Fireclaw
The brightest ember in a fading nation.
The fireclaw, also called cinderbear, is an omnivorous bear that can be primarily found in the Highlands of the country of Vanhindle, and is one of the largest known land predators in the world. Its name is derived from the fire-like lights that glow from its scars during nighttime, as well as the innate ability to ignite its claws when hunting or when threatened, leaving long, charred nail marks on its prey's body, with the inner temperature of any given specimen being far more elevated than most other land-based creatures. This has largely been explained as a spiritual or magical connection to some other creatures, or to legends long forgotten, and it is one of the key traits that allows it to survive in the Highlands.
Fearing and having no natural predators, fireclaws roam their forest with near impudence and freedom, only being threatened by skilled hunters and clever warriors.
Fireclaws are deeply rooted within Vanfolk tradition and religion, with the people of Vanhindle often portraying them as guardians or spirit guides that walk the earth tasked with defending the land's forests. As such, many regard cinderbears as the clearest and most visible symbol for Vanhindle's oral and runic traditions, with people both celebrating and respecting the creatures and integrating them to most stories and widespread myths and legends.
Recently, the number of fireclaws has been reduced considerably because of the Yо̄ken Empire's ongoing war to conquer Vanhindle. Seeing as fireclaws were exceedingly rare in the Empire's territory, the advancing soldiers began to either take them captive to be brought to the Empire's capital or culling them in large numbers due to their furs and other obtainable products, while also claiming that such an animal was stolen by the foreign gods of the Vanfolk.
Fearing and having no natural predators, fireclaws roam their forest with near impudence and freedom, only being threatened by skilled hunters and clever warriors.
Fireclaws are deeply rooted within Vanfolk tradition and religion, with the people of Vanhindle often portraying them as guardians or spirit guides that walk the earth tasked with defending the land's forests. As such, many regard cinderbears as the clearest and most visible symbol for Vanhindle's oral and runic traditions, with people both celebrating and respecting the creatures and integrating them to most stories and widespread myths and legends.
Recently, the number of fireclaws has been reduced considerably because of the Yо̄ken Empire's ongoing war to conquer Vanhindle. Seeing as fireclaws were exceedingly rare in the Empire's territory, the advancing soldiers began to either take them captive to be brought to the Empire's capital or culling them in large numbers due to their furs and other obtainable products, while also claiming that such an animal was stolen by the foreign gods of the Vanfolk.
Basic Information
Anatomy
Cinderbears are stocky, quadrupedal animals that usually walk on all four legs, but have known to stand on their hind legs as a way to intimidate prey or in order to reach for fruit on tree branches. The legs are connected to four padded feet with five fingers, all of which sport long, non-retractable claws that curve slightly, measuring anywhere from 6 to 17 centimetres (2.36 to 6.7 inches) in length. Their snouts are elongated, their eyes and ears small and their tails smaller still. Likewise, a fireclaw skull is elongated, most likely due to their maxillary structure and enlarged brain capacity.
The bears' muscles, as well as their skeleton, has specifically adapted to the Vanhindle Highlands, showing an increased amount of collagen in the articulations as a result of the frequent climbing that occurs in order to move throughout its landscape while also enabling them to run long distances in short amounts of time. They are also adept swimmers, being able to cross ravines and other bodies of water with relative ease. Reports have shown, however, that fireclaws usually tend to avoid swimming long distances, as they tire easily when doing so.
Perhaps the cinderbears' most striking features are those which give them their name. During daytime, a cinderbear's fur is a smoky shade of gray, its tone lightening as the bear ages. At nighttime, both the bear's body and claws give off a soft, flickering glow in different shades of orange, not unlike the last embers of a campfire. This light emanates from scars or wounds the bear has acquired during its lifetime and its sheen is magnified by the fireclaw's fur.
The bears' muscles, as well as their skeleton, has specifically adapted to the Vanhindle Highlands, showing an increased amount of collagen in the articulations as a result of the frequent climbing that occurs in order to move throughout its landscape while also enabling them to run long distances in short amounts of time. They are also adept swimmers, being able to cross ravines and other bodies of water with relative ease. Reports have shown, however, that fireclaws usually tend to avoid swimming long distances, as they tire easily when doing so.
Perhaps the cinderbears' most striking features are those which give them their name. During daytime, a cinderbear's fur is a smoky shade of gray, its tone lightening as the bear ages. At nighttime, both the bear's body and claws give off a soft, flickering glow in different shades of orange, not unlike the last embers of a campfire. This light emanates from scars or wounds the bear has acquired during its lifetime and its sheen is magnified by the fireclaw's fur.
