Ways of the Werewolves The following rules specifically reflect the Garou experience. Systems such as those for shifting form, the Delirium, and Rage itself relate to the individual Garou, while Harano and Hauglosk affect the relationship of a Garou to the society of their fellows. Together they demonstrate how Garou wage their desperate battles in the age of Apocalypse.
Rage Perhaps the single most defining characteristic of werewolves, Rage forever roils in the hearts and souls of Garou. It becomes manifest in their bodies and allows them to perform terrifying acts of brutality. Throughout stories, players must decide how to best channel their characters’ Rage — whether to feed its fires or to invoke it but risk not being able to call upon the fury of the Garou at some critical point.
Rage is a tracker spanning from 0 to 5. Any Garou can achieve Rage 5 — no fixed trait restricts its accumulation, and it is frequently in flux. Rage can most easily be tracked by keeping a corresponding number of Rage dice (see below) at hand and adjusting the number of dice when the Rage value changes.
Starting value for Rage is determined by the narrative situation. A Garou who isn’t involved in an ongoing conflict and has had a good night’s sleep starts at 1, whereas opening
in medias res with a fight-or-flight situation would yield player characters 3. If questions arise, assume a starting Rage value of 2.
Gaining Rage • The Moon: Howling at the moon for the first time on a given night stirs the Rage and yields one point. If the Garou is at 0 Rage, they have “lost the wolf” (see below), and this method is the only way to gain Rage outside of such mystical means as Rites, where specified.
• Provocation, Harm, or Humiliation: If the Garou suffers harm, pain, or other emotional or physical agitation, they gain a point of Rage, maximum one per turn. Note that once combat begins, most damage and injury don’t yield additional Rage; low-level provocation, such as insults and trash talk, don’t provoke further Rage, either.
• Rites or Rite-like Practices: Spending a scene getting psyched up, performing a tribe- or auspice-related activity ranging from a solemn retelling of past grievances to picking fights at a soccer match can yield one or two points, at the Storyteller’s discretion.
• Gifts: Some Gifts can modify Rage.
If any effect or provocation would take a Garou’s Rage past 5, the character sustains a point of Superficial Willpower damage for each point of Rage that would exceed 5.
» Click to show Spoiler - click again to hide... «
The Rage Economy
Both the Storyteller and the player are responsible for Rage gains. A player is encouraged to suggest a gain whenever they feel it’s appropriate, just as the Storyteller shouldn’t be afraid to apply it liberally and thematically. The rate at which characters gain Rage is also a powerful Storyteller tool. Stories in which Rage is always available tend toward the more action-oriented and violent, whereas a lower rate of Rage gain is better for evoking a sense of desperation, where any exercise of Rage jeopardizes the Wolf within. Likewise, a Storyteller should be mindful of players attempting to game the system by using Gifts or other abilities for the sake of dumping Rage. Spirits tend to frown on such abuse, and recklessly calling upon them to perform Gifts is sure to have consequences.
Spending or Losing Rage • Regenerate: Garou can heal rapidly by expending Rage and making a Rage check (see below)
• Shapeshifting: Changing and maintaining forms can require a Rage check, depending on form (see p. 134)
• Using Gifts: Some Gifts require Rage checks to activate. This restriction is noted in the Gift description.
• Gift Effects: Some Gifts can soothe a Garou and allow them to shed Rage voluntarily, whereas other Gifts can rob them of Rage, their desire to retain it notwithstanding.
Rage Checks When a Garou wants to release their Rage-borne powers, their player makes a
Rage check with a single die (see “Checks” on p. 122). On a win — a 6 or better — the Garou’s Rage stays the same, but a failed check — 5 or less — causes their Rage to drop by one point. Make the Rage check at the same time as the act provoking it, ideally with its own identifiable die.
Rage decreasing in this manner doesn’t necessarily represent the Garou becoming “less angry”, but rather models how the Rage is expressed, the pent-up energy manifesting as Gifts or a more vicious supernatural form.
LOSING THE WOLF A Garou with no Rage left has “lost the wolf” and can no longer perform acts that require a Rage check, remain in a supernatural form, or use Rites or Gifts. Rage can never go below zero, and any loss that would suggest it — such as one incurred from a failed double Rage check at Rage 1 — is ignored. The only way a Garou can regain the wolf, other than by mystical means, is to howl at the moon (see Gaining Rage, above).
RAGE TRACKER SUMMARY
• Rage is a 0–5 tracker
• Rage is gained from howling at the moon, provocation, and certain Rites or Gifts
• Rage is expended through Rage checks on regenerating, shapeshifting, and Gifts
• Gaining Rage over 5 results in Willpower damage
• A Garou at Rage 0 cannot perform acts requiring Rage checks or sustain a supernatural form Rage Dice For each point of Rage possessed by a character, one Rage die replaces one of the regular dice when assembling dice pools. Rage dice function like regular dice, but the “1” and “2” faces are considered special: each is a
Brutal die result.
On its own, a single Brutal result is simply treated as a failure, but two or more on a single test yields a Brutal outcome. A
Brutal outcome causes a test to fail (usually with something being wrecked, harmed, or destroyed),
unless the aim of the test was to cause damage or injury, in which case a Brutal outcome yields four additional successes.
Note that the Storyteller is