Werebear

A werebear is the rare good lycanthrope, and the SRD lists their alignment as Neutral Good for a reason. They live alone or in small clans deep in old forests, distrust outsiders on principle, and warm up to a party only after the party has done something costly to prove they are not the kind of strangers who burned the last village. Roleplay the meeting as a grudging earned trust over two or three scenes before the werebear commits.

In humanoid form, the werebear is a mountain person with a heavy axe and a bigger stillness than the conversation deserves. Multiattack gives two attacks, Handaxe at +7 for 14 average slashing each (20/60 ft. throw range). One attack can swap for a Bite, but only in Bear or Hybrid form, so shape choice matters. Hybrid is the combat form: Handaxe still works, Bite at +7 for 17 average piercing comes online, and Rend at +7 for 13 is the third option. AC 15, 135 HP, and Passive Perception 17 mean the werebear is a durable second front-liner who notices threats before the rogue does.

The Bite has a curse rider against Humanoids: DC 14 Con save, on a fail the target is cursed and becomes a Werebear under the GM's control if they later drop to 0 HP. The werebear ally will not Bite player characters. State this at the table; a Neutral Good NPC does not give that gift carelessly. Against a humanoid enemy the party has marked for capture, the bite is on the table and worth discussing as a moral question rather than a tactical one.

Werebears do not leave their territory for strangers. If the party wants the werebear in the city, they need a reason that touches the werebear's people: a threat to the forest, a child taken, a vow owed. The werebear finishes the named task and returns home immediately.

Shape-shift in front of the party only once, after the trust scene. The first transformation should be the moment the party realizes who they have been talking to.

A hostile werebear is almost always provoked. The party walked into the wrong grove, hunted a creature the werebear was protecting, or carries a weapon that smells of the loggers who killed the werebear's brother last winter. A werebear does not ambush travelers for sport. Frame the fight as a misunderstanding the party can still resolve mid-combat, and let the werebear accept a parley if a player thinks to offer one.

In combat, lead in Bear form for the speed boost (walk 40, climb 30, bear form only). Multiattack gives two Rend at +7 for 13 average each, plus a swap for Bite at +7 for 17 piercing. The Bite carries a curse rider: DC 14 Con save, on failure the PC is cursed and becomes a Werebear under the GM's control if they hit 0 HP. The cursed PC who goes down at half a session later becomes a campaign problem worth more than the encounter itself. Telegraph the bite. A werebear that announces "I am about to mark you" before the swing lets the players choose to take the risk or fall back.

135 HP and AC 15 keep the fight running for several rounds. The werebear closes with the heaviest target, locks them down with Rend Multiattack, and Bites a different PC each round to spread the curse risk. With Passive 17 and Perception +7, surprise rounds against the werebear are unlikely. The party that wants to end the fight quickly should focus damage and pray for high damage rolls before the bite lands twice.

Werebears retreat at low HP if the fight has lost its purpose. A werebear that was defending a cub will fight to 0. A werebear that was just angry walks back into the forest at Bloodied with a warning the party should take seriously. Have the werebear name what the party did wrong as it leaves. The grudge has a long memory.