Ba Sing Se Earth Kingdom Forces
A fortress of walls and secrets that fell when the truth was buried.
The Ba Sing Se Earth Kingdom Forces were the colossal, fractured shield of the world's largest city—a military machine defined less by its strength than by its internal rot. While outwardly projecting an image of unshakeable stability under the Earth King, this coalition was a house divided: the rigid Earth Army held the outer provinces, the elite Dai Li secret police controlled the inner sanctum through fear and manipulation, and the Kyoshi Warriors operated as a neutral, specialized force within the walls. For over a century, they served as the final bulwark against Fire Nation invasion, yet their catastrophic collapse during the comet-aided siege was not caused by an overwhelming enemy army, but by the very corruption that had turned the city into a bubble of denial.
- Primary Leader
- Earth King Kuei (de facto), Long Feng (de facto controller)
- Elite Unit
- Dai Li
- Notable Defectors
- General Sung, General How
- Key Ally Group
- Kyoshi Warriors
- First Major Conflict Shown
- The Siege of Ba Sing Se
- Final Status
- Surrendered/Overrun during Sozin's Comet
Lore & Background
For generations, Ba Sing Se's defense relied on a rigid triad of concentric walls and a stratified society where laborers in the Lower Ring toiled while royalty and generals feasted in the Upper. The Dai Li, originally Avatar Kyoshi's noble guardians of Earth Kingdom culture, mutated into a ruthless secret police force that silenced dissent and enforced a collective amnesia regarding the Hundred Year War. Under Grand Secretariat Long Feng, they created a surreal bubble where the war simply did not exist.
Outside this bubble, generals like Sung and How commanded vast armies in the outer provinces, often paralyzed by political maneuvering from the Upper Ring's elite who refused to acknowledge reality. The Dai Li answered to no military chain of command, operating as Long Feng's personal enforcers until their allegiance was shattered by Team Avatar's arrival. Even after Kuei briefly reclaimed authority and the forces attempted a unified defense against the Fire Nation, the cohesion was already dead; the infiltration of Princess Azula into the Dai Li ranks turned the city's greatest protectors into its executioners.
In Their Own Story
The dust from the breached Outer Wall still choked the air when tremors of distant artillery shook the Upper Ring. Inside a stone watchtower, a Dai Li agent adjusted his heavy gauntlets, his face a mask of serene indifference as black smoke bloomed on the horizon. Beside him, a young Earth Army soldier gripped his spear until his knuckles turned white against the faded green uniform.
"They say the walls are unbreakable," the soldier whispered, his voice cracking under the weight of the coming storm.
The agent didn't look at him. He simply flicked his wrist, a subtle gesture that commanded silence more effectively than any shout. "The walls hold only what we allow them to," he replied, his eyes gleaming with a cold calculation that had nothing to do with defense and everything to do with control. Below them, the city slept in blissful ignorance, unaware that the very hands meant to protect it were already preparing to open the gates.
Reader's Guide
The Ba Sing Se Earth Kingdom Forces function as the primary defensive shield for the largest city on earth, tasked with maintaining order and repelling foreign aggression. Their strategic goal is the preservation of the Earth Kingdom's sovereignty through a combination of massive conventional warfare and internal political control. The organization is unique in its duality: it includes the standard Earth Army, which fights openly on battlefields, and the Dai Li, a secret police force dedicated to maintaining the city's illusion of peace by erasing dissent and manipulating information.
Members range from the common foot soldier equipped with earthbending shields and spears to the elite Dai Li agents who can manipulate stone with terrifying precision. The Kyoshi Warriors also play a significant role within the city, acting as both bodyguards and a moral compass for the leadership. Despite their numerical superiority and formidable earthbending capabilities, the faction's effectiveness was severely compromised by internal corruption. Long Feng's manipulation of the Earth King and the eventual infiltration of Princess Azula into the Dai Li command structure led to a collapse from within.
In the conflict against the Fire Nation, the forces initially held the line for decades, but their refusal to acknowledge the war until it was too late proved fatal. The Siege of Ba Sing Se marked the end of their dominance, as the city fell not just due to external bombardment, but because the leadership betrayed its own people. This failure highlighted that even the mightiest walls cannot protect a nation that refuses to face reality.
Did You Know?
- The Dai Li were originally established by Avatar Kyoshi to preserve Earth Kingdom culture before becoming a corrupt political tool.
- General How was one of the few high-ranking officers who openly defied Long Feng's orders to ignore the war.
- Princess Azula did not conquer Ba Sing Se with an army, but by infiltrating and turning the Dai Li against their own leaders.
- The city is divided into three distinct rings based on social class, a structure enforced by the very forces meant to protect it.