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Now, if there’s one thing we know about nerds out there, it’s that they love a creature. It can be a cute creature, a fearsome beast, a gorgeous animal, or a hideous monstrosity, and ardent fans will absolutely embrace it. And no one does creatures quite like Avatar: The Last Airbender. In fact, when the Avatar: The Last Airbender live-action series was released, one of the things we felt most curious about was how well the series would adapt our beloved creatures, spirits, and beasts from animation to live-action. But if you still need more incredible Avatar: The Last Airbender creatures in your life, Dark Horse Books and Paramount Consumer Products have a book for you. The upcoming Beasts of the Four Nations: Creatures from Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra will take us deep into the lore and lives of ATLA’s incredible beings. And we at Nerdist are absolutely delighted to exclusively reveal your first look inside the gorgeous beast-filled tome.
Your First Look Inside the Pages of Beasts of the Four Nations: Creatures from Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra
The official description for Beasts of the Four Nations: Creatures from Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra reveals that this book is a “gorgeous full-color collection of art and lore provides an in-depth exploration of the Four Nations’ animal inhabitants.” And really, we can’t imagine anything more beautiful than a deep dive into the glorious creatures, adorable hybrid animals, and wonderous beasts. Adding to the fun, this book is largely narrated by Aang and told from his point of view. Although there are some interjections from other familiar characters throughout.
In our exclusive look into Beasts of the Four Nations: Creatures from Avatar, we get to see six very special spotlight pages that highlight some of our favorite ATLA beasts. These are the noble Dragons, the delightful Aardvark-Sloths, the elegant Dragon Hawk, the tough Komodo-Rhino, and the deviously delightful Croco-Cats. Let’s take a look at how this incredible book brings them to life.
Beasts of the Four Nations Showcases ATLA‘s Mighty Dragons
Anyone who loves Avatar: The Last Airbender knows what a critical role that dragons play in the series. In fact, it was the dragons who taught the first firebenders how to bend flame. And it is dragons who are the true firebending masters of the ATLA world. Dragons even figure prominently into one of Avatar: The Last Airbender‘s best episodes, “The Firebending Masters.” In this episode, Zuko learns that fire isn’t just angry and destructive, it’s beautiful and life-giving. And after meeting with the dragons, Zuko truly turns the corner into goodness.
Meet Avatar‘s Dragons
Beasts of the Four Nations: Creatures from Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra shares with us the following about dragons. “Dragons have a fascinating and tragic history. They’ve always been sacred to serious firebending practitioners, and several Avatars were lucky enough to have them as familiars. Not all humans were as respectfu,l though. They were nearly hunted to extinction by greedy nobility who wanted to steal their power. The dragon population got so low that people stopped seeing them in the wild, and to this day, most people in the world think they’re extinctwhich is exactly what the Sun Warriors want everyone to think, probably.”
It’s a sad tale, but happily, dragons aren’t totally extinct in Avatar: The Last Airbender‘s world. As Aang goes on to share in our exclusive inside look at Beasts of the Four Nations, “Dragons aren’t the most aggressive creatures, but they’re easily the most intimidating. One cough from their mouth, and whatever is standing in front of them would be instantly engulfed in fire breath. Luckily, they chose not to send me to a fiery grave but imparted their ancient wisdom to me instead.” May we all be so lucky!
Aardvark-Sloth’s Deserve More Love
Next up, Beasts of the Four Nations: Creatures from Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra takes us into the realm of the Aardvark-Sloth, a strange fellow if we do say so ourselves. But a delightful part of Avatar: The Last Airbender‘s creatures is the strange hybrid animal combinations we get to experience.
In our exclusive pages, Aang shares of the Aardvark-Sloth, “This animal is a strange one, and maybe the only one to ever free me from a trap by licking me. Normally, their diet consists of bugs that live in the ground, but in the southern isles of the Fire Nation, they’re trained to eat a thick, sticky goo that would turn the stomachs of most animals. The Sun Warriors, who guard the ancient secrets of firebending, use this goo in booby traps as a kind of glue snare to stop intruders.”
And that’s where the strange anatomy of the Aardvark-Sloth comes in, we learn from Beasts of the Four Nations. “If you trigger one of the traps, the best way to free yourself is by having one of these arradvark-sloths use its weird, snaky tongue to lick that gross stuff off of you. Getting licked by these things isn’t exactly pleasant, but it’s a lot less disgusting than being trapped in Sun Warrior Goo.”
