Fire Nation Army

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The Fire Nation Army is the main military arm of the Fire Nation. They are charged with Fire Lord Ozai's quest to conquer the Four Nations.

[edit] History

The Fire Nation Army is a massive and fearsome army made up of thousands of Firebenders and non-bending warriors. They are recognizable by their red/black armor and skull masks attached to their helmets, which are used for psychological warfare. These deadly soldiers are capable of burning down entire towns and invading entire cities, and have been a curse on the other nations. Non-benders typically use spears, swords, shields, crossbows, and knives as their means of warfare, and usually don't wear skull masks but wear cone helms. They occasionally use catapults and tanks for ground battles and use the Fire Nation Navy to travel the globe. This army is undoubtedly the strongest in the world. In the Fire nation they wore headbands instead of helmets and they carried sabers instead of spears. In the Boiling Rock they wore a light armour and helmets with eye visors. They often used a fire whip to round up prisoners. The Fire Nation Army has been waging the War for the past 100 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, Crown 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 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 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'etat led by Princess Azula and the Dai Li, the Fire Nation Army invaded Ba Sing Se, finally conquering the capital of the Earth Kingdom. However, the war did not end there. Aang, his friends, Water Tribe warriors, and Earth Kingdom soldiers attacked the Fire Nation Capital on the Day of Black Sun. The Fire Nation Army retaliated in full force with tanks and firebending, but with the solar eclipse and the enemy' improvised weapons, they were no match for their opponents. Unfortunately, Princess Azula distracted Aang from attacking the Fire Lord during the eclipse, allowing the Army to retake its capital and arrest the surrendering rebels. By the end of the war, the Fire Nation was peaceful once more, so it is almost certain that Zuko commanded the Fire Nation Army, Navy, and Airforce to stop attacking the other nations.

[edit] Strategies

The Fire Nation army 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 then 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 aren't shown but they make use of maneuver warfare and encircling their enemy.