In most titles, choosing the Fire Type partner Pokemon at the start of the adventure often puts players at an inherit disadvantage, as whether it be an early-game Gym Leader or a frustrating rival battle. Yet once players can overcome these challenges, they're rewarded with some of the most promising Pokemon in their game of choice, with most Fire Type partner Pokemon evolving to gain secondary types and overhauled movepools.
But if players opt for either the Grass or Water Type first partner Pokemon, it may be a while before they can add a Fire Type Pokemon to their teams. Most Fire Type Pokemon make their home in mountainous and arid regions, which, in most games, can't be accessed until halfway through players' adventures. Games like Pokemon Platinum, Pokemon X and Y, and Pokemon Sword and Shield remedied this long-standing issue by offering a Fire Type Pokemon at an early route, though others opted to solve the issue by simply trading or using the Surprise Trade feature.
Fire Type Pokemon make for great additions to teams when heading into late-game battles, where players can often expect to travel through harsh snowy conditions and meet Gym Leaders that specialize in Ice Type Pokemon. These Pokemon continue to thrive heading into the competitive realm where, especially within the evolving Pokemon Scarlet and Violet metagame, they boast a foreboding presence over nearly every other type.
Here's a look at the heat Fire Type Pokemon can bring, as well as some ways to cool them down.
Pokemon Fire Type Weaknesses and Counters
Where Fire Type Pokemon can be useful in most situations, they can be equally detrimental if used incorrectly. Fire Type Pokemon are subject to super-effective damage from Water, Rock, and Ground Type attacks, all of which are not only common types of Pokemon, but moves as well. Oftentimes Pokemon that aren't necessarily one of these types themselves have access to move of these types, giving them a tool to triumph over Fire Type Pokemon.
| Attacking Type | Super Effective Against | Weak To |
|---|---|---|
| Fire | Bug Grass Ice Steel | Ground Rock Water |
Water
Water is used to put out fires in real life, so it makes sense that Water Type attacks will extinguish Fire Type Pokemon. Most Fire Type Pokemon have very little methods to deal with Water Types, leading to one-sided matchups that will force players to either switch Pokemon or hope to endure a hit. Water Type Pokemon like Gyarados, Swampert, Barraskewda, Quaquaval, and Dondozo can unleash the power of the ocean with moves such as Waterfall, Wave Crash, Muddy Water, and Chilling Water, without having to worry about the damage they'll receive in return.
Rock
Fire may be able to melt steel, but when it comes to rocks, heat isn't enough. Like Water Type Pokemon, Rock Type Pokemon have very little to fear when opposing a Fire Type, not much more if they boast a secondary type either. Nearly any powerful Rock Type Pokemon can give Fire Types a hard time, though players often opt for options like Gigalith, Lycanroc, Tyranitar, Rhyperior, or Glimmora with super-effective moves such as Rock Slide, Stone Edge, Meteor Beam, and Ancient Power.
Ground
Yet another common type that gives Fire Type Pokemon difficulties is the Ground Type. Though Fire Type attacks will deal neutral damage to most Ground Type Pokemon (not taking into account secondary types), they'll receive supper-effective damage in return from moves that often possess incredibly high base powers. If Ground Type attacks like Earthquake, Earth Power, Stomping Tantrum, or High Horsepower are used by Ground Type Pokemon such as Flygon, Groudon, Krookodile, Ursaluna, or Great Tusk, they'll become even more powerful thanks to the same-type-attack-bonus (STAB) boost.
Heavy Rain
The dislike of water from Fire Type Pokemon stems into the weather conditions on the battlefield as well. Should Rain be present, which can be summoned using the move Rain Dance or with the Ability Drizzle, Fire Type attacks will have their damage halved as the weather persists.
Pokemon Fire Type Strengths
There are very few situations in both casual and competitive play where Fire Type Pokemon and attacks don't come in handy. With the abundance of Grass, Bug, Ice, and Steel Type Pokemon that appear in both cases, as well as the ability for most Fire Type attacks to Burn and halve the Attack stats of opponents, the Fire Type in general is one that is known to thrive.
Fortunately, a variety of non-Fire Type Pokemon are capable of learning Fire Type attacks through methods like TMs, giving them access to moves like Flamethrower, Fire Blast, Fire Punch, and Overheat among others. Yet the most powerful Fire Type attacks, including Blue Flare, Sacred Fire, Fiery Dance, Flare Blitz, and Magma Storm are restricted to certain Fire Type Pokemon and are not learnable otherwise.
Like with a handful of other types, Fire Type Pokemon benefit further from a specific weather effect: in this case, harsh sunlight. Sun can be summoned into battle with the use of the move Sunny Day, or created instantly by a Pokemon with the Ability Drought. While the harsh sunlight persists, all Fire Type attacks will deal increased damage while halving the damage dealt by Water Type moves. Though this weather effect normally only lasts five turns, players can extend the duration by giving a Pokemon the Heat Rock item to hold.
Harsh sunlight also impacts the viability of certain moves and Abilities among Fire Type and non-Fire Type Pokemon. Instead of needing a turn to charge, Solar Beam and Solar Blade are unleashed immediately in the sunlight. Pokemon with the Abilities Chlorophyll, Leaf Guard, Solar Power, Protosynthesis, and Orichalcum Pulse gain further bonuses, whether that be doubling their Speed, allowing them to deal more damage, or protecting them from status conditions.
Best Fire Type Pokemon in Pokemon Scarlet and Violet
The last few generations of Pokemon have been incredibly kind to the Fire Type, introducing a number of faces that quickly became popular for their appearances, power, or both. Pokemon Scarlet and Violet continued this trend with even more powerful Fire Type Pokemon like the Legendary Pokemon Chi-Yu and Hearthflame Mask Ogerpon, both of which dominante the competitive format to this day.
Among all of the Fire Type Pokemon now available in Scarlet and Violet, these are the ones that boast the highest Attack and Special Attack stats.
- Iron Moth (140 base Special Attack)
- Chi-Yu (135 base Special Attack)
- Ho-Oh (130 base Attack, 110 base Special Attack)
- Flareon (130 base Attack)
- Armarouge (125 base Special Attack) / Ceruledge (125 base Attack)
Best Fire Type Pokemon in Pokemon GO
Yet another title where Fire Type Pokemon continue to thrive is Pokemon GO. The mobile title encourages players to build teams to tackle not only Raids, but PvP battles, each with a meta that continues to change as new Pokemon and moves are introduced.
Unfortunately, with the omnipresence of Water Type and Dragon Type Pokemon in both areas, Fire Type Pokemon have fallen out of play—though still certainly have their niche uses.
These are the five Pokemon with the highest max Combat Power (CP) caps currently available in Pokemon GO, which factors in IVs, Candy XLs, and more. The list will exclude Mega Evolutions and Primal Reversions, as those CP boosts are temporary for in-battle use only.
- Ho-Oh (5,383 max CP)
- Reshiram (5,371 max CP)
- Volcarona (4,116 max CP)
- Heatran (4,076 max CP)
- Entei (3,910 max CP)
