Stone Rose Climate/Terrain: Frequency: Organization: Activity Cycle: Diet: Intelligence: Treasure: Alignment: No. Appearing: Armor Class: Movement: Hit Dice: THAC0: No. of Attacks: Damage/Attack: Special Attacks: Special Defenses: Magic Resistance: Size: Morale: XP Value: Temperate to subtropical forests, swamps and ruins Very rare Solitary Any Photosynthesis, Carnivore 2-4 (Semi-) Nil Neutral 1 -2/6 0 6 15 4d4 1d3 Petrification Weapon immunities, healed by necromancy spells Nil L (12' tall) Average (10) 3,000 he stone rose is a dangerous plant creature found only in the darkest and most remote places of the Land of Mists. It is infamous for its ability to transform living creatures to stone. This is an especially horrifying fate to the folk of the Demiplane of Dread, who are not used to encountering basilisks, cockatrices, and other creatures with petrifying powers. Fortunately for more experienced travelers, the stone rose is easily identified. The plant does not resemble the surrounding natural vegetation, and its abominable, alien nature is readily apparent. Resembling a thick-stalked plant roughly ten to twelve feet in height, the stone rose is bright green with a bluish tint. The plant lacks true leaves and flowers. The stalk is tipped by what appears to be a smooth, oblong pod with a lipped orifice. This pod opens radially as the creature attacks, unfolding like a flower. The interior of the pod is colored with a sickening pattern of bright red and salmon-pink, and studded with hundreds of barbed darts. A stone rose give off no appreciable odor itself, though the air surrounding the plant reeks of scorched stone and rotten meat. The stone rose is roughly as intelligent as a dog, but it cannot communicate with other creatures without the aid of a speak with plants spell. Combat: The stone rose is aggressive, attacking most creatures that approach within thirty feet of it. Its first attack is always to spit a small, roughly skull-shaped capsule from its pod, to a maximum range of ninety feet. The stone rose must make a normal attack roll, though it ignores that portion of an opponent’s AC due to natural or worn armor. The capsule is delicate, and explodes like a grenade upon impact. The victim takes no damage, but must save vs. poison or turn to stone at the end of the next round. The only way to save the victim is to cast neutralize poison on him before the round ends. A stone rose normally has 1d20+4 such capsules. If the stone rose itself is attacked, the plant resorts to its second defense. The stone rose’s pod opens and unleashes a hail of 4d4 wicked darts. These can be aimed at any creature or group of creatures in the pod’s current “line of sight”, with the stone rose dictating how many darts are hurled at each individual opponent (much like the magic missile spell). A separate attack roll is made for each dart, however, and the maximum range is a mere forty feet. The stone rose can shoot a hail of darts once per round, but cannot do so on the same round it spits a petrifying capsule. A stone rose has 2d6 x 20 such darts, but they grow back slowly (2d4 days). The stone rose’s stalk is a repository for silica crystals, rendering it as dense as rock and therefore particularly resilient to damage. The stalk itself is AC -2, is immune to slashing and piercing weapons, and takes only half damage from blunt weapons. The pod is only AC 6, and if 40% of the plant’s total hp in damage is inflicted on the pod, the stone rose is destroyed. Stone roses are immune to wizard spells of the Necromancy school and priest spells of the Necromantic sphere. In fact, any necromancy spell cast on a stone rose heals it of 1d4 damage per level of the spell, regardless of the spell’s actual effect. Habitat/Society: Stone roses are a rare form of hostile plant life, occurring only in the most forbidding corners of the Demiplane. They thrive in the same nutrient-poor soils that harbor mundane carnivorous plants, such as Venus fly traps and pitcher plants. They tend to grow near spots that are likely to be interesting to large animals and intelligent creatures, such as a fresh water source or deserted structure. Often, the stone rose will be surrounded by an eerie garden of animal and humanoid statuary, some of the victims half-dissolved by the plant’s roots. This is usually more than enough evidence to convince intelligent creatures to keep their distance. Stone roses possess a simple intelligence, but have no true society to speak of. They understand physical threats, and are easily cowed by creatures they perceive to be powerful. Thus, it is not unheard of for an evil creature to deliberately raise one of these abominations in a garden, producing a submissive and effective guardian. Because of the stone rose’s ability to absorb necromantic energies, it is generally thought that the plant is the product of a demented magical experiment intended to mingle life and death. Whether the plant was the intended product such experimentation, or merely a blasphemous side effect, is unknown. Ecology: Stone roses produce food through photosynthesis, but are adapted to acquire much-needed nutrients from petrified victims. The plant’s extensive root network secretes an enzyme that slowly (3d6 days) dissolves petrified creatures into a cement-like sludge of fine pebbles, silica, and organic matter. The stone rose’s roots absorb the latter two substances. The silica is re-crystallized in the cell walls of the stalk, while nitrogen, phosphorous and other nutrients are used in the plant’s metabolism. Contrary to their appellation, stone roses are not flowering plants. They reproduce through a primitive, wind-borne fertilization and through vegetative budding. The plants are hermaphroditic, and self-fertilization is common. Young plants grow to maturity quickly, typically within three or four years, and are highly prized by botanists, necromancers, and more sinister beings. Castlevania and Symphony of the Night are registered trademarks of Konami Co, Ltd.