Pairing(s): Ruby/OC, Yang/OC, Blake/OC, Weiss/Blake
 * Comments: A remarkably engrossing, innovative look at what might happen if "fictional" characters were to appear in the "real world", written with a keen eye for realistic reactions and developments. There are dark moments, but the story itself is overall optimistic—and deftly avoids falling into some of the classic cliches of the subgenre.  Highly recommended.

Extracurricular Activities by Moczo
 * Recommended by: Looney Toons
 * Synopsis: A pair of short, unrelated crackfics centered around Cinder Fall at Beacon during Volume 2.
 * Comments: Some of the earliest RWBY fic to appear, these two stories are howlingly funny. It's a shame the author never wrote more, as the ff.net description suggested was going to be the case.

Forged Destiny by Coeur Al'Aran
 * Recommended by: Looney Toons
 * Synopsis: In a version of Remnant that runs by the rules of a video game, where one's name and class appear over one's head for all to see, young Blacksmith Jaune Arc longs to be something other than what fate has decreed for him -- he wants to be a hero.  When he finds a strange amulet that changes what is displayed as his class, he takes the chance and heads to Beacon Academy for Heroes, and finds himself in the midst of a conflict that may plunge the world into war -- or worse.
 * Comments: A well-written, complex and thoroughly thought-out exploration of what it would be like to live in RPG Mechanics Verse, especially if you were an NPC (which here is a derogatory nickname used by heroes -- the abbreviation of "Needs Protecting Caste"). If I had one quibble with this otherwise excellent story is that it really doesn't need to be a RWBY fanfic. The setting is already sufficiently different that you could change all the names and publish it as an entirely original work.

Service with a Smile by Coeur Al'Aran (Fanfiction.net link)
 * Recommended by: Looney Toons
 * Synopsis: When Jaune Arc fails to get into Beacon Academy, he decides to take his tuition money and open a coffee shop/diner as an alternative to returning home in shame.  To his surprise, "Jaune's" becomes popular with not only the people in the neighborhood, but with Beacon students and the criminal underworld.  Jaune makes friends among all three groups, and even a finds a girlfriend among the staff of Junior's bar, and of a necessity, his shop becomes something of a neutral ground.  And despite all manner of trouble, ranging from competition from a major Starbucks-like chain to Grimm attacks, Jaune's continues to survive and prosper.  But when Jaune learns of and tries to avert the impending fall of Beacon, will he succeed, or just be another victim of Cinder's plans?
 * Paring(s): Jaune/Miltia(/Pyrrha?), Ruby/Mercury (teased)
 * Comments: Another well-written RWBY fic by Couer Al'Aran, centered on a very not-badass Jaune Arc who nonetheless manages to have an amazing impact on the world around him. From Ruby the night before his opening day to the customer who appears in the final moments of the fic, Jaune encounters and influences (both intentionally and not) many of the movers and shakers of Remnant, and the course of events changes thereby.  And all through it Jaune does what he's best at -- making a good cup of coffee especially for the particular customer, then talking and listening to them.  And wherever possible, doing his best to help.

Crossover Fics
Stories which crossover with other characters or works.

The Games We Play by rgm0005 (Fanfiction.net link)
 * Recommended by: Looney Toons
 * Crossover with: The Gamer
 * Synopsis: One morning, after 14-year-old Jaune Arc is rejected by Signal Academy again, strange things begin to happen: titles and levels suddenly appear above people's heads and menu screens begin to appear in his view, as if he was in a video game. And he has points to spend on his stats and skills...  Jaune soon realizes that his life for all practical purposes is a video game, and resolves to win it.  And before he knows it, he finds himself hip-deep in the mystery that is the lost past of Remnant, and the reasons the world is the way it is.
 * Comments: The Gamer is an obscure (as of late 2014) Manhua about a young man who suddenly discovers that his very real life now has a classic RPG interface—and rules that he can exploit. In this very well-written crossover, that young man is Jaune Arc, who finds that possessing the Gamer's Mind and the Gamer's Body might just make possible his greatest dream—to become a Huntsman like his parents.  But soon he discovers he was aiming a bit too low...  The Fanfiction.net page for this fic is not (yet) the whole thing, though—the entire, complete fic can be found at SpaceBattles.com.  If you don't mind reading what amounts to first draft-quality material, go here and get it all.  Fun, funny, and littered with Crowning Moments of Awesome—and better yet, the author has promised a sequel, to be called The Lies We Tell.

XCOM: RWBY Within by DrAmishMD
 * Recommended by Msq
 * Crossover with: XCOM: Enemy Unknown/Enemy Within with elements of the Long War Game Mod
 * Synopsis: A strange anomaly causes the members of Team RWBY to find themselves in the midst of Earth's full-scale alien invasion with no way of returning to Remnant.
 * Comments: A nicely-written fic that manages to justify the crossover between the two universes very well while incorporating XCOM's notorious difficulty and Anyone Can Die tendencies.

Princess by RavensDagger
 * Recommended by: Looney Toons
 * Crossover with: Worm
 * Synopsis: A dying Taylor arrives, amnesiac, in the Grimmlands, where Salem finds her and takes her in because she is "interesting". Giving her the name "Akelarre", Salem comes to regard her like a daughter (and Taylor/Akelarre returns the feeling).  Eventually she grows strong and confident enough to venture out of the Grimmlands and into the human nations... where she meets some familiar faces, makes some friends (and some not-friends), gets involved in events starting with the "Red" trailer, and eventually makes her way to Haven and Beacon Academy.
 * Pairing(s): Akelarre/Neo/Ruby/Velvet. No, really.
 * Tags: Surprisingly WAFF at times.
 * Comments: Well done, often funny crossover.

Shipping Fics
Stories whose primary focus is on romantic or sexual relationships between the cast.

None Yet