Firebending
Firebending is a term for a mystical martial art practiced by the Fire Nation. A moiety of the Fire Nation, Firebenders, as its practitioners are known, are heirs to the pyrokinetic ability to create and control fire. An exclusive few also express the ability to generate and manipulate lightning.
Notable Firebenders
- Fire Avatar
- Avatar Yangchen
- Avatar Kuruk
- Avatar Kyoshi
- Avatar Roku
- Firelord Sozin
- Firelord Azulon
- Fire Lord Ozai
- General Iroh
- Prince Lu Ten
- Prince Zuko
- Princess Azula
- Jeong Jeong
- Admiral Zhao
- Combustion Man
- Fire Sage Kaja
- Fire Sage Shyu
Origin
Firebending
Source: Sun
Learned From: Perhaps Dragons
Although it has not been revealed as to what originally led the first Firebenders to learn the power to manipulate fire, the rogue Firebending Master Jeong Jeong stated that that the sun is the greatest source of fire in the world, hinting that Firebenders learned Firebending from the sun, as the Waterbenders (The opposing Bending art) learned from the moon.
A solar eclipse has the potential to completely negate a Firebender's power, revealing a direct connection between the sun and a Firebenders power. Additionally, while battling with Katara during The Siege of the North, Zuko stated that "you rise with the moon, I rise with the sun," further emphasizing the sun's importance to Firebending.
The dragons of the Avatar world may have also have had an influence, as Iroh's unique aptitude for breathing fire earned him the title "Dragon of the West," implying a connection between the technique and the creature.
Fighting style
Firebending
Firebending moves are based mainly on the style of Northern Shaolin kung fu, but with a few techniques from Northern Seven Star Praying Mantis. These martial arts feature quick, successive, ferocious attacks that evoke the uncompromising danger of fire. It optiomises a strong continous offense, sacrifing defense for greater power, the principle behind a preemptive strike. Unlike other bending disciplines, firebending has few defensive moves aside from blocking and dodging, although master firebenders are able to create walls of fire to absorb incoming attacks or shooting down incoming projectiles.
Firebending uses concentrated barrages of fire to overwhelm opponents before striking a fatal blow. Swift, whirling kicks and punches generate diverse shapes for offensive attacks.
A fireball
Firebending abilities include:
Fireballs: Jabs and punches produce miniature fireballs and missiles of flame, these can be charged up to create larger slower bursts, or swift repeatitive stikes to keep opponents off balance.
Blazing Rings & Arcs: Spinning kicks or sweeping arm movements create rings and arcs to slice larger, more widely spaced, or evasive targets.
Jets of Fire: Higher level benders with greater stamina can shoot continous jets of fire from their fingertips. These jets also have longer ranges than standard fireballs and greater power without sacrificing speed.
Fire Whip
Fire Daggers: Creating blowtorch like jets from the fist or fingertips to use as close range swordlike attacks. These lack the ability to actuallt block physical objects though.
Fiery Lashes: An extension of a fire jet, this continous stream of flame can be used as a whip, Zuko uses a large version of this in his faight in Ba Sing Se, creating streams of great length for continous mid range combat.
Fire Disks: A whirling disk of flame. only Azula has show the ability to create these
Fire Daggers
Fire Augmentation: Firebenders can also control the size and intensity of any nearby flames and can draw then in and manipulate them at will.
Wall of Flames: One of the few defense abilities, creating a flaming wall to destroy an incoming attack, though its protection is temporary.
Heat Absorption
Fire Absorption: Absorbing and extinuishing flames, both as a control of ones own attack and to counter those of other firebenders. Apparently this can only be perfomed on ones seen coming, the more powerful the flame the more difficult it is to control.
Heat Absorption: Only seen performed by Fire Lord Sozin, maybe unique to him or simply an advanced techique. Heat absorption allows for the absorption of heat from one source by one hand and passing through ones body and out the the other hand. Used to dry up the lava during the eruption that destroyed Avatar Roku's town. Operates on a similar principle to Irohs redirection of lightening.
Lava: Because lava is nothing more than fire liquid, firebenders are totally able to bend it. They can manipulate it just like waterbenders do for water.
Firebenders use their internal body heat as a source of their bending to create fire. This facet of Firebending is in sharp contrast to the other bending arts, which manipulate already present representations of their element (though firebenders can control or enhance flames nearby).
