Bear, Athasian

''The bear has a massive body armored in articulated carapace shot through with tufts of brown fur. Its furred, thick-boned skull has round ears, a square snout, and a black nose the size of a man's head. From its gaping maw droops a scarlet tongue dripping with drool.''

Combat
A wild Athasian bear prefers to plunge its foes into darkness, slashing unseen with its enormous paws as it assaults prey mentally. Even with its powers inhibited by psionic handlers, the bear often proves a deadly opponent to gladiators.

Description
Those Athasians who have seen paintings of ancient bears assume the furry creatures to be dwarven pets; the bears of today's Athas are massive beasts caught and trained for arena fighting. Handlers subdue the beasts' potent psionic minds, which have developed psychic attacks over the millennia.

An Athasian bear resembles a shell-wearing version of the dire bear, though even larger and more ferocious. It has brown fur and a black snout and paws. A typical Athasian bear measures 18 feet long and weighs 14,000 pounds.