| True Name | Jumair |
| Frequency | Common (within the Desolation) |
| Quantity | n/a |
| Locale | Found only in the Desolation of Shidar |
| Form | Flower |
The Floating Flower appears as an oddly shaped plant with a single straight segmented stem. It has a large central spherical globe at the top encirlced by a cluster of large fronds. The plant stands about one meter tall and the globe at the top is the size of a man's head. The large fronds extend a half meter in length.
This plant has several distinct sections - the roots, the main segmented stem, the globe and the fronds. When threatened or attacked (such as during Horde season), the plant detaches itself from the ground and the upper section detaches like a balloon suspending the core of the plant and floats away to safety. Each segment of the stem can detach. The globe is filled with biologically created hydrogen and acts as a balloon. The roots, and possibly some lower stem segments, are sacrificed.
The point of detachment will depend on the circumstances. The plant will carry as much of the stem with it as possible. If something grabs the stem, additional segments are sacrificed to let the core of the plant escape. Later on, the plant lands and reroots itself. it gradually regrows the stem segments and roots.
These plants seem to be able to sense their environment and will detach if something large rapidly approaches or the ground shakes. The exact nature of its sensory abilities are not known.
This plant is native to the Desolition of Shidar in Aggradar and is found no where else. It has evolved its unique defense mechanism as a direct response to the threat of the Horde.
Great "flocks" of these plants sometimes float together on the wind, having detached en masse when overrun by the horde. These groups of floating plants on the wind are sometimes "harvested" in the air by an omarin tribe that escapes the horde by travelling in hot-air balloons. The fronds are edible as is the core of the stem. Hydrogen can be harvested from the central globe but gathering and containing the flammable gas is difficult and dangerous.
This website was last updated March 31, 2026. Copyright 1990-2026 David M. Roomes.