Welcome to the flora and funga compendium! It lists and details all the known plants and mushrooms that are exclusive to Threa, so that do not exist on Earth already. While Earthly plants also exist in Threa and are mentioned across the region pages (e.g., oaks, strawberries, etc.), they are not featured here. You will have to find information on them elsewhere.

The list is not exhaustive. It only elaborates on elements that have come up in roleplay, stories, or similar.

C

Carcass Keeper

Grown specimen of this mushroom have a thin, up to 20 cm (7.8") long stem with a large head on top. The mushroom head is up to 8 cm (3.1") tall and shaped like an upside-down cone; the pointy end is connected to the stem and the top is flat. By overhanging the edge of the cone top a little, the fleshy roof of the mushroom protects the gills running down its sides. The entire mushroom is pale white in color.

The fungus is extremely toxic – lethal even in small doses. Consumption or getting it into a wound leads to poisoning, the former within minutes, the latter within seconds. Symptoms include agonizing headaches, strong nausea, and vomiting. The affected creature will succumb to pain-induced madness, ultimately dying of failure of the liver and nervous system.

Spores of the carcass keeper will stick to any creature that got near the mushroom, and they will of course be within any that eats it. They are harmless. Upon the creature's death, the spores will grow within and on the dead body. It does not matter whether the being died of carcass keeper poisoning or not. Corpses attract scavenger, and the mushroom assists in drawing them in by smelling potently of rotting meat. Eating the carrion comes at the risk of eating the young mushrooms or at least being covered in their spores – the cycle continues. Since some beasts have adapted to this by instinctively avoiding dead bodies that have an unnaturally strong smell or mushrooms already growing out of it, the fungus is often found on undisturbed carcasses, hence the name.

Carcass keepers grow wherever conditions are warm, humid, and shady. They dislike direct sunlight, and they cannot handle the cold. Outside of dead bodies, they also grow on dead plants and humus rich soil, just less well. Overall, they can be commonly found in the deep, gloomy woods of the Starless Jungle and in the wetlands of the Four-Faced Forests, especially in its western half. Populations disappear within the cold seasons and rapidly re-appear once temperatures increase and animals become more active, spreading the spores around.

Toxic as it is, the carcass keeper is popular among assassins and people that wish others a most painful death. It can also be used as a form of arrow poison. To poison someone's food, the mushroom must merely be included in the meal. Cooking the mushroom on a low temperature first is recommended; it gets rid of the smell, but it does not lessen its effects. Using it as a poison for blades requires alchemical work, which will yield a pale white, vicious liquid to spread on arrow tips, blades, or that can also be added to a meal or beverage.

V

Varhal’s Flower

Varhal's flower has a bright yellow blossom shaped like a chalice. It is wide open at the top and narrow at the bottom with concave sides. Its base grows numerous wide and long leaves. Inside the blossom sits a thick, hairy gynoecium, which constantly oozes a sweet, slightly yellow nectar.

The nectar of Varhal's flower is a tasty treat for insects, but it has negative effects on larger beasts. Most species receive a slight stomach- and headache after eating a few of Varhal's flowers. Dragons and woodstriders are more adversely affected. They become horribly ill to the point of throwing up. Hence, woodstrider breeders eradicate the plant on their pastures. It could potentially kill their livestock otherwise.

The plant naturally occurs in the Crowndales, but it could potentially grow anywhere in the Four-Faced Forests; it just has not spread far enough yet. It requires sunny, open fields to grow. Even partial shade will impede its growth. It also needs a cooler climate. It will wilt in the Sunblessed Lands or the Zephyr Plains. Plenty of rain must happen upon it, too. It is a very choosy flower.

Professional dragonslayers grow Varhal's flower in their gardens or buy it off the market to brew Varhal's Dragonbane, a potent poison made out of Varhal's flower and a variety of poisonous plants indigenous to the Four-Faced Forests. The toxin only works on dragons; it does not even have an impact on woodstriders. Once in the bloodstream of an appropriate victim, Varhal's Dragonbane causes its muscles to become very tired and slow, especially those in the chest area. This is where the wing muscles and heart are located. These muscles grow so leaden that flight becomes practically impossible; the dragon would risk falling out of the sky! It also makes running away on paw much more difficult as the beast cannot reach high running speeds in their poisoned state.

Legendary kulslayer Varhal Scalecutter was the first to figure out how to create this poison, thus the name of flower and bane.