About Beorn

[Glorelendil]

Any depiction of Beorn in furs is in error.

I'm not sure I'd go that far. Lack of precedent in canon doesn't make it an error.

But I'd avoid suggesting that he killed a bear just for it's skin.

[Ferretz]

I ran most of Kinstrife & Dark Tidings tonight, and I feel I roleplayed Beorn as close to correct I could. But I noticed that in Tales from Wilderland, there is another picture of Beorn, in the part where the Encounter with him is described, that seems to suggest he's wearing a bear skin. Again, it seems a bit wrong compared to how Beorn is described in the books.

Think I'll go back and read the Hobbit again...

E.

[Davio]

So, I'm running Kinstrife & Dark Tidings today, and I'm reviewing the info on Beorn.

One thing I'm curious about is how his shapechanging ability actually works. Some pictures of him in TOR shows him wearing a huge bear pelt. Is this to imply that the magic of Beorn is actually inspired by the legend of norse skin changers? They would wear a magical pelt to change their shape into various animals.

Also, showing him with a bear pelt suggests that he is a hunter of bears. Isn't Beorn a strict vegetarian, and only the hunter of wargs and orcs? Something strikes me as a bit off with the way Beorn is represented in TOR. Anything canon, or in some description, that would suggest he would dress in a bear's pelt? I don't have the Hobbit novel with me here..

Even if Tolkien himself never answered much about Beorns powers (where they come from, how they work in the world) we can know somewhat how Tolkien thought. Tolkien like giving his characters very.. lets say.. uninspirated names. Beorn is anglosaxon (if Im not misstaken) for both Warrior and bear, which is Beorns character. He is a warrior that can change himself into a bear. We also know that some beings can change form (vampires and werewolves)

Cubicle 7 answered this thou in more detail in one of the adventures in Darkening of the Mirkwood campaign book.

(Some spoilers ahead, trying to keep it vague)

Beorn is a true skinchanger, he doesnt need a magical pelt to change his form. Its never mention if its a gift or a controllible curse (could be both really). Its revealed he serves a very powerful being and by doing so, he need to follow some set of rules (like being vegetarian) and follow orders.

[Stormcrow]

Any depiction of Beorn in furs is in error.

I'm not sure I'd go that far. Lack of precedent in canon doesn't make it an error.

My statement wasn't based on lack of precedent. In fact, the passage quoted earlier where Gandalf warns not to mention words like furrier make it plain that Beorn is enraged by the idea of men wearing the skins of beasts.

And yet, he gave them bows to use in Mirkwood, though he says there may not be anything wholesome to eat, which suggests he's not necessarily against hunting for necessity. However, he certainly does not eat meat himself.

[Ferretz]

But in TOR, Beornings often seem to be depicted as pelt-wearing barbarians...

E.

[Glorelendil]

I just looked at the pictures in question. Who's to say those aren't warg pelts? They certainly look more like bear pelts than wolf pelts, if you imagine North American timber wolves. But wargs are whole 'nother beast (as it were...)

I'd be surprised if Beorn's PETA manifesto prohibits killing and skinning wargs.

[Ferretz]

Well, as an animal rights activist myself, I'm quite happy with Beorn's view on this issue. I think the whole "big, burly warrior being very kind to animals" thing is quite interesting.

But, as you said, wargs are something different. I doubt that Beorn would kill normal wolves (he knows better than to think they're evil like wargs). I seem to remember him killing and skinning a warg in the Hobbit. But I don't think he would wear a warg pelt.

E.

[Francesco]

I remember posing a very similar question to John Howe, back when he was sketching concepts for the game very early on: 'Is it appropriate for the Beornings (or Beorn) to wear bear claws or fur?'. John replied that seeing the Beornings as vegetarians because Beorn had a diet of cream and honey was very 'politically correct', but not in line with the world view of an 'ancient world' culture. In such a world, hunting or killing a type of animal would not be a form of disrespect. For example, native americans revered the buffalo, exactly for the reason that they had a use for every ounce of a buffalo's body.

In TOR, I delve in the subject of Beorn's enchantment, and I underlined the fact that his personal diet might be a condition dictated by an oath or geas, possibly connected to his shapechanging talent. I also add that this condition applies at the time before the end of the story told in The Hobbit, and that Beorn changes his habits after the Battle of Five Armies. So, this 'vegetarianism' does not necessarily apply to the Beornings in general, and might even be a thing of the past. As far as wearing bear pelts is concerned, I of course like the 'baresark' or 'ulfhedinn' connection, making Beorn a sort of totemic warrior, also because as someone said here already it is consistent with other Tolkien shapechanging episodes, mainly that of Luthien donning the pelt of Thuringwethil.

This said, it is really easy for me to imagine that if Beorn wears a bear pelt of claws, he might be honouring the memory of a Great Bear he defeated at some time in his mysterious past. Under this view, Beornings in TOR might be even required to fight a bear as part of their rite of passage into adulthood.

Francesco

[Evening]

Any depiction of Beorn in furs is in error. In The Hobbit he's wearing a long, woolen tunic.

Yeah, In Tales the artist took a bit of license. The text even says:

“Beorn is a giant of a man, dressed in a woollen tunic
tied with a simple belt. He wears no jewellery or silver to
mark his high standing, and the axe at his side is a plain,
unadorned weapon, notched and scraped with a lifetime
of use. The only sign that he is a great leader of men and
not a lone woodsman is the fact that his hair and flowing
black beard are now combed.”


It’s safe to say that Beorn is a vegetarian and that he harms no mundane animals at his house nor will he allow anyone else to do so. How far beyond his house the ban extends is anyone’s guess. Concerning Beornings in ToR, we have a few quotes:

“The Beornings sustain themselves by breeding cattle and
horses and keeping hives of great bees.”

“Beorn, the great chieftain of your folk, sent your father to
watch the mountain passes for the best part of the year,
leaving you to provide for your family. Whenever the
pursuit of an animal’s trail led you westward towards
the mountains...”

“In your hide shoes, you have countless times trodden the
path that goes from the High Pass to the Old Ford...”

“According to the old men of your folk, when your
grandfather died he was more than one hundred years
old. He was a hardy warrior, but you remember him best
wrapped in his white wolf-skin,....”

So in ToR, they breed cattle for meat and hide, hunt and eat animals, wear their skins, etc. In fact at Stoneyford, your players get to eat fish and/or roasted deer. So the real question is, what are the ‘Laws’ of the Beornings concerning such matters?

For instance, we could assume that everyone wears wool and linen when Beorn visits their village or whenever the village headmen (or whatever they are called) all gather at Beorn’s House for their version of ‘The Thing’. But how far do you carry it? I mean, does Beorn turn a blind eye to leather goods such as boots, sheathes, belts, etc? What about fur trimmed slippers or hoods?

You could easily turn all these proscriptions into a quasi-religion, as they would, in effect, exist solely out of respect for Beorn and to avoid his unpredictable wrath.

edit: Ah, Francesco you slipped in as I was writing my post. Yours makes my post redundant, but I'll leave it up anyway.

[Ferretz]

Ok, so we agree that it's only Beorn, in The One Ring, who have this stance, or even geas, against eating meat and (at least in The Hobbit) wearing furs. But the Beornings themselves carry on with hunting and gathering as other folk would do. Just not in the presence of Beorn. This works fine in our campaign, as I want the players to realize this in the campaign.
One of the reasons I'm curious about this has to do with some of the storylines in Darkening of Mirkwood. "Dying of the Light" is one of the best adventures in there, I think.

E.