Southern Water Tribe warriors wore wolf armor as protection during the invasion of the Fire Nation.
Water Tribe wolf armor is protective battle gear worn by the warriors of the Southern Water Tribe. Although the design of the armor varies slightly between individuals of different ranks, it is largely uniform, providing an aesthetic sense of unity during combat. Warriors wearing the armor often incite fear from the enemy when they charge, as the helmet in particular allows the warriors to resemble a pack of wolves.[1]
History
Rafa stole the Chief of the Northern Water Tribe's battle helmet.
Before losing his face to Koh, Rafa often stole from the most powerful tribesmen in the Northern Water Tribe, including the tribal chief, from whom he stole a wolf helmet.[2]
During the Day of Black Sun in the summer of 100 AG, the Southern Water Tribe warriors, including Hakoda, Sokka, and Bato, donned wolf armor during the invasion of the Fire Nation.[3]
Sokka wore the wolf armor once again while running tactical drills alongside the other members of Team Avatar while they were in Ember Island, in preparation for an upcoming confrontation with Fire Lord Ozai.[4]
Upon the arrival of Sozin's Comet, Sokka wore the wolf armor when he set course to destroy the Fire Nation's airship fleet alongside Toph Beifong and Suki, in order to prevent Ozai from burning down the Earth Kingdom with the use of comet-enhanced firebending.[5]
In 102 AG, several warriors belonging to the group resisting the Southern Reconstruction Project donned the wolf armor and unsuccessfully attempted to prevent Katara and Sokka from leaving the hideaway. Two of these warriors mounted snow leopard caribou to pursue the siblings through the South Pole but were eventually bucked off their mounts after Sokka distracted the creatures with food.[6]
Design
The Water Tribe wolf armor is designed to incorporate several aspects integral to Water Tribe culture. Particularly, animal pelt is used extensively as trimming for several components that make up the armor, including the helmet, chest plate, and the loincloth. A lunar motif distinct to the Water Tribe is woven into the fabric covering the shoulders as well as across the chest. The motif on Hakoda's chest plate bears a more complex emblem, depicting a crest with three lunar phases compared to the singular waning crescent on the chest plates of other warriors.[7]
Several features, including the distinct emblem on his chest that depicts three lunar phases, are specific to Hakoda's armor.
The armor is almost entirely navy blue in coloration, apart from the white trimming and several metal plates used to provide additional protection. Metal plates are used as shoulder guards, as well as support for the forearms and the feet. The warriors also have large, metal shields strapped to their left arms, which are reinforced by bone and also marked with a lunar crest.[7]
The armor is also designed to accommodate weaponry specific to each warrior. In Sokka's case, a scabbard is attached to the back as sheathing for his sword, which can tilt accordingly to accommodate the length of his blade. Hakoda, on the other hand, has a leather pouch clipped to his back through a series of pins, from which he draws a bone club.[7]
One of the most notable components of the armor is the wolf helmet, which is typically light gray for most warriors, with animal pelt attached to the base. Hakoda's helmet shares a similar design but is navy blue in comparison, with a fox tail attached to the top of the helmet.[7] This considerably more elaborate design is also present in the battle helmet used by the Chief of the Northern Water Tribe, although the pelt attached to the top comes from a different animal.[2]
Trivia
- The lunar crest on Hakoda's armor resembles the Pagan symbol for the Triple Goddess, which corresponds to the three phases of the moon.
- The extensive use of pelt in the armor's design bears similarities to battle gear used by Roman Vexillarius soldiers, which also used wolf skin pelts draped over the head and chest.
- The design for both the Water Tribe wolf armor and Appa's armor came from unused toy sketch submissions that Bryan Konietzko drew for the consumer products department.[7]
References
- ↑ Template:Nickold
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 DiMartino, Michael Dante; Konietzko, Bryan; Yang, Gene Luen (writer), Sasaki of Gurihiru (penciling, inking), Kawano of Gurihiru (colorist), Heisler, Michael; Comicraft (letterer). The Search Part Two (July 10, 2013), Dark Horse Comics.
- ↑ DiMartino, Michael Dante (writer) & Volpe, Giancarlo (director). (November 30, 2007). "The Day of Black Sun, Part 1: The Invasion". Avatar: The Last Airbender. Season 3. Episode 10. Nickelodeon.
- ↑ DiMartino, Michael Dante (writer) & Spaulding, Ethan (director). (July 19, 2008). "Sozin's Comet, Part 1: The Phoenix King". Avatar: The Last Airbender. Season 3. Episode 18. Nickelodeon.
- ↑ Ehasz, Aaron (writer) & Volpe, Giancarlo (director). (July 19, 2008). "Sozin's Comet, Part 2: The Old Masters". Avatar: The Last Airbender. Season 3. Episode 19. Nickelodeon.
- ↑ DiMartino, Michael Dante; Konietzko, Bryan; Yang, Gene Luen (writer), Sasaki of Gurihiru (penciling, inking), Kawano of Gurihiru (colorist), Heisler, Michael; Comicraft (letterer). North and South Part One (September 27, 2016), Dark Horse Comics.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 Avatar: The Last Airbender—The Art of the Animated Series, page 150.