Living Effigy

This massive collection of bone-white branches and blood-matted fur stalks the grove it protects with relentless dedication, hunting down trespassers and delivering retribution at its creator's command with brutal efficiency. These fetid guardians are created in a bloody ritual using the twigs of a dying plant and the fur of a rabid animal and are given life with the sacrifice of an intelligent creature. They're usually seen at the side of corrupted druids, keeping their sanctums safe from trespassers. Other druids or rangers might stomach the gruesome ritual if they find themselves desperate enough to need protection at any cost.

These twisted constructs are almost undetectable in the wild despite their prodigious size, gliding invisibly between the trees. The unnatural growth that surrounds an effigy at all times gives its presence away—but by the time the vines wrap around an intruder's legs, it's far too late to escape the creature's wrath. Without warning, the effigy then emerges from the soil in an explosion of rocks and wood splinters, carving a bloody path through its enemies. Effigies often leave a single obvious escape route when they attack, forcing their prey to delve deeper into the woods where more of their kind lie in wait.