Orchid Mantis Swarm

Few creatures appear as beautiful as the orchid mantises. Their elegant form and coloration resemble flowers, and many people adopt the delicate creatures as short-lived pets. While these mundane insects aren't dangerous to humanoids, they can still bring down prey several times their own size. Unfolding from their flowery pose, orchid mantises lash out with blinding speed, even chasing foraging butterflies with their sharp-toothed arms and powerful bite.

Some mantises have unusually strong connections to elemental power. Though they lack the training to cultivate this energy, when orchid mantises gather at a place of abundant food or overflowing natural energy, they can bring trees to bloom in the depths of winter or turn any stretch of ground into a garden. Despite their beauty, gathering in large groups only seems to exacerbate the mantises' tempers. Although the mantises are individually harmless, anyone disturbing the countless false blossoms is likely to be recognized as food, no matter their size.