(no subject)
Here are some notes on the early form Bugbears took in Living Earth. I don't know how much will change, but for now it's rather complete.
Bugbear
True Name:
Uscut Gemmel
Nickname:
Berserkers
Cave Dogs
Grunts
Personality:
Bugbears are fiercely loyal Cobaloites (Goblinoids) that live in a “primitive” hunter-gatherer culture. Bugbears value family, allegiance, and caste above all else, and their devotions often define who they are as individuals. It is thanks to this extreme sense of loyalty that Bugbears so often find themselves serving other races as bodyguards, servants, and helpers.
Physical Description:
Bugbears are huge, hulking beasts, often resembling the cave bears that serve a central part of their tribal culture. Standing between 5 ½ and 6 ½ feet tall hunched over, these beasts can reach well over 7 ½ feet if they were to ever stretch their curved backs out (something they don’t like to do). Their reach is also unexpectedly long, and it’s not unheard of for a Bugbear that can’t see above a castle wall to reach right up over it to hand a colleague some weapon. Bugbears can comfortably hold 300-500 lbs on their frames. Despite all this, Bugbears are quite lithe and quick, having become used to dwelling in their underground communities and surviving on skills alone. Bugbears reach maturity at 15 years, but can live well beyond a century and a half.
Relations:
Bugbear relations are exotic to say the least. Grossly xenophobic, Bugbears want nothing to do with any race not their own, usually even rejecting Bugbears from other tribes as foreigners. When a member of a particular race hurts a Bugbear tribesman, the tribe will often generalize their rage and declare a “Farwar” against the entire race.
Having said this, it should be noted that Bugbears grow these extreme relationships with whomever they take as their “family”, meaning a Bugbear may become extremely devoted to another race, an adventuring party, or the General of an army. The Sages say that the loyalty of a Bugbear is a priceless thing, and is not to be taken lightly.
Bugbear males take on roles as defenders and warriors, and Bugbear women are often the caretakers and leaders of the tribe.
Alignment:
Bugbears tend to favor chaotic demeanors, despite their rigid allegiances. They know what they like; they just tend to use unexpected means in protecting it.
Lands:
Bugbears are cave dwellers, preferring ones with plenty of open access to the outside world, but not rejecting ones with elaborate tunnel systems and deep underground passages (although these are usually the work of other creatures). This often puts them in direct contact with other subterranean races, like Dwarves, Gnomes, and Kobolds. It is with the equally stubborn and prideful Dwarves that this contact most often becomes conflict, and it is not uncommon for Tribes of Bugbears to have generations-old wars with Clans of Dwarves.
Religion:
The Bugbear Tribes worship a multitude of gods and spirits, some ancient, some highly revised versions of local deities. Their faith is resolute and passed down along with their other familiar biases.
Many Bugbears worship a system of spirits and animal totems. They believe that all the world has a soul, and that existence is the only true purpose in life. The only thing that sets Beings apart is the honor they have, the duty they must strive to fulfill to the world they will all one day leave behind.
Perhaps thanks to their chosen terrain, Bugbears have developed a strong relationship with cave bears, and almost all tribes have deified them in some way. The bear is a symbol of eternal existence, as it awakes from death each spring to life anew. It’s also the symbol of rage and unyieldingness. Both lessons are learnt well by the Bugbears.
Language:
Sadly, mysteriously, Bugbears have no language of their own. They tend to learn only enough of the language of their enemies to recognize the speech and plan their attacks. They are known to speak the language of Giants and other hill folk, however, because even the most secluded tribe needs to trade with neighbors. In their homes, Bugbears speak a highly dialectic version of Cobalos, the bestial language of the Savage Ones.
Names:
Bugbears don’t differentiate between males and females when it comes to names or cultural status. Their names tend to sound like screams and howls to the ears of other races, and sages believe this is the last existing remnant of the language that once united all Bugbear kind. Bugbears have two such “name of screams”, one they keep as a closely guarded secret.
To communicate with individuals from outside their tribe, Bugbears often take on names that when translated out of Cobalos, have very distinct meanings that describe physical skill, oaths of servitude, or past family deeds. These names are passed down from generation to generation, which can be very confusing to foreigners that try to draw a clear family tree.
Bugbear Scream Names:
Varrell, Saaaagh, Deaann-ugh, Frell’n
Bugbear Foreigner Names:
Bone-breaker, The Stone Fist of Keva, Lance’s Doom, River Wrecker, Bear Dancer, Eater of Flame, Shield, Sorren’s Revenge, The Pride of the Mountain Folk
Secret Names:
When Bugbears are born, the tribal leader and a shaman hear the cries of the newborn and from that they gleam two names. One is known to others in the tribe, the other is kept a guarded secret until the Bugbear becomes three years of age, when the young one is trusted with its own name. This secret name is protected like nothing else in the Bugbears’ life, and no simple magic or torture can force it loose. It is thought that anyone that holds the Bugbears’ secret name can control him, so the tribes treat any slight against the secrecy of their names with deadly rage.
Adventurers:
Bugbears make good adventures under very specific circumstances. The Bugbear’s most urgent thought is bent upon protecting its family, friends, or duty - so adventuring must fall comfortably within those desires. A Bugbear makes a wonderfully loyal adventuring companion and the most dedicated hired hand imaginable.
