Fire Bar

Fire Bar
A rotating Fire Bar from Super Mario Bros..
First appearance	Super Mario Bros. (1985)
Latest appearance	Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury (2021)
Species origin	Podoboo

Fire Bars (also formatted as Fire-Bars and alternatively named Fire Traps, Fire Cogs, or Podoboo Cogs) are rotating rods made of fireballs first appearing in Super Mario Bros.. They are found in numerous titles throughout the Mario series. They are generally found in fortresses and act as dangerous obstacles that Mario must avoid in order to reach the goal.

Fire Bars were also given notable appearances in certain castles of Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island, which depicted them as swinging three-dimensionally. A three-dimensional Fire Bar depicted with eyes also appeared in Waluigi Stadium and Bowser's Castle course of Mario Kart: Double Dash!!.

History

Mario series

Super Mario Bros.

Fire Bars in World 5-4

Fire Bars make their debut in Super Mario Bros.. Although they are not a living enemy, they are more as an obstacle as they rotate around a block in a clockwise or counter-clockwise direction. They often appear on the ceiling and floors of castles. If Mario or Luigi makes contact with one he will take damage from the fire. In later games, they are replaced with similar-acting obstacles such as Roto-Discs and Ball 'n' Chains.

Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels

Fire Bars in World A-4.

Fire Bars also appear in Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels. As in Super Mario Bros., they spin around in a similar fashion. In some castles, there are huge Fire Bars with at least 14 Fireballs, unlike the normal Fire Bars, which usually have 6 fireballs.

Super Mario 64 / Super Mario 64 DS

Fire Bars from Lethal Lava Land.

In Super Mario 64, they appear for the first time in full 3D. They only appear in Lethal Lava Land. Unlike Fire Bars' 2D appearances, here they spin horizontally. Also different from their 2D appearances, there can be more than one Fire Bars rotating on the same axis. In the remake, one Fire Bar inside the Volcano was removed.

New Super Mario Bros.

In New Super Mario Bros., Fire Bars first appear in World 6-4. They also appear in the second tower of World 8, and a lone one appears in Bowser's Castle. Here they act just like they do in Super Mario Bros., but are found more commonly more on the ceiling and floors.

Super Mario Galaxy

In Super Mario Galaxy, they appear as obstacles in a number of different galaxies, including the Sling Pod Galaxy, the Toy Time Galaxy, Bowser's Star Reactor, and Bowser's Galaxy Reactor.

New Super Mario Bros. Wii

In New Super Mario Bros. Wii, Fire Bars only appear in the tower and castle of World 8. In the tower, many are seen and one is guarding a Star Coin. There is even a double Fire Bars that has two rods of fire sticking out of the block. A secret room also houses a Star Coin guarded by 3 Fire Bars. In the castle, they are mainly seen in the first room, and only two are seen in the second room, one is even guarding another Star Coin.

Super Mario Galaxy 2

Fire Bars in Bowser's Galaxy Generator.

In Super Mario Galaxy 2, the Fire Bars' function is the same as in Super Mario Galaxy. They mainly appear in Bowser Jr.'s Fiery Flotilla, Bowser's Gravity Gauntlet, the Slipsand Galaxy, and Bowser's Galaxy Generator. It is also of note that rotating Fire Bars are used during the boss battle with Bowser Jr.'s Boomsday Machine in Bowser Jr.'s Boom Bunker, where they are integrated directly into the Boomsday Machine. A guide for the game referred to Fire Bars as Fire Arms.

Super Mario 3D Land

Fire Bars reappear in Super Mario 3D Land. Here, they appear in most castles and then the level before Bowser's Castle. As with all 3D Mario games, these Fire Bars spin horizontally.

New Super Mario Bros. 2

Fire Bars appear again in New Super Mario Bros. 2. They have the same strategy from both predecessors. They may sometimes hide Star Coins.

