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You think bears are scary? You should see what they look like without any fur. The horrors hidden underneath that thick coat of fur...

>2/2 with no evasion

Dies to removal would not play

>>26207188
looks like he's going to murder the fuck out of whoever talking him into drinking that last carbomb

>>26207202
I think you've got the wrong thread.

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Oh no, not the bears!

>>26207202
I see you havent met the legendary "hate bears" yet

>>26207202
>dies to removal

nigger that's 90% of monsters.

>>26207164
so did the german word "Bär" develop independently from your "bear" that apperently has developed from the english language?

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>>26207202
ill fuck you up kid

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Okay gents... so, other than just going "FUCK YOU, I'M A BEAR", what could we do to make bears awesome and playable like we've done for so many other ideas in the past? (I mean, hell, we once made a whole culture and shit for giant bats, and another time made elves into ground-fearing primates, for God's sake. Bears oughta be easy.)

I know there's the option of "become a werebear, then get locked in form", but that's kinda lazy and only really works on an individual basis... How could we make a bear race?

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>>26207202
>no evasion

>>26207298
Pretty much all the words meaning "bear" we have today are derivatives of "brown" as a substitute for the real name of the creature - whatever that original word was, is lost to time.

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In Soviet Russia, bear wrestles you.

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Well, bears can be handled with care because their behavior is not lead, being a mostly solitary creature, by your typical animal pack mentality.

They usually give a fair warning, getting on their two feet, roaring, and pointing one claw at you saying:

"You have less then a second to get out of my comfort zone before I maul you!"

or

"I'm walking here! I'll brutalize everyone who blocks my path because I'm so alpha!

or

"Can't a bear get some sleep around here? You bastards made so much noise by revving up those engines that you made me CRANKY! GET LOST!"

All in all, one of the most "civilized", if the term can be applied, animals out there.

>>26207328
A bit like dwarves meets Russians, I think.

Northern forest-dwelling people. Cool, mountainous, probably coniferous climates. Quiet and gruff stiff-upper-lip types, but curious and enjoy the occasional foray into tinkering. Very family-oriented, with clans being an outgrowth of large families whose patriarchs choose a leader. Red meat and hard liquor are common.

Lean towards lawful, hate minotaurs (because bear and bull don't mix), favored classes fighter and maybe paladin. More curious bears venture into wizardry or druidism.

>>26207328
>>26207448
well, that was faster and more thorough than I expected.

Nice bit of cleverness with the minotaur thing. Got a non-joke explanation for the animosity?

But I know Bear Lore! Surely I'm safe now that I know where they live and what their naural weapons are, right?

>>26207513
Oh good, you know where they live.

Ever stop to wonder whether or not they know where you live...?

>>26207164
>there was a taboo about even saying "bear" for fear that it would summon one
They even forgot original word in Russian language. Also, even Russian animal tamers admit that bears are hardest and most dangerous animals to work with - they cannot be completely tamed, and they always stay unpredictable and untrustworthy.

But you are wrong. There is one thing scarier than regular bear - roamer bear (not sure how they actually called in English). It is a bear that failed to gain insufficient nutrients before hibernation, and woke up amongst the winter being extremely hungry and extremely pissed off. They have extremely low chance to actually survive the winter, but it is not much of consolation when you meet that thing in forest.

>>26207466
Minotaurs are wild, chaotic people (their favored class is barbarian) who occasionally move through the same wilderness occupied by the bears. Spoiling for a fight, young minotaurs often attack bear encampments looking for loot and bragging rights.

Over time bears have begun to kill minotaurs virtually on-sight, often with minimal or no warning. Many people of both races have lost at least one family member to the seasonal violence, furthering the bad blood between them.

>>26207535
Is there a Human Lore check I can make to find out where I live? I'm kind of lost right now...

>>26207542
This is why I carry a Judas goat or three with me at all times.

>>26207549
Why do you want to find where you live? There is probably a bear waiting you there.

>>26207549
don't ask me, ask the bear.

>>26207448
>>26207546
Be honest, you had all this written up in advance and waiting for the right thread to use it in, yes? This seems almost too good for off-the-cuff posting.

>>26207559
Mmm, what a fine assortment of cold cuts!

>if there are shapeshifters, the most powerful and feared ones will be bears.

And yet, oddly enough, in D&D, werebears are officially LAWFUL GOOD.

>>26207634
Who's going to call a bear a liar?

>>26207595
Nope, just tossing it out. I appreciate the compliment.

>>26207634
Even evil things need something to fear.

>>26207651
never thought I'd ever get to say this in a totally non-sarcastic way, but...

Got any more brilliant ideas?

>>26207634
Chaotic neutral would be more like it. Bear does as he pleases, he is a fucking bear, it's not like someone without a shotgun loaded with slugs, at least is gonna stop him

>>26207644
An interesting theory for that reputation. Unfortunately, alignments don't work that way. ...Unless werebears are so scary that they forced the book writers to lie about their alignments in print.

>>26207658
True, but that means that for those who are also good, werebears aren't the most feared shapeshifter.

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>>26207634
I blame this on lingering Tolkien influence during D&D's beginnings , specifically Hobbit's Beorn....

>Hey, friend! Lets shake on it!

>>26207354
Reconstructing due to the non Germanic-Balto-Slavic PEople not wanting to call upon the fearsome totem animal (Seriously taboo avoidance term look it up, hence the reason it's honey eater in most baltic and slavic languages), and what we know of how thor clusters work in the germanic languages .

*h2Rtkos, would become *urkthaz, most likely evovling to *urth or *urkth

>>26207681
>>26207706
I agree that the hard set alignments for the various lycanthropes are all dumb, but I was just putting that out there.

I say lycanthropes should be a case-by-case basis, personally.

>>26207354
Russian "Медведь" (medbed') comes from "Мёд" (myod, honey) and "Ведать" (vedat', to know about).

Next time you make a charsheet for bear, don't forget to put Honey Lore on it

>>26207731
To be fair, lycanthropes are sub-types in most versions.
The original alignment prior lycanthropy should remain the same (according to the original type "Human") unless there is a good reason to shift the original alignment.

Though werewolves, for me at least, always were, because of the bloodlust, chaotic and almost never good.

I better stop, though, before I trigger someones alignment allergies....

>>26207769
And the reason why it's "honey eater" is because the Russians were so afraid of bears they even used a substitute word for their substitute word.

Bearception.

>>26207677
As far as bears go? I dunno, lemme think...

Bears are firm believers in "if you do it, do it well." Bears frown on half-assing your work and strongly encourage contribution to one's clan. A good work ethic and loyalty to one's family and fellows in one's proffession are smiled upon.

At times this leads to traditionalist attitudes and the encouragement to learn from elders that have long mastered their chosen craft. Striking out on one's own (for example, a member of a family that has long produced clerics studing arcane magic) is often discouraged, however if such a rebel can prove their desicion will benefit the clan in some previously-neglected manner they will often be reconsidered a valuable member of society.

Bear adventurers are often these very rebels, looking to prove the value of their chosen profession to family and clan by testing themselves while far from home, adventuring for several years before returning to their clan grounds to demonstrate what they have learned.

A side effect of this- bears love a good story, and fine storytellers are often well-respected in clan culture. Bragging is often frowned upon unless words can be backed up with demonstrative action, but for the most part, bears far and wide agree that a cold evening is best spent with a hard drink, a roaring fire, and a competition of who can spin the best yarn.

