Homebrew Sentient Plant- Shruboria Species Details

A guard captain and his men stand back-to-back, eyeing the trees around them, wondering where the next one would strike. Suddenly, with an eruption of dirt showering him, the guard captain watches as one of his men is tackled and dragged underground before anyone can react. 

Oh jee-whiz! They're gonna commit the unliving on me!, the guard captain thought. How do we stop them?! They're everywhere!  We don't even know who they are!

One man shouts, "Oh gods! They're in the trees!"

With the sound of thunder, a branch swings down cracking open the skull of the same man who shouted out a warning. One by one they are all picked off till the guard captain  is all that remains. Cowering in fear the captain wets himself and begins to beg. 

"Please!! Just spare my life, and-"

Right in front of him a little creature, no larger than 2 feet tall appears right in front of him. The creature, dark petals on its head connected through what looks like a complicated root/vine structure. The tree's themselves turn to look at you, opening their completely black and shiny, round eyes. 

The little creature turns to the captain and says, "We are the Shruboria, the rulers of the Green."

— Crazed-man covered in dead vines

Living their lives in nature is the goal for most Shruboria lives: a forest to settle in peace and quiet, far from civilization other than the trees and animals; feeding off the land and feeding the land themselves when they pass; days spent in quite conversation with others of their kind. Though some rooted to one spot, others go out looking for a nice adventure, lured by the open road and the wide horizon to discover the wonders of new lands and peoples. But even these wanderers relaxation, peace, and nature though all these things may be far away.

Sneaky

The Shruboria survive in a "civilized" world by avoiding notice or, barring that, avoiding offense. Ranging from 2 feet to roughly around 10 feet tall (depending on plant strata), they can appear just as any normal plant (or shrubbery) and so have managed to survive for centuries in the shadow of empires and on the edges of wars and political strife. The smaller kind range from about 20 to 30 pounds, while the larger are normally around the 400 pound marker.

Shruboria skin, if you can call it skin, can be any color though they normally resemble the colors of specific plants and/or trees, and their "hair" (normally petals or leaves) follows the same pattern. They have large dark colored eyes and have no true hair on their bodies. Those in the wild normally wear nothing, though those that travel like to wear simple, comfortable, and practical clothes, favoring bright colors. Besides for these few exceptions they look like any other humanoid creature and have been known to be in relations with other species. 

Kind and Curious... To An Extent

 Shruboria are an affable and cheerful people. They cherish the bonds of comradery and friendship as well as the beauty of nature, and are usually willing to help out a lost traveler in need of direction for the price of a story or two. Few ever leave the forest but even adventurers among them usually venture into the world for reasons of friendship, wanderlust, or curiosity. They love discovering new things, even simple things, such as an exotic food or interesting stories.

However, if trust is betrayed or you anger them, they will crush you with all the powers of the forest. Like Mother Nature Herself, they are capable of great cruelty if pushed to that extent. They value their loved ones and friends above all else, and it is most common to see scores of Shruboria sacrificing their lives for a single one of their many friends. They are also very protective of their forests, and get very angry when plants are destroyed before they are fully grown yet. Thankfully, if one can explain that it was a simple mistake fast enough, the Shruboria will forgive without a moments notice. However, if no formal apology is given, then the Shruboria in the area will hunt down the accused and brutally destroy anything that gets in their way.

Blend into the Green

Shruboria are adept at fitting into a community of farmers or areas near large forests, making themselves very useful by aiding with crops and/or wildlife of the area. They are a welcome to any community and many who interact with them trust them with all their being.

Shruboria work readily with others, and they are loyal to their friends, whether Shruboria or otherwise. They can display remarkable ferocity when their friends, families, or communities are threatened. 

Pastoral Pleasantries

Most Shruboria live in small, peaceful communities within well-kept groves or farms. They rarely build kingdoms of their own or even hold much land beyond their quiet shires. They typically don’t recognize any sort of nobility or royalty, and instead look to the oldest of their race for guidance. 