New Super Mario Bros. U

In New Super Mario Bros. U, Fire Bars appear once more and have a whole level based around them in Superstar Road called Fire Bar Cliffs which is home to countless Fire Bars of gigantic size. These Huge Fire Bars also appear in the Meringue Clouds fortress.

Super Mario 3D World

Fire Bars appear in the game Super Mario 3D World. This time some of them appear to be rotating around ? Blocks.

Super Mario Maker / Super Mario Maker for Nintendo 3DS / Super Mario Maker 2

Fire Bar sprite themes in Super Mario Maker.

Fire Bars reappear as a course element in Super Mario Maker, Super Mario Maker for Nintendo 3DS, and Super Mario Maker 2. Their length and direction can be adjusted. The center block has a new sprite in the Super Mario Bros. theme, and new sprites were made for the Super Mario Bros. 3 and Super Mario World styles.

Super Mario Run

Fire Bars reappear in Super Mario Run, as obstacles in the levels Fire Bar Castle! Youch! and Bowser's Bob-ombing Run. In Fire Bar Castle! Youch!, a Fire Bar appears during the battle with the False Bowser.

The Legend of Zelda series

Fire Bars, or Guruguru bars, appear in The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures, The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap, The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass, The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks, The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds, and The Legend of Zelda: Tri Force Heroes. As in the Mario games, they rotate continuously and are indestructible. However, some games play with this concept, such as switches that change the direction of the cog's rotation. While 2D titles depict the center as a block, 3D titles redesign the center.

Yoshi series

Fire Bars from Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island.

Fire Bars appear in Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island and its remake Yoshi's Island: Super Mario Advance 3. They appear in certain forts and castles. They are usually depicted as swinging three-dimensionally. They also reappear in Yoshi's Island DS. In this game, they are alternatively referred to as Spinning Fireballs.

Mario Kart series

Fire Bars in Waluigi Stadium.

Fire Bars in DS Wario Stadium of Mario Kart 8.

Fire Bars make several appearances in the Mario Kart series. They make their first appearance in Mario Kart: Double Dash!!, where they appear on the Waluigi Stadium, Wario Colosseum and Bowser's Castle courses. Fire Bars later return in Mario Kart DS, in the Wario Stadium course. Here the Fire Bars have three bars coming off of an eyed central cog. Fire Bars reappear once again in Mario Kart Wii, in the Waluigi Stadium retro course, where they are named Podoboo Cogs, and the game's Bowser's Castle, although in this instance, there are Podoboos at the center. Fire Bars make reappearances in Mario Kart 8's Bowser's Castle course and in the DS Wario Stadium retro course. Here the Fire Bars have the same forms as in Mario Kart DS. Similar obstacles, rings of fireballs called Podoboo Fireballs, appear in a few of these titles as well.

Paper Mario series

Paper Mario

A Fire Bar as seen in Mt. Lavalava

In Paper Mario, the Fire Bars reappear in Koopa Bros. Fortress and Mt. Lavalava; this time they swing sideways. They also swing either clockwise or counter-clockwise. If Mario touches one, he loses some HP, but if Mario's partner touches one, nothing happens. Jumping over one of these Fire Bars causes it to swing faster. If Mario dodges one ten times, it will vanish and drop a number of coins. This is the first appearance in which Fire Bars can be destroyed.

Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door

A Fire Bar as seen in the Palace of Shadow

In Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, they reappear in Bowser's third platform level. Here, they can be defeated by Bowser's firebreath. If Bowser come in contact with the fireballs, they can either decrease his size or defeat him (if he's tiny). They also appear in the Palace of Shadow and have the same behavior as they do in Paper Mario.

Super Paper Mario

A Fire Bar as seen in Yold Ruins

Fire Bars reapperar in Super Paper Mario. In the game, they act in a similar fashion as in Super Mario Bros. and appear in Chapter 1-4 and 8-2. Mario can flip into 3-D mode to avoid the Fire Bars.

