Playing with Fire

"Look into those flames, supplicant! Raise your head, look! Is that what you wish to hold, supplicant? Is the shaping of flames what stirs your heart? Know that flames can burn, and if you would learn their power, you must suffer their touch."

—Ignus's teacher, Planescape: Torment

Fire is one of the basic classical elements and usually the starter element from the Fire, Ice, Lightning trinity that console role-playing games love so much. It's a very popular power to use, mainly because it comes from the prettiest of explosions. This seems to work best when used on the undead, arrows, swords, and, against all common sense, even people. It even works when rolled up into a tangible ball and thrown!

People who are literally packing heat also tend to be fireproof and have a very high heat tolerance, as Required Secondary Powers. But sometimes, they aren't and are, in fact, just as vulnerable to their own flames as everybody else. Similarly, such characters may be Glass Cannons physically or emotionally owing to their element's reputation for extreme destruction and fragility.

A person with fire power often possesses - get this - a fiery personality. You could say that they are Hot-Blooded, or that the flame of passion burns within them. And who knows, maybe their burning anger powers their burning hands; it's certainly possible for it to make them literally burn from anger. They also tend to be redheads (or dye their hair). They may even give you due warning by being Fiery Redheads. If they're also a Pyromaniac, heaven help you.

Contrast with the natural foil, An Ice Person, Making a Splash, and Shock and Awe. Compare Kill It with Fire, and Having a Blast. May overlap with Magma Man (which could be perceived as a combination of this trope and Dishing Out Dirt). If you're caught in a literal firefight with these people, you should probably Kill It with Water. Frequently shown (off) via Finger-Snap Lighter and Blasting Time. Expect them to sneer at anyone using Cold Flames.

Examples of Playing with Fire include:

Anime and Manga

  • In Black Cat, Kyoko, one of the members of the Apostles of the Stars, can raise her body temperature high enough to burn everything she touches, breathe fire, and create a force field made of fire.
  • Yeon's powers are fire based. She gives Friendly Fire another meaning, too.
  • In Air Gear, there is Spitfire and Aeon Clock and, eventually, Kazu, after Spitfire dies.
  • In Kaze no Stigma, the whole Kannagi family (except Kazuma) use fire magic due to the fact that the first Kannagi made a contract with the spirit king of fire. Ayano even fits the personality aspects of a fire user to a T, being a Tsundere, Hot-Blooded, and Fiery Redhead triple threat.
  • Recca Hanabishi and Kurei from Flame of Recca, who are expies of Kyo Kusanagi and Iori Yagami.
  • Signum (a.k.a. the Blazing General) from Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha. There's also Agito, the fire-based Unison Device. The two of them eventually become partners.
    • Partially subverted by the fact that the fire they make isn't proper, real fire, as demonstrated when both fight agains Cypha of Huckebein in Force who is able to effortlessly dispell their "flames", proving those are just a magical representation of fire.
  • Shinigami head captain Shigekuni Yamamoto-Genryusai from Bleach uses the sword Ryujin Jakka (Flowing Flame Blade) and can set a room ablaze with his immense fire control. At the same time, he defies the personality portion of this trope by having immense self-control and a calm demeanor.
    • A mere room? His zanpakuto's release command is "Reduce all creation to ashes, Ryuujin Jakka!" - and judging by how the other characters react to it and the way it turns any scene in which it features into OMG FIRE EVERYWHERE!!!, it isn't simple hyperbole... His initial release can create an inferno capable of engulfing an entire valley. His bankai could potentially destroy all of Soul Society, if kept active for too long.
    • Fire is also Momo Hinamori's specialty.
    • And then there's always Amagai Shusuke.
    • Yoshino S?ma's doll, Goethe from the Bount arc was a fire elemental. And later, after she merged with Goethe, Yoshino developed Human Torch-like powers.
  • Roy Mustang from Fullmetal Alchemist. He has special gloves that create sparks easily, with transmutation circles that can transform air into oxygen and hydrogen, a combination that allows him to create fireballs at will.
  • Portgas D. Ace in One Piece, which made several fans think Travis Willingham had gotten pigeonholed, as he also voiced Mustang.
    • Marco the Phoenix can transform into a blue phoenix and can use fire to heal his wounds.
    • Sanji's Diable Jambe (Devil Leg), which covers his foot in heat, allowing him to set fire to or burn opponents.
  • Naruto has Sasuke Uchiha and Itachi Uchiha. In fact, all the Uchiha clan members have fire as an essential element other than the individual element each person may possess, which is Lightning for Sasuke and Water for Itachi. With their special Mangekyo Sharigan eyes, they can use Amaterasu, a special black fire which can burn anything, even regular fire.
  • Rei Hino (Sailor Mars) from Sailor Moon.
  • While all the Suzaku Senshi in Fushigi Yugi are the servants of the fire god, Tasuki is the only one with actual powers over fire and flames, probably because he's the most deserving, given his Hot-Blooded nature.
  • Shizuma Kusanagi from Samurai Girl Real Bout High School is a Hot-Blooded brawler with fiery moves...that are usually performed with alcohol and a disposable lighter. The important thing is it still works like Kyo's moves do, and they still involve a great deal of physical exertion.
  • Shana from Shakugan no Shana. The translation of her series' title is "the girl with fire in her eyes". That's not the only thing about her that's fiery, either.
  • Mai Tokiha from My-HiME uses her fire magic both offensively and defensively.
  • Hikaru Shidou from Magic Knight Rayearth, the Magic Knight of Flame (and a bit of Lightning).
  • Natsu from Fairy Tail.
    • Also, Elemental Four member Totomaru, who can control flames as well create different-colored flames with different properties.
    • And now we have Zancrow of the Seven Sins of Purgatory. The very first villain, Bora, also counts.
  • Hotaru from Samurai Deeper Kyo.
  • Phoenix Ikki in Saint Seiya.
  • Burner the Fire Demon from Yaiba.
  • Lina Inverse in The Slayers.
  • Goh, the Leafe Knight of Fire, from Prétear.
  • Hiei from Yu Yu Hakusho is this trope all over, being a fire youkai and all. He first demonstrates this ability by incinerating another fire youkai (Zeru), who had been hyped up as being pretty powerful. Rando can also throw fireballs.
    • To show you the difference between their levels: though he claimed to use "demonic fire", Zeru was only limited to flames in the human world; Hiei, on the other hand, could also control "Darkness Flames": the black flame of the demon world Makai.
  • A Certain Magical Index:
    • Stiyl Magnus, the first magician Touma faces, uses liberally distributed magical runes to throw 3000°C fireballs and control an indefinitely regenerating fire demon. Sadly, after his Heel Face Turn, he gets hit by The Worf Effect quite badly.
    • Fiamma of the Right is the most powerful human villain in the first series. His ability, "The Holy Right", manifests in the form of a flaming third arm behind him, allowing him to perform incredibly broken acts like conjuring a forty kilometer long Flaming BFS and flames which destroy objects without any destructive force.
  • Phoenix King Saffron from Ranma ½. He doesn't just project fire, it heals him.
  • Robin Sena from Witch Hunter Robin.
  • Kaito of Psycho Busters.
  • The festival arc of Mahou Sensei Negima gives us Mei Sakura, who is also a fire magic specialist, and the significantly more competent Chao Lingshen, who, after releasing the seal on her magic, reveals herself to be scarily powerful at it. Later on, the main hero's childhood friend Anya displays this ability. From the arc following it is Homura, one of Fate's loyal minions and number four in the series he comes from, Quartum, Averruncus of Fire.
  • One of contractors' power in Darker than Black is massive pyrokinesis. This would not be that bad...if it were so easily triggered instinctively or the contractor in question wasn't a little girl prone to emotional overreaction and rolling downhill into long, dreamwalking trances. Another contractor caused, at will, fiery explosions of handprints he previously left on something. Which is spectacular when the boy bothers to mark with his skin fat everything in a room.
  • In Part 3 of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure, Muhammad Avdol's stand, Magician's Red, has the ability to conjure and control flames. Strangely enough, his flames also seem to be useful at binding people.
  • Natsume Hyuuga from Gakuen Alice is a Fire Alice, although it comes with a price: he loses a bit of his life every time he sets something alight.
  • 006 (Chang Changku) from Cyborg 009 can breathe fire hot enough to melt almost any surface.
  • Zelman Clock from Black Blood Brothers has a power called Eye Ignite which lets him create and control fire.
  • Kuyou from Rosario + Vampire has this power.
  • Takahisa Tajima from 11eyes has the ability to conjure and control fireballs. Which gets really bad when he goes into an Unstoppable Rage.
  • Ogami from Code Breaker uses his flames to kill his enemies.
  • The Anti-Anti-Christ of Blue Exorcist has blue flames as his Red Right Hand.
  • Kannagi from Arata Kangatari, until he loses his hayagami.
  • Inori from Harukanaru Toki no Naka de.
  • Jaqueline Dupree from Soul Eater has the Weapon form of a lantern that doubles as a flamethrower. She can also generate fire without fully transforming. In fact, the trio of Ox, Kim, and Kirikou are fire and lightening based: Harvar is an electricity-generating lance, and Thunder and Fire's powers are what their names suggest.
  • Kämpfer: Natsuru uses fire powers as his Zauber ability.
  • Kara no Kyoukai: has Azaka Kokuto, whose fire abilities are shown in the 6th chapter.
  • Gaiking Legend Of Daiku Maryu is practically made of this trope.
  • Amateur exorcist Izuna from Hell Teacher Nube. Her pyrokinesis first manifested when she experienced her first love, but unfortunately for her, it was completely uncontrollable and tended to burn her clothes down to nothing (much to her distress), and Nube and friends were worried that her own fire could consume her. Eventually, she learned to control it with deadly accuracy.
  • Frederica from Psyren.
  • Fatina from The Tower of Druaga is a fire mage who channels her magic through a magic gun/flamethrower.
  • Played with in Katekyo Hitman Reborn, certain people have the ability to use Dying Will Flames, which can be one of seven types that correspond to a weather phenomenon and have a special property. Subverted in that some flames have a property that seems more like another element, namely, Rain flames and Thunder flames.
    • In the manga, seven more flames are added when the Shimon Family enter. The new Earth flames (as opposed to Sky Flames) correspond to themes associated with the earth such as flames of the Forest, Glacier, and Mountain.
  • In the anime Dragon Crisis, we have Rose, a cute loli with a strange necklace - who is also able to throw fire.
  • Renkotsu of the Band of Seven in Inuyasha is a firearms expert who seems to love blowing stuff up and even breathes fire with his explosives and other equipment.
  • Homura in Sekirei, against personality type, is one of the more stoic characters. The Hot-Blooded Tsundere is the water Sekirei, Tsukiumi, who exhibits the remainder of this trope.
  • Rin, aka Cure Rouge, from Yes! Pretty Cure 5. Even her hair is shaped like a flame when transformed!
  • Two characters in Tiger & Bunny can create/control fire: flamboyant superhero Nathan Seymour/Fire Emblem and criminal-killing vigilante Yuri Petrov/Lunatic. Both avert the standard Personality Powers for fire as Nathan is cheerfully camp and Lunatic is unnervingly calm both in and out of costume.
  • In the manga version of Tokko, Sakura's Sword Beam attack seems to be fire-based. Also, Ito is shown to be able to make a giant flaming hand shoot up out of the ground.
  • In Cardcaptor Sakura, there is the Fiery Card, which takes the form of a young boy with burning wings. Also, Syaoran uses a Paper Talisman with fire-based powers now and then. (Usually to fight Clow Cards, but he set Touya's jacket on fire with it once.)
  • Dilandau's Giant Mecha in Escaflowne is equipped with giant flamethrowers...which Dilandau loves to use.
  • In Saint Beast, Goh is gifted with fire-based Elemental Powers.
  • Zatch Bell has Zofis to start with, though his powers are officially based on explosions. Much later, we have Fango, who plays the trope straight.