Biological Traits
Fireclaws display a marked sexual dimorphism, meaning differences between both sexes in body weight, height and other factors beyond their reproductive organs, which separates them into male and female. This phenomenon is most clearly evidenced in their height difference, with males towering over the females. Other differences include fur color, where the males tend to exhibit darker shades of gray, and the intensity of their emitted light, which is greater in females than in males.
Genetics and Reproduction
Fireclaws reproduce sexually, with mating season occurring at around the time of the year's hottest days. A male in heat will attempt to court and mate as many females as it can during the two-to-three week time span, with females likewise seeking the highest possible amount of partners in order to ensure pregnancy. When pregnant, female cinderbears tend to eat as much as three times the amount of their regular diet.
Fireclaw cubs are normally born after six to seven month of gestation as their mother sleeps, with males usually playing a small role in their upbringing.
As of recently, however, the mating process has slowed down considerably due to over hunting, leading a male to stay with a female throughout the oestrus period if they can find each other.
Fireclaw cubs are normally born after six to seven month of gestation as their mother sleeps, with males usually playing a small role in their upbringing.
As of recently, however, the mating process has slowed down considerably due to over hunting, leading a male to stay with a female throughout the oestrus period if they can find each other.
Growth Rate & Stages
Fireclaw cubs grow rapidly, attaining sexual maturity approximately six years after being born. The cub's fur will go from its wispy transparency to the ashen tone of the rest of the species in around a month, while also increasing its body size dramatically as time goes on.
It is not unusual for cubs to be fully dependent of their parent(s) during the first years of their lives, forming a close bond between each other. After two years, the cub has grown and learned enough from their caretaker to start living independently, usually leaving their litters shortly thereafter.
It is not unusual for cubs to be fully dependent of their parent(s) during the first years of their lives, forming a close bond between each other. After two years, the cub has grown and learned enough from their caretaker to start living independently, usually leaving their litters shortly thereafter.
Ecology and Habitats
Fireclaws usually live in the Vanhindle Highlands, where the cold, humid forests provides a moderate of comfort and enough food for an entire lifespan, although they have been known to wander to warmer climates when searching for mates or for greater food sources. The bears usually make their dens in caves near to ash tree copses, or in ash forests.
For the most part, fireclaws keep to themselves, living solitary lives and avoiding other members of their species. However, they tend to be territorial, especially when protecting their young, tracking and attacking most creatures that enter its scent radius.
Cinderbears play an important role in scattering different tree and plant seeds, be it through their excrement or through their fur, allowing the forests to continue growing.
For the most part, fireclaws keep to themselves, living solitary lives and avoiding other members of their species. However, they tend to be territorial, especially when protecting their young, tracking and attacking most creatures that enter its scent radius.
Cinderbears play an important role in scattering different tree and plant seeds, be it through their excrement or through their fur, allowing the forests to continue growing.
Dietary Needs and Habits
Cinderbears are omnivorous creatures, eating whatever is available but finding more nutritional value in high-fat foods found in the Vanhindle Highlands' fish, for example.
When hunting, a fireclaw will first identify the scent of its prey, or wait patiently for its quarry to arrive. After tracking it down or after its arrival, it will use is fangs, claws, and body weight to overwhelm the tracked prey and kill it. The claws are particularly useful for this endeavor, as they sear the flesh they enter in contact with, causing great amounts of damage to the target. Once the quarry has been killed, the bear will usually consume it then and there.
Their large sizes usually implies that there will never be need to stand on their hind legs while fighting prey, using this as an intimidation tactic rather than a combative one.
Cinderbears are also foragers, known for swiping fruits down from their tree branches or attempting to shake them down if they cannot be reached on its hind legs. It has also been noted that they will sometimes eat mushrooms, although this appears to be an exception rather than the norm.
When hunting, a fireclaw will first identify the scent of its prey, or wait patiently for its quarry to arrive. After tracking it down or after its arrival, it will use is fangs, claws, and body weight to overwhelm the tracked prey and kill it. The claws are particularly useful for this endeavor, as they sear the flesh they enter in contact with, causing great amounts of damage to the target. Once the quarry has been killed, the bear will usually consume it then and there.
Their large sizes usually implies that there will never be need to stand on their hind legs while fighting prey, using this as an intimidation tactic rather than a combative one.
Cinderbears are also foragers, known for swiping fruits down from their tree branches or attempting to shake them down if they cannot be reached on its hind legs. It has also been noted that they will sometimes eat mushrooms, although this appears to be an exception rather than the norm.
