Bear Clan

The people of the Bear clan are large in both size and personality: larger-than-life people living in the larger-than-life mountains and valleys that dominate the northern section of the Sjonderwold. They have a reputation for rough and simple living, raiding when they can't make ends meet, and ferocious inhuman fury in battle.   Curiously, Bear clan members are just easily identified by their size as by the intricate, scrolling tattoos on their body and engraving on their possessions, although none of them seem to have any interest or skill in those fields.   The isolated valleys of the Bear homelands leads to a very insular and personal style of diplomacy. Grander notions of empire face difficulty spreading through each Bear hold. In modern times, the Bear can be notoriously difficult to unite and control due to the natural fortification of their homeland, the hardiness provided to them from their ancestors, and the Gift of Urd allowing them to sustain their population.   Bear warriors can be quick to dismiss the toughness of any of the “weaker” southern clans. The only way to prove a warrior’s worth in the eyes of the Bear is through strength of arms, strength of stomach, or strength of loins. In all three, the Bear seem supreme: while they may have mostly left their raiding and barbaric ways behind them, the average Bear is quick to rise to a contest of strength, and quicker still to join a drinking contest. The Bear also measure strength in number and power of offspring, and so take great pride in the size of their families (both in numbers and in stature).