Waterbending

> Waterbending, one of the four elemental bending arts, is the
>
>
> hydrokinetic ability to control water in all of its various forms. This type of
> bending is used by the people of the Water Tribe, who are divided into the
> Southern, Northern, and lesser known Foggy Swamp tribes, as well as those of
>
>
>
> the United Republic, each with their own unique bending style.
>
>

> Water is the element of change. The moon is the source of
>
>
> power in waterbending, and the original waterbenders learned to bend by
> observing how the moon pushed and pulled the tides. The Water Tribes are the
> only people who did not learn bending from an animal, though the Moon and Ocean
> Spirits took the form of koi fish in the mortal world near the beginning of the
>
>
>
> Avatar World.
>
>

> The fighting style of waterbending is mostly fluid and
>
>
> graceful, acting in concert with the environment. Foggy Swamp style
> waterbending, however, is more rigid and straight. Waterbenders deal with the
> flow of energy; they let their defense become their offense, turning their
> opponents' own forces against them. Even when waterbenders do take an attack
>
>
>
> stance, their moves always appear to flow from one to the other.
>
>

- Waterbending, Avatar Wiki

## Abilities

### Non-master level

#### Breath of ice

A waterbender can use their breath to rapidly
freeze objects or opponents. For a more advanced version of the technique, the
user takes a deep breath and exhales the air as a cloud of freezing mist.

#### Ice blade

Waterbenders can create a swordlike blade of ice.

#### Ice bullets

Waterbenders are able to rapidly shoot shards
of ice at their opponents.

#### Ice claws

Shown by Hama, using ice claws involves the
bender drawing water around their fingers and freezing it. They can also be sent
forward, shooting them at an opponent. A waterbender can also use this as an
advantage; being small and unnoticeable, they can hide them in their sleeves. Additionally, this technique uses little water and
thus can be performed quickly using the condensation technique.

#### Ice creeper

A waterbender can send a ray of ice on the
ground, speeding at an opponent to freeze them. This technique freezes a trail
of water beginning with the waterbender performing the move and ending with
their targets freezing.

#### Ice disc

A waterbender can create a cylindrical column of
ice and proceed to slice razor-sharp sections of it off and send them at an
opponent. They are sharp around the edges but also thin.

#### Ice gauntlet

Similar in technique to the ice claws, a
waterbender can freeze water around their hands and turn it into a sharp spike
that can be used to scale mountains or impale their opponent.

#### Ice hook

Waterbenders, if creative enough, may form a hook
out of ice which they can use to climb vertical surfaces.

#### Ice shield

Waterbenders are able to freeze water in front
of them, creating a shield of ice.

#### Ice spear

The ice spear is a waterbending move that
involves freezing a stream of water into a spike and firing it at the intended
target.

#### Iceberg spike

Waterbenders can shoot small shards of ice at
their opponent, or cause a giant spike to protrude from a body of water. The
Northern Water Tribe employs these as a primary defense of their homeland when
enemy ships are sighted.

#### Phase change

Waterbenders also possess the ability to alter
the physical state of the water they manipulate, between liquid, solid and gas,
at will. Changing the phase of water allows for multiple techniques in the
course of a battle, from encasing an opponent in ice to hiding behind a wall of
mist. Ice and steam/fog can also be molded in a diverse range of shapes. Ice
provides a degree of hard lethality since it can be molded into spikes or
blades to pin down or impale opponents. Steam or mist can obscure a battlefield
and mask movement. Waterbenders also possess the ability to breathe an icy mist
that freezes water and other substances.

#### Streaming the water

Named by Katara, it is a move that
draws water from a source that waterbenders move around their bodies. A more
advanced version demonstrated by Aang apparently involves "sinking and
floating". This move is thought to be used for basic training so that
beginning waterbenders can get a "feel" for water, but it is in
reality a useful move performed by waterbenders of every skill level.

#### Water bullet

The water bullet is a move where a waterbender
bends a large amount of water and sends it in a forceful blow toward their
target. It is similar to a water jet, but it is more for a quick use since the
jet takes more concentration. It is basic yet useful because it takes little
time to perform and has a significant effect on the target.

#### Water cloak

A waterbender can use their water as a form of
armor with tentacle-like arms. The bender can use these arms to grab objects or
enemies, whip enemies, blast enemies with water, and freeze them. If a
waterbender has less water available, he or she can simply form the arms
instead of the entire cloak. When mastered, this technique can mold the ends of the tentacles into any shape, such as
a claw or a hook, as well as only locally freeze the ends while retaining the
mobility of the tentacle as a whole.

#### Water filtering

When working in concert with an
earthbender, a waterbender can purify polluted water. The waterbender suspends
the polluted water in the air while the earthbender removes the pollutants.

#### Water jet

High pressure jets can be used to force opponents
back or even blast clean through a target if focused enough. Water jets are
primarily used if the user has the intent of severely hurting their opponents.

#### Water knife

The ability to shape water into a super-sharp
edge or point for a split-second, enabling a waterbender to cut through metal,
wood and stone.

