Blacksmith Forge 2D — Heat Curve, Forging & Quench Hardness

This 2D side-view forge models the full heat-treatment cycle a blacksmith works with: an exponential heating curve pulls a steel bar toward the forge's fire temperature, a live temperature-vs-time chart tracks the climb and every subsequent cool-down, and a color-accurate glow shows exactly when the metal has crossed into its forgeable range. Hammer strikes only reshape the bar above roughly 750°C — hit it cold and you just bruise it — while quenching in water, brine, oil or air locks in a hardness that depends on how fast each medium pulls heat away, and a final temper trades some of that hardness back for toughness. Dial in the forge temperature, choose a quench medium and temper temperature, and watch the hardness gauge respond to the exact heat-treatment path you chose.