Tigear (Tai-gair)

Basic Information

Anatomy

Tigears appear to be a blend of a tiger and a bear, which a lot of their features are derived from. They are large, bulky, and furry much like a brown bear, however they also present stripes and teeth like a tiger. These similarities are where the familiar features come to an end. The monstrosity has a purple sheen over its fur, mostly around its back and neck, which lead up to its two large purple horns. While its head vaguely looks structured like a tiger's, it is heavily misshapen to the point where it resembles more like a nightmarish monster version of a tiger, with a thick bulky frame and large maw filled with razor sharp teeth. It also has massive tusks on either side of its jaw with thick barbs at the end of each. Its paws are also disfigured by excessive growth of its claws.

Biological Traits

There aren't many biological traits that change or create variants naturally over generations due to the nature of the tigear being a lab experiment that escaped. Instead, these biological traits are picked up when different types of tiger and bear are infected with the mutation through a tigear attack. Tigears that form from different species tend to have different biological traits than the original tigears, which is where sub-classes and variations come in. Typically those differences are already prevalent in the tiger or bear in question, and are thus reflected in the new tigear.

Genetics and Reproduction

Typically tigears will form dens out of abandoned buildings or complexes, typically after devouring everyone within, in order to breed and produce more of their kind. Interestingly enough, however, asexual reproduction processes are not the only way these creatures can appear. Their poisonous barbs kill most other species, but if they are injected into a bear or tiger--or similar species--they will be physically mutated into a tigear, which has the effect of causing multiple variants of tigear to appear. Either way, gestation does not take long due to the mutation acting extremely quickly. This makes them a bit of an issue if left to their own devices for too long.

Growth Rate & Stages

While gestation is immediate, both as a process of being born and the mutation of tigers/bears, the growth rate and stages are directly tied to the prevalence of food. There are three stages to a tigear. The first stage is a child tigear, which will immediately seek out food to grow into its next stage of life. As a young adult they will seek out a new place to form a den, and more food to grow further into a proper adult. Finally, as an adult, they will seek out food in order to create more of their kind. This process can be completed fully within a year, or even quicker if there is enough food, however the amount of food required to achieve these stages both differ depending on the size of the tigear, the type, and overall genetics.

Ecology and Habitats

The optimal environment for a tigear used to be exclusively moist, hot, wet environments that are rich with life to hunt, however as time moved on and different types of tigers and bears were attacked and mutated, the environment they were comfortable with began to spread rapidly. Now there is a tigear that can survive in most land environments. That being said, they absolutely can not survive underwater and tend to struggle in barren deserts.

Dietary Needs and Habits

These creatures are strictly carnivores and require a good deal of red meat in their diet. While they are indiscriminate hunters, they tend to either go after larger game or game that moves in packs. They in particular favor animals that have dens they can simply take over after hunting, which is why they tend to favor humans as a snack and are known to overtake homes to serve as dens. If the tigear already has a den to return to, then it will simply store the food within until it is ready to eat or feed its young.

Biological Cycle

Generally tigears are affected by the biological cycles of their root species, meaning they frequently shed fur in the summer and tend to hibernate throughout the winter. This cycle can differ between different types of tigears, but more or less it's the same for them all.

Behaviour

Tigears tend to be extremely territorial and hostile towards most other species, even their own species if a foreign tigear happens to wander into the turf of another. While this isn't always the case, the tigears tend to only remain passive and protect ones that are a part of their colony. Their colonies can grow to sizes close to about fifty in total, and is why they prefer large complex buildings and dens over smaller structures--even though it's not unheard of to hear of tigear dens forming in simple suburban homes.

Additional Information

Domestication

While it isn't impossible, they seldom are successfully tamed. Even if they are, they are incredibly difficult to handle and take care of due to how vicious and venomous they are. Typically they are used as attack animals by marauders and other similar outlaws, due to the threat they pose to civilization.

Geographic Origin and Distribution

What once was a more local fauna has now spread worldwide and is a rather common creature to find out in the wild. While the region will determine the type of tigear one may run across, the overall likelihood of finding one does not typically decrease unless in locations barren of large fauna such as deserts. They are also land creatures, and thus are not found underwater or in the ocean.

Average Intelligence

Tigears are not known for their intelligence, and tend to rely very heavily on instinct and hunger. Despite their aggressiveness and strength, they can be easily outsmarted. That being said, even though they aren't often found in packs, they do know how to utilize pack tactics when in their dens which is where most of the tigears in their colony can be found.

Perception and Sensory Capabilities

Generally these creatures don't have any real extrasensory abilities outside of the five senses, however they do have a very keen eyesight and sense of smell--making them great, dangerous trackers.

Lifespan

15-20 years

Average Height

5-7 ft

Average Length

5-10 ft

Average Physique

Tigears, due to their bear lineage, tend to be extremely bulky and large. They are easily larger than most people, and have the muscle to tear apart anyone too. That also extends to things like trees, stones, and even light sheet metal. Their claws are razor sharp, and can shred through most things much like their teeth. Thanks to the mutation that created them, they also don't suffer from losing a claw or tooth here or there, since they regenerate rather quickly.

Body Tint, Colouring and Marking

While there are a diverse selection of tigears that can be encountered, they tend to always maintain the stripes of a tiger--even if the tiger that they mutated from did not have any stripes. This detail aside, they come in all kinds of colors and tints, with purple being the most common tint.