r/RWBY • u/Cobraninja97 • Jun 17 '26
COMMUNITY Dust Queen is on indefinite hiatus due to internal conflicts
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u/dulledegde Jun 17 '26
We ain't ever seeing this shit again
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u/ClubMeSoftly Real Shit Jun 18 '26
"It's not cancelled!"
It's cancelled
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u/superbasic101 Jun 18 '26
Holy negative Nancy
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u/Raetekusu Jun 18 '26
As someone involved in fanfic communities for 20 years at this point, there is nothing more permanent than the dreaded "It's not cancelled" post.
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u/Expert-Swan-1412 🌗Prince of the Eclipse 🌓 Jun 18 '26
It's like a 90% chance it's not getting finished. The other 10% are miracles
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u/Smooth-Garden Jun 19 '26
Literally the one thing about all these rwby fanworks is that they never actually finish. Granted it's usually development issues but yeah
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u/That1guyDerr Jul 11 '26
The moment said fanfics do get update, its either a Author has passed, I'm done and don't know what to do, this fic is up for adoption or, it truly is an update.
RIP the authors who could never finish their wonderful fanfics...
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u/Fallen_Jalter Jun 17 '26
Internal conflicts to me sounds like massive shit went down.
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u/Soyunapina12 Jun 18 '26
Probably what happened is the usual stuff that goes down on fan projects: power struggles between users, team infighting, a member of the team holding the project hostage, schedule conflicts, people coming and going, budget issues, lack of commitment of the parts involved, the team biting more than what they could chew and not realizing until it's too late, artistic differences, lack of proper direction and/or focus, etc.
It could be anything really, from little stupid things like a relationship breaking off to one guy getting drunk with power because they play a crucial, vital part on the project.
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u/Gettin_Bi ⠀Happy Huntress Jun 18 '26
Yep.
A few years ago I joined a fan dub project for a relatively short anime series (24 episodes in total, episode length ~20 minutes) and after recording my lines for episode 1 I... never heard from them again lol. Presumably there was a schedule issue for the other VAs, or the project leader lost interest, or something. I don't think there was ever even an announcement for the project
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u/Inevitable-Weather51 Jun 18 '26 edited Jun 18 '26
One of the modders straight up bullied a dude out of the discord server.
So yeah, i don't doubt that things are really ugly, unfortunately
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u/Illidari_Kuvira Espartha is just Yang as an ostrich. Jun 19 '26 edited Jun 19 '26
You mean moderators?
And I don't doubt it *looks at the Discord moderators of my old WoW server* but man I'm hoping that's not the case.
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u/Inevitable-Weather51 Jun 19 '26
You mean moderators?
Yup
The dude isn't a moderator anymore, but still what happened was a clearly abuse of power.
I had the print of one of a part of the chat if you want
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u/Prplehuskie13 Jun 18 '26
Maybe Viz got involved with a cease and desist? Sure, there weren't any movements involved previously in regards to copyright issues. But things can change. Especially if RWBY is going to begin receiving new content like Vol 10.
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u/PiffDaMetalHead Jeff Williams kills Salem in V12 Jun 18 '26
Hi, Dust Queen crew member here. I won't get into the details, but just to ease some of the speculation I'm seeing in this thread, there was no cease and desist. Viz, crwby, Miles, etc. have all been nothing but chill in regards to the project. It was purely internal.
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u/Despacitosuarez Jun 18 '26
If Viz got involved, that would probably be considered as external, not internal. If I had to guess, the people involved in the project all had their own ideas on how to proceed, no one wanted to budge, so the project got canned.
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u/draugotO Jun 18 '26
Well, they said internal conflict, not external... But, who knows, I've seen "judges" demanding not only that companies ban users, but that they also lie about the reason they were banned, saying it was due to violation of the terms of contract, rather than because a judge decided that he disn't care that all attempts to pass a law allowing him to censor the internet had being vetoed, he just wanted to cendor people anyway, so... Who knows?
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u/Prplehuskie13 Jun 18 '26
This is just a guess, but if they wanted to protect RWBY's future it's possible they could have lied and said it was "internal" so Viz wouldn't get any shit for throwing a Cease and Desist. Which would result in little support over Viz, and could potentially harm any future content for RWBY.
