Monstrous Plant-like creatures with all-consuming appetites, the shambling mound was a formidable and terrifying amalgamation of organic material. They typically resembled a grotesque weave of vines, mosses, and rotting vegetation intertwined into a humanoid shape; their thick, fibrous bodies were covered in slimy mottled green and brown patches. Their massive limbs ended in grasping tendrils tipped with sharp thorns or gnarled roots, which were used to ensnare prey and crush them into submission.
Possessing a voracious need to devour and an ability to blend seamlessly into its swampy or forested habitats, shambling mounds were incredibly deadly to encounter. They moved slowly and deliberately, absorbing nutrients from decomposing matter and thriving in environments teeming with life and death. Despite their sluggish appearance and name, they possessed surprising speed when alerted, and would engulf smaller threats whole.
These creatures were created when arcane lightning or Fey magic invigorated an otherwise ordinary swamp plant. When reborn into a second life, the plant choked the life from flora and fauna around it, mulching their corpses in a heap around its roots. Those roots eventually give up their reliance on the soil, directing the shambling mound to seek out new sources of food. The resulting creature was immune to lightning and resistant to fire and cold, as it thrummed with minor Evocation energy.
Occasionally, shambling mounds could be created from other dead organic material, such as the bodies of Mortalkind or Giant-kin. These rare creatures, made from rotting flesh and viscera, were typically animated with Undead Spellcraft, but behaved similarly to standard shambling mounds.