Having had many, many long years to train and hone his skills, Rabten is the epitome of an Airbending master. Few who enter into direct contest with him can win, or even hold their own. The outliers are the prodigies and the other masters of bending: Rabten isn't getting any younger, and any person with his level of skill and more than his level of physical fitness could easily overwhelm him. Rabten also is reluctant to fight, seeing it as a waste of time, and he cannot kill. Not ever. Aside from his physical fitness and technical skill, Rabten is a storehouse of knowledge, philosophy, and tradition. Though he knows the traditions well, he is reluctant to actually follow them, as the Airbender's concept of earthly attachments involves both books and his closest two friends, both things he cannot ignore or release. His knowledge is impressive, but his resolve is somewhat lacking. Good muscle memory is Rabten's boon as well. He learns quickly, mentally or physically, and retains that learning. One of Rabten's other skills is speed reading. His eyes can soak up a scroll or a book faster than anyone. He learns quickly partially because of the ridiculous rate which he can obtain information Rabten enjoys painting, too, as well as calligraphy. He's hardly any good at either, but it relaxes him, and to such a stressed out soul, that's important.

Monk Teyri-yhama was one of Rabten's fellow students at the Eastern Air Temple. The two grew close during their many years of studying and working, and, even with Rabten parting ways with the Temple, the two remain on good terms. Arnook was born during Rabten's eighteenth year, and Rabten attended the ceremony after his Master was invited to take him, along with Teyri-yhama. Since then, Rabten has maintained contact with Arnook, calling the chief "one of the few intelligent men of the era", and conversing with the man on his rare visits to the Northern Water tribe. General Iroh once passed through the Eastern Air Temple during a perfunctory observation, and Rabten was visiting as well. The two spoke for a short time, and since then Rabten has had respect for the gruff, but generally kind man. Kema is Rabten's closest friend at current time, a spry and well-versed waterbender that he met during his various travels. The young woman challenges Rabten's morals, worming into his mind every time they speak. He sees her as almost like a daughter to himself, and she has admitted to feel similarly to him during their long arguments. If there's one person in the world he would die for without hesitation or even thought, it would be her.

Rabten was born during the last year of the Air Nomad's imprisonment. He grew up in the new age, never knowing anything other than the Phoenix Kingdom. That being said, during his childhood years, the Kingdom was far less stable than it is now, and Rabten heard plenty about chaos, rebellion, and harsh use of excessive force to burn said resistance to the ground. The end result of this being Rabten's ingrained dislike of the Phoenix King and his soldiers. For the thirty years of his life, Rabten remained in the Air Temple, studying the tomes and learning the ways of the sky. It was a very slow process that he realized his difference from the others. One by one, all of his friends and fellow acolytes got their master tattoos. Rabten remained unmarked, consistently failing the Elders' strict spiritual guidelines. "You're too focused on what is known about the outside world. You must know yourself." That was the phrase Rabten heard, over and over and over. After thirty years of failing, having exhausted all knowledge the monks would teach him as a monk, Rabten politely disappeared in the middle of the night, telling only Teyri-yhama and his master where he was going. For the next thirty eight years, Rabten became a nomad in the true sense of the word, wandering the world, studying, surviving, and doing whatever he could to eat his next meal. He heard of the death of the Phoenix King, and watched from the rooftops as Ozai was crowned in Azulon's place. He visited the Water tribes, learning about their customs while he spoke with Arnook. He lived a simple life, not bothering with the Phoenix army, and not being bothered in return. For a long time, Rabten had few people to share his time with, and as such became more and more arrogant in his knowledge and his correctness. That all changed when he met Kema, the woman who shattered his self-confidence when her sharp tongue pushed through every flaw in what he though was an unstoppable argument. The two became friends, growing closer over Rabten's time at the North Pole. It was here, arguing with Kema, that Rabten decided for the first time that the Phoenix King was suppressing knowledge he wanted to learn. So he left the North Pole, traveling to find answers. He found them in Omashu. The Rising, a group dedicated to overthrowing the Phoenix King. He didn't much care about overthrowing the Phoenix King, but if the Rising could at some point free the knowledge being kept secret, then working with them would be well worth the risk. And so he joined the Rising.

Rabten carries an Airbender's glider, using it when his bare hands cannot or will not suffice. It also allows him to travel between places incredibly fast, effectively eliminating his need for something like an Air Bison. He wears robes often, but he will wear whatever is available.