Additional Worldbuilding Materials

Learning Advanced Techniques

Each Major City in the game will feature a university or college of some sort, these can be used
to learn bending at a higher level, although they are heavily dependent on region in regards to
their functioning.
Agna Qel’a has free classes (although quests to unlock new techniques will be harder here),
They are also exclusively for men, so non-male PCs will have to disguise themselves in order to
enter the lessons. Agna Qel’a also features free healing lessons for female characters.
Kyoshi Island has Kyoshi Warriors that will be willing to teach weapons techniques to the PCs if
they assist in quests.
Ba Sing Se features the finest university in the entire world, however tuition is not free, and
while there are classes that will teach techniques of all bending types (and advanced
earthbending techniques), classes cost around 10gp each, with classes for advanced
earthbending techniques costing even more to attend.
Omashu has a free university due to its more egalitarian conditions, and will teach weapons and
earthbending techniques to those who wish to learn.
The Fire Nation has a school with similar fees to Ba Sing Se in Hari Bulkan that teaches
firebending, technology, weapons and lightning bending.
In order to learn other advanced firebending techniques, one must seek out the Sun Warrior’s
City, and learn the true meaning of firebending from them.
Bhanti Island is the home of the Fire Sages, and they are also willing to teach pupils advanced
firebending techniques, potentially even the forbidden art of combustion bending, although this
requires incredibly rigorous training.
The Northern Air Temple is the location of the Mechanist and several other Earth Kingdom
refugees, they are able to teach advanced technology techniques to the PCs.

Wan Shi Tong’s library in the Si Wong Desert is an arduous task to get to, but if the PC arrives,
they can learn any 1 combat technique (or more if they can avoid getting caught by Wan Shi
Tong!)

Important Places
• Agna Qel’a Northern Water Tribe - A city of ice with impenetrable
walls housing the spirits of Moon and Ocean
• Ba Sing Se Earth Kingdom - A sprawling city rife with corruption protected by an impenetrable
wall
• Bhanti Island Fire Nation - Island of Fire Sages with magical healing pool
• Crescent Island Fire Nation - Fire Temple island, destroyed accidentally by Avatar Roku
• Eastern Air Temple Air Nomads - Air Nomad temple with significant spiritual power
• Fire Fountain City Fire Nation - An ancient city with mystical roots
• Fire Nation Capital Fire Nation - A sprawling city built atop and within an island volcano
• Foggy Swamp Foggy Swamp Tribe - Home to an isolated water tribe who can bend the water
in plants
• Gaoling Earth Kingdom - Town in the Earth Kingdom, later home to the first democratic
elections
• Kyoshi Island Earth Kingdom - A large island home to the renowned Kyoshi Warriors
• Lake Laogai Earth Kingdom - A lake within the outer wall of
Ba Sing Se with a secret Dai Li facility underneath
• Northern Air Temple Air Nomads - A towering temple only accessible through the air
• Northern Spirit Portal Northern Water Tribe - Portal to the Spirit World, closed until the Korra
Era
• Omashu Earth Kingdom - A mountain-top city with unique technology operated by bending
• Republic City United Republic - Central city of the relatively young United Republic
• Si Wong Desert Earth Kingdom - A vast and deadly desert
• Southern Air Temple Air Nomads - An Air Nomad temple home to flying lemurs and sky bison
• Southern Spirit Portal Southern Water Tribe - Portal to the Spirit World, closed until the Korra
Era
• Sun Warriors’ Ancient City Fire Nation - A forgotten city and home to dragons
• Water Tribe Sacred Island Water Tribes - The halfway point between the Water Tribes
• Western Air Temple Air Nomads - An upside-down mountain
temple located in a strategically important location
• Wolf Cove Southern Water Tribe - The capital of the South
Pole struggling to find its identity amidst turmoil
• Yu Dao Earth Kingdom - The oldest Fire Nation colony of the Hundred Year War

