Poll: Avatar: Bending discussion

[Loop Stricken]

I like the idea of earthbending, presumably because I play physical classes in RPGs and the like.

... buuuuuut, with waterbending I can presumably get around the whole 'Oh shit I can't actually swim' nonsense, and...

Well.
Bloodbending.

Because Amon is a badass. Noatak less so.

 

[Stomperchomper]

I'd go for water bending, if I have to I'll carry one of those water backpacks with me, and I probably wouldn't have to anyways, water is everywhere! Except the desert. I'd stay away from there.

 

[Navvan]

Well I'm torn between Earthbending and Waterbendering. If its limited to the type of bending seen in the show (as in the techniques and such they use) then I'd go with Water bending because its generally more versatile. However if I could do with Earth bending what I wanted to do then I'd probably choose that (Lava Bending being the tip of the iceberg)

As for a more advanced air bending technique time just doesn't make a lick of sense. It has nothing to do with the element. There are plenty of techniques that an Airbender should be able to do but is never shown in the series. Primarily because they are very aggressive and kill people which is against their pacifist nature or they would somewhat violate the bounds of the element (same reason we don't see Earth benders melting rock)

-Making pressure differences which can cause anything from the bends to your lungs exploding.
-Suffocation by removing the air around you
-Creation of a vacuum that causes all you blood vessels to burst
-Different forms of Air as well (solid, liquid).

The list goes on and as you can see its not very suitable to a pacifist ideology. The only thing I can think of that could be used is suffocation until they are unconscious to disable opponents (or different phases of air)

However I always viewed their capability of flight as their sub-set bending. I mean flying is pretty awesome. Master level air benders don't even need a glider (similar to Sky Bison). That or the Airscooters/AirCycle. Aang is the inventor of the AirScooter technique and either he or Tenzin the AirCycle presumably.

 

[Thespian]

I have always thought that Sound-Bending would be the logical Air-bending sub-category. Vibrations travel through air to make sound, and Sound was even one of the Chakras that the Guru mentioned.
Air is way behind in development as it basically missed out on 100 years of experimentation and learning that the other Elements had. So I could totally see season 2 of Korra having Boomi, Tenzin, Korra or one of the Air-kids invent Sound-Bending.
It'd be so cool to see benders blast each other with sound, or create walls of sound or knock enemies unconscious with high pitch screeches.

Anywho, I'd be a Water Bender. Breathing Underwater + healing + Making awesome ice sculptures. Yayz.

 

[Soluncreed]

Oxygen has a solid form. Sure its hard to obtain but apparently energy creation/depletion are possible. Would enough air benders be able to create solid air? Water benders can turn water into ice and steam. Consider this for a moment. Yeah. Solid air in your lungs? Sucks to be you. That sounds reasonable to me.

Id take earth. Always seemed the most practical.

If I was an airbender, I'd just change the air pressure around someone to a vaccuum. Then, anyone inside would explode. Or suffocate. Whichever comes first.

 

[Scrustle]

For airbending, I'm thinking weather control of some sort would be appropriate. But it may be a bit overpowered - after all, bending is normally limited in scope and area - weather change needs a large area to be affected. Alternatively, optical illusions of some sort. That seems more in line - yeah, it's pushing it, but it's on par with lightning, I think.

I think that's probably and appropriate one. It makes perfect sense, and I don't necessarily think it's overpowered. Bending even without the special versions is potentially limitless.

Oxygen has a solid form. Sure its hard to obtain but apparently energy creation/depletion are possible. Would enough air benders be able to create solid air? Water benders can turn water into ice and steam. Consider this for a moment. Yeah. Solid air in your lungs? Sucks to be you. That sounds reasonable to me.

I don't think that would really be appropriate for air bending. I think air bending is supposed to be generally bending gases. I don't think they're supposed to be able to turn a gas in to anything else. You make a good point with water bending being able to turn water in to ice and steam, but we've never seen any air bender with the ability to do something similar. And I don't think we've seen a water bender with the ability to bend any liquid other than water, except blood. But that's because blood has water in it, doesn't it?

