Yuyan Archers

"fire"

- The Yu Yan's precision is legendary; they can pin a fly to a tree from one hundred yards away, without killing it.

The Yu Yan Archers are a group of elite, extremely proficient Fire Nation archers. They appear in the Book 1 episode: "The Blue Spirit". Their skill is demonstrated first by the archers firing an arrow into the bullseye of a target, and then firing another arrow directly into the first arrow, then doing so with a second arrow. Secondly, it is said they can pin a fly to a tree 100 yards away without killing it.

History
They used to be under Colonel Shinu's command. They were being used as "security guards" for the Fire Nation. However, after Commander Zhao received his promotion to Admiral, he took control of them and used them in his hunt for the Avatar. In "The Blue Spirit", Aang's extreme agility proves no match for the Yu Yan Archers' expert aim, resulting in Aang's capture. The archers are also deployed in the end, injuring the Blue Spirit.

It is presumed that the Yu Yan Archers are still active but are now more focused on protecting the Fire Nation.

Trivia

 * A possible way to write their name is 玉眼 for "jade eye." "Yu" means "jade" in Chinese and "yan" means "eye". The Chinese believed that jade had magical properties and would prevent the decay of the body.
 * The Yu Yan Archer, Vachir, is a member of the Rough Rhinos and is seen in other episodes.
 * Their uniforms, especially the short jackets and poofy pants, resemble Zouave uniforms from the American Civil War, which in turn were inspired by 19th century French Zouave uniforms which also were widely imitated by forces of other nations in the 19th century.
 * It is possible that the Yu Yan are a coed (unisex) unit, as shown in the picture above, the two Archers on the ends look female, while the other three in the middle can clearly be seen as male. Also the three in the middle, while having short leggings going down around their waist, the two on the end have extended leggings making a skirt reaching to their knees.