Entu

Entu

(Creature)

Type

Ooze

CR

By class level

Environment

Any

Alignment

LG	NG	CG
LN	N	CN
LE	NE	CE

Source: Alien Archive 4, pg(s). 34

Entus are a species of colonial fungus who feed on emotion and thought. They often enter mutualistic relationships with animal species, which can pass from generation to generation, effectively uplifting an entire species.

Appearance

Each entu colony consists of spores fused together by intricate networks of neuron-like mycelia into sapient, mobile, amorphous, opalescent slime pools with malleable organs that resemble pseudopods.

Ecology

Entu colonies mature at the age of six months and reproduce asexually. Most of the spores become part of the parent colony, though some split off to form their own colonies. Outside of a host, entu colonies communicate through sensory and emotional concepts, and live for up to 300 years.

Entu colonies can merge with other creatures by having their cells mimicking the host's brain and nerve tissue, and intertwining their mycelia with the host's central nervous system, creating new synapses and enhancing parts of the brain. Though they share the same body, sensory input and memories, the entu and the host retain their own consciousnesses. Entu symbiotes eventually attain self-awareness, complex thought and linguistic capacity, and can give birth to offspring already seeded with entu cells integrated into their bodies, essentially uplifting whole species of non-sapient animals; the nelentus are one of the most prominent and successful examples of this generation-spanning mutualism. Entu colonies that enter a symbiotic relationship live as long as their host does.

Entus feed on emotion and thought, and prioritise the physical needs of their hosts if applicable.