
Illustration of a lush swamp lit dramatically by the afternoon sun shining through the leaves of the trees. Arching out from behind a patch of trees is a huge scorpion tail that is the same dappled brown as the tree trunk it is hiding behind.
Safety Rating: Extremely dangerous.
Environment: Wetlands where there is plenty of cover, especially swamps.
Details: The fruiting bodies of this predatory fungus grow into enormous green and brown scorpion tails on top of many-legged, crawling bodies the size of large dogs. Called Scorpion Tails, these fruiting bodies are usually eight feet tall, but tails up to twelve feet tall have been documented. They stalk animals, ducking agilely behind trees until they get close enough to strike with their stingers, which are sharp enough to pierce metal and stone. They use these stingers to stabs deep into their victims, injecting spores.
Scorpion Tails attack repeatedly until their target is dead. Then they stand guard over the carcass, protecting it from scavengers so that the spores have had time to grow and produce new Scorpion Tails. Scorpion Tails that are guarding carcasses are relatively docile and only attack things that get close to them. However the presence of a Scorpion Tail guarding a carcass is a clear sign of danger, because there will be other Scorpion Tails in the area.
When hunting for prey, Scorpion Tails are attracted to movement, especially fast movement. They prefer larger prey and, when possible, they go after isolated prey, rather than groups. This means that stealth can be a useful protection against Scorpion Tails. Being small and staying in groups also helps. In addition, because the Scorpion Tails are so tall and top-heavy, once they have been knocked over, it takes them a few minutes to get back up. However knocked over Scorpion Tails are still dangerous, as they can strike with their stingers while on their sides.
Lore: One popular story describes Oriel (or-ee-EL) Dancer, an orcish folk hero and rogue, who defended themself from a Scorpion Tail by getting it to attack an inanimate object and then trapping its stinger inside that object. It is unclear how effective this technique would be outside of a story. Continue Reading »
Tags: carnivorous, carnivorous fungus, Crossroads, dangerous, magic, Magic Goes Awry, magical plant, plant, predatory, scorpion, scorpion tail, scorpion tail fungus, swamp, wetland