Mario Party series

Mario Party 4

Fire Bars in Mario Party 4.

Fire Bars also appear in Mario Party 4 in The Final Battle! They take away a heart from the player when touched.

Mario Party: Island Tour

Fire Bars in Mario Party: Island Tour.

In Mario Party: Island Tour, Fire Bars appear in the minigame Great Bars of Fire. The players need to jump over them, and if a character hits a Fire Bar three times, they are out, and the last player standing wins.

Mario Party 10

Fire Bars in Mario Party 10.

Fire Bars reappear in Mario Party 10. They are found in the Bowser Minigame Bowser's Fire Bar Fury.

Mario Party: The Top 100

In Mario Party: The Top 100, Fire Bars reappear in the minigame The Final Battle! from Mario Party 4 in the same roles.

Wario: Master of Disguise

A Fire Bar in Wario: Master of Disguise.

Fire Bars appear as obstacles inside Sweatmore Peak in Wario: Master of Disguise. They consist of several small fireballs which rotate around a larger fireball.

Mario & Sonic series

Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games

In the Wii version of Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games, a pair of Fire Bars appear during the second segment of the Mario World routine in Dream Figure Skating, where the characters jump over them.

Mario & Sonic at the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games

Fire Bars appear during the Bowser's Castle portion of Mario's Figure Skating Spectacular in Mario & Sonic at the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games, where the characters jump over them at various stages during the routine.

Super Smash Bros. series

A Fire Bar in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U

In Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS / Wii U, Fire Bars (under the name Fire Bar) appear as an item. Once picked up, characters can attack others by swinging them, similar to the Beam Sword, although it is fairly powerful. However, every two hits from a Fire Bar causes it to lose a fireball, including blocked hits, shortening it in range. The fireballs closer to the base, however, deal more damage. Fire Bars reappear as items in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.

Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam

In Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam, Fire Bars appear in the Trio Whirligig minigame in the Arcade as obstacles. They are made up of two to seven bars, and touching one causes the minigame to end.

Super Princess Peach

In Super Princess Peach, Fire Bars can be found in Bowser's Villa in several levels. The behave similarly to how they do in other games. Peach will lose health if she makes contact with one.

Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS / Wii U Trophy

Name	Image	Appears In (Wii U version only)	NTSC-U Description	PAL Description
Fire Bar		NES Super Mario Bros. (10/1985) Wii U New Super Mario Bros. U (11/2012)	A rotating row of fireballs found in the Mario series, most often as a fiery obstacle in Bowser's Castle. In this game, you can swing the fire bar at your enemies! It's a powerful weapon, but for every two times you swing and hit someone with it, one of the fireballs will burn out. And no fire means no fun.	A rotating row of fireballs found in the Mario series, most often as a fiery obstacle in Bowser's Castle. In this game, you can swing the fire bar at your enemies! It's a powerful weapon, but for every two times you connect when attacking with it, one of the fireballs will go out. And no fire means no fun.

Names in Other Languages

Language	Name	Meaning
German	Feuerstab	Firebar
Italian	Barra di Fuoco	Fire-Bar
Spanish	Cadena de Fuego Barrera de Fuego	Fire Chain Fire Barrier

Trivia

• The name Podoboo Cog comes from the official guides of Mario Kart Double Dash!! as well as Mario Kart Wii. The internal filenames for Super Princess Peach, New Super Mario Bros., and Yoshi's Island DS also has them listed as such.
• Fire Bars were featured as collectible items in Animal Crossing: Wild World, Animal Crossing: City Folk, and Animal Crossing: New Leaf. When it is set down, it plays the castle music of Super Mario Bros. while the Fire Bars spins.
• According to Satoru Iwata, "...Fire Bars, which appear in Super Mario Bros., had also been used early on in development of The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past."
• Fire Bars are the only obstacles in Super Mario Bros. to not return in Super Mario Bros. 3.