Okay, before I go into the actual topic at hand, I thought I would delve into a little of my bending understanding, or misunderstanding.

As we all know, each bending form has its own distinct style. I believe that this rose out of thousands of years of trial and error. Considering that chi flows differently within each element it would make sense that different stances for each allow for optimum control. As such, I believe that the different movements are attributed not to culture, but to the fact that people had tested many movements and have subsequently settled on movements that they feel best controls the element.

So when it comes to cross-bending, I feel that it will pose a lot of trouble when it comes to controlling the element.

Like you Coer, I too have a cross-bender, Shio. Shio showed bending potential at a late age, and his father had trained him in many different firebending movements because he hoped that he would be his firebender. From his father, Shio learned proper breath control, and how to use his emotions to fuel his potential firebending. But upon bending water, he learned that the firebending techniques he learned were very effective when it came to controlling the state of water.

From that I believe that cross-bending has its pros and cons, but it can lead to many different variations of its bending discipline. Like Iroh, I don't think that the regular firebending form would allow for the redirection of lightening, but when he studied the waterbenders, and he crafted a new art. Creating lightening itself has sparked my interest because it breaks away from the typical firebending ideology of "overwhelm and snuff 'em out." Just look at how Azula first made lightening, she had to stop, move her arms in the right matter, then actually bring the two energies together and finally release. To me that doesn't seem to borrow from the a-typical wildfire tactics others use. I know it might sound crazy, but because of that I feel that creating lightening might itself be the child of a genius cross-bender.

My Earth bender, Pago, uses a style more like an airbender. Not that he learned that anywhere, it just comes naturally with his personality. I thought it would be interesting to try opposites because earth bending is hard and strong and air bending is more evasive and flowing. We will see how that works out...

Personally, I agree with Coer. I beleive that bending is more spiritual in nature, and it can be controled in a number of ways, not just the typical stances. That is why Iroh, Azula, and even Toph were able to come up with alternate forms of bending. Bloodbending doesn't look a thing like other bending, more like you're playing with a puppett.

Basically, I feel the bending can be used in any way, as long as you know the breathing, and the basic technique, and how it should feel. Then you can suppliment you're own style which changes the actual outcome. Like Pago, I imagine your Earthbender's arracks to be less solid in mass, and more like actually moving dirt, almost like ( I can't beleive I am comparing this to that) Gaara from Naruto. (Not a huge Naruto fan, but Shikamaru ftw.)

That is actually a cool idea. Earthbender throwing sand and dirt and such around like that. Course he could also use the more forceful stuff. No matter.

I just like idea of the bending coming from the spirit, and the movements just showing how they come out.

I just came across this and have realized that I made Imei-Luka a crossbender and I didn't even know it. Because of her history, she uses the Airbending technique to bend fire. Personally, I think it makes her element even stronger. I mean, when you fan a flame, it grows, as Azula herself put it. And neither one of her parents were benders either. Her mother was normal and her father was a Yu Yan Archer.

What kind of a fighting style would you get if you mixed Fire and Water bending? I can see a water bender bending like an airbender, steam, earthbender, ice, but when it comes to fire i cant picture it in my mind.

Thoughts?

Zuko and Iroh have incorporated waterbending kind of motions for firebending. Iroh based lightning redirection on the movements of waterbenders, and the flow of chi through the body. Zuko, particularly in the Crossroads of Destiny, incorporated moves that were far more fluid than his normal firebending form. The firewhip is a bit of a mirror to the waterwhip in terms of movement, so with that in mind, firebending movements based on waterbending would showcase the fluid and quick nature of fire. Flip it around and you get a waterbending using sharper and faster movements as evident in a firebending style.

Both Northern Shaolin and Tai Chi employ long and fluid arm movement, so in that sense, both style can find some common ground. The former has the edge in having more movements with feet, kicks, and acrobatics. With that in mind, a waterbender could perhaps be more agile, using water to propel and for offensive purposes.