Quartz 5

Bejorn

Properties2
tagsrace, new-world
aliasesUrsine

3 min read

Bejorn

“Strong!”

  • Dothus Petri, Emissary to the New World

Strong and powerful, the Bejorn are bear-folk of the New World - fierce tribal warriors, the bipedal blood-kin of their ursine ancestors. They live in small clans of about a dozen, deep in forests, caves, and arctic wastes, hunting with vicious ferocity, and their use of weapons and keen battle sense give them an edge over their unevolved kin.

Society

Protective Nature

Bejorn have powerful parental instincts and will fight to protect clan and family - to a bejorn, blood is thicker than water, and few things would make one abandon their clan for a life of adventure. Wary of outsiders but fiercely loyal once won over, they rarely side with large kingdoms or armies, having little interest in politics. In their families, both parents provide for and raise their children, called cubs.

Blood Ties

A traditional clan is led by an alpha - the strongest - with several others; a youth who would become alpha must win an honorable bout of unarmed combat, though otherwise the young show great respect to their elders. Clans take tough, intimidating names like First Tooth or Bloody Roar, marking their territory with simple scratched symbols that wise travelers learn to read and avoid. Most bejorn who leave home do so after disgracing their family or breaking code, or because tragedy - massacre, fire, or being lost - drove them out into the world and a life of adventure.

Tradition and Honor

Though not generally religious, all bejorn clans owe allegiance to Quetzalcoatl and his ideals of clan law and leadership. They believe he watches and guides them through play and battle, and that he contacts elders, shamans, and especially righteous warriors through visions in their hibernation - designating them a task. To leave the clan in pursuit of such a mission is a sign of great honor.

Culture

Language

Bejorn speak Beastspeech, the shared trade tongue of the New World, alongside their own ursine speech.

Appendix

See Also

Notes

  • Bejorn devotion to Quetzalcoatl ties them to the old Nahuatl gods of Thelemar - a cross-link to be developed alongside that pantheon.
  • Game mechanics were intentionally omitted from this worldbuilding page.

Sources & Attribution

  • Primary lore: editions/5e-2014/species/bejorn.md (Traveler’s Guide - Foray into the New World), author TrueMichato.
  • Supporting lore: content/General/Races of the New World.md (the “Ursine” bear-folk).

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