Creature Profile: Ursowl
Collected from the Tome of Scarlett Reed:
6113.23.20 – Two days ago, we stopped through a town called Bearington to restock on some supplies. Seeing as the town was named Bearington we figured we had a decent shot at finding a Congress of Ursowls, which are creatures that have both the traits of owls and bears. Tired and hungry, we decided to stop at a local tavern called Ricky’s Place. The owner, I presume as his name was Ricky, was a friendly man that rather confused when we asked him about the Ursowls.
–Tormund Amendment– A group of owls is called a Parliament, and a group of bears is called a Sloth. Due to their meandering nature, groups of Ursowls are referred to as a Congress. It should also be noted that Ursowls are fairly new creatures as far as I’m aware, only three or four hundred years old. They may have been created as magical experiments, and let loose. I have no proof of this being the case, but it has happened in the past (Manticores).–
“Ma’am, we don’t have any bears in these parts.”, I enquired as to why they had Bear in the name of the town, “It’s entirely unrelated”.
Locals.
Regardless of being bear-free, which most cities would pride themselves on, Ricky was able to point us in the direction of some adventurers where a Congress was residing, a few days travel out. Which led us to where we are now, setting up camp a few hundred meters away from a Congress.
Having never seen an Ursowl for myself, I dared ask the question of the adventurers, are they as dangerous and aggressive as the stories indicate. “Only during mating season”, the adventurers laughed.
6113.25.08 – Only during mating season, indeed. It became abundantly clear during the last month or so we’ve been among the Ursowls that it’s always mating season. Currently, Lady Saunders and Sean have a side-bet going on as to who would win in a straight-up brawl, Lady Saunders, or an Ursowl.
There are all ages of these creatures, along with varying degrees of Ursowl pregnancy. Based on our calculations, we estimate that their gestation period is around 8 months, and we’re guessing the owlcub leave their nest around 24 months.
Once the males reach maturity, they seem to become extremely aggressive towards other males. Bouts between them happen fairly frequently, and it is not uncommon for a death to occur. It also doesn’t help that the males outnumber females 3:1, at least in this Congress. No wonder why they’re known for their brutality.
And that’s not even talking about the females. They tend to be much more reserved than the males, unless they have an owlcub. While they are with their young, the males even cower from them.
6113.25.12 – After living in the forests of Zexen for nearly a year, we’ve had our first encounter with a Unicorn. Sean seems to have inadvertently caught the attention of an Ursowl while sketching it causing it to attack. After a blow, Sean regained consciousness to the sight of a unicorn. It is unclear if it sought to protect my husband, or if it was more coincidence. Though he wasn’t able to follow it himself, he did find the general direction of the creatures. We plan to explore the area in the near future.
I can’t deny the fact that I am glad to be rid of the Ursowl for a few days.
6114.01.06 – It seems as if Sean and Beatrice can put their wager behind them. After temporarily ceasing our campaign with the Ursowls, our return put them on edge. Lady Saunders single-handedly defended Sean and me against one of the creatures, which was incredibly spectacular to behold, however, she is not without injury.
Their diet seems to consist of small-game rodents, fish and foraged roots and berries. After some debate we’ve decided to look for other creatures, as staying with the Congress may become even more harmful to our health.
