Bugbear (Bug-bear)
The largest and most individually dangerous of Goblin-kind, bugbears prefer to lurk in the shadows and strike when it is most effective. Brutal and malicious, bugbears prefer to spread misery wherever they go, often leaving one victim of their raids alive but maimed to forever question why they lived while others did not.
Basic Information
Genetics and Reproduction
Bugbears reproduce in the typical fashion for goblinkind, finding a "mate" and forcing themselves upon them. Few bugbears bother to raise their children, often abandoning them as soon as they are able to move around on their own.
Growth Rate & Stages
Bugbears reach adulthood at 13 years of age, just slightly behind that of a goblin. Like goblins, most bugbears are able to move and fend for themselves only days after their birth.
Dietary Needs and Habits
Like goblins, bugbears are mostly carnivorous, often feasting on parts of their torture victims while they are still alive. When lacking fresh meat, a bugbear turns to scavenging, eating whatever things it comes across that look remotely edible. They especially love Human flesh, and human children in particular are said to be exquisitely tasty to them.
Biological Cycle
Bugbears are less affected by the winter than their smaller cousins, and some bugbear variants thrive in cold areas instead of the normal flaming forests of the goblins. Bugbears that live in goblin tribes are often sent out to scavenge while the rest of the tribe waits in the burrow.
Additional Information
Social Structure
Bugbears are mostly solitary creatures, only rarely forming tribes or raiding groups. Many bugbears grow up in Goblin or Hobgoblin tribes, acting as brutes, enforcers, or executioners. In more particularly violent tribes, bugbears can often rise to leadership of the tribe, but such a time is usually short-lived, as the bugbears lust for violence often pushes the tribe to bring ruin upon itself by attracting the attention of a more powerful being or a group of adventures seeking to quell the tribes increased activity.
Uses, Products & Exploitation
Hobgoblins often train bugbears to be their elite assassins, pointing their bloodlust at their enemies.
Facial characteristics
Bugbears have large floppy ears like their smaller relatives, but that is mostly wear their similarities end. They also posses large mouths with orc-like tusks, and beady red or yellow eyes.
Geographic Origin and Distribution
Most bugbears either travel the lands of Urro looking for victims, or live as enforcers and brutes for goblin tribes in The Everburn, but many variant bugbears can be found all over the world.
Average Intelligence
While many bugbears possess a sadistic cunning that allows them to plan ambushes and kidnappings, most verge on being absolutely feral, and are often unable to resist the urge to stalk and wound others, even when the odds are clearly not in their favor.
Perception and Sensory Capabilities
All bugbears have darkvision, but some bugbears gain the ability to smell the fear of their prey, allowing them to pinpoint their targets on scent alone. Bugbears that live deep underground often have a much farther range of darkvision at the expense of their ability to see in the light.
Civilization and Culture
Beauty Ideals
Unlike other goblins, a bugbear usually doesn't share their warped sense of beauty. A bugbear doesn't perform mutilations out of any misguided attempt for beautification, it simply enjoys inflicting suffering upon others. Despite this, a bugbear puts little to no effort in attaining any sort of beauty, often allowing themselves to become even more rancid then their tiny cousins.
Gender Ideals
Bugbears have no strong opinions on gender; all creatures are equal when under the knife. Many male goblins make the mistake of attempting to force themselves on a female bugbear, only to be met with a long and grisly death by her hands.
Courtship Ideals
While they fallback on violence as their standard for securing a mate, sometimes a pair of bugbears often gain a twisted sense of love for each other, often working hard to procure "gifts" of kidnapped children to present to each other as a sign of their devotion.
Relationship Ideals
Even among goblin-kind, bugbears have few friends, as they are just as likely to torture their smaller cousins as they other races when sufficently bored.
Average Technological Level
Like goblins, bugbears prefer to take things belonging to others rather craft things themselves. They have a special fondness for knifes, morningstars, and javelins for the damage such weapons can deal to the unsuspecting.
Major Language Groups and Dialects
Most bugbears only speak Goblin, and even barely do they speak that, often just emoting through angry grunts. The few that practice other languages often do so to be able to call out from the woods and lure others into traps. Such bugbears can be found speaking Abyssal, Common, Infernal, Ignan, Orcish, Terran or Undercommon.
