Salamander

Salamanders are the elementals of fire: upright, two-legged reptilian humanoids with fiery red scales, always wrapped in smoke and flame. Aeetes of Colchis claimed in The Hidden Powers that their blood is liquid fire, and they command every aspect of fire and heat. Seven feet tall, with dragon-like faces, a ridge of bony plates down the spine and a long, graceful tail they can lash like a whip, they are awe-inspiring to see. Their bodies are so hot that anything flammable they touch bursts into flame.

They cannot enter or cross water or any other nonflammable liquid, so a moat or similar barrier will hold them in. Being elementals, though, they are not tied to our plane, and a salamander blocked by water can simply vanish and turn up somewhere else later.

Unlike the other lesser elementals, salamanders use weapons, often flaming swords or spears. They are fierce, love a fight and enjoy joining the wars of men. Of all elementals they take the keenest interest in mortal affairs and, despite their stern looks and warlike ways, are usually friendly. They are less territorial than undines and less possessive of the earth's riches than gnomes.

A salamander can cast any fire spell up to fifth level, one per level of ability each day. They sometimes grow fond of humans, especially those who have honored or helped them, and may repay them by acting as protector and guide. The quickest way into their favor is to offer somewhere warm, a hearth or a firepit perhaps, where the salamander can rest whenever it likes.