Bear Yokai

**Bear Yokai** are beings who are known for their expert climbing skills.

## Physical Appearance

Wild Bear Yokai are larger then their Surface World counterparts. The civilized Bear Yokai are anthropomorphic versions of their Surface World counterparts. They have sharp claws, sharp teeth, fur covering their bodies and a black bear nose. Some Bear Yokai can assume a humanoid form while maintaining the features of their yokai form.

## Description

Bear Yokai are one of the strongest yokai species in the Hidden World. Their claws can cut through anything including steel. They also use their claws for climbing. These yokai are expert climbers as they can easily climb up trees with ease. Living in the forest areas of the Hidden World, they know the best places to do some fishing as well as finding berries that are safe to eat.

## Abilities

* Apex Predator Physiology
* Claw Retraction
	+ Climbing
* Dermal Armor
	+ Thick Skull
* Enhanced Body
	+ Enhanced Durability
	+ Enhanced Endurance
	+ Enhanced Speed
		- Speed Swimming
	+ Enhanced Strength
		- Constriction/Crushing
* Enhanced Mauling
* Enhanced Smell
* Environmental Adaptation
* Fighting Instinct: Bears are genetically programmed to fight.
	+ Wrestling Intuition
* Hibernation
* Hunting Intuition
* Lightning Bruiser: Enhanced Level
* Parasite Immunity; limited to Baylisascaris Transfuga.
* Powerful Bite

### Variations

* **Giant Panda Physiology**
* **Sloth bear Physiology**: Dermal Armor
* **Sun bear Physiology**: Prehensile Tongue
* **Ursus Physiology (brown bears, polar bears, and black bears)**: Enhanced Strength, Enhanced Durability
	+ **American black bear Physiology**: Enhanced Vision
	+ **Asian black bear Physiology**: Feral Mind
	+ **Brown bear Physiology**: Night Vision, Environmental Adaptation
	+ **Polar bear Physiology**: Arctic Adaptation, Speed Swimming, Enhanced Smell, Enhanced Hearing, Enhanced Vision, Enhanced Endurance, Predator Instinct

### Extinct Bears

* **Cave Bear Physiology (Cave bears, extinct)**: Enhanced Strength, Enhanced Durability

### Associations

* Mammalian Physiology

Bears are associated with great number of mystical and supernatural abilities and connections in mythology and folklore, thus user with this power may have access to: Balance, Divine Empowerment, Healing, Human Disguise, Resurrection.

## Pop Culture

Bears are popular in children's stories, including Winnie the Pooh, Paddington Bear, Gentle Ben and "The Brown Bear of Norway". An early version of "Goldilocks and the Three Bears", was published as "The Three Bears" in 1837 by Robert Southey, many times retold, and illustrated in 1918 by Arthur Rackham. In a continuation of the anthropomorphic themes of "Goldilocks and the Three Bears" are the "Berenstain Bears" which behave and act like a human family.

"Teddy bears picnic" remains a popular children's song. Bears are frequently depicted in children's media as cuddly and friendly companions such as the depiction of Baloo in "The Jungle Book" by Rudyard Kipling.

The Hanna-Barbera character Yogi Bear has appeared in numerous comic books, animated television shows and films. The Care Bears began as greeting cards in 1982, and were featured as toys, on clothing and in film. Around the world, many children—and some adults—have teddy bears, stuffed toys in the form of bears, named after the American statesman Theodore Roosevelt when in 1902 he had refused to shoot an American black bear tied to a tree.

In both of the films "Brave" and "Brother Bear" the bears depicted are used as a supernatural story telling device. The bears in these movies swap bodies with a human character in order to teach them a lesson about familial bonds.

## Variations

### Panda Yokai

Panda Yokai are known for their signature black and white fur color. They're also known for their martial arts as well as their cooking techniques in traditional Chinese cooking.

### Polar Bear Yokai

Polar Bear Yokai are known for surviving the extreme cold temperatures of the snowy areas thanks to their fur coats.

### Onikuma Yokai

Onikuma Yokai are exceptionally large and powerful bears, believed to result from a bear living for an exceptionally long time and transforming into a spirit. Onikuma are considered largely the same as bears but have some notable supernatural powers such as unimaginable physical strength sufficient to move boulders that ten full-grown humans could not and growing large enough to carry away cows and other large animals with ease.

## Life in the Hidden World

Bear Yokai lives in large communities in the forest areas of the Hidden World. Being forest experts, they know their way through the forest. Going to the best places to do some fishing and hunting as well as sniffing out berries that are safe to eat. Being one of the strongest species, they often fight with other yokai like elephants and lions to prove their own strength. Sometimes they would even fight each other for mating or for territory. These yokai are fond with food. They can eat large amounts of food without getting a stomachache nor vomiting. Honey being their top favorites. They would get honey from beehives and use it for many meals such as toast and BBQ meats. Female Bear Yokai are extremely protective of their cubs. If anyone were to mess with their cubs, then the female Bear Yokai will charge and attack them.

## Symbolism

A bear stands for energy, confidence, self-healing, peace, understanding, solitude, motherhood, activeness, courage, resurrection, optimism, and majesty. As a totem guide, a bear shows you how to overlook your minor problems and appreciate the beauty of life.