Highlights

• Waterbending is foundational in Avatar, showcased as the first bending technique in the series.
• Bloodbending, a dark form of Waterbending, is not necessary for mastering the art.
• Aang, a prodigy in Waterbending, excels in combining forces with other spirits for powerful bending moves.

Waterbending is a significant aspect of Avatar not only because it forms an essential part of the four main elements, but it is also the very first Bending technique that viewers get to explore in Book 1 of Avatar, the Last Airbender. Furthermore, the second installment to the series features a native-born Waterbender as Aang's Avatar successor, solidifying the significance of the aqueous manipulation techniques.

The art of Waterbending is generally evaluated according to four major subcategories, namely: Functional, Combative, Healing and Bloodbending. As the name suggests, Bloodbending is usually left for the morally deficient characters and is not a prerequisite for mastering Waterbending (unless Yakone happens to be the teacher).

Updated March 20, 2024, by George Voutiritsas: In the Avatar franchise, Waterbending is the element of change, and it is considered the most graceful and fluid of the fighting styles. In general, Waterbenders focus on defense, but they can seamlessly transition into offense. Waterbending masters can manipulate water and ice with minimal difficulty, and they can move across a battlefield with impressive speed. Some Waterbenders are even capable of defeating Firebenders, who have been enhanced by Sozin's Comet. Fans of the Avatar franchise know who the strongest Waterbenders are, but there are other Waterbenders from both Avatar: the Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra who also deserve recognition.

14 Yue, Tui & La

The Moon And Ocean Spirits Who Lie At The Heart Of Waterbending

This is more of an honorable mention than anything else because, at the end of the day, Waterbending would not be possible without the Moon and Ocean Spirits! Some argue that the Moon is the ultimate Waterbender, constantly pushing and pulling the tides of the Ocean and essentially connecting the Southern and Northern Water Tribes.

Princess Yue was also not technically a Bender herself, however, she sacrifices her life to take Tui's place as the Moon Spirit, subsequently fueling countless Waterbenders in her wake. The persistent Yue continues to do whatever she can to help Team Avatar from the spirit world with her words of wisdom and newfound Lunar powers.

13 Hama

The Original Bloodbender

Hama is an iconic character who stems from the Southern Water Tribe and turns the creep factor to the max when she introduces Avatar fans to the malicious concept of Bloodbending. During the full moon, Hama learned how to become the ultimate puppet master by manipulating the blood within people's bodies, forcing them to do her bidding.

Hama also has an uncanny ability to locate hard-to-find water sources, finding ways of drawing water straight from the air molecules themselves. Much like Ming Hua, this old crone was forced to use Waterbending to her full potential as a survival tactic.

12 Tarrlok

Could Fight Avatar Korra Single-Handedly

Tarrlok did was a Bloodbender, but he was not as skilled as his father and brother. This Republic City Councilman is a highly skilled Waterbender with a level of precision and technique that is almost unmatched. Tarrlok takes Korra on single-handedly in an epic battle that displays his full range of combative talents from tapping into his Northern Water Tribe roots.

The power-hungry leader's skills sufficiently overpowered the Avatar, allowing Tarrlok to kidnap Korra and hold her hostage. He proves capable of Bloodbending large groups simultaneously and is only thwarted once his resistant brother, Amon arrives at the scene.

11 Desna & Eska

Both Are skilled Waterbender, But They Are Stronger Together

Desna and Eska are Korra's cousins, and when their father died, they became the leaders of the Northern Water Tribe. They were originally on their father's side, but they turned on him when it became clear he was evil. They both show very little emotion, and they are not fond of most people, places, or things. Desna is more sarcastic, while Eska is seemingly more possessive.

Individually, they are both highly skilled Waterbenders who use an aggressive bending style during combat. They are both quite agile, and they can avoid certain attacks with well-timed flips. Their Waterbending is much stronger when they work together. As a team, they can hurl entire icebergs at their opponents and fill an entire battlefield with spikes of ice.

10 Kya

A Skilled Waterbender & The Daughter Of A Former Avatar

Kya is the only Waterbending child of Avatar Aang and Katara. She traveled the world and used her healing skills to help others, but she relocated to the Southern Water Tribe after her father's death. Kya is a free-spirit, but she can also be serious and responsible - especially when her family needs help.

Kya was trained by Katara, so she was able to become a true Waterbedning master. She can use a variety of advanced techniques with ease, and she can control running water with little difficulty. Ming-Hua was a deadly Waterbender, but Kya was able to counter many of her moves for a time, and she fight Zaheer on her own.

9 Katara

A Self-Taught, Highly Skilled Waterbender

When fans first meet Katara, she is the only Bender left in the Southern Water Tribe, subsequently forcing her to be self-taught without much success. She also managed to extend her combative knowledge after stumbling across a Waterbending scroll, but for a while, Katara's Waterbending capabilities were as temperamental as her emotions.

Master Pakku gave Katara a Waterbending crash course and, together with Aang, she became a force to be reckoned with. One of Katara's strongest techniques is her Icebending, which quickly becomes her signature move. Her most valuable and efficient skill however, is her natural talent for healing. Many owe Katara a great deal of gratitude for her restorative touch. By the end of Avatar: The Last Airbender, Katara was able to briefly fight on par with a comet-enhanced firebending master like Azula.

