- "A patch of space about six inches square at the corner of the table seems almost to be vibrating. It's as if the air is rippling in tiny visible waves, distorting the sharp edges of the wood and a goblet of wine someone has set there."
- —Description of a chink in the force field[src]
Force fields are invisible electric fields set up by the Capitol that are used to prevent tributes from escaping the arena and any other places so they won't run away from the Games.[1] It tosses anything that hits it back to where it was before, so tributes couldn't commit suicide by jumping off the roof of the Training Center. It was also used to protect Gamemakers from tribute attacks.[2]
History[]
50th Hunger Games[]
Haymitch Abernathy won the The 50th Hunger Games by using the forcefield to defeat the female from District 1 by letting her throw her axe into it and watching it come back and lodge itself in her head. He was at his cliff a sharp drop off on a rocky ledge that he discovered shortly before Maysilee's death.[3] This stunt crowned Haymitch victor; however, President Snow didn't like his stunt, thus he killed Haymitch's family and girlfriend.[4]
74th Hunger Games[]
The first time Katniss Everdeen ever comes in contact with a force field is on the Training Center's roof with Peeta Mellark, who shows her how the force field works by holding out his hand and then sharply withdrawing when it zaps him. Earlier, Peeta had asked Cinna why nobody in the Capitol was worried that tributes would try to jump off the roof.[1]
75th Hunger Games[]
While Katniss was preparing for the 75th Hunger Games in the Training Center, Beetee and Wiress showed her the weak spot in the force field between the Gamemakers and the tributes: a small wavering square in the air, revealing the invisible force field. Katniss assumed that the field was placed there because of her private session the year before, during which she shot an arrow in the direction of the Gamemakers.[2]
On the day before their interview, Katniss and Peeta spent their day on the Training Center's roof, playing a game where one of them would throw an apple into the force field and the other would catch it when it came back.[5]
In the 75th Hunger Games, Peeta almost died after being shocked by a force field, which was far stronger than the one on the roof of the Training Center, [6] but luckily Finnick revived him with mouth to mouth resuscitation[7] Blight, the male tribute from District 7 also hit this force field. However, Blight was killed, as nobody around him knew how to revive him.[8]
Katniss threw nuts to keep track of where the force field was, discovering that it had them trapped in a small, symmetrical dome. Mags Flanagan also ate the roasted nuts, and Peeta figured out how to cook rodent meat on the force field.[7] To destroy the forcefield around the arena, Katniss used her bow to fire an arrow with Beetee's wire attached to it. The arrow went straight into the weak spot just as the Gamemakers' lightning struck the tree below, leading to the force field exploding[9] and the remaining victors being carried out of the arena.[10]
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 The Hunger Games, Chapter 6
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Catching Fire, Chapter 16
- ↑ Catching Fire, Chapter 14
- ↑ Mockingjay, Chapter 12
- ↑ Catching Fire, Chapter 17
- ↑ Catching Fire, Chapter 19
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Catching Fire, Chapter 20
- ↑ Catching Fire, Chapter 22
- ↑ Catching Fire, Chapter 26
- ↑ Catching Fire, Chapter 27