Class Feature Friday: Fire Elementalist School (Wizard Elementalist School)
(art by Naiyus on DeviantArt)
And we’re back with another elementalist school, and this time we’re looking at what is arguably the most iconic sort of elementalist out there in fiction.
Now, yes, by rights all four western elements as well as the eastern and nonstandard elements should in theory get equal billing, when I said elementalist, among your first thoughts was the pyromancer with big explosive spells and usually an unhealthy desire to use them.
I won’t say that such a stereotype is undeserved, either, because if evocation wizards get lumped into being destructive and impulsive, then pyromancers must be more so given their focus on the arguably most actively destructive element.
But is destruction all there is to these mages?
Fire is the element of energy and change, passion and expression. Fire transforms combustable material into ash and smoke, spreading to other such material when given the chance, but it can also reshape other elements as well into something stronger. Just ask the metallurgist that extracts pure and alloyed metals from raw ore, or the smith that transforms those refined metals into various useful objects, to say nothing of the pottery or ceramics artist that creates durable, beautiful wares.
In this way, fire mirrors passion and emotion. Unbridled emotion can be a wild, beautiful, and dangerous thing, bringing about ruin if left unchecked for too long, but passion that is directed and respected for what it is can be the catalyst for all manner of great deeds and works.
So, while there can be wild and uncontrolled pyromancers, they usually don’t last long since either their own fire will overwhelm their own protections and destroy themselves, or they’ll bite off more than they can chew. Successful pyromancers can still be passionate and emotional, but they are often driven and focused, controlling and directing their power rather than unleashing it without thought.
The destructive nature of fire does mean that most jobs and roles associated with this school are going to be combat-oriented, from professional war mages to adventurers or bodyguards. However, they also find work in magical crafting and plumbing the secrets of the arcane.
Naturally, the major opposite to fire in both western and eastern elementalism is water, with passion and energy giving way to serenity and fluidity as easily as a dousing wave or blizzard wind snuffs out a flame.
The fire elemental spell list have the typical elemental summonings and transmutations, but also has a lot of fiery defensive and attacking spells, both with pure fire, and those that manipulate existing fire or conjure superheated substances. As such, the list is not as much purely blasting, but also battlefield control.
A pyromancer starts by working on their complete supremacy over fire. This takes the form of a growing resistance and ward against flame so that they do not succumb to their own spells and element, culminating in total immunity. Additionally, with a gesture they can draw flames from nearby natural flame to wreathe their bodies, creating a punishing ward for those that would assault them at close range.
Their primary magical attack outside of spells unleashes long streams of fire that can sear multiple foes and catch them ablaze.
Their truest expression of mastery, however, is shaping flame, either bending the flames of their spells around allies to avoid harming them, redirecting continuous flame spells to other locations, or even pulling flames off of burning materials, extinguishing them but transferring that fire elsewhere, either extinguishing them from lack of fuel, or perhaps transferring them to another fuel source, such as an enemy.
The fire element is a fun one to be sure. Being able to control fire spells and natural blazes means you can get a lot more mileage out of a single casting of a fire spell, and even the basic fire attack of the school is pretty good, damaging in an area and catching foes on fire. While your spell choices will be primarily damage and battlefield control, don’t forget to diversify too, because just as fire is the most common damage type, a lot of things resist it too.
All sources of power can be teaching tools if allowed to be, and fire especially so since it’s so easy to go out of control and hurt yourself or others. As such, I can imagine pyromancers that get over the pyromaniac chronic arsonist stage have a strong belief in the gift that is second chances to learn and grow, because a power like theirs doesn’t always give such a boon.
In the darkness of the Inner World, fire is a rare boon to be cherished, and so trox that take on the role of pyromancer are treasured as great sages, and most strive to find the discipline to live up to that praise.
Once, Huan Feng was known as The Purifying Flame for his mastery over pyromantic magic and using it to destroy the undead. However, when captured and ritualistically slain by a death cult, he arose as the very thing he had fought so hard against, a jiang-shi. Now, despite his best efforts to stay sane and use his power for good, his obsessions and urges have turned him into a burning blight on the land.
The Brightstar Pyromancy Academy focuses on the manipulation of fire above all else, but especially on discipline and focus to better control the power they wield. However, despite the narrow focus and simplicity of the curriculum, the school still has it’s share of secrets, such as the ancient archway that lies forgotten in the basement, away from where students can find it.
