Welcome to the North! It is very cold up here, and nothing really grows. There aren't any trees or flowers or even grasses. The animals are pretty numerous, despite the cold. These include: arctic camel, arctic hen, arctic hippo, arctic seal, buffalo yak, cuttlefish, dolphin piranha, fish, koalaotter, ming snake, octopus, otter penguin, polar bear, polar bear dog, polar dog, polar leopard, sea sponge, seal, tiger seal, tiger shark, turtle seal, white hamster, wolf, and yak. Each animal has a use within the Water Tribe, whether it's used for food, clothes, or weapons.

It's all snow, ice, and water. It's a mostly flat landscape, although there are some glacier shelves that can rise up very high as well as ice towers. These are massive structures made entirely of ice; some are big enough to hollow out and others are just slim spires. For three months out of the year, it is complete dark. For the opposite three months, it is complete light.

The village of the Northern Water Tribe is a pretty primitive place. It is located on the shore of the northern ocean. However, during the winter, the ocean freezes, and the village is moved closer to the water.

There aren't any nice stone houses here or wood houses or even mud brick. Most of the villagers live in tents made of seal skin. Some live in the ice spires, but since these cannot be moved, many don't bother. There aren't many igloos here shockingly. This is mainly due to not having the man power needed to build them quickly. The Water Chief has one that is also used as a meeting room. The other two igloos are used to store weapons and for healing people. In the center of the village, there is a fire pit. Around the village is a snow wall that rises about three feet.

There are only about thirty adults in the Northern Water Tribe. Life in the north isn't easy, and most people die young. For a while, they thought they were the only people in the world. They didn't know other places to live existed. Now that they do know, the men of the village sometimes go out on exploring expeditions, seeking easier ways to live. Other times, they are off hunting. This means usually the people at the village are women and young children.

The people of the Water Tribe all look somewhat alike. Most of them have dark brown hair and blue or gray eyes. Their skin is a tanned brown. They mostly have thin and muscular bodies because there usually isn't enough to eat to make a person fat.

For clothing, they wear light tunics with leggings and boots. When they go outside, they have heavy parkas and thick gloves. There clothes are usually dyed shades of blue and gray and are made out of polar leopard skins. There weapons range from spears and knives to boomerangs and clubs. These weapons are usually made of the bones of polar bears. They also have little canoes made of seal skin, which they use for fishing and exploring.

These are a hardy people. They adapt quickly to change, and never stop trying to survive. Each person has their own job to do, and they are expected to do it without complaint. Children grow quickly here. One day, you're playing in the snow and riding otter penguins, and the next, you're fetching water. As for bending, both male and female waterbenders exist, but girls are encouraged to focus on healing rather than learning how to fight. Both are equally important. You never know when someone might be bitten by a ming snake or dolphin piranha.

The spirit oasis is located in the summer village under a massive igloo. It is a large pond whose waters never freeze. In the middle of the pond is an island on which the only grass, trees, and flowers grow in all of the north pole. In the middle of the island, there is a small pond again whose waters never freeze. Within the pond is one white koi and one black koi, forever swimming around each other. You can get to the island by way of two ice stairs that connect the island to the narrow path that runs along the outside of the large pond.

Rumor is this is the exact spot the water lionturtle settled, and he put the koi there to protect the people. This is a very sacred place to the people of the Northern Water Tribe. As such guards are posted outside the door at all times. They are given strict instructions to never let anyone enter except the Water Chief and his honored guests.