Mutant Monday

Bristly Haircap


No. Enc.: 1(1)
Alignment: None
Movement: None
Armor Class: See below
Hit Dice: 1D6
Attacks: See below
Damage: See below
Save: None
Morale: None
Hoard Class: XIX
XP: 1 HD: 22
        2HD: 56
        3HD: 110
        4HD: 300
        5HD: 800
        6HD: 1320


This plant is a mutated Polytrichum commune (haircap moss) that has been bio-engineered as an area denial weapon. It appears as a large, dark green moss in the form of many-branched caltrops scattered densely over the surface of the ground. Found in rainy or humid temperate regions, a patch of Bristly Haircap has a radius in feet equal to Hit Dice x 100. The hadrom (water conducting tissue) of these plants has also been modified to absorb iron rich blood in addition to water, further strengthening the alloy of the leaves, though providing no nourishment per se to the rest of the plant. The photosynthetic lamellar of the plant are only slightly modified, trapping and retaining moisture and blood efficiently, but otherwise providing little protection to the plant.

The caltrop-like feature of Bristly Haircap has been heavily modified, replacing the soft, plant-like original material with a shiny, golden monomolecular metallo-crystal iron alloy, while retaining the shape of the original toothed lanceolate blade leaves. Additionally, the leaves and structure of the plant have been modified to make them into hypodermic injectors linked to a gene-engineered poison sac. When stepped upon, these leaves penetrate any material that they come into contact with, including metals, but not stone or rock. A creature walking through a patch will encounter 2d6 such leaves, each doing 1d4 damage and injecting a Class 12 poison into the target.

With the exception of the metallic glint of promised gold among a field of green moss, which often attract the attention of victims with more greed than sense, Bristly Haircap appears to be a field of normal moss. Because of their unremarkable nature, beings must make a surprise check roll of 1-3 on 1d6 to notice the danger posed by patches of Bristly Haircap. A patch of Bristly Haircap cannot be destroyed except by fire or by careful digging and removal from the soil it covers. Some primitive tribals and mutants cultivate patches of Bristly Haircap as defensive fields.

Mutations: Injected Poison Sap, Natural Vegetal Weapons, Metallic Bark (CotW), Thermal Sensitivity (heat/fire)