From left to right: Tree, Flower, and Mushroom Botanikin
Botanikin
Botanikin live as mundane plants for the first 5 years of their life. They are sentient and aware of their surroundings during this time but can only behave like a normal plant. A lot of them do not make it through this age as they are eaten by predators or trodden on or otherwise uprooted. At the age of 4 they start growing into a humanoid body shape. They uproot themselves at about 5 years to start experiencing the world. They are physically self sufficient at this point and can live off of the land. during these years the type of social interaction and location they grow up in usually shapes what subrace the young seedling will turn into. They are considered physically mature at 10 years old. They live about 75 years. Botanikin don't reproduce in the conventional means, like a lot of plants they are both genders and reproduce with pollen or spores carried by the wind or insects. Most of the time this process is completely automatic and dropping seeds that will become new botanikin happens only occasionally every 5-10 years or so during their lifetime between the ages 20 and 50. Normally there is no way for a botanikin to know their parents. Often they are adopted by nearby tribes; Tree botanikins often are raised by forest dwelling clans of firbolg, halflings, orcs, or lizardfolk, sometimes taking a guardian roll for their tribe. They are often mistaken for wood woads. Flower botanikin tend to be raised among civilization as they to enjoy social situations more. Flower botanikin have the ability to minorly alter their facial features, body proportions, and height by A few inches. Their race is still recognizable by their vivid colors, and it does not really make a great disguise, but they mostly use this to make themselves more appealing to the races they interact with. They may grow pointed ear like leaves or petals to fit in with elves, a long tail like vine when living with tieflings, or bristle like hairs on their feet to fit with halflings. They can make themselves appear as either gender, which they may use to sway social interactions. Mushroom botanikin are more commonly raised by myconids, developing a large portion of their life style. Because of their differences and rarity any of the botanikin may be viewed as outsiders or even taken into slavery. There is documented information about their existence in a few books, but botanikin who don't read a lot of books may never know what they are. Some botanikin may never stumble across another of their kind, or may stumble into a different subrace and not know what they are. Mushroom botanikin and their adoptive myconid families often believe they are special blessed myconids given a voice, something normal myconids do not have. A more recent trend developed by botanikin who choose a botanikin partner includes the pair purposely raising their offspring, tending to them as plants and then as children. Botanikin, despite their differences, are compatible with any subrace of their species Most botanikin choose a name and gender to call themselves to simplify things with others, usually from the first society they interact with. Among themselves they may call each other by simple descriptive names like yellow petal, oak bark, red cap, little root, thistle branch, ect. They may look like any species of tree, flower, or mushroom respectively.Botanikin Traits
Age: Botanikin are considered mature at 10 years old. They live about 75 years.
Ability Score Increase: Your Constitution score increases by 1.
Size: Your size is Medium.
- Tree Botanikin are taller and heavier than humans, standing well over 6 feet tall to just over 7 feet tall and averaging almost 275 pounds.
- Flower Botanikin range from 5 to just under 6 feet tall and have slender builds, weighing in as the lightest Botanikin at around 120 pounds.
- Mushroom Botanikin stand between 4 and a half and 5 and a half feet tall and average about 150 pounds.
Living Flora:
Botanikin enter a suspended state, remaining semiconscious, for 4 hours a day in place of sleeping. You gain the same benefit that a human does from 8 hours of sleep. Magic can't put you to sleep. You don't suffer exhaustion from lack of rest or food. Your brain is alien to most, making it particularly difficult to pin down; you have resistance to psychic damage.
Languages: You can speak, read, and write Common.
Tree Botanikin
Ability Score Increase: Your Constitution and Strength score increase by 1.Speed: 30 feet.
Natural Armor: Due to your thick bark exterior, you have a base AC of 16 (your Dexterity modifier doesn't affect this number). You can still apply the bonus from using a shield as normal.
Nature's Stride: As a bonus action, you can magically teleport up to 30 feet to an unoccupied space you can see. Once you use this trait, you can't do so again until you finish a short or long rest.
Languages: You can speak, read, and write Sylvan.
Flower Botanikin
Ability Score Increase: Your Charisma score increases by 2.Speed: 30 feet.
Photosynthesis: When in direct sunlight you gain the following benefits: Your speed increases by 10.
Thorny: As a bonus action, you can cause small thorns to protrude all over your body or cause them to retract. At the start of each of your turns while the thorns are out, you deal 1d6 piercing damage to any creature grappling you or any creature grappled by you.
Floral Beauty: You gain proficiency in one of the following abilities: Performance, Persuasion, or Deception.
Languages: You can speak, read, and write one additional language of your choice.
Mushroom Botanikin
Ability Score Increase: Your Wisdom score increases by 2.Speed: 25 feet.
Superior Darkvision: Your darkvision has a radius of 120 feet.
Sunlight Sensitivity: You have disadvantage on attack rolls and on Perception checks that rely on sight when you, the target of your attack, or whatever you are trying to perceive is in direct sunlight.
Silent Speech: You can speak telepathically to any creature within 30 feet of you. The creature understands you only if the two of you share a language. You can speak telepathically in this way any number of creatures in range.
Rapport Spores: As an action, you can release a 20-foot radius cloud of spores. These spores can go around corners and affect only creatures with an Intelligence of 2 or higher that aren’t undead, constructs, or elementals. The creature must be able to speak a language to be effected. Affected creatures can communicate telepathically with one another while they are within 30 feet of each other. The effect lasts for 1 hour. You cannot use this ability again until after you complete a long rest.
Languages: You can speak, read, and write Undercommon.
Tree Botanikin
points based on homebrew balance by Eleazzaar
Botanikin 10 base total
4) +1 stat
6) living flora (2 One rare resistance, 1 Doesn't need to eat, 2 trance, 1 cannot be put to sleep)
16 Flower (total 26)
8) +2 stat
4) thorny: Natural weapon free hand… situational, does not consume action or bonus action
2) skill proficiency
2) situational 40 speed
17 Tree (total 27)
8) +2 stat
7) natural armor, less than tortle but can choose to wear armor
2) misty step once per long rest
17 Mushroom (total 27)
8) +2 stat
4) darkvision 120
-3) sunlight sensitivity
-2) 25 ft movement
6) telepathy at will
4) poor man's telepathic bond