A hardy and woody plant that may, under the right conditions, grow into a tree. It thrives in the harsh conditions of the east (dry, salty, hot, etc), and, with it’s thin dark leaves and peely bark, looks like rather sparse and inconspicuous ground cover. That is, until it blooms and reveals the source of its name: aster means ‘star’. Indeed, the blossoms of this shrub are bright white and shine with a metallic-silver light. Sharp petals flare out from the floret in the shape of a starburst. Though it rarely blooms, the aster scrub lights up in cold white starlight whenever it does.

• Found in: Eastern Flats, Espoir Canyons, Hraunor, Glaring Geysirs

Often called ‘Dancers,’ this ground-clinging shrub looks like pale green lace that covers various parts of the Tundra. Despite it’s delicate stems and leaves, dancers have remarkably sturdy roots able to pierce permafrost and even some rocks. Aptly named, the plant blooms with mirrored petals only beneath the Aurora Borealis, and the flowers twist to follow and reflect the Northern Lights as they dance across the sky. However, the petals quickly shrivel and fall one the Lights cease. The leaves are rather bitter, but the blooms (while the last) are said to be the sweetest in all of the Rift.

• Found in: Aurora Tundra, The Heimasborg

Towering trees with wide branches and canopies. These trees appear similar to oak trees, with the major differences lying in the hues. The wood of the tree is black, covered in bark of blacks and deep greys. The leaves are black as well, and from the tree grows acorn-like nuts, which are white and sparkling and stud the overhead like stars. The sap of the tree is tarry, and near impossible to remove from skin and fur. But, if able to remove, the tar leaves brilliant glowing markings upon those who are stained by it. They are found scattered throughout the Bloodmountains and Aurora Tundra, starkly black against the white and red scenery.

• Found in: Aurora Tundra, Bloodmountains, The Heimasborg

Closely resembling a rose bush with oily dark green leaves and huge black roses, Black Comfort draws its name from the narcotic properties of the plant. Though highly toxic if consumed, the scent or smoke from the burned wood or leaves can induce a state of happiness and well being and has hallucinogenic properties. While sometimes used for medicinal purposes the plant is more often used for recreation, though as it is highly addictive the use of it is frowned upon in more civilized company. Disliking dry conditions and salt water, Black Comfort grows along the foothills of the Bloodmountains. Great caution should be taken when drinking still water anywhere near this plant, as it's toxins sometimes drain out into nearby springs and ponds.

• Found in: Bloodmountain's foothills

A morbid curiosity that blooms in the ruins of Halyven, the bloodhart flower is a vine which thrives in in unique conditions: shadowed roots and bright sun for its flowers. Thus, it can be seen sprouting from cracks in the ruined white walls while its bright green vine snakes towards bright sunlight. Blooming throughout the year, the bright red flowers are shaped as hearts and, at night, pulse with muted red light that it collects throughout the day. Though quite curious to look at, one wouldn’t be advised to consume the plant…

• Found in: Halyven

A species of giant tree native to the Riptide Isles (though miniaturized versions live on the Floating Key), they grow slowly but can reach heights of over 300 feet with trunks easily extending 30m in diameter. The bark is velvety and soft and hold a luminous gray to white color that resemble bleached bone, while the palm-sized, ginko-shaped leaves maintain a gleaming golden color year round. It flowers during early Scorch, and drop large succulent fruits during the shift from Drench to Freeze, providing a much needed source of sustenance before the long cold.

Other than its nourishing qualities, Bonewood is notorious for its lightweight, yet very strong, wood. A fully grown tree is nearly impossible to destroy, but the wood of saplings or younger trees has traditionally been used in place of metal and is prized for its flexible yet durable quality. Due to the slow growth of the tree and its largely endemic nature, Bonewood has always been rare and since the disappearance of the Riptide Isles only a handful trees remain in the South, scattered along the coastline.

