Biddlytree

BiddlytreeBBiddlytree     CR 11
XP 12,800
CN Large plant
Init +4; Senses blindsight; Perception +15
Aura anti-magic aura (30 ft.)
DEFENSE
AC 27, touch 11, flat-footed 25 (+2 Dex, +16 natural, -1 size)
hp 145 (16d8+85)
Fort +15, Ref +5, Will +10
DR 10/silver; Immune plant traits; SR 10
Weakness special (fazing chrysalises)
OFFENSE
Speed 25 ft.
Melee 4 burrowing roots +18 (1d6+3 plus grab or trip)
Ranged 4 biddlypines +15 (1d4+3 plus poison, Range 60 ft.)
Space 10 ft.; Reach 50 ft. (burrowing roots)
Special Attacks earthly strangle (burrowing roots), trip (burrowing roots)
Biddlypine Poison injury; save Fort 22 negates; onset 1 round; frequency 1/round for 1d4 rounds; damage 1d4 Con and paralyzed for duration
Spell-Like Abilities (CL 10th; concentration +10)
      Constant—dimension door (see fazing chrysalises)
STATISTICS
Str 30, Dex 14, Con 16, Int 10, Wis 10, Cha 10
Base Atk +10; CMB +21; CMD 33
Feats Alertness, Improved Grapple, Improved Initiative, Improved Unarmed Strike, Precise Shot, Skill Focus (Perception), Weapon Focus (Grapple)
Skills Perception +15, Sense Motive +8, Stealth +10 (+20 in forests); Racial Modifiers +10 Stealth in forests
Languages Druidic
SQ Blindsight
[stextbox caption=”SPECIAL ABILITIES”]
Anti-Magic Aura (Su)
A biddlytree generates an anti-magic aura that radiates in a sphere around the plant forming a 30-foot field in all directions that negates magical effects passing through it. This aura cannot be seen except with the use of detect magic; which will reveal an outline of the radius with an aura (abjuration CL 10th).
Any magic item, spell, or spell-like effect lower than CL 11th are suppressed as long as they remain in the anti-magic aura. Spells or effects lower than CL 11th without durations are instantly negated within the aura. The only exceptions to the effects of the anti-magic aura are spells with a target of touch, which may be cast at the biddlytree’s if the caster is grappling it.
Biddlywinks are unaffected by the anti-magic aura of a biddlytree.
Fazing Chrysalises (Sp)
A biddlytree has 2d6+7 biddlywink chrysalises firmly affixed near the base of its crown. Normally the cocoons protect the helpless biddlywink pupae from harm by concealing them within impervious interdimensional space.
As a reflex to severe damage, when 10 or more points of damage are dealt to the biddlytree in a single strike the chrysalises upon it faze into the prime material plane for 1d4 rounds before returning to their interdimensional space. During this faze period, the individual chrysalis may be attacked (an attack on the biddlytree itself does not damage a chrysalis and visa versa.)
The nature of the biddlytree’s sentience is directly connected to the biddlywink chrysalis attached to it, which operate with a hive mind mentality; it becomes more and more enraged with each destroyed chrysalis, gaining a -1 penalty to its base AC (minimum AC 10) and +1 to base attack bonus for each chrysalis killed.

Biddlywink Chrysalis     CR 1/8
CN Diminutive fey (vermin)
XP 50
DEFENSE
AC 10, touch 6, flat-footed 10 (-5 Dex, +1 size, +4 soft cover) [when not in impervious interdimensional space]
Elevated nearly 20-feet from the ground and provided soft cover by the branches and needles of its biddlytree
HP 10 (1d8+4)
Fort +3, Ref , Will +3
Weakness Biddlywink chrysalises are vulnerable to silver and take x1.5 damage from all attacks made with the material. Whenever being treated as a vermin would prove negative for the biddlywink chrysalis, such as when fighting an opponent with favored enemy (vermin), they are treated as the vermin type.
OFFENSE
None (stationary; no attacks)—a biddlywink chrysalis, when attached to a biddlytree, is a part of a group consciousness that controls the biddlytree, and has no action as an individual creature.
STATISTICS
Str 1, Dex 1, Con 18, Int 1*, Wis 1, Cha 1
If all the chrysalises on a biddlytree are killed, it loses its sentience, functions as a normal non-sentient plant, then shrivels and die in three days time.
If a biddlytree is killed and biddlywink chrysalises remain attached to it, half of them immediately emerge as hostile biddlywinks with the young template (minimum 1). Any remaining chrysalis attached to the tree have died from system shock when their mother plant was killed.
Plant Traits (Ex)
Biddlytrees are immune to all mind-affecting effects (charms, compulsions, morale effects, patterns, and phantasms), paralysis, poison, polymorph, sleep, and stun. Even though as individuals the biddlywinks are fey type creatures, when they are attached as chrysalis to the biddlytree and functioning as a hive, their combined consciousness is considered as part of the parent plant type creature.
Earthly Strangle (Ex)
An opponent grappled by the burrowing roots of a biddlytree is hindered by a 60% chance that they cannot speak or cast spells with verbal components.
Trip (Ex)
A biddlytree can attempt to trip its opponent with its burrowing roots as a free action without provoking an attack of opportunity if it hits with its burrowing roots. If the attempt fails, the biddlytree is not tripped in return.
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[stextbox id=”combat” caption=”COMBAT”]
Whenever a character gets within 60-feet of a biddlytree, they may notice (DC 15 Perception check) that the thousands of multicolored needles affixed to the plant’s branches tilt and turn as to constantly point in their direction. If there are more than one character within a 60-foot radius of the tree then the tree evenly disperses the various directions it is pointing its needles in between all of those characters.