Comic Books

  • Pyro, an X-Men villain. His mutant power allows him to control fire, but, notably, not create it; in the comics and the third movie, he uses a specially designed harness to produce flame, but in his debut in the second movie, he used an ordinary lighter.
  • Johnny Storm (the second, but more famous Human Torch) from the Fantastic Four. The original hothead.
    • The Golden Age Torch was an android who accidentally burst into flame on contact with air. He later gained control over his powers, became a superhero, and picked up a sidekick, Toro, who was also on fire, but a human boy mutated by radiation rather than an android.
    • Tara, a Distaff Counterpart to the Golden Age Human Torch, is also an android who bursts into flames. Unlike The Golden Age Torch, she never gained full control over her powers, so she was given a special suit so she could "flame off".
    • The Golden Age Human Torch was sometimes impersonated by Captain Kerosene, who had similar powers.
    • Super-Skrull has this power as well. Since he has all of the F4's powers.
  • Liz Sherman from Hellboy. As it turns out in the comicbooks, she actually has some kind of free-willed elemental fire-spirit living inside her, hence her occasional Power Incontinence.
  • Magma from New Mutants controls fire in addition to lava, so she's kind of a Fire/Earth elemental.
    • And various versions of Sunfire, as well.
    • Matchstick, a mutant at the Xavier school. Part of his mutation is that his head is permanently on fire.
      • School rioter Glob Herman's body was made of a gelatinous substance that could also be set on fire (until he was extinguished). The "setting on fire" part was taken care of by fellow rebel student Redneck, who had actual fire powers.
    • Fever Pitch, another mutant fire guy. His powers eventually destroyed his body, but his flaming skeleton continues to walk among us, fully alive.
  • Fever, late of the Doom Patrol. Well, she had the power to increase the temperature around her and she was invulnerable to the heat, so invariably, she would light herself mostly on fire. She's a spacey Cloudcuckoolander, though. Well, until being imprisoned on Apokolips made her Darker and Edgier, that is.
  • Effigy, a Green Lantern villain, had powers that worked kind of like a Green Lantern Ring, but with fire instead. He was originally intended as a Sinestro-style Evil Counterpart to the then-new (and very pyrophobic) Lantern, Kyle Rayner.
    • This is the gimmick of several DC villains, most notably Heat Wave, who is an extreme pyromaniac who burned down his home as a boy and designed a pocket flamethrower and fireproof suit so he could handle fire better.
    • Similarly, Batman villains and pyromaniac arsonists Firefly and Firebug, who actually have nothing to do with each other.
    • And the Human Flame, a small-time crook brought down by the Martian Manhunter decades ago. When he got out of the joint, friends in high places let him get revenge by roasting MM alive. The Human Flame's suit shoots fire from nozzles located on its chest, leading to jokes about him having "fire nipples".
    • And minor villain Vulcan, as part of his group's Greek mythology theme.
  • Fire Lad, of the Legion of Substitute Heroes, could breathe fire. He was rejected by the Legion of Super-Heroes because he couldn't control his powers very well; a recent version of him had his powers officially listed as "breathes fire with at best moderate control."
    • Sun Boy had more direct, Human Torch-style fire abilities (and a way with the ladies not unlike Johnny's). Wildfire, a little, as well.
  • DC heroine Beatriz DaCosta, also known as Fire. Unlike most other fire wielders, her flames burn green, and, even de-powered, her hair is permanently bright green.
  • Blazer from Justice Machine.
  • A number of minor Marvel Comics supervillains possess this power. Firebrand was a radical political anarchist who created his own suit of flame-blasting armor to battle Iron Man, the second one stole the battlesuit of the first and went on to battle Spider-Man and a few B-list heroes, and the third was mutated by a horrible lab accident and essentially became a Psycho Electro, except with fire. Another notable example is the supervillain Solarr, who possesses the ability to absorb solar radiation and convert it to blasts of fire that he can control. Using this ability to become a supervillain, he would later go on to battle Captain America (comics), Spider-Man, Daredevil, and Alpha Flight.
  • In Superman, Chris Kent's girlfriend, Thara Ak-Var, has pyrokinesis in addition to standard Kryptonian powers. She can harness fire even if being stunned by kryptonite, red sunlight, or some other Kryptonian weakness.
  • In Empowered, Willy Pete's body burns hotter than the sun, and he can fill a building with flames before anyone even knows he's there. Don't ask how he takes advantage of his powers.
  • Flame, from Wonderworld Comics, can control fire and even burst into flames.
  • Vulcan, from Super-Mystery Comics, can control fire and is effectively bulletproof since the bullets melt before hitting him.
  • Fireman, from Liberty Scouts, can control fire and even turn into glass.
  • The Ultimate Spider-Man version of the Green Goblin drops his usual aresnal for immense fire abilities including melting bullets and being a Walking Wasteland.
  • Fireball, from Pep Comics, can control fire and uses his abilities to fight arsonists.
  • Red Blazer, from Pocket Comics, also had fire powers.
  • Thor has created fire blasts and expanding fire waves with Mjolnir. The hammer can also be used to absorb fire-based attacks, while Thor himself has withstood Ghost Rider's hellfire, Heimdall's cosmic fire, and the Super Skrull's nova blast for extended periods.
    • Likewise, Surtur, Lord of the Fire Demons of Muspelheim, can produce massive amounts of fire akin to stars.
  • Taranee Cook from WITCH, who averts the firey personality aspect by being shy, bookish, and the brainy one.
    • She still has a temper: as Cedric put it when Elyon asked him to stop a furious Taranee, "I can't! The Power of Fire is the most untamed of all! Run away! RUN AWAY!". It gets better: when Taranee got furious and started melting the supposedly fireproof bubble she was imprisoned into, he rebuked Elyon because he told her not to provoke Taranee.
  • The titular team in Wildguard features two heroes with this power: Ignacia and Freezerburn. This clashes with Super-Hero Speciation standards, especially since Freezerburn also having An Ice Person powers causes many people to write Ignacia off as redundant.
  • Surprisingly averted by Nedor's Pyroman—he actually has electrical powers.
  • Johnny Do, a character from the New Universe title Psi-Force, combines this power with severe Hollywood Autism. The results are not pretty.