• Found in: Riptide Isles, Floating Key

Growing only in the Glowworm Woods, no one knows quite how big the Cael Arborus can become, but they are indicating the will become massive in both girth and height. Already, these silver-barked trees have begun to dwarf their more regular companions, but size alone is not what makes them special: massive flower buds grow among their leaves high, high up. Each tree flowers in a specific season, though which season it is varies from tree to tree.

The flowers are absolutely massive, resembling giant sunflowers easily several yards across the carpel. Most commonly, the flowers are a clear sky blue, though variations exist, such as sunny yellow, stormy gray, deep blue, white, or even the occasional purple, red, or green. Their nectar is nourishing and mildly intoxicating, but very difficult to access, since the flowers only grow at the top of the trees.

• Found in: Glowworm Woods

The predominate cactus of the great desert, this tough plant grows quite large and tall in the desert (as if it were a cactus tree). Though it’s massive body and arms harbor sweet and watery flesh that call to any dessicated creature, beware its stickers! The carycactus’ spines are filled with a poison that, when injected in small doses merely cause a burning itch; but in large doses, cause a loss of consciousness. It is this that reveals how the carycactus grows so large: the tangled roots quickly emerge from the surface and leach all moisture from any living creature that spends too long in the shade of it’s thick, thorny branches.

• Found in: Eastern Flats inland desert

Found only in Ultima’s cave, this amusing small growth likes to grow in shadowed, wet, briny places. Once established, the alga and fungi work together to secrete crystal films from the hyphae. However, don’t get too close, as the growth spurts out irritating, sticky glitter when disturbed. This shimmering, white substance can take up to 2 days to stop itching and wash off.

• Found in: Ultima

The darkberry bush is aptly named: the entirety of the plant is pitch black. From roots to stem to leaves to berries, the shrub absorbs all light. Found only around the Tar Pits and their foul-smelling water, this plant is edible. However, due to its absorption of light, all parts grow quite hot and can easily cause blistering burns in the mouth.

• Found in: Tar Pits

Black-barked, oak-like trees with gemstones hidden in the cracks of their bark. Touching the gemstones will reveal that they are not gemstones, but gem fairies (see Fauna). The sap of the Deviltree is rich and juicy, with mild intoxication qualities, making it favorite of rowdy Riftians. However, getting to the sap without upsetting the fairies is extremely difficult!

• Found in: Siren's Summit, Ennunyenda's foothills, Green Labyrinth, Uwaritace, occasionally in the Bloodmountains and Blood Falls

A relative of the weeping willow, this unique tree lives only in Solanis. The leaves are paired up, looking like dragonfly wings. They are a vibrant green until they fall off, at which time they turn to various shades of purple and maroon. They flutter around the forest to spread the seeds of the tree— often giving unsuspecting travellers a start! Seeds are paired up with the leaves and glow a faint green light at night.

• Found in: Solanis

• Reference: One

This oddity of a flower feeds solely on solar energy that it absorbs through its outer, elongated petals (which resemble feathers, thus its name). Its central petals possess razor-sharp edges that protect it from all but the most determined and daring herbivore from devouring is succulent, sweet center. The Feather Float does just that: it floats on magical currents around the great desert. Occasionally a wayward bloom can be found outside the desert, but these plants require so much solar energy that they don’t long survive. It’s uncertain how they reproduce, for they’ve no roots or pollen.

• Found in: Eastern Flats inland desert

A small pod of that grows on a ubiquitous shrub, covered by tough, wood-like gray leaves. If you pry the leaves away, the core of the Firetongue is revealed: a soft, nectar-tasting, fleshy center, bright orange. Firetongue is very intoxicating (pass out within five minutes), but is capable of nourishing a body and generating warmth for hours.