Race modifications:
Medium sized
Base land speed 30 feet
Darkvision out to 60 feet
Languages: Cobalos, Common, Hill Giant, Dwarven
+3 Natural Armor bonus
5-6-7 feet
300-400lbs
+2 Climb, hide, listen; +4 move silently
-2 Int, +1 Str, -2 Cha, +3 Con
favored class, Barbarian
Trap Sense: +2 racial bonus for using search to detect traps and the like
Bugbear
True Name:
Uscut Gemmel
Nickname:
Berserkers
Cave Dogs
Grunts
Personality:
Bugbears are fiercely loyal Cobaloites (Goblinoids) that live in a “primitive” hunter-gatherer culture. Bugbears value family, allegiance, and caste above all else, and their devotions often define who they are as individuals. It is thanks to this extreme sense of loyalty that Bugbears so often find themselves serving other races as bodyguards, servants, and helpers.
Physical Description:
Bugbears are huge, hulking beasts, often resembling the cave bears that serve a central part of their tribal culture. Standing between 5 ½ and 6 ½ feet tall hunched over, these beasts can reach well over 7 ½ feet if they were to ever stretch their curved backs out (something they don’t like to do). Their reach is also unexpectedly long, and it’s not unheard of for a Bugbear that can’t see above a castle wall to reach right up over it to hand a colleague some weapon. Bugbears can comfortably hold 300-500 lbs on their frames. Despite all this, Bugbears are quite lithe and quick, having become used to dwelling in their underground communities and surviving on skills alone. Bugbears reach maturity at 15 years, but can live well beyond a century and a half.
Relations:
Bugbear relations are exotic to say the least. Grossly xenophobic, Bugbears want nothing to do with any race not their own, usually even rejecting Bugbears from other tribes as foreigners. When a member of a particular race hurts a Bugbear tribesman, the tribe will often generalize their rage and declare a “Farwar” against the entire race.
Having said this, it should be noted that Bugbears grow these extreme relationships with whomever they take as their “family”, meaning a Bugbear may become extremely devoted to another race, an adventuring party, or the General of an army. The Sages say that the loyalty of a Bugbear is a priceless thing, and is not to be taken lightly.
Bugbear males take on roles as defenders and warriors, and Bugbear women are often the caretakers and leaders of the tribe.
Alignment:
Bugbears tend to favor chaotic demeanors, despite their rigid allegiances. They know what they like; they just tend to use unexpected means in protecting it.
Lands:
Bugbears are cave dwellers, preferring ones with plenty of open access to the outside world, but not rejecting ones with elaborate tunnel systems and deep underground passages (although these are usually the work of other creatures). This often puts them in direct contact with other subterranean races, like Dwarves, Gnomes, and Kobolds. It is with the equally stubborn and prideful Dwarves that this contact most often becomes conflict, and it is not uncommon for Tribes of Bugbears to have generations-old wars with Clans of Dwarves.
Religion:
The Bugbear Tribes worship a multitude of gods and spirits, some ancient, some highly revised versions of local deities. Their faith is resolute and passed down along with their other familiar biases.
Many Bugbears worship a system of spirits and animal totems. They believe that all the world has a soul, and that existence is the only true purpose in life. The only thing that sets Beings apart is the honor they have, the duty they must strive to fulfill to the world they will all one day leave behind.
Perhaps thanks to their chosen terrain, Bugbears have developed a strong relationship with cave bears, and almost all tribes have deified them in some way. The bear is a symbol of eternal existence, as it awakes from death each spring to life anew. It’s also the symbol of rage and unyieldingness. Both lessons are learnt well by the Bugbears.
Language:
Sadly, mysteriously, Bugbears have no language of their own. They tend to learn only enough of the language of their enemies to recognize the speech and plan their attacks. They are known to speak the language of Giants and other hill folk, however, because even the most secluded tribe needs to trade with neighbors. In their homes, Bugbears speak a highly dialectic version of Cobalos, the bestial language of the Savage Ones.
Names:
Bugbears don’t differentiate between males and females when it comes to names or cultural status. Their names tend to sound like screams and howls to the ears of other races, and sages believe this is the last existing remnant of the language that once united all Bugbear kind. Bugbears have two such “name of screams”, one they keep as a closely guarded secret.
To communicate with individuals from outside their tribe, Bugbears often take on names that when translated out of Cobalos, have very distinct meanings that describe physical skill, oaths of servitude, or past family deeds. These names are passed down from generation to generation, which can be very confusing to foreigners that try to draw a clear family tree.
Bugbear Scream Names:
Varrell, Saaaagh, Deaann-ugh, Frell’n
Bugbear Foreigner Names:
Bone-breaker, The Stone Fist of Keva, Lance’s Doom, River Wrecker, Bear Dancer, Eater of Flame, Shield, Sorren’s Revenge, The Pride of the Mountain Folk
Secret Names:
When Bugbears are born, the tribal leader and a shaman hear the cries of the newborn and from that they gleam two names. One is known to others in the tribe, the other is kept a guarded secret until the Bugbear becomes three years of age, when the young one is trusted with its own name. This secret name is protected like nothing else in the Bugbears’ life, and no simple magic or torture can force it loose. It is thought that anyone that holds the Bugbears’ secret name can control him, so the tribes treat any slight against the secrecy of their names with deadly rage.
Adventurers:
Bugbears make good adventures under very specific circumstances. The Bugbear’s most urgent thought is bent upon protecting its family, friends, or duty - so adventuring must fall comfortably within those desires. A Bugbear makes a wonderfully loyal adventuring companion and the most dedicated hired hand imaginable.
Race modifications:
Medium sized
Base land speed 30 feet
Darkvision out to 60 feet
Languages: Cobalos, Common, Hill Giant, Dwarven
+3 Natural Armor bonus
5-6-7 feet
300-400lbs
+2 Climb, hide, listen; +4 move silently
-2 Int, +1 Str, -2 Cha, +3 Con
favored class, Barbarian
Trap Sense: +2 racial bonus for using search to detect traps and the like