Military of the Fire Nation

The Military of the Fire Nation is the unified armed forces of the Fire Nation. It is the most powerful military force in the Avatar World. It would have won the War if not for the intervention of the Avatar.

The Fire Lord is the commander-in-chief of the Fire Nation military, delegating his power through a select few generals and admirals of the army and navy, respectively. The War Minister develops and provides technology and equipment for the Fire Nation military and reports directly to the Fire Lord.

A large number of personnel comprise the Fire Nation military, of which the majority are conscripts. The Fire Nation army is the second largest in the world in numbers of soldiers, after the Earth Kingdom, and maintains the largest navy. The Fire Nation military also possesses advanced and powerful military equipment, giving it huge military capabilities and power projection. Thus, it is far more powerful and advanced than any other military force in the world.

Army
The Fire Nation Army is comprised of both normal foot soldiers, who normally wield spears, swords, and shields, and firebenders. This army is undoubtedly the strongest in the world, capable of almost any military ground operation.

History
The Fire Nation Army waged war for one hundred years. They were responsible for the destruction of the Air Nomads by the order of the late Fire Lord Sozin, but failed to kill Avatar Aang, who escaped before the Air Nomads were all killed. Forty years later, they attacked the Southern Water Tribe and killed or imprisoned all of the waterbenders there, leaving only the non-benders to suffer constant Fire Nation raids for the next several decades. For the entire War, they have fought the Earth Kingdom and have succeeded in conquering most of their western territory. They have left much suffering and destruction in their wake.



Six years before Aang's awakening, General Iroh led the army in attacking the Earth Kingdom capital of Ba Sing Se in a 600-day siege. The army destroyed the outer wall and attacked the agrarian zone, only to be pushed back when Iroh called a retreat after earthbenders killed his son, Prince Lu Ten. This failed attack would dishonor Iroh for years to come.

During the year in which Avatar Aang awoke from the iceberg, Admiral Zhao launched a massive invasion force to attack the Northern Water Tribe in what is now known as the Siege of the North. Thousands of soldiers and dozens of tanks attacked the Water Tribe Capital, but they were met by the extremely powerful waterbenders who defended the city. When Zhao killed the Moon Spirit, the Fire Nation army had full control of the city, but they were annihilated by Avatar Aang when he became one with the all-powerful Ocean Spirit. Any remaining survivors retreated, and Zhao was killed later on. The Moon Spirit was soon restored and the Water Tribe saved.



Sometime later, the Fire Nation Army conquered the massive Earth Kingdom city of Omashu, and replaced the imprisoned King Bumi with one of their governors. A few months later, after a successful coup d'état led by Princess Azula and the Dai Li, the Fire Nation army invaded Ba Sing Se, finally conquering the capital of the Earth Kingdom.

The Fire Nation army was left in almost complete control of the Earth Kingdom with the fall of their mighty capital and Avatar Aang's defeat. However, even with Ba Sing Se in their control, they were met with a determined resistance who threatened the army's hold of the country, even pushing back the army in territories of secondary importance. On the Day of Black Sun, the Fire Nation army suffered a crushing defeat when King Bumi broke out of prison in Omashu and took advantage of the army's temporary loss of firebending to take back the city.

The Fire Nation Army's final defeat came with the Liberation of Ba Sing Se on the return of Sozin's Comet, when the Order of the White Lotus assaulted the city and utterly crushed the occupational forces with their advanced bending skills. The defeat of Fire Lord Ozai in the concurrent Battle of Wulong Forest effectively secured the surrender of the Fire Nation army.

With the end of the War, it is almost certain that Zuko commanded the Fire Nation army, navy, and air force to stop attacking the other nations.

Infantry
Firebending soldiers are recognizable by their red and black armor and faceplates shaped like abstract skulls attached to their helmets, which are used for psychological warfare. Ranking officers do not wear faceplates. Soldiers that are employed as guards of the Boiling Rock are known to wear lighter armor and helmets with three-eyed visors, most likely due to the increased heat of the boiling lake surrounding the prison.