• Found in: The plains and mountains north of the Bloodmountains

The flower is usually bright pink, red, or orange. The petals are fragile, and they bloom out to make the plant look like a firework. The leaves and stem are a lighter yellow color when the flower has bloomed. The flowers usually blossoms around mid to late scorch. Be warned not to get too close to a blooming Firework Lilly. They will release pollen that looks like a fire work. When the pollen touches you, it will burn the skin like fire. Symptoms will resolve within a few minutes. Starting early freeze the buds on the plant are safe to eat. The stem and leaves turn a dull orange color. This signalizes that the plant is now safe to touch. They are sweet in flavor, but there is a spicy kick to it. Eating the plant can help warm the body up in the sub zero Freeze weather. Making the season a bit more bearable to those that are smart enough to eat it.

• Found in: Southern Aurora Tundra, Bloodmountains, Halyven, Uwaritace, Green Labyrinth, Siren's Summit, Glowworm Woods, Aldrnari Expanse

A curious algae, this reddish growth flows in and out of the tidepools all along the rocky eastern coast. Tending to bloom in late Scorch, this algae is inert as long as music flows through the air to ripple the water it lives in. However, beware being caught in a bloom without music, for in silence the Red Algae seeks out and infects any living, non-aquatic flesh. When infested in skin, it causes a grotesque red rash that itches terribly and lasts until the colder months.

• Found in: Mangrove Tidepools, Halcyon Flats

A very rare and very beautiful flower that blooms only when it hears the sirens’ song—and closes when the song ends. The flower has extremely potent healing properties, but is incredibly difficult to harvest due to the circumstances. It grows on the shores of the lake below the Siren’s Summit. The sirens are very protective of it, as they use it to place a protective coating over their eggs and nourish their newborn young. Beware getting caught with one by a siren!

• Found in: Siren's Summit

The undergrowth of Solanis is populated with a vigorous species of fern tha successfully out-competes small trees for space. These ferns grow rapidly in their first few years, reaching an average maximum height of 10 feet with one or two magnificent specimens reaching 13 feet. Like all ferns, this species reproduces via spores. The giant fern’s spores are a deep black in colour and are released in vast quantities after each Drench before the ground freezes. It’s unwise to inhale these spores, as they are known to root within the nostrils and lungs of those who make that mistake, and a skilled healer will be needed to remove the young fern before long.

• found in: Solanis

A species of tree native to Helovia, the previously opened Portals to the Rift saw an introduction of the plant to the dark world. Especially abundant amidst the Rainforest Cliffs, which largely resemble its previous habitat at the World's Edge. Growing quickly in the humid climate they are competing with other native plants and due to its hardiness it is threatening to overtake many other native flora. Glow cherries resemble a weeping willow tree with overhanging branches that create sheltered spaces around the trunk, which is rough and black with glowing silver veins running lengthwise through the entire tree. It sets deep bluish-purple flowers with pure white centers late during the Drench, while the glowing white fruit with blood red flesh, from which it has its name, ripen at the end of the Scorch. Also known as silver-vein or glow-wood, the tree has previously been used in crafting as the black wood and the silvery glow of the veins retain the light-bringing properties even after the tree has died.

• Found in: Rainforest Cliffs, Floating Key, Mangrove Tidepools, Halyven

A kind of lithops, growing wherever the ground is rocky enough. They tend to glow at night, as if sprinkled by shimmering dust. They come in a wild variety of colors: blue, white, green, red, amber, yellow, purple, pink… They are very chewy, almost rubbery, to eat, and offer little nutrition.

• Found in: Siren's Summit, Ennunyenda, Bloodmountains, Blood Falls, The Pinnacle, Halyven, Glaring Geysirs, Hraunor, Espoir Canyons

The Heart of the North is a fruit-bearing tree, and is counted by many as a life-saving blessing. It's a spindly tree, delicate-looking, and rarely much taller than a horse. Its bark is pale and translucent, the sap rich and sweet, but be careful: while they can withstand the extreme climate of the north, they are very sensitive to dehydration, and many trees have withered and died after the unwary have scored their trunks and drunk too much of their sap.