>>26207728
>>26207769
So... This is serious? I thought OP was joking about current terms for bears being pseudonyms for safety. I mean, I'd heard of cultures that think speaking the name of bad things give them power, I just didn't think it actually applied to bears. Guess I just don't appreciate how scary bears used to be. I live on the distant edge of town in the forested mountain wilds and saw a bear coming a couple months ago, my reaction was to run outside and see it if it came up the hill and into the yard. It did, and we looked at each other for a bit from about 30 feet away and then it left. Didn't seem so scary. Personally, I'm more concerned by the mountain lions, they actually attack people every couple years.

>>26207328
>>26207448
>>26207546
>>26207815

Sounds like we've got some great stuff here.

But could we do more? I mean, not just stuff like religious views or government, but basic details too, like typical height/weight or gender differences - heck, we haven't even given them a name yet.

Anyone else want to contribute?

>>26207840
Finnish has plenty of pseudonyms that were used for bears too for the fear of using the right name, though the original word is still in use.

>>26207840
in days of yore, bears were one of the few animals that were more-or-less unstoppable due to their ability to take punishment and keep fighting (even nowadays, there are tales of folks emptying round after round from their gun into a bear and it still comes for them, so ancient stuff like spears and clubs was nothing to them), and who saw man as just another food.

>>26207840
Pretty much, though we're not exactly sure if it was giving it power (thereby summoning it to wreak havoc on you village) or was to keep the bear from knowing it was being hunted.

>>26207728
>>26207769
>>26207840

Well, I'm a Croatian. Our basic word for the bear is "medvjed" which, as noted, if directly translated actually means "honey-eater".

Now I can't stop thinking about a certain nearby mountain as "Honey Eater Mountain"....

I have an eerie feeling about this.

>>26207815
>>26207448
It seems to me that bear clans should be led by matriarchs, as real-world bear cubs are raised by their mothers and males would routinely slaughter cubs that stray into their territory.

I'm picturing the matriarchs handling the political maneuvering and trade of the clans and males having the honored position of defenders of the clan against interlopers, be they minotaur scum or an incursion from another clan.

The clans, of course, should be highly territorial. While the bears tend heavily towards being generally amicable, they consider trespassing in their territory as being extremely dishonorable. There are, of course, designated places at the borders of every clan's territories where the clans can peacefully meet under any circumstances and certain holidays in which the clans are EXPECTED to meet. During these holidays, the most common order of business tends to be cross-clan marriages and the exchange of new stories.

While each clan is led by a single matriarch and are all technically one family, a single clan can actually be several thousand bears strong and span several villages, with each village being a smaller unit of the extended family. Thus, the bear word for bears from another village but in the same territory is the same word they use for "cousin". Matriarchs in such sprawling clans tend to spend equal parts of the year in each village so as to not show favoritism over any of her cubs.

>>26207438
Such was the fate of Antigonus, in "The Winter's Tale"... and if you read the play itself, you'll see the bear shows up in that one line, chased Antigonus offstage, and that's it. Nothing before and nothing after, just that one line of direction.

Shakespeare literally had a bear show up out of nowhere, for no reason, just to kill off a character. Awesome.

>>26207917
The women in charge of the politicking. That works. The fact they're actually fair-handed and amiable and such is a nice change from the way a lot of matriarchal setups in RPGs tend to go, which is just amazon-fantasy men-are-breeder-scum crap.

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God damn you /tg/ now I want to play a Bear druid.

>>26207915
Like I said, way back in the proposed germanic word had taboo avoidance not happened, the slavs and balts in general went with honey eater (the germans with, "the brown one"), it seems to be almost entirely a Geramic-Balto-Slavic thing, possibly from the sheer amount of bears.

>>26207917
>>26207815 here. I like your matriarchy logic. I was going to suggest females being expected to be good homemakers and mothers (because momma bear, cubs, etc) but I like where you took it.

As for size I'd say Large makes sense. For name...misha or bjorn seems a little too on the nose. The pawnee native american tribe that lived around the central US used the term kuuruks. Feels like a word that a bear might come up with. Not sure if that's plural or singular though, but if we're just stealing it for a racial name we can probably go with kuuruk/kuuruks.

>>26208038
Despite there being less than a dozen major species of bear, they exist on nearly every continent and in nearly every primary climatological type. About the only place you can't find bears is in the deserts or in the Antarctic

Speaking of bears, I'm currently playing a character who has the goal of becoming a werebear. He's a lesser half-giant who embraced the giant ideal of being really strong, but... isn't giant strong at all, being lesser and half. So he figures becoming a werebear is his best bet to become more huge and strong, since they're quite big and scary.

>>26207859
i think they should be equal opportunity employers, like, they don't make a difference between male and female memebers of the clan

>>26208075
the females are the diplomats and teachers and politicos, while the males are the protectors and defenders and craftworkers. Yeah, that fits nicely.

And yeah, size. I literally cannot picture "anthropomorphic bear" without thinking of a huge, sturdy-build figure, for both genders. Not necessarily bodybuilder type, but just "lots of solid labor" stockiness. Look up "strongest man competition" for what I'm talking about. Kinda chubby, too, I guess, to keep comfy in cold weather.

>>26208077
Fun fact: "Arctic"'s etymology can be traced all the way back to ancient greek's "arktikos". As in, "of the bear constellation". That itself can be traced back to "arktos" for "bear", and that's just a touch shy of the original Indo-European "rkto" for "bear".

Therefore, Antarctica literally translates into "place without bears"... and it's correct completely by accident.

>>26208123
oh wait forget this i already see a better way
> >>26208075

>>26207815
You're completely ignoring the fact that bears are loners. A bear following in the footsteps of his family sounds just right, but other bears caring about what some cub does? Nonsense. A bear clan system would work more like a scaled down Hanseatic League. Each bearman family stronghold does its thing, each family lives separately, they trade, they communicate, when shit happens the entire hansa deals with it and then they all go their own way.

Bears in nature care for themselves first and foremost, their society should reflect that in some manner.

>>26208077
True, but consider where the Blato-Slavs and Germans were originally from (lower scandinavia, and upper Germany and the area around Belarus,Eastern Poland, Western Russia and northern Ukraine today).

Plus from what we can tell both had a culture of bear hunting as well (possibly borrowed from the Uralic tribes around them, most likely the ancestors to the Finno-Permians).

>>26208142
That fact was indeed fun.

>>26208138
Why do they even need to be anthropomorphic? The only adjustments needed are to make them more comfortable walking upright on two legs than they are on all fours and to give them hands with opposable thumbs and nimble digits for fine manipulation.

>>26208186
because "bear-man in nice clothes that can talk" is more versatile than just "bipedal bear with thumbs".

>>26208186

Like the Panserbjornar of Pullman's Dark Materials. I like.

>>26208168
I was mostly referring to family and "teachers so esteemed they practically count as family" with that post.

Though admittedly it was mostly just having fun with a "bears as soviet russia" sterotype.

>Comrade! You are lax in your martial training!
>But comrade, I have mastered a new level of illusions that shall strengthen our clan's defenses against unsuspecting intruders!
>Very good then, comrade!

>>26208168
I'm not ignoring that at all. I just shifted the whole "loner" thing up by an order of magnitude or so. Clans are all linked by blood relation and will NOT tolerate people from outside their clans in their territory outside of specific times and specific places. Everything is about caring for the clan first and foremost.

