Berberis thunbergii
A modestly armored shrub that hardens as it is worn down and feeds your whole bench when it falls, playable as either a native buffer or an invasive attacker.
Japanese barberry is a compact woody Shrub that fights as a middling bruiser: some armor, moderate damage, and armour that thickens once it is hurt. It is native to East Asia and invasive in eastern North America, so the arena can cast it either way, as a native buffer or as an invasive attacker. It is an unremarkable card whose only real lever is its stats and its type matchups, best used as a filler rather than a centerpiece. See nativity.
Its starter attack, Bramble Lash, unlocks at level 1 and costs 2 Sun, dealing about 31 damage as a native and 36 as an invasive, as a straightforward strike. The free once-per-battle ability, Chaparral Climax, unlocks at level 25: Owns the dry hillside: heal 60% and +4 ATK. The advanced attack, Briar Cage, unlocks at level 40 for 6 Sun (18 native / 23 invasive) and saps the target as it strikes. Most of your barberries sit below level 40, where only the starter is available. None of its moves carry an initiative rider. See moves.
Japanese barberry runs two always-on traits. Marcescence arrives at level 10: retained dead leaves harden the plant exactly when it is hurt, giving +4 DEF at half HP or below. Drupe Mast arrives at level 68 and turns its notorious berry glut into a parting gift — every ally still standing when the barberry falls heals 8% of its own max HP. For an invasive that expects to trade, dying usefully is a real part of the plan. See Abilities.
Japanese barberry carries no special trait keywords, and despite its thorns it is non-toxic in the arena: nothing poisons an attacker for hitting it, and it lays no poison. Its terrestrial growth habit means it is not eligible for a Moss Pole. As a native, defensive field gear such as a Cloche makes the most of its armor; as an invasive, offensive gear helps its otherwise modest damage. See field gear for the options.
At level 40 Japanese barberry reads 103 HP as a native and 89 as an invasive, with ATK of 15 native versus 29 invasive; the native ATK is low, so its native hits are weak while the invasive jump is large. DEF is 11, mid-band for a shrub, so it takes hits better than a soft herb but is no wall. Its tempo is even: turn 1 runs on its initiative (37) and every turn after on its SPD (37), which sit at the same value, so it is neither a fast opener nor a fast cruiser. Retreat costs 13 Sun. As a native it gains a +15% HP cushion and a bench HP overshield; as an invasive it pays Faustian self-damage to its own bench on each damaging attack and concedes 2 prizes when knocked out. See Stats.
Matured to level 100, Japanese barberry rises to 190 HP native / 165 invasive and 25 / 60 ATK, and as a shrub its DEF reaches a moderate 21: firmer than a herb but short of a full tree wall. Retreat rises to 25 Sun, and its tempo has sunk to roughly 1% of cap, so a mature barberry acts last against almost anything young. Maturing buys some durability but never turns it into a standout.
As a shrub, Japanese barberry is in the Competitor succession group. It hits Ruderal plants (annual forbs, grasses, aquatics, bulbs) for x1.5 and is hit for only x0.667 by them; it is weak to Specialist plants (succulents, conifers, ferns, epiphytes), which strike it for x1.5 while resisting its blows. Against other Competitors and the off-wheel Weird group the matchup is neutral. See Weaknesses & Resistances.
Play Japanese barberry as a filler bruiser: lean on its type edge against Ruderals, where its x1.5 damage does more work than its raw numbers, and use its moderate armor to trade a few hits. As an invasive its much higher ATK makes it worth fielding as an attacker; as a native its low ATK leaves it a weak buffer, so the invasive role is usually the better one. It is inedible, so any nutrient banks x1.25 XP rather than coins, making it a grower. It stays even in tempo and leans on bulk as it levels, crossing over around level 26 as a native and 26 as an invasive; its stats only climb, so there is no reason to hold it back.
Leveling trades speed for power. A plant’s tempo (SPD + INI, the turn-order edge) fades as it grows, while its power (HP + ATK + DEF, net of the rising Sun cost to retreat) climbs. The crossover is the level where power overtakes tempo: below it the plant is a fast skirmisher, above it a heavyweight. Shown for each stance this plant can actually hold — native adds a HP cushion, invasive an attack edge, neutral neither — with the card at its crossover and fully grown at Lv 100.