Practical bending

This post is outside the norm for me as I typically write about various aspects of history, but I have addressed a bit of fantasy before. This post is because I too have caught the Avatar hype bug since its release on Netflix. The question arises, which bending is the most practical?

To answer this question, we will only look at the bending styles by their core: water, earth, fire, and air. Sub-categories of these bending styles such as metal bending and blood bending will be addressed within them, not separately. Additionally, within each element, non-combat uses will be addressed before combat.

Commonalities

These are the things that all four main bending styles have in common. They all have some form of temperature regulation for the bender. Fire is the most obvious example, but water and air can heat or cool, and earth can insulate. Next, all of them allow for some form of transportation, typically flight, but for others, a form of sliding. Last, for combat, all four have basic "flinging" attacks, while different in motions, they are simply throwing the element at one's opponent.

Water

Water bending is probably the most practical form of bending. First, is that it allows for hydration in one form or another, even in the harshest of climates. Second, It can be used to create shelters, whether it be in the form of an igloo or a tree house. Next, it is the healing element. Blood bending, while usually horrible, could be used within a survival situation to find food, same as plant bending. Also, it is useful for food preparation, be it boiling to cook, or freezing to preserve. As ice, it can be formed into tools, weapons, and defences. Also, in combat, traps can be created.

Earth

Earth bending is the second most practical as it shares many similarities with water bending. For example, it can be used to create shelters. It can be used to cook food in the sense of being an oven or stove top. Like water bending, and in a superior form, tools and defences can be crafted. It too can form traps like water.

Fire

Fire bending is predominantly only useful offensively in combat, but not very versatile. Though like water and earth bending, it can cook food. Additionally, fire bending is more useful in an industrial environment than a rural one to provide power to engines and the like.

Air

This is most likely to spark controversy among Avatar fans, but air bending is the least useful form of bending. As said above, all four have temperature regulation and three can cook, air cannot get hot enough on its own to cook or freeze: it then becomes the responsibility of fire or water in those respective cases. It does compliment water and fire ind and industrial environment however, such as working with steam and the like. In regards to combat, all air benders do is push people away and void.