Some people mentioned the ability to suck air out/in to people's lungs. That doesn't seem different to just normal air bending to me. They're just bending air that's already inside someone, it's not a part of them like blood is.

 

[saintdane05]

My personality is probably more suited to an airbender, but if I had the choice, Id go with water, tropical climate, lots of water here... in fact we're being drenched by a tropical storm as I'm writing this...

As for special air bending, maybe the ability to suck the air out of one's lungs, or keep them from breathing it in.
They could probably breath underwater for a short amount of time (take the air with them) or crash planes, i'm not going to worry if it's overpowered or not because we've already seen blood bending without the use of a full moon so all bets off.

That... does not sound like airbending. I always imagined airbenders (Specifically nomads) to be more like pacifists, or maybe monks, fighting only when they have to. Heck, Aang mentioned that not killing is part of Air Nomad culture.

 

[teebeeohh]

earth bending because Gaara.
and because once i master metalbending this seems incredibly useful since metal is everywhere and i wouldn't need to rip open the ground all the time.

 

[Scorched_Cascade]

My personality is probably more suited to an airbender, but if I had the choice, Id go with water, tropical climate, lots of water here... in fact we're being drenched by a tropical storm as I'm writing this...

As for special air bending, maybe the ability to suck the air out of one's lungs, or keep them from breathing it in.
They could probably breath underwater for a short amount of time (take the air with them) or crash planes, i'm not going to worry if it's overpowered or not because we've already seen blood bending without the use of a full moon so all bets off.

That... does not sound like airbending. I always imagined airbenders (Specifically nomads) to be more like pacifists, or maybe monks, fighting only when they have to. Heck, Aang mentioned that not killing is part of Air Nomad culture.

Airbenders are specifically noted to be pacifists in that they don't go looking for fights and they do not use offensive bending.

Quoted from the wiki:

The key to airbending is flexibility and finding and following the path of least resistance. Airbending is notable for being almost entirely defensive, as well as the most dynamic of the four bending arts. Airbenders can overwhelm many opponents at once with large and powerful attacks that could prove fatal; however, due to the pacifist nature of the Air Nomads, such attacks are rarely used.

In one of Aang's fights he spends the whole fight just avoiding and evading what the other guy is throwing it him and the other guy mocks him by saying "not even going to fight back eh? Typical airbender"

To those of you who would take it and use it offensively: you would struggle to learn it in the first place as to learn an element you have to "connect" with it's principles.

 

[Mikeyfell]

I'd be an earth bender no doubt.
I don't have enough finesse or agility to bend air or water, and I don't have the control to bend fire.

I'm mostly stubborn and solution oriented, that spells Earthbender to me.

But I think I'd be able to bend blood though, I'm reminded of a scene from the third X men movie where Magnito sucks all the iron out of that cop's blood. I'd practice until I figured out how to do that.

As far as a special attack for Airbenders I don't think they need one. There's always air. always. They can fly (Even though Iroh Firebent himself into a jet and flew around like Iron Man) they can bend air in a way that will let them throw other stuff around, If they were determined enough they could bend the air right out of people's lungs and let the suffocate.

Airbenders have a huge advantage already.

 

[DoPo]

For airbending, I'm thinking weather control of some sort would be appropriate. But it may be a bit overpowered - after all, bending is normally limited in scope and area - weather change needs a large area to be affected. Alternatively, optical illusions of some sort. That seems more in line - yeah, it's pushing it, but it's on par with lightning, I think.

I think that's probably and appropriate one. It makes perfect sense, and I don't necessarily think it's overpowered. Bending even without the special versions is potentially limitless.