The tree carries leaves year round, each one of them being fine and filigreed with what seems to be silver thread. It starts to flower in early Drench, and the flowers are just as ethereal as the rest of the tree: delicate and blue and white. The fruits start to grow as it turns towards Freeze. About Mid-Freeze the fruits are ready for consumption. They're about the size and shape of a small apple, a beautiful gradient of blues and sparkling with frost, but their flesh is golden and warm. Aside from tasting sweet and well, the fruits are nourishing and generate warmth.

If left to their own devices, the trees fare rather well, preferring wet snowfalls in the Drench and cold, dry Freezes, but they are sensitive and easily destroyed by those seeking their fruits and sap.

• Found in: Aurora Tundra, The Heimasborg, and the northern coast

An amusing aquatic plant found only in the frigid northern seas, this blue-streaked green seaweed grows hundreds of feet tall in thick forests beneath the ice. When eaten, this aptly named plant causes persistent (but mild) spasms of the diaphragm, resulting in long-lasting hiccups.

• Found in: Frozen Sea

A football-sized succulent with leaves the shape of serrated knife blades. They are a gradient of grey, black and dark red which gives them the appearance of blood-stained steel. The flesh of these plants is watery and sweet, but just one mouthful is enough to cause terrifying hallucinations.

• Found in: Siren's Summit, Ennunyenda, The Pinnacle, Halyven, Glaring Geysirs, Hraunor, Espoir Canyons

This singular species of mangrove dominates the swamps that surround the tidepools along the eastern coast. It appears like any normal red mangrove stand; however, the roots that poke above the surface of the water have the peculiar tendency to tie (and untie) themselves in knots. Although not truly dangerous unless a body part of a distracted traveller gets caught in a knot, it does make travelling in these swamps rather difficult and tedious.

• Found in: Mangrove Tidepools

Also known as the Living Trees, these are the rarest of any species in the Rainforest Cliffs. They are great and ancient giants that truly live. They may stand and walk on their roots; at their core is a beating heart; leaves breath with mouths; at their apex is a cluster of dense wood that provides a brain. Very, very few are left, as their life force stems from a pure and powerful magic untouched by taint. Thus, the Rift consumes them eagerly. It is rumored that these were the first heart of the Rift, before the gods and other hearts. If you stumble across one, count yourself very blessed.

• Found in: Rainforest Cliffs

Found only in very high altitudes of the Bloodmountains and rare patches across the Aurora Tundra, the Magical Lupins is a very rare flower that, like its normal cousin does with nitrogen, fixes magic from the air into the soil. Thus, the earth around any patch lupines is rich with magic, making it ripe for harvest. The flower, itself, is surprisingly rather useless when picked; though it is quite beautiful, as the color of the blooms is dictated by whatever magic currently being absorbing from the air.

• Found in: Bloodmountains, occasionally on the Aurora Tundra

A succulent shrub that grows well in the sandy areas, eating this plant allows one to breath underwater. The older the plant, the longer it may allow one to breath underwater; however, extremely old plants become poisonous! The color of their leaves are dependent on the sand-type they grow in. They rarely flower, but the blooms are very sweet. Their roots are hallucinogenic.

• Found in: All temperate coasts, and the edges of the Eastern Flats desert

Similar in appearance to a sea anemone, only land dwelling. It grows in deep forests. When brushed against, they leave long "tracks" from their tentacles, and create a burning stinging sensation. Prolonged exposure creates more extreme injuries, in to and including death. Unfortunately, magical healing does not work to quell the burning and pain. The only cure for symptoms is dousing the site in urine to interfere with the plant's oils.

• Found in: Mainly in the Rainforest Cliffs and on the Floating Key, but they are occasionally encountered in other forests as well, e.g. Siren's Summit, Uwaritace, Solanis, Glowworm Woods

A white, low-growing flower that spreads out like a carpet surrounding Uwaritace. When its petals are hit by raindrops, they emit a soft weeping sound that—when compounded by the many flowers—can grow deafening in Drench. They bloom in Drench and during mild Freezes. Few ever step on these sad blossoms, but it is said that those who do sink into a deep depression for many days after. Due to their mournful effects, not many harvest or investigate these flowers.

