Realm: Midgard
Typical Height Range: 6'0" to 7'0"
Typical Weight Range: 270 to 450 lbs
Center of population: Small clusters in peninsula mountains
Estimated population: 100,000 native / 220,000 former human
Physiology
At the very most basic, pykkr are anthro bears, plantigrade and superficially similar to eurasian brown bears.
Compared to most races, they are physically imposing, standing both taller and broader than most, with significant bone and muscle bulk. Their stance is very close to human, with feet flat on the ground, and a very upright posture. However, their torso is somewhat deeper than that of a human, and their shoulders broader and sloped. Their heads resemble that of a eurasian brown bear and do not grow longer hair in the fashion of humans. Their muzzle is marginally shorter than that of real bears, and their faces more expressive, with more human dome than ursine pan to the cranium shape.
Their thick fur and "loose" skin makes their legs look shorter than they actually are, and many people mistakenly believe that they can travel rapidly on all fours. Each hand and foot is broad and thick, with fingers that are shorter than human equivalent, but home to thick claws up to two inches long on the hands, and up to a full inch on their feet. Their fur colour has some room for variation, ranging from tan to chestnut, but most are of the familiar dirt-brown. Colour seems to have very little practical significance, and can vary even within a single family. They're able to voluntarily enter a hibernating state, though the practice is fairly rare among forcemarks, given modern time requirements and constant food availability.
Pykkr have superficially ursine genitalia, and a pregnancy lasts about 4 months, plus or minus 10 days. The pykkr cub is born weighing about 1 pound, and is very underdeveloped compared to human newborns. Litters of one or two are equally likely, while triplets may occur once every 800 pregnancies, and quads are virtually unheard of.
http://darknatasha.deviantart.com/art/Medicine-Bear-52482597
http://cunningfox.deviantart.com/art/Longing-for-summer-s-touch-201022097
http://aureath.deviantart.com/art/Feathered-Friends-13312399
;){kind=link}