Alchemist Ivy
Level 3Attacks
Abilities
Tremorsense allows a monster to feel the vibrations through a solid surface caused by movement. It is an imprecise sense with a limited range (listed in the ability). Tremorsense functions only if the monster is on the same surface as the subject, and only if the subject is moving along (or burrowing through) the surface.
The assassin vine can Hide in natural environments even if it doesn't have cover.
An alchemist ivy takes 5 less damage from attacks with the alchemical trait.
Trigger A creature within 10 feet of the alchemist ivy Activates or is hit by an item with the alchemical trait Effect The alchemist ivy briefly extends tendrils toward the creature and absorbs some of the alchemical residue, regaining 2d8 healing Hit Points and gaining a +15-foot status bonus to its Speed until the end of its next turn. Effect: Chemical Fertilizer
Trigger The assassin vine detects a creature within 20 feet via Tremorsense Effect The assassin vine causes vegetation within a 20-foot emanation to writhe for 1 round, turning this area into difficult terrain. When a creature starts its turn in this area, it must attempt a DC 20 reflex save. On a failure, it takes a –10-foot circumstance penalty to its Speeds until it leaves the area, and on a critical failure it is also Immobilized for 1 round. A creature can attempt to Escape to remove these effects. Assassin vines are immune to Grasping Foliage.
(1d8+4) bludgeoning, DC 20 fortitude The monster deals the listed amount of damage to any number of creatures Grabbed or Restrained by it. Each of those creatures can attempt a basic Fortitude save with the listed DC.
Requirements The monster's last action was a successful Strike that lists Grab in its damage entry, or the monster has a creature Grabbed or Restrained Effect If used after a Strike, the monster attempts to Grapple the creature using the body part it attacked with. This attempt neither applies nor counts toward the creature's multiple attack penalty. The monster can instead use Grab and choose one creature it's grabbing or restraining with an appendage that has Grab to automatically extend that condition to the end of the monster's next turn.
Description
The assassin vine is a carnivorous plant with a voracious appetite. Rather than consuming creatures directly, it creates its own fertilizer by entangling prey and squeezing the life from it. Once the plant has killed a creature, it pulls the carcass over to its roots to feed from the decaying flesh. Although an assassin vine lacks eyes, it can detect and track prey through a combination of using its root systems to detect vibrations through topsoil and its leaves to detect heat changes in the vicinity. Although the assassin vine has no real intelligence, its learned behaviors mimic those of cunning ambush hunters.
As it is slow moving, the assassin vine typically remains rooted in a single area for as long as it has sufficient prey. Though most often found along woodland trails or swamps, these plants can also be encountered in more rural settlements, poorly tended fields, and vineyards. While assassin vines can't be trained in the classical sense, they can be used as defenses, and woodland-dwelling creatures like goblins and fey have been known to cultivate assassin vines as guardians for less-used routes into their lairs. In such cases, the tenders often seek to make the path more obvious than its disuse would otherwise suggest, while simultaneously working to ensure the bones of the vines' victims are removed to keep their presence a secret, resulting in what appears to be an easy approach to the den but is actually an organic ambush.
Mature assassin vines grow to 20 feet long and have smaller vines extending off the main trunk that reach from to 5 to 10 feet in length. The smallest of these vines sprout every 6 inches or so; they tend to grow clusters of full leaves and occasionally bear small berries. A recently fed assassin vine can have bunches of plump, blood-red berries that are juicy and tart but leave a slightly unpleasant iron aftertaste, as if from the faint taste of blood from a bitten lip.