The Fire Nation appears to update their uniforms every so often. In around 15 ASC, uniforms had large, protruding shoulder spikes. In 100 ASC, the uniforms are more streamlined.

Non-benders typically use spears, swords, shields, crossbows, and knives as their means of warfare, and usually do not wear skull masks but wear cone helmets.

Heavier weapons


The Fire Nation army occasionally uses tanks for engagements. These tanks are heavily armored and equipped with fire ports to allow the crew to launch fireballs, as well as two grappling hooks on the front. They are built with the main body separated from the tracks with a complicated hydraulic suspension which enables them to right themselves if flipped over, but leaves them vulnerable to waterbending.

The Fire Nation Army uses metal semi-automated catapults, or trebuchets, for larger operations. They work by using a large bar holding a metal net with a coal-ball inside it. The coal ball is ignited and a pedal is hit with a mallet causing the bar to fling over and toss the ignited coal-ball into the air.

The army makes use of komodo rhinos. Outfitted with heavy armor around the face, they are used as cavalry, for cart pulling, and can even be mounted with two catapults. Fire Nation soldiers mount these frightening beasts to terrorize their enemies.

The drill
This siege engine was a massive drill, designed to breach the outer wall of Ba Sing Se. The drill was originally modeled by the Mechanist and took over two years to construct. As large as a village, it housed an entire brigade of Fire Nation engineers, who were needed to make repairs and clean out pipelines. The drill was composed of two moving parts which were connected by a series of braces. It worked by tearing chunks of stone from structures and grinding them down, dispensing them into water and channeling them out the rear.

List of known commanding officers

 * Fire Lord Azulon
 * General Shinu
 * General Bujing
 * General Iroh
 * General Shu

Domestic forces


While most of its military forces are preoccupied with the conquest of the other Nations, the Fire Nation maintains a large and formidable domestic army to defend and enforce the law in both the homeland and a few of the larger mainland colonies. An interesting note about the domestic army is that it employs a surprisingly large number of female warriors and firebenders, who usually don't serve on the front lines. They also serve to train new recruits for both the army and the navy, and as a result most of the military's forces are trained by high-level female firebenders.

History
Little is known of the domestic army's endeavors prior to the present day, although they likely have seen little to no combat due to the supposed impenetrability of the Fire Nation. They have been charged with guarding villages, schools, factories, dockyards, prisons, etc., and essentially act as a police force. They have been seen acting as enforcement officials for schools. They keep the population in line and are responsible for apprehending criminals, traitors, pirates, etc. They also handle the basic training of army and navy recruits from the Home Islands. Many of the higher officers are veterans from other branches of the military, and thus have significant front line experience and are highly trained.

The domestic army had several encounters with Team Avatar in the weeks following the conquest of the Earth Kingdom. They were first seen when a group of officers spotted Aang in his Fire Nation disguise. They thought that he was a student playing hooky, since he was wearing a school uniform, so they took him to a local Fire Nation school, where he was shoved into a classroom taught by Ms. Kwan. They later assisted the Headmaster when he raided Aang's secret dance party after Hide told him about it. The guards tried to catch Aang, but the other students put similar headbands on to confuse the guards and help Aang escape. After Team Avatar left the cave, a couple of guards were dancing to the music playing, in which the Headmaster told them to stop. Katara saved the local village of Jang Hui from the domestic forces whose nearby factory was polluting the river on which the village was situated. She did this by posing as the village's spiritual guardian, the Painted Lady. Later on, the authorities of Fire Fountain City attempted to apprehend Toph after she used her earthbending to scam the city's local con men and dealers. They managed to capture both Toph and Katara in an attempt to lure in Aang so that an assassin, Combustion Man, could eliminate him on behalf of Prince Zuko.

On the day before the Day of Black Sun, General Shinu of the army reported to Fire Lord Ozai that earthbender rebellions were preventing total victory in the Earth Kingdom, so he advised sending domestic forces to aid the army overseas. This plan was rejected in favor of a plan to simply burn down the Earth Kingdom using Sozin's Comet.



