Homebrew Drop Bear Species Details

Ancient History.

Drop bears once lived in large starships produced by technology beyond human imagination. The power of their tech brought the attention of an ancient aberration which completely obliterated their home planet. Only a few drop bears survived, fleeing on one of their ships. They arrived on the planet of Argel-Am and orbited it for many years. They had only one of the eight great Artifacts of the King, the Crown of the Artificer, which granted immortality and absolute control over machines to its wielder.

Eventually, the drop bears had had enough of staying on the ship, and tensions were high between the two groups that lived in the ship. One group wanted to use their technology to invade the planet below and rule over it as a more advanced species, and another wanted to procure peace by offering their services in exchange for a land of their own. Fierce war broke out between the factions, and stalemate lasted for nearly a decade.

Nine years later, one faction was in control of the Crown, and in a desperate move, the other faction placed a bomb in the ship. When the bomb exploded, the ship was blown in half. One half landed on Mount Drop Bear, then called Mount Skyshard, which blew a hole in its peak. The other half, containing the Crown, hurtled towards Filtorian, and its location and existence is unknown to this day. Some believe that displacer beasts were the ancient mounts of the drop bears and they originated from mutations caused by an elder brain that was obliterated when the ship crash-landed.

The survivors of the Fall, as it came to be known, eked out a meager existence in the surrounding area. The drop bears forgot their history, instead believing they were favored of the sky god Grimstar who were punished for attempting to violate the barrier of the stars. They believed that they were once minor cloud gods and had lost their gift of flight. Only recently have pieces of their ship been discovered, and with the technological boost, they have reached the capabilities of Ebberon's artificers.

Battle Tactics.

Ancient drop bears once had complex battle plans, and their modern counterparts have begun to rediscover these tactics. Drop bears relied on barbarians, artificers, monks, wizards, and fighters, because most other specialties were too hard to train or contrasted their belief system. Barbarians were called the Armory and were an order of warriors that fueled their prowess with built-in weapons. Instead of using rage to increase their power, they overcharged their weapons to cause destruction. Artificers were called Dronemasters and they commanded groups of robotic drones into battle. Monks were Skydroppers, assassins that ambushed from high up and used their Flurry of Blows to unleash a barrage of gravity-boosted claw strikes. Wizards were called Battlemages, and they focused on using spells that could damage a large amount of troops at once. Fighters played the roles of Couriers, who brought healing potions made by the Dronemasters to the front lines, and Snipers, who used firearms from on or behind walls to deal damage.

A typical unit of soldiers consisted of 6 Armory soldiers, 4 Dronemasters with 2 Battledrones each, 4 Skydroppers, 3 Battlemages, 2 Couriers, and 3 Snipers. Each Courier carries 5 Potions of Healing. Drop bears begin any battle by releasing 2-3 Battledrones. When an adversary investigates, the Skydroppers use their Flurry of Blows to attack, falling from above. Then, they retreat, and 2 groups of 2 Armory soldiers and 1 Battlemage back their foes into a corner. Once their enemies are clumped up, the Battlemages use spells to deal damage to the opposition. Then, the Battlemages retreat and the Armory soldiers attack. The snipers keep the opposition under heavy fire, and the rest of the Battledrones attack. If any soldiers are wounded, the couriers come in with the healing potions. If any of the Armory soldiers are defeated, 1 of the Skydroppers attacks. 2 Armory soldiers and 1 Battlemage guard the rear and attack if the other soldiers are defeated.

Appearance.

Drop bears look like large koalas, with an adult drop bear growing to only 3 feet tall. Their claws and feet are sharp and designed for climbing, but they can also use them in battle. Drop bears have very sharp fangs but their teeth are not used for much except eating meat. Drop bears have a second stomach which they use to separate harmful chemicals from their prey. They also can retract their claws outside of combat.

Drop bears have maroon fur when they are born, which fades to brown as they mature. After many years, a drop bear's fur begins to gray. Most drop bears take this as a sign that the gods are pleased with them and stop throwing themselves into danger. Drop bear adventurers who survive this long are regarded highly by their community and usually become priests.

Drop Bear Traits

Drop Bears are separated from other species by many of their traits.

Claws

     Drop bears are notorious for their sharp claws, which they use to great effect in battle. One of the most dreaded things in Dragolica is a drop bear landing on a back from above, because their claws have the unique ability to completely transfer the effects of gravity. You can make a claw attack, which does 1d4 slashing damage, has a range of 5 feet, and has the light and finesse properties. If you are falling, the damage of your claw attacks are increased by 1d4 per ten feet fallen, to a maximum of 5d4 extra damage. If this boosted attack hits on a turn that you would otherwise take damage from falling, that damage is reduced to 0. You may make multiple boosted attacks in a turn, and your claws count as a monk weapon.

Ability Score Increase

One of your ability scores increases by 2, and another increases by 1.

Age

Drop bears live to an average age of 200 years, but they don't show their age until they are around 150. Drop bears are considered children at under around 15 years.

Size

Gnomes are between 3 and 4 feet tall and average about 40 pounds. Your size is Small.

Speed

Your base walking speed is 25 feet, and you have a climbing speed of 40 feet. You can keep your grip on walls even when holding items in both hands.

Darkvision

As an ambush hunter, you have superior vision in dark and dim conditions. You can see in dim light within 60 feet of you as if it were bright light, and in darkness as if it were dim light. You can’t discern color in darkness, only shades of gray.

Languages

You can speak, read, and write Common and Auran. Drop bears learn Auran at a young age because of their supposed connection to the skies.