#### Water manipulation

Almost all forms of waterbending involve
moving and shaping a body of water to the waterbender's desire. By simply
levitating a large mass of water, waterbenders can move water anywhere they
wish, even parting it under the surface of a lake or sea, allowing them to walk
along the bottom of a basin without the need to swim. These large bodies of
water can also be used as weapons, either by shaping them into gigantic whips,
swung repeatedly at a target as a snake-like body, formed momentarily into a
razor-sharp edge that can cut through even metal, or simply dropped onto an
opponent to smother them or put out a fire. On the sea or ocean, waterbending
can be used to create giant maelstroms.

#### Water pressure manipulation

Waterbenders are also able to
manipulate water pressure, allowing them to use water to grasp other objects or
cut through without simply parting around them. Water can be used as a
semi-solid while being able to move and flow like a liquid. Water can be
pressurized to such a level where it can slice through metal. Waterbenders can
also use this to avoid sinking in water, effectively allowing them to walk on
water, as demonstrated by Katara multiple times.

#### Water wall/water shield

Water can be molded into a variety
of shapes and can be used to deflect an attack, trap opponents in a viscous
body, reshaped and propelled at attackers before they can recover, or
solidified into a shield of ice. This diversity and ability to swiftly change
to suit the situation is what makes the waterbender's defense so adaptable.
Although usually protective, the shield needs some type of compression or else
it will not be effective.

#### Water whip

The water whip is a commonly used move that
involves creating a lashing tendril of water to swipe at an opponent. The
shape, size, and length are all determined by a waterbender's control, and more
powerful benders can create larger whips, or ones of greater finesse. The whip
can be sharpened into a blade that can slice through metal with relative ease, it has been demonstrated that the ability to
create water whips with feet is possible.

#### Wave

By moving a large mass of water without separating it
from its original source, waterbenders can create waves of nearly any size.
They do this by using an upward movement that raises the source, which they
subsequently send away in their desired direction. This can be used to sweep
opponents away or even as a form of transport, with the bender surfing on the crest
of the wave. This same process can be used to propel waterborne crafts.

### Master level

#### Bubble

Capable waterbenders are able to cross large bodies
of water by creating a bubble around themselves and their fellow travelers,
maintaining a supply of air for their journey.

#### Ice dagger

Much like ice claws, ice daggers form on a
waterbender's fingers and shoot at high speeds away from him or her.

#### Ice dome

A highly advanced technique, a waterbender may
surround a foe in a sphere of water and freeze it, trapping their opponent
inside.

#### Ice drill

By turning the tip into ice, waterbenders control
massive amounts of water into a spiraled frozen drill.

#### Ice floor

With a sufficient amount of water available, a
master can cover a large area of the ground with ice, trapping their enemies'
feet in ice while allowing them to slide around.

#### Ice prison

This technique covers an opponent in a prison
made of ice. By finely controlling the position of the person within, this
technique can restrict the motions of an opponent's hands, thus rendering them
powerless.

#### Ice ramp

Waterbenders can manipulate ice as a means of
short transportation for themselves or others. Similarly, waterbenders can also shift snow and water to
create stairs of ice in order to improve mobility in snow.

#### Ice sled

An advanced version of the ice ramp, master
waterbenders can craft a sled out of ice and propel it forward with their bending
at speeds that rival those achieved by motorized transportation, such as
snowmobiles.

#### Ice tunneling

Waterbenders are able to swim through thick
ice with the same ease as through water, allowing them to surprise their foes.

#### Maelstrom

In a large body of water, a waterbender can
create a gigantic whirlpool.

#### Multiple water whips

An advanced waterbending move similar
to the single water whip, except it deals with more than one whip, usually four
or five. This technique seems to be able to inflict a large amount of damage.

#### Octopus form

A body of water formed around the user into
eight or so whip-like limbs which can be used to grasp or strike an opponent or
to intercept incoming attacks.

#### Partial ice whip

Waterbenders can take hold of the end of
an opponent's water whip and locally freeze the opposite end in order to trap
their opponent and pull them in closer.

#### Razor rings

An experienced waterbender can create multiple
simultaneous water rings capable of cutting.

#### Water ball

Similar to the bubble technique and the ice
prison technique, a waterbender can trap their opponent in a ball of water.

#### Water boxing

To perform the technique, a waterbender
surrounds their fist with a small amount of water and punches their opponent.

#### Water dome

A master waterbender can collect water from the
rain, forming a dome which can be used for both offense and defense.

#### Water drill

A high-pressure, rotating column of water.
Capable of exerting a significant amount of pressure upon a solid surface, that
allows the action of a drill. The move takes mastery of waterbending since the
motions to create a constantly twisting body of water requires bending skill.

#### Water gimbal

Skilled waterbenders can create a gimbal, or
two rotating rings of water, around their bodies. This has both defensive and
offensive capabilities, such as being used as a cannon.

#### Water pinwheel

This move involves the user moving a large
mass of water and spinning it vertically around him/her.

#### Water ring

A skilled waterbender can create a ring of water
around their body which can be used for both defense and offense, such as
shooting ice shards or sending water whips at their opponent.

#### Water spout or "water vortex"

This high-level
technique involves controlling a whirlpool-like pillar of water or snow,
rotating it and directing its movements at the same time, making it easier for
the user to dodge attacks. In accordance with the water spout's constantly
shifting and coiling movements, it forms a giant snake of water around the
lower body, elevating them from the surface of the water. The
waterspout has a limited height, however, depending on the amount of water
fueling it.