Homebrew Dryad Species Details
Travelers entering a forest might catch a glimpse of a feminine form flitting through the trees. Warm laughter hangs on the air, drawing those who hear it deeper into the emerald shadows.
Treebound. Powerful fey will sometimes bind lesser fey spirits to trees, transforming them into dryads. This is sometimes done as a punishment when the fey spirit falls in love with a mortal and that love is forbidden.
A dryad can emerge from the tree and travel the lands around it, but the tree remains her home and roots her to the world. As long as the tree remains healthy and unharmed, the dryad stays forever youthful and alluring. If the tree is harmed, she suffers. If the tree is ever destroyed, the dryad descends into madness.
Reclusive Fey. Dryads act as guardians of their woodland demesnes. Shy and reclusive, they watch interlopers from the trees. A dryad struck by the beauty of a stranger might investigate more closely, perhaps even try to lure the individual away to be charmed.
Dryads work with other sylvan creatures to defend their forests. Unicorns, treants, and satyrs live alongside them, in addition to druids that share the dryads’ devotion to the woods they call home.
Woodland Magic. Dryads can speak with plants and animals. They can teleport from one tree to another, luring interlopers away from their groves. If pressed, a dryad can beguile humanoids with her enchantments, turning enemies into friends. They also know a handful of useful spells. If a dryad spellcaster cast the Acorn of far travel spell on an acorn harvested from her bonded oak tree, she was considered to be in contact with her tree at all times, regardless of the actual distance between them. Thus she became able to travel great distances without growing sick.
Dryad Traits
Your dryad has the following racial traits.Ability Score Increase
Your Charisma score increases by 2, and your Wisdom score increases by 1.
Age
Dryads mature at the same rate as humans and have lifespans equal to that of their oak tree, which can be up to 300 years.
Alignment
Dryads are Dryads were generally benign, but those who are particularly cruel and determined to destroy a dryad's forest see the full wrath of these fey. They care little for law or chaos and are typically neutral.
Size
Purebloods match humans in average size and weight. Your size is Medium.
Speed
Your base walking speed is 30 feet.
Darkvision
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.
Innate Spellcasting
You know the druidcraft cantrip. You can cast entangle and goodberry three times per long rest with this trait. Starting at 3rd level, you can also cast barkskin, pass without trace, and shillelagh with this trait. Once you cast it, you can’t do so again until you finish a long rest. Charisma is your spellcasting ability for these spells.
Fey Charm
Starting at 5th level, the dryad can target one humanoid or beast that she can see within 30 feet of her. If the target can see the dryad, it must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw or be magically charmed. The charmed creature regards the dryad as a trusted friend to be heeded and protected. Although the target isn't under the dryad's control, it takes the dryad's requests or actions in the most favorable way it can.
Each time the dryad or its allies do anything harmful to the target, it can repeat the saving throw, ending the effect on itself on a success. Otherwise, the effect lasts 24 hours or until the dryad dies, is on a different plane of existence from the target, or ends the effect as a bonus action. If a target's saving throw is successful, the target is immune to the dryad's Fey Charm for the next 24 hours.
The dryad can have no more than one humanoid and up to three beasts charmed at a time.
Magic Resistance
You have advantage on saving throws against spells and other magical effects.
Languages
You can speak, read, and write Common, Elvish, and Sylvan.
Speak with Beasts and Plants
The dryad can communicate with beasts and plants as if they shared a language.
Tree Stride
Starting at 5th level, the dryad can once on her turn use 10 feet of her movement to step magically into one living tree within her reach and emerge from a second living tree within 60 feet of the first tree, appearing in an unoccupied space within 5 feet of the second tree. Both trees must be Large or bigger.
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