Krimian Pine

The little stubby pines, barely three feet high, are all that's left of the terrible kindle groves and inferno bogs of Old Pentland. The evolution of plant life on the island had been guided by dragons, creatures highly resistant to fire and heat. Tired of constantly destroying the ecosystem during simple disagreements, some dragons presumably put forth a solution to make many of the trees fire-resistant as well.

In reality, besides becoming resistant to fire, many trees also developed a strong elemental fire mutation, becoming prone to explode in showers of incendiary needles or roaring waves of flame. Some even evolved to reproduce this way, creating seeds that could be used as high explosive grenades. To be caught in a kindle grove during bloom season was certain death at one point. Many forests and settlements eventually burned to the ground before the trees were weeded out of existence.

The only stable species that remained, the Krimian pine, still has elemental fire in its needles and cones but in smaller quantities. It tends to reproduce by exploding violently and defends itself with incendiary needles but they are mutated to burn only creatures of flesh - they won't set other plants on fire. They are prized and even farmed for their alchemical ingredients.

Horror stories surface once in a while that some seeds of the terrible old trees were found. If a new kindle grove were raised, it would destroy the island.