Uruskia

Physical Description

      There are several species of uruskia that range from 6 feet to over 8  feet in height and weighing between 300 and 1800 pounds. Most uruskai  are densely packed with muscle, and are covered in soft fur, thicker  than the kanus or jakara species, but not as thick as the protective  shags of the bhahuul. They have humanoid hands and feet, though they are  similar in shape to that of common bears. Their thick fingers each end  in a sharp-claw like nail, they have heavily padded feet with toes that  in end sharp claws.

      They have large canine-like heads with short  rounded ears, dark noses, round eyes and large snouts filled with  numerous sharp pointed teeth. These natural weapons along with their  powerful bite are used in conjunction with other weapons while in  combat. They are well known for their powerful sense of smell, though  their eye-sight is notoriously bad.

      Uruskai are generally  uni-colored with brown, black, white or even gray coats, many have  white, golden or black markings around their face, eyes or chests. They  prefer loose shirts and tight pants, and cloth or leather material. 

Personality

       As a species uruskai are notoriously known for their highly aggressive  behaviors as much as being soft and nurturing care takers. Many uruskai,  particularly young males and “old claws” are known to be solitary  creatures, preferring to explore and adventure by themselves for many  years or as their years come to an end, though they are not opposed to  joining others for temporary periods of time.

      They rarely attack  without cause and will rarely join forces with bands of adventures, or  other groups if they believe that their cause is not noble or just.  Nearly all uruskai have no use or interest in power, wealth or fame. As a  general rule uruskai are straight forward. They say what they feel and  feel what they say deeply. This tends to make them rude in most peoples  eyes. 

Languages and Names

      Uruskai speak broken common and Uyrkig.  Uyrkig is a deep barrel  chesty sound.  The language is not difficult to speak by others, but the  sound that is made by a Uruskai adds to the context of what is being  said.

      Nearly all uruskai prefer single names that provide  descriptive information about who they are.  These names tend to be made  up of words directly from the Uyrkig language.  They tend to take on  names such as:

      Aeahlefe, Ceath, Dhernirmeh, Huciehi, Kenelm, Khita, Krieth, Rata, Santtu, Sjoerd, Skuyler, Usniah, Velon, Zhain 

Cultural Kin and Communities

       As a species uruskai form no real communities as most species do.  Uruskai build no cities or nations that they call their own. Rather they  see all the wild world and all those that reside therein as their  nation. Because of their dominate solitary ways of life, there is no  need for these beings to have such a civil organization. Though females,  their cubs and more middle aged males form clans of 15 to 30  individuals.

      Clans are overseen by a clan elder, generally the  eldest female of the clan. Though to become a clan elder an uruskai  doesn’t need to be of an elder age, but those who take on this mantle  young are often viewed as having too little experience.

      Ranked  below the Elder are the Clan Mothers. Clan Mothers manage the clan’s  affairs, organizes quests, assigns apprenticeships and in general keep  the clan moving forward with daily routines.

      Clans generally  avoid each other through out the year, though there are times that the  various clans gather in various spots through out the world (and the  Omniverse) to swap stories, tales, and even sell items to others that  are in need of specific things. These festivals, called Grahaik, occur  on the first day of spring, on the longest day of the year, the first  day of summer, and finally on the first day of winter.

     There are  four major species of uruskai: The common Ursus (black), the Arctus  (brown), Maritus (white) and the Tremarus (spotted). 

     Ursus

      Ursus are usually dark in color: black, gray, and rarely crimson. They  usually have a pale muzzle which contrasts with their darker fur and may  sometimes have a white chest spot. Some of the ursus have unique coat  patterns the most dominate of this variation is bold black-and-white  coat and rotund body. There are variations in this sub-species ranging  from being more often brown, cinnamon, or blonde. Some are even creamy  white or bluish gray.

     Ursus stand at 6’ to 6’-6” and weight from  250 to 350 pounds. They are distinguished from other uruskai by their  longer, less heavily furred ears, smaller shoulder humps, and a convex,  rather than concave, profile.

      Ursus have claws which are shorter  and more curved than those of other uruskai. This allows them to have a  great agility in climbing trees.  Not all ursus are omnivores, many are  just herbivores.

