Homebrew Bearkin Species Details

"It is said to leave a bear to his honey and fish, as he prevents other predators from approaching your abodes, but bother the same bear and fear his wrath, as, dude, that guy is big and has claws you idiot don't mess with him.  Just like, dude, live and let live and stuff, don't poke bears."

-Ashrinies, Elven Elder speaking on the subject of Bear-kin

Physical Description

In general, Bear-kin are bear-like humanoids with white, brow, or black fur and grayish-black skin beneath. They are very muscular, but also mentally developed. They can don armor and run on all fours or on their hind legs. Their facial fur is particularly long and shaggy, occasionally giving them the grizzled beard appearance. Their eyes are usually some dark color like brown, though they can be any color depending on their heritage and magical influcences.

Society

Massive, strong, and possessing a fearsome fortitude, this omnivorous race evolved from bear-like ancestors. Covered in coarse fur, ursines are most at home in cooler climates and thin atmospheres, but many reside in forest communes as either citizens or protectors. They thus build much of their civilization in the colder north, along giants and orcs, of whom they have a kinship with.  Their survival ability is such that it is possible to find ursines in even the most inhospitable places, including places with cold temperatures that would kill less strong races in minutes quite easily, leading some to believe they are blessed by an unknown god of nature. 

The ursines also have an astonishing longevity. Finding individuals who are more then a century old is not at all unusual. While an individual bearkin may have less than average intelligence compared to other race, the weight of wisdom and experience harnessed over the years can become exceptional. It is therefore no surprise that there is a growing regard for ursine elders within the world, and the younger races will often go to them for advice and insight.

The ursine government is a meritocracy, or rule by the judiciary. The legal wisdom and neutrality displayed by ursine judges is universally recognized, so their advice and arbitration is regularly sought by other legal professionals. Law is the primary ursine export, coming in forms of precedents and books, as well as proctors for law exams to find fitting members for the judiciaries of other societies. They are heavily involved with law and order at all levels, from local regulations to galactic governance. Many ursine lawspeakers, or candid judges, can be found on the road, travelling from community to community learning about local jurisprudence and practicing their trade in arbitration to any in need (and sometimes to those who did not seek it). The Elder Magisters collectively form the executive, legislative and top judicial authority in their nation, their dedication to neutrality in law having become a bedrock of some local communities in contact with the main Bear-kin societies.

However, the Bear-kin obsession with neutrality in law does not come without controversy. As with any society, benevolence may not always be the intended outcome; there are those who use law as a means of power and control. Ursines are ready to go to war over a technical legality, and they are always on the side of the law after it has been ratified, even if the law itself is not always entirely justified.  This has led to a surge of renegade bearkin who fight this obsession with legality with noncompliance or even unscrupulous means.  Regardless, a Bear-kin is a often a strong bedrock to his community, with his often unbendable will inspiring even the youth of other races. 

Bearkin Names

Male bases may have suffixes of "-in," "-on," or "-an." Female names can have suffixes of "-a" or "-o." Either may be left alone. Letters in parentheses are only to be used if no prefix is added.  In pure bearkin societies, these are common, but as they intermingle with other societies, their names can often be the names of other culture and races.

Male Bases: Thor, Fin(n), Mat(t), Log(i), Karl, Kaer, Lan(n), Frey

Female Bases: Frey(n), Astri(d), Karoel, Laer(l), Frigg

 

Bearkin Traits

Your Bear-kin character has certain traits deriving from your ancestry.

Ability Score Increase

Bearkin are a varied race, but one thing is certain, they are a strong folk.  A Bearkin gains a +2 bonus to their strength score, and must take a +2 on either their Constitution or Intelligence, then they must take a -2 on either their Constitution or Intelligence.

Age

Bearkin mature faster than humans, reaching adulthood around age 17. They age slowly and can live longer than humans for about 140 years.

Alignment

Bearkin are people of the land and forests and thus inherit the manner of such places of nature, which is to say neutrality.  Bearkin tend to have a strong, stoic nature and their morals usually are their own, as a forest-type kinfolk's first thought is often to survival or to "the pack".  Though it is not uncommon to see a Bearkin who drops this aura of stoicism to approach others with common friendliness.  Nevertheless, Bearkin tend to forge their own path in regards to their morality.

Birthright of the Bearkin

Bearkin are born with a semi-mystical attachment to the land, and each is born with one minor power that the player can choose on creation.

Size

Bearkin are much larger and stockier than humans with many more pounds of muscle, and they commonly range to about 6-7 feet tall. Your size is Medium.

Thick Fur and Hardy Body

Bearkin have thick fur and an unmatched constitution compared to most races, giving them a flat 5 extra HP on character creation, as well as 5 resistance points against Cold damage.

Bearclaw

A Bearkin's stubby fingers end in sharp, tough claws, meaning any attack by them, even bear-handed, is dangerous.

A Bear-kin gains a claw attack, a 1d8+3 damage bonus to any attack made using their claw attack.

Speed

Your base walking speed is 30 feet.

Bear's Visage

Bearkin can use their strength and connections to the powerful predator of the forest of which they are kin to intimidate the weak minded.  You gain proficiency in the Intimidation skill

Languages

You can speak, read, and write Common and Sylvan.  Sylvan, the Fey language, was shared with the Bearkin long ago, and is a lilting, graceful language.  Depending on your fluency or manner, you may inflect growls and gruff tones, the general Bearkin accent, into the language, or speak it soft and quietly.