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           V  

Documentation Area

Document Path: /doc/monsters/dryad

Name:
	Dryad  (Demihuman)

Stats:
	No. Appearing  : 1 or 1-6
	Climate/Terrain: Secluded oak groves
	Frequency      : Very rare
	Organization   : Solitary
	Activity Cycle : Any
	Diet           : Herbivore

Description:
	Dryads are beautiful, intelligent tree sprites. They are as elusive as
	they are alluring, however, and dryads are rarely seen unless taken by
	surprise - or they wish to be spotted.

	The dryad's exquisite features, delicate and finely chiseled, are much
	like an elf maiden's. Dryads have high cheek bones and amber, violet,
	or dark green eyes. A dryad's complexion and hair color changes with
	the seasons, presenting the sprite with natural camouflage. During the
	fall, a dryad's hair turns golden or red, and her skin subtly darkens
	from its usual light tan to more closely match her hair color. This en-
	ables her to blend with the falling leaves of autumn. In winter, both
	the dryad's hair and skin are white, like the snows that cover the oak
	groves. When encountered in a forest during fall or winter, a dryad is
	often mistaken for an attractive maid, probably of elvish descent. No
	one would mistake a dryad for an elf maid during the spring and summer,
	however. At these times of year, a drayd's skin is lightly tanned and
	her hair is green like the oak leves around her.

	Dryads often appear clothed in loose, simple garment. The clothing they
	wear is the color of the oak grove in the season they appear. They
	speak their own tongue, as well as the languages of elves, pixies, and
	sprites. Dryads can also speak to plants.

Combat:
	Dryads are shy, nonviolent creatures. They rarely carry weapons, but
	they sometimes carry knives as tools. Though a dryad can use this as a
	weapon in a fight, she will not resort to using a knife unless seri-
	ously threatened.

	Dryads have the ability to throw a powerful charm person spell three
	times a day (but only once per round). A dryad always uses this spell
	if seriously threatened, attempting to gain control of the attacker who
	could help her most against his comrades. Dryads will only attempt to
	charm elves as a last resort because of their natural resistance to
	this type of spell.

	The dryad's use of her ability to charm is not limited to combat situ-
	ations, however. Whenever a dryad encounters a male with a good charis-
	ma, she usually tries to charm him. Charismatic victims of a dryad's
	attentions are taken to the tree sprite's home, where the men serve as
	amorous slaves to their beautiful captors. There is a 50% chance that a
	person charmed and taken away by a dryad will never return. If he does
	escape from the dryad's charms, it will be after 1-4 years of capti-
	vity.

	This tree sprite also has two other powers that are very useful in de-
	fense. Unless surprised, a dryad has the ability to literally step
	through a tree and then dimension door the oak tree she is part of. She
	can also speak with plants (as the 4th-level priest spell). This en-
	ables the dryad to gather information about parties travelling near her
	tree, and even to use vegetation to hinder potential attackers.

Habitat/Society:
	Some legends claim that dryads are the animated souls of very old oak
	trees. Whether this is really the case, it is true that dryads are at-
	tached to a single, very large oak tree in their lifetimes and cannot,
	for any reason, go more than 360 yards from that tree. If a dryad does
	wander farther away, she becomes weak and dies within 6-36 hours unless
	returned to her home. The oak trees of dryads do not radiate magic, but
	someone finding a dryad's home has great power over her. A dryad suf-
	fers damage for any damage inflicted upon her home tree. Any attack on
	a dryad's tree will, of course, bring on a frenzied defense by the
	dryad.

	Although dryads are generally very solitary, up to six have been en-
	countered in one place. This is rare, however. All this really means is
	that a number of dryad oaks are within 100 yards of one another and the
	drayd's paths cross. These dryads may come to each other's aid, but ne-
	ver really gather socially. Any treasure owned by a tree sprite is hid-
	den close to her home tree. The gold and gems that make up a dryad's
	treasure are almost always the gifts of charmed adventurers.

	These tree sprites realize that most humans and demihumans fear them
	for their ability to charm, so dryads only deal with strangers on rare
	occasions. When apporached carefully, however, dryads have been known
	to aid adventurers. They are a useful source of information, too, as
	they know a great deal about the area in which they live.

Ecology:
	Dryads are staunch protectors of the forest and groves in which they
	reside. Any actions that harm the area, and especially its plant life,
	are met with little tolerance.