| "Colonel Mongke and the Rough Rhinos are legendary – each one is a different kind of weapon specialist. They are also a very capable singing group." |
| — Iroh describing the Rough Rhinos.[1] |
The Rough Rhinos were an elite group of Fire Nation komodo rhino cavalry who worked on a freelance basis, claiming their loyalty to the Fire Lord during the Hundred Year War. After the war's end, they became mercenaries, and by 102 AG, they were hired as the security detail of the Earthen Fire Refinery.[3]
The group consisted of five members, each of whom specialized in a different type of weapon or fighting style, though their preferred weapons were not well adapted for close-combat. After the Rough Rhinos became mercenaries, they allowed former members of the army to join them.[2]
History
During the Hundred Year War
Around 91 AG, the Rough Rhinos attacked the village where Jet was living and killed his parents, which ignited Jet's lifelong hatred of the Fire Nation.[4] In late 99 AG, they invaded another village at the western Earth Kingdom coast, forcing the residents to become refugees, including Than and Ying.[5]
In 100 AG, the Rough Rhinos first encountered Team Avatar, ambushing them in a forest near Chin Village. The three friends did, however, manage to escape on Appa. The Rough Rhinos later invaded Chin Village during Aang's trial for the murder of the village's great leader, Chin the Great. They claimed the village in the name of the Fire Lord and had commenced their destruction of the village before eventually being defeated by Team Avatar.[6]
The Rough Rhinos confronted Aang, Sokka, and Katara just outside of Chin Village.
Later that year, the Rough Rhinos confronted Team Avatar once more in a small Earth Kingdom village. They captured Sokka, mistakenly believing him to be the Avatar, but were soon bested by Aang, Katara, and Toph.[7]
Sometime later, the team of soldiers surrounded Iroh and Zuko while the two fugitives of the Fire Nation were traveling through the Earth Kingdom, near the great Si Wong Desert. After a brief battle, the warriors were bested by the two firebenders, who were able to escape in the chaos ensuing an explosion.[1]
Guards of the Earthen Fire Refinery
After the war, the Rough Rhinos left the service of the Fire Lord, recruited three new members, and offered themselves for hire as mercenaries, eventually winding up as the personal security detail of the owners of the Earthen Fire Refinery, Lao Beifong and Loban.[3] In this capacity, they were tasked by Lao to escort Team Avatar off the factory's premises. A fight between the two groups broke out, though, one that ended in the favor of Team Avatar.
Two of the group's members, Vachir and Kahchi, were trapped with several others in an underground iron mine following a cave-in.[2] After they were rescued, Loban, having discovered an iron mask in the ground, ordered the two to mount their rhinos and help him take it to the shore for transport to the Fire Nation. Upon reaching the shore, stormy weather took hold while Sokka and Satoru confronted them and resoundingly defeated Vachir and Kahchi, respectively. The animals, meanwhile, refused to continue assisting in the transport and ran off.[8]
Members
The Rough Rhinos recruited new members following the Hundred Year War.
The Rough Rhinos' leader, Colonel Mongke, was a talented firebender, although Zuko managed to overpower him without significant effort.[1] He was the only firebender in the group and once served under Iroh in the Fire Nation military.[5] Ogodei and Kahchi preferred melee weaponry: Ogodei carried chains or "bolas" and Kahchi a Guan Dao. Yeh-Lu specialized in explosives and wore armor that masked his face, never exposing it in any known encounters. Vachir wielded a bow and frequently used flaming arrows, making him the third member to fight with fire. He was originally a member of the renowned Yuyan Archers, as indicated by his facial tattoos. At the end of the Hundred Year War, the Rough Rhinos recruited new members into their ranks; among them was Utor, a former Fire Nation soldier.[2]
Appearances
Avatar: The Last Airbender
Book Two: Earth (土)
- 205. "Avatar Day"
- 211. "The Desert"
- 217. "Lake Laogai" (flashback, no lines)
Avatar comics
Book Two: Earth (土)
- Iss. #8. "Sokka the Avatar"
Graphic novel trilogies
- The Rift trilogy
Trivia
- All of the original riders' names resemble various Mongolians associated with Genghis Khan, and other nomadic warriors.
- Their name bears strong resemblance to the Rough Riders, an American cavalry unit once led by Colonel, and eventual United States President, Theodore Roosevelt.
- In the Rough Rhinos' second encounter with Team Avatar, Yeh-Lu was inexplicably absent.[7]
- Each original rider seemed to be related to a different part of the Fire Nation military; Mongke was a firebender, Ogodei was an engineer, Yeh-Lu was a bombardier, Kahchi was a regular infantry soldier, and Vachir was a Yuyan Archer.
- Although a supposedly fearsome and successful organization, they were fairly unsuccessful during their appearances in the series.
- The names of two of the new recruits are given as Junho and Seijir in the supplemental material included in the Library Edition of The Rift.
References
See also
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