Fan Works


Film

  • Zuko Warren Peace in Sky High
  • Chi is the least stoic and solemn of the Warriors of Virtue. Though he also represents Wisdom, he's still eager and impulsive: "Patience is not my virtue."
  • Wilder and Wallace in Wilder Napalm
  • Pyro from the X-Men series can manipulate existing fire.
  • Liz Sherman in the first and second Hellboy movies has pyrokinesis, but is unhappy with it and has difficulty controlling it (she burned down an entire city block and killed her family as an eight-year-old). Ultimately, she is able to embrace it and, in the second film, has greater control and is in a relationship with the luckily fireproof Hellboy. Oddly, Hellboy has the fiery, impulsive, and chaotic personality, while Liz is comparatively stable and reserved.
  • In the film The Last Airbender, Firebending is handled differently than in the show; no firebender can create their element, so they all have to carry around tiny lanterns. Only the most powerful can generate flames from nothing.
  • In the film Firestarter, little Charlie McGee slowly comes into her powers until her pyrokinesis lets her take down an entire hardsite full of armed agents.


Literature

  • Alison Cole from Hottie
  • Gandalf, servant of the Secret Fire and wielder of the Flame of Anor from Lord of the Rings. However, he needs wood to sustain a fire, as he cannot burn snow.
    • In the battle that cost him the Ring, Sauron's body was described as blackened from the immense heat he gave off and even set people who got too close to him on fire.
  • Harry Dresden from The Dresden Files prefers fire evocations, with a minor in wind and force, except for a period where, after being horribly burned with a flamethrower, he actually became pyrophobic. There was also the time period where he had a fallen angel living in his head that granted him access to Hellfire. The Hellfire has since been replaced with Soulfire, which is sort of Hellfire's opposite number. Instead of being like a really bad bank loan, with immediate payoffs but nasty costs later, it's more like an investment; the costs are immediate (using it dips into his actual specific soul, draining life force which may or may not grow back), but the gains are much greater and more constructive than the brute force of Hellfire.
  • Charlie McGee from the Stephen King novel Firestarter is a pyrokinetic. She can set pretty much anything on fire, even fireproof materials, and doesn't appear to have limits; her problem is stopping.
    • Also, from the same author, Carrie had various powers, including psychokinesis and pyrokinesis.
  • Among the most commonly used spells in the Sword of Truth series is Wizard's Fire, which acts a lot like napalm. Used to greatest effect in the sixth book, where Zedd and another wizard decide to show an enemy army "an old fashioned fire fight"; They hurl fireballs the size of houses at the enemy army, killing thousands in moments.
  • Lavan Firestorm from Brightly Burning. He even has to get mad before his powers will manifest at first; fiery temper, indeed...
    • Elsewhere in the Valdamar stories, it's mentioned that self-taught magic users typically figure out how to call fire as their first spell. An evil wizard uses this tendency to set a trap at one point...
  • Some of the more powerful Anne Rice vampires have the Fire Gift, which basically amounts to pyrokinesis. In the Queen of the Damned, Akasha uses this to eliminate most of the world's other vampires and also pass the Fire Gift on to Lestat by allowing him to drink her blood.
  • In the Codex Alera, firecrafters could generate enormous bursts of flame and heat or otherwise control fires. They also have the ability to evoke powerful emotions in others, such as anger or terror; the best orators in Alera are firecrafters for this exact reason.
  • In the first Kingdom Keepers book, tossing fireballs is Maleficent's perferred methold of attack. It's especially strange since she's described as freezing the ground where she walks.
  • In Mystic and Rider and its sequels, Senneth has enormous power to light and put out fire and is constantly warm. She loses her power in the fourth book but regains enough of it to light a small flame or, by the fifth book, put out all the lights in a room.
  • Each Guardian has a unique Gift related to their life. Alejandro's Gift is creating, manipulating, and shielding from fire, which works well in tandem with his ex-lover's Gift of metal.
  • In Robert E. Howard's The Hour of the Dragon, Zeiata uses fire to show Conan the Barbarian what happened in his realm in his absence.
  • It's strongly suggested that Albus Dumbledore's weapon of choice is fire. Amongst other things, he uses fire to intimidate the young Tom Riddle and to fight off the Inferi guarding the fake locket in The Half-Blood Prince.
  • Many Adepts in the Savage Empire book have pyrokinetic talents.
  • Leo from The Heroes of Olympus is one of the few sons of Hephaestus to have the ability to create and control fire.
  • In Artemis Fowl, all goblins can generate fireballs at will. A bit of a subversion, as while their skin and internal surfaces open to the air (such as the inside of the nose and moth) are entirely fireproof, they can still be damaged when the fireballs detonate (as demonstrated in the first book when a goblin sucks a fireball up his nose in order to blow it right back out but is thwarted when his nostrils are blocked and the fireball explodes inside his oral-nasal cavity).
  • The first screamer we see in the web-novel Domina has this power. She doesn't use it much, though—probably because she's a near-mindless zombie.
  • Pyromancy is one of the "legal" magical schools in Shadow Ops. It is also one of the most powerful and destructive schools, though it lacks any of the other elemental schools' versatility. All a pyromancer can do is create flame in various amounts and generate mindless fire elementals, though their ability to do so makes them one of the more valued schools if only through sheer, literal firepower.

Live Action TV


Mythology And Religion

  • Hephaestus from Greek Mythology. Sometimes, the three solar dieties (Hyperion, Helios, and Apollo) also are associated with Fire, if not with Light.
  • Surtr, Lord of the Fire Giants from Norse Mythology. Also, sometimes, Loki.
  • The goddesses Sekhmet and Wadjet and various serpents of the Duat (underworld) in Egyptian Mythology.
  • Pele. No, not the soccer player. The fire/volcano goddess of Hawaiian Mythology.


Professional Wrestling

  • WWE's Kane has a great love of fire, though whether he's a pyrokinetic or just a pyromaniac tends to vary based on how realistic he's being played at the moment.


