Fire

This article is about fire produced by weapons. For environmental fire, see this article.

“

I appear to have burst into flames. Click to listen — The Spy on the blatantly obvious

”

Fire, or flames, refers to the special projectiles produced mainly by the primary weapons of Pyro. It can cause the damage-over-time effect inflicted on a player, which is called afterburn.

Fire has its own damage type, and some other weapons which are not the primary weapons of Pyro can also cause fire damage and afterburn.

Flames produced by the primary weapons of Pyro

The Pyro has two different primary weapon types: the conventional Flame Throwers and the Flame Launcher. Although they all visually produce a stream of flames, the mechanics behind the visuals are different.

Conventional Flame Throwers

The stock Flame Thrower and its variants share the same flame mechanic. Upon pressing primary fire key, it produces multiple little invisible projectile-like boxes, which can be called flame particles. When one of these particles makes contact with an enemy player's hitbox, a straight line is drawn from the point of firing to the center of the particle which made contact. If there are no environment elements in between the two points, the hit is registered by the system and damage is applied. Unlike normal projectiles, flame particles do not stop when they collide with players or buildings, but instead continue moving and dealing damage to other objects until their maximum lifespan is reached. The particles have their damage largely determined by time since being fired rather than distance. One flamethrower ammo fires two flame particles.

The flame particles do not have visible models, so the flame visual effect is not the real indicator of how the particles really move. As such, the flame particles and the visual effect have no direct connections. When the sv_cheats and tf_debug_flamethrower commands are set to 1, the boxes of visual effect as well as the boxes of flame particles can be seen by the flamethrower user. The boxes inherently rise upwards over time, and each box has a random speed, spread and a lifetime. Additionally, forward velocity for each box decreases over time. These factors are combined together to form a distance-limited, cone-shaped flame stream. Due to the lack of direct connection between the flame particles and the visual effect, when only the visual effect hits the target while the flame particles do not hit, the target of the flame stream does not receive any damage.

The momentum of the boxes is partially determined by the firing Pyro's movement. When a player is moving, the velocity of the player at the time of firing a particle is added to that particle's inherent movement in the player's moving direction. Therefore, moving forward increases forward particle velocity, so the total range increases. Strafing backwards while firing forwards adds negative velocity to inherent movement, resulting in a particle's initial forward velocity being slower. As inherent forward velocity decreases, inherited velocity begins to catch up and exceed it; the particle comes to a complete stop before accelerating in the opposite direction. This is helpful for the Pyro to counter its chasers.

Flame Launcher

The item type Flame Launcher only includes the Dragon's Fury. Being the latest weapon type in the Pyro's arsenal, the fireball it launches acts more like other existing projectiles. The Dragon's Fury can launch a quick, short-range (526 Hammer units) fireball that travels 3000 HU/s. Its momentum is not influenced by the movement of the player, but it can still penetrate players and buildings just like the normal flames particles. Each fireball inflicts around the same damage as a Flare Gun shot, and causes enemies to suffer afterburn for a short time, even enemy Pyros (albeit for a slightly shorter time than for other classes). Hitting an enemy that is already on fire deals triple damage, so long as the middle of the fireball connects.

Afterburn

A Heavy on fire.

Upon being set aflame, a player's character automatically screams out that they are on fire, alerting nearby Medics and teammates to their plight. Setting an opponent on fire also creates a disorienting effect on their screen view (flames engulf the edges of the screen and a burning sound is heard). This can be used to a team's advantage if the Pyro is able to ambush a group of attacking foes. Snipers lit on fire find it extremely difficult to aim, as the scoped view moves every time the Sniper takes damage from the burning (an effect the Sniper can prevent while fully-charged by equipping the Cozy Camper). When calling for a Medic, the balloon with the Medic symbol appears on fire, notifying a Medic that his teammate is being damaged by afterburn. This helps prioritise burning players as an urgent healing target.

Afterburn can be used for Spy checking. A small burst of flame ignites enemy Spies, even if cloaked or disguised. Burning players give off an additional team-coloured particle effect revealing their true allegiance; this is a useful effect for distinguishing disguised Spies from teammates.

Afterburn from certain sources can be used to disrupt healing from the various Medi Guns and the shield resistance from the Vaccinator. Afterburn from these sources reduces Vaccinator resist shields by 20%; healing from Medi Guns, Medicating Melody, or level 3 Dispensers by 50%; and healing from level 1 or 2 Dispensers (including Payload carts and such) by 100%. Most of these effects remove afterburn after only a second, though, so this is not always noticeable.

The fire effect starts immediately upon damage from a weapon that causes it. Afterburn damages a player every half-second for 4 HP each tick (1 HP each tick for the Degreaser), totaling 80 damage over 10 seconds (20 damage for the Degreaser). Each fire effect from a flamethrower can last up to 10 seconds; afterburn duration ramps up from 3 to 10 seconds based on how long the target was in direct contact with the flame. The Huo-Long Heater's ring of fire applies 8 seconds, flare guns and burning arrows apply 7.5 seconds, and the Cow Mangler 5000's charged shot applies 6 seconds of afterburn. Additional hits from these weapons add their respective duration to the remaining afterburn duration, up to a maximum of 10 seconds.

Afterburn damage cannot crit; however, it can mini-crit if the target is under a mini-crit debuff, such as being soaked in Jarate, marked for death, or if the attacking player is buffed by the Buff Banner.

While afterburn duration may stack from multiple sources and players, the damage does not; only the most recent weapon to cause afterburn (and its owner) is considered to be the cause of the burning. This can change how much damage is dealt if the Degreaser (with its reduced afterburn damage) is involved.

Note that enemy Pyros cannot be set on fire except by the Dragon's Fury and the Gas Passer. While Pyros still take contact damage from direct flame attacks, they do not take further afterburn damage. The Pyro does, however, count as on fire for a brief second (indicated by the charred graphical effect after taking damage from a fiery weapon), making them vulnerable to critical hits from the Sun-on-a-Stick and Flare Gun and mini-crits from the Detonator, Scorch Shot, Axtinguisher, and Postal Pummeler during this brief second, despite taking no afterburn damage. A Spy disguised as a Pyro from either team, however, can still be lit on fire and take afterburn damage.

It is possible to allow gibs to catch fire (if a player is gibbed while on fire) with the cl_burninggibs command set to 1.

Damage and function times

See also: Damage

Damage and function times
Damage type		Fire
Ranged or Melee damage?		Any
Damage
Afterburn		4 / tick 80 total
Afterburn (mini-crit)		5 / tick 100 total
Function times
Attack interval		0.5 s
Afterburn duration		0.5-10 s
Values are approximate and determined by community testing.

Weapons which inflict afterburn

List of afterburn-inflicting weapons
Soldier	Primary			Alt-fire: Fires a Mini-crit shot which ignites enemies who get hit. It also ignites the player if they are in range.
		Cow Mangler 5000
Pyro	Primary
		Flame Thrower†	Rainblower
		Nostromo Napalmer
		Backburner†
				Afterburn caused by this weapon deals 75% less damage compared to the default Flame Thrower.
		Degreaser
				Fire damage builds Mmmph.
		Phlogistinator
				Fires short range projectiles instead of normal flames.
		Dragon's Fury
	Secondary			Deals Critical hits damage to any already burning players.
		Flare Gun†
				Alt-fire: Detonate flare. Ignites enemies within a certain radius. Deals damage to the player who fired it at the ground or detonated too close. Deals Mini-crit damage to any already burning players if they are hit by the flare impact or flare explosion radius.
		Detonator
		Manmelter
				Shoots a flare that bounces off enemies as well as allies and explodes, igniting all enemies caught in the explosion. Deals Mini-crit damage to any already burning players if they are hit by the flare impact or flare explosion radius.
		Scorch Shot
				Doused enemies are ignited when attacked, applying an afterburn effect for 10 seconds. Includes other Pyros, which are normally immune to the effects of afterburn.
		Gas Passer
	Melee
		Sharpened Volcano Fragment
Heavy	Primary			Surrounds the Heavy with a ring of fire when deployed, igniting anyone who comes in contact with it.
		Huo-Long Heater
Sniper	Primary			Arrows can be ignited by an allied Pyro firing their primary weapon, as well as approaching environmental flames in certain maps.
		Huntsman†	Fortified Compound
Notes		†Includes Festive, Botkiller and Australium variants.
		Afterburn becomes sparkling particle effects for players that are in Pyroland.

Surviving fire

Instant extinguish	Notes
Pickups	Picking up a health pack, thrown lunchbox item, or a dropped ammo pack from a dead Heavy that was holding a lunchbox item before death.
Resupply locker	Touching a Resupply locker, switching class in the spawn room, or switching Loadout while in the spawn room.
Water	Entering water below eye level. Puddles and low-level water (such as in the sewer tunnels in 2Fort) do not extinguish a burning player.
Healing	Being healed by a Medic, Dispenser, or Payload cart for a full second.
ÜberCharge	Being the recipient of a stock ÜberCharge. Being ÜberCharged by a Kritzkrieg, Quick-Fix, or Vaccinator does not affect the rate at which fire is extinguished by healing.
Container-based liquids	Being splashed with Mad Milk, Mutated Milk, Gas Passer, Jarate, or Self-Aware Beauty Mark from a teammate or after being airblasted. These items can also extinguish the wielder themselves by throwing their respective containers at their feet.
Compression blast	Being airblasted by a friendly Pyro.
Thermal Thruster	Being near a friendly Pyro when they land with the Thermal Thruster.
Dead Ringer	Activating the Dead Ringer as a Spy.
Spy-cicle	Having the Spy-cicle as the active weapon while burning.
Manmelter	Being extinguished by the alt-fire of a friendly Pyro's Manmelter.
Conniver's Kunai	Backstabbing someone with the Conniver's Kunai.
Charging	Charging with any Demoman shield. Only the start of the charge extinguishes the Demoman; if set on fire during the charge, the Demoman is not extinguished.
Sydney Sleeper	Being hit by a friendly Sniper's Sydney Sleeper.
Darwin's Danger Shield	Wearing the Darwin's Danger Shield prevents afterburn entirely, as well as reducing direct flame damage.

Mitigating fire damage	Notes
Healing	Being healed by a Medi Gun, Dispenser, or Payload cart for less than a second. Any kind of passive or on-hit/kill healing, such as the Blutsauger or the Concheror.
Bonk! Atomic Punch	Drinking the Bonk! Atomic Punch stops any afterburn damage, but does not extinguish the fire. Additionally, the damage taken from the fire causes a slowdown effect after the Bonk! effect wears off.
Health	Equipping weapons that increase the player's maximum health, such as the Bootlegger or Battalion's Backup.
Damage resistance	Being under the effects of a damage resistance, such as cloaking or the Sun-on-a-Stick.

Related weapons

The following weapons provide additional resistance or vulnerability against fire-based attacks. Note that both contact damage (barring the melee damage from the Sharpened Volcano Fragment) and afterburn damage is modified.

List of weapons modifying fire damage
Scout	Melee			+25% fire damage resistance while deployed.
		Sun-on-a-Stick
Soldier	Secondary			While under the effects, +35% damage resistance to the Soldier and nearby teammates.
		Battalion's Backup
Pyro	Melee			+20% damage vulnerability when active.
		Powerjack
Demoman	Secondary			+50% fire damage resistance on wearer.   Charging extinguishes user.
		Chargin' Targe
				+20% fire damage resistance on wearer.   Charging extinguishes user.
		Splendid Screen
				+15% fire damage resistance on wearer.   Charging extinguishes user.
		Tide Turner
	Melee			+15% damage vulnerability when active.
		Claidheamh Mòr
Heavy	Primary			+20% damage resistance when below 50% health and spun up.
		Natascha
				+20% damage resistance when below 50% health and spun up.
		Brass Beast
	Secondary			While under the effects, +20% damage vulnerability.
		Buffalo Steak Sandvich
	Melee			+40% damage resistance from ranged sources on wearer when active.
		Fists of Steel
				+30% damage vulnerability when active.
		Warrior's Spirit
Engineer	Melee			+20% fire damage vulnerability on wearer.
		Southern Hospitality
Medic	Secondary			While healing, +10% resistance to the selected damage type to the Medic and his patient.   ÜberCharge provides +75% resistance and full crit resistance to the selected damage type to the Medic and his patient.
		Vaccinator
Sniper	Secondary			+50% fire damage resistance on wearer.   Immunity to afterburn.
		Darwin's Danger Shield
	Melee			+20% damage vulnerability when active.
		Bushwacka
Spy	Melee			On hit by fire, immune to fire damage for 1 second and immune to afterburn for 10 seconds.   Can be used to extinguish fire.
		Spy-cicle
	PDA 2			While cloaked, +20% damage resistance.   Reduced afterburn duration while cloaked.
		Invis Watch	Enthusiast's Timepiece
		Quäckenbirdt
				While cloaked, +20% damage resistance.   Reduced afterburn duration while cloaked.
		Cloak and Dagger
				When struck by fire, blocks 75% of incoming damage.   After Dead Ringer activated, 65% damage resistance on wearer which fades to 20% in 3 seconds.   Can be used to extinguish fire.   When activated, gives 3 seconds of afterburn immunity.
		Dead Ringer

Related achievements

General achievements

Escape the Heat Jump into a pool of refreshing water while on fire.

Flamethrower Set five enemies on fire in 30 seconds.

 Soldier

Semper Fry Kill 20 enemies while you are on fire.

 Pyro

Attention Getter Ignite 100 enemies with the flare gun. Burn Ward Ignite 3 Medics that are ready to deploy an ÜberCharge. Controlled Burn Ignite 50 enemies capturing one of your control points. Firewall Ignite 5 Spies who have a sapper on a friendly building. Got A Light? Ignite an enemy Spy while he's flicking a cigarette. Next of Kindling Ignite an enemy, and the Medic healing him. Pyromancer Do 1 million points of total fire damage. Spontaneous Combustion Ignite 10 cloaked Spies. Weenie Roast Have 2 enemy Scouts on fire at the same time.

Baptism by Fire Force 10 burning enemies to jump into water. Combined Fire Use your shotgun to finish off 20 players you've ignited. Cooking the Books Ignite 5 enemies carrying your intelligence. Firewatch Ignite 10 Snipers while they are zoomed in. I Fry Ignite 10 disguised Spies. Makin' Bacon Kill 50 Heavies with your flamethrower. Pilot Light Ignite a rocket-jumping Soldier while he's in midair. Second Degree Burn Kill a burning enemy who was ignited by another Pyro. Trailblazer Ignite 10 enemies that have recently used a teleporter.

 Heavy

Rasputin In a single life, get shot, burned, bludgeoned, and receive explosive damage.

 Engineer

The Extinguished Gentleman Have dispensers you built extinguish 20 burning players.

 Medic

Autoclave Assist in burning 5 enemies with a single ÜberCharge on a Pyro.

Infernal Medicine Extinguish 100 burning teammates.

 Sniper

Friendship is Golden Extinguish a burning teammate with your Jarate.

 Spy

Burn Notice Survive 30 seconds after being ignited while cloaked.

Kill icons

• 

  Death by the Cow Mangler 5000's afterburn.

• 

  Suicide by the Cow Mangler 5000's afterburn.

• 

  Flamethrower.

• 

  Backburner.

• 

  Degreaser.

• 

  Phlogistinator.

• 

  Rainblower.

• 

  Nostromo Napalmer.

• 

  Death by the Dragon Fury's bonus.

• 

  Death by a normal hit from or the afterburn damage of the Dragon's Fury.

• 

  Flare Gun.

• 

  Detonator.

• 

  Manmelter.

• 

  Scorch Shot.

• 

  Sharpened Volcano Fragment.

• 

  Deflected flare.

• 

  Hadouken kill taunt.

• 

  Armageddon kill taunt.

• 

  Huo-Long Heater.

• 

  Flaming Huntsman / Fortified Compound arrow.

• 

  Flaming Huntsman / Fortified Compound arrow afterburn.

Unused kill icons

• 

  Deflected flaming arrow Huntsman.

• 

  Deflected flaming Huntsman arrow headshot.

• 

  Flaming Huntsman arrow headshot.

Update history

October 9, 2012 Patch

• Overhealed players that are bleeding or on fire can now pickup healthkits to remove these conditions.

October 20, 2017 Patch (Jungle Inferno Update)

• Afterburn
  • Flamethrowers no longer apply maximum-duration afterburn on contact. Afterburn duration is now based on how long the target is in contact with direct flames -- starting at a minimum of 3 seconds, and stacking to a maximum of 10 seconds.
  • Per-tick afterburn damage increased to 4 (from 3), for a total of 8 damage per-second (up from 6 per-second)
  • Flareguns now apply 7.5 seconds of afterburn (down from 10 seconds), resulting in the same total damage as before.
  • Afterburn now reduces all direct Medic healing and resist shields by 20%.
    • Note: This effect was previously applied by direct flames from all flamethrowers (at 25%), but was moved to afterburn, and slightly lowered.

October 24, 2017 Patch

• Fixed the afterburn duration for the Huo-Long Heater, the Sharpened Volcano Fragment, the Huntsman, and the Cow Mangler 5000.
  • [Undocumented] The following non-Pyro weapons now apply the same afterburn damage and duration as flare guns. (60 damage over 7.5 seconds)
    • The Huo-Long Heater's fire ring (down from 10 seconds)
    • The Sharpened Volcano Fragment
    • The Huntsman when the arrow is lit on fire
  • [Undocumented] The Cow Mangler 5000's alt-fire now deals maximum afterburn duration at 80 damage over 10 seconds at the rate of 4 damage per-tick (up from 6 seconds).

Unused content

• All classes (except for the Pyro) have an unused death animation when on fire.

Notes

• Burning ragdolls are not extinguished when submerged in water.

Bugs

• A burning player ceases to take damage if the enemy who inflicted the afterburn changes teams, but visually remains on fire for the default duration.
• Occasionally the afterburn effect stays on a player that's recently been burnt, but survived.
• Afterburn from the Dragon's Fury does not reduce direct Medic healing and resist shields by 20%.
• Flames can shoot over long distances if the Pyro uses the Detonator or Scorch Shot to build up speed and is stuck in a map surface/object.