Conjuration • Travel Through Living Plants
Transport via Plants
Transport via Plants turns living vegetation into a gateway across vast distances. It is a 6th-level Druid spell in modern D&D and in the published d20 editions, but each ruleset differs in which plants qualify, how long the passage stays open and whether the destination must be familiar.
Transport via Plants at a Glance
| 5.5e / 2024 | Druid 6; 10-foot range; 1 minute; previously seen or touched destination |
|---|---|
| 5e / 2014 | Druid 6; 10-foot range; 1 round; previously seen or touched destination |
| Pathfinder 1e | Druid 6; caster enters a normal plant of equal or larger size; destination need not be known |
| D&D 3.5e | Druid 6; caster enters a Medium or larger normal plant; destination need not be known |
| Legacy Witch archive | Retained in the 7th-level Witch list; does not override published modern class access |
Spell Rules by Edition
Transport via Plants — 5.5e / 2024
| Level/School | 6th-level Conjuration |
|---|---|
| Classes | Druid |
| Casting Time | Action |
| Range | 10 feet |
| Components | V, S |
| Duration | 1 minute |
The spell links one Large or larger inanimate plant within range to a destination plant at any distance on the same plane of existence. The caster must previously have seen or touched the destination. For the full minute, any creature can use 5 feet of movement to step into the origin plant and emerge from the destination plant.
The spell is not concentration, and it does not use the older d20 requirement that both plants be the same species.
Transport via Plants — 5e / 2014
| Level/School | 6th-level Conjuration |
|---|---|
| Classes | Druid |
| Casting Time | 1 action |
| Range | 10 feet |
| Components | V, S |
| Duration | 1 round |
A magical passage connects a Large or larger inanimate plant within 10 feet with another plant on the same plane that you have seen or touched. Any creature may cross by spending 5 feet of movement while the link lasts. Unlike the 2024 spell, the core 2014 duration is only one round.
Transport via Plants — Pathfinder 1e
| School | Conjuration (Teleportation) |
|---|---|
| Level | Druid 6 |
| Components | V, S |
| Casting Time | 1 standard action |
| Range | Unlimited |
| Target | You and touched objects or other willing touched creatures |
| Duration | 1 round |
| Saving Throw | None |
| Spell Resistance | No |
Enter one normal, living plant at least your size and emerge through a living plant of the same kind, anywhere within the spell’s travel reach. You need not know the destination plant. You may specify direction and distance to reach a suitably positioned plant as closely as possible.
Carry objects up to your maximum load, plus one willing Medium or smaller creature per three caster levels, or equivalent larger creatures. A Large creature counts as two Medium; a Huge creature counts as four. The group must maintain physical contact. A plant creature is not a suitable gateway. If a plant occupied during transit is destroyed, the original spell imposes fatal consequences.
Transport via Plants — D&D 3.5e
| School | Conjuration (Teleportation) |
|---|---|
| Level | Druid 6; Witch 7 in the preserved legacy Witch archive |
| Components | V, S |
| Casting Time | 1 standard action |
| Range | Unlimited |
| Target | You and touched objects or other touched willing creatures |
| Duration | 1 round |
| Saving Throw | None |
| Spell Resistance | No |
The original spell allows entry through any normal, living plant of Medium size or larger and exit through a living plant of the same kind, even when the destination is unfamiliar. You may specify a direction and distance. A dead destination plant causes the magic to fail and ejects the travellers.
You may transport one additional willing Medium or smaller creature per three caster levels, or equivalent larger creatures, while keeping everyone in contact. The original wording counts a Huge creature as two Large creatures. Plant creatures are not eligible portals. Destruction of a plant occupied during transport has fatal consequences.
Source: D&D 3.5 SRD — Transport via Plants.
What Changed Between Editions?
- 2024 vs 2014: the passage lasts one minute rather than one round.
- Fifth edition vs d20: the fifth-edition destination must already have been seen or touched, whereas Pathfinder and D&D 3.5e allow an unfamiliar destination of the same plant kind.
- Pathfinder vs 3.5e: Pathfinder requires a plant at least the caster’s size; 3.5e uses Medium or larger. The original creature-size equivalences also differ in their wording.
Using Transport via Plants in Play
It is most useful for long-distance movement, rescue and crossing defensive lines without creating a permanent portal. The spell becomes more valuable when the party can identify a suitable origin plant and—under fifth edition—has already seen or touched the destination. In d20 play, deciding how to locate a living plant of the same kind is the crucial tactical question.
Counterplay and GM Rulings
- Check the size and type of both plants under the edition in use. Plant creatures are not the same as ordinary gateway plants.
- Counterspell can prevent the casting; Dispel Magic can disrupt the magical transport while it persists, according to the appropriate edition.
- Do not allow a fifth-edition one-minute gate in a 2014 or d20 game without an explicit conversion.
- In d20 play, the dangerous consequences of destroying a plant during transit remain part of the original spell, not a rule to import into fifth edition automatically.
Related Magic
Mythical Context
Ovid tells of Daphne escaping pursuit through transformation into a laurel. The story imagines a person passing the boundary between human and tree, while Transport via Plants imagines travellers passing through a living tree to somewhere else. The common theme is that a tree may be a threshold rather than mere scenery. See The Metropolitan Museum’s Apollo and Daphne.
Historical Context
The Roman writer Pliny reported that certain trees and groves carried particular ritual importance for Gaulish druids. Whatever the limits of his outsider’s account, it gives a historical reason for travellers to approach an ancient grove with care. The record describes rites and beliefs—not actual plant portals. See Pliny on sacred groves and mistletoe.
Rules Sources and Licensing
D&D 2024: SRD 5.2.1 (CC BY 4.0); 2014: SRD 5.1 (CC BY 4.0); Pathfinder 1e and D&D 3.5e: their respective OGL v1.0a rules. The legacy Witch archive placement is retained without granting modern Witch access. The original public-domain Vincent van Gogh painting remains in place.
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