Yeah, I didn't mean overpowered as in too powerful but as in requiring too much power. I don't know why I picked that word to mean it, though. But thinking about it now, it is actually appropriate. I mean, really - you'd need to bend air pressure and stuff for a while to make a change change in the weather, and you'll probably need a really long time to make a sunny day into a thunderstorm (or something along those lines) but lightning bending is only for the most exceptionally gifted, metal bending is for one exceptionally gifted, while bloodbending works only under the full moon[footnote]Since the Legend of Korra's first season finished, I'll start watching it now. I've been waiting for this.[/footnote]. So, weatherbending wouldn't be that awkward to use.

EDIT:

It's cool that they gave each discipline its own style. Spins and twirls for airbending, stomps and thrusts for earth, rapid strikes and kicks for fire. Although I don't think they ever quite nailed water.

Fluid movement for water. I'm not sure how else best to say what it is, but it's quite appropriate, I think.

 

[saruman31]

Firebending because Azula was awesome. And one hit kill with lightning is pretty sweet. It may not be as OP as bloodbending but it`s shiny and makes a big bang.

 

[lazinesslord]

For airbending in think it would be soundbending. Afterall the sound that we hear is the vibration of air molecules.

As for what bender i would be I would probably be an earthbender because metalbending is awesome.

 

[lazinesslord]

For airbending in think it would be soundbending. Afterall the sound that we hear is the vibration of air molecules.

As for what bender i would be I would probably be an earthbender because metalbending is awesome.

 

[Scrustle]

...metal bending is for one exceptionally gifted...

In the new series metal bending has become much more common. The entire police force use it. They have metal cables that retract in to coils on their back which they use to whip and capture people. Toph was supposed to have started teaching people the technique since she was appointed head of police when they established Republic City.

In one of Aang's fights he spends the whole fight just avoiding and evading what the other guy is throwing it him and the other guy mocks him by saying "not even going to fight back eh? Typical airbender"

Isn't that when he fights King Bumi?

 

[Eclipse Dragon]

My personality is probably more suited to an airbender, but if I had the choice, Id go with water, tropical climate, lots of water here... in fact we're being drenched by a tropical storm as I'm writing this...

As for special air bending, maybe the ability to suck the air out of one's lungs, or keep them from breathing it in.
They could probably breath underwater for a short amount of time (take the air with them) or crash planes, i'm not going to worry if it's overpowered or not because we've already seen blood bending without the use of a full moon so all bets off.

That... does not sound like airbending. I always imagined airbenders (Specifically nomads) to be more like pacifists, or maybe monks, fighting only when they have to. Heck, Aang mentioned that not killing is part of Air Nomad culture.

Airbenders are specifically noted to be pacifists in that they don't go looking for fights and they do not use offensive bending.

Quoted from the wiki:

The key to airbending is flexibility and finding and following the path of least resistance. Airbending is notable for being almost entirely defensive, as well as the most dynamic of the four bending arts. Airbenders can overwhelm many opponents at once with large and powerful attacks that could prove fatal; however, due to the pacifist nature of the Air Nomads, such attacks are rarely used.

In one of Aang's fights he spends the whole fight just avoiding and evading what the other guy is throwing it him and the other guy mocks him by saying "not even going to fight back eh? Typical airbender"

To those of you who would take it and use it offensively: you would struggle to learn it in the first place as to learn an element you have to "connect" with it's principles.

Yes they are a peaceful people, but they can be deadly if absolutely necessary (think about shaolin monks), since we're talking about special abilities, it's OK for it to be offensive, the special abilities are known for being ridiculously hard to master. I think it would take a special kind of air bender to be able to go against their own nature and thus learn such a deadly move; I imagine it's only used as a last resort.

Also air being the most flexible wouldn't completely dismiss offensive use (to ignore it completely is inflexible). Air bending is almost entirely defense and offensive attacks are only rarely used, but that's not the same as never used.

 

[Hawk of Battle]

I still maintain that the ultimate form of Airbending would be Soundbending, since it's a natural extension from generating gusts of wind to controlling the actual pressure variances in the air and generating vacuums. Also it would allow people to explode enemies with sonic booms, break bones and stone with shockwaves and choke peope to death by ripping the air from their lungs, not to mention super hearing and sound mimicry for stealthy wetworks and such.