     Unlike other uruskai, ursus have deep, strongly  evolved family behavioral relationships that are the result of the slow  maturation of cubs and the high degree of learning. Because of this  ursus possess a high level of intelligence and exhibit a high degree of  curiosity and exploratory behaviors. Although they are generally  characterized as shy and secretive towards other species, they exhibit a  much wider array of behaviors than all other uruskai. The ursus have  extraordinary navigational abilities which are poorly understood.   

     Arctus

      The largest of the uruskai ranging in height from 10’ to 15’ and  weighing from 500 to 1400 pounds: the look giant ursus. Their fur is  usually dark brown, but varies from cream to pure black, with variations  of dark gray, red, and pure white. Most arctus have longer fur near  their shoulders and back, which are frosted with other colors, thus  giving a grizzled appearance.

     Arctus moves with a slow, lumbering  walk, although it is capable of moving very quickly and can easily  catch most creatures. They are mainly terrestrial, although they can  often be found swimming or preying upon fish in the water. Adults are  unable to climb trees.

     Unlike other uruskia, arctus tend to be  more solitary, and occasionally gathering in large numbers at major  festivals and form family foraging groups. Under these conditions,  dominance of hierarchies among the regions population are usually formed  and maintained. These are generally down through trials of combat.  Typically, the highest-ranking individuals are the larger adult males,  though there are the occasional powerful females that rise to the same  levels.  Arctus do not form larger clans as other uruskia, though  females and younger adolescents group together for protection from other  monstrous creatures, particularly when females are raising cubs.      Most male arctus have many cubs with various females in different  clans. This is an accepted cultural norm as a result of the solitary  drive of the sub-species. Family units do not exist, but the males do  feel an obligation to care for their mating partners will visit them all  in turn bringing supplies and gifts when they do.

     Of all the  uruskia the arctus have an excellent sense of smell (able to follow the  scent of a creature for more than two miles behind), greater levels of  hearing, but relatively poor eyesight. These beings are extremely strong  and have good endurance; they can often kill a large creature with one  blow, outrun a horse, out swim most creatures, and drag a huge creature  uphill. 

     Maritus

     Maritus inhabit the much  colder regions of the world from the far arctic north and southern polar  regions, to the high mountains and glacier regions. Their body is  larger and stockier than the more common ursus, similar to that of an  arctus, except it lacks the shoulder hump. Their head is relatively  smaller than the heads of others and have an elongated neck. They stand  to a height of 6’-6” to 7’-6” and can 360-750 lbs. Their fur is  generally white, light brown, light red or even light gray, depending on  the season and light conditions. Their skin tends to be dark gray to  black. They have broad hands and long feet and make excellent paddles  while swimming. The soles of their feet are furred for insulation and  traction while walking on ice and snow.     Maritus are not solitary  individuals, but neither do they group up into large clans. They are  close-knit family groups of 5 to 8 individuals with a powerful father,  mother, adolescents, and cubs. 

     Tremarus

          Small and covered in a shaggy fur, the tremarus often have varying  colors of rings around their eyes, with either bands of different colors  around the body or around their muzzle, throat and chest. They are the  lightest of the species and have a starting weight of 200 pounds and  stand at a height of 5’-6" - 6’.

     Tremarus are very shy, and  little is known about them. They are a clannish lot, living in remote  locations with up to 30 members. These locations tend to be in hard to  reach and hidden places through out the world. Tremarus is a very  adaptable. They, like the ursus, are found in widely varying habitats.  They are found in steppe lands, rain forests, cloud forests, and even  coastal scrub desert land.  They do however avoid the colder, arctic  regions of the world. Family units are generally 3 to 4 individuals.

