For me, it's been assassin vines and vegepygmies, with a sprinkling of Purple Fungus. Yellow Musk Creeper is my favorite to use. A change on the classic zombies.
The first battle of our current campaign was against twig blights. I don't expect to see many more plant creatures appearing in the near future though.
Treants may appear far more than other plant creatures, though I don't they're battled that often unless you have an evil party. Having said that, the corrupted/evil treant does seem a quite well worn D&D trope these days.
Assassin vines, quickwood, templated quickwood in The Curse of the Golden Spear 2: Dark Path, a templated undead treant with levels in witch (blight Hex, among others).
I'm running Reign of Winter
so far it has had
In Snows of Summer:
mini pine tree treants called frost firs from the module.
Mandragora from Bestiary 2.
In The Shackled Hut so far:
Mindlsaver Mold from Lands of the Linnorm Kings.
Twigjacks look like plants but are actually fey.
How often do I fight plant creatures?
On a daily basis, really.
Broccoli, carrots, celery, you name it.
I've also created a series of wilderness specific haunts that includes trees and plants, in addition to natural beasts related to dark events that created the various haunts - as a twist on typical module encounters, as it relates to local witch covens and dark druids.
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First, the Decemvirate, in its infinite wisdom, sends me into a gardening shop whence I was mauled by a large topiary. Damage, I can recover from. The wounds to my dignity from the next plants cut far deeper.
In the depths of a sacked stronghold which rightfully belonged to my fair Cheliax, an infestation of some sort of huge plant tore into my expeditionary group, catching us as we approached and devouring us one by one before cacooning us and...defecating us out to save for later. The Inheritor blessed my with the strength I needed to t them that day. That, and my companion's liberal application of fireballs.
Immediately after that mission, I was summoned to explore the ruins of an ancient elven tower. The drow under the tower I could handle. I RELISHED the opportunity to vanquish the demons they had bound into service. But the fungal growths incapacitated me with their spores and I narrowly avoided becoming an incubator for their young.
I have faced down demons inspiring myth and legend, ancient undead from time immemorial, and conquered a Runelord for the glory of the Inheritor, but my Lady, save me from the botanical horrors of this world.
I've used assassin vines at least twice in my current campaign. In another game I played in, we also encountered a clump of assassin vines in the last session we played.
One thing I've noticed is that plants tend to be used in themed adventures or adventure arcs (which may explain their comparative rarity). The campaign I'm playing in I mentioned above has the assassin vines as the start of a plant themed level in the tower we're doing a dungeoncrawl in, for example. One mini-arc of "Nature Gone Mad" adventures I ran back in '11 or so (composed of three or so dungeon adventures shoved together) had probably a higher plant to other enemy ratio in it than the rest of the last few years I've gamed. That one had vegepygmies/moldmen, corrupted treants, needlemen, sporebats, an iron maw, and a host of other obscure plant monsters from prior editions.
Another reason for the rarity of seeing plants as monsters in game is for the reason that more than a few plants have limited mobility. This essentially renders them as traps just as much as they are monsters. Therefore, putting plants in an adventure can require a little more though on placement of plant monsters than more mobile monsters to act in a synergistic fashion with the environment.
How often do I fight plant creatures?
On a daily basis, really.
Broccoli, carrots, celery, you name it.
At low levels, just use a bite natural attack. Every encounter over in a round, except maybe celery and anything with poison such as Brussel Sprouts.
At low levels, just use a bite natural attack. Every encounter over in a round, except maybe celery and anything with poison such as Brussel Sprouts.How often do I fight plant creatures?
On a daily basis, really.
Broccoli, carrots, celery, you name it.
I find that fire damage can either soften up the encounter or leave it nice and crispy, depending on your goal. And a liberal application of cheese sauce never hurts.
The only plant creature's I can recall EVER fighting are the...Mi-go (?) from the CC AP.
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I believe this largely depends on how many monster manuals and bestiaries the GM has. I went search for plant monsters since they are immune to the oracle of stars color spray. Actually made it into a joke that now plant creatures seek her outfit the funky photosynthesis. I still make sure to ice her other stuff she can knock out via the spell.
I've also created a series of wilderness specific haunts that includes trees and plants, in addition to natural beasts related to dark events that created the various haunts - as a twist on typical module encounters, as it relates to local witch covens and dark druids.
