The Top 10 Fire-Type Pokémon

        The Top 10 Fire-Type Pokémon.



 

10. Blaziken

"Blaziken has incredibly strong legs - it can easily clear a 30-story building in one leap. This Pokémon's blazing punches leave its foes scorched and blackened." — Pokémon Sapphire Version

The final form of Gen III starter Torchic, the mighty Blaziken is a martial artist chicken; it sounds absurd when you say it like that, but the silly concept is executed expertly to create a really awesome creature. Fans adored this Blaze Pokémon from the moment it was revealed, as we had not yet grown bored or angry by the prospect of a Fire/Fighting evolutionary line for our starters. Being able to leap thirty stories in a single bound and encase its fists in flames made Blaziken seem more superhero than fighter, and its Mega Evolution certainly didn't hurt that comparison. How could we not love it?

9. Ninetales

"According to an enduring legend, 9 noble saints were united and reincarnated as this Pokémon."— Pokémon Yellow Version

Ninetales has always been a Pokémon of beauty, its shimmering mane and nine long tails exuding an air of wonder from the very first generation. That beauty hides great power and a vindictive streak, however, with various Pokédex entries claiming that it is capable of casting thousand-year-long curses and seizing control of its enemies' minds with a glance. Those of us who are fans of legendary creatures adore it taking inspiration in all these regards from the kitsune of Japanese folklore, adding yet another awesome mythical beast to the Pokémon series.

8. Flareon

"It has a flame bag inside its body. After inhaling deeply, it blows out flames of nearly 3,100 degrees Fahrenheit." — Pokémon FireRed Version

One of the first available Eeveelutions, Flareon is gained by spending one of your precious Fire Stones, but the resulting form is definitely worth the cost. Its design is one of the simplest of Eevee's offshoots, but it's definitely an effective one: the yellow mane adorning its red body gives it a striking appearance reminiscent of a lion, which in turn creates a sort of regal air about it. Plus, anything that can breathe 3,000 degree flames is definitely a keeper in our books.

7. Charmander

"If it's healthy, the flame on the tip of its tail will burn vigorously, even if it gets a bit wet." — Pokémon Crystal Version

As players of the original Red and Blue Versions improved and decided to tackle the games all over again, Charmander quickly became a fan favorite due to the increased difficulty it provided—anyone could beat the first few gyms with Bulbasaur, and Squirtle didn't have too tough a time either, but we all knew you had to be a real master to see Charmander through those trials. It was only natural that we would learn to love the Lizard Pokémon throughout those struggles, and those feelings for the first Fire-Type starter haven't faded over the years. Of course, it also evolves in an amazing way...but we'll talk more about that shortly.

6. Vulpix

"At the time of its birth, Vulpix has one white tail. The tail separates into six if this Pokémon receives plenty of love from its Trainer. The six tails become magnificently curled." — Pokémon Ruby Version

Ninetales may be impressive and powerful, but Vulpix is simply adorable, and so this younger Fox Pokémon struck a chord in some of our staff members that its evolved form could never touch. While it does share Ninetales' fire abilities, Vulpix seems to lack the vengeful or frightening aspects of of its future form's lore, being instead described in the games as "quite warm and cuddly." Its evolution may be the more powerful of the two, but strength isn't everything; Vulpix proves this by coming out ahead simply due to how much we wish we could hold one in our arms and cuddle up to it ourselves.

5. Talonflame

"In the fever of an exciting battle, it showers embers from the gaps between its feathers and takes to the air."— Pokémon X

Fletchling may have started out Gen VI as the token Normal/Flying-type you get early in your adventure, but by the time it evolves into its final form it's become far more than that. The switch from Normal to Fire as its primary Typing was an unexpected but very welcome discovery for most of our staff, giving Talonflame an impressive set of strengths and filling a crucial role for any of us who'd passed over Fennekin at the start of the game. While most generations have seen us sending our early bird Pokémon to the PC partway through our journey, Talonflame gained a permanent slot on many of our teams, traveling with us from the start of our adventure all the way to our battles against the Kalos region's Elite Four.

