I don't like Marbas because of his unpredictability. Hellfire can wipe out half of the enemy army, but it might only work twice in a battle, and at the worst possible time. But overall, he's a very dangerous opponent in skilled hands.
Hmm... I agree about the fire, but I like the combination of spells and defensive bonuses this hero has. As for tactics, I agree that you need to be very skilled at playing as Inferno. I think that at a high level of play, this is one of the strongest opponents against everyone... but these are just words, it would be more interesting to watch good recordings of battles.