 Uruskia Features 

Species Merit Cost: 1200 

Age: 10-20, live to be over 150 yrs 

Weight: Base 250 plus 2d10; Arctus Base 650 plus 4d10x10 

Size: Uruskai tend to be medium creatures to huge, (4 to 15 (huge) Feet) 

Vision: Uruskai have night vision 

Move: Base Move of 20 feet per Movement Action 

Languages: Uruskai begin play speaking Uyrkig(Uruskai Common), Azhdehak (Chovah Common), Fak Chun (Firbog Common) and Common 

Resistances: +10 bonus to Fear or Horror checks 

Uruskai Bonuses: +10 bonus to Perception (Hearing and Smell), +20 Climbing Skill Uruskai Attribute Modifiers: 

• Ursus +10 to any two: Stamina, Agility, Perception, Intelligence 

• Arctus +10 to any two: Strength, Stamina, Intelligence, Wits 

• Maritus +10 to any two: Strength, Stamina, Perception, Willpower  

• Tremarus +10 to any two: Stamina, Agility, Perception, Willpower 

Uruskai Traits: 

Ursus - Animal Empathy:  All ursus have the unique ability to understand and communicate with  animals through their behavior, feeling  and motivations. They may attempt to influence an animal to perform  tasks.  Animals may attempt to resist “bad”  orders with a Willpower check at the GM's discretion. You gain your Wits Modifier as bonus successes to checks  to train or handle animals. 

Arctus -Battle Rage. Gain this ability for free. 

Maritus - Protective Shag. Because of a thicker shaggy coat you gain +10 Natural Armor Absorption. 

Tremarus - Child of the Mist.  You have developed a knack for disappearing and finding easy  concealment. All concealment and cover  penalties for you increases by -10. Additionally, melee attacks against  you have a 5% (Maximum of 25%) per every  other rank of simply missing. 

Species Abilities Uruskai  begin play with two of the following abilities: Ancient Foe, Battle  Born, Bond to the Land, Divinely Touched, Fleet of Foot, Mortal's Hope,  Spirit Guide,Viza Suri 

Species Abilities 

Ancient Foe:  The your clan has fought long and hard to survive and have developed a  long, ancient hatred towards a particular group of monsters. Choose any  two of the following monster types: Animal, Beasts, Constructs, Magical  Beasts (Sub Type); Monstrous Humanoids (Specific Species), or  Supernatural. You gain a +10 bonus to its Physical Defense and +10  Attack Bonus against this monster type only. The your critical hit range  also increases by +5 against these monster types. 

Battle Born:  Uruskai gain the following bonuses: gain its Willpower Modifier as  bonus damage to any melee or missile attack; +10 Health Points and its  Holding Zero now occurs when it reach two times its Willpower Modifier  in negative health points. Finally, the creature gains a natural armor  absorption equal to its Willpower Modifier. 

Bond to the Land:  Choose one of the following terrain types: Aquatic, Desert, Forest,  Hills, Mountains, Plains, Swamp or Underground. So long as you are in  this specified terrain you gain a +10 bonus to all skills dealing with  evade, lore (Specific Region), navigation, search, stealth, survival,  and tracking. 

Divinely Touched: You are able to create a halo of light around its head per the spell light as  a spell-like ability, but only evil creatures or the undead can see the  light. When this light is created any undead or evil creatures within  15’ radius suffer a -10 penalty to their Physical Defense and Attack  Skills per 5 ranks when attacking or defending against it. The halo  lasts for 1 turn per 2 ranks, or until it cancel the effect.  Additionally, while this ability is effective, you can see in any  darkness and do not suffer penalties from the darkness. You may use this  ability three times per day. 

Fleet of Foot: The creature is very quick in getting from one place to another. It gains +5 to its normal movement rate. 

Mortal's Hope:  Uruskai are filled with a sense of hope that grants it a +20 to any  fear or horror checks and +10 to your Physical Defense. Additionally, it  gains double your Stamina Modifier as temporary Health Points in  addition to any other bonus Health Points. 

Spirit Guide:  Uruskai are well known for their connections they make to their  ancestors, and you have connected with a spiritual guide to aide you.  Once per day this guide can advise you on any topic granting it a +1  success to any skill check per 3 of its ranks.  Additionally, once per  day you may re-roll any failed check without the use of Heroic Luck. 

Viza Suri.  A uruskia can use a heightened sense twice per day for up to 1 hour,  which allows them to sense the auras of objects and living things around  them up to a 30’ diameter. They are able to “see” when blinded or  complete darkness. Everything appears translucent in form while the  uruskia have their eyes closed.  They are able see through solid  objects.