Archer Bush
by Jamie BatyB3 26, DMR2 11, MMC
Small Plant
Hit Dice: 2d8+2 (11 hp)
Initiative: +2 (+2 Dex)
Speed: 15 ft. (3 squares)
Armour Class: 14 (+1 size, +2 Dex, +1 natural), touch 13, flat-footed 12
Base Attack/Grapple: +1/-5
Attack: Thornspray +4 ranged (1d4)
Full Attack: Thornspray +4 ranged (1d4)
Space/Reach: 5 ft./5 ft.
Special Attacks: Infection
Special Qualities: Low-light vision, plant traits, tremorsense
Saves: Fort +4, Ref +2, Will -4
Abilities: Str 7, Dex 15, Con 13, Int -, Wis 2, Cha 1
Skills: ---
Feats: ---
Environment: Temperate plains and forests
Organisation: Solitary, Pair, Colony (5-20), or Field (60+)
Challenge Rating: 1/2
Treasure: None
Alignment: Always neutral
Advancement: 3-4 HD (Small); 5-6 HD (Medium)
Level Adjustment: -
Archer bushes have sickly green and brown leaves, stunted trunks, and thorny brown branches. They resemble common wild bramble bushes. Archer bushes are commonly found in woodlands, scrub areas, and occasionally in mountains.
The archer bush can uproot itself and move toward stricken prey. The trunk of an archer bush appears to be buried within a 3 ft high pile of leaves and twigs. This debris actually conceals a huge mouth filled with hard thorns that are used to devour disabled prey. The mouth is never used in combat.
Archer bushes sense targets by ground vibrations; thus, they can fire at invisible or otherwise camouflaged victims. Only creatures that approach in flight are spared an attack. For this reason, druids occasionally grow archer bushes and train them to guard holy sites.
Combat
Archer bushes are carnivorous. They attack by shooting a spray of small thorns at a victim, inflicting 1d4 hit points of damage per spray. The range of the spray is 20 feet. Each bush can fire up to three such sprays per day.
Clumps of archer bushes commonly fire in concert, as if cooperating in a primitive way, but this cooperation is based on instinct alone. Encountering a single archer bush is rarely a great threat, but large groups of archer bushes, however, can be deadly.
Infection (Ex): Any creature that is not wearing armour or has a natural AC bonus of +2 or less must make a fortitude save vs DC 15 (Con based, +3 racial bonus) or have the thorn damage become infected. Infected creatures suffer a -2 circumstance penalty to all attack rolls and skill checks due to swelling and itching. In addition, any character attempting to cast a spell while infected must succeed on a DC 15 Concentration check or the spell fails. The effects of multiple infections are cumulative.
The infection can be cured by a cure disease spell or similar ability. Any damage from an archer bush that becomes infected does not heal naturally- healing magic must be used to restore those hitpoints.
Tremorsense (Ex): An archer bush is sensitive to vibrations in the ground and can automatically pinpoint the location of anything that is in contact with the ground.
Plant Traits: A plant creature possesses the following traits (unless otherwise noted in a creature's entry): Immunity to all mind-affecting effects (charms, compulsions, phantasms, patterns, and morale effects); Immunity to poison, sleep effects, paralysis, polymorph, and stunning; Not subject to critical hits; Plants breathe and eat, but do not sleep.