>>26208218
But an intelligent bipedal bear with thumbs could certainly wear clothes and talk. Going much more anthropomorphic than that gets you into Dangerously Furry territory.

>>26208240
FOR GLORIOUS MOTHERLAND AND MIGHT OF THE PEOPLE!

>>26208240

United Soviet Socialist Bear Republics? I can get behind this. Oh yes.

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>>26208253
>going much more anthropomorphic

Er, what were you picturing? because really, what you're describing now, unlike earlier, isn't too much far off of what I was imagining, it sounds like.

(pic related) was along the lines of what I was thinking of, what did you have in mind? Porn? Not everything anthro need center around genitals, y'know.

>>26208308
Well, I DID start off with a bear-man on a Russian flag...

>>26208142
if only 4chan allowed for subscript numbers it should be h2Rtkos (some finds from the Anatolian branch points towards tk over kt)

for those who don't know h2 was a layrngeal, we're not sure exactly how it sounded, but we do know that h2 universally became a in Hellinc languages and colored vowels towards it, and R is a syllabic r, pretty much the er in better.

>>26208326

But can you imagine a Bear Red Army conscript rush?

>>26208313
Eh, when people say "anthropomorphic (animal)", I think "furry". So less what your pic is and more "early 90's cartoon human-with-animal-featured-head"

>>26208343
Yeah... no, that's not what I was originally aiming for. Anthropomorphic aesthetics, at least in my opinions, should be more than the kind of visual you'd get from a sports-mascot costume, they should actually look pretty-well middleground between man and beast.

>>26208342
you had me at "Bear Army".

How to Avoid a Bear Attack

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rRkvDsEJ1AQ

>>26208075
With as much as we're borrowing from Russia/Europe for them, it feels weird to take a Native American term for the race... try something Eurasian.

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>>26208414
The general classification for bears is Ursus or Ursa...

Ursa might work.

>>26208414
>>26208471

>Eurasian
>Ursine

Eursinian?

>>26208481
Too many vowels... how about we chop it up a bit...

Ursin.

>>26208268
>>26208308

>Kuuruks revere two deities, one male and one female; they are said to be the first couple from which the kuuruk race was born.

>Rodina, "The Mindful" (LG) is depicted as a portly female often dressed in homespun linens. Prayers are offered to Rodina for bountiful harvests and strong children. Requests for guiding wisdom are often directed to Rodina as well. Rodina encourages her followers to be faithful, productive and mindful of their elders. Her favored weapon is the sickle.

>Otets, "The Maker" (LG) is depicted as a broad, powerful male, typically dressed in an apron or else bare-chested, often stained with soot. Prayers are offered to Otets before battle, long journeys and new ventures. Otets encourages his followers to be industrious, ever-watchful and protective of their clan homes. His favored weapon is the hammer (often depicted as a blacksmith hammer)

>There is a third deified figure in kuuruk mythology, however he is often despised rather than worshipped.

>Odinochka, "The Sneering One" (NE) is depicted as a heavyset male with coal-black fur and a white star over his left brow. Odinochka is said to be the encourager of laziness and procrastination, the wrecker of good homes and slayer of young. Kuuruks believe Odinochka whispers to the unwary, telling them of their family's worthlessness and driving them to leave their clans forever and follow their own stars. Odinochka is sometimes worshipped by evil kuuruks that feel they have been wronged by theirclans in some way. His favored weapon is the quarterstaff.

>>26208075
>>26208138

I keep picturing a race of huge bearfolk that talk like TF2's Heavy.

Then I thought a bit. In the Russian version of Meet the Heavy, he's quite well-spoken. We could use that. Have them be quite eloqquent in their native tongue, but (perhaps due to mouth shape?) have trouble with other languages.

Also, his gun? 150 kilograms. That's 330 pounds or so. Average brown bear weighs about that much. Dude could carry an Ursin by himself.

>>26208509
just refreshed. Ursins work.

>>26208534
Not Kandma....

Ahwwww damn.

>>26208509
Excellent. Love how you worked in the Soviet icon of hammer and sickle.

Boy, I hope someone's archiving this.

>>26207164
Thankfully, I'm playing a Druid in my Pathfinder party. So I, too, am a Bear. I feel bad for the rest of them, but they should have known better than to play something that couldn't become a Bear in a game featuring so much overland travel.

In Nobilis, though. You're right. There is almost nothing in our party's arsenal that can seriously contend with a Peregrinator. Thankfully, the Peregrine Bears are usually more indulgent than the assorted creatures they inspired.

Although they don't have to be in full-on RIP AND TEAR mode at all times, this picture is a pretty good example of how I like bear people and/or werebears to look. Still pretty thick and stocky, but clearly able to walk on two legs and has opposable thumbs.

The only thing I'd really change is minor stylistic points, really.

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>>26208577
how did I somehow not attach the picture?

>>26208570
>Excellent. Love how you worked in the Soviet icon of hammer and sickle.
Not that guy, but honestly, it worked so well that I missed that until you pointed it out. It just seemed so appropriate that the matriarch type would carry a symbol of the harvest and the industrious craftsman god would carry a hammer.

These soviet bears are just clicking on every level.

>>26208532
an ursin would probably weigh closer to 7-800 pounds. Gnolls, at 7 feet plus change and 300 pounds are considered Medium size. Minotaurs average 700.

>>26208624
good point, I guess I miscalculated somewhere.

>>26208600
I know, right? Everything fits so well. The fact the bear has been the national symbol of Russia for a couple centuries now, definitely helps reinforce things.

>>26208509
For some reason, I picture the two LG gods (and by extension, all the Ursin) as being different shades of brown, from a near-blonde light brown to a dark mahogany tone, with the females tending more often to light than dark, and vice-versa for the males, but seeing light males or dark females isn't too uncommon. But no pure white or black. They're not far north enough to be polar bears, and too big to be black bears.

This also means the black pelt of the NE one just enhances his unnaturalness and should-be-avoided nature. If he had worshipers, I could see them using soot and ash to "paint" themselves black in imitation of him.

>>26208739
I like it.

>>26208509
>Odinochka encourages laziness and procrastination

...we here at /tg/ all worship Odinochka.

>>26208805
I've been trying not to say it. I really have. The temptation to crack wise about neckbears has been riding me this whole thread.

there should be a true neutral god of just being chill as fuck, drinking vodka and eating honey and fish. Some kind of forest warden god for the druidic/shamanic types, maybe?

...the only problem with my trying to find useful art for a concept such as "soviet bear-men" is there's not many widely-used anthro art sites I know to search besides FA, and searching for "bears" on their tends to just get gay porn and/or skinny little things that look like teenagers in mascot costumes.

Dammit. Ideas are in my head, but I can't draw for shit.

>>26208509

Oh man, that's perfect on every level!

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>>26208865

All according to keikaku. The bear was within you the whole time Anons.

>>26207328
Make bearcrocodiles. All the body and claws of a bear, all the head, tail and skin of a crocodile.

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>>26208925
Guess I'll just have to grin and bear it.

Why do you guys have such a strong fascination with bears?

I mean it's not just this thread. I've seen quite a few threads where someone said or implied, "you know how this would be better? WITH BEARS!" It's like, bears are the animal equivalent of Dwarves to you.

Well, it's not too hard to see why; both are fat, squat creatures covered in hair and with a propensity to living in caves.