Tabletop Games

  • Oddly enough for a Mons setting Mortasheen has only two of these: Smoldron and Thermalunk. Presumably because of the fact that most monsters can use these powers via Psychic Powers.
  • One of the most common elemental damage powers in Dungeons & Dragons, with such favorites as the Wizard's fireball spell, the flaming sword, fire traps, the red dragon's breath weapon, and so on.
    • The pyrokineticist prestige class embodies this trope.
    • Strangely enough, the Druid class is prone to this trope, gaining spells like Produce Flame, Flame Sphere, and Flame Blade within their first few spell levels. If that's not enough, Wild Shape lets them take the forms of elementals, including, yes, FIRE.
    • Don't forget Hot Hands.
    • Ironically, fire is also the most commonly resisted damage type, leading it to being shunned by dedicated powergamers in 3rd edition in favor of sonic damage.
  • The Path of the Brilliant Flame fu path from Feng Shui essentially gives you fiery kung fu powers. And fire is one of the most common Blast powers that a sorcerer can use.
  • Jaya Ballard, Task Mage of Magic: The Gathering, best known for providing the flavor text for many cards.
    • Also, Chandra Nalaar, her disciple of sorts.
  • The Firestarter Battlemech from BattleTech is dedicated to the role, mounting four fusion-powered flamethrowers.
  • Eldar of Warhammer 40,000 who embrace the Fire Dragon Aspect do so to embrace uncontrolled destruction and mayhem. Appropriately, they grab the biggest fusion gun they can find as their weapon of choice.
    • Ork Burnaboyz tend to be rather obsessed with setting things on fire, carrying large famethrowers and sometimes etting other boyz on fire to see em "do da burny dance".
    • The Inquisition loves flame-spewing weapons, allowing for easy execution of Burn the Witch.
    • Signature weapons of the Adepta Sororitas.
  • In 7th Sea, there is the rare sorcery "El Fuego Adentro" of Castille, where a practitioner can create and wield fire. Just don't let the Inquisition find out...
  • In Heavy Gear, the Flammjager gear was not only a specialised incendiary mecha, but its pilots had a (justified) reputation as Pyromaniacs.
  • The Pyrokinetic mutant ability in Paranoia. Of course, this being Paranoia, if it's actually helping at any point, the GM will probably cause the pyrokinetic to cook off the grenades he's carrying or otherwise inflict hilarity on the hapless fellow.

Toys

  • There's several subspecies with this power in Bionicle, though some of the more notable characters are Tahu, Vakama, and Jaller.


