Fire Brand

)   Fire Brand   (No tile)
Base item	long sword
Damage vs. small	1d8 ×2 (2-16)
Damage vs. large	1d12 ×2 (2-24)
To-hit bonus	+1d5
Bonus versus	targets without fire resistance
Weapon skill	long sword
Size	one-handed
Affiliation	unaligned
When carried	(none)
When wielded	fire resistance
When invoked	(none)
Base price	3000 zm
Weight	40
Material	iron

Fire Brand is an artifact that appears in NetHack. It is unaligned, and its base item type is a long sword.

Frost Brand is the cold-attuned counterpart of Fire Brand.

Generation

A long sword randomly generated on the ground (including in a shop) or as a death drop has a base ¹⁄₂₀ chance of being made into an artifact, which has a ¹⁄₆ chance of being made into Fire Brand, assuming no artifact long swords have been generated. Fire Brand can be given to any hero as a sacrifice gift, though it will never be the first one given.

The following information pertains to an upcoming version (NetHack 3.7.0). If this version is now released, please verify that the information below is still accurate, then update the page to incorporate it.

Per commit b1a5a9c3, Demonbane's base item is a changed to a mace, so any long sword made into an artifact has a ¹⁄₅ chance of being made into Fire Brand.

Per commit d87cadaf and commit c2c797fa, artifact balance is substantially reworked: artifacts have 2 additional internal stats—the minimum sacrifice value required to obtain them by sacrificing (which is usually just the difficulty rating of the monster sacrificed), and a flat number added to the weapon's enchantment when it is either randomly generated or gifted.

The aforementioned changes also mean that unaligned artifacts such as Fire Brand can be given as first gifts, though they are less likely to be given than a co-aligned artifact in this case. Fire Brand requires a sacrifice of at least 5 value, and will not have anything added to its enchantment when randomly generated or given as a sacrifice gift.

Description

While wielded, Fire Brand grants fire resistance, and has a +1d5 to-hit bonus and deals double damage against monsters without fire resistance—the fire damage burns away sliming and may also destroy scrolls, spellbooks and potions in the target's open inventory.

The following information pertains to an upcoming version (3.7.0). If this version is now released, please verify that the information below is still accurate, then update the page to incorporate it.

Per commit 928677c8, engraving with Fire Brand will burn the message into the floor like a wand of fire, without dulling the artifact's blade.

Per commit 85de51a6, invoking Fire Brand casts an Expert skill fireball spell at a targeted square.

Strategy

Though it is less popular than its counterpart Frost Brand due to many of Gehennom's denizens being fire-resistant demons, and it can destroy a lot more valuable loot in a monster's inventory, Fire Brand is still a great artifact weapon throughout the game: it deals slightly more damage than Grayswandir against non-resistant large monsters that do not hate silver. Fire Brand is also the stronger of the two on the Astral Plane, where most of the monsters present will resist cold damage but not fire damage.

The following information pertains to an upcoming version (3.7.0). If this version is now released, please verify that the information below is still accurate, then update the page to incorporate it.

As a result of commit 928677c8, Fire Brand can be used to reliably create a permanent Elbereth in a single turn.

Average damage calculation

The average damage calculations in the following table do not include bonuses from weapon skills, strength, or from using a blessed weapon against undead or demons.

Weapon	Fire-resistant		Not fire-resistant
	Small monster	Large monster	Small monster	Large monster
+0 Fire Brand	$\frac{1+8}{2}=\bold{4.5}$	$\frac{1+12}{2}=\bold{6.5}$	$\left (\frac{1+8}{2} \right )\times 2=\bold{9}$	$\left (\frac{1+12}{2} \right )\times 2=\bold{13}$
+7 Fire Brand	$\frac{1+8}{2}+7=\bold{11.5}$	$\frac{1+12}{2}+7=\bold{13.5}$	$\left (\frac{1+8}{2}+7\right )\times 2=\bold{23}$	$\left (\frac{1+12}{2}+7\right )\times 2=\bold{27}$

History

Fire Brand is introduced alongside Frost Brand in NetHack 3.0.0.

From NetHack 3.1.0 to NetHack 3.2.3, Fire Brand is neutral-aligned—Fire Brand and Frost Brand become unaligned in NetHack 3.3.0.

Messages

The fiery blade <hits/burns> <you/the monster>!

Fire Brand was used to attack a hero or monster, with "hits" used only if the target has fire resistance.

Variants

Some variants of NetHack enable a hero to pair Fire Brand with Frost Brand in some manner, and may even change the weapon types that both artifacts can generate as.

NetHack: The Next Generation

In NetHack: The Next Generation, Fire Brand is one of the artifacts that can be created by Duri at The Forge, with a base price of 6500 (slightly lower than Frost Brand). This also applies to SlashTHEM.

dNetHack

In dNetHack, notdNetHack and notnotdNetHack, Fire Brand and Frost Brand can have multiple possible base items, but will always be generated as matching base items. Fire Brand can also be reshaped into a different base item by dipping it into a forge, with the available item types depending on what weapons the hero has type-identified or trained to Skilled level in—there are also base item choices that are only available to certain races and roles. See the article linked at the top of the section for more details on how Fire Brand functions in these variants.

NetHack Fourk

In NetHack Fourk, Fire Brand can be two-weaponed with Frost Brand.

xNetHack

In xNetHack, Fire Brand has its base item changed to a short sword, and it can be two-weaponed with Frost Brand or Mirror Brand. Fire Brand instantly kills green slimes and flammable golems upon hitting them.

SpliceHack

In SpliceHack, Fire Brand can generate as any one-handed sword weapon, and can be combined with Frost Brand at a furnace to create Frostburn.

EvilHack

In EvilHack, Fire Brand has its base item changed to a steel short sword. It can be combined with Frost Brand at a forge to create Dichotomy, an artifact runesword.

Hack'EM

In Hack'EM, Fire Brand has its base item changed to a steel short sword as in EvilHack, and can be used to burn engravings into the floor without dulling it.

Encyclopedia entry

Fire Brand and Frost Brand share the same encyclopedia entry:

Some say the world will end in fire,
Some say in ice.
From what I've tasted of desire
I hold with those who favor fire.
But if it had to perish twice,
I think I know enough of hate
To say that for destruction ice
Is also great
And would suffice.

[ Fire and Ice, by Robert Frost ]