Fire

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

“

I appear to have burst into flames. — 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 66% 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, Festivized, Botkiller, Australium, and Decorated 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			When weapon is active: +25% fire damage resistance on wearer
		Sun-on-a-Stick†
Soldier	Secondary			While under the effects: +35% damage resistance on wearer and nearby teammates
		Battalion's Backup
Pyro	Melee			When weapon is active: 20% damage vulnerability on wearer
		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			When weapon is active: 15% damage vulnerability on wearer
		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 on wearer
		Buffalo Steak Sandvich
	Melee			-40% damage from ranged sources while active
		Fists of Steel†
				When weapon is active: 30% damage vulnerability on wearer
		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 Patient.   ÜberCharge provides a 2.5 second resistance bubble that blocks 75% base damage and 100% crit damage of the selected type to the Medic and Patient.
		Vaccinator†
Sniper	Secondary			+50% fire damage resistance on wearer   Immune to the effects of afterburn
		Darwin's Danger Shield
	Melee			When weapon is active: 20% damage vulnerability on wearer
		Bushwacka†
Spy	Melee			On Hit by Fire: Fireproof for 1 second and Afterburn immunity for 10 seconds   Can be used to extinguish fire
		Spy-Cicle†
	PDA 2			While cloaked: 20% damage resistance on wearer   Reduced afterburn duration while cloaked
		Invis Watch	Enthusiast's Timepiece
		Quäckenbirdt
				While cloaked: 20% damage resistance on wearer   Reduced afterburn duration while cloaked
		Cloak and Dagger
				On Hit 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
Note		†Includes Festive, Festivized, and Decorated variants.

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

April 29, 2008 Patch (Gold Rush Update)

• Fixed flamethrower bug where a player flush against a wall couldn't be lit on fire from the front
• Fixed invulnerability overlay not drawing if the invuln player was previously on fire

July 1, 2008 Patch

• Added back some damage falloff to the Pyro's flamethrower. Not nearly as extreme as it was before the Pyro class pack
• Fixed Backburner's flame critical hits not being recalculated after collision. This meant that it would check if the target was looking away once and after that the flame could score a critical hit again even if the orientation changed

December 11, 2008 Patch

• The icon on the HUD for a person calling for Medic will now give more information to the medic (if the target is low on health, on fire, etc.)

May 21, 2009 Patch (Sniper vs. Spy Update)

• • Added new SMG replacement, Jarate. If thrown on an enemy they will take more damage for short period of time. Also extinguishes flames on yourself or allies.
• Flamethrower's air burst now extinguishes fire on friendly targets.

June 8, 2009 Patch

• [Undocumented] Flare Gun will now Mini-Crit on a burning enemy.

June 23, 2009 Patch

• A Pyro's air blast will now extinguish burning disguised enemy Spies.

August 31, 2009 Patch

• Fixed being able to burn players/buildings that are in the water while standing outside the water.

April 28, 2010 Patch

• Burn duration reduced (10 → 6 seconds).
• Extinguishing a burning teammate now earns a full bonus point (was half a point).

April 29, 2010 Patch

• Fixed the Flare Gun's afterburn duration being lowered by the Flamethrower's duration reduction

May 19, 2010 Patch

• Flamethrower changes
  • Increased base damage 10%
  • Afterburn duration increased (from 6 to 10)
  • Flares that hit a burning player at mid-to-long range will crit
  • Reduced Backburner damage bonus from 20% to 15%

July 19, 2010 Patch

• Fixed old demos with different data tables thinking the SourceTV player entity was burning.

December 17, 2010 Patch (Australian Christmas)

• Fixed the arrow burning effect getting stuck on if you changed class in a respawn room with your arrow lit.

January 7, 2011 Patch

• Fixed players claiming health by switching to the Powerjack as the enemy dies from burn damage from the Flamethrower.

February 7, 2011 Patch

• Increased the base damage for the Scout's Sun-on-a-Stick, and changed it to always mini-crit against burning targets if the attack is not already critical
• Fixed burning deaths to always use the death notice icon for the weapon that started the burn
• Updated the burn effect from the Pyro's Sharpened Volcano Fragment to only last for a limited time on enemies

April 14, 2011 Patch

• • Sun-on-a-Stick
    • Base damage lowered slightly but guarantees crits against burning players instead of mini-crits
  • Flaregun
    • Flares always crit burning targets, regardless of range

May 5, 2011 Patch

• Fixed removing the burning/jarate'd conditions on players who are being critboosted by a Medic using the Kritzkrieg.