• Found in: Uwaritace

This flowering plant produces beautiful white lilies among long light green leaves on towering stalks. The stamens and carpels glow a beautiful golden color. When eaten, they can help reduce the emotional strain of a broken heart. Mourning lilies grow at the site of decomposing body matter, and only last one blooming cycle, but have been known to last more at sites of great loss of life.

• Found in: Glowworm Woods, Aldrnari Expanse, Uwaritace, Solanis, Green Labyrinth

A small shrub, the Poison Puffer is scattered throughout the forests in the South. Typically dormant and harmless, it is most dangerous in Drench when the seed pods are at their fullest. Fat little brown pods covered in dimples rest between two leaves, growing in clusters that, when crushed, releases a toxin causing the adjacent pods to rapidly inflate. The dimples, when forced out by the inflation, turn into sharp spikes that may break skin and cause mild skin irritation. Pods remain inflated until rotting; however they are filled with a delicious fruity meat.

• Found in: Rainforest Cliffs, Floating Key, Mangrove Tidepools

This tree is scattered throughout the east, apparently having no predilection for soil, water, or temperature. Relatively rare, its pale green bark bright white leaves are easily spotted and identified in any location. This average-sized tree earns it name from its fruit: apples with white, opalescent skin whose flesh is a bright color of any in the spectrum. Naturally, one would want to eat such a fruit; however, consuming its flesh is quite unique. It alters the eyesight of the devourer to see only in shades of the apple’s flesh-color. The effect varies in length, sometimes lasting minutes while other times causing a permanent change.

• Found in: Eastern Bloodmountains, all of the Eastern Flats, Rainforest Cliffs, Floating Key

A plant the grows both as a bush and vine, the Rift grape grows throughout the eastern lands. It does, though, require much water (salty or fresh), so it can only be found near the Tar Pits or other oases in the desert. Broad, wide leaves grow in green shades that vary depending on soil and water available to the plant. Its fruiting body, the grape, also varies in color. Despite its abundance, the plant is rather useless. The leaves are bitter and lack any real nutrition the grapes are slightly poisonous (usually causing a rather vicious colic/stomach-ache).

• Found in: Eastern Flats near water sources, Rainforest Cliffs, Floating Key

A tree that produces red or brown pear-shaped fruits with incredibly delicate skin. With the slightest disturbance the skin of the sanguine pear will retract and it's thorn-like seeds will explode outwards. These seeds are coated in a mild poison which when stuck to a creatures skin will cause hideous boils that clear usually within one to two weeks. Ingestion of the seeds or fruit generally leads to stomach and mouth ulcers. A heavy wind or even a gentle knock can cause these fruit to explode, so it is unwise to graze near these trees as the ingestion of a stray seed is not uncommon.

• Found in: All regions south of the Bloodmountains, though they are very rare in the Eastern Flats inland desert

A lush green moss that grows along the ground in the Rainforest Cliffs. Though visually indistinguishable from regular moss, when this species is stepped upon it releases a scream akin to that of a foal in severe pain.

• Found in: Rainforest Cliffs

This is a lovely, pale bluish-green, parasitic vine that lives throughout the Rainforest Cliffs. It reproduces asexually, flowering bi-annually in late scorch and late freeze. When on a host, the blooms are varied in color, depending largely on the vine’s shared biology with its host. Vines that have been germinated on their hosts produce seeds from their flowers, which are later shed and rooted into the ground. These non-hosted vines preferring lots of moisture and variable sunlight, and they grow from a central root source into a patch of sprawling vines that produce blue-white flowers that taste sweet and have an alluring, calming scent.