4. Entei

"This brawny Pokémon courses around the earth, spouting flames hotter than a volcano's magma." — Pokémon Crystal Version

The Fire-Type member of Gen II's Legendary Beasts, Entei is known as the Volcano Pokémon, an apt title considering that legend states a new one is born alongside the birth of a volcano, and another which claims that a volcano erupts whenever Entei barks. The legend surrounding the beasts—that of Ho-Oh reincarnating them from Pokémon slain in a fierce fire—is equally fascinating, but there's more to our adoration of Entei than just its lore. Its appearance is perhaps the most awe-inspiring of the three Beasts; just in the way it stands, it strikes a mighty, imposing figure that no one in their right mind would want to challenge. And yet we raced all over Johto back in the day to try and find this elusive Pokémon, a trek that firmly entrenched a fond respect for it in our hearts.

3. Cyndaquil

"It flares flames from its back to protect itself. The fire burns vigorously if the Pokémon is angry. When it is tired, it sputters with incomplete combustion." — Pokémon Emerald Version

Following the love that Gen I created for Fire-Type starters, it was hardly a surprise that many of us opted to stick with this Type as we began our journey through the Johto region. Cyndaquil definitely lived up to our expectations, proving an invaluable partner in our new quest to become Pokémon Masters. The tiny Fire Mouse Pokémon may seem timid at first, based both on its small stature as well as the several Pokédex entries that call it exactly that, but once the flames on its back ignite it becomes a far strong and more impressive creature that you know can hold its own in a fight.

Cyndaquil and its awesome evolutions, Quilava and Typhlosion, saw us through a number of battles over the our journeys, and we have a deep love for all three forms of this Pokémon. What tipped the scales in Cyndaquil's favor was its cute design that still packs a punch; we can just as easily imagine taking on a powerful gym leader with Cyndaquil at our side as we can see ourselves snuggling up to the little guy in the night that follows our victory. As long as doesn't accidentally light its flames in its sleep, of course.

2. Charizard

"A Charizard flies about in search of strong opponents. It breathes intense flames that can melt any material. However, it will never torch a weaker foe." — Pokémon Emerald Version

Wait, Charizard, what are you doing here? I thought for sure you'd be #1!

No, in spite of the heavy adoration Charizard has received from fans over the years, we placed the final evolution of Gen I's Fire Starter firmly in second place. That's not to say that we don't adore it—we've always loved dragons and grew up wishing for one of our own, and even if its Typing didn't say so, nothing could ever convince our young selves that Charizard was not the perfect fulfillment of that dream. Even in the days of Red and Blue, when it technically couldn't use Fly, we were always imagining soaring the skies on the back of this mighty beast.

As mentioned before, Charmander was the toughest Pokémon to start with in Red and Blue, and that meant that every milestone reached with it was that much more impactful. Fans everywhere soon saw Charizard as one of the best Pokémon partners out there, and that remains true to this day; heck, Game Freak themselves acknowledged its continued popularity by granting it two separate Mega Evolutions, one of which finally made it into the dragon it had long deserved to be.

We went into this ranking fully expecting Charizard to take the top slot, and it definitely deserves its placement there on many others' lists. Even so, for our group, there was one Fire-Type that we ultimately decided we love even more than the dragon starter:

1. Arcanine

"Its magnificent bark conveys a sense of majesty. Anyone hearing it can't help but grovel before it." — Pokémon Silver Version

This list has contained plenty of Fire-Type Pokémon that we admire for their power and plenty that we adore for their appealing designs, and Arcanine has always seemed like the perfect combination of the two. For many of us, our first look at this creature was in the original intro sequence to the Pokémon anime, where we see it racing alongside Ash across a wide field. It's an image that clearly shows Arcanine as a gigantic creature, one which would no doubt be imposing to face off against—yet at the same time, that fluffy mane and bushy tail still make it appear approachable and lovable, just like the Puppy Pokémon it evolves from.

Known as the "Legendary Pokémon," Arcanine is renowned for its bravery and its loyalty, as well as for its speed, being able to run 6,200 miles in a single day and night. That quickness made it the first Pokémon to gain access to the powerful Extreme Speed attack, an excellent compliment to the standard array of impressive Fire-Type moves it has access to—or, at least, Growlithe does. Needless to say, no matter what the generation, Growlithe often joined our teams as soon as we caught one, all so we could train it up as quickly as possible, get it to learn its best attacks, and then finally let it evolve into the beast we adored.