Fire Spirit
“The flame is a pure form of harmony. A fulcrum between creation and destruction where all living things exist.
The Fire Spirit, or the Spirit of Fire, is one of the seemingly non-sentient spirits of Tyria along with spirits such as Darkness, Mountain, and Seasons. The norn depict these spirits as being hostile or even malicious.[1] They are challenges to strive against or legendary obstacles placed in a hero's path, rather than friends or guides like the animal spirits whom the norn call the Spirits of the Wild.[2] Although kodan tales claim that the Fire Spirit grew old and left Tyria, they also suggest that its essence lives on in Koda's Flame which protects the peoples of Tyria against the Elder Dragon Jormag's freezing blizzards.[3]
History[edit]
According to the tales of kodan flamebearers, the kodan tribe of Sorrow's Eclipse Sanctuary was tasked by Koda to both teach and learn from the Fire Spirit so it could attain enlightenment as it matured and come to understand its purpose as a force of balance in the world.
Originally small and meek, the Fire Spirit grew in size and speed under the tribe's care until it no longer needed to be carried by the kodan and began spreading throughout the world while causing destruction in its wake. The spirit's reckless actions made the other spirits sad, and Koda was not pleased. He demanded that the tribe, who the spirit had been entrusted to, would guide it and teach it where to go. However, the tribe misunderstood Koda's intentions and initially taught the spirit only what to destroy, which made the tribe suffer what they interpreted as Koda's rage, leading to a Time of Great Trial.[3]
The kodan weathered the Dragonstorm during the previous rise of the Elder Dragons.[4][5] Once the storm had passed, the tribe realized that they also needed to teach the Spirit of Fire about what to create so the spirit's actions would be in balance according to Koda's views. As a result, they taught the spirit about life and how to keep living things warm in the cold as the spirit settled into their home in Sorrow's Eclipse Sanctuary.
As the years passed, the Fire Spirit no longer needed the tribe to survive. As Koda had intended, the spirit had learned all it could and it, in turn, taught the kodan how the flame was a pure form of harmony balancing creation and destruction, symbolizing the delicate fulcrum in which all living things existed by Koda's grace.
After many years of harmony, the spirit grew old and prepared to leave Tyria behind. According to the tale, Koda gifted special braziers to the tribe who had been entrusted with the spirit so they could preserve the last remaining flame begot by the spirit itself as protection against the cold and spread the wisdom of Koda's Flame to future flamebearers when the time was right.[3]
The norn, however, did not view the Fire Spirit as positively as the kodan did. To them, spirits like Fire, Darkness, Mountain and Seasons were not friends or guides like the animal Spirits of the Wild, but hostile or even malicious forces to fight against.[1][2]
Related achievements[edit]
A Crack in the Ice: Codex: Kodan — Acquire the Koda's Flame skills and speak with a Flamebearer to learn their history. (3
)
Trivia[edit]
- Given the different explanations used by Egil Fireteller, the kodan flamebearers, and the A Spirit of Legend and The Wisdom and Power of the Kodan blog posts, it is unknown if Fire and the other ostensibly non-sentient spirits should be categorized as Spirits of the Wild like the animal spirits are, or if they represent an unrelated group of spirits on Tyria.
- Koda's Flame mastery is inspired by the Fire Spirit.