Agna Qel’a
Agna Qel’a is the capital of the Northern Water Tribe. It is a
massive port city built into an ice wall in the North Pole and
situated on the shore of the Northern Sea. Towering walls of ice
and a network of moats keep invaders at bay. In addition, it is
home to a skilled army, waterbending warriors, and some of the
best healers in the world. Canoes steered by Waterbenders ferry
people from one location to another via the massive canals all
throughout the city.
The Royal Palace is the largest and highest structure in Agna
Qel’a. It’s a multi-tiered structure surrounded by numerous
waterfalls that feed into the canals of the city. The impressive
balance of architecture and ice throughout this ancient city is a
wonder to behold.
The lush and verdant Spirit Oasis hidden within the city is
the single most important spiritual location to the Northern
Water Tribe. Its verdant, tropical environment is completely unlike
the rest of the North Pole, and is said to be nurtured by the
energy of Tui, the Moon Spirit, and La, the Ocean Spirit. The
two spirits live in a small pond within it as two koi fish constantly
circling each other. After the era of Wan, the first Avatar, the
first Waterbenders learned bending from observing the power
of the moon over the ocean, and so these two spirits hold great
significance to the tribe. During the full moon, people make
offerings of food to Tui and La.

Agna Qel’a seems to mostly subsist on trade and hunting, with much of what we see of it in the
HYW era geared towards war, with navy fleets, men taught waterbending and women taught
healing. It also has strict gender roles as a society and is deeply patriarchal

Ba Sing Se
The capital of the Earth Kingdom and by far the largest city in the
Avatarverse, Ba Sing Se is akin to a small country in itself. This
“Impenetrable City” is known for its famous walls that protect
it and can be opened only with the power of earthbending. The
walls divide the city into “rings” based on social status: the Outer
Wall, Agrarian Zone, Inner Wall, Lower Ring, Middle Ring, and
Upper Ring.
As such, Ba Sing Se is a city both grand and rife with conflict.
It’s a perfect place for PCs beginning a story—whether they stay
to explore the city’s wonders and dark secrets or embark from
the capital to virtually anywhere in the world—or for an established
group during an ongoing campaign.
For the purposes of this adventure, the focus is on Ba Sing
Se’s Middle Ring, but the broader city holds innumerable locations
of note! To list them all would be an endless task. Here are
the locations of interest:

The Stone Kettle

A dingy little tea shop, the Stone Kettle is tucked in an alley off
a boisterous restaurant row in the Middle Ring. It’s the sort of spot tourists might overlook,
but local workers know they can get a good strong cup of black
tea between shifts. Large enough for a small counter, a shelf of tea canisters, and a single
dine-in two-top.

The Black Market

When the clock strikes midnight in Ba Sing Se’s Lower Ring,
everyone knows to stay out of the abandoned watch factory on
the southeast edge of town…unless they want trouble. A double
knock followed by the kick of a toe on the right door grants an
opportunity to whisper the password of the day… if you dare.
This is where Ba Sing Se’s grimy, slimy, sly underbelly gathers
nightly to make deals, gamble, and trade illegal and stolen goods. If
you’re looking for information, you’ll probably find someone willing
to sell it, assuming you’re desperate or daring. If the PCs gain entry,
they’re rewarded with a good story and some rumors at least.

Moon Peach Inn

This once charming inn has seen better days since its original
owner passed and left the property to a frantic son trying to live
up to his mother’s memory. Peeling patterned wallpaper and
pilling velvet canopies are hallmarks of this Middle Ring inn’s
glorious past. While older clientele still visit to reminisce, the
Moon Peach Inn is otherwise a place for those who’d rather be
Forgotten. Two bits of wonder remain at the old Moon Peach: all the rooms
overlook a central courtyard filled with moon peach trees, and it’s
said the original owner’s ghost haunts the halls at dusk offering
moon peach cakes before an early retirement to the Spirit World.