Biological Cycle
The most notable time of the year in a fireclaw's life cycle occurs during autumn. Where most bears in the rest of the world would begin to stockpile food for their hibernation, cinderbears go into hiding. Using their fur as camouflage and the Ashfall as a means to ensure it, the bears rest during the entire season, feeding sparsely and moving as little as possible within their dens. Some hunters have even stumbled with fireclaws that are resting outside their dens, yet get lost amidst the falling ashes. Why this occurs has never been fully explained and it has given way to a famous Vanhindle expression: 'Harder to find than a fireclaw during its ashen rest'.
Additional Information
Domestication
Some are foolish enough to attempt to have fireclaws as pets, seeing as the stories of the legendary ranger Farseer Tyrfe claim that she had such a companion to aid her in her hunts. However, most of the times people while either desist from their domestication efforts due to religious purposes or because they are simply terrified of a giant, unruly creature threatening to maul their faces off.
Uses, Products & Exploitation
Besides being used as a religious symbol for the Vanfolk, cinderbears are hunted because of their unusually warm furs, their harder-than-stone bones and as a trophy to those seeking glory in the hunt. Other cited reasons include killing the bears for their meat, which is often described as tough and tasteless but has deep ties to local superstition, and their fat, also linked to folklore and commonly used as a substitute for lamp oil.
Average Intelligence
Fireclaws are highly intelligent creatures. It has been proven beyond a doubt that they posses long memories and an innate sense of pattern and location recognition. They also employ surprisingly resourceful tactics when on the hunt, indicating notions of imagination, albeit primitive.
Perception and Sensory Capabilities
Cinderbears have an incredibly acute sense of smell, with it being able to perceive prey up to two kilometres (10.56 miles) away, and being able to pinpoint an exact scent amidst several others.
Their hearing is also quite well-developed, with a standard fireclaw being able to detect sounds outside of a person's hearing spectrum while not being able to perceive from as far away as they would a particular smell.
Cinderbears have a very limited sense of touch, normally used to inform the bear's system that it is in pain.
Their eyesight is about on par with a regular person's, yet is dramatically enhanced at nighttime. Why this occurs is uncertain.
Their hearing is also quite well-developed, with a standard fireclaw being able to detect sounds outside of a person's hearing spectrum while not being able to perceive from as far away as they would a particular smell.
Cinderbears have a very limited sense of touch, normally used to inform the bear's system that it is in pain.
Their eyesight is about on par with a regular person's, yet is dramatically enhanced at nighttime. Why this occurs is uncertain.
Scientific Name
Ursus Igneus Cinis
Lifespan
20 to 25 years.
Conservation Status
According to Vanfolk tradition, the fireclaw is a creature tasked by the gods to guard the various forests that exist within the Ni'Helian countrysides, with harsh social and religious penalties imposed on those who hunted them for sport. This, in turn, allowed for comfortable room for the cinderbear population to grow, only being kept in check by hunters and poachers from other countries, namely Yо̄ken and Filmente, who share borders with Vanhindle.
As of the Yо̄kenji occupation of Vanhindle, however, the bears are being hunted down for their pelts, as trophies or as a military strategy to further demoralize the Vanfolk as their borders retract more and more. As such, the number of fireclaws has been dramatically reduced over the course of the last three years.
As of the Yо̄kenji occupation of Vanhindle, however, the bears are being hunted down for their pelts, as trophies or as a military strategy to further demoralize the Vanfolk as their borders retract more and more. As such, the number of fireclaws has been dramatically reduced over the course of the last three years.
Average Height
Females are smaller than their male counterparts, measuring 1.4 to 1.6 meters (4.6 - 5.2 feet) when on all fours and 3.2 to 3.5 meters (10.5 - 11.5 feet) when standing on their hind legs . Males tend to measure anywhere from 1.7 to 1.9 meters in height when on all fours (5.6 - 6.2 feet) and 3.6 to 3.9 meters (11.8 - 12.8 feet) when standing upright.
Average Weight
Females: 500 - 800 kilograms (1102 - 1763 pounds)
Males: 700 - 1000 kilograms (1543 - 2204 pounds)
Males: 700 - 1000 kilograms (1543 - 2204 pounds)
Average Length
Females: 2.0 - 2.5 meters (6.6 - 8.2 feet)
Males: 2.7 - 3.0 meters (8.9 - 9.8 feet)
Males: 2.7 - 3.0 meters (8.9 - 9.8 feet)
Related Ethnicities
Remove these ads. Join the Worldbuilders Guild
Comments