Becoming a Tree

[Herbert West]

So, I want to be able to grow my roots into the earth and stay in place. I've found one thing that will let me do that, Forest Master (from Faiths and Pantheons) level 8. Is there anything else that will let me become part of the earth, or something that makes me immovable (doesn't have to be nature-related) that I can fluff to say does that? If I can do it before level 10, that would be great.

Also, not as important, is there a low-level spell or cheap item I can use to make a little pool nearby for a small water elemental to live in?

[Necroticplague]

The Psionic Warrior power Immovability does, well, what it says. as a 4th level power, you can pick it up exactly at 10th level.

[Troacctid]

Tree Shape turns you into a tree, including roots. Create Water can create a small pool of water. Both are easily accessible to a 3rd level Druid.

[gorfnab]

If you want to be a slightly more movable tree the Landforged Walker (SoX) prestige class is decent.

[Deox]

May be relevant:

The spell Arboreal Transformation (Complete Mage) will let you turn creatures into treants under your control for days. After the duration expires, they're a normal oak tree.

So you could turn into a tree with an army of trees?

[Mr Adventurer]

Unyielding Roots, Druid 9 spell, may also be of interest!

[Zaq]

For a lower-level effect, Mountain Stance (SpC, pp. 144-5) is a second-level spell for Druids and Wizards/Sorcerers that makes it very hard for you to be moved. Not impossible, but it's a pretty hefty bonus.

[LoyalPaladin]

I feel like there is a druid prestige class for this. I just can't remember what it is called!

Paladin Edit:
It looks like I was thinking of Landforged Walker as well. Secrets of Xen'drik is the book, in case you are interested.

[ShurikVch]

There are also Tree-Friend PrC in Dragon #307, Verdant Lord PrC from Masters of The Wild, and Plant Grafts from Magic of Eberron

Spoiler: Also, MLP ;)

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[Herbert West]

The Psionic Warrior power Immovability does, well, what it says. as a 4th level power, you can pick it up exactly at 10th level.

Hey presto! I'll need to see what else I can get from Psionic Warrior that's nature-themed. I can probably still get a familiar with a feat, then have the spell to change it into a water elemental.

Tree Shape turns you into a tree, including roots. Create Water can create a small pool of water. Both are easily accessible to a 3rd level Druid.

Tree shape is so perfect. If I'm casting psionics or am silent+still casting, can I cast while being a tree?

If you want to be a slightly more movable tree the Landforged Walker (SoX) prestige class is decent.

Ick, warforged. The class abilities are really neat and it does make warforged closer to nature, but they're still machines, and that's not naturey at all (Discounting Laputa: Castle in the Sky).

May be relevant:

The spell Arboreal Transformation (Complete Mage) will let you turn creatures into treants under your control for days. After the duration expires, they're a normal oak tree.

So you could turn into a tree with an army of trees?

It looks like I can cast this on myself, but then my character is on a ticking clock before they're no longer a character. That's so hardcore! I'm 100% playing that if I can play in a game with 9th level spells. It's like Majora's Mask, but twenty days. Could I use Timeless Unguent or whatever to increase the duration?

Unyielding Roots, Druid 9 spell, may also be of interest!

Once that website isn't giving me a 500 - server error, I'll look this up and see what it does. Do you know what book it's in?

For a lower-level effect, Mountain Stance (SpC, pp. 144-5) is a second-level spell for Druids and Wizards/Sorcerers that makes it very hard for you to be moved. Not impossible, but it's a pretty hefty bonus.

That is a nice bonus. And, it even allows me to move around if nobody is looking! I like this. Maybe there's some way to combine it with shapeshifting into a tree, then to move five feet (with a good move silent check) whenever my party or other people aren't looking, and totally freak them out!

I feel like there is a druid prestige class for this. I just can't remember what it is called!

Paladin Edit:
It looks like I was thinking of Landforged Walker as well. Secrets of Xen'drik is the book, in case you are interested.

Thank you as well, mister paladin. But can a metal man ever truly love nature as much as a creature that was born from it? And, is he alive or dead? Has he thoughts within his head? We'll just pass him there, why should we even care?

There are also Tree-Friend PrC in Dragon #307, Verdant Lord PrC from Masters of The Wild, and Plant Grafts from Magic of Eberron

Spoiler: Also, MLP ;)

Show

#307 is luckily one I have, but dragondex is also down for some reason. I guess I can flip through pages and find it. Are you as frustrated as I am with the terrible table of contents in basically every dragon magazine?

Verdant Lord is neat, and rootlegs are, too. Maybe I can get those so that the whole image of rooting is more realistic, even if they aren't as stable as a lot of the spells.

The FiM link is only 1 second long?

[ShurikVch]

#307 is luckily one I have, but dragondex is also down for some reason. I guess I can flip through pages and find it. Are you as frustrated as I am with the terrible table of contents in basically every dragon magazine?

It's on page 73. This PrC is more dryad-related, but the very name... (also, only 5 levels long)

The FiM link is only 1 second long?