The next day, the domestic army was called forth to defend the Fire Nation Capital in the attempted Invasion of the Fire Nation, led by Aang and his allies. The domestic army was badly beaten as the invaders destroyed dozens of tanks and forced the army to retreat when the eclipse occurred, rendering them powerless. However, when the attack failed, the domestic army retaliated by using their new airships to capture the invasion force and drive out Team Avatar.

Finally, the domestic army attempted to prevent the traitorous Prince Zuko and his allies from escaping the Boiling Rock, the Fire Nation's most secure prison. This failed miserably when Zuko's girlfriend, Mai, stopped the guards from killing Zuko. When she and her friend Ty Lee betrayed Princess Azula, who was at the prison with them, they arrested the two girls and locked them away. They were released at War's end.

The domestic forces likely remain active after the War, but have probably been reorganized into a more benevolent force under the rule of Fire Lord Zuko.

Infantry
These soldiers do not utilize the thick armor seen on front line soldiers, as few of the Fire Nation's enemies have ever managed to approach the homeland. Instead, these warriors only wear light armor with black shirts and pants underneath. Most of them wear headbands with various Fire Nation emblems on them, but Boiling Rock prison guards have been seen wearing helmets with golden visors as opposed to skull masks. Male warriors are fully clothed, but female soldiers wear shirts that expose their midriffs. Also, all warriors wear short sleeves. This light armor serves their policing duties better, allowing the pursuit of suspects without heavy armor slowing them down.

The color of shoulder and chestplate armor also denotes the rank of an officer in ascending order: rusty red, gold trim and bright red trim.

Those warriors who are not firebenders employ the use of swords and spears for basic defense.

Heavier weapons


The domestic army has access to almost all of the weapons and vehicles used by the front line forces, among them tanks, airships, warships, etc. A vehicle exclusive to the domestic army is the jet ski, a two-man water vehicle that can travel at fast speeds in order to intercept trespassing vessels. The defenses of the Fire Nation capital showed extensive use of ballistae that fired harpoons and explosive shells.

List of known commanding officers

 * General Mung
 * Warden Poon
 * The Warden of the Boiling Rock

Navy


As a result of the Fire Nation being an archipelago of islands, their navy is a key part of their armed forces as it is required to project their power and soldiers to foreign territories. The Fire Nation thus maintains a very large standing navy. The navy is composed of hundreds of coal-powered, ironclad vessels, manned by firebenders as well as regular troops. Using these massive warships, the Fire Navy can mass incredible assaults, like the great siege of the Northern Water Tribe. The navy is the largest and most powerful in the world, capable of dispatching over a hundred warships in larger operations.

The Fire Nation navy is highly organized and stratified, with a clear hierarchy and efficient bureaucracy. All soldiers are expected to defer unquestioningly to their superiors. The navy's movements are coordinated by messenger hawk through various towers placed strategically throughout the ocean, and all towers are required to stay current on all navy movements. Zuko and Katara sneak into one such tower in order to find out information on the Southern Raiders.

History
The Fire Nation owes many of their victories in the ongoing century-long War with the Earth Kingdom and Water Tribes to their navy. They have participated in sending thousands of firebenders to the front lines to fight in the land war against the Earth Kingdom. They are capable of bombardment of enemy coastlines and often raid helpless settlements.

One of the navy's most notable actions was its prolonged campaign against the Southern Water Tribe. In the opening stages, they bombarded the defenseless coastline, losing only a few ships to the valiant waterbenders. The Southern Raiders were deployed to kill or capture all waterbenders in the tribe, and their success resulted in the imprisonment of all Southern waterbenders, save for Katara. The tribe was left in ruins due to the actions of the navy.

During the events of Book 1, Prince Zuko used his personal Fire Nation ship to hunt down the Avatar. Unfortunately, his ship was among the weakest and smallest ships in the fleet, and was eventually destroyed in a failed assassination attempt on his life staged by Admiral Zhao.