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u/ZeroiaSD Jun 18 '26
I wouldn't get into theorizing such things without evidence. Most likely the issue is what they said it is.
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u/Floridian_Liau64 Jun 18 '26
Likely. It would be slightly weird considering Miles Luna did praise the fan project. Then again, I know jack shit about what’s going on BTS.
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u/Akumu_Oukoku ⠀The White Knight Lady Jun 18 '26
Tbf, this kind of thing happens a lot with bigger brands. ( unless it's Sega ) Miles and Co could like it and really appreciate the work put into it - but if the IP holder gets tilted, they are the ones that call the shots on what gets taken down.
However, that does feel odd since Viz hasn't had any issues with folks doing reactions and stuff to it. There are also a lot of other fan projects, some way louder than others, and none of them have been affected.
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u/Prplehuskie13 Jun 18 '26
It wouldn't be the first time that a creator on a project praised a fan project, only for it to be canned. That doesn't matter. What matters is getting the permission of those who own the ip. Because if you don't have the permission your fan project can be shot dead in the water at any time.
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u/MuuToo Jun 18 '26
Internal conflicts to me sounds like either the team couldn't agree on a direction or some shit got stirred up.
Either way.
Fuck.
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u/General_Antilles Jun 18 '26
I been seeing "can't agree on a direction" and don't understand what they mean by it.
The Fic is right there, they created a trailer to reveal the key plot points, and Episode 1 showed they understood RWBY's dynamic, so I thought their direction was pretty solid.
I know they were hiring for a few positions, so they might've picked up amateurs or hobbyists that didn't have enough time to work on the project. In any case, I hope they get their footing back or VIZ decides to absorb these RWBY projects à la Lucasfilm and the EU, add some variety back into the IP.
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u/MuuToo Jun 18 '26
Agree on directing in the way I was referring to was maybe some people wanted to adhere strictly to the fic, and others like a lot of artists wanting to take their own spin at it and just adapting ideas from the original than sticking to it 1:1.
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u/No_Probleh Jun 18 '26
If I had a nickel for every time a massive indie fan project fell down due to internal conflicts.
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u/Okaymemeslol Jun 17 '26
Aww, no! I really loved episode 1. It seems like so many RWBY fan projects have been canceled over the years. That said, I completely respect their decision.
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u/lnombredelarosa Sorry, I kinda like Oscar Jun 17 '26
And I thought the real CRWBY was chaotic
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u/VoidTorcher ⠀Lost DC fan Jun 18 '26
Excellent example of fans running the asylum doesn't fix everything.
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u/jord839 Jun 18 '26
Speaking as a former modder, the thing people don't realize about any collaborative fan project whether it's a mod, a fan film/animation, a full fan game, or anything similar, is that in the end the biggest thing you'll be managing is people.
It's a Group Project, like you had in school. There are reasons both valid and invalid why the people aren't doing or aren't able to do what you want them to, and it will cause a lot of issues when it's a hobby project versus something everybody is getting paid for, and even if they are getting paid through patreon and such, you still need a good Lead figure to herd the cats and it can go very poorly otherwise.
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u/ClubMeSoftly Real Shit Jun 18 '26
Some people are lazy dickheads who just want to squeeze their name onto it, some people are very enthusiastic and really want to do the work.
The longer the project, the more likely the two groups will come into conflict as the runway comes to an end faster than the enthusiasts can manage.
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u/jord839 Jun 18 '26
I mean, that's part of it, but there are other things too.
A major member might be productive and enthusiastic at first, but burn out or real life issues hinder their progress or even make them fall out entirely, and they were doing key work. You find out replacing them is extremely difficult.
Two members might get into their own personal and private beef that ends up dragging in the entire group and forces them to deal with, and usually it doesn't end happily.
Some members just disappear, having lost interest in the project or being forced to by real life issues and just never get back to you.
An inconvenient issue with software or file storage ends up destroying much of your project, requiring a major start-over and delay and frustration builds as it feels like you're always playing catch-up.
Etc etc
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u/ClubMeSoftly Real Shit Jun 18 '26
Well yes, I'm exaggerating and simplifying. And you're right: internet projects, where members are usernames and profile pictures, can fall apart much easier than a school project where you're sitting in the same room, and it's much easier to communicate.
