Going on:
Fire can be safe, even on the ground, you just have to be careful about using it (such as I was when playing as Ness). Ask yourself what will happen before each use, a good way to read into this would be knowing what each character can do if they do get hit with it.
A bad timed PK fire pretty much allows 100% of the cast to escape from it after hitting with it sadly using good DI in case you didn't notice that after that one match I gave you as Ganondorf where I didn't DI out of it. It is also easy for certain characters like D3 or even another Ness to just use a 2nd jump out of the fire due to how their hitboxes work in the 1st place. Oh and a good % of the cast can even turn the pillar on Ness badly.
G&W can fill up a bucket on a spare pillar if he wants. A pillar bucket by itself won't OHKO Ness or anyone for that matter (it will just do a lot of damage), but all he needs is a single head from PKT or PKF and you will become at risk for a bucket KO from those extra 2 pillar sparks he can use to fill the bucket, and because of G&Ws grab/Dthrow, that is an issue. A grab can = a lost stock at low % with a full bucket because of how Ness reacts to the stuff G&W has.
A ditto Ness or Lucas also can just absorb it and recover like up to 30% (Ness), or 40% (Lucas) from it if your foe times it right (and then magnet cancel to lol at you).
Mario/Zelda/Falco can reflect it easily even
when in the fire and Marth and other characters with "counter" moves can attack out of them usually as well even. Still you can use that on them at least as well to a point. Such as if they blindly reflect the pillar they do leave themselves open, but do note that Fire up close isn't safe for Ness with them in it.
Plus characters like Marth (again) that have invulnerability frames in various moves at the right spots (such as at the start of the move until the attack lol) with can use them to get out of the fire easily but again, them blindly doing it isn't smart because said moves do have an opening, just remember again that being up close to fire pillars isn't safe with certain characters
FOR NESS for this reason as well.
So never throw ground PK Fire out up close with Falco and such other characters with certain tools like a good up close reflector and/or a quick attack move, you can end up with like 50%
on you in some very bad cases (at least with the reflector people like a pro Falco who knows about everything with his character and the match ups).
Do I perform this the same way as Lucas' Zap Jump?
Yes pretty much. BTW, in Ness' case this technique IMO is a another way to stop some spam from characters like D3 if used right (a good way actually).
Oh and to get some foes actually trapped in a pillar sometimes and make them eat like 30% and more (way more actually) or so if you continue on them with it right (like predicting where they will DI it and making sure the lag you'll suffer from using the move is reduced as much as possible).
Again, my point about using PK Fire right though.
Limit the use of it and be careful about where you throw it out. Keep in mind that even just throwing it out w/o the intent to hit and for spacing mind games (like I do a lot) could still backfire on you badly if used wrong.
Though that is better than trying to hit with it in general in the long run, just like with PKT2 (you have to "feel it out" if you get my point about landing one of those).
Still, Ness' PKT (total) >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> PKF (total).
Well maybe a bit more then that actually.
^_^