>>26208895
I have run into that exact same problem. Why is it that everybody who thinks bears are cool and draws them is also gay? Heck, it's hard to find ANY big strong potentially anthro types that aren't drawn for blatant gayness. Not that it's a moral problem, just gay porn isn't what I'm in the market for. Where's the fans that just draw them for love of badassery, instead of dicks?

>>26208960
>Why do you guys have such a strong fascination with bears?

> It's like, bears are the animal equivalent of Dwarves to you.

Just answered your own question, comrade.

>>26208969
http://fc01.deviantart.net/fs71/f/2012/156/e/e/axe_bear_by_pacman23-d52e6dx.jpg
That any good. Surprisingly, I found it before I found the gay porn. That's really weird on dA.

>>26208986
http://fc07.deviantart.net/fs71/f/2012/123/0/1/war_bear_by_cloudminedesign-d4yekwv.jpg
This is even better!

>>26208972

Ok, but why does /tg/ have a fascination with Dwarves?

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>>26208969
well, to be fair "bear" has been slang term for a large, hairy, very masculine gay male for decades.

Hell, the character of Zangief was more-or-less intentionally designed using practically the whole gamut of "bear" stereotype traits.

And since Zangief wreslted bears... well hell, that's just layer upon layer of wordplay and suggestive context.

>>26208996
because they remind us of bears.

>>26208996
hefty guys that live indoors and shun nature, grow beards, drink heavily, and hold grudges over the most trivial matters?

Seriously man that's /tg/ all over.

>>26208996

>Well, it's not too hard to see why; both are fat, squat creatures covered in hair and with a propensity to living in caves.

You still answered your own question buddy. /tg/ feels a connection to 'em.

>>26208878
Kalevalen, "The Storyteller" (N, trending NG) is depicted as a kindly Ursin clad in robes, his fur in varying stages of fading from the dark brown of his youth to a more aged white and grey. He is said to have a soothing voice, and will happily put that voice to use telling stories to any host that supplies him with sufficient hospitality in the form of smoked fish and hard liquor. Kalevalen knows all stories that can be told of Ursinkind, and those lucky enough to guess who their guest is will have the benefit of prophecy on their side when carrying out their destiny. Kalevalen's favored weapon is a dagger, small and unassuming enough to escape notice of his hosts so as to not trouble them.

Territorialism aside, Ursin clans will allow all storytellers to travel freely through their territory as none would take the chance of turning away Kalevalen.

>>26208972
I like bears but not dwarves, though.

>>26209023
Beautifully done. What is a people that does not have lorekeepers and storytellers to teach and bring wisdom? A sad and broken people, and the Ursin know this well enough to seek to avoid becoming such a people.

How would we stay Ursin in, say 3.5?

>>26209044
stat*, not stay

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>>26209023
Forgot my pic.

>>26209023
If I could draw bears, I would be drawing these gods right now

Is it bad that I'm now picturing a game like King of Dragon Pass with these bear people where you set up a clan and try to survive raids, do heroic shit and handle negotiations with neighbors?

>>26209023
>>26209072
It's a little tricky for me to picture Morgan Freeman with a Russian accent, but damn, that pic fits perfectly.

>>26209044
Hm... Large size, two HD of Monstrous Humanoid, Str +4, Con +4, Wis +2, Fighter and Bard as favored classes. That seems like a good start.

>>26209044
I've been considering this ever since we made them minotaur rivals, looking through my old savage species book. I think they should be somewhere on the same footing.

>+8 STR
>-2 DEX
>+4 CON
>+2 WIS
>Ursins are strong and hardy, but not the most agile people.

>Large size, space/reach 10ft
>Land speed 30ft
>Darkvision 60ft
>Racial Hit Dice: monstrous humanoid- 6d8, providing +6 BAB, Fort +2, Ref +5 and Will +5
>Racial Skills: monstrous humanoid- 9x(2+INT modifier). Class skills are Climb, Intimidate, Listen, Search, Spot, and Swim
>Racial Feats: An ursin's levels in monstrous humanoid give it 3 feats
>Weapon Proficiency: all simple weapons, plus the warhammer
>+2 natural armor
>Automatic Languages: Ursin, Common. Bonus languages: Giant, Orc, Goblin, Dwarf
>Favored Class: Fighter
>Level Adjustment: +2

>>26209089
I picture Kalevalen as more Finnish than Russian. Affinity for saunas and smoked fish, capable of drinking his Russian-inspired hosts under the table... Hell, I picked his favored weapon because of Finland's portrayal in Scandinavia and the World and I named him after the Kalevala, Finland's national epic.

I figure it also fits that the "storyteller is welcome among all clans" bit works even better if the storyteller god is a complete foreigner.

>>26209116
maybe I should have added Scent and put elven in bonus languages since they tend to live in forested areas

>>26209116
been ages since I've done much looking at 3.5 - largely because my books, including Savage Species, got accidentally thrown out a couple years back - but that sounds about right.

>>26209125
well, not a -complete- foreigner, since he's still Ursin, but having his voice and mannerisms just a little different from typical would help identify him, and also avoid any one clan or bloodline trying to claim they had special favor from him by virtue of their ancestors.

>>26209116
I know they're supposed to be rivals of minotaurs but that level adjustment and those monstrous humanoid HD really make me wince. Isn't there some way to get their ECL down to the three-or-lower sweet spotwhile still making them feel right? I mean, the essence here is a decent strength and con bonus, Monstrous Humanoid type bonuses, and Large Size, right?

>>26209165
maybe. Honestly I just robbed minotaur stats and made a couple tweaks in stats and skills.

>>26207706
but in Tolkien's setting there were far worse things than humans wandering about, and being mad as hell at everything that got close would probably result in a very pissed of army coming for you... from every race around you

>>26209165
Perhaps 2 racial hit die, 2 less Str and Con, and no bonus to wisdom with LA of +1

That's probably retarded but just an idea for 3 ECL

"Ursin? Yeah, damn good folks. Kinda tetchy about folks messing with their stuff or going places they don't like, but otherwise, real solid folk. Love to drink and fight - like giant dwarves with all-over beards, y'might say. Ursin men, when the mood hits, are the sort who'd sock ya in the face for grabbing their rucksack instead of your own, even if it was in the dark and by accident, but then they'd turn right around and offer to buy you a bottle of your favorite if you could impress them by staying upright or even just conscious after taking the hit."

>>26208142
what's indo-european. everyone knows white people don't have a heritage

>>26209086
I know exactly how you feel.

>>26209307
...you know what?

TOMORROW IS THE DAY I LEARN TO DRAW BEARS! FOR THE URSIN, AND FOR /tg/!

name is captcha that I like and will be using if I ever drawfag...

>>26209335
Name sounds very Russian-like, too. Clearly, this is destiny.

>>26207298
Dude, it's the same word, which is evidence of how ancient the taboo is. It's proto-german for "brown".
The original PIE root for bear was along the line of "hrktos" (arktos, ursus)

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Apparently if ferrets grew to the size of a doberman, they'd be the most dangerous creatures on Earth. Just imagine if they were human sized.

>>26209467
...why does this keep getting reposted. It's not even that good

>>26207188
it looks like a scarred, methological psychopath assasin and whoever it sets it's eyes on is already dead

I'm just going to point out that "ursIN" works exactly as an ethnonym in Russian. In fact the medieval word (that now carries on with Ruthenians) was "rusin".

