Alraune

An attractive green-skinned woman sits in the depths of this enormous, sweet-smelling flower.

Alraune is a novel by German novelist Hanns Heinz Ewers published in 1911. It is also the name of the female lead character.

The story of Alraune dates to the Middles Ages in Germany. The humanoid-shaped Mandrake root or Mandragora officinarum was widely believed to be produced by the semen of hanged men under the gallows. Alchemists claimed that hanged men ejaculated after their necks were broken and that the earth absorbed their final “strengths”. In some versions, it is blood instead of semen. The root itself was used in love philtres and potions while its fruit was supposed to facilitate pregnancy. Witches who “made love” to the Mandrake root were said to produce offspring which had no feelings of real love and had no soul.

Fiction

The novel deviates from the myth by concentrating on the issues of artificial insemination and individuality: genetics versus environment. A scientist, Professor Jakob ten Brinken, interested in the laws of heredity, impregnates a prostitute in a laboratory with the semen of a hanged murderer. The prostitute conceives a female child who has no concept of love, whom the professor adopts. The girl, Alraune, suffers from obsessive sexuality and perverse relationships throughout her life. She learns of her unnatural origins and she avenges herself against the professor.

Source: Pathfinder d20pfsrd.com

Alraune CR 13

XP 25,600 NE Large plant Init +5; Senses Low-Light Vision; Perception +17 Aura calming fragrance (60 ft., DC 24)

DEFENSE

AC 27, touch 10, flat-footed 26 (+1 Dexterity, +17 natural, -1 size) hp 199 (19d8+114) Fort +17, Ref +9, Will +11 Immune plant traits; SR 24

OFFENSE

Speed 40 ft. Melee 4 vines +20 (1d10+7 plus grab and bleed) Space 10 ft.; Reach 10 ft. Special Attacks bleed (2d6), constrict (1d10+10), feed Spell-Like Abilities (CL 13th; concentration +18) At will—charm monster (DC 18), detect thoughts (DC 17), suggestion (DC 18) 3/day—quickened glitterdust (DC 17), hold monster (DC 20) 1/day—commune with nature, mind fog, wall of thorns

STATISTICS

Strength 24, Dexterity 13, Constitution 22, Intelligence 10, Wisdom 17, Charisma 21 Base Atk +14; CMB +22 (+26 grapple); CMD 33 (can’t be tripped) Feats Alertness, Cleave, Deceitful, Great Cleave, Improved Initiative, Iron Will, Lightning Reflexes, Power Attack, Quicken Spell-Like Ability (glitterdust), Vital Strike Skills Bluff +16, Disguise +9, Knowledge (nature) +9, Perception +17, Sense Motive +14 Languages Aklo, Common, Elven, Sylvan

SPECIAL ABILITIES

Calming Fragrance (Su) A supernaturally sweet perfume that calms the nerves and blunts aggression constantly surrounds an alraune to a radius of 60 feet. Any creature in this area of effect must make a DC 24 Will save at the start of its turn to avoid falling under the effects of calm emotions for 1 round. Creatures that could be attracted to the alraune’s current apparent gender take a -2 penalty on this Will save, while all other creatures gain a +2 bonus on the save. This is a mind-affecting effect. The save DC is Charisma-based.   Feed (Ex) An alraune’s roots can feed on a helpless or willing target. At the end of an hour of feeding, the victim takes 1d6 points of both Constitution and Intelligence drain, and the alraune heals 3d6 points of damage.

ECOLOGY

Environment temperate forests Organization solitary Treasure standard

An alraune relies on its supernaturally soothing odor to render enemies incapable of making hostile acts against it—even if the alraune attacks a foe, its calming scent can wipe away any thoughts of violence from its prey. At rest, an alraune appears to be merely a large thorny plant with a single enormous and brightly colored flower at its center.

When an alraune attacks, its thorny vines lash out and its flower blooms, revealing an attractive, green-skinned humanoid form within. An alraune’s apparent gender can vary even from encounter to encounter, for the plant can reshape its humanoid portions as it desires to increase the likelihood of setting its victims at ease. Regardless of the plant’s apparent gender, it is itself asexual and reproduces (typically once or twice per decade) by budding a single offspring over the course of a spring season.

Despite their appearance, alraunes are quite mobile (capable of walking almost like a spider upon their numerous long roots and thorny vines). They hunt by using commune with nature to locate potential prey, preferring humanoid flesh over all others. When an alraune needs prey, it uses its mind-affecting abilities to convince foes to dig their own graves and bury themselves once a foe is helplessly buried in the soil, the alraune can feed from it via its flesh-burrowing roots, converting the victim’s blood and memories into the strange nutrients it so craves.

Section 15: Copyright Notice – Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Bestiary 3

Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Bestiary 3, © 2011, Paizo Publishing, LLC; Authors Jesse Benner, Jason Bulmahn, Adam Daigle, James Jacobs, Michael Kenway, Rob McCreary, Patrick Renie, Chris Sims, F. Wesley Schneider, James L. Sutter, and Russ Taylor, based on material by Jonathan Tweet, Monte Cook, and Skip Williams.