| Characteristics | |
|---|---|
| Alignment | Neutral |
| Type | Magical beast |
| Image | Wizards.com image |
| Stats | Open Game License stats |
The owlbear is a type of fictional monster for player characters to encounter in the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game.
An owlbear is depicted as a cross between a bear and an owl, which "hugs" like a bear and attacks with its beak, and was considered a magical beast in the game's third edition.
Gary Gygax created the owlbear, which was inspired by a plastic toy made in Hong Kong, and introduced the creature to the game in the 1975 Greyhawk supplement; the creature has since appeared in every subsequent edition of the game, including the game's first edition, second edition, third edition, and fourth edition. Owlbears, or similar beasts, also appear in several other fantasy role-playing games.
The owlbear is among the earliest monsters in Dungeons & Dragons and like the bulette and the rust monster, was inspired by a Hong Kong-made plastic toy purchased by Gary Gygax for use as miniature in a Chainmail game.[1]
The owl bear was introduced to the game in its first supplement, Greyhawk (1975).[2] It is described as a horrid creature which "hugs" like a bear, and deals damage with its beak.
The owlbear appears in the first edition Monster Manual (1977),[3] where it is described as a horrible creature that inhabits tangled forest regions, and attacks with its great claws and snapping beak.
This edition of the D&D game included its own owl bear, in the Dungeons & Dragons Basic Set (1981 & 1983).[4][5] The owl bear was also later featured in the Dungeons & Dragons Game set (1991), the Dungeons & Dragons Rules Cyclopedia (1991),[6] the Classic Dungeons & Dragons Game set (1994), and the Dungeons & Dragons Adventure Game set (1999).
The owlbear appears first in the Monstrous Compendium Volume One (1989),[7] and is reprinted in the Monstrous Manual (1993).[8]
The owlbear appeared for the Dark Sun setting in the adventure Black Spine (1994).
The owlbear was detailed in Dragon #214 (February 1995), in "The Ecology of the Owlbear", which also included the arctic owlbear and the winged owlbear.[9] These variants were later reprinted in the Monstrous Compendium Annual Volume Three (1996).[10]
The greater owlbear' appeared in an adventure in Dungeon #63 (July 1997).
The owlbear appears in the Monster Manual for this edition (2000).[11]
The owlbear appeared on the Wizards of the Coast website for the Chainmail game, in 2000.[12]
The winged owlbear appeared in Dungeon #84 (January 2001).
The owlbear appears in the revised Monster Manual for this edition (2003).[13]
The ancient owlbear appeared in Dungeon #107 (February 2004).
The Ankholian owlbear appeared in the Dragonlance Bestiary of Krynn (2004) and the Revised Bestiary of Krynn (2007).
The owlbear appears in the Monster Manual for this edition (2008), along with the winterclaw owlbear.[14]
Owlbears are approximately eight to ten feet (2.5–3 meters) tall and resemble a cross between an owl and bear. Owlbears are carnivorous creatures famed for their aggression and ferocity[15]; they live in mated pairs in caves and hunt in packs, attacking any creature bigger than a mouse[15].
The actual origin of the owlbear has never been definitively revealed, but the various Monster Manual editions indicate it is probably the product of a wizard's experiments. The lich Thessalar claims to have created them, but his insanity and egomania put the accuracy of this claim in doubt.[16]
Various kinds of owlbears appear as mobs in the MMORPGs EverQuest and EverQuest II.
Owlbears can be found in the roguelike computer games NetHack and ADOM. It also appears in a text-based MMORPG BatMUD.
An enemy named OWL BEAR appears early into the Sega Master System game Phantasy Star.
In Wildtangent's FATE,Owlbears were enemies in the game's first version.However,they were replaced by a similar monster called Shrike.
In PlayStation 2 game Wild Arms 5 Owl Bear appears as a common enemy.
There are also Owl Bears as enemies in Final Fantasy XII.
Owlbears are included in Pathfinder Role-Playing game's Bestiary, and elaborated on in Dungeon Denizens Revisited
Adaptations of the Owlbear appear in the Warcraft universe in two forms:
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