Powers of the World

The Air Nomads

"Air is the element of freedom. The Air Nomads detached themselves from worldly concerns and found peace and freedom."

All members born to the Air Nomads are Airbenders, without exception, due to the highly spiritual nature of the people. More Airbending children are born in the Autumn than they are at any other time of year. As their name suggests, the Airbenders are a nomadic people that like to travel the world on their Flying Bison (every Air Nomad child chooses a Flying Bison companion that stays with them for life) or shorter distances using their gliders and Airbending to use for powered flight. Despite their extensive travelling, all Airbenders choose to keep a home in one of the four Air Temples around the world. Often times, elder Airbenders choose to spend almost all their time at their home temple and rarely travel, all in an effort to better train the young and to keep their homes running smoothly.

The Air Temples are divided by gender, the Northern and Southern Air Temples inhabited by men, and the Eastern and Western Air Temples inhabited by women. These temples are highly inaccessible, three of them located on top of mountains in mountain ranges or mountainous islands, while the fourth hung from a cliff overhang hanging over a deep canyon. The Air Nomad territory also includes more than just the Temples, they also include much of the surrounding territory that they use for things such as agriculture. This agriculture is the basis of the Air Nomads' limited economy. The Eastern Air Temple, however, focuses on the raising and training of animals, and is where the Flying Bison that all Air Nomads receive are raised. Most of their profits go to charities, the Airbenders only taking what they need to survive. Many Air Nomads dedicate their lives to charitable works.

The Air Nomads are a monastic people, pacifistic and vegetarian. Their government is something similar to a theocracy, the wisest of the elder monks or nuns at each temple making up a council that runs each Air Temple. Though communication between the Air Temples is constant, the Air Temples do not interfere with the running of another temple unless one of them wanders from the Way. The freedom and peace possessed by the Air Nomads also frees their hearts, allowing them to laugh freely and indulge their hearty senses of humor. There are also members of the other three Nations that sometimes choose to live in the Air Temples and learn the ways of the Air Nomads. These people, choosing to live austere lives and forsake worldly attachments (such as family and having children), are known as the Air Acolytes.

The Air Nomads are by far the smallest of the four nations. There is one, ever-evolving style of Airbending that is kept up to date by the constant travel and communication between the four Air Temples.


The Water Tribes

"Water is the element of change. The people of the Water Tribe are capable of adapting to many things. They have a deep sense of community and love that holds them together through anything."

The people of the water tribes are peaceful, seeking to live in harmony with the world, using their considerable power only for defense instead of attack. It does not, however, mean that they will not stop someone from hurting them before they can attack. The people of the Water Tribes are primarily hunters and fishermen, using their surroundings to survive and to form the basis of their economy. Waterbenders are only born to members of the Water Tribe (at least one parent), with more Waterbenders being born in the Winter than in any other time of the year. Each Water Tribe has its own unique style of Waterbending. The combined Water Tribes make up the third largest nation, each led by its own chief. There are currently three different tribes:

Northern Water Tribe - The Northern Water Tribe is built along the high walls on the edge of a glacier at the North Pole, waterways interweaving much of the great city instead of traditional streets. They have a very traditional society, with men taking precedence over women. The tribe has a patriarchal monarchy that determines the chief, but has more tribal aspects when it comes to the other political positions. Male Waterbenders learn the martial art aspect of their bending, while female Waterbenders learn the art of healing. The city is a thriving port town and a center of all the trade in the North. There are a handful of villages spread out over the Northern tundra, but most of population is concentrated in the city itself.

Southern Water Tribe - The Southern Water Tribe is built near the edge of the water, and thus is a port city and center of trade for the South, but it doesn't have the natural defensive walls of the Northern Water Tribe. This city serves as the capitol of the Tribe, at the center of the numerous smaller villages spread over the ice-covered continent over the South Pole. Their government is nearly identical to that of the Northern Water Tribe, but doesn't possess any of the gender restrictions that their sister tribe displays. There are far more separate villages in the Southern Water Tribe than in the Northern Water Tribe.

