Rocks

Nobody is going to munch on these plants without getting a solid punch to their face.

"You can not be serious, we are supposed to bring that down?"
"You may not like the idea, but the stuff growing at the top of that...thing... is precisely what we came here for."

-Raiders on a hunt for CuriMetta

Description

Rocks, a nickname created by Raiders to describe a formation of rocks of varying shapes. These rock formations are animated by a specific family of plants using their roots to move the rocks.

Plants that are creating their Rocks were on bring of extinction threatened by varying predators and being carelessly gathered by numerous individual Atocites. A lucky exposure to Corruption helped them replace their previous hosts by growing through solid rocks and stones without completely ruining them in the process. Finding the balance when the roots can lift the rocks and the rocks being pierced by too many roots took some time, but in the end, some plants managed to find a way.
Stunning and dangerous, the endlessly growing plants grow their Rocks to accommodate their growing needs. Occasionally whole families can be found at the top of larger Rocks. The sheer size of such a colossus easily scares many bold Raiders.
It is not exactly known how the Rocks are detecting targets, but numerous small and seemingly sensitive roots were found at the feet of the Rocks.
Theories raised, that they detect their surroundings through vibrations in the earth. This would also explain their serious vulnerability against airborne targets.

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Diet

The primary source of nutrition for plants is the soil. When the Rock is inert, the plant spread its root into the soil and works in a normal way unrecognizable from many other plants on Atocitera.
The Rocks themselves are a different story.
Not only are the Rocks worn down after time, but the plants also gather many nutrients from them. When specific stones are too fragile, the plant moves them elsewhere in the Rock's body so they could be completely absorbed while falling apart in safety.
Due to this, Plants creating the Rocks tend to be in constant need of new stones, and they don't hesitate to wander around for them. Occasional fights between Rocks of different plants can happen, and it's certainly bone shaking experience to witness.
Solid Flow sometimes forms Crystals inside the main stones building up the Rocks body. As the Solid flow through the stone, it creates materials for the plant to absorb.
At first, it was thought that this counters the roots ripping apart the stones, but instead, it increases the rate at which the stones are destroyed. Caused both by the roots aiming to get the materials created by Solid, and

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Behavior

The more robust and older Rocks are most of the time chilling in the place where the great majority of the plants grow, acting like sentinels.
Younger ones are on an adventure to gather their own stones so they could grow in size.
Things tend to get dangerous during the spreading season, which appears to be during the first 5 Solks of the year. The Rocks curl around the plants animating them, and roll all around Atocitera, spreading their seeds.
It is recommended not to attempt to stop them, as they can be compared to a living avalanche.
During combat, the Rocks are rather slow. Reacting with great delay.
Even through their obvious weaknesses, they should not be underestimated. Raiders who thought they can tank the hit of a Rock were slowly proven wrong with often fatal injuries.

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Hierarchy

The oldest and most robust Rocks are often seen to be the most important for the groove. Housing numerous families of the plant species that build it.
Younger and smaller Rocks tend to honor them by giving them stones even from themselves.

While the younger ones wonder around the large area around their birthplace, the adult Rocks are mostly sitting in one place and occasionally pulling stones from deeper under the soil

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Habitats

Plants and the Rocks they build are not picky. They create their homes in random grooves inside forests, in the middle of plains, or hidden inside flattened mountains.
It comes to the specifics of the plant building the Rocks.

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Spreading

The Plants making the Rocks have two ways of spreading.

First is by dropping the seeds under themselves, hoping the potential wind will spread them further apart so they do not get in the way of each other.
This also happens when the Rocks are just wandering around. Seeds spread this way serve more as a territory marking than being part of the main family.

The second is when the Rocks curl around the plant and roll around seemingly at random. Dropping one's guard in presence of increasing tremors can quickly prove fatal.
This method of spreading is considered to be an attempt at migration.
Due to the speed at which the Rocks roll, no one managed to track their end goal.

Rock Sapling by Firel Dakuraito via MidJourney

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Relationship to others

Plants which build the Rocks are rather territorial. The plants went through numerous existential dangers facing predators who feed on plants, then damages are caused by combat when predators feeding on the first predators arrive. And lastly, Raiders simply wanted the plants for their natural properties.
It can't be said the Rocks are out for revenge, but it is fairly obvious they will protect their birthplace from any intruders should the need arise.
And considering how fast these plants eat through stones and other solid materials, it is just a question of time when they develop a need to expand.

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Relationship to Raiders

While other inhabitants of Atocitera understood the message and left the plants alone rather than facing the Rocks, Raiders are stubborn in their need for the medical properties of some of the plants.
Most notable is the CuriMetta known for being reliable cure against Solid poisoning.
Due to this neverending danger, some Rocks are developing hostility towards the weight category of average Raiders. Attacking anything that even remotely resembles the Raiders.

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Risks, Dangers, Strategy, and Loot

Rocks are most dangerous due to their sheer weight and blunt force potential. Should a Raider take a direct hit from even the young ones, the injuries will range from crippling to fatal.
Due to the wandering nature of the young saplings, any sort of steadily increasing tremors should be a reason for high alert, as getting run over by them is a certain death sentence.
The Rocks are slow, incredibly slow.
The most common strategy consists of making as much noise as possible, baiting the Rock to attack, and then counterattacking during the opening.
Should the Rock be felled, it will most certainly allow for the gathering of the plant or plants which animated it. Along with potential Solid Crystals hidden in it.
Caution needs to be taken, as the Rocks will enter a rampage when the majority of the plants on it are cut off. Raiders need to completely disassemble the whole thing by cutting the roots, or just snatch the plants and flowers and run with them.

In order to access the potential Solid crystal, the stones making up the Rocks body need to be cracked. This can be achieved easiest when the Rock is immobilized and the roots managing the animation were cut down.
This does not prevent some daring and often careless Raiders from attempting to lure Rocks to attack each other.

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History and Discovery

Many centuries ago, the Rocks used to be sentient monsters, which had a symbiotic relationship with the plants growing on them.
But as these monsters went extinct, the plants that outlived them had to adapt. So they created their own hosts. Unliving, animated rocks.
At first, the plants were stationary, living only at the place they grew, able to swing only a single stone. Unsuspecting Raiders were still hit hard by the sudden hit when they attempted to harvest the plants.
But since about year 857, the plants appear to have found mobility.
The discovery of the mobile Rocks happened during what was presumed to be an easy gathering of plants. Raiders who attended the harvest found the entire grotto of the plants ready for them with an unexpected level of self-defense.

Humanoid Rock by Firel Dakuraito via MidJourney

Details card

Class: Monster
Element: Solid
Material: Rock; Plant;
Region: Depends on Plant
Kind of damage: Blunt
Danger: Serious
Usage: 
Depends on Plant;
Random materials created by Solid Flow
Hierarchy: 
Pack based with the leader being the oldest.
Target priority:
Start of Raid: Possibility to stalk the Rock back into its habitat.
Middle of Raid: Cooperated attempt to snatch the Flower can be organized.
End of Raid: Only high-speed agility users should attempt to snatch the flower and continue the Raid.

Humanoid Rock2 by Firel Dakuraito via MidJourney

Medium sized Rock Golem by Firel Dakuraito via MidJourney