These flowers however, contain a strong sedative in their pollen, which can either be inhaled or ingested, and causes a nearly instantaneous slumber. Once the unsuspecting victim has fallen asleep, the vines sense the nearby heat source, uproots itself, and crawls upon the host. The roots burrow into the host, inserting a seed just under the skin. The rest of the vine dies off, while the seed continues to grow internally, in search of nervous tissue. The plant grows along the host’s neurons, eventually making its way to the brain. Infected individuals appear to be decorated by this living vine that threads in and out of their body. Long-term effects come with variable negative psychological disturbances. It is otherwise harmless short-term. To get rid of the Sleeping Beauty, one must harm their nervous system to kill the growth (i.e. drug/alcohol intoxication, poisoning, extended fast, prolonged lack of sleep, etc.), or by manual removal.

• Found in: Rainforest Cliffs

These bright flowers are round and about the size of the average hoof. Each flowerhead sports 75-100 small, vibrant petals that are every shade of yellow imaginable. Beneath the trees in Solanis, these flowers shine with a brightness that rivals the sun itself. Indeed, each flower is akin to a miniature sun — they provide light for their fellow plants and are hot to the touch, so it is not recommended for those of fair coats to spent too much time in their light lest a sunburn occur!

• Found in: Solanis

True to its name, this small shrub is impossibly sour to the palate (and has the unfortunate consequence of making most things taste sour in the mouth for days afterwards). However, it is a good source of moisture in the desert, where it happily grows in relative abundance. Pale green leaves are thick and waxy, while a dark green stem is hardy, slightly woody, and spreads along the moistureless sands.

• Found in: Eastern Flats inland desert

Rare trees found in clusters on the northern plains. They almost always grow in ancient groves, and new groves are quite rare. Their trunks are tall and straight; their dark leaves are distant. What makes them special is the fact that their bark seems permanently covered in frost, always reflecting the stars and the moon, as all other things only do on bitterly cold Freeze nights. Oddly, adding this tree’s bark to any water will bring it to a cold, bubbling boil.

• Found in: The plains north of the Bloodmountains

A rapidly growing shrub, the stubborn sagebrush thrives in sparse patches throughout the flatlands of the east and has earned its name by the tenacity with which it clings to life. Indeed, this plant not only lives in harsh conditions, but it also is nearly impossible to eradicate once rooted. Dark grey-brown-green leaves appear to be coating in a hoary fuzz, and when crushed release a lovely and calming scent. When boiled, these leaves release antiseptic and analgesic properties.

• Found in: Eastern Flats inland desert, Halyven

A hardy, moss-like plant. It tastes bitter, but is good for purging bowels and has mild antiseptic qualities. It grows in abundance during the Scorch, but can be more difficult to find during the Drench and Freeze. It grows throughout the Rift, but is believed to originate in the bogs around Siren’s Summit.

• Found in: All regions, though is more rare in the Frozen North

A species of water lily that originates from the siren’s lake but can also be found in other bodies of water around the Rift. These plants have dark red lily pads connected to each other by vein-like roots that crisscross beneath the surface of the water. Towards the end of Scorch, these pads grow a black lily. Any beneficial or poisonous qualities of the flower remain a mystery, as any who try to harvest it inexplicably become tangled in the veins of the lily pads and drown before they are able to extract the pads or flowers.

• Found in: All lakes or relatively still rivers

Appearing like a regular puffball, growing on the slopes outside of Ennunyenda, but it is an adjunct to the caves’ illusionary properties. Stepping on these innocent-looking plants will release a small cloud of hallucinogenic gases, whose effects last about 5-10 seconds per puffball. However, when combined with Ennunyenda’s natural gasses, it can often have an elongated and compounding effect. Stepping on the Puffballs doesn’t kill them, as they recover within a few days, ready to release more gases. They’re a fast-growing menace, and on occasionally mild Scorches, they even grow on the slopes of the Siren’s Summit.

• Found in: Ennunyenda, Siren's Summit