Bears

[Mystify]

So, I was considering the "Bear riding a bear while summoning bears" description of druids, and it gave me an idea.

A bear-centric party. Every character must be intimately based on bears in some ways. I don't plan on developing this in detail, but just working at the broad-stroked conceptual level.

So far, I have come up with the following characters:

1. Druid
Bear animal companion, summons bears, and wild shapes into bears.
Riding their companion is optional. May have a level of beastmaster for a stronger bear companion.

2. Bear warrior
The bear warrior class allows the spirit bear totem barbarian to start turning into a bear

3. Primeval
The frostburn class, takes a cave bear or something similar as their primeval form.

4. Were-bear
A bear lycanthrope.

5. Bear calvary
perhaps a paladin with special mount, but somebody using a bear as a mount.

6. Master Transmogrifist
a sorcerer/wizard who goes into the master Transmogrifist prestige class, and only takes various bear-forms as his favored shapes.

7. weretouched master
a shifter that goes into were-touched master and takes the bear animal.

8. Bear-tosser
an Urskan(bear-like creature) hulking hurler druid. Summons black bears, and throws them as weapons. Would have its own bear companion.

9. Sentinel of bharrai
This class lets you turn into a bear, and call upon 1d6 maximimum hitpoint dire bears as backup once per week. It also has spellcasting, so more bear summons.

10. Awakened bear.
An awakened bear. With leadership and bear cohorts?

11. Beastmaster
Bear animal companions. Lots of them.

12. Bearlord
Animal lord with bear chosen. gains bear traits, can summon bears, use animal growth on them, and communicate telepathicall with bears.

All druids have the initiate of nature feat and are commanding as many bears as possible.

Anything else that would be appropriately bearish? I don't need alternative routes to get what I already have. A wildshape ranger isn't necessary since the druid is already using wildshape, for instance.

[Alleine]

Make sure any were-bear character is Natural instead of Inflicted thus allowing them to infect enemies, allies, and entire populations with random transformations into LG upstanding bear-citizens :smallbiggrin:

I'm not sure of any PrCs out there that let you slap templates onto your summons, but doing so would be an interesting twist on a "summons bears" character, especially if a character focused solely on summoning large numbers of bears.

Tie the bear-summoner in with an appropriately bear-themed Hulking Hurler for bear tossing goodness! :smallcool:

Urskan(Frostburn) character, for the intelligent, tool using bear creature that doesn't have to rely on shapeshifting to be a bear.

[Mystify]

Make sure any were-bear character is Natural instead of Inflicted thus allowing them to infect enemies, allies, and entire populations with random transformations into LG upstanding bear-citizens :smallbiggrin:

I'm not sure of any PrCs out there that let you slap templates onto your summons, but doing so would be an interesting twist on a "summons bears" character, especially if a character focused solely on summoning large numbers of bears.

Tie the bear-summoner in with an appropriately bear-themed Hulking Hurler for bear tossing goodness! :smallcool:

Urskan(Frostburn) character, for the intelligent, tool using bear creature that doesn't have to rely on shapeshifting to be a bear.
Urksan looks great, that is perfect.

Lets see, its a 2nd level spell to summon a blackbear. Urskan have a +14 str, so a 32 str before magic items is reasonable. They can qualify for hulking hurler 1 level out of the gate, so by their 4th class level they can summon black bears and throw them at things for massive damage. Thats 1 level hulking hurler and 3 levels of druid. higher levels will let them summon more bears at a time.


also, your rank is bugbear in the playground

[Alleran]

I'm just going to get in here before people start pandaing to the masses with a volley of ferocious, unbearable bear-related puns. Anyway, have you considered the Sentinel of Bharrai class from the BoED?

[Othniel Edden]

Awakened Bear on the table?

[Mystify]

I'm just going to get in here before people start pandaing to the masses with a volley of ferocious, unbearable bear-related puns. Anyway, have you considered the Sentinel of Bharrai class from the BoED?

Thats another good one. I'll add it to the list.

Its kinda ridiculous how much bear there is in the system. I'm beginning to feel like the writers where slightly obsessed.

[Mystify]

Awakened Bear on the table?
What happens if an awakened bear takes leadership? Can he be the bear king, with bear followers and cohorts?

[Feytalist]

Its kinda ridiculous how much bear there is in the system. I'm beginning to feel like the writers where slightly obsessed.

It's certainly nothing against all the dragon-related classes, races, monsters, spells and stuff they have going on. But then again, it's called Dungeons & Dragons, so I guess it makes sense.