Sadly few live among other races, mainly due to their unusual appearance and ways. Those that do are normally welcome with open arms, especially among those in rural communities. Many can also be seen in cities, especially elven cities, where they normally are in charge of wildlife and plant areas around or in the city. 

AFFABLE AND POSITIVE

Shruboria try to get along with everyone else and are loath to make sweeping generalizations—especially negative ones.

Dwarves. “Dwarves make loyal friends, and you can count on them to keep their word. They know the earth almost as well as we know the plants! But don't they need to just relax a'bit?”

Elves. “They’re so beautiful! Their faces, their music, their grace and all. They are like a gentle breeze flowing through the branches. But there’s no telling what’s going on behind their smiling faces—surely more than they ever let on.”

Humans. “Humans are the most interesting of all, really. They tell the most interesting stories! Or at least some of them do. And they work hard to survive in nature and use the land! They are a real respectable race, just step out of the castles and keeps, go talk to the farmers and herders and you’ll find good, solid folk. Not that there’s anything wrong with the barons and soldiers—you have to admire their conviction. And by protecting their own lands, they protect us as well.”

Halflings: "They're so kind! they are always so nice to us and treat us with respect! That's one of the reason's why we interact with them even more than the elves! They can go anywhere and be accepted just like that! Their sneakiness makes our own camouflage pale in comparison." 

Exploring Opportunities

Shruboria usually set out on the adventurer’s path to defend their communities, support their friends, or explore a wide and wonder-filled world. For them, adventuring is less a career than an opportunity or sometimes a necessity.

 Shruboria Names

A Shruboria has a given name, a family name. Family names are often nicknames that stuck so tenaciously they have been passed down through the generations.

Male Names: Amose, Abram, Alphonse, Corrin, Eldon, Errich, Finnan, Gart, Lind, Lyle, Merr, Milo, Osborn, Perrin, Reed, Roscoe, Wellby

Female Names: Anias, Bree, Callie, Camamile, Euphemia, Jillian, Kithri, Lavinia, Lid, Merla, Nedda, Paela, Portia, Seraph, Shaena, Trm, Vani, Verna

Family Names: Brushgather, Goodwood, Greenthislte, High-hill, Hilltopp, Leafgallow, Tealeaf, Thorngage, Tosscobble, Underbough

Subrace

The two main kinds of Shruboria, Petal-born and Strong-bark, with size between the two being one of the only ways to tell the difference. The Larger of the two however very rarely ever move, and only move when forced by multiple Petal-born. **Editor's Note** Due to problems with my inability to properly use this site I cannot make a subrace/varient involving the larger version of this race. My apologies.

 

Editors notes: (Note to mods, this isn’t designed only for my own campaign. I actually made this because I thought it would be interesting to have a plant person character. I am only using it to test it out in an actual campaign that I run. If that’s not a problem could you please tell me specifically what’s wrong. I appreciate all feedback and plz let me stay published.)

Sentient Plant- Shruboria Traits

Your Shruboria character has a number of traits in common with all other Shruboria.

Ability Score Increase

Your Wisdom score increases by 2.

Age

A Shruboria reaches adulthood at the age of 18 and generally lives into the middle of his or her fourth century. Though it is common for many to live much longer, most give up sentience roughly around the aforementioned age to give their bodies back to the earth.

Size

Shruboria average about 2 feet tall and weigh about 35 pounds (Petal Born) or roughly 6-8 feet tall (Strong-Bark) Your size is Medium or Small.

Speed

Your base walking speed is 20 feet. Your burrow speed is the same.

Native Speaker

Due to your plant-like nature, you can converse with non-sentient plants. You can cast speak with plants once every long rest.

Chloro-filled with Bravery

You have advantage on saving throws against being frightened.

Natural Camouflage

Your body naturally blends into your environment. All stealth checks made in non-urban areas have advantage.

Languages

You can speak, read, and write Common and Elven due to your species closeness to the Elvish race.