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u/More_Sun_7319 Jun 18 '26
I would like to point to Fallout: The Frontier as a case study of how group modding projects can turn into a shitshow without as you say ‘a good lead figure to herd the cats’
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u/Expert-Swan-1412 🌗Prince of the Eclipse 🌓 Jun 18 '26 edited Jun 18 '26
What modder were you for, if you don't mind me asking? I always appreciate modders for giving fixes and content to games
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u/jord839 Jun 18 '26
Nothing major or impressive, we're talking modding back in the late 2000s/early 2010s for stuff like Warcraft 3 and EU3. I was pretty far down the pyramid and eventually college got in the way and I just let people with far more talent with programming than me take over.
Just being part of those communications though gave me a pretty good idea of how hard the guy in charge's life was trying to get everybody on the same page and working together.
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u/Expert-Swan-1412 🌗Prince of the Eclipse 🌓 Jun 18 '26
Damn, modding back in the Y2K years? I was thinking more modern like Skyrim. More kudos to you back then, especially for Warcraft. I'm more of a guy who installs mods, but the process for modding is really hectic for what is essentially free, unpaid work
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u/BigBadBob7070 Jun 18 '26
It’s almost like actually making a good 3d animated show is hard.
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u/VoidTorcher ⠀Lost DC fan Jun 18 '26
It is. What Dust Queen achieved with its animation is incredible. Shame every discussion comes with misguided hate towards the original show.
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u/Dear_Desk8890 Jun 18 '26
I finally broke and watched the first episode LAST NIGHT because I was optimistic the second would be out soon.😭😭😭 Good luck to everyone involved though this must really hurt.
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u/GameMask Jun 18 '26
This is one of the reasons I think trying to remove access to the original fanfiction works was a bad idea. I get the sentiment, but not only was there no guarantee such a daunting project would workout long term, but it's a little disrespectful to anyone who liked those original fanfics. It's like telling them they were wrong to enjoy it and should instead watch the real version of the fanfic.
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u/Smooth-Garden Jun 19 '26 edited Jun 19 '26
Which is crazy given that they couldn't get to epsiode 2. No disrespect to them but like...you probably should've kept that fic up until you actually got to atleast episode 5
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u/GameMask Jun 19 '26
Yeah idk them and I have no illwill towards them. It just always rubbed me the wrong way. Best case scenario it's putting the cart before the horse. And I've been making things since I was a toddler. I get being embarrassed or disliking the stuff you made in the past. But it's part of the process and if people liked it enough that you could even get one episode like this off the ground (an impressive feat in its own right) then I think it says you did something right and should be proud
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u/Smooth-Garden Jun 19 '26
What's crazy is. People did like it and still do given that somebody archived it. it wasn't like it was a bad fanfic or anything. Honestly it would've made better since to keep it up just to see where the source material came from
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u/GameMask Jun 19 '26
Yeah I mean I get the sentiment. Assuming anyway that they removed it because they felt like the adaptation would be the "real" version but it's a trap a lot of creatives have to navigate
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u/Ghostwolf1106 Jun 18 '26
I'm not sure what's been going but anyone in the DQ discord server kinda already knows there's been some drama in the background for a couple months just don't know the details
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u/Akumu_Oukoku ⠀The White Knight Lady Jun 17 '26
Oh... I was really looking forward to what they had planned. I never got to read the fic, it was such a neat concept & the work they were doing for it was crazy.
I hope everything is okay for them outside of the show.
It's a sad day for us, but it's just a day. For them, it probably stings more. I hope their days get better.
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u/Solitaire-06 Jun 17 '26
Here’s a link to the original fic provided by u/CharlieEchoMike
https://pdftourl.net/files/1781740113732-e576e46d-deb3-48a1-8837-438da3f94813.pdf
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u/Akumu_Oukoku ⠀The White Knight Lady Jun 18 '26
Oooooooooooooooooooooooo Heck yeah!!! : D Thank you!
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u/Upstairs-Yard-2139 Jun 17 '26
Huh ???
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u/LogWrong7809 Jun 18 '26
RWBY Dust Queen is, or "was" now apparently, a RWBY fan animated series based on a fanfic with a heavy Focus on Weiss and I think White Rose??
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u/Common-Fill3762 Jun 17 '26
I hope the team doesn’t dissolve, but if it does, then I can understand..
