Nature Elementals
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Nature elementals are spirits who have chosen to construct physical bodies out of Felaryan flora rather than raw elemental matter. While nature elementals often develop a preference for a certain plant, they are capable of reconstituting bodies from another type when necessary. There are two loosely defined types of nature elementals: wood elementals, and flora elementals, both including a wide variety of forms. Wood Elementals inhabit and shape a tree, shrub, or other woody plant into their physical body. The two most known forms are treants and bramblewolves. Nature elementals shape their physical bodies from vegetation, raw plant matter, or vines. Some species of flora elementals include crimson snapdragons, kudzu pythons, and glade unicorns.
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Bramblewolf
Bramblewolves are small wood elementals, with vaguely canid bodies, which are formed out of thorny bushes and shrubbery. They often have leafy manes or "socks" around their feet and long, branch-like bushy tails. Thin spines protrude from their manes and along their bodies for defense, and their teeth and claws are formed from thick, wickedly sharp large thorns. Bramblewolves are sightless and hunt entirely by vibration, traveling in packs of 3-5. Non-sentient and with the intelligence level of an animal, they are vicious and nearly fearless when it comes to running down prey. Pretty much the only thing they fear is fire, since they are as vulnerable to it as most wood elementals are.
Treant
Treants are elementals resembling mobile, humanoid trees. Unlike dryads however, treants usually don't sport a human body, although they often have a human like face somewhere on their trunks. Treants can be commonly found in the presence of Dryads, who enjoy their company and treat them as trusted confidants.
Crimson Snapdragon
An elemental creatures resembling a huge komodo dragon. Large quadrupedal and powerful animals, they are ravenous and rarely give up pursuit of prey once they have began. Their bodies are formed from the carnivorous plants in the Jungle of perils, with large, spiked jaws resembling a venus flytrap. Similarly to bramblewolves, crimson snapdragons are entirely blind, lacking eyes. However, their ability to sense vibrations is limited, and only effective within their immediate area. They mostly lay in wait for creatures to pass by, blending in perfectly with the scarlet background of the jungle. Once they sense the vibrations of a passing creature, they spring forward and spew a cloud of fine spores at them. These spores are harmless but if their initial attack is unsuccessful and their prey manages to escape their jaws, the spores allow a crimson snapdragon to track the marked prey over incredible distances. They have an amazing sense of smell, and can detect even the faintest trace of the spores from miles away, allowing them to follow their prey tirelessly. The spores are very difficult to remove or wash away, and to clean them with water would require multiple baths.
Kudzu Python
Kudzu pythons are yet another animalistic variant of nature elemental, resembling large constrictor snakes made out of tightly woven vines-like plants. They make very fast, excellent swimmers and climbers, and are capable of powerfully constricting their prey. Unlike true constrictor snakes however, kudzu pythons swallow their prey alive, squeezing it until all the fight has left it, and then engulfing it before they can get a second wind. They are very stealthy and more physically resilient than other nature elementals; while the vines forming them can be cut, they are capable of unweaving most of their body, making their vulnerable points difficult to locate and attack. Moreover, piercing weapons are useless against a kudzu python, as they will just slip between the vines composing the creature. In addition, by relaxing slightly, a kudzu python can expand, making itself bigger and capable of swallowing large prey. Giant specimens pose a threat to large predators and small humanoids alike.
Glade Unicorn
Despite their name, they are not actually unicorns, but rather a type of flora elemental that greatly resembles them. They are equine in appearance, but have hooves and a long, spiraling horn made of wood. They wear leafy manes, "socks" above their hooves, and tails. Glade unicorns typically wear woodland greens colors, but have also been spotted in autumn or bright floral tones as well. Despite their animal appearance, they are intelligent, and capable of communicating with other beings. They are usually peaceful, feeding on plants rather than animals or sentient beings. They sometimes have a reputation as crusaders, refusing to tolerate what they perceive as injustice, and will fearlessly attack those they deem wicked. Unfortunately, due to their inhuman world-view, it's very difficult to tell exactly how they define "injustice" and "wickedness", which means that they can pose a significant threat to humans under various circumstances. Glade unicorns also have an unusual ability some have described as an "Aura of Tranquility": by shaking their mane, they can release spores into the air. Most creatures that inhale these spores will gradually become more and more relaxed and calm, until they are incapable of aggression. Glade unicorns are fairly rare, and solitary, even for elementals. Many summoners travel into the forests of Felarya hoping to encounter one and befriend or establish a contract with it, as they are said to be powerful and reliable allies. Unfortunately for many would-be "masters", they have very high standards, and a summoner who is determined to be unworthy may find themselves on the business end of the elemental's horn.
Bloom Dryad
Despite their names, Bloom dryads are actually elementals. Their main body is usually made of various vegetation, vines and leaves, and stays underground, while the upper female half of the dryad is made of bright and very beautiful flowers and is the part the "dryad" shows to the world. The presence of a bloom dryad is typically signified by a concentration of beautiful flowers in an area. Depending on their diet and location, they can cover anything from the size of a small swimming pool to a vast foot-ball-field sized area of ground in zones such as Kryromia fields. As with actual dryads, bloom dryads can conceal themselves perfectly in the landscape, but with greater efficiency, since all they need to do is hide under the surface of the ground. When they do surface, their hair appear made of tangled roots and flowers, and their skin is the color of the soil. Like other floral plants, they are capable of absorbing energy from the sun and growing from it, although feeding on living creatures is a much speedier process. In order to capture their prey, bloom dryads use a special pollen from their flowers. When puffed into the face of a victim, it sends them into a temporary state of semi-unconsciousness which makes them much easier to swallow. Personality-wise, bloom dryads tend towards flights of fancy, but always display an outwards appearance of great joy and happiness. Like their flowers, they bend different ways in the proverbial 'wind', changing their opinions and decisions in a heartbeat if they feel so inclined. They love to eat, and see absolutely nothing wrong with consuming whatever strays into their territory. However, one thing they love more than anything else is to be complimented, and more than one oblivious traveler has been spared the belly of a bloom dryad simply by commenting on how beautiful her petals were.
Known Nature Elementals
- Credits to Rythmear for the Bloom dryads, and to TheQuantumMechanic for the design and characterization of the Bramble wolves, Crimson Snapdragons, Kudzu Pythons, and Glade Unicorns.
