Riddled with white rot, the armillaria dryad is a pitiful creature driven to madness by insidious contagion. Her once-verdant physique is riddled with dense clumps of sallow white mushrooms. The fungus drips a viscous ooze and becomes an adhesive mess when struck. Hints of the dryad’s veins can be seen within the base of the mushrooms wherever they rupture from her bark-like skin. Her hair, somewhere between mangy strands and withered vines, frames feverish features. The infected dryad’s eye sockets are more like swollen knots than anything else, forever weeping spore-clogged pus.

Leprous Luminescence. While the mushrooms tormenting the armillaria dryad slightly glow, the tortured fey can expel the glowing particles into the air around it. The spore cloud produces an effect similar to that of faerie fire but also sickens creatures who get too much of it on their skin. Many of those stricken by the fungal foxfire report the feeling of something crawling under the skin. This has led to reports of victims sprouting an armillaria infection after being exposed to such a dryad, but thankfully this is not a common feature.

Armillaria Dryad

medium fey, chaotic evil

Armor Class 13

Hit Points 27 (5d8+5)

Speed 30ft

Str 10 Dex 12 Con 13 Int 12 Wis 9 Cha 18

Damage Immunities poison

darkvision, 60ft, passive Perception 9.

Languages elvish, sylvan

Challenge 1 (200 XP)

Magic Resistance:

The fey has advantage on saving throws against spells and other magical effects.

Speak with Beasts and Plants:

The armillaria dryad can communicate with beasts and plants as if they shared a language.

Sticky:

Whenever the armillaria dryad is hit with a melee weapon attack the attacking creature must succeed on a DC 12 Strength save or be disarmed as the weapon sticks to the fey’s body. A creature that can reach the armillaria dryad can use its action to try and wrench an item free, succeeding on a DC 12 Strength check. This effect persists even after the armillaria dryad’s death.

Whenever the armillaria dryad is hit with an unarmed attack the attacking creature must succeed on a DC 12 Strength save or become grappled, DC 12 Strength save to escape. While grappled by the fey the creature has disadvantage on attack rolls until freed. Another creature may attempt to pull the grappled creature free as its action, succeeding on a DC 12 Strength check.

Infested Stride.

Once on its turn, the dryad can use 10 ft. of movement to step magically into one living, infested tree within its reach and emerge from a second living, infested tree within 60 ft. of the first tree, appearing in an unoccupied space within 5 ft. of the second tree. Both trees must be large or bigger. An infested tree is a one stricken by a fungal infection or by a swarm of direflies.

Actions

Claws:

Melee Weapon Attack: +3 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 3 (1d4 + 1)slashing damage. In addition, if the target is a creature it must succeed on a DC 11 Constitution save or be poisoned until the end of its next turn.

Fungal Bloom(Recharge 6):

The armillaria dryad ejects spores into the air, coating all objects in a 20ft radius. Any creature in the area must succeed on a DC 14 Dexterity saving throw or be outlined in the sickly, yellow light for the next minute. For the duration, objects and affected creatures shed dim light in a 10-foot radius.

Any attack roll against an affected creature or object has advantage if the attacker can see it, and the affected creature or object can’t benefit from being invisible.

At the start of each of its turns, an affected creature must succeed on a DC 11 Constitution save or be poisoned until the end of its turn. If the affected creature uses an action and a waterskin's worth of liquid or suffers any Fire damage, this effect immediately ends.