Druids and rangers both attune themselves to the rhythms of the natural world, connecting to the vast web of life and calling upon special assistants. While usually drawn from the ranks of the animal kingdom, a few connect more with plants instead. Pouring a tiny portion of their life force into saplings or brambles, they rouse those that sleep, giving plants mobility and a measure of free will.
A plant companion improves in much the same manner as an animal companion, using the Table: The Druid’s Animal Companion when determing such things as bonus Hit Dice and natural Armour Class adjustment. All plant companions begin play using the following statistics. When using Handle Animal to get a plant companion to perform a trick, its master does not suffer the normal -5 penalty incurred when dealing with creatures of types other than animal.
See the base plant companions’s description for further details.
As you gain levels in druid or ranger, you can call upon more powerful animal companions whose abilities advance more slowly. Instead of a more powerful plant companion, though, you gain the ability to evolve the one you have, endowing it with new abilities. This requires a ritual that lasts 24 hours. Each new ability has a delay in levels between when you select it and when your plant companion gains it. You may select a new ability for your plant companion at any druid or ranger level in which a previously selected ability does not manifest. Your plant companion can only evolve one new ability at a time. For example, if at last level you choose to give your plant companion the bioluminescent ability, it gains that ability when you attain 2nd level. The most common plant companion special abilities follow.
Abilities marked with an asterisk may be taken more than once. Their bonuses or increases stack.
Alacrity (Ex): Your plant companion may, as part of a full attack action, make a bonus melee attack using its highest attack bonus. Your plant companion gains this ability after 2 levels.
Bioluminescent (Ex): Your plant companion glows in the dark, creating a non-magical illumination equal to a torch. It may suppress or reactivate this light as a standard action. Your plarit companion gains this ability after 1 level.
Blindsight (Ex): Your plant companion gains blindsight with a range of 30 feet. Your plant companion gains this ability after 2 levels.
Blunting Mold (Ex): Your plant companion develops a thick, cloying fungus along its length that automatically coats any slashing or piercing weapon that damages it. This mold causes the weapon to deal half damage on all attacks until its wielder spends 1 standard action wiping it off. Your plant companion gains this ability after 3 levels.
Bonus Feat (Ex): Your plant companion gains a bonus feat. It must meet all of the feat’s prerequisites. Your plant companion gains this ability after 1 level.
Cactus Spurs (Ex): Your plant companion grows numerous wickedly sharp barbs along its length. Any creature that grapples it or attacks it with an unarmed strike or natural weapon takes 1d3 points of piercing damage. Your plant companion gains this ability after 1 level.
Darkvision (Ex): Your plant companion gains darkvision with a range of 60 feet. Your plant companion gains this ability after 1 level.
Distracting Pollen (Ex): Your plant companion may, as a standard action, emit a cloud of red dust in a 10-foot radius centred on itself. All creatures within the red dust have partial concealment granting a 20% miss chance. This dust disperses after 1d4 rounds. Your plant companion can use this ability at will, but it must wait 5 rounds between each use. Your plant companion gains this ability after 2 levels.
Eldritch Fibers (Ex): Attacks your plant companion makes with its natural weapons are treated as magic for the purpose of overcoming damage reduction. Your plant companion gains this ability after 1 level.
Growth Spurt (Ex): Your plant companion increases to Large size. You must select Powerful at least twice prior to taking Growth Spurt. Your plant companion gains this ability after 3 levels.
Ironbark (Ex):1 Your plant companion’s natural armour increases by +3. You must select Powerful at least once prior to taking Ironbark. Your plant companion gains this ability after 2 levels.
Mirrored Bark (Ex):1 Your plant companion develops a highly refractive surface, granting it a +2 bonus to Armour Class versus rays and a +2 bonus on Reflex saving throws made to resist spells or spell-like effects. Your plant companion gains this ability after 2 levels.
Oakenbough (Ex):1 Your plant companion’s Strength score and Constitution score increase by +2. Your plant companion gains this ability after 2 levels.
Poisonous (Ex): All attacks by your plant companion deliver a mild poison (injury; DC 10 + half the plant’s HD + the plant’s Constitution modifier; Initial and secondary damage 1d3 Dex). Your plant companion gains this ability after 3 levels.
Powerful (Ex):1 Your plant companion gains +1 Hit Die. Your plant companion gains this ability after 1 level.
Roots (Ex): Your plant companion gains fast healing 1. Your plant companion gains this ability after 3 levels.
Scent (Ex): Your plant companion gains the scent ability. Your plant companion gains this ability after 1 level.
Spines (Ex): Your plant companion can make ranged attacks (it can make as many ranged attacks in a round as it can normally make melee attacks) by firing tiny spines. It can either make melee attacks in a round or fire its spines; it cannot mix its attack types in a round. These spine attacks deal 1d3 points of piercing damage + half its Strength modifier, with a range increment 30 feet. Any additional effects that affect your plant companion’s melee attacks (such as delivering poison) also affect its ranged attacks. Your plant companion gains this ability after 1 level.
Sticky Sap (Ex): Your plant oozes a strong adhesive that might trap any melee weapon that damages it. When such an attack hits, the wielder must immediately make an opposed Strength check against your plant companion (your plant companion gains a +4 racial bonus on this check). If your plant companion succeeds, the weapon becomes stuck. You can pull the weapon free as a move action, but any other creature (including the weapon’s owner) must use a standard action (that provokes attacks of opportunity) and succeed at an opposed Strength check. If the attacker succeeds he can pull his weapon free. Your plant companion gains this ability after 5 levels.
Swift (Ex):1 Your plant companion’s speed increases by 10 feet. Your plant companion gains this ability after 2 levels.
Tendrils (Ex): Your plant companion’s reach doubles. Your plant companion gains this ability after 2 levels.
Thorns (Ex):1 Your plant companion deals +1 point of damage with each attack and now deals only piercing damage. Your plant companion gains this ability after 1 level.
Tremorsense (Ex): Your plant companion gains tremorsense with a range of of 60 feet. Your plant companion gains this ability after 1 level.
1 You may endow your plant companion with this ability multiple times. Its effects stack.
Source: Dragon Magazine #357 (Page 90)