Beast Fables - Dire Beasts of Urvara
So, finally get to reveal of what I've been working on before the New Year!
A lot of focus is on chimeras for Beast Fables, so I decided to shine a light on Dire Beasts!
For those new, Dire Beasts are essentially animals and creatures born with The Gift much like Chimeras, but instead of borrowing traits from other animals temporarily, they have a permanent transformation that makes them, essentially, a larger, more exaggerated version of themselves.
From orcas to lobsters to whales, a dire beast tend to be very dangerous, and much more aggressive in comparison to their normal color counterparts. For example, the Sandfury, the dire beast form of the bobbit worm, will actively chase after prey when it misses its target the first time.
Meanwhile, on land, while every human being on Urvara is some form of werebeast, complete with the advantages (and occasional disadvantages) of their beast forms, they still share their world with truly formidable dire beasts.
From hornbills with beaks sharper than spears, bears with fur as hard as chainmail, and beetles the size of pigs, wild dire beasts make life quite difficult for the average landlubber, frequently outmuscling and outsizing people even in beast form.
Even 'small' dire beasts are dangerous. For example, the Tlahuele, dire hummingbirds, will not be afraid to aim for the eyes with their spear like beaks.