Middle Ring Earthmarket

This bustling farmers’ market boasts all the Earth Kingdom has to
offer: bean curd puffs, braised turtle-duck, deep-fried pickled radishes,
cozy jook, and dumplings galore. Be sure to stop by the Cabbage
Merchant’s booth for his famous cabbage cookies. Booths of
fresh produce and culinary delights are arranged in a ring befitting
Ba Sing Se itself, around a circular courtyard with a large bronze
bear statue in the center. Like spokes of a wheel, streets extend
through the Middle Ring in all directions from the courtyard and,
conveniently, lead to any of the previously listed locations

Loongkau’s Lucky Pocket

This area of the Lower Ring was once completely overtaken
by the Triad of the Golden Wing. After Avatar Kyoshi took the
Triad down, other groups moved into the area and set up shop.
While the quarter still houses a good number of gangs,
a diverse market dominates the area. The Dai Lee like to make regular stops at the Lucky
Pocket, but the warren of underground market stalls makes it hard for them to
single out criminals and triads. This has become a great spot for clandestine
meetings, under the table deals, and other illicit business, all
beneath the notice of the Dail Lee’s watchful eye.
If the heroes ask too many questions there, they are likely to experience pushback.
Everyone is sensitive about losing their scant livelihoods. If a fight breaks out here, the
characters must navigate around cramped hallways and indignant stall vendors.
Of course, there are plenty of opportunities to use those same
stalls, from noodle shops to cabbage stands, to their advantage.

Ba Sing Se University
Ba Sing Se University is located in the Middle Ring of Ba Sing Se. It is a centre of learning
renowned throughout the 4 nations, and it is the greatest university in the world during almost
every era of atla. The Ba Sing Se University offers many degrees and classes, such as
engineering, earthbending, Fire Nation Studies, Water Tribe Studies, Air Nomad Studies,
architecture, science, anthropology, zoology, astrology, political science and archaeology.

Crystal Catacombs
Prior to the development of Ba Sing Se as a large metropolis, it was a small underground
settlement carved out of the rocks by earthbenders. As the earthbenders excavated further, they
discovered the beautiful glowing crystals and began to mine and export them, gaining immense
riches from the commodities as their trade expanded across the world; these glowing crystals
are now used as a common light source in the Earth Kingdom. Eventually, the city expanded
above ground, leaving the Crystal Catacombs empty. Although no one lives there today, the
ancient underground city of stone still stands. A river runs through the center of the large cave
that served as the city's main plaza. The ancient earthbenders had used their bending to shape
the riverbed into neat channels in order to provide water to all corners of the large cave. The
water itself made its way into the underground cave through a waterfall at one end.

Royal Palace in the Central Ring

Monorail going through all rings, 1cp for Outer Ring Line, 5cp for Middle Ring Line, 1sp for
Central Ring Line. Spoke Lines go between rings, they require passport checks. Also carts and
wagons for getting around.

Noodle bars, shops, markets, inns and tea-houses all over Ba Sing Se. Lower Ring in particular
has overcrowded tenement buildings and refugee camps (In HYW and Aang Eras)

Omashu
Omashu is the second largest city in the Earth Kingdom after
Ba Sing Se. An impressive sight, it stands in the southwest of the
Earth Kingdom high atop a mountain within the Kolau Mountain
Range. Legend has it that the city was founded to honor the
tragic lovers Oma and Shu who carried on a forbidden romance
despite hailing from warring villages. According to the story, Shu
died in battle between the villages, and in her grief, Oma enacted
an amazing feat of earthbending that could have destroyed both
settlements. Instead, she declared the war over, and the two
populations merged to create the city of Omashu.
The city’s most unusual feature is its mail delivery system.
This intricate system is a network of large chutes partly operated
by earthbending. Omashu is also known for innovation and
technological progress; its inventors see technology and bending
as working hand in hand. Due to its size, importance, and unique
innovations, Omashu has always competed with Ba Sing Se for
prominence in the Earth Kingdom.
Omashu has similar facilities and locations to Ba Sing Se, albeit smaller and less overcrowded.
There is also significantly less criminal activity in Omashu than in Ba Sing Se, although it does
hold some criminals.