If a biddlytree is attacked or feels threatened by any aggressive action, it immediately attempts to kill the source. It does this first by stealthily using burrowing roots to trip and then entangle the target. Once the target is grappled, the biddlytree ejects several biddypines at it until the paralyzing effect of its poisonous needles takes hold. Once the target cannot move, the biddlytree attempts to strangle and crush them. If the threat remains out of the range of its burrowing roots, the biddlytree still attempts to paralyze the target using its biddypines from afar. Once paralyzed, the biddlytree continues to eject a barrage of biddlypines towards the out-of-range target until it perceives that it is dead.

Should the biddlytree be successfully communicated with, the biddlywink chrysalises will respond in unison in such a way that the character communicating with it understands that the plant’s sentience is composed of multiple beings. They only message they will convey can essentially be understood as “Go away!” or “Leave us be!” Searching the emotions or thoughts of a biddlytree reveals only a sense of fear and irritation directed towards the interloper.
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[stextbox id=”info-aaw” caption=”ECOLOGY”]
Environment temperate forests, usually somewhere near a large city or main road
Organization solitary (plus 4d6 biddlywink chrysalises)
Treasure 4,000 gp worth of minor magic items (located inside the tree, left undigested by the parent biddlywink when it took root to become a biddlytree; 4-24 winkynuts.

Within 1d4 hours of an adult biddlywink having consumed (1000 gp x hit die) worth of magic items, they seek a relatively safe place to take root and sprout into a biddlytree. This process begins when the biddlywink devours its own digestion sack, the interdimensional space within expelling outward and creating a wide anti-magic aura around the creature. It then uses the tendrils extending from its mouth to burrow, head down, into fertile soil.
Once aptly buried, the biddlywink undergoes an unusual metamorphosis as the fey dies and its body is revived as a plant type creature. The nodules at the tips of each of its tentacles detach, becoming an individual biddlywink pupae that channel their way up the tentacle that each was previously part of. The pupae make their way into the thorax of their parent’s body where they await the sprouting of the biddlytree. The parent biddlywink’s tendrils grow outward, burrowing deeper into the ground, becoming the roots of its plant form. Its previous body grows and extends upwards to become the trunk of the new biddlytree sapling.
Infused with the essence of the magic consumed in its previous form, the biddlytree grows exceptionally fast, becoming fully grown and standing nearly 30-feet tall in just 12-hours after taking root.

The mature biddlywink tree has a twisted network of roots that stretch beneath the soil and outward over 40-feet from the trunk in every direction. The trunk, nearly 3-feet in diameter, thick and stout, is covered by a very solid bluish-grey, rind-like bark.
The base of the biddlytree’s trunk grows between 20 and 30 feet high, with 4 to 8 long, node-less and tapered branches asymmetrically extending outward from the crown another ten feet. Each of these branches is covered by thousands of multi-colored, dual-toned needles known as biddlypines. The biddlypines, covered in a thin coating of poison sap, range in length from a few inches at the branch apexes to almost two feet at the midrib. The needles grow laterally in an elliptical arrangement tapering again near the crown of the biddlytree. The wide assortment of colors and shades of the biddlypines give the needled braches an undulating rainbow-like appearance in even the slightest of breezes.

At the top of the biddlytree’s crown are inverted several bulbous indigo fruits, which are known as winkynuts. They are considered to be a very tasty and surprisingly filling delicacy. The fruit is often sought after by wealthy merchants who travel long distances and value it for its durability, longevity, and a single winkynut’s natural ability to sustain a hungry individual for a week or longer.
During the first 24-hours of its life, the biddlytree is nothing more than an unusual plant, but that changes soon after. Having matured for a full day, a biddlytree becomes infested with 2 to 24 biddlywink chrysalises as the pupae borrow from deep inside the plant, up and through the xylem of the biddlytree, and then firmly affix themselves to the base of the biddlytree’s winkynuts.

Upon reaching the intended destination, a pupae immediately begins to weave magical cocoons around their exposed vassals, up to their cremaster, until the entirety of each chrysalis is covered. This magical cocoon encloses the chrysalis in an impervious interdimensional space where it remains protected for the remainder of its metamorphosis into a biddlywink. When the biddlywink matures and emerges from this cocoon, it becomes absorbed into their bodies, becoming the creature’s interdimensional digestion sac.

Once having their first feeding upon the fruit, the biddlywink chrysalises connect psionically to one another to form a conjoined sentience that takes over the body of the biddlytree. This hive mind utilizes the biddlytree’s natural defenses to further protect them until they have fully matured and later emerge as young biddlywinks. A biddlywink chrysalis retains the connection to its hive sentience only as long as it is physically attached to the plant.
Once the chrysalises emerge as young biddlywinks and go their separate ways, the biddlytree begins to shrivel and dies within a few days.

Winkynuts
The crown of a biddlywink tree hosts several palm-sized, hard-shelled fruits known as winkynuts. These magic fruit have a deep indigo colored shell that is filled with a lightly-glowing iridescent jellylike substance that is intended to feed the biddlytree’s biddlywink chrysalises while they grow upon it. There are as many winkynuts on a biddlytree as there were biddlywink chrysalises attached to it.
The jelly inside a winkynut is magical in nature, and will glow with a faint aura (transmutation CL 3) if detect magic is cast upon it. A character that consumes the sweet tasting jelly contained inside a single winkynut does not thirst or hunger for 1d10 days. The duration of this effect can be stacked by eating the jelly of multiple winkynuts, up to a maximum of 10 days. Once plucked from a biddlytree, a winkynut stays fresh and edible for up to a year.
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[Today’s entry brought to us by Justin Andrew Mason, artwork by Thomas Alexander!]

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