October 13, 2011 Patch

• Players will now always call for a Medic when low on health or when on fire when a medic is under the crosshair, whereas previously the character would ask the medic to follow them

March 15, 2012 Patch

• Updated The Phlogistinator:
  • Direct damage reduced by 10%. Afterburn damage is unchanged

April 17, 2012 Patch

• Spy-Cicle bugged; extinguishes fire when drawn and gives direct fire immunity for two seconds, but no longer gives afterburn immunity

April 18, 2012 Patch

• Fixed the Spy-cicle's fireproof attribute not working
• [Undocumented] The Sharpened Volcano Fragment is bugged; it does not light enemy players on fire.

April 27, 2012 Patch

• Fixed the Sharpened Volcano Fragment not igniting players

October 9, 2012 Patch

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

November 16, 2012 Patch

• [Undocumented] Fixed fire overlay on the Wraith Wrap and Coffin Kit.

February 28, 2013 Patch 2

• Fixed a client crash when attempting to fire the flamethrower while coming out of a taunt

July 10, 2013 Patch (Summer Event 2013)

• Cow Mangler 5000
  • Added missing "sets players on fire" description text
• Chargin' Targe
  • Added: Afterburn immunity
  • Removed: +10% fire damage resistance on wearer

July 12, 2013 Patch

• Fixed the Spy getting the afterburn immunity while disguised as Demoman wielding the Chargin' Targe.

June 18, 2014 Patch (Love & War Update)

• Weapon changes and updates
  • The Axtinguisher now does mini-crit damage from the front and full crit damage from behind to burning targets.

October 29, 2014 Patch (Scream Fortress VI)

• The Spy-Cicle no longer provides fire resistance.

October 30, 2014 Patch

• Fixed the Spycicle not giving the Spy fire resistance.

July 2, 2015 Patch 1 (Gun Mettle Update)

• Spy
  • While invisible, Spy has reduced timer on debuffs (fire, jarate, milk, bleed)
• Spy-cicle
  • Changed fire immunity for 3 seconds to fire immunity for 1 second and 7 seconds of afterburn immunity
• Flaregun^(sic)
  • Added text to describe 100% critical hits on burning targets
• Scorch Shot
  • Now has increased knock back on burning targets
  • Hits and explosions always minicrit burning targets
• Detonator
  • Added text to describe 100% minicrits on burning targets
  • Detonated explosions now also minicrit burning targets
• Pretty Boy's Pocket Pistol
  • Changed damage vulnerability from +50% fire to +20% all sources while active
• Bushwacka
  • Changed penalty from +20% fire vulnerability to +20% damage vulnerability while active
• [Undocumented] The Spy-Cicle now gives Spy a fire immunity indicator shield for the duration of fire immunity.

July 2, 2015 Patch 2

• Spy-cicle (previous note was incorrect)
  • Changed fire immunity for 3 seconds to fire immunity for 1 second and 10 seconds of afterburn immunity

July 8, 2015 Patch 1

• Fixed The Scorch Shot not applying its small knockback on non-burning enemies.

July 15, 2015 Patch

• Fixed the Spy-cicle causing a fire-immune bubble to be displayed when the Spy is cloaked

October 8, 2015 Patch

• Jarate and Mad Milk will collide with friendly teammates that are on fire at close range

October 28, 2015 Patch (Scream Fortress VII)

• Bug fixes
  • Reflect damage no longer occurs after death (Pyro afterburn)

December 4, 2015 Patch 1

• Changed fire resistance on Chargin' Targe from 50% to 30%

December 4, 2015 Patch 2

• Changed fire resistance on Chargin' Targe from 30% to 50%

December 17, 2015 Patch (Tough Break Update)

• Soldier
  • B.A.S.E Jumper^(sic)
    • Removed hidden property of up draft when on fire
• Pyro
  • Degreaser
    • Increased afterburn penalty to from 25% to 66%
  • Axtinguisher
    • 100% Chance to crit against burning targets
• Spy
  • Spy-cicle
    • Fire immunity shield no longer appears when fire immunity is triggered
• Demoman / Demoknight
  • Charging now removes debuffs from the Demoknight (Bleed, Fire, Mad Milk, Jarate)
  • Chargin Targe
    • Removed fire immunity