Near the end of Book 1, Zhao assembled over one hundred ships to destroy the Northern Water Tribe, and this fleet leveled much of the capital city and deployed hundreds of assault troops onto the shores. Fortunately, thanks to Aang's timely intervention, he and the Ocean Spirit were able to annihilate this fleet. The loss of Zhao's fleet proved to be an enormous defeat for the Fire Nation, but did little to slow the Fire Nation's war effort.

Despite the loss of Zhao's fleet, the Fire Nation still clearly controlled Earth Kingdom waters and their ships prowled about within Ba Sing Se's vicinity.

During their journey across the Serpent's Pass to Ba Sing Se, Team Avatar and their allies were engaged by a singe Fire Nation cruiser patrolling the local waters. However, Aang managed to damage this vessel and forced it to retreat. Shortly before Ba Sing Se fell, Chief Hakoda of the Southern Water Tribe and his men were charged with defending Chameleon Bay, a body of water that led directly to the city. They used tangle mines to ward off Fire Nation warships, thus preventing any means of attacking the city by water. One such engagement saw four Fire Nation warships fight Hakoda's warriors. Evidently, they succeeded in warding these ships off, too.

After Ba Sing Se fell to the Fire Nation, the Fire Nation used their massive fleets to send occupational troops to the city. The Fire Navy remained at sea picking off the Fire Nation's enemies, and hundreds of vessels remained active on the seas.

With the fall of Fire Lord Ozai during the climactic battle of Sozin's Comet, Prince Zuko ascended the throne as Fire Lord and has now dedicated his reign towards reestablishing peace. It is likely that the Fire Nation navy has ceased further attacks on the other nations and is now being used to send most of the Fire Nation armies back home.

In the 2010 movie adaptation, the Fire Navy was heavily featured in the Fire Nation's pursuit of Avatar Aang.

Ships and equipment
Ship types vary from huge vessels like those of the Empire Class to smaller vessels like Zuko's original ship. These vessels serve many purposes, from ferrying and disembarking troops to providing bombardment with their catapults to creating blockades.

Design
The Fire Nation is a pioneer of warship design.

Advanced metallurgy is used on all warships. In addition to its sturdy properties, the Fire Nation's use of metallurgy to remove impurities from the metal ensures that earthbenders cannot damage their ships with their powers.



Most ships in the Fire Nation navy have a heavy releasable bow at the front of the ship, which shares some characteristics of a real-life Icebreaker ship. As the bow also acts as a landing exit, it can be used to batter through walls to create a landing point for ground troops, as shown in raids on both the Northern and Southern Water Tribes.

Many of the ships vary in size and appearance probably to reflect the status or its role in the fleet. For example Admiral Zhao's flagship during the Siege of the North had a large dragon on the hull. Princess Azula's Royal Sloop also had several spikes on its hull as well as a pagoda command tower or bridge.

All warships are equipped with semi-automated trebuchets for attack and defense.

Armament
The Fire Nation navy uses metal semi-automated trebuchets on all warships, operated by Trebuchet operators. These engines work by setting a ball of coal in a shovel-like placement that is attached to a machine. The placement is being held down by a rope. The coal-ball is ignited and the rope is cut with a sword. This causes the bar holding the placement to fling over and toss the ignited coal-ball into the air. Fire Navy ships can also be armed with ballistae that fire harpoons, and presumably could fire explosive shells, since ballistae have been shown to fire shells elsewhere.

