Ironmaw

Ironmaws were a type of sentient and carnivorous tree native to the Lower planes.

Description
Ironmaws largely resembled dead, oak trees, though their trunks and limbs were much thicker than they ought to be based on their height. Their twisted limbs were very long and had to be contorted to conceal their true length. They typically had four of these tendril-like limbs, each covered in thorns and capable of growing to lengths of. Only the first were used for combat though, with the excess being hidden in their upper branches.

On average an ironmaw grew to be tall. Their trunk and bark was as dense as iron. They were either leafless or had leaves covered with tiny splotches of blood. On the lower part of their trunks was a jagged mouth crevice, in length, that was lined with sharp knife-edged ridges of bark.

Ironmaws produced dark brown flowers that had a foul scent reminiscent of carrion, which when pollinated developed into dark brown fruit resembling acorn that maintained their stench. Its taste was comparable to its smell.

Personality
Ironmaws were ill-tempered and very malicious, liable to attack any creature that passed by them. They possessed a surprising degree of cunning and would wait patiently for all potential prey to wander into striking distance. Even if they had recently fed, for their ravenous hunger was near endless.

In addition to fire, things that acted as repellent to them included axeblades, or more of salt or silver, and hair from a celestial creature.

Abilities
Ironmaws had the ability to disguise themselves as any type of deciduous tree, which they used to waylay travelers and prey on animals. They slowly grew false leaves, as well as changed the color and texture of their bark to match the forest around them. It could anywhere from two to five days for them to form a perfect duplicate.

Being that they were plants, ironmaws were immune to paralysis, poisons, sleep and polymorph spells, as well as stunning. But as an evil-aligned extraplanar creature, ironmaws were subject to banishment spells such as banishment, dispel evil, and holy word.

Combat
Ironmaws grasped prey with their extensive branches and then dragged them to their waiting jaws. They would not do this to creatures holding fire though, instead slapping or striking at them to keep the creature away.

Their tendril-like limbs dug into the flesh of their victims with their thorns and barbs. The specialized spines then injected virulent spores into the bloodstream of their victim, which had a powerful anticoagulant effect. In addition, as they grappled a target the limbs became more securely anchored to them due to a sticky sap they let off.

Society
Ironmaws were not social creatures. They would typically uproot themselves to destroy nearby saplings, ensuring that they wouldn't have to share their hunting grounds. However, there were places in the Lower planes where several ironmaws could be found clustered around a particularly rich area.

They were typically more active during daylight hours. They reproduced parthenogenetically, producing a bud once every three to seven years, which they would plant near a recent kill and then abandon.

Diet
Ironmaws were a carnivorous species and gained no nourishment from sunlight. Carrion and vegetable matter was tasteless to them. They discarded any cloth, leather, metal, or wooden items held by their prey.

Homelands
Ironmaws were native to the Lower planes, but were occasionally found on the Prime Material plane due to adventurers unknowingly transporting their seeds from the Abyss. They were primarily found in forests, though they could also be found in mountain valleys, swamps, marshes, and on hills of areas with a temperate or warm climate. On the Prime Material plane they tended to stay in one area for extended periods of time, thus the area around them was often littered with the remains of their past victims, but in the Abyss they were constantly on the move.

They were particularly known to grow in the 248 layer of the Abyss the Barrens of Doom and Despair, and the fiendish plane of Fury's Heart.

Languages
Ironmaws only knew how to speak the Abyssal language.

Relationships
Some fiends were known to plant ironmaws to act as guardians of passageways or other accesses to their lairs. Most druids could immediately recognize ironmaws as being unnatural plants. Whenever the presence of one was made apparent in a forest, druids and elves would mount expeditions to eradicate it. Centaurs, dryads, nymphs, and sprites were similarly hostile towards ironmaws and kept close watch of them in case they started approaching any settlement. Green dragons also resented their presence, but sometimes forged alliances with them by means of bribery or intimidation, but these alliances seldom last long.

Ironmaws acted as servants of the deities Deep Duerra, Laduguer and Talona.

Appearances

 * Adventures
 * Expedition to the Demonweb Pits