Bears

Know that ditty about the bear "climbing the mountain, to see what he could see?" Biggest load of rubbish I've ever heard. When a bear climbs a mountain, it's not to see. It's to hunt. To kill.

– Jahne Oldak, royal huntsman

Bears are omnivores – meaning men find a place in their diet beside berries, roots and salmon. When they snack on humans, they most frequently partake of the meat of travelers unwittingly trespassing on their territory, or else that of hunters for whom besting such a creature is a lifelong ambition.

There are several subspecies of bears – black bears, polar bears and cave bears – which differ from one another in coloring as well as in size and strength. All share one trait in common, however: a near-unmatched ability to kill.

Bears are found far from human habitation, in high mountains or deep woods. They are solitary creatures - and a good thing they are, for defeating a single bear is challenge to anyone, experienced witchers included. Fighting a bear should be avoided, but if it cannot, one should not try to run away – these seemingly clumsy animals can run at an astonishingly high speed, especially if angered.