Classes
The only named ship class is the empire-class battleship, a huge warship that carries a crew of thousands. However, other unnamed ship classes are also seen, here with non-canon classes according to function:


 * Battleship - Admiral Zhao's vessel was the huge flagship of the Fire Nation armada that attacked the Northern Water Tribe capital. Twice the length of a standard cruiser, it possessed an ornate bow resembling the head of a dragon. Though never stated, it is possible that this ship is actually one of the Empire-class battleships mentioned above.
 * Fire Nation cruiser - the mainstay of the Fire Navy, these huge ships carry a large crew and armament. Some variants are armed with three trebuchets in a line, while others have five trebuchets. One cruiser was even seen armed with ballistae. The ships are steam-powered, with two smoke stacks and a massive command tower aft amidships. They have spike-shaped bows that can be used as rams and then lowered to form ramps.
 * Southern Raiders frigate - The Southern Raiders make use of this warship variant. Smaller and faster than the traditional Fire Nation ships, the Raiders' ships are perfect for attacking coastal villages. Their smaller size and improved maneuverability allow the ships to pull up close to the shore and surprise the enemy. One of their special technologies is a large set of dual paddle wheels used to propel these ships through the waters.
 * Zuko's ship (Scout Ship or outdated cruiser) - Zuko's ship, while fairly large in general terms, was small compared to standard cruisers (about half-size in all dimensions). It was likely either a support vessel or an outdated cruiser from the first years of the War, and as such it reflected Zuko's fall from grace, as for example his sister had a much larger and classier vessel at her disposal. Zuko was provided with this standard-issue oldtimer by his father upon being exiled, but only after Azula convinced their father to do so on Zuko's behalf. This ship appears to be the same class as The Shipwreck, the old Fire Navy ship stuck in ice on the South Pole. Zuko's ship was armed with a single catapult, rather than more modern trebuchets.
 * Azula's ship (Royal Barge) - Azula's Royal Barge was fast and large, complete with a highly ornate bow and a large pagoda-style conning tower. However, the ship seems more representative than made for actual fighting, probably relying more on an armed escort, as it is sleek, has no visible armaments and the house-like tower looks rather fragile. It is likely the only ship of its class.
 * Fire Lord Ozai's Royal Barge - Fire Lord Ozai also possessed his own unique personal vessel, which was briefly seen before his departure to the Earth Kingdom prior to the arrival of Sozin's Comet. The ship would appear to be slightly larger than Azula's ship and again highly ornate. Like all Fire Nation vessels, it sports a large conning tower on a large base.
 * River Steamer - A metal, steam-driven river raft Zuko used first to chase Aang to the Avatar Temple on Crescent Island and then in his hunt for the gang after they steal a waterbending scroll from some pirates. The pirates later commandeer this particular boat when their own sloop is taken by the Gang, and run both down a waterfall. Zuko's ship held at least this one steamer, and they may be standard issue in the Fire Navy.
 * Riverboat - Admiral Zhao used a series of wooden riverboats to traverse through narrow rivers in his search for the traitor Jeong Jeong and the Avatar. All of these particular boats got destroyed by Zhao's reckless firebending, after some goading by Aang.
 * Transport Ferry - Katara and the Earth Kingdom prisoners from the Fire Nation Prison Rig hijack a number of small steam-powered transport vessels to escape back to the coast.
 * Kayak - It was displayed during the Siege of the North that at least some Fire Navy ships possess kayaks or small lifeboats deployed through a side hatch on the hull, as Zuko used one of these ships to infiltrate the Northern Water Tribe. Due to the makeshift appearance of the kayak, it may not be standard issue in the Fire Navy, instead being brought aboard or made there by Zuko and/or Iroh.

List of known commanding officers

 * Admiral Zhao
 * Admiral Chan
 * Admiral Liang
 * Admiral Jeong Jeong (prior to desertion)

Air Force


The Fire Nation is the only one of the four nations that has developed military flying machines, war balloons and airships. It should be noted that the war balloons were designed by the Mechanist, an Earth Kingdom citizen, and that the airships were made using the balloons as a base. Being able to control the skies gives the Fire Nation an almost insurmountable advantage over its enemies.

History
For most of the course of the War, the Fire Nation was not known to have utilized any true air force against its enemies, and thus likely did not have one prior to the present-day. However, after the Battle for the Northern Air Temple, the Fire Nation acquired a war balloon, a hot air balloon designed by the Mechanist, an Earth Kingdom inventor who the Fire Nation had pressed into service by designing weapons and technology. As stated by War Minister Qin, "This defeat is the gateway to many victories." Towards the end of the Invasion of the Fire Nation, it was revealed that the Fire Nation had constructed many more war balloons which are now fueled by firebenders, as well as several massive metal airships.