2 seconds. There is longer version of it and one more thematically-related

[Seclora]

There are also Tree-Friend PrC in Dragon #307, Verdant Lord PrC from Masters of The Wild, and Plant Grafts from Magic of Eberron

Spoiler: Also, MLP ;)

Show

Thank you!


Seriously, this is the most druid question I think I've ever seen and i'd hate to discourage such a goal. Live your dream and become a tree!
Or get Yellow Musk Creeper'd, become a zombie creating vine thing. I prefer Orc Wort for minion producing vegetation, but the YMC is more infectious. Definitely the easiest way to obtain the plant type.

[Afgncaap5]

Ick, warforged. The class abilities are really neat and it does make warforged closer to nature, but they're still machines, and that's not naturey at all (Discounting Laputa: Castle in the Sky).

*Snip snip snip*

Thank you as well, mister paladin. But can a metal man ever truly love nature as much as a creature that was born from it? And, is he alive or dead? Has he thoughts within his head? We'll just pass him there, why should we even care?

*The unarmored warforged druid watches the other druids run by before turning back to his hill and solitude, pondering again the cathartic effect that humanoid tears appear to bring to those who are so blessed to not be grown in the creation forges. The sun and moon and brook by his hill remain, though... they understand his friendship, and that is, at the end of the day, all he needs...*

[Forrestfire]

One oft-forgotten fact is that Warforged are part tree. Their core is made out of livewood, with bundles of rootlike fibers forming their "muscles," below all the plating. They're less robots and more armor-covered artificial treants, really. Seems like that could fit into a whole lot of nature themes, especially with the whole "artificial being, but still made of nature" thing.

[TheBrassDuke]

Thank you as well, mister paladin. But can a metal man ever truly love nature as much as a creature that was born from it? And, is he alive or dead? Has he thoughts within his head? We'll just pass him there, why should we even care?

Gonna have to correct you there, friend. If you think of incarnate constructs as living by way of magic, and they are sentient, one would be led to believe they are the most natural thing in all the world. They live because of the Aether, or Incarnum, coursing through their bodies. They are born from nature just as we are, even if they aren't actually products of reproduction.

And Warforged are wholly sentient beings. It is debated, but they do have souls. So maybe Landforged Walker deserves another look.

Endrant.

[Ruethgar]

You could also be from Athas and be a Lifeshaped being. Would have some hefty work with the DM to make that work but if you are made out of Rahn-Rath you could heal from water and sunlight, or you could use one of the other options above and just be the Life Shaper making trees.

A little questionable but if you get a normal Familiar and an Item Familiar you may be able to choose a stronghold plot as your item then Familiar Form(Dragon #280) twice to make the land your permanent body. If you can make it a Legacy Item as well you can get the Call ability to move very slowly(since it can drop in an adjacent square). Casting like that is difficult, but shouldn't be impossible and as an intelligent item you should be able to at least activate your own abilities.

There is of course the sandwich option involving PoA and True Mind Switch into a tree. For a more mobile familiar you can use a Savage Species ritual to give them the Woodling Template and familiar form into them. If the Companion Familiar of the Arcane Herophant is a valid target for Familiar Form you can choose the Dragon #357 druid option for a plant companion and take over that body.

[Herbert West]

Seriously, this is the most druid question I think I've ever seen and i'd hate to discourage such a goal. Live your dream and become a tree!
Or get Yellow Musk Creeper'd, become a zombie creating vine thing. I prefer Orc Wort for minion producing vegetation, but the YMC is more infectious. Definitely the easiest way to obtain the plant type.

Thank you! I'm getting hits for YMC as a PF thing in google; is it also in 3.5? I'll definitely keep it in mind if I join a PF-allowed group.

*The unarmored warforged druid watches the other druids run by before turning back to his hill and solitude, pondering again the cathartic effect that humanoid tears appear to bring to those who are so blessed to not be grown in the creation forges. The sun and moon and brook by his hill remain, though... they understand his friendship, and that is, at the end of the day, all he needs...*

*single tear* I never thought of the warforged as an eternal guardian of nature. Do they live forever?

One oft-forgotten fact is that Warforged are part tree. Their core is made out of livewood, with bundles of rootlike fibers forming their "muscles," below all the plating. They're less robots and more armor-covered artificial treants, really. Seems like that could fit into a whole lot of nature themes, especially with the whole "artificial being, but still made of nature" thing.

I didn't know that to begin with, even! I thought they were just machines, with a name like warforged. That'll teach me to assume.

Gonna have to correct you there, friend. If you think of incarnate constructs as living by way of magic, and they are sentient, one would be led to believe they are the most natural thing in all the world. They live because of the Aether, or Incarnum, coursing through their bodies. They are born from nature just as we are, even if they aren't actually products of reproduction.

And Warforged are wholly sentient beings. It is debated, but they do have souls. So maybe Landforged Walker deserves another look.

Endrant.

How is magic natural? Isn't it extraordinary by its definition since most people don't have it? But regardless, they're created, right? Not something that happens through reproduction. I guess your definition of nature is different from mine, and you know what? That's okay. I'm sorry to make you rant!

