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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Shade" data-source="post: 5335667" data-attributes="member: 287">Skullcap IvyCLIMATE/TERRAIN: Any temperate landFREQUENCY: RareORGANIZATION: SolitaryACTIVITY CYCLE: DayDIET: Sunlight, blood nutrientsINTELLIGENCE: NilTREASURE TYPE: NilALIGNMENT: NeutralNO. APPEARING: 1ARMOR CLASS: 10MOVEMENT: 1 (as seed pod), or as hostHIT DICE: 1THAC0: NilNO. OF ATTACKS: NilDAMAGE/ATTACK: NilSPECIAL ATTACKS: NilSPECIAL DEFENSES: NilMAGIC RESISTANCE: NilSIZE: TMORALE: N/AXP VALUE: 15 (for harvesting it only)Skullcap ivy is a symbiotic plant that makes its home on the scalps of sentient creatures.  It begins as a floating, wispy seed pod, borne on the air like dandelion fluff.  When a seed pod lands on a human, demihuman, or humanoid head, it burrows into the scalp and takes root.  As the plant matures, it spreads along the scalp, creating a vast network of ivy-like shoots with broad, heart-shaped leaves.  It kills off hair follicles in the scalp, so as the host organism starts growing shoots of green ivy from the head, the host simultaneously loses his or her natural hair.  In time, the hair is completely replaced with plant growth.  If the ivy is later removed, the hair does not grow back.Combat:  Skullcap ivy is benign.  While the loss of hair and the growth of plant shoots from the scalp can be a shock, the process does not harm the host.  However, if the host does not wish to replace his or her hair with plant growth, the skullcap ivy can be permanently removed by pulling it from the scalp and rubbing the head with alcohol.Those who allow the ivey to grow from their scalps msut be ever vigilant against certain plant-based spells.  The biggest fear is entangle, with which an enemy spellcaster could cause the skullcap ivy to wrap around its host’s neck.  Strangulation occurs if the host fails a saving throw vs. spell; the ivy strangles for 1d4 points of damage each round until destroyed.  For this reason, many skullcap ivy hosts keep the plant growths cut short, or else braid it to confine the ivy shoots.Spells such as hold plant have no effect upon either the skullcap ivy or its host, as the plant doesn’t move on its own, and the host remains a separate entity.  (Growing skullcap ivy on one’s head does not make one a plant hybrid.)Habitat/Society:  Skullcap ivy is an opportunistic symbiote, taking adavantage of any chance encounter with its favorite environment:  the scalp of an intelligent mammal.  If the wind does not find it a potential host, the seed pod sinks roots into the soil and becomes a normal, earth-based plant.  When the time comes for it to take to seed, however, it casts its pods to the fortunes of the wind, trying once agains to find a suitable host.Many believe that the plant was coaxed into its present form by Druids.  While nothing has been proven, many Druids and rangers actively cultivate the plant, nurturing it in their own scalps and encouraging its growth. Not only does this aid in the “commune with nature,” but it also gives the host a limited camouflage ability while within wooded areas.  Nymphs and dryads are occasionally seen with full manes of skullcap ivy.Ecology:  The benefits of growing skullcap ivy in one’s scalp are many.  The plant is a true symbiote, bringing as much into the relationship as it takes.  The plant’s roots grow into the blood vessels of the host’s scalp, allowing the ivy to feed upon nutrients in the host’s blood if necessary.  This allows the plant to thrive even in conditions where it is away from sunlight for extended periods.  In return, the host gains additional nourishment directly from the plant via photosynthesis, allowing him or her to survive indefinitely on half the normal food and water supply as long as he or she has regular exposure to the sun.In addition, both the skullcap ivy and the host are sources of the gases necessary for the other’s survival. The skullcap converts the host’s exhaled carbon dioxide into oxygen, while the host breathes the oxygen and converts it to carbon dioxide.  This along makes a skullcap ivy a welcome symbiote among many spelljamming crews.On the down side, skullcap ivy produces small blue flowers in the springtime, attracting bees and wasps.  Hosts must prepare themselves for the ever-present attentions of such insects during that time of year.Originally appeared in Dragon Magazine #259 (1999).</blockquote>

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