Espostoa lanata
A native-only South American succulent that outlasts fights on two regeneration traits but hits softly and has almost no armor.
The Peruvian Old Man Cactus is a Succulent that fights as a low-damage staller, wearing opponents down with steady self-regeneration rather than punch. It is native to South America, and no invasive form of it exists, so the arena only ever fields it as a native buffer for your bench. It is a durable but weak-hitting card whose value is longevity, not pressure.
Its starter attack, Dryground, unlocks at level 1 and costs 2 Sun, dealing about 26 damage as a native — a plain strike. The free once-per-battle ability, Stress Tolerance, comes in at level 25: Built for the dry season: heal 40%. It saps the target, weakening it. The advanced attack, CAM Shaft, unlocks at level 40 for 6 Sun (26 native) and lands as a multi-hit, striking several times in one turn. Most of your copies sit below level 40, where only the starter is available. None of its moves carry an initiative rider, so it never seizes a turn. See Moves.
This cactus keeps two always-on traits. Photosynthesis arrives in full on the level 10 riser: it heals a little HP in sunny weather, though it triggers only about 60% of the time. Succulence arrives in full on the level 68 riser: it regenerates a little HP in any weather, likewise firing only about 60% of the time. Together they make it a slow, self-mending body. Read more at Abilities.
It carries no trait keywords and is non-toxic, so nothing punishes an attacker for hitting it. Its growth habit is terrestrial, so it is not eligible for a Moss Pole. As a native, defensive field gear — a Cloche, or a Ca/Mg amendment for a little DEF — reinforces its stalling, self-healing game.
At level 40 it reads 121 HP with ATK of 16 as a native. DEF is only 1, at the succulent floor, so despite its bulk it takes hits with almost no armor. Its tempo is even: turn 1 runs on its initiative (44) and every turn after on its SPD (44), 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, while benched, projects an HP overshield onto your active plant. See Stats.
Matured to level 100, it swells to 233 HP and 28 ATK, but its DEF only reaches 1 — as a succulent it becomes a huge-HP, near-zero-armor body, absorbing raw hits through health alone. Retreat rises to 25 Sun, and its tempo has sunk to roughly 1% of cap, so it acts last against almost anything young. Maturing buys enormous staying power, never armor or damage.
As a succulent, it is in the Specialist succession group. It hits Competitor plants (perennial herbs, shrubs, vines) for ×1.5 and is struck for only ×0.667 by them; it is weak to Ruderal plants (annual forbs, grasses, aquatics, bulbs), which hit it for ×1.5 while resisting its blows. Against other Specialists and the off-wheel Weird group the matchup is neutral. See Weaknesses & Resistances.
Play it as a native buffer and time-buyer: its two regeneration traits and big health pool let it soak damage while your overshield protects a fragile hitter, but its own offense is too soft to finish games. It is a support card, not a closer. Its economy is inedible, so any nutrient you feed it banks ×1.25 XP toward growth rather than coins. It fights as an even-tempo skirmisher early and leans harder on its bulk as it levels, crossing over around level 29; it is always stronger at higher levels, 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.