>>26209001
Yeah, I know the other meaning for bear, found that out by accident. And I get the logic behind the comparison. But I still am frustrated by how so few people seem to think bears or big monstrous humanoids in general are cool in a non-erotic way. I'm not even saying I don't like porn, just that when I want porn, I don't want badass bear dudes, and vice-versa.

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>>26209565
I don't have very many SFW ferrets in my anthropomorphic artwork folder.

That one is probably the most well drawn.
It's kind of odd seeing how my folder is filled to the brim with avians and reptiles and then I have maybe three ferrets and one or two foxes in the entire folder.

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Contrary to popular belief, mead is the drink of choice for most Ursin.
The storytellers have a tradition of ending their most unbelievable stories with the refrain "and I was there, drank beer and mead, Poured on my whiskers, not on my lip"
Actually a thing with medieval Russian bards

>>26209810
Oh, right, mead is the same as honey in a bunch of IE languages.

If there's another thread like this, I'd like to draw an Ursin town. So how are their homes? Just log cabins or how?

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>>26209914

Like this:

>>26209810
what's the significance of the second part of that phrase?

>>26210007

It's a nifty way of saying, "remember that unbelievable story? I was probably drunk as shit while seeing/hearing it."

>>26210022

No, it's the other way around. They treated me to mead, but I poured it on my lips, not in my mouth, so I was sober when witnessing it.

And considering they would trade with other races, what would be their main export?

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How have we gone a whole thread without this being posted

I want to see this story done as a comic, but with an actual bear.

>>26207634
>And yet, oddly enough, in D&D, werebears are officially LAWFUL GOOD.
I'm almost positive they're Chaotic Good.

>>26210155

Lumber. Fish. Food of different kinds. I'm tempted to say honey, and give them a racial bonus to beekeeping.

>>26209743
Yes well, this is bear time.
But idk I'm not a fan of either of those pieces you posted. They're too obviously furry. That style, instantly identifiable.

>>26210155
>Dwarves: lumber and farmland foods for deep-mined metals
>Elves: maybe magic scrolls and items for shallow-mined coal and marble
>Everybody: good mead and honey, food, meat and furs from hunters

>>26210198
LG. I've got the monster manual on me.

>>26210032
>>26210022
>>26210007
It's a poetic way of saying "I didn't learn my lesson from this adventure"
All the mead went to the moustache and not the mouth

>>26207634
The weird thing is that wolves work together in packs and have a strict hierarchy in place, and tigers live on their own after their mother shoos them away, yet werewolves are chaotic evil and weretigers are lawful evil.

I seriously hope this is getting archived somewhere.

>>26210198
I think they were Chaotic in earlier editions(I just read Van Richten's Guide to werebeasts where they were referred to as Chaotic), but 3.0(or 3.5?) changed them to Lawful.

>>26210344
thread archived at suptg:

http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive/26207164/

>Fact: NOTHING is scarier than a bear.
Dire bear

I am 90% sure I've seen these exact same thread before, post for post

During the American gold rush as a source of entertainment a group of settlers caught a bear and had it fight other animals. Every single thing they put against it was a no-contest. It would cave the creatures skull in with one swipe and that would be the end of it. The fights where they sent for exotic creatures like lions and tigers were particularly anticlimactic because of that.

>>26207466
It's a wall street Joke son. Bear and Bull Markets.

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STOP

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>>26211468
GRAB YOUR SPOON AND LISTEN

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>>26211475
IT'S HUNGER GRABBING YOUR ATTENTION

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>>26211481
MULLER RICE TASTES NICE AND CREAMY

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>>26211488
WITH FRUIT THAT'S LIGHT AND DREAMY

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>>26211495
RICE
RICE
BABY

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>>26211500
IT'S MULLER

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>>26211507
RICE RICE BABY

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>>26211514
RICE RICE BABY

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>>26211523

>>26207164
In Exalted, all bears know kung-fu.

Your only consolation is that they're not the best at it.
T-Rexes are.

>>26208600
>It just seemed so appropriate that the matriarch type would carry a symbol of the harvest and the industrious craftsman god would carry a hammer.
Which is actually the symbolic in Soviet icon as well, btw.

>>26209823
>Oh, right, mead is the same as honey in a bunch of IE languages.
Well, in Russian the word "mead" means 'honey' but actual beverage 'mead' is "meadovuha"

>>26209823
well, mead is beer made from honey, basically, so I could see why it would be popular with Ursin.

Better than yet again following the cliche of "LOL, russian = vodka"

>>26208142
The promised land.

>>26212636
mead is more like a wine than a bear

>>26209116
Can we do this in 4E too?

>>26212895
uhh. beer. unintentional typo, I swear

I'm wearing spiked gauntlets and I punch it in the mouth.

>>26212804
"the promised land" only lacks bears because it's hostilely inhospitable for most life in general, and bears only happen to fall into that category by coincidence.

Years ago, /tg/ talked about making a bear-themed MtG set, where ALL creatures would be 2/2 bears with varying colours and abilities. Red bears with Haste, Blue bears with flying and unblockable and so on. Too bad nothing ever came of it.

>>26210191
I want to see him play a bear.

>>26209116
When proficiencies are listed for races or classes like this, do you choose from them or do you just begin with all of them?

>>26207328
In oWoD there's an entire werebear supplement that was pretty good.

>>26207840
People have always had ideas like that about speech. For example some eastern American Indian tribes will always speak (or would always speak) about rattlesnakes and such in the most respectful of ways because supposedly the snake can hear you even if its not present. And nobody wants to piss off a snake. I wouldn't be surprised if people in areas with really big bears had similar ideas.

>>26213097
you begin with them.

Except for bonus languages. Those you gotta choose.

I think, anyway. It's been a while, so I might be misremembering.

>>26213082
What sort of "bear"? Because we're looking at multiple possible definitions of the term in this case.

>>26210191
The Bear seems like the kind of cool guy I wouldn't mind in my group.

>>26213193
I think he meant a literal bear, since he's already the homosexual kind of bear.

>>26213213
>whynotboth.gif

>>26213198
Bear seems like the kind of cool guy I wouldn't mind inside me!

>>26212964
Should it just be the Minotaur stat block?

>>26209116
Holy fuck these stats are shit for playing with.There is a reason you dont use savage species. Now some good stats for bear people.

Have them around 7.5 to 8 foot thats prety tall but still medium. (0rp)
Monstrous humanoid (3rp)
+4 Str, -2 Dex, -2 Cha (2rp- greater paragon choice)
Slow speed from stubby legs like a bear? (-1rp or 0)
Standard language (0rp)
Advanced Constituition- +2 Con (4rp)
Natural Armor (2 RP) +1 nat armor
Skill Bonus - Perception? (2 RP) Not sure what, get a +2 to a specific skill
Bite (1 RP)
Claws (2 RP)
Darkvision 60 Feet (2 RP)

17 Rp points putting it at an advanced race for PF which means no level adjustment. A much better job.

http://www.d20pfsrd.com/gamemastering/other-rules/arg-creating-new-races#TOC-Type-Quality

>>26207164
I'd be more scared of bears if they weren't so consistently afraid of everything around them

>>26213344
I don't have any familiarity with Pathfinder, so I understood about less than half of that.

