Dryad

Monster Manual (2025) p. 107

Size
Medium
Type
fey
Alignment
neutral
AC
16
Initiative
1
Hit Points
22 (5d8)
Speed
walk 30 ft.
Skills
Stealth +5, Perception +4
Senses
darkvision 60 ft.
Passive Perception
14
Languages
Elvish, Sylvan
Challenge
1
Environment
forest
STR
10
+0
DEX
12
+1
CON
11
+0
INT
14
+2
WIS
15
+2
CHA
18
+4

Traits

Proficiency Bonus

+2

Treasure

Any: The monster's treasure hoard can include monetary treasure and any kinds of magic items.

Magic Resistance

The dryad has Advantage on saving throws against spells and other magical effects.

Speak with Beasts and Plants

The dryad can communicate with Beasts and Plants as if they shared a language.

Actions

Multiattack

The dryad makes one Vine Lash or Thorn Burst attack, and it can use Spellcasting to cast Charm Monster.

Vine Lash

Melee Attack Roll: +6, reach 10 ft. Hit: 8 (1d8 + 4) Slashing damage.

Thorn Burst

Ranged Attack Roll: +6, range 60 ft. Hit: 7 (1d6 + 4) Piercing damage.

Spellcasting

The dryad casts one of the following spells, requiring no Material components and using Charisma as the spellcasting ability (spell save DC 14):

  • At will: Animal Friendship, Charm Monster (lasts 24 hours; ends early if the dryad casts the spell again), Druidcraft
  • 1/day each: Entangle, Pass without Trace

Tree Stride (Bonus Action)

If within 5 feet of a Large or bigger tree, the dryad teleports to an unoccupied space within 5 feet of a second Large or bigger tree that is within 60 feet of the previous tree.

Spells

Animal Friendship [5.5e], Charm Monster [5.5e], Druidcraft [5.5e], Entangle [5.5e], Pass without Trace [5.5e]

Other data

description

Guardians of the woodlands, dryads magically flit from tree to tree and from root to bough, harrying trespassers with tangling vines and thorns. Most of these elusive beings have a special connection with one plant or a natural sanctuary that they protect. Some also share physical similarities with the plants they're most connected to. Dryads might sicken or die if their plant or sanctuary is destroyed, recovering only if it is healed or magically replaced. Roll on or choose an option from the Dryad Sanctuaries table to inspire a dryad's bond.

Dryad Sanctuaries:

1d6The Dryad Dwells in and Protects...
1An acres-large clonal colony—a stand of identical, interconnected trees.
2A fortresslike tree, like a baobab or sequoia.
3A living lock—a plant that seals evil below or blocks the path to a dungeon.
4A lonely tree that stands atop a windswept mountain or amid a petrified forest.
5A plant with magic fruit or remarkable seeds.
6A shambling mound or treant that the dryad lives in or around as a Fey symbiote.