Plants 40-75 cm tall. Rhizomes creeping, 1-1.5 cm in diam., covered with lanceolate scales. Stipe approximate, dark stramineous to brown, 18-38 cm, densely scaly at base; stipe and other parts densely clothed in soft hairs; hairs consisting of 5-8 cells, ca. 0.7 mm. Lamina 3-pinnate and 4-pinnatifid at base, pentagonal, 25-35 × 25-40 cm; pinnae 8-10 pairs, only basal pinnae shortly stalked, all pinnae usually opposite to subopposite, basal primary pinnules anadromous or subopposite at basal pinnae and catadromous at upper pinnae; basal pinna largest, 15-25 × 10-18 cm, obliquely deltoid; stalk 0.7-1.5 cm, with 8-12 pairs of primary pinnules and basal basiscopic pinnules longest; veins prominent on adaxial surface, not reaching margin of pinna lobes, with spheroid yellow glands on abaxial surface. Sori terminal on veins and near margin of pinna lobes, exindusiate.