ECOLOGY

Environment any underground
Organization solitary or grove (2-5)
Treasure incidental

A phantom fungus is a tripedal carnivorous plant that roams the vast and deep underground caverns of the world. It wanders in search of food, using its rootlike feet to detect movement along the cavern floors and the sensitive tendrils surrounding its mouth to pinpoint prey.

A phantom fungus's primary advantage as a predator is its ability to vanish from sight. Stealthily patrolling the perimeters of caverns, a phantom fungus remains invisible until it is behind its prey, at which point it snaps at its victim with its vicious maw.

A phantom fungus prefers to ambush lone creatures. When it encounters a larger group, a phantom fungus often stalks prey for hours, waiting for the targets to spread out or make camp so that it may attack a single foe at its leisure. Though phantom fungi are not normally pack hunters, there are reports of groves working together to bring down larger foes. When faced with no other option than to attack multiple foes, a group of phantom fungi focuses its attacks on single targets. They prefer to attack noisier foes if possible—characters wearing heavy armor or those that make heavy use ofloud attacks (such as bards or spellcasters) are preferred over quieter creatures.

The maw with which a phantom fungus attacks prey is lined with row upon row of sharp, jagged teeth that resemble pointed rocks more than actual fangs. This "mouth" is not used to feed, however, and does not attach to a digestive tract—it is nothing more than a gaping natural weapon. When a phantom fungus feeds, it does so by squatting down on its prey and infesting the corpse with thousands of feeding filaments that burrow through dead flesh to siphon away nutrients. A typical phantom fungus is 6 feet tall and weighs 200 pounds. Although they prefer dwelling underground, they have been encountered above ground as well.