>>26213455
bite just gives a bite attack, claws is same. standard language is common + racial and 7 bonus. RP is Race points, a point by system for making races which is far better than anything 3.5 made for it. Otherwise its pretty much just a standard racial stat block for 3.x.

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>>26207164
lol, the bear tribe will do anything to cling to it's waning political power. You notice your hairless bear looks like a giant rat. Trying desperately to seem frightening when he knows the truth. The rat clan is the future.

We spread disease, famine, and know amount of fortification or defense can keep us out if we so choose to come. You claim land, you claim food, it belongs to rats. We just let you eat and sleep because we have better things to do then snarl and act tough.

You bears are nothing more then obese dogs, shoving the occasional lost traveler to make yourselves look intimidating. What's so intimidating about a creature that sleeps half of the fucking year?

But rats? We never sleep man... we just wait. We plan our next move, reproduce a new offspring of a few million or so new ratlings to come and fuck your shit up. Druids may shapeshift into you to get the pussy. But when the going gets tough... they summon a dire rat.

>>26213539
Thanks for putting that in context.

You made "bear with thumbs". And then shrank him down to Medium size. What.

What was wrong with the previous statblock that required a total rebuild instead of just some number-tweaking to rebalance stuff like the overpowered +8 STR?

>Werebears
>only statted up in D&D

Can we get some other systems plz?

>>26213655
Ursin are not werebears.

werebears would be shapeshifters. Ursin do not change shape.
werebears come from magical disease. Ursin are natural-born.

>>26213655
Pathfinder......

>>26213702
Pathfinder is D&D.

>>26207164
>Face it, there's nothing you or your party can to win against bears. You cannot defeat them, only delay them or hope they will be merciful and allow you to join them.
A brown bear is only CR 4. Anyone in my current party could fight one naked and be in no real danger.

>>26213642
Well i did the medium thing because of issues with item costs for armor and weapons. And 7 1/2 to 8 feet tall is still fucking huge especially with being built like a brick house. And the Savage species shit is shit, plain and simple. If you want large size, over 8 feet tall, just add 7 RP, standard penalties and bonuses from large size, and +1 level adjustment till 5th level. Better?

2 bears are scarier than a bear.

>>26213760
OP here, watching this back-n-forth. Loving all you guys' ideas.
Hmm.. okay, here's an idea. How about I try to describe how I'm picturing the Ursin based on all the stuff said so far, and see what you can come up with statwise to accomodate it? (I promise, I won't marysue them) Sound good?

>>26213856
would be good, I made the stats as best i could to balance between bear and PC race with as few LA as possible.

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>>26213856
I'm not sure if it's been posted yet, but the biggest bear on record survived something like 5 rifle shots and was still raring to kill. This was the bear in question.

Wrong

The Finns worshipped bears

The ancient Aryans who lived in the modern Ukraine were at war with the ancient Finns constantly

The Finnic word for slave is "orja" which comes from the Proto-Indo-European word "Arya" which is the self-designation the ancient Indo-Europeans/Aryans gave themselves

Fear of bears among Indo-European peoples such as the English and Germans is learned fear, it is passed down from ancient ancestors 7000 years ago.

And the Russians use the bear because Russians are just Finns who were conquered by Indo-Europeans.

A lot of today's bears are descended from the prehistoric South American short-faced bear, the largest of which ever documented weighing in at 3,500 lbs (1600kg) and towered at a great 11ft (3.4 meters).

But that's not all, palaeontologists have NEVER found anything bigger from the same time period. That means that once upon a time, bears may have been the biggest meat-eaters on the planet.

>>26214023
Cool, cool. Here we go.

Ursin are a race of humanoid bears that live in the frigid and forested regions of (insert Russia equivalent here). They are, in a word, large. Both sexes are solidly-built, with ample muscle-mass and a warming layer of fat to guard against cold. Males stand around 7-8 feet tall, averaging around 600-700 pounds, with females being usually around a foot shorter and 100 pounds lighter than the males, with both sexes fur being various shades of brown, though never truly white or black.
They are quiet and stoic, and also curious and enjoy learning new things, being particularly fond of studying lore, with a rich history of storytelling. Their size is both help and hindrance, as they have incredible strength and endurance, but they are not quite as agile as smaller races, and their appearance can sometimes be seen as unfairly intimidating, making it sometimes difficult for other races to warm up to them.
As a whole, they are rather territorial towards outsiders - one does not freely wander into Ursin lands without quickly finding out their trespass has been noted, though one can win them over with atience and persistence in proving ones intentions to be honorable - especially if one brings along gifts such as mead or smoked fish, luxury foods prized highly by the Ursin. As counterpoint to their territorialism, they are also big on community, with clans across the nation gathering and mingling periodically at various points through the year.
In combat, Ursin are as fierce as the bears they resemble, tending toward favoring their claws and teeth over crafted weapons, though it is rare one would find an Ursin without some skill in basic reach-extending weapons such as the warhammer or battleaxe, which usually come in the form of a reforged lumberjack's blade and blacksmith's maul, craftworker's tools repurposed for defense of the clan.

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>>26214383
I could write more, but I wanna hear what you think so far before maybe continuing.

Ursin roshambo not related.

>>26214383
I think it's awesome. Already saved it in a word doc and getting ready to stat it in 4e and Gurps.

>>26214626
Anything else you'd like me to add?

>>26214668
Hmm...not that I can think.

>>26214678
not neccessariyl related to the stat-block you're working on, I mean, just in general that we might've not already covered.

>>26214383
Ok, so a cleaned up stat block,

+4 Str, -2 Dex, +2 Con, -2 Cha
Monstrous Humanoid
Medium
Speed 20 ft
Darkvision 60 Ft
Powerful Build-as half giant
+1 natural armor
+2 Perception or +2 Listen if 3.5
Bite- 1d3 damage
Claws- 1d4
Languages- Common and (Ursin), Bonus- Celestial, Dwarven, Elven, Giant, Orc, Sylvan, Terran
+1 LA till 5th lvl

>>26214756
And I forgot the +2 Knowledge (History) or we could bump it up to

Curiosity (4 RP)
Prerequisites: None.
Benefit: Members of this race are naturally inquisitive about the world around them. They gain a +4 bonus on Diplomacy checks to gather information, and Knowledge (history) and Knowledge (local) become class skills for them. If they choose a class that has either of these Knowledge skills as class skills, they gain a +2 racial bonus on those skills instead.

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I find this amusing.

>>26214756
not totally sure about Darkvision rather tha low-light vision, but the rest works fine.

on an unrelated note, it's damn hard trying to find usable art for "anthropomorphic bear" without stumbling over gay furry porn, pinups of Becky from Tale Spin, or fanart of Pandaren. And most of what I can find outside of that isn't blue-board suitable due to nipples or fuckery or whatever.

Damn, I wish I could draw.

>>26215122
Well it could always be lowlight. this frees up a couple points to afford Curiosity above and not hit +2 LA.

>>26215172
yeah, darkvision always felt too overpowered to me since for most situations lowlight can serve just as well - how often do you find yourself in perfect darkness, after all?

Part of me keeps thinking there's some more we could add, fluff-wise, but I can't think of what we might've overlooked...