Video Games

  • Mass Effect 2 and Mass Effect 3 give you several flame-based powers. Against the 80% of enemies who aren't robots, these are the deadliest attacks in the games.
    • Incinerate: Engineer and Infiltrator Shepard each get this as one of their basic powers, as do Mordin in the second game and EDI in the third.
    • Incendiary Ammo: given to Soldier and Vanguard Shepard, as well as Grunt and Jacob in the second game and James in the third.
    • Inferno Grenade: Zaeed's bonus power in the second game, which you can give to Shepard after you unlock it, and one of Ashley's powers in the third game.
    • In the third game, Engineer Shepard's heavy melee move is him/her stabbing the enemy with a flaming omni-blade.
    • Also, in the third game, one of the upgrades for the Combat Drone power (possessed by Engineer Shepard and Tali) gives it a flamethrower.
  • The Igniter from Bloodline Champions, expectedly.
  • Kyo Kusanagi, his father Saisyu, Iori Yagami, Ash Crimson, and most of the Kyo clones from The King of Fighters. K', particularly.
    • Orochi Chris (but not Chris as Orochi) used fire, too, cementing him as the New Faces Team's Kyo counterpart.
    • Shingo Yabuki, Kyo's protege, is under the impression that he can actually "shoot fire" under certain conditions, but he totally can't.
    • Sho Kirishima, the original concept version of Kyo, has similar abilities (and a more exaggerated personality).
    • Mai Shiranui.
    • Also, one of Kyo's strongest moves involve him being a Man On Fire, and if an opponent stands close to him before he launches the attack (since the attack can be held), they get damage - even more if their moves are countered. If Kyo's opponent takes that attack head on and gets countered - it's enough for a KO. Then again, who takes that attack head-on...
  • Lucca from Chrono Trigger.
  • Mei Fang's default Arcana from Arcana Heart.
  • The Elder Scrolls series. In Morrowind, you shoot fireballs. In Oblivion, you shoot, well, fireballs. In Skyrim, you can shoot fireballs, emit a constant stream of fire from the palm of your hand, lay fire rune traps, and cause a huge explosion by hitting the ground with your fist. You can even breathe fire if you kill enough dragons.
  • Sure, psyblasts and levitation are probably more useful than pyrokinesis, but setting squirrels on fire with your mind is one of the best parts of Psychonauts.
  • Billy Kane in Fatal Fury can channel fire through his bo staff. Ironically, he hates smoking.
    • In Fatal Fury 2, Mai Shiranui comes in with an arsenal of flame-based attacks, which she has retained since.
    • And then there's Kim Jae Hoon and Kevin....
  • Stahn Aileron from Tales of Destiny. His son, Kyle Dunamis, is surprisingly more variative in element.
  • Three characters from Super Robot Wars: Arrogant Kung Fu Guy Hwang Yang Long and his Fire Elemental Lord Granveil from SRW Gaiden: Masou Kishin (also SRW EX), Ax Crazy Ignis and his Ruina mecha Impetus from SRW: Destiny, and, finally, Aloof Big Brother Altis Tarl of the Shura and his Shura God Mardikt.
  • Yukimura Sanada, Shingen, Nohime, Chosokabe Motochika, Toshiie Maeda, Magoichi Saika, Hisahide Matsunaga, and Xavi from Sengoku Basara. Hideaki Kobayakawa may count as well.
  • The Mario. Grabbing a Fire Flower allows him to shoot fireballs from his hands, giving an alternative to the Goomba Stomp.
    • In Mario And Luigi: Superstar Saga, he uses the Firebrand power, giving him the ability to shoot fire without a Fire Flower.
    • His Final Smash in Super Smash Bros. Brawl is a pair of fireballs in the form of a Kamehame Hadoken.
    • And, of course, Bowser as well.
    • Ike, too.
    • Charizard (obviously). Also, Roy from Melee.
    • Let's not forget Captain Falcon.
    • The Fire Flower appears as a subweapon in Super Mario XP. When Mario uses the Item Crash, he can rapidly spam fireballs.
  • Lee Rekka and Kagami (who even uses one of Kyo's signature attacks and resembles Kyo a great deal) from the Last Blade series.
  • Axel from Kingdom Hearts.
    • Also, Sora and Donald learn Fire spells. And Mulan's skills and Limit Break are all fire-based, due to being used along with Mushu. Mushu himself was a fire-based Summon in the first game.
  • Blaze the Cat from Sonic the Hedgehog.
    • Sonic himself in Sonic Colors, through the use of the DS-exclusive Red Wisp that gives him the power to turn into a fireball, much like the fire shield from Sonic 3 and Knuckles.
  • Several Robot Masters from Mega Man, including Fire Man, Heat Man, Flame Man, etc.
    • Fefnir from Mega Man Zero and, by extension, Mega Man Model F from Mega Man ZX.
    • And also the net navi versions of the above robot masters from Mega Man Battle Network and the fire lion power up from Mega Man Star Force, which is also called Fire Leo (not related to the one listed below).
    • And from Mega Man X, there's Fire Mammoth, Flame Stag, Magma Dragoon, Mattrex/Burn Dinorex, Blaze Heatnix, Flame Hyenard, and Burn Rooster. X3 is the only game in the series without a fire-elemental boss.
  • Fire Leo from Viewtiful Joe.
    • Joe himself gets fire powers from using his fast forward ability.
  • Main character Batsu Ichimonji from Rival Schools has a Super Mode in the sequel Project Justice, Burning Batsu, which gives his ki fire-like properties.
  • Sol Badguy from Guilty Gear.
    • Also, several other characters bust out with the occasional fire attack; Robo-Ky, Axl, Faust, Potemkin, and Bridget all have fire attacks. Sol's the most common, as almost all of his special moves light opponents on fire.
  • Bang Shishigami from BlazBlue. His Drive attack is pretty much the only thing in the game that sets the enemy ablaze.
    • If you look closely, some of Ragna's powers and attacks look vaguely flame-like.
  • Ifrit from most Final Fantasy games is the living incarnation of Playing with Fire.
    • Phoenix, another Summon, burns your enemies while simultaneously reviving/healing allies.
      • Terra from Final Fantasy VI specializes in fire magic, learning Fire/Fira/Firaga and Meltdown (not to mention Flare and Ultima).
    • Although he does learn other spells, Vivi of Final Fantasy IX starts with a Fire spell.
      • In an inversion, Rydia in Final Fantasy IV is at first afraid to use fire, because it destroyed her town.
    • Sazh of Final Fantasy XIII gets the Fire line of spells most readily, including Firaga, while getting no direct Water or Blizzard spells at all. His summon, Brynhildr, is fire-based as well.
    • Seifer from Final Fantasy VIII specializes in using fire magic, starting every one of his Limit Break attacks with a fire spell.
    • Fire is one of the most common elements among the heroes in Dissidia, used by Firion,[1] Onion Knight,[2] Terra,[3] Cloud,[4] Squall,[5] Shantotto,[6] and Lightning.[7]
  • The Kirby series have their fair share of fire-starters:
    • Kirby's Adventure introduced recurring foes Flamer, Hot Head, Fire Lion, and (one half of the Mr. Shine and Mr. Bright duo) Mr. Bright.
    • Burning Leo and Fire Kirby from Kirby Super Star.
  • Kazuki, Kyoshiro, and Tam Tam from Samurai Shodown. Kazuki's special moves all involve fire (except for Bust Kazuki, which is more about exploding), breathing fire is one of Kyoshiro's signature special moves, and Tam Tam can also cough up fireballs of varying intensity. Sieger's moves sometimes burn opponents, but that's because his gauntlet uses gunpowder.
  • The Pyro from Team Fortress 2.
  • Ignus from Planescape: Torment, who has been turned into a living conduit to the Plane of Fire. And likes it.
  • Dhalsim from the Street Fighter series breathes fire as one of his special moves. His ability comes as a gift of Agni, the Hindu god of fire.
    • Ken likes to set opponents ablaze with his Dragon Punch, while Fei Long does the same with his Dragon Kick.
    • In some games, Ryu can produce fire Hadokens as well.
    • Crimson Viper from Street Fighter IV uses both fire and lightning in her special attack arsenal.
    • Akuma can produce the flame-encrusted Hadoken (in the regular Street Fighter games) or Shoryuken (in the Marvel Vs. Capcom series).
    • Gill, when he hits you with the fire half part of his body (the other half is ice).
  • Liu Kang from Mortal Kombat is fond of mixing fireballs with his Shaolin-style kung fu.
    • Scorpion is fond of breathing fire (especially as a fatality).
    • Sonya Blade is also known for setting opponents ablaze with her signature fatality.
      • Shang Tsung and his penchant for hurling flaming skulls at people and sending gouts of fire shooting up at people during his fights (when he's not morphing into other fighters, that is).
  • Garet and Jenna are the Mars Adepts[8] present in Golden Sun and Golden Sun: The Lost Age, with fiery personalities and red hair, to boot. The villainous duos of each game (Saturos and Menardi in the first game; Agatio and Karst in the second game), hailing from a fire-wielding clan, also fall under this trope. The third game, Golden Sun: Dark Dawn, has Garet's son Tyrell picking up the torch.
  • In Pokémon, Kanto Gym Leader Blaine, Hoenn Gym Leader Flannery, Sinnoh Elite 4 member Flint, and Unova Gym Leader Chili all specialize in using Fire-type Mons. All Fire-type Pokémon also qualify, with certain Pokémon capable of using Fire-type moves like Flamethrower despite not being actual Fire-types (such as the Dragon Pokémon Dragonite).
    • Several Legendary Pokémon are pure or part-Fire type, such as Ho-Oh, Moltres, Entei, Heatran, Reshiram, etc. Groudon from Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire is technically Ground-type, but still has something of a fire theme going, with moves like Eruption and being associated with lava and volcanoes, as well as the ability Drought that summons permanent sunlight to boost Fire-type moves.
  • Fire arrows are used by Link in three The Legend of Zelda games, with a fourth having Link rained on by arrows himself. Ocarina of Time also had the Din's Fire magic.
    • The Fire Rod is another example.
  • From Shin Megami Tensei:
    • Heat from Digital Devil Saga, who also happens to be a Fiery Redhead.
      • Tatsuya Suou from Persona 2, whose Persona is Vulcanus.
      • Junpei Iori from Persona 3 has some fire magic with his persona and is strong against fire spells, although he mostly uses physical attacks.
          • Koro-chan, the dog from the same game, applies as well. Although it is meant to be another kind of specialist, you would probably see him Playing with Fire in most boss battles.
            • Yukiko Amagi from Persona 4 also has fire magic with her persona, but unlike Junpei, she focuses herself more on magic power, thus her fire magic usually does more damage. With Yukiko, it's particularly ironic, as her name means "snow child".
  • Pyron from the Darkstalkers games is a Galactic Conqueror who is basically a walking star and, accordingly, is made of fire.
  • Garr from Breath of Fire 3 is naturally strong to fire (taking half normal damage from it) and has a few fire-related abilities. Considering that he looks like a demon, it probably fits the theme.
  • Several examples in Touhou:
  • City of Heroes includes a fire-based set for pretty much everything - melee, ranged, buffs and debuffs, control...
    • There's also the Hellions, the demonically-themed gang of pyromaniacs you start off fighting against. Blood Brothers and Fallen have resistance to fire, while bosses from this gang have full-on pyrokinesis.
  • Warlocks and Mages in World of Warcraft both have a talent tree that specialises in fire damage. Shamans have some fire spells as well, although they primarily use lightning magic.
    • Fire mages also tend to have much less survivability than Frost
      • But they tend to leave a bigger crater.
    • BY FIRE BE PURGED! Ragnaros the Firelord and his fire elemental minions.
  • One of the Elementalist skill sets in Guild Wars is Fire Magic, though it's the most single-minded skillset of the class, focusing on one thing: damage, and in large quantities.
  • Black Magician Girl Cierra from Riviera: The Promised Land can use all kinds of magic, but her most powerful attacks are fire-based.
  • Adell and Raspberyl from the Disgaea series specialize in fire techniques. Red Skull and Mage classes also use fire spells.
    • The Dragon, Entei, and Ifrit monster classes all specialize in fire attacks, as well (save for the first game, where the former two used attacks of whatever element they had an affinity for). The Dragon mostly uses it as a Breath Weapon, while the latter two manipulate it in a more spectacular fashion.
  • Burn Griffith and Regina Belfrond of Psychic Force.
  • Subverted in Tsukihime with Akiha. The description of her power mentions the burning sensation as though you're on fire and that, if you can see it, it looks like thin burning red lines coming at you. She's a bit of a Fiery Redhead when using her power and is also prone to 'kill it now ask questions later'. However, her power is actually something called Plunder and apparently involves the absorption of life energy itself.
  • Genesis Rhapsodos, the Big Bad of Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII- is an extremely skilled fire magic user.
  • Xan, the Pyromancer from Dragon Fable. To emphasize his love of fire and his Ax Crazy nature, a quest lets you control him. Here's his command list:

Attack (with Fists of Fire)
Fire
More Fire
Lots of Fire
Even More Fire
OMGBBQ?!

  • Fire is a powerup in many Backyard Sports games.
  • Dison in Visions & Voices specializes in Fire skills.
  • Don't forget all the units with some sort of firepower in the Command & Conquer games. Given that warfare is a major aspect and firepower is prevalent for most offensive units, some really are adept at the term. Look at the Flame Tanks and Flamethrower Infantry in Tiberian Dawn. Not only do they dish out massive damage at enemy infantries, but when your unit with flammable weaponry is killed, it goes up in massive flames, thus inflicting moderate damage on nearby units and structures, whether friend, foe, or neutral. This trait is also noticeable on GDI Grenadiers, but the resulting explosion is of a lesser degree.
    • This trait makes a comeback in the Flame Towers, Flamethrower Infantry, and Grenadiers of the Soviet faction in Red Alert. In the Aftermath expansion, the Demolition Truck is available as a deliberate suicide unit; get these suicide bombing trucks out of your base right when you can, because once it explodes, the explosion is of a massive size.
  • Karnov, Russian strongman and one-time mascot of Data East, breathes fire.
  • Every single boss in Donkey Kong 64 except King K Rool. Really, even the fish boss shoots quick barrages of fireballs as it's main attack. Usually in combination with lasers.
  • Even though mages in Dragon Age can learn all kinds of spells, Velanna in "Awakening" starts off with all Fire spells unlocked. This may count as a bit of Actor Allusion, as she shares her voice actress with another master of fire magic.
  • Amaterasu in Okami. Her signature weapon is a flaming disc she carries on her back; she is the Goddess of the Sun, after all. She also gains the power to control fire from the God of Fire, Moegami.
  • In Marvel vs. Capcom 3, Phoenix, Dormammu, and Arthur specialize in Fire attacks.
  • Nix in In Famous has powers over fire and oil, which Cole can actually gain a bit of if he decides to do a power transfer with her.
  • Whichever of the 3 main characters that inherits the True Fire Rune from "The Flame Champion" in Suikoden III.
  • Soki from Onimusha: Dawn of Dreams.
  • Aya from Infinite Undiscovery
  • Zorne from Rosenkreuzstilette manifests this power in the form of creating bombs.
  • In The Tower of Druaga, sorcerers cast spells that start fires.
  • Plasmagenetic creatures from Darkspore are a mixture between this trope and Shock and Awe.
  • The art of Pyromancy in Dark Souls, though its control of the fire also branches into such effects as gaining fire resistance through sweating, acid, and charming the Undead.
  • Goenji Shuuya (Axel Blaze) from Inazuma Eleven is a fire elemental soccer player, who takes this trope up by creating fire tornadoes and summoning fire gigas-like effects during his special shoots.
  • Pyrrhon in Kid Icarus Uprising is the Sun God, so his entire body is engulfed in fire. For his moves and actions, think like Johnny Blaze but much more cheesy.
  • Aurora in Black Sigil. Also Doll, who can use all elements.
  • Monster Girl Quest: Granberia is the Heavenly Knight of fire and can engulf her sword with flames to enhance her attacks. Salamander is the spirit of fire, capable of granting her contractors control over fire.

Webcomics

Chiri: Monstrousities of the body and hollow of soul! You deserve no pity! You shall be purged - IN FLAMES!