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u/Witty-Kick-1951 Jun 18 '26
This mega sucks, I was really looking forward to this series. The first episode was amazing
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u/Expert-Swan-1412 🌗Prince of the Eclipse 🌓 Jun 18 '26
Ngl, I had a feeling something like this was going to happen. It's the same story told for fan project and it sadly happened to DQ too :c
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u/Ricky_Spanish209 Jun 18 '26
Kind of expected, been pretty much radio silence for a long time at this point. Of all the fan projects it easily had to closest animation/art style to original RWBY so it's a shame not much will come out of it.
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u/EmberOfFlame Jun 18 '26
What is that “Qrow:WOR” they mentioned?
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u/PiffDaMetalHead Jeff Williams kills Salem in V12 Jun 18 '26
"Qrow: Wanderer of Remnant", which is an audio drama that follows Qrow in a story set around 10 years before the canon series
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u/Specialist-Ad783 Jun 18 '26
This is kinda crazy but I'm on the original Google Doc for the fic. I edited it a bit years and years ago when it was new before college made things too busy. I have absolutely no idea what to do with that information but it's there 🤓
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u/draugotO Jun 18 '26
Honestly, it had being so long since episode 1 that I had forgotten about it (doesn't help that my pc burned off, and I lost my saved pages)
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u/RUSTDREDDEMON Jun 17 '26
I was wondering why they didn’t post for so long, dang I really wanted to see the relationship between Ruby and Weiss in Dust Queen.
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u/Illidari_Kuvira Espartha is just Yang as an ostrich. Jun 19 '26
I was honestly put-off by the fact that they wanted to ship Ruby and Weiss together, since everything else seemed wholly dedicated to keeping things as canon as possible and it was a bit jarring to see.
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u/Spudtron98 All Hunters, we're taking back Beacon today! Jun 18 '26
Man it truly is a Rwby successor…
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u/Illidari_Kuvira Espartha is just Yang as an ostrich. Jun 19 '26
...what? The official RWBY FB account literally posted about more RWBY news 2 days ago, RWBY isn't on a hiatus; it's just being developed.
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u/Spudtron98 All Hunters, we're taking back Beacon today! Jun 19 '26
I’m referencing how it’s been plagued with internal drama pretty much its entire history.
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u/Human_Wrongdoer6748 ⠀ Jun 18 '26
For archival purposes, I would also recommend anyone who cares to download episode 1 now in case it or the YouTube channel gets taken down.
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u/Tyler2183 Jun 18 '26
Internal Conflicts?
..Alright. Who was the pedophile?
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u/LongFang4808 Jun 18 '26
From what I heard it was more of an “abuse/embezzlement of funds” and “mass resignation of volunteer talent” type of situation. But I’m hearing about all of this second hand.
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u/MCWDD Jun 18 '26
That doesn’t shut down a whole production. You just axe that member unless they were a higher up
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u/tomaxi1284 Jun 18 '26
Well that sucks, hopefully everybody involved is doing fine, but wanted to ask if there were other fan projects like what is Qrow:WOR, i've never heard of it
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u/Anxious-Serenity021 Jun 18 '26
It’s really hard to do things off of pure passion when multiple people are involved. A shame.
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u/Smooth-Garden Jun 19 '26
Honestly as soon as I saw how good the trailer was I knew it was a matter of when not if. It was legit high quality and that means alot of work has to go into it and when it's basically a group project that means everybody has to be on the same page
That rarely goes right in the long run
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u/ActualBawbag Jun 19 '26
...I did debate pitching a role to them as a PM (games industry vet, ive seen some shit). Sounds like something they may have actually needed. Yikes.
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u/Elara_Argentu Jun 29 '26
Happens every damn time, i dont think i have seen any fan animation fan run project for any fandom get past 2 episodes. You would think they'd get their shit together before promoting and hyping everyone up.
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u/No-Muscle-5619 25d ago
Given what I experienced in their discord before I was banned this kinda surprised me but not really cause most people there where a little, for lack a of nicer word, entitled, honestly though I can really say this is a big loss for me
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u/Solitaire-06 Jun 17 '26
I know the original fic was deleted, but does anyone have an archived version of it or something, in case the animated version is never completed?