Race
Comments from the Finger: A medical warning for this race: do not attempt to roleplay a mushroom while under the effects of mushrooms.
Myconid
“I done seen some things down there” the elderly dwarf gestured downward with his thumb to a rapt gathering of dwarven children.
“There be cities grander than any of dwarf’s make, holdin’ creatures more evil than th’ Pit isself. There be ungodly abominations that weren’t never meant to see the light o’ day. And there be…” his voice trailed off while his hand continued to stoke his ivory beard.
The old dwarf’s voice left a lull of quiet in anticipation, broken by the youngest in the audience, who exclaimed, “Whatja see gampa? Whatja see?”
Suddenly cogent, the old dwarf resumed, “Mushrooms! An entire city of mushrooms!”
– Blim Stronghelm recounts his first myconid encounter
Myconids are intelligent, ambulatory fungi that live in the Underdark, seek enlightenment, and deplore violence. If approached peacefully, myconids gladly provide shelter or allow safe passage through their colonies.
Circles and Melds
The largest myconid in a colony is its sovereign, which presides over one or more social groups called circles. A circle consists of twenty or more myconids that work, live, and meld together.
A meld is a form of communal meditation that allows myconids to transcend their dull subterranean existence. The myconids’ rapport spores bind the participants into a group consciousness. Hallucination spores then induce a shared dream that provides entertainment and social interaction. Myconids consider melding to be the purpose of their existence. They use it in the pursuit of higher consciousness, collective union, and spiritual apotheosis. Myconids also use their rapport spores to communicate telepathically with other sentient creatures.
Cultural Pacifism
From a very early age, myconids are taught the virtues of empathy and pacifism. Material and worldly possessions are not chiefly important to myconids, so there is very little motivation for violence.
Myconid Reproduction
Like other fungi, myconids reproduce by mundane sporing. They carefully control their spores’ release to avoid overpopulation. Unlike most other humanoids, myconids take no pleasure from reproduction and feel very little connection to their offspring. Child rearing is a responsibility shared by the entire circle, and it is rare if young myconids can even identify their parents.
Myconid Names
Due to the fact that myconids have no verbal language, their names are most appropriately translated as physical descriptors of a particular individual.
Myconid Names: Bolete, Brownback, Buttonhead, Greenfoot, Morel, Mossy, Portabelt, Puffball, Redstem, Soft-Step, Stinkhorn, Toad.
Myconid Traits
Ability Score Increase. Your Wisdom score increases by 2 and your Constitution score increases by 1.
Size. Myconids grow to a wide variety of heights and builds, with the most common being stocky and around 6 feet tall, weighing around 125 pounds. Your size is Medium.
Speed. Your speed is 30 feet.
Age. Like other fungi, myconids reproduce by mundane sporing. They carefully control their spores’ release to avoid overpopulation. Individual myconids can live to well over a century. After this time, the most elder myconids can live even longer, becoming a Soverign of one or more circles and living up to a century longer.
Alignment. Most often, myconids believe strongly in society and law. It is extremely uncommon for a myconid to directly harm any creature that does not mean it, or its circle, harm.
Sun Sickness. You become poisoned if you spend more than 1 minute in direct sunlight. This condition ends when you spend 1 minute in dim or dark conditions.
Nonverbal Magic. Though you have no conventional language, you may still cast spells that require verbal components.
Rapport Spores. All creatures within 15 feet of you with an Intelligence of 2 or higher that aren’t undead, constructs, or elementals can communicate telepathically with you and with each other. You can suppress this ability at will.
Pacifying Spores. As an action, you can ejects spores at one creature you can see within 5 feet of you. The target must succeed on a DC 11 Constitution saving throw or be stunned for 1 minute. Undead, constructs, and elementals automatically succeed this save. The target can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on itself on a success. After using this trait, you cannot do so again until you finish a long rest.
Hallucination Spores. As an action, you can produce spores that effect all creatures within 30 feet of you that aren’t undead, constructs, or elementals. These creatures are all affected as per the cantrip minor illusion while you concentrate on the effect. The spell save DC for this effect is 8 + your Intelligence modifier + your proficiency bonus.
Meld. When you take a long rest in the presence of two or more other myconids, you can meld with them. After melding, you regain all expended Hit Dice and gain one of the following benefits:
- You have advantage on the next saving throw you make in the next 24 hours.
- You can end one disease or one condition effecting you from among: blinded, deafened, paralyzed, or poisoned.
- You gain one inspiration point.
Changelog:
9/27/15: Hallucination Spores: Spell clarified to minor illusion. Save DC added.
12/28/15: Slight change to languages