Oooh, would you be able to share? That sounds perfect for my current Kingmaker campaign :D
I'm trying to use more plant monsters and wilderness threats. I think it would be good for my players to run into some now and then, particularly late in the AP
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Although the following haunts can be run independantly, the Lost Grove haunt requires the ghost of Ella to be found within its proximity. However, I ran all 3 haunts and Ella at the same location for a truly nasty encounter. Once the party enters the Lost Grove haunt vicinity and it manifests, trapping the party within its borders, the field of mangled ravens haunt on the ground within the grove triggers. One round after it triggers, the Thorny Sentinel manifests, and Ella begins her attack of the party. Despite the close vicinity use of positive energy to damage any haunt must be applied directly and separately from other haunts. Attacks must be directed at the raven corpes, the ground and thorn tree, or the open space between the trees to effect each one.
Field of Mangled Ravens Haunt, CR 5
XP 1600
NE haunt, 15-ft. radius, CL 10
Notice raven corpses begin to writhe as if still alive, Perception DC 15
hp 10, Trigger proximity, Reset 1 hour
Knowledge (religion)/(local) DC check (20) to learn how these ravens were sacrificed to serve a ghost witch's dark rituals.
Description
On either side of the path strewn across the ground are thirteen, broken raven corpses, which begin to writhe, turning their broken beaks and eyeless heads to face the trespassers. They caw in despair. The sound causes all listeners in this wretched field to become nauseated and begin to writhe in pain like the raven corpses, as per the spell Cacophonous Call Mass.
Destruction collect all raven corpses and burn in a pit with Consecrate cast onto the burnt ashes.
Thorny Sentinel Haunt, CR 9
XP 6400
NE haunt, 1 huge tree and 10-ft. radius, CL , 10 Persistent
Notice the branches moving by a nonexistent wind,
Perception DC 19
hp 10, Trigger proximity, Weakness damaged by fire, Reset 24 hours
Knowledge (religion)/(local) DC check 24 to learn how an unnatural spirit usurped the life and accursed its existence.
Description
A huge thorn tree begins to animate, attacking trespassers with root and limb, as per Animate Plant and all the ground plants in a 10 foot radius surrounding the trunk attempt to grapple anyone nearby preventing passage by it, as per the spell Entangle.
Destruction an overnight prayer vigil under a full moon must be spent, with Holy Word cast at the thorn tree at first light.
Lost Grove Haunt, CR 18
XP 152,600
NE haunt, 15-ft. radius, CL 16, Persistent
Notice eerie lighting absent of color appears between 3 trees, Perception 18
hp 10, Trigger proximity,
Reset 1 hour
Knowledge (religion)/(local) DC check (30) to learn that a dryad ghost witch created this cursed spot in the forest to serve as her eternal lair.
Description
An open space between a trinity of trees of thorn, ash and oak measuring 30 ft by 30 ft by 10 ft high, and 20 ft over the center cube. Strangely the light is missing the color spectrum and everything is cast in shades of gray. Spells that depend on colored light do not function. Once you enter this lost grove, trying to leave the area loops you to the opposite side entering it once again. If the ghost Ella is found within the lost grove, you must defeat her in order to escape. The area manifests as per Create Demiplane with the Shape feature.
Destruction Ella the dryad ghost must be laid to rest to destroy this haunt.
Ella was a dryad with levels in witch, and now she is a NE ghost. Her still living familiar is a raven. I can't find her stats sheet at the moment, but I'll dig that up this weekend. Although she should have 7 to 16 levels of witch, whatever appropriate for the opposing adventure party.
As a plot hook and a way to include a First World aspect, add a portal at the center of the Lost Grove haunt. Have a Quickling with ninja levels steal an important magic item, document, or other MacGuffin from the party and enter the Lost Grove to access the darker reaches (unseelie) of the First World. Have the portal additionally protected by a puzzle riddle with a one word answer (?) in a fey dialect engraved on a large stone. Uttering the riddle's answer as you enter the Lost Grove, prevents haunts from manifesting and allows immediate passage into the First World by causing the stone to vanish leading to a pit portal going downward. Otherwise the party must deal with the haunts and Ella before attempting to solve the riddle to enter and retrieve their stolen item - of course, if they choose not to destroy the haunts nor lay Ella to rest, the encounter will start all over when they return through the portal. Might lead to a whole side quest or full adventure...
Since most of my games take place in a tropical rainforest setting, there be lots of plants I throw at them. Including plant monsters I make up. Like the blood maga, a giant flowering tree akin to the plant from The Ruins. Favorite food is elves.