Common Etiquette Rules
The best way to earn a bugbears favor is to bring them a living creature to torment, whether it be a small animal or a sapient being. Human children are their favorite gifts, and those wanting bugbears to go on a particularly dangerous hunt will often gift them a child to guarantee the bugbears full efforts.
Common Dress Code
A bugbears thick hide often provides it with all the warmth it needs, and thus it wears little clothing aside from what armor it may wear for protection. Bugbears love to make fetishes' and gristly jewelry out of the body parts of their vicitims, often utilzing fingers and ears as reminders of their past conquests.
Common Taboos
A bugbear who turns away from their sadistic and violent lifestyle is likely to find themselves under the knifes of their peers. Indeed, many bugbears take deviant glee in "reminding" their "weak and soft" brethren of the "glory" of the knife.
Common Myths and Legends
A majority of bugbears don't have the penchant for higher religion, but those that do practice religion often maim their victims in the name of Bob, their racial demigod and the first bugbear.
Interspecies Relations and Assumptions
Bugbears are the most feared and hated or goblinkind for their horrendous acts of sadism, but are also the least seen, as they prefer to keep to the shadows. This causes bugbears to be the least understood of goblinkind, and thus many parents tell naughty children stories of how a bugbear will steal them away out of their beds. Seasoned goblin hunters fear the carnage that a single bugbear can unleash upon an unsuspecting village, as a bugbear often frames its crimes on a member of the village.
Racial Table - Bugbear: Hit Dice: D8; Class Skills: Craft, Handle Animal, Intimidate, Perception, Stealth, Survival; Skill Ranks Per Level: 2 + Intelligence modifier; Weapon Proficiency: Simple, plus morningstars; Armor Proficiency: Light
| Level | BAB | Fort | Reflex | Will | Abilities |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | +0 | +0 | +0 | +2 | Intimidating, Stalker |
| 2nd | +1 | +0 | +0 | +3 | Sneak Attack +1d6 |
| 3rd | +2 | +1 | +1 | +3 | Invisibility |
| 4th | +3 | +1 | +1 | +4 | Sneak Attack +2d6, +1 Dexterity, +1 Constitution |
| 5th | +3 | +1 | +1 | +4 | Torturous Glee |
Random Starting Ages
| Adulthood | Intuitve1 | Self-Taught2 | Trained3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 13 years | +1d6 years (14 - 19) | +1d8 years (14 - 21) | +1d10 years (14 - 23) |
Random Height and Weight
| Gender | Base Height | Height Modifier | Base Weight | Weight Modifier |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Male | 6 ft. 6 in. | +2d6 in. (6 ft. 8 in. - 7 ft. 6 in.) | 350 lbs. | +(2d6x10 lbs.) (370 - 470 lbs.) |
| Female | 6 ft. 4 in. | +2d6 in. (6 ft. 6 in. - 7 ft. 4 in.) | 330 lbs. | +(2d6x10 lbs.) (350 - 450 lbs.) |
Bugbear Aging Table
| Middle Age (-1 to Str, Dex, and Con, +1 to Int, Wis, and Cha) | Old (-2 to Str, Dex, and Con, +2 to Int, Wis, and Cha) | Venerable (-3 to Str, Dex, and Con, +3 to Int, Wis, and Cha) | Maximum Age (GM secretly decides maximum age) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 25 years | 35 years | 50 years | 50 + 3d8 years (53 - 74 years) |
Random Bugbear Homelands
| % Rolled | Homeland | Trait Gained |
|---|---|---|
| 01-30 | Goblin Settlement | Flame-Touched |
| 31-60 | Hobgoblin Settlement | Killer |
| 61-70 | Jungle | Jungle Fighter |
| 71-80 | Swamp | Iron Lungs |
| 81-90 | Tundra | Snowstrider |
| 91-96 | Subterranean | Surface Stranger |
| 97-00 | Unusual Homeland | (Roll on Unusual Homeland table) |
Random Bugbear Families
| % Rolled | Parental Status |
|---|---|
| 01-30 | Only Mother is alive |
| 31-61 | Only Father is alive |
| 62-83 | Both of your parents are dead |
| 84-00 | Both of your parents are alive |
| % Rolled | # of Siblings |
|---|---|
| 01-50 | No siblings |
| 51-75 | 1d2 Siblings |
| 76-00 | 1d4+1 Siblings |
Genetic Ancestor(s)
Lifespan
53 - 74 years; although few bugbears make it to 35 due to their violent lifestyles.
