Close up illustration of several mostly transparent blades of grass in front of a rock wall. This isn’t exactly how the invisibility of Invisible Grass works, but invisible things are hard to depict and this illustration gets across the idea.
Safety Rating: Mildly dangerous.
Environment: Grasslands.
Details: This magical grass grows in small clumps that are two and a half feet tall. Every part of the grass that is above ground is completely invisible. This invisibility is a type of Sensing Magic that bends light around the plant. Because of this, any creature or object that is in the middle of a clump of Invisible Grass also becomes invisible. This makes Invisible Grass a favorite hiding place for many small animals. In particular, several species of bird hide their nests in patches of Invisible Grass.
While Invisible Grass is important for wildlife, because it has a tendency to grow in disturbed areas, it can become a significant road hazard. When it grows on the roadside, or in the in the middle of less used roads, it can cause accidents by tripping unsuspecting people and animals. In those areas where Invisible Grass is more common, travelers often carry long poles that they use to probe the ground in front of them.
Lore: The magical invisibility of Invisible Grass only lasts while it is alive. Once a blade of grass is cut or uprooted, the invisibility starts fading. Invisible Grass can be used to create a fabric that makes its wearer hard to see, but doing this takes intense alchemical processing that must start immediately after the grass is cut. Even with all of this effort, the invisibility still fades within a month. As a result, people rarely bother to make it.
Tripping Hazard: Any character that moves through a patch of Invisible Grass without probing the ground in front of them is in danger of tripping. Roll the Perception skill to find out if they notice subtle signs of the grass’ presence before tripping over it. If the characters are walking single file, this will happen to whoever is first. If not, then it happens to all of them.
- 0 Successes: A failure means that the character is taken completely by surprise when they trip over something that they can’t see. The character hits the ground hard and drops everything that they are holding. One of these dropped items disappears into a patch of Invisible Grass. If the character isn’t holding anything, then a piece of their gear gets damaged in their fall. Alternatively, instead of dropping or damaging their gear, the character could end up stumbling into a dangerous plant or animal.
- 1 Success: A partial success means that right before the character trips, they notice a subtle sign that indicates the presence of the Invisible Grass. The character doesn’t have enough time to avoid tripping, but they are prepared enough to land well. None of their objects get dropped or damaged in their fall.
- 2 Successes: A full success means that the character notices the Invisible Grass in time for them to avoid tripping over it.
- 3 Successes: An outstanding success means that the character avoids tripping and they notice something distinctive that they can use to unerringly spot the Invisible Grass in this area. This means that, as long as they are able to look around carefully, they won’t trip over Invisible Grass (no rolls needed).
Once the characters know about the presence Invisible Grass, they are prepared on their perceptions checks to visually spot the subtle signs that indicate its presence. In addition, any character that takes the time to probe what is in front of them, or otherwise moves with extreme care, does not need to roll to avoid the Invisible Grass.
Invisible Grass is part of the Crossroads Setting for the tabletop role-playing game, Magic Goes Awry. Click here to go to the list of wild and whimsical magical plants from the Land of Crossroads.