Special Techniques
Blue fire
Blue Fire: Firebenders can control the intensity of their Firebending, reflected in the color of the flames. This blue flames are more efficient than the standard red and orange flames lesser forms of Firebending, channeling more energy into the attack and likely traveling further without dissapating. So far, Azula and Iroh have demonstrated blue Firebending (not to be confused with lightning). After contact with flammable items blue fire reverts to a less intense state and changes to a red and orange color. Blue fire also seems to possess more physical force and produce a concussive effect not seen with normal fire, likely due to superheat the air around it as it strikes (the same process that creates thunder).
Breath of Fire
Breath of Fire: Resembling a dragon breathing out flames, the breath of fire is a technique that involves the user firebending out of his or her mouth, mixing air from the lungs with the flame creating a wider, hotter blast. This has been exhibited by multiple individuals, including Fire Lord Ozai, Iroh, Prince Zuko, and Aang (though the latter was while in the Avatar State within a dream). It was the employment of this firebending style in the midst of battle that earned war veteran Iroh his nickname, "The Dragon of the West," and it is alluded that it was from his uncle that Zuko learned how to create his own (though his is smaller and less intense). With its wide, encompassing range of fire, the technique allows for staving off multiple opponents and is also shown to be able to instantaneously warm the body even under extremely cold temperatures.
Combustion
Combustion: The unique, trademark ability of the Combustion Man. Unlike normal firebending this does not produce a flame directly from the body. Instead he concentrates his energy through his tatooed third eye to super-heat the air around himself or at a great distance producing situated explosions with a great deal of precision. Extremely effective as it is destructive, capable of use at close and long-range, and can completely disintegrate hill-sized boulders and instantaneouly evaporate large bodies of water with ease. This is probably due to the energy being entirely focused into creating the explosion, without wasting energy maintaining a long range jet of flame. However, the technique has the potential to be just as hazardous to the user as it can be to their surroundings, as the Combustion Man blew off his own right arm and leg due to his initial lack of control over the newly discovered ability in his youth.
Avatar Level Firebenders
An Avatar erupting volcanoes
The Avatar is capable of erupting volcanoes at will and manipulating lava and magma flows, resembling a mix of earth and firebending. No other firebender has exhibited this ability.
Enhanced Firebending
Due to its solar sympathy, firebending is noticable stronger during the day. Any warm situations or climate can also enhance it, in summer firebending is also enhanced. With an extra terrestrial heat source, such as Sozin's comet, Firebending is apparently greatly enhanced to the point where it is considered unstoppable.
Opposite Bending Art
Firebending is the opposing art to Waterbending, though it shows many similar facets of self control, great diversity, and variation is strength due to external forcing.
Firebending
Firebending is the most aggressive of the four bending arts. Like all of the bending arts, Firebending is balanced out as to not be more or less powerful than the other arts. The series has repeatedly illustrated that it's the skill and prowess of the user that determines victory.
Styles
The fictional art of firebending overall draws heir from three ancient martial arts, each with their own separate moves and varying results.
- Xing Yi blends strikes from the classic "Seven Stars": hands, feet, elbows, hips, knees, shoulders, and crown.
- Southern Dragon Claw mirrors a dragon swooping down on it prey. The form contains close-range techniques for seizing and holding.
- Northern Shaolin, which can be any number of fighting styles related to (but not encompassing) Long Fist boxing.
Weapons
Firebenders sometimes incorporate weapons into Firebending, as shown by Zuko's utilization of Firebending in conjunction with his broad swords, shaping and channeling the flames down the blade of his weapons. It is unknown what, if any, other weapons can be used with firebending.
Lightning
Azula generating Lightning
Each of the four bending disciplines contain a special sub-skill unique only to certain members of each element. Also known as "the cold-blooded fire", certain powerful Firebenders are able to generate and manipulate lightning. Mentally, it involves a complete absence of emotion and peace of mind, and physically it requires separating the energies of yin and yang (also an interpretation of positive and negative electric charge). When the forces collide, the bender only guides, rather than controls, the lightning's direction. Because of this complexity, a lightning attack takes much longer to initiate than standard fire attacks.
Generating lightning involves a circular motion with the arms. Only a select few have this power; so far the only Firebenders in the series who have demonstrated the ability to actively generate lightning are Azula, Iroh and Ozai.
Lightningbending
Lightning Redirection: Iroh, in a technique developed after observing the energy re-directing techniques of Waterbending, is able to redirect the course of lightning strikes by absorbing it through one arm, guiding it through his stomach, and out his other arm. Zuko has expressed a desire to learn these abilities, but his emotional turmoil is preventing him from successfully creating lightning.
