Dryad
Dryads are some of the most diverse Earth faeries Altairus is home to. These half-tree people inhabit all types of environments all across Altairus and are known for their incredible resilience.
Basic Information
Anatomy
Dryads share a lot of traits with other kinds of Earth faeries, such as wood sprites and trolls. They have vaguely humanlike bodies and faces, but their torsos, hands, and feet are encased in scale-like plates of tree bark. They almost always have antler-like tree branches sprouting from their heads, which resemble the branches of the tree they are most related to.
Biological Traits
Dryads, whether herbal, coniferous, or flowering, resemble the plants they descend from and share physical traits with them.
Genetics and Reproduction
All dryads produce spores or seeds, but their method of reproduction varies depending on their ethnicity. Usually, they will exchange genetic material through pollen, either carried on the wind or by pollinators. It is possible for self-fertilization to occur, but this is uncommon.
Herbal dryads will release a cloud of spores into the air. When these spores touch down, they may or may not sprout into new dryads.
Coniferous dryads reproduce in a similar way. Once their cones burst, they shed seeds that may sprout other dryads. Unlike the spores produced by herbal dryads, these seeds can remain dormant for years before successfully sprouting. Their means of reproduction is much like many gymnosperms.
Flowering dryads have the most complex reproductive process. As the name implies, these dryads' plant parts sprout flowers that are often visited by pollinators. Eventually, these flowers will fall away and make way for fruit to grow. This happens every Cherry Sun regardless of whether or not the flowers have been fertilized. These fruits contain seeds that, if fertilized, can sprout into new dryads. If the flowers have not been fertilized, the seeds will be "duds." They will not sprout even if they are planted, since they only have a half set of DNA.
Growth Rate & Stages
Once germinated, dryads will grow out of the ground. In the earliest stages, they are indistinguishable from any other sapling. However, they are far from noncognizant; they are constantly taking in information from their environment to use later on. Dryads grow very quickly; they reach the second stage of development in about 2-4 years.
Once they grow large enough to have a significant layer of bark, a face will pop up out of the trunk of the tree. At this stage, the dryad can communicate with non-dryads through facial expressions and speech. It can be quite a huge shock to go out and see a face on a young tree that did not have a face on it before, but it happens all the time in Altairus. This is perhaps where the common perception of dryads being faeries within trees, rather than faeries that are part-tree, originates.
As the juvenile grows, more of their body will become humanoid, and the bark on their body will recede. Once their legs are fully formed, they can extract themselves from the soil where they were planted. Once they reach adulthood, they have dropped most of their branches, save for the ones on their heads, and their hands, feet, and torso are the only parts of their bodies that still have bark on them.
Interestingly enough, this process goes in reverse if a dryad lives long enough to become extraordinarily powerful. They will become less humanoid and more treelike in appearance once again. Eventually, they root themselves to a single spot, resembling an enormous tree with a face on it. This is what happened to Ygdrassil, the World Tree and the protector of the Emerald Woodland.
Ecology and Habitats
Dryads live all throughout Altairus, but they prefer wooded areas with an abundance of moisture. Different ethnicities live in different areas which they are uniquely adapted to.
Dietary Needs and Habits
In the early stages of life, dryads can sustain themselves with water, soil, and sunlight. As they get older, they still need these things, but in order to ambulate and carry out more complex processes, they must eat other things. They are technically omnivorous, though their individual diets can range from completely plant-based to completely animal-based. What kind of diet a dryad has is usually a matter of environment and personal preference. When they reach ancient stage, they can sustain themselves wholly on sunlight, their magic becoming powerful enough to sustain them otherwise.
Flowering dryads can sustain themselves by eating their own fruit, but they tend to view the act with the same distaste as eating one's own snot.
Biological Cycle
Flowering dryads in particular experience changes in accordance with the seasons in addition to their fruiting periods. They are typically more active in the spring and summer and settle down in the fall and winter. Their leafy hair tends to change, too; in the spring it is light green and thin, in the summer it is deep green and incredibly thick, in fall it turns orange and yellow and starts falling out, and in the winter it is typically very thin and white from frost.
This cycle is not observable in coniferous dryads, since they are evergreen, and in herbal dryads it's a mixed bag.
Behaviour
Dryads are a very peaceful species, but if they are cornered, they will defend themselves. In battle, they can generate tree-like structures that heal them and those around them. Unless they are destroyed with fire, they will propagate exponentially when they are destroyed, making the healing effect stronger.
Unexpectedly, dryads are a very hedonistic species. Being closely affiliated with Earth magic, they regularly indulge in all Earthly delights at all times of the year. Many flowering dryads are particularly fond of Amberjack Cider.
Additional Information
Uses, Products & Exploitation
Dryads tend to have jobs related to agriculture and food production. This is due to their ability to communicate with plants and make them grow. Amberjack Cider is produced by a family of apple dryads. The cider itself is named after the Drunk Dryad of the Altairian Zodiac.
Facial characteristics
Dryads tend to have long, pointed noses and pointed, clefted ears. They have "hair" made of leaves.
Average Intelligence
Dryads are a sapient species. Even as saplings, they are fully aware of what is going on around them.
Perception and Sensory Capabilities
Being Earth faeries, dryads have the unique ability to communicate with plants. While it is not readily understood, dryads telepathically sense the condition of the plants around them and can even "talk back" to the plants towards certain ends. Dryads have been observed talking to crop plants, causing them to grow very quickly.
Civilization and Culture
Naming Traditions
Dryads tend to have names that reflect their unique ancestries. Usually these have to do with the specific species of tree that the dryad resembles.
Gender Ideals
Almost all dryads are hermaphrodites, but certain dryads might identify as male or female based on personality traits and appearance.
Average Technological Level
Dryads are only moderately technologically advanced. They have machines that help them with their work, but they don't really care for technology all that much.
Major Language Groups and Dialects
Common Dryad Sayings/Idioms
Common Dress Code
Since dryads do not have the same equipment as other faeries that do not reproduce via pollen fertilization, most do not have any issues with going around in the buff. However, some do like to accessorize with light clothing or jewelry.
Common Customs, Traditions and Rituals
Many dryads will opt to have words or symbols carved or burnt into their bark, much like one would carve a heart with a lover's name into a tree trunk. This is rather painful for dryads, their bark being part of their epidermis, but once the process is finished, the symbol remains on the bark for a long time (or forever if it was burnt in). It is basically the equivalent of getting a permanent tattoo.
Historical Figures
Ygdrassil, the World Tree of Altairus, is a dryad that has achieved the ancient stage. She watches over her grove located in the north of the Emerald Woodland and supplies it with magic and protection through her Heartwood.
Amberjack, the Drunk Dryad of the Altairian Zodiac, is the creator of Amberjack Cider. After her disappearance, her family continued to produce and sell the cider. It has since become an internationally-loved product.
Interspecies Relations and Assumptions
Dryads are highly valued for their skill in agriculture and other food-related industries. Particularly in areas with a strong associated with Earth magic, dryads are welcome just about everywhere.
Many visiting humans, on the other hand, have returned home somewhat horrified by the dryads' hedonistic natures. This particular aspect of dryad nature is downplayed in many Earth legends for this reason.
Earth
Dryads' skin tends to be a shade of green, ranging from lime to teal. It gets that color from chloroplasts residing in their skin cells, which allow them to absorb sunlight for energy.
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