>>26215284
So heres a finalized PC Ursin Stat Block

+4 Str, -2 Dex, +2 Con, -2 Cha
Monstrous Humanoid
Medium
Speed 20 ft
Lowlight Vision
Powerful Build: The physical stature of ursin lets them function in many ways as if they were one size category larger. Whenever an ursin is subject to a size modifier or special size modifier for a Combat Maneuver Bonus or Combat Maneuver Defense, the ursin is treated as one size larger if doing so is advantageous to him. An ursin is also considered to be one size larger when determining whether a creature's special attacks based on size (such as grab or swallow whole) can affect him. An ursin can use weapons designed for a creature one size larger without penalty. However, his space and reach remain those of a creature of his actual size. The benefts of this racial trait stack with the effects of powers, abilities, and spells that change the subject's size category.
Curiosity: Members of this race are naturally inquisitive about the world around them. They gain a +4 bonus on Diplomacy checks to gather information, and Knowledge (history) and Knowledge (local) become class skills for them. If they choose a class that has either of these Knowledge skills as class skills, they gain a +2 racial bonus on those skills instead.
Tough Hide: +1 natural armor
Strong Senses: +2 Perception
Bite- 1d3 damage
Claws- 1d4 damage
Languages- Common and Ursin; Bonus Languages- Celestial, Dwarven, Elven, Giant, Orc, Sylvan, Terran
+1 LA till 5th lvl

>>26207164

That picture is super gross. Also its clearly a dog's head.

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>>26215460
Perfect!

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this isn't perfect - the male's arms feel too long, the female's body seems too small with a weird head, and both aren't really as stocky/chubby as I picture a bear-person might look like, but it's the closest thing I've been able to find so far without exposed genitals.

>>26215683
The should make the woman like a dwarves are

Indistinguishable from the males, near invisible, and angrier than the males are.

>>26215707
No, that is incredibly stupid on multiple levels.

>Russian bears

Too predictable.

They need to be celtic.

http://goddessschool.com/projects/wavewalker/l1fpartio.html

>>26215749
This. It's already established that there's a clear gender-based division of labor. It should be difficult for a non-Ursin to tell the sex of a naked in the distance Ursin at a glance, but there should be some form of wardrobe dimorphism here that highlights that female Ursin are the matriarchs, the traders, the ones in charge of the household's affairs, and that male Ursin are the laborers and defenders.

Things an Ursin might pick up on that would be difficult for a human to tell would be the generally lighter tone of fur (as mentioned up thread, males would tend to have darker fur and females would have lighter fur), females would be slightly smaller than males, female heads would be slightly smaller relative to their body size than males, and males and females would smell different (in part because of biology and in part because of the division of labor). Most humans would be stuck trying to pick up on cues like "well, this Ursin has a leather apron and a tool belt, so it's probably a guy".

>>26215830
Yeah, you should've piped up about ten hours ago if you wanted that to stick.

>>26215845
Sorry, didn't check the times. Man this thread is OLD.

The bears should obviously have a hidden tribe of Californian Bears.

>>26214383
>Russia

No >>26214068

Use Finland, they are the true bearsons the Russians are usurpers

>>26215834
>Things an Ursin might pick up on that would be difficult for a human to tell would be the generally lighter tone of fur (as mentioned up thread, males would tend to have darker fur and females would have lighter fur), females would be slightly smaller than males, female heads would be slightly smaller relative to their body size than males, and males and females would smell different.

The only part of that I could really see as "difficult for a human" would be the smell, which even for Ursin probably wouldn't really come into play too often. Unless perhaps the human was colorblind or viewing them at too far of a distance to judge general size.
You see a relatively-small Ursin, with lighter-colored fur, odds are good it's a female. Could be a juvenile male with uncommon coloring, but most likely a female. Likewise, a bigger dark-furred individual would be pretty easily identified as being male. Not too hard to figure out here, folks.

>>26215978
The thing is that an Ursin would be able to easily tell seeing just one other Ursin in isolation. A human would probably need a lineup... I'm not talking about obvious size differences here. They'd be slight. Unless you're around Ursin on a regular basis, one should have trouble telling their males and females apart without going by wardrobe.

>>26215971
way too late to argue nationality-equivalence. Glad to hear of your patriotism, Finn, but we're going with Russia.

>>26216013
a foot and a hundred pounds is "slight"? Males stand around 7 feet tall and 675 pounds, and females around 6 feet and 550 pounds. You telling me you couldn't tell those apart with reasonable accuracy?

>>26216077
plus the aforementioned color stuff mentioned.

Yeah, clothing is important, but PLEASE lets not take the Discworld Dwarves route where nudity is required to differentiate gender.

>>26216077
No, I'm telling you the difference in height shouldn't be so great. There should be one, but it should be one of purely statistical relevance as far as a casual non-Ursin observer is concerned.

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>>26214383
Can I speak out against the little to no weaponry thing?
Ursin should have a fascination with MAULING weapon, they're located in an analogue of the land that co-developed the flanged mace.
As for reach extension, Ursin would be great fans of the rogatina spears. Thick, heavy and comparatively short for their weight, they often come with a perpendicular (metal or wooden) piece behind the spearhead, designed to keep the most massive game or opponents at a distance.

>>26216111
I'm not thinking it should be played for laughs if that's your worry. I'm just coming at it from the angle that most of the cues humans use to tell men apart from women in humans (or most humanoid fantasy races, for that matter) don't exist for Ursin. No breasts, no obvious difference in build.

>>26216141
>rogatina spears

Now this, this I love.

>>26215971
He's talking about the land, though, and it's the same old finno-ugric territory.
We're not exactly making stalin vodka USSR bears here, though it'd be cool if you could add Finnish flavor pieces in the mix, to make it subtler.
Like knives. Finns have a fascinating knife culture.

>>26207448

Favored class not Berserker?

Bear-zerker. You know that's where that came from, right?

>>26216077
they actually stand 7 to 8 feet tall. And they are fucking bears, can you tell the difference between a male and female bear?

>>26216158
ehh, the biological mechanics would necessitate larger hips for the females at least, but the difference would probably be slight.

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So, Bear Exaltation Mor'du?

>>26216208
And it ties in with their storyteller god, Kalevalen.

>>26216120
>>26216158
Well, I'm just saying there should be some level of physiological difference - not talking breasts here, of course (though, arguably, considering the insulative fat layer, both genders would appear kinda chubby) but more akin to their real-animal counterparts. Real bears, like most animals, have the females distinguishably shorter, smaller, and differently-colored than the males. And considering how very large and bulky the Ursin are, a foot and 50-100 pounds doesn't seem too drastic. It might be for a human, yes, but we have a far different build than them.

It would still be somewhat difficult to tell one from the other if one didn't know what to look for, such as in a first-encounter situation, but it shouldn't take too long to pick up on what the diffrences are based on context.

>>26216239
>but the difference would probably be slight.
Not to mention easily obscured by muscle, fat, and fur.

>>26216239
I couldn't tell at first, no, and not if I only saw one at a time, but given enough exposure, I would eventually pick up on things quickly once I learned the distinguishing characteristics.

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>>26216175
Yeah, they're great
>It's not the length that counts
>it's the girth

>>26208077

Arctic: Place without bears
Antarctic: Place with the scariest bears

>>26216356
You have that backwards, broseidon.

>>26216356
that's backwards, you dolt.

>>26216296
well true. anyone who says that there should be no way of telling a difference is ignorant of basic biology.

I am right here right now removing one small piece of bear biology from the Ursin: the males Oss breaking during sex and causing a tie like a dog.