Average Height
6 ft. 6 in. - 7 ft. 6 in.
Average Weight
350 - 470 lbs.
Average Physique
Despite their large, hulking figures, Bugbears are surprisingly fast, able to quickly move into positions to capture prey. Some bugbears even grow beyond their normal brethren, becoming towering monstrosities. While not as stealthy, these larger bugbears are just as surprisingly fast.
Body Tint, Colouring and Marking
Bugbears are covered with dirty hair and fur that is usually a black or brown color. Many bugbears often coat themselves with leaves and mud to better hide their bulk and get the drop on their victims.
Geographic Distribution
Bugbear
Type
Humanoid (Goblin)
Ability Score Modifier
+2 Dexterity, +2 Constitution, -2 Intelligence. Bugbears are fast and sturdy, but are nearly feral.
Size
medium
Speed
Bugbears have a base speed of 30 feet.
Language
A bugbear begins play speaking only Goblin. A bugbear with a high intelligence score can pick from any of the following languages: Abyssal, Common, Infernal, Ignan, Orcish, Terran and Undercommon.
- Materil: Bugbears are intrinsically tied to the Hate Materil, and must become Hatecrafters.
- Darkvision: Bugbears can see perfectly in the dark up to 60 feet.
- Intimidating: Bugbears are massively frightening; a bugbear gains Intimidating Prowess as a bonus feat.
- Stalker: Bugbears excel at hiding and waiting. A bugbear gains a +4 racial bonus on Perception and Stealth skill checks. These bonuses increase by 1 for every 2 hit dice beyond the 1st the bugbear possesses.
- Sneak Attack: Starting at 2nd racial level, a bugbear learns to capitalize on surprising its enemies. A bugbear deals an additional 1d6 points of precision damage anytime her target would be denied their Dexterity bonus to AC, or whenever the bugbear flanks a target. This damage increases to 2d6 at 4th racial level, and stacks with any other sources that grants the bugbear sneak attack.
- Invisibility (Sp): Starting a 3rd racial level, a bugbear can fade into the shadows, gaining the ability to cast Invisibility on themselves 1/day as a spell-like ability, using their total hit dice as their caster level. At 5th racial level, they can instead cast greater invisibility.
- Torturous Glee: Starting at 5th racial level, a bugbear learns to spot the weak spots of any enemy. A bugbear rolls twice and takes the better result on Heal checks to gauge an opponent's HP or to torture a creature, and on all Knowledge checks to identify a creature's weaknesses. A bugbear can always make Knowledge checks to identify a creature's weaknesses untrained.
Alternate Racial Traits
- Hulk: Some bugbears tower above their common companions. Such bugbears are large sized creatures, take a -1 size penalty to their AC, a -1 size penalty on attack rolls, a +1 size bonus on combat maneuver checks and to their CMD, and a -4 penalty on Stealth checks. This trait replaces the Stalker trait and alters the bugbear's size.
- Kardan (Sp): Some bugbears learn to master shapeshifting magic. These bugbears can cast Disguise Self as a spell-like ability 3/day. At 5th level, they can instead cast Alter Self. This trait replaces the invisibility trait gained at 3rd racial level.
- Koblak: Some bugbears are born stillborn, but return to life an hour after birth. Koblaks are healed by negative energy and harmed by positive energy.
- Smeller (Ex): Some bugbears have powerful noses to sniff out prey. These bugbears gain the scent ability. This trait replaces the Stalker trait and alters the bugbears' senses.
- Undersight: Some bugbears dwell deep underground and have never seen the surface world. These bugbears increase their range of darkvision to 120 feet, but have the light blindness trait. This trait alters the bugbears senses
- Wikkawak (Sp): Some bugbears dwell in the cold wastes of Vatenrelm. Such bugbears gain cold resistance 5 and the ability to cast Pass without Trace on themselves instead of turning invisible. This trait replaces the Intimidating Prowess trait and the Invisibility trait gained at 3rd racial level.
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