Foggy Swamp Tribe - The smallest of the three tribes, the Foggy Swamp tribe is a Water Tribe colony formed by members of both the other tribes in the Earth Kingdom's Foggy Swamp. They have developed a more unique form of Waterbending that is adapted to take advantage of the swamp's environment. They are more concerned with survival than the other tribes, so they focus more on ways to make life easier and to survive rather than focus on politics. (Note: they are not quite so... "banjo music"... as in the first TV series, having been more recently formed. They look, talk, and act more like their polar counterparts. Their construction is also more similar, which looks like a smaller version of the Southern Water Tribe. Their food, clothing, and bending style will be more like in the show.)


The Earth Kingdom

"Earth is the element of substance. The people of the Earth Kingdom are diverse and strong. They are persistent and enduring."

The Earth Kingdom stands undaunted through the flow of time. More than anything, the architecture and the people of the Earth Kingdom can be summed up in one word: enduring. Far and by the largest of the four kingdoms not only in terms of land space, it has a population greater than the other nations combined. Earthbenders are born only to the Earth Kingdom, with more Earthbenders born in the Spring than in any other time of the year. The people of the Earth Kingdom are also more varied than in any of the other nations, the people being as varied as the types of the Earth itself. The economy of the Kingdom is incredibly varied, changing with the geography, and making it robust and nearly impossible to cripple.

The ruler of the nation is the Earth King, a dynastic monarch. The Earth King rules over the entirety of the Earth Kingdom, but serves mostly in providing an overarching vision for how the nation is run rather than micromanaging every detail. Positions throughout the Earth Kingdom are earned from taking a nationwide Civil Servants Exam. The ones who score the highest earn positions of great power, such as the Grand Secretariat of Ba Sing Se that works directly beneath the Earth King, or the "King" of Omashu. People who score poorly on the exam without failing, or who have demonstrated unethical but not illegal behavior, are given relatively menial positions like magistrate of a small town or foreman of a small government mine.

Because of the size of the Earth Kingdom, the regional governors have a great deal of leeway in how they run their cities, towns, or other territories as long as they don't cross any of the lines set by the Earth King. Some try to push things too far and see that the Earth King still rules with absolute power in his nation, even if he rarely chooses to exercise it.

Like the variety among the regions, the governments, the people, the economy, and the Earth itself, there is a wide variety among Earthbending styles. There are a number of prominent schools that teach all kinds of styles and compete for fame and noteriety.


The Dai Li

Their public face is as the cultural protectors of Ba Sing Se. In reality, they are the elite troops of the Earth Kingdom military. The Dai Li are comprised only of the best Earthbender soldiers, answerable only to the Earth King himself. On the battlefield, the Dai Li have complete autonomy from the rest of the Earth Kingdom military, given the prerogative to act as they see fit to accomplish their missions. The Dai Li are most often saved for the most difficult tasks, ranging from darkest black ops to more delicate work like hostage rescue. They carry a great deal of respect, known throughout the Earth Kingdom for being the highest moral military standard. Whenever someone opposes the Earth King, or when the Earth King finds someone abusing their power that needs removed, it is the Dai Li that resolves the issue.


The Kyoshi Warriors

Despite the fact that one of the first two Earthbenders, and the first to reveal their powers to the world, was a woman, the Earth Kingdom was a completely patriarchal society more than 300 years ago. In that age, a young woman named Kyoshi defied the ban on women learning how to fight and learn more advanced trades, using her new husband's medical books to develop her own martial art. Years later, a regional warlord made a play for the Earth King's throne with aid from the Fire Nation and the Northern Water Tribe. Men were conscripted from all over the Earth Kingdom to fight against the uprising. When the men of her home island left to fight, Kyoshi taught the women and children her martial art so they could fight if it ever became necessary.

Unsurprisingly, a few years later, war came to Kyoshi's home island. The Earth King was losing ground in the war, and the major battle nearby would have started the eventual decline to the Earth Kingdom falling. Kyoshi and the women she had been training (which had swelled to several hundred as new women heard rumors of her training) attacked the warlord's forces from the rear. Her martial art, which has since come to be known as "chi blocking," was instrumental to the Earth King's victory and inadvertently saving the life of Kyoshi's own husband. After that, the Earth King lifted the ban on female warriors and renamed her home island as "Kyoshi Island." Kyoshi set up her own martial arts school to teach her fighting and chi blocking techniques. The warriors that run and have graduated from this school have become to be known as the "Kyoshi Warriors."