  • Panthera: Tigris Ignis, Tiger of Fire.
  • Oasis of Sluggy Freelance, as seen here.
  • Wayward Sons: Hestya's powers are pretty much identical to Johnny Storm's, but almost nothing can withstand the heat she gives off while her powers are active. Like her clothes, for instance.
  • John Henry Hunter in Next Town Over. Aside from being able to produce flames from things like alcohol or matches, he is also able to mess with guns being fired, making it hard for people to shoot him.
  • In Gunnerkrigg Court, Antimony soon received a Blinker Stone and quickly learned to use it, mostly for various pyrotechnic effects. You may also count uses of the phrase "fiery Surma" or synonyms. Which is not quite a metaphor, nor a coincidence.
    • Later, it is revealed that she, like her mother, are actually descendants of a Fire Elemental/Human pairing, and thus have a bit of supernatural fire burning inside them. Coyote makes a bit of a point out of the fact that, while she can generally be mistaken for an Emotionless Girl, the right prompting can cause Annie's temper to 'flare' with REMARKABLE speed.
  • Eerie Cuties had Chloe during her powered up time and thus less nice than she normally is blasted Blair with a bolt of hellfire when he annoyed her - it turns out Succubi can have many powers beside the obvious (it turns out, the possessed doll is much tougher than just plastic, too). There's also an Ifrita, but so far she didn't use her fiery powers, only accidentally burned her clothes when overexcited.

Web Original

  • From the Global Guardians PBEM Universe: Heatwave, Starfire, Fire Drake, Ablaze, Firefall, Fireworks, Flashpoint, Inferna, Hotshot, Centigrade (who is also An Ice Person), Incendie ("Blaze" in French), Mondfeur ("Moonfire" in German), Ulkataranara ("Comet Man" in Hindi), Matahari Merah, Firebird, Playma ("Flame" in Russian), Salamander, Sunfire, Wildfire, Flame, Ifrit, The Confessor, Morningstar, Komet, Molotov, Inferno, Fuoco Bianco ("White Fire" in Italian), Pumpkin Jack, Tourmaline, Pyro, Dragon, and Red Devil.
  • In the Whateley Universe, Fireball. And Sparkler, after she gets her power gauntlets in the first Ayla story.
    • In "Christmas Elves", Fey quite literally plays with fire—and then turns it back on the mooks who thought using flamethrowers against the reincarnation of a Sidhe queen on excellent terms with fire elementals back in the day was a good idea.
  • New York Magician: Melooch and his Rider.
  • In Trinton Chronicles, there is Jay, Sara, Scorch, along with a few other characters who seem to have this power. It's a fairly common supernatural power, it seems.
  • The Slender Man is often associated with fire, whether causing it or just being attracted to it. There's also TheArsonist of Dreams in Darkness.
  • The Fire-Human, from Water Human. He literally looks like he's made of fire and might, in fact, be just an Elemental Embodiment. His servants also have fire spells.
  • The Anti Cliche and Mary Sue Elimination Society's Tash uses very powerful fire magic, first with a staff, then with a sword.


Western Animation

  • Wheeler in Captain Planet and the Planeteers.
  • Firebenders in Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra, obviously. The interesting part is that not all of them fit the hot-tempered mold that usually goes along with fire powers, given that they are an entire culture. Zuko is plenty hot-headed, but his sister Azula is more cold and cunning, which her blue fire reflects. Their father Ozai is somewhere in between, while Iroh has the personality of a warm campfire.
    • Aang, on the other hand, once he accepts that Firebending is not Bad Powers, Bad People, comes fairly close to Iroh's version of this, though he does become considerably more focused; it's implied that Firebenders have a tendency to become overly intense and Determinators.
    • The Fire Nation's philosophy of firebending via rage plays a part in their hot-headed tempers; a subset of firebenders who split off from the nation passed onto Iroh, Zuko, and Aang the original, life-affirming form of firebending that averts the need for firebenders to be Hot-Blooded to use their powers.
    • Then there's Mako from The Legend of Korra who's pretty much The Stoic. Korra herself fits the Hot-Blooded stereotype and it's interesting to note that she will default to fire even though she's a Waterbender by birth.
  • Kimiko from Xiaolin Showdown.
  • Taranee Cook from WITCH, again. Like her comic book self, she is no hothead, instead being reserved and intelligent. Also, before she got her powers, she was afraid of fire.
  • Hotstreak from Static Shock.
  • Heatblast in Ben 10, Swampfire in Ben 10 Alien Force.
  • Hotspot in Teen Titans.
  • Torrid, the fiery archvillain of the Order of the Triad in The Venture Brothers and a Captain Ersatz of Pyro.
  • The Decepticon Firecons in The Transformers, especially the moronic pyromaniac Cindersaur and the even more moronic pyromaniac Flamefeather; Their supervisor, Sparkstalker, not so much, being a strategist at heart.
  • Shendu and son Drago from Jackie Chan Adventures, along with anyone using the former's Dragon Talisman.
  • Bloom from Winx Club.
  • Father, the Big Bad of Codename: Kids Next Door.
  • In the Viewer Mail 1 episode of Family Guy, Chris has this power.
  • Volcana from the DCAU.
  • Lucius on Jimmy Two-Shoes sometimes shows the ability to do this, but it's mostly treated as a Running Gag when he's angry. Word of God says he has some powers he refuses to use out of Pride. Presumably, this is one of them.
  • Shego from Kim Possible.
  • Scorcher the Assassin and Flame Princess from Adventure Time.
  • Blossom's special power in The Powerpuff Girls is the ability to breathe fire and ice, although it tends to switch depending on the weather and her body temperature. (She doesn't use it much, though.)
  1. ↑ he also uses ice and thunder
  2. ↑ his Firaga HP attack has the largest area effect
  3. ↑ Fire is a bravery attack, but Meltdown is an HP attack
  4. ↑ Fire/Fira/Firaga are his only ranged bravery attacks
  5. ↑ though he prefers to mix it up with lightning and ice in his Barrage bravery attack
  6. ↑ but she uses SIX elements total
  7. ↑ in her Ravager role, along with Watera and Thundaga
  8. ↑ individuals utilizing fire-based Psynergy
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