The airships served a critical role in Ozai's plan to destroy the Earth Kingdom by harnessing the power of Sozin's Comet. Although the attack razed much of the western coastline, the airships were all captured or destroyed when Avatar Aang and his friends defeated Ozai and sabotaged the attack. This attack essentially destroyed the Fire Nation air force, as the bulk of its power had been invested in the airships.

Hot air balloons
The Fire Nation hot air balloon, also called the war balloon, is a simple airborne vehicle comprised of a large red balloon and a personnel basket underneath. The balloon is fueled by a coal furnace set alight by a single firebender while a second firebender launches projectiles at air or ground-based forces. The Fire Nation has possibly built dozens of these.

Airships
Airships are massive aerial warships made of metal, with dozens of crew members. They are primarily used for bombing of ground targets, and have dozens of small platforms from which firebenders launch fire at enemies for defense. The airships float using large fuel cells on the bottom of the hull to heat the air inside.

List of known commanding officers

 * Phoenix King Ozai
 * Princess Azula
 * Airship captain

Yu Yan Archers


The Yu Yan Archers are Colonel Shinu's highly skilled unit of archers, and are, according to Zhao, "capable of pinning a fly to a tree from 100 yards away without killing it."

Imperial firebenders
The Imperial firebenders are an elite group of firebenders dressed in unique armor serving to protect members of the Royal Family. They were banished by Azula just before Sozin's Comet, but with the coronation of Fire Lord Zuko, it is likely that their position has been restored.

Rough Rhinos


The Rough Rhinos are an elite group of Fire Nation cavalry. There are five members of the group, each of whom carries a different specialized weapon. They are highly skilled and able to ride their komodo rhinos silently through the brush.

Southern Raiders
The Southern Raiders are comprised of an elite force of vessels and soldiers tasked with launching the numerous raids on the Southern Water Tribe.

Their insignia is a sea raven and their uniforms are slightly different from conventional Fire Nation armor. Their helmets have red eye shields that extend to the sides with two spikes on each side in the resemblance of flames or wings and the armor is all black except for red outlining along the edges. The commander has a more intricate helmet in that he has no eye shield but has three red spikes extending outward, a curved red spike outlining the eyes, a black nose guard that extends down, spikes near the mouth, and finally spikes on the arm guards.

It might be that the soldiers in this unit were trained differently than normal firebending soldiers because they hold their arms pointed to the ground while charging their firebending to attack.

Their flagship is fairly advanced, with an unusually large conning tower. The goal of the Southern Raiders is to eliminate all waterbenders from the Southern Water Tribe, as well as stealing supplies for the Fire Nation.

List of known commanding officers

 * Yon Rha (retired)

Strategies
The Fire Nation military forces seems to favor a strategy that symbolizes their bending art. The Siege of the North showed that the Fire Nation uses heavy bombing with their fleets before overpowering the enemy with armored vehicles, heavy cavalry, and heavy infantry. After gaining a foothold the Fire Nation usually clears the area by advancing at great speeds with cavalry and tanks. After the first advancement they usually swarm over the area with infantry. Other strategies are not shown but they are known to make use of maneuver warfare and encircling their enemy.

List of major engagements

 * Air Nomad Genocide
 * Battle of Han Tui
 * Battle of Taku
 * Hu Xin Provinces Campaign
 * Battle of Garsai
 * Southern Water Tribe raids
 * 600-Day Siege of Ba Sing Se
 * Battle for the Northern Air Temple
 * Siege of the North
 * Capture of Omashu
 * Battle of the Drill
 * Coup of Ba Sing Se
 * Invasion of the Fire Nation
 * Liberation of Omashu
 * Escape from the Boiling Rock
 * Liberation of Ba Sing Se
 * Comet Enhanced Agni Kai
 * Battle at Wulong Forest