Re-directing lightning was first demonstrated by Iroh in "The Storm." Creating Lightning was first demonstrated by Azula in "The Avatar State." In "Bitter Work", Iroh taught Zuko how to redirect lightning, but he refused to let Zuko practice this technique with real lightning. In "The Day of Black Sun Part 2" Zuko fought with Fire Lord Ozai and successfully redirected a bolt of lightning back at him.
Weaknesses
Poor Breath Control: It is said that true Firebending power comes not from physical size nor strength, but rather from the very control of one's breath. Firebender discipline stresses self-control and breath control as a means of directing and containing the fire manifested. Poor breath control means dangerously poor control of any fire generated. For this reason, breathing exercises are one of the most critical first steps for beginning Firebenders. Though anger and rage or other intense emotions can intensity the power of firebending it can lead to dangerous explosions or wildfires and cause any nearby flames to burn out of control. The enlightend firebending master Jeong Jeong repeatly stressing this importance during his instruction of Aang, who accidently burned Katara when he refused to listen, and has since vowed never to firebend again.
Firebending
Lacks Defense: The major combat weakness behind the applied art of Firebending is its confrontational nature. Due to its aggressivness and pursuit of continuous assault, it traditionally lacks defensive techniques, which can leave a bender considerably vulnerable to enemy counterattacks. It also consumes a vast amount of energy leaving the bender at a considerable disadvantage in a prelonged battle. A common mark of a firebending master is the ability to sustain attacks for long periods.
Solar Empathy: Its connection to the sun results in a lessening of strength during the night, and a complete loss of Firebending during a solar eclipse (see below).
Jeong Jeong creating a fire wall
Off-Balance: Additionally, Firebenders require stability and balance in their lower body, and are vulnerable to attacks when off-balance, which Zuko demonstrated by breaking Admiral Zhao's root while fighting.
Other circumstances that can damper a Firebender's power include any situation which might extinguish their flames, such as being underwater or caught in the rain. Zuko overcame this while underwater in the north pole by melting ice by heating it with direct contact.
Elemental Symbol
The Firebending symbol.
The symbol for fire and firebending is a stylized, tulip-shaped flame forked into three tongues that curve outward like flower petals, with a spiral at the base. The symbol is featured in connection with Fire Nation spirituality.
Spirituality and Firebending
Approximately 100 years before the start of the series, Fire Lord Sozin launched a genocidal attack on the Air Nomads, succeeding in part due to the power granted him by a passing comet. Over the course of a century, the war has continued, and under the rule of Sozin's grandson, Fire Lord Ozai, the Fire Nation will see the return of "Sozin's Comet." As prophesied, this comet's immense energy will grant Ozai the power to conquer the entire world. The only threat to Ozai's campaign is the current Avatar, Aang. If Aang fails to master all four elements and stop Ozai before Sozin's Comet returns, the Fire Lord will be unstoppable regardless of the Avatar's influence.
Avatar Roku
The Fire Nation's religious clerics, the Fire Sages, once served Avatar Roku, but now tacitly endorse the imperialist war. Fire Sage Shyu is shown as the only Fire Sage to remain true to his allegiance to the Avatar, a trait he inherits from his father and grandfather.
A Firebender's powers seem to increase during the day in the presence of the sun. Because of this solar sympathy, their powers are weakened at night and, as revealed in "The Library," a solar eclipse can temporarily negate their powers entirely, much like Waterbenders' powers are negated during a lunar eclipse. Aside from their main power source, the sun, firebenders also draw their energy from other heat sources, including volcanic activity, lightning, and passing comets. A firebender's power is intensified in warmer climates and is at its peak when situated near their native equatorial homelands during the summer.
Agni Kai
Agni Kai
Among Firebenders, or at least those of the upper-class, disputes of honor are settled by a challenge to an Agni Kai, or "fire duel", a traditional firebender duel that is centuries old. Such a duel is conducted in an open-air arena, and may be witnessed by spectators. Combatants fight bare-chested (at least those of the male variety), and barefooted. The goal in these duels is to knock an opponent off-balance, and incapacitate (fatally or otherwise) with a final blow. The favored finishing move seems to be a direct fireblast to the face.
The word Agni Kai was created by using two already existing words. Agni is the Hindu god of fire. Kai is the japanese word for meeting (usually business, but it can also mean a general meeting of two or more people).