Omashu is a critical port for trade, and in peaceful times well known for its export of silk. During
the HYW Era, it is where the brunt of the Earth Kingdom’s military might comes from.

Si Wong Desert
The beautiful and deadly Si Wong Desert lies near the center of
the Earth Kingdom. Crossing it is all but impossible, especially
for those unfamiliar with the sheer size of the desert and its unforgiving
environment. The Si Wong Tribes who live in the area
are masters of survival. The oldest of these tribes are the beetle-
headed merchants, prolific traders who ride giant rhinoceros
beetles and have settlements throughout the desert.
Those who wish to travel across the Si Wong Desert should
do well to find a guide and stock up on supplies and information
about the area. The best place to do this is at the Misty Palms
Oasis to the southwest. The beetle-headed merchants make
a point of visiting the oasis frequently to conduct business. A
mysterious iceberg with spiritual properties sits in the center of
the town, supplying water and mist.

Also notable are the sandbenders, a group of indigenous tribes that call the Si Wong Desert
their home. They are notable for bending sand instead of solid earth, and being forced to resort
to scavenging, pillaging and bartering in order to survive in the desert. They can be seen
travelling around in earthbending-powered vehicles called sand-sailers.

Wan Shi Tong, a massive owl-like spirit, presides over

the Spirit Library hidden in the Si Wong Desert. He had
accumulated and preserved knowledge to share with
humanity in the hopes that they would use it to improve
themselves and their civilizations. During the Hundred
Year War, a junior lieutenant in the Fire Navy named Zhao
(page 64) took advantage of the library, scouring its
knowledge for military purposes. Zhao burned down the
part of the library containing information about the Fire
Nation, leaving Wan Shi Tong with a terrible impression
of humans. After Zhao’s barbarous actions, Wan Shi Tong
refused to allow humans to enter the library and eventually
moved it back into the Spirit World.

Fire Nation Capital/Hari Bulkan/Harbor

City
The Fire Nation Capital is the home to the royal family and the
seat of government. There is a harbor for ships, a High Temple
for the Fire Sages, a prison, and a network of tunnels beneath the
city perfect for conducting secret operations. The Great Gates of
Azulon, built in the time of their namesake, protect the city. To
fend off outside threats, guards raise a net between the two great
dragon statues and a statue of Azulon and set it alight.
The wealthy elite of the city live in Hari Bulkan, housed
within a dormant volcanic crater. The Fire Nation Royal Palace
is located here along with the Coronation Temple and Plaza. The
path up the volcano to Hari Bulkan is protected by a series of
strategic switchbacks, designed by Fire Lord Sozin, which force
anyone making the ascent to walk in single file.
Other important districts include the industrial Harbor City
and the nearby Royal Plaza, which is not only remarkable to
behold, but strategically lined with battlements from the Roku
Era to slow down any attempted invasion. Many of the commoners
in the capital live in Harbor City and suffer stigma for living
there—they are of a lower status than people who can afford to
live in other districts.

Currency
The Earth Nation has a copper-silver-gold pieces system
The Fire Nation has a currency called Ban
The Water Nation uses circular blue money, although due to their near-decimation in the
Hundred Year War era, The Southern Water Tribe mostly relies on bartering

In s1 ep9 of atla, Aang buys a bison whistle for 1cp, and the Waterbending scroll is on sale for
200gp. Therefore, its not unreasonable to assume that 10cp in 1sp and 10sp in 1gp, also you
can get minor supplies for a couple copper pieces, although haggling seems allowable
20 yuan - 3ish euros

Alright time to make some pricing thingies

1cp for a single piece of fruit/veg
2cp for arrows or other ammunitions
3cp for a basic piece of equipment (length of rope, torch, flint and steel etc.)
5cp-1sp for a meal (noodles, soup etc)
5sp for slightly more advanced equipment (knife, compass, area map)
Weapons will cost 1 gp+
Clothing costs 1 gp+