As such, I think I'd have to go with Airbending, or possibly earth, since that's also pretty cool.

 

[soren7550]

earth bending because Gaara.

Also, because Toph was awesome.

These reasons are largely why I'd want to be an Earthbender. Plus, I'm pretty much always surrounded by earth and it has really useful subcategories (seismic sense, sandbending, and metalbending).

 

[Hawk of Battle]

My personality is probably more suited to an airbender, but if I had the choice, Id go with water, tropical climate, lots of water here... in fact we're being drenched by a tropical storm as I'm writing this...

As for special air bending, maybe the ability to suck the air out of one's lungs, or keep them from breathing it in.
They could probably breath underwater for a short amount of time (take the air with them) or crash planes, i'm not going to worry if it's overpowered or not because we've already seen blood bending without the use of a full moon so all bets off.

That... does not sound like airbending. I always imagined airbenders (Specifically nomads) to be more like pacifists, or maybe monks, fighting only when they have to. Heck, Aang mentioned that not killing is part of Air Nomad culture.

Airbenders are specifically noted to be pacifists in that they don't go looking for fights and they do not use offensive bending.

Quoted from the wiki:

The key to airbending is flexibility and finding and following the path of least resistance. Airbending is notable for being almost entirely defensive, as well as the most dynamic of the four bending arts. Airbenders can overwhelm many opponents at once with large and powerful attacks that could prove fatal; however, due to the pacifist nature of the Air Nomads, such attacks are rarely used.

In one of Aang's fights he spends the whole fight just avoiding and evading what the other guy is throwing it him and the other guy mocks him by saying "not even going to fight back eh? Typical airbender"

To those of you who would take it and use it offensively: you would struggle to learn it in the first place as to learn an element you have to "connect" with it's principles.

Sorry, going to completely shatter the idea that just because the Air Nomads themselves were pacifists, doesn't mean that Airbending cannot be used offensively. Case in point, Monk Gyatso in episode 3, his body was surrounded by about a dozen Fire Nation troops (and as we had seen, Fire Nation troops were almost always Firebenders). Now remember that when the Air Nomads were wiped out, those Firebenders were all amped up on comet power. So this peaceful, pacifist monk took out a dozen super Firebenders, all at once. Yeah, I'd say Airbending can be pretty damn deadly if you know how to use it. Guy probably sucked all the air out of the room and killed everyone inside.

 

[DrDuckman]

Waterbending, it is by FAR the most practical power out there. Much like the question of superpowers in real life, people keep forgetting that the most powerful and impressive powers are often utterly impractical in life outside combat, and I doubt the vast majority of people would actually want to live their lives constantly in combat. That gets you killed.

Case in point, Firebending would be largely useless outside of combat, except possibly working as a living power plant. Not very interesting really.

Earthbending is slightly better as you can also be an engineer/builder, especially with metalbending. I'd actually wouldn't mind that one.

However, Waterbending allows you to HEAL. This is huge in any organized society. You are automatically in a position of power and essential to the community. The fact that you can probably heal yourself, possibly even prolong your life is huge. Want to be rich, have power etc? Be the only one that can heal a disease.

And ofcourse, waterbending itself allows you to do other things such as explore the depths of the sea, move on water, become the most capable sailor ever etc. Finally, the potential to have bloodbending is obviously huge. Suddenly you are also at the top of the combat pile, if you know when to pick your fights.

My second choice would actually be Airbending, as it is probably the second most versatile bending, due to the amazing mobility it gives you. Being able to fly is cool, and what is essentially telekinesis allows you a whole array of abilities. Plus, I would assume that were to be used with deadly intent, Airbending it the deadliest art there is sort of bloodbending. Cause... you know, exploding lungs, asphyxiating a room etc.