There's a bear eladrin in BoED as well, as I recal. Urseval? Could be summoned with planar binding/calling spells.

Does the Animal Lord prestige class have a bear aspect? I seem to recall it does.

[NeoSeraphi]

A druid/beastmaster (Complete Adventurer) with wild cohort gets no less than four bears to follow her around. (Five if you count herself)

If homebrew is on the table, there is also this (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=201778).

[NNescio]

Thats another good one. I'll add it to the list.

Its kinda ridiculous how much bear there is in the system. I'm beginning to feel like the writers where slightly obsessed.

It even carried over into 4E!

http://ompldr.org/vY2dpOQ/Bear_lore.png

[Mystify]

It's certainly nothing against all the dragon-related classes, races, monsters, spells and stuff they have going on. But then again, it's called Dungeons & Dragons, so I guess it makes sense.


There's a bear eladrin in BoED as well, as I recal. Urseval? Could be summoned with planar binding/calling spells.

Does the Animal Lord prestige class have a bear aspect? I seem to recall it does.
There is indeed a bearlord. And his abilities are particuarly potent when with a small army of bears.

using the eladrin for binding adn calling will fall under the rest of the summoning potential.

It even carried over into 4E!

http://ompldr.org/vY2dpOQ/Bear_lore.png

ah yes, the infamous DC 20 knowledge check to know that bears kill things with their claws.

[BobVosh]

I'm just going to get in here before people start pandaing to the masses with a volley of ferocious, unbearable bear-related puns.
We have bearly avoided this. Until you came along.

They all need a beam attack. That way you can do care-bear stares. Might as well go for it.

[mikau013]

Persisted : Bite of the werebear (SpC)
could make an interesting bear

[absolmorph]

Thats another good one. I'll add it to the list.

Its kinda ridiculous how much bear there is in the system. I'm beginning to feel like the writers where slightly obsessed.
Yeah, the system has quite a load to bear.

Also, eye beams come courtesy of Ocular Spell.

[Myth]

The Bear Warrior is naturally a Barbarian with the Bear Totem AFC from UA.

You must of course have a Cleric (any bearish deities out there?) who has as many domains that allow the rebuking of animals for more bears!

Frostburn has the best printed bear creature AFAIK. Those must be acquired, various [mind-affecting] spells can help to further bolster the ranks after everyone else used up their resources.

[Greenish]

The Bear Warrior is naturally a Barbarian with the Bear Totem AFC from UA.I'd have thought the bear warrior is a bear warrior. Barbarian entry, of course, so you could take bear totem, but spirit bear totem is much better.

[stack]

Wildshape ranger can also take a bear shape. Master of Many Forms for bigger bears.

[Mystify]

The Bear Warrior is naturally a Barbarian with the Bear Totem AFC from UA.

You must of course have a Cleric (any bearish deities out there?) who has as many domains that allow the rebuking of animals for more bears!

Frostburn has the best printed bear creature AFAIK. Those must be acquired, various [mind-affecting] spells can help to further bolster the ranks after everyone else used up their resources.

The Sentinel of bharrai is a cleric worshipping a bear diety. However, I don't know of any domains to rebuke animals. I found one to rebuke reptiles, but bears aren't reptiles. Is there one you can point me to?


Wildshape ranger can also take a bear shape. Master of Many Forms for bigger bears.

I specifically said I didn't need a wildshape ranger since the druid is already wildshaping.

[Greenish]

Initiate of Nature feat (PGtF) lets a druid or a cleric rebuke animals and plants.

[Mystify]

Initiate of Nature feat (PGtF) lets a druid or a cleric rebuke animals and plants.
I'll throw that on all the druids. The cleric can't take it because he has to use a different diety(even though it would fit perfectly with that diety. I'd allow it as a DM, but I want to keep this 100% legit)

[Person_Man]

There are various templates, spells, and items you could use for Construct bears, Effigy Creature bears, Animated Object bear toys, Fiendish bears, Titanic bears, Warforged bears, bears with tentacles, etc.

If you want to get into even more obscure combinations, might I offer up the Half-Orc Paragon/Bear Warrior/Kensai who enchants his claws with Throwing and Returning and Shaping to make a Rocket-Claw Bear.

[Mystify]

There are various templates, spells, and items you could use for Construct bears, Effigy Creature bears, Animated Object bear toys, Fiendish bears, Titanic bears, Warforged bears, bears with tentacles, etc.

How many of those are playable?