Dryad

The Shroomwild has its caretakers, enchanted gardeners, and defenders. Then they are the dryads.

These creatures are the steadfast protectors of that mystical realm. Loyal and determined, dryads have no room for compassion or mercy in their duties. Their justice is swift and sure, an unyielding vengeance that leaves the wicked broken. A shattered testament to those that would harm the Shroomwild, since dryads will feed those who won’t respect their realm to it as fertilizer.

A dryad is as mysterious and ethereal as any creature from the Shroomwild. As fluid and nimble as the seasons, in their natural form, they appear as a walking, humanoid mushroom. They stand six feet tall with writhing tentacles that extended from the top of their mushroom cap heads. From eyes to body, their entire shape glows with an inner pale green light, the raw power of the Shroomwild given shape.

Soft Voice of Vengance

They eat from the soil, but they are not silent guardians. A dryad’s voice is like the soft rustle of leaves in the wind. When they yell in battle, it’s like a storm. Most times, dryads are silent. They prefer to communicate with hand gestures and sign language. A dryad only speaks directly to visitors they respect, or the wicked before they break them.

A dryad’s primary tools are immense strength, deadly toxins, mesmerizing allure of haunting songs, and an uncanny shape-shifting. The latter allows them to mimic a visitor’s shape, allowing them to appear as a woman of Sow Terran, Boon, Felox, or any other ancestry. But their shape change isn’t perfect, as they will always have unearthly green eyes. Their skin is always a pale green decorated with faint tattoos of vines. Often, the form they take resembles someone they killed in the past.

Mesmerizing, Yet Lethal

One of their more subtle abilities is to emit spores that can disorient their victims. These spores, once inhaled or absorbed through the skin, can cause hallucinations, impaired decision-making, or even cause temporary amnesia. They often use their spores before they appear to victims in their natural or shape-shifted form. That way, they can better incapacitate strangers in the Shroomwild. Clouding their minds before deciding if they could be an ally to trust, or a threat to kill as mulch.

Type

Monstrous humanoid / "First Ones"

Environment

Mystical, primal lands of the Shroomwild

Geographic Distribution

Shroomwild

Anyone who travels to the Shroomwild comes under their watchful eyes. An adventurer who deliberately insults a dryad, or harms the Shroomwild, is a fool marked for death. One accompanied by the haunting dirge of a dryad’s song. At least, until the dryad gets close, then the song is replaced with vicious toxins that are injected through stingers in their head tentacles.

But for those that respect that mystical realm, a dryad can be a tentative ally. An adviser on how best to travel the Shroomwild without losing their lives.