8 Tonraq

A Waterbending Master & Southern Water Tribe Leader

Tonraq is the father of Avatar Korra, and he is the leader of the Southern Water Tribe - which becomes an economic power in the decades since the Hundred-Year War. He can be brazen and hotheaded at times, but he and Korra are incredibly close.

Tonraq is physically strong, and he became a waterbending master when he was fairly young. He prefers to use an aggressive form of Waterbending instead of the classical style. In doing so, Tonraq can infuse his brute strength into his bending. That being said, he can still use his Waterbending to move around the battlefield with impressive speed. Tonraq can take out several Northern Water Tribe soldiers at once, and he can briefly hold his own against Zaheer.

7 Master Pakku

Was At One Point The Strongest Waterbending Master In The World

Katara and Aang wouldn't be half the Waterbenders they are today without the assistance of Master Pakku, who was once regarded as the greatest Bender of the Northern Water Tribe, if not the world. His skills are an invaluable addition to the Order of White Lotus, who facilitated the liberation of Ba Sing Se, and he was a key component of the North Pole's defense against enemy forces.

Master Pakku eventually reunites with his true love in the Southern Water Tribe and is lucky enough officially join Katara and Sokka's family. This Waterbender's old age seems to have not impeded his agility in the slightest, and he is still capable enough to take on multiple adversaries simultaneously.

6 Yakone

A Bloodbender Who Could Take On The Avatar

Seeing that Bloodbending is not brutal enough for the crime boss of Republic City, Yakone takes things to the next level by developing the ability to manipulate blood without needing the moon to do so. To make matters worse, his new and improved skills allow Yakone to control entire hoards of people at a time, in broad daylight, without the use of any hand gestures. If it was not for the Avatar State, even Aang would not have survived Yakone's bloodbending.

Fortunately, Aang was able to strip Yakone of all his powers, forcing the ruthless crime boss to go into hiding. After re-establishing himself within the Northern Water Tribe, the Bloodbender ensures to pass on his skills to his sons, Noatok and Tarrlok, creating powerful adversaries for Avatar Korra in the process.

5 Ming-Hua

Became A Waterbending Master Despite Having No Arms

As arguably the most ingenuitive Waterbender in Avatar, Ming-Hua uses her lack of arms to her advantage by creating potent water appendages as substitutes. These watery limbs give Ming-Hua greater maneuverability, in fact her speed is almost unparalleled. She could alternate between water and ice attacks seamlessly.

Ming-Hua defeated Desna and Eska as if they were children, and she defeated Kya with similar ease. As a member of the Order of the Red Lotus, Ming-Hua is one of the most formidable Waterbending enemies that Korra and her friends had to face.

4 Aang

The Previous Avatar & A Waterbending Prodigy

Aang may be a stronger Avatar than Korra due to his continued connection to the other spirits while in the Avatar State, but when it comes to Waterbending, he seems to be outmatched. That being said, Aang still proved to be a waterbending prodigy, as he mastered basic and advanced techniques quicker than Katara.

Aang's Waterbending journey follows a similar path to Katara's, as the pair help each other learn about the rarely seen bending style They often combine their forces in collaborative bending, in one instance inventing the unique Cloudbending technique in the process, and amazingly, Aang also manages to merge with the Ocean Spirit, La, to form a protective aqueous monstrosity.

3 Amon

A Bloodbending Master Who Could Take Away Other People's Bending

Although Katara is generally considered to be the most skilled Waterbender around, when it comes to brute force, Amon takes the cake. He has a natural affinity for psychic Bloodbending, picking the skill up much faster than his brother, Tarrlok, and surpassing his father's capabilities by the age of 14.

Amon's influence becomes so powerful that he can attack his opponent's chi directly, permanently crippling their abilities (in a similar fashion to the Avatar), which becomes a prominent element of his anti-bending revolution. The Equalist leader rarely relies on obvious Bending capabilities in battle and yet still overpowers most of his adversaries with his advanced agility and combative techniques. Even Avatar Korra could not stand against Amon alone

2 Kuruk

The Previous Water Tribe Avatar

Kuruk was the previous Water Tribe Avatar - which means that he was the strongest bender in the world during his lifetime. He was an open-minded and easy-going person, and he successfully mixed elements from different bending schools. For example, he applied Waterbending forms to Earthbending.

Kuruk spent the majority of his life fighting Dark Spirits in both the Spirit World and Mortal World. He was forced to neglect his duties to the Four Nations, but he managed to prevent a potentially catastrophic Spirit Incursion by stopping a terrifying Dark Spirit known as Father Glowworm. Unfortunately, Kuruk's lifeforce was drained due to a spiritual sickness, and he died when he was just 33 years old.

1 Korra

Defeated The Dark Avatar

After receiving training straight from the infamous Katara, Korra flourishes to become a skilled healer and combatant in her own right. Korra is a Waterbender by birth, so it was her easy for her to learn. As the Avatar, she was easily the strongest bender in the world, and her skills increased whenever she entered the Avatar State.

Although Korra is a natural Waterbender, she often relies on her Firebending and Earthbending capabilities in combat, and ironically, fans don't get to witness much aquatic action from this Avatar. In the Book 2 finale of The Legend of Korra, however, her Waterbending abilities allowed her to defeat the evil Unalaq-Vaatu combo - otherwise known as the Dark Avatar. If she had not defeated them, the entire world would have been plunged into darkness.