Unrelated, there aren't any smilies for crying. There's one for frowning, but that's not the same at all. Anyway, I really just said all that so I could quote Iron Man. Next time I won't, sorry!

You could also be from Athas and be a Lifeshaped being. Would have some hefty work with the DM to make that work but if you are made out of Rahn-Rath you could heal from water and sunlight, or you could use one of the other options above and just be the Life Shaper making trees.

A little questionable but if you get a normal Familiar and an Item Familiar you may be able to choose a stronghold plot as your item then Familiar Form(Dragon #280) twice to make the land your permanent body. If you can make it a Legacy Item as well you can get the Call ability to move very slowly(since it can drop in an adjacent square). Casting like that is difficult, but shouldn't be impossible and as an intelligent item you should be able to at least activate your own abilities.

There is of course the sandwich option involving PoA and True Mind Switch into a tree. For a more mobile familiar you can use a Savage Species ritual to give them the Woodling Template and familiar form into them. If the Companion Familiar of the Arcane Herophant is a valid target for Familiar Form you can choose the Dragon #357 druid option for a plant companion and take over that body.

Wow, Ruethgar! This is perfect. Even if I can only move 5 ft every so often, that's plenty for someone who's mostly spending their time as a tree anyway. Could I fly with the Flying weapon enchantment (from some FR book, I think), and that way contribute if I'm needed in the party, or maybe just be like a floating island above the destroyed world below? Or, isn't there a spell that changes gravity? Could I center gravity in the middle of my form to make a mini-earth that gets bigger as more loose dirt gets near it? Can I just make the earth my familiar and then become it?

Actually, the spell says you can be your familiar until you stop wanting to. Regardless, I could change into my familiar, then cast the creature-to-tree-permanently spell on it, and then go back into the tree that used to be my familiar? I could even use it as a means of transportation with the Call Familiar spell on the same Dragon Magazine page -- bounce back and forth between familiar and land, and when I'm not the land, I can call it to me from up to a mile away. Since the spell says "(within the range of your empathic link)", could I make the distance infinite with an infinite-distance empathic link? If turning into a mini earth means that I get to keep an atmosphere with the gravity, I could make my own planet off in space, where nothing can get to unless I let them! I could basically re-make earth, but without anything nasty.

I think this Familiar Form spell opens up a lot of possibilities.

Oh, also, I don't know what any of these things are:

You could also be from Athas and be a Lifeshaped being. Would have some hefty work with the DM to make that work but if you are made out of Rahn-Rath

Is that a plane?

[Necroticplague]

Oh, also, I don't know what any of these things are: Is that a plane?

Athas is the name of a setting. Commonly known as Dark Sun. There's some second party stuff floating around for it on the web. Lifeshaped is pretty much a catch-all for various life-manipulating techniques, including grafts and simply creating creatures from scratch.

[atemu1234]

Athas is the name of a setting. Commonly known as Dark Sun. There's some second party stuff floating around for it on the web. Lifeshaped is pretty much a catch-all for various life-manipulating techniques, including grafts and simply creating creatures from scratch.

Be careful if you go this route. The locals don't much like casters.

[Herbert West]

Be careful if you go this route. The locals don't much like casters.

Well, that's okay, as long as they like trees ^^ unless they like also pickups with huge engines and then never use them to haul or tow anything and only ever drive on metaled roads (and way over the speed limit at that!) Then it's clear that they're lying about liking trees.

[Ruethgar]

I say cast the familiar form twice because you can completely switch bodies that way. After the second casting dismiss the first then dismiss the second and you go back into the first familiar and can't be dispelled out of it just like the Magic Jar trick that the spell is based on at a lower level. One thing to note if you are using two familiars, one for moving around normally one for being a mini-planet. The normal familiar still only has half your health so you'll be wanting massive Con or to be casting focused.

And depending on what age of play you are from Athas, druids are hunted down and wizards destroy swaths of plant life. Life Shaping is just awesome because, well, create life with a skill check is awesome.

Another one I forgot to mention, the Pre-Epic Epic Destiny Feats have one you can take a 12 that gets you a wildshape into land ability. I know you wanted sooner, but it is exactly what you were after I believe and is of less questionable legality than using a stronghold as an item familiar.

As far as flying and such, I believe you can enchant your familiar/ancestral relic/legacy item after it meets the initial prerequisites so you could add all manner of stronghold options such as land movement and flight.

[Seclora]

Thank you! I'm getting hits for YMC as a PF thing in google; is it also in 3.5? I'll definitely keep it in mind if I join a PF-allowed group.

It is actually, Fiend Folio, Page 190.


Side note for the bronies in the audience; Ahuizotl is also in Fiend Folio. In case you ever wanted a little Daring Do in your campaign.

[Sian]

Verdant Lord (Master of the Wild) works

note that 3 -> 3.5 swapped the names of Command Plants and Control Plants, so you still qualify at the same time in 3.5 as in 3

[Inevitability]

*single tear* I never thought of the warforged as an eternal guardian of nature. Do they live forever?

Yes. Their bodies do decrease somewhat in power when they 'age' (basically, they can advance to a next age category once), but their is virtually no limit on their actual age.