Excellent words of advice. And we just adore the cute illustration of this Avatar: The Last Airbender creatures that accompanies it. What a funny beast.
The Dragon-Hawk Is One Gorgeous Hybrid Creature
Avatar: The Last Airbender‘s Dragon-Hawk is a sublime creature. And we can see that in our inside look at Beasts of the Four Nations: Creatures from Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra. The illustration has us dropping our jaws in awe.
The book shares, “This bird isn’t really a dragon at all. I’m not sure why it was named thatyou’d have to ask people in the Fire Nation. They’ve been using these animals as messengers for hundreds of years. Dragon-hawks have an uncanny ability to fly long distances to find their target. I’ve heard that a well-trained one can make the trip from the Fire Nation to Ba Sing Se in a single night. And unlike me, they never get distracted by all the fun stuff you pass along the way. Anyway, I just saw something fun happening outside, so I’ll finish this later.”
Do Not Get in the Way of a Komodo-Rhino
If there’s one creature you don’t want to get on the wrong side of, it’s the Komodo-Rhino. We see in its incredible Beasts of the Four Nations illustration that the Komodo-Rhino has vicious, vicious tusks, clawed feet, and MANY muscles. That’s a fight we’re absolutely losing. Not to mention, a Komodo-Rhinos probably have some serious battle training.
Beasts of the Four Nations: Creatures from Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra shares in our exclusive inside look, “Komodo-rhinos are the standard mount of Fire Nation troops, and for good reason. Not only are they fierce and strong, but they’re completely immune to most physical attacks due to their thick skin. The hide of an adult rhino is so tough and impenetrable that it can withstand almost any blade. Spears and swords simply break on its back and just end up making the animal angrier.”
And we would NOT want to make this Avatar: The Last Airbender creature angry.
Croco-Cat’s Might Just Be Avatar: The Last Airbender‘s Finest Creation
Okay, if there’s one Avatar: The Last Airbender creature we feel obsessed with, it’s the Croco-Cat. You may or may not remember these grinning animals from the series, but that’s exactly what Beasts of the Four Nations: Creatures from Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra is for.
The book cautions, “Don’t get this one confused with a cat-gator.” (Never.) “They’re very different animals. Croco-cats don’t live in the swamp, but prefer to sit in the nice warm lap of a loving human. Instead of fins, they’ve got fur on their backs and produce milk for their babies. But they’re not all purrs and cuddles. If you make a croco-cat mad, it can turn as ferocious as a saber-tooth moose-lion! So be careful brushing its scales.”
We need to find one of these adorable creatures to pet, stat! Hilariously, in a special guest aside from The Boulder in this section, we learn this ferocious fighter actually has a croco-cat named Pebble. That’s a bit of lore we’ll treasure forever.
Avatar: The Last Airbender‘s Co-Creator Michael Dante DiMartino Gives Insight Into This Creature-Filled Tome
By now, you’re probably already feeling like you need this book for your collection. But in addition to all the glorious exclusive pages of Beasts of the Four Nations: Creatures from Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra, we also have a quote from ATLA co-creator Michael Dante DiMartino about the tome. He shares, “Have you always wondered what a hog-monkey eats? Or if turtle-ducks can fly? Or what to do in the event of a platypus-bear attack? Well, now you can finally find out! This book is chock-full of fun facts and beautiful art for fans who love the Avatar world and its creatures.”
And you know what, we have always wondered these things! Especially the question about turtle-ducks. And so we can’t wait to get all these answers and more.
More About Beasts of the Four Nations: Creatures from Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra
Beasts of the Four Nations: Creatures from Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra is available in two verions: a standalone hardcover volume, as well as in a Deluxe Edition package with extras for the intrepid adventurer and dedicated fan. A release notes that “The Deluxe Edition includes foil highlights, a beautifully designed slipcover, and a lithograph print housed in a high-quality folio.” This guidebook is written by John O’Bryan, one of the original writers on the animated series, in collaboration with series co-creators Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko, and features cover art by Devin Elle Kurtz.
Both versions of the Beasts of the Four Nations: Creatures from Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra will be available in bookstores on September 23, 2025 and in comic shops on Sept. 24, 2025. They are available for pre-order now on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, TFAW, and wherever books and comics are sold. The standard edition will retail for $39.99, and the Deluxe Edition will retail for $79.99.
If you love creatures and you love Avatar: The Last Airbender’s world, Beasts of the Four Nations is a no-brainer for you. Snag your copy today!
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