The Fire Nation

"Fire is the element of power. The people of the Fire Nation have desire and will and the energy and drive to achieve what they want."

The Fire Nation is an imperial dynasty, with a supreme ruler (the Fire Lord) that is passed down through the ruling family from generation to generation, much like the position of the Earth King. That, however, is where the similarities end. The rest of the Fire Nation government is a merger of an oligarchic and militaristic state, meaning that the government officials are all members of other noble families (usually related to the Fire Lord's family) or officers that distinguished themselves through military service. Some officials have attained their positions by currying favor with the Fire Lord through other means, but that is a relatively rare occurrence.

The people of the fire nation are industrious and work unfailingly for the glory of their nation and their Fire Lord. They are a very passionate people, and apply that passion and energy to everything that they do. Firebenders are born only to the people of the Fire Nation, with more Firebenders being born in the Summer than any other time of the year. The Fire Nation is the second-largest population in the world, behind only the massive Earth Kingdom. Despite living on a chain of islands, the population size is possible because he majority of the populace is concentrated urban areas. (Just to reinforce, they aren't industrialized cities like in the shows, think more feudal cities.)


The Sun Warriors

The surviving remnants of the first civilization of Firebenders. Largely reclusive, they wish just to live in peace and to fulfill their duties as stewards of the Eternal Flame and the Dragons' Nest. They cling to their traditional way of life, only rarely interacting with the wider world... the only interactions coming from the exceedingly rare Firebender that wishes to learn the true source of Firebending. Some are starting to wonder if the unnatural happenings around the world might be a sign that it's time for the Sun Warriors to reenter the world at large.


The Sages

Spiritually aware benders whose loyalties lie with the Avatar above all else. There are five groups of Sages, one for each element except Water, which has a group of Sages at each pole. The leader of each Sage group is generally regarded as one of the most powerful benders of their respective element, and are noted for being exceptionally wise. It is not uncommon for people from all walks of life to seek the counsel and/or training of the Sages. Whether or not they will give it is another matter entirely.


The Order of the White Lotus

A group that transcends the divisions of the Four Nations. They are a group that focuses primarily on intellectual pursuits such as philosophy, beauty, and truth. The Order is highly secretive on its membership, recruits only gaining initiation through invitation by an old master that oversees the initiate's entry. When not sharing in intellectual pursuits or other methods of personal enlightenment, the Order of the White Lotus works to maintain peace between the Four Nations behind the scenes. The senior members of the Order are often old and influential masters spread across the world, people who are privy to private information. Additionally, their other members often work to pursue more clandestine and sensitive operations.


The Walkers

The Walkers are a diverse group of spiritually aware people that wish to broker peace between the invading spirits and the people of the world. Many of the people that join this group are spiritual and hold the spirits in an almost religious regard, believing them to be infallible and that any attack they make against the people is justified. The Walkers often work to undermine the efforts of the Avatar and his alliance to stop the spirits, believing that the only road to lasting peace and prosperity is to let the spirits do their work. The Walkers are mostly good people who think they're doing the right thing. Their presence complicates the Avatar's efforts to form an alliance to defend the world from the invading spirits.


The Black Jade Vanguard

The Black Jade Vanguard is in many ways similar to the Walkers, being a multicultural organization with the leaders of the group having contact with the spirits. The difference here is that while the Walkers seek peace and work to stop all conflict between people and the spirits, the Vanguard works as agents of the spirits to actively enforce their will. The Vanguard is a rather secretive society, generally acting with subterfuge and assassination, but occasionally acts with military force when the spirits themselves take more overt actions. The Vanguard also has its hands in many underworld activities so as to fund their operations. The organization's clandestine affairs often put it at odds with the covert operatives of the Order of the White Lotus, occasionally leading to a shadow conflict. Many are believers in the spirits' ideals, but some are working for the favor of the spirits or are even simple mercenaries. Every member of the Vanguard wears some token of black jade on their bodies almost all the time, such as a ring or coin attached to a choker.

The Vanguard's motto is "We will correct the mistakes brought on by your weakness."