Stranded on the derelict starship floating aimlessly through the asteroid belt, Captain Mira scavenged the dimly lit corridors for anything that could help her repair the breached hull. Her oxygen levels were dropping dangerously low. In the corner of a deserted maintenance bay, she spotted a patch of Exothermic Mossmats clinging to a corroded bulkhead. Desperation drove her to act swiftly. She tore the mossmats from their perch, their bioluminescent glow casting eerie shadows on the walls. Gripping the moss tight, she pressed its roots, against the leakage in her battle dress. With the heat searing through her gloves, she pressed the moss against the jagged edges of the shattered metal panel and an adjoining piece of scrap. The fusion was instantaneous, the metals melding together with a strength surpassing their original state.
I’ve had a bit of an interest built up recently concerning plants in tabletop gaming worlds and not having ready any one-shots with plants I opted to create some myself, starting off with something that can be pretty useful in dire situations!
Exothermic Mossmats
A bioluminescent moss commonly found in starship scrapyards. Once friction is applied to its roots, an exothermic reaction is capable of melting spacefaring alloys permanently to other metals upon contact. The fusion is instantaneous and irreversible, creating a bond stronger than the base metals themselves.
Exothermic Moss is a rarity, typically procured from the shadowy corners of the black market. Further, it’s origins are a mystery, but it’s believed to be a byproduct of catastrophic hyperdrive failures in scrapyards. Exposed to the toxic cocktail of leaking coolant and radiation, the local plant life underwent grotesque mutations, birthing this unnatural and predatory moss species. While thriving on the remnants of once-proud starships, the moss has developed a voracious appetite for metal.
| Tool | Cost | Range | Damage | Shots | Wound | Special |
| Exothermic Mossmats | 1000cr | N/A | 1d100 | N/A | Bleeding [+] or Gore [+] | Heavy. 1 Use per charge. |
Authors Input
I haven’t had too many experiences where plants have come into use during gameplay so I wanted to make something useful and something with character. I found inspiration for this moss from a game called “The Dark of Hotsprings Island“. They included a list of wonderfully illustrated and well-thought-out plants towards the end of the guide. I specifically saw the Flint Moss and Jelly Moss and thought why not just combine them?
I’ll take another comment from the aforementioned book and just state that there was no thought process when it came to the science behind this plant, it exists purely for aesthetics!
I quite enjoyed quickly creating this one and definitely do not want to lose the botanical motivation that I’ve acquired over the past week so please look forward to maybe getting a similar short-form version set of the “Herbalists’ primer” set in the Mothership Universe!
Don’t forget to leave a comment below, tell me how you’d use this moss or how you expect your players to use it! Don’t forget to check out the rest of my blog and maybe share an article or two if it piques your interest!