>>26216383
Nobody's saying there should be no way. We're just arguing on degrees of dimorphism, with one camp saying "it should be hard for a non-Ursin that hasn't encountered them frequently to tell the difference" and another camp saying "it should be easy for a non-Ursin that hasn't encountered them frequently to tell the difference".

>>26216383
O_O why would you even want to include that... Please, yes, remove as soon as possible.

>>26216383
Is there any particular need to even discuss the mechanics of Ursin reproduction beyond MAYBE gestation period and time it takes to reach adulthood? I feel like there's no good that can come of going into the degree of detail your spoiler goes into.

>>26216427
"Hard" and "easy"? Seems more like some want "somewhat difficult" and some want "impossible". Like that one guy who kept suggesting that clothing was the only good clue.

Overall body-shape, size/color... there's plenty of usable context clues with which one might be able to guess, as mammals share a lot of general traits.

I mean, if it were something like reptiles, where something totally alien to mammals like scale-patter or frill coloration or something were the only clues, then yeah, confusing male for female would be a lot more plausible of an error.

>>26216498
I think he was saying that, while a lot of folks were basing Ursin traits very heavily on real bears, that some stuff should not be included just because it's bear-related.

>>26216441
Its actually a very mild break in smaller bears, but the Polar bear has that happen and then has to have sex for many hours afterward. God the things you learn about the animal kingdom.

>>26216498
I always consider all their biology because such things will have an impact on their culture. Its something that doesnt necessarily need to be mentioned, but its a good idea to at least consider the ties it could have to how they treat the subject, and such

>>26208739

What about the god of the white bears?

perhaps the NE god could have a wife
She is pure white. This deity gives birth to evil deeds and is not lazy, but actively evil. This evil takes the form of speaking out against the other gods, trespassing on their land, and turning them against each other. Her husband is too lazy to stop this evil from coming into being, as he is a bad husband. This aspect is considered mad, and is worshiped by those who even consider themselves treasonous.

>>26216559
how about some dichotomy...

We have a light brown female goddess of life and comfort, and a dark brown male god of work and duty...

We have a black male god of laziness and apathy... so why not a white female god of death and fear?

>>26216374
>>26216378

I'm also drunk. Goo dpoint. Get wrecked.

>>26216630
All balanced out by the neutral, greying brown god of stories, of course.

This works.

>>26216630

That works, too, but remember most god stories form around the cultural traits that are important to the people. So... what is the absolute scariest thing to these people? That's what she's like.

>>26216662
This works, and with five fingers per hand, five gods, five elements. The number five could be a sacred number among the Ursin.

>>26216662
exactly.

And, oddly, I see the white death-bear as not exactly malevolent so much as, well, cold and unemotional, inevitable. She gathers the dead because someone must. The Ursin fear her not because of any evil, but because it is in the nature of the living to fear the end of life.

Oddly, some warriors in the fiercer tribes offer prayers to the White Bear, typically before a battle, that she might look away from them, and focus her gaze upon their foes.

>>26216682
Winter starvation, of course

>>26216721
Thus why she is white - a symbol of the ice and snow of unforgiving winter, that is not and cannot be sympathetic for those unprepared for it.

>>26216743
this is why duty and hard work are prized values for the Ursin - it is a reminder of days of long ages ago, when those who did not work to ready themselves would perish in the harshness of the coming cold.

>>26216721
Yes, the winter frost that comes and saps the life from all.

How about the Story god is a reddish brown or rust to represent both the middle color between dark male and light female, but also fire and warmth, especially as people gather round fires to tell stories.

>>26216778
In the more modern days, winter deaths from hunger and cold are rare indeed, but the imagery and mindset still remains, lest they forget.

I'm going to be running a game set in the Napoleonic Era version of Dungeon/Epic Fantasy. Do you think these guys would fit?

>>26216790
I thought we'd already said that - a rusty color, but greying as if aged.

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>>26207634
>>26210198
>>26210269
>>26210377
Werebear's have varied based on edition.

AD&D and 2nd ed had them at Chaotic Good
3rd was the only edition that they are Lawful good.
Pathfinder (or 3.x/3.75) has them as Chaotic Good as well...
4th edition has no comment (Werebear was never published in a 4th edition book)

They have been Chaotic good for MOST of the time the game has been running.

>Giantwerebearstatblockimage.jpg related

>>26216721
>>26216743
>>26216778
>>26216790

Hell yes.

>>26216682
>>26216721
>>26216743
>>26216802

The goddess of Death, to the Ursin, is nameless, lest idle usage of the name draw her unwanted attention.

To them, when they must speak of her, they refer to her only by the alias "Belaya", meaning "White Lady" in their native Urssian tongue.

>>26216896
I like that. It's a nice twist that a race based on creatures people feared to name, also have something they themselves fear to name.

>>26216720
Rodina is the matriarch of all clans, a loving and gregarious figure acting at all times in her cubs' best interests... this White Goddess should be the counter force.

Baba Ursula (NE), Rodina's sister, is a cold and dispassionate mother. She hates her cubs and wishes nothing more than to wipe the world clean of Ursinkind, leaving nothing but a barren glacier where the clans once stood. Her favored weapon is the bow, but her followers are known to favor all manner of dishonorable weapons, and favoring poisons over weapons of any sort.

>>26216954
She's AWESOME, but we already got a fifth goddess.
You could scale her down to a fairy tale witch a la Baba Yaga

>>26217026
That works. I could see a culture as big on oral tradition as the Ursin having fairytale-type stories to teach and to coax young ones into avoiding misbehavior.

>>26217026
Eh, that was my writeup for the fifth goddess. It just took a bit of time for me to get it down due to difficulties with the name. I suppose we could call her Baba Belaya rather than Baba Ursula, and there's nothing here that really contradicts anything else before the post.

>>26216896
Awesome. Very well played
>Belaya
Incidentally, this would make vodka a forbidden drink

>>26217073
"Now now, my sweet Ivan, you hush and go to sleep, and don't be making lot of noise, so Mama and Papa can rest too. You behave like good boy, else maybe Baba Ursula come along and hear you making fuss, then she jump in window and gobble up naughty child who does not behave, yumyumyum!"
"Aah, no, Mama, hahah, okay, I be quiet and sleep."

>>26217112
not quite following you.

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>>26217178
I think hes talking about this. Also Belaya is a name for a river and a couple of other things, which actually works for the name of a goddess since people will name things after divine entities.

>>26217213
Well, it's not like Belaya IS her name, just the name to use when speaking about her, in case she might hear you.

>>26211264
Dire bear is still a bear

>>26217246
And that has a very long precedent in the naming of place too. Its something that people do. Also read that label for the vodka- winter grains, black flint. Its evil vodka.

>>26217338
>evil vodka

...well, I'm sure we could figure out something to do with that kind of description.

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Here's a little mini-dump of Kodan, polar bear people from I think Guild Wars.

1/5

>>26217178
It's one of the very, very old nicknames for it, very widespread (hence multiple current brands capitalizing on it), "how much for the white one?" etc.
For the Ursin, it's a pure white witch drink, reminiscent of the goddess, that tricks you into feeling warm even on the coldest night. A natural thing to either taboo or stigmatize.
A noble in the Polish Commonwealth would face a huge fine and dishonor if he was caught drinking that scum drink
It would also make it a risky drink for the hotheads, who will try to cheat the Winter.

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>>26217523
2/5