Homebrew Vegepygmy Species Details

Vegepygmies are fungus creatures that live in simple tribal units, hunting for sustenance and spreading the spores from which they reproduce.

Vegepygmies, also called mold folk or moldies, inhabit dark areas that are warm and wet, so they are most commonly found underground or in dense forests where little sunlight penetrates. A vegepygmy instinctively feels kinship with other plant and fungus creatures, and thus vegepygmy tribes coexist well with creatures such as myconids, shriekers, and violet fungi.

Although they prefer to eat fresh meat, bone, and blood, vegepygmies can absorb nutrients from soil and many sorts of organic matter, meaning that they rarely go hungry. A vegepygmy can hiss and make other noises by forcing air through its mouth, but it can’t speak in a conventional sense. Among themselves, vegepygmies communicate by hissing, gestures, and rhythmic tapping on the body. Vegepygmies build and craft little; any gear they have is acquired from other creatures or built by copying simple construction they have witnessed.

Vegepygmies originate from the remains left behind when a humanoid or a giant is killed by russet mold. One or more vegepygmies emerge from the corpse a day later. If a beast such as a dog or a bear dies from russet mold, the result is a bestial moldie called a thorny result instead of a humanoid-shaped vegepygmy. Thornies are less intelligent than vegepygmies, but have greater size and ferocity, as well as a thorn-covered body.

As a vegepygmy ages, it grows tougher and develops spore clusters on its body. Spore-bearing vegepygmies are deferred to by other vegepygmies, so outsiders refer to such vegepygmies as chiefs. A chief can expel its spores in a burst, infecting nearby creatures. If a creature dies while infected, its corpse produces vegepygmies the same way russet mold does.

No one knows for sure where russet mold came from. One historical account tells of adventurers in a forbidding mountain range discovering russet mold and vegepygmies in a peculiar metal dungeon full of strange life. Another story says that explorers found russet mold in a crater left by a falling star, with vegepygmies infesting the dense jungle nearby.

Vegepygmy Traits

As a vegepygmy, you have the following traits

Ability Score Increase

Your Strength, Constitution, and Dexterity scores each increase by 1.

Age

As a general rule, most vegepygmies stay near their tribe for the entirety of their life, so one is quite sure just how old they can live to be. What is known, is that vegepygmies spring forth fully grown from a dead body covered in russet mold, and are self aware and able to survive the minute they are "born" from their host. They reach "maturity" after roughly six months. When unable to find adequate nutrition they can enter a state of dormancy, ceasing to age until something rouses them.

Alignment

Most vegepygmies are neutral and care little for the comings and going of other living creatures, their soul goal being to eat, grow, and spread the russet mold that creates more of their kind. Vegepygmy adventurers however are special and span the full range of alignments, though many still lean towards neutrality than law or chaos.

Size

Vegepygmies stand between 2 and 4 feet tall and weigh an average of 30 pounds. Your size is Small.

Speed

Your base walking speed is 25 feet.

Darkvision

Accustomed to life in the dark dank places russet mold thrives, you have superior vision in dark and dim conditions. You can see in dim light within 60 feet of you as if it were bright light, and in darkness as if it were dim light. You can’t discern color in darkness, only shades of gray.

Regeneration

You gain temporary hit points equal to your Constitution modifier (minimum of 1 temporary hit point) at the start of your turn. If you take cold, fire, or necrotic damage, this trait doesn’t function at the start of your next turn.

Plant Camouflage

While you are not wearing armor or clothing, you have advantage on Dexterity (Stealth) checks in terrain with ample obscuring plant life.

Sentient Plant

Your creature type is Plant, rather than humanoid, and you are affected by spells or other effects that target plants. In addition, whilst you prefer to eat fresh meat, bone, and blood, you can absorb nutrients from soil and many sorts of organic matter, meaning that you rarely go hungry.

Thorny Claws

The claw like thorns that protrude from your fingers are natural weapons which you can use to make unarmed strikes. If you hit with them, you deal slashing damage equal to 1d4 + your Strength modifier, instead of the bludgeoning damage normal for an unarmed strike.

Languages

Unlike most of your kin who can only speak Vegepygmy, you can speak both Vegepygmy and Common. Vegepygmy is a language that consists of hissing, gestures, and rhythmic tapping on ones body.