January 7, 2016 Patch

• Updated Mad Milk and Mutated Milk so both grant a 20% cooldown reduction when used to extinguish a burning teammate.
• [Undocumented] Updated Jarate and Self-Aware Beauty Mark 20% cooldown reduction when used to extinguish a burning teammate from neutral attribute to positive attribute.
• [Undocumented] Updated Flamethrower 20 health restoration when used to extinguish a burning teammate from neutral attribute to positive attribute.

July 7, 2016 Patch (Meet Your Match Update)

• Heavy
  • Huo-Long Heater
    • Added +25% increased damage vs. burning players
    • Reduced pulse damage from Ring of Fire to 12 (from 15) due to increased damage vs. burning
• Pyro
  • Manmelter
    • Removed (hidden) 20% fire rate penalty

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).

October 27, 2017 Patch

• Fixed a case where players standing directly in front of the Pyro would not get burned.

November 17, 2017 Patch

• Fixed the Spy-cicle not giving the Spy fire immunity.

March 28, 2018 Patch 1

• The Dragon's Fury.
  • The size/radius of the fireball has been reduced by 25%
  • Bonus damage against a burning target now requires the fireball's center to make contact with the target's hitbox
• The Axtinguisher.
  • New design:
    • Attacks mini-crit and then extinguish burning targets
      • Receives a damage bonus based on the remaining duration of after-burn
    • Added: "Sketchek's Bequest: Killing blows on burning players grant a speed boost"
• Fixed the Cow Mangler 5000's charged shot so that afterburn lasts 6 seconds (instead of 10).
• Fixed being able to fire flames and then quickly switch teams to attack teammates.

August 21, 2020 Patch

• [Undocumented] Updated the Saxxy with community fixes from rabscootle
  • Fixed the fire texture appearing on the item

December 6, 2022 Patch

• Updated cp_gravelpit_snowy.
  • Fireplaces will now light arrows

October 13, 2023 Patch

• Updated zi_murky, zi_atoll, zi_devastation_final1, zi_woods, and zi_sanitarium.
  • These changes are aimed to make playing as a Zombie more engaging, and to weaken the Human meta of bunkering without hurting their ability to roam and fight
    • Zombie Pyro's "Hellspawn" passive now releases a flaming explosion on death on top of the existing gas passer cloud
      • These changes should strengthen their afterburn capability, and make them a scarier threat if you let them too close

October 27, 2023 Patch

• Updated zi_devastation_final1 (additional changes)
  • Fire now ignites players

October 10, 2024 Patch 1 (Scream Fortress XVI)

• Updated zi_murky, zi_devastation_final1, zi_atoll, zi_woods, zi_sanitarium.
  • Zombie Changes
    • Zombie Pyro
      • Zombie Pyro has a new ability - "Dragon's Breath"
        • Fires a Dragon's Fury fireball
        • The initial cast of the fireball can reflect projectiles and airblast enemies
      • Zombie Pyro now deals mini-crits to burning players on melee hit

October 18, 2024 Patch

• Updated zi_atoll, zi_blazehattan, zi_devastation_final1, zi_murky, zi_sanitarium, and zi_woods.
  • Adjusted Zombie Pyro's death explosion to briefly ignite players hit by the blast
  • Fixed a bug that caused Zombie Heavy's knockback effect to trigger on afterburn damage when quickly swapping from Pyro to Heavy

December 11, 2024 Patch (Smissmas 2024)

• Updated vsh_distillery, vsh_nucleus, vsh_outburst, vsh_skirmish, and vsh_tinyrock.
  • Balance Changes - Mercenaries
    • Explosives and fire now deal 50% more damage against Hale

October 13, 2025 Patch

• Updated cp_cowerhouse.
  • Adjusted the playerclip around the BLU battlement's painting depicting the RED village on fire to more effectively prevent players from getting caught on the edge along the wall

March 6, 2026 Patch

• Fixed Dragon's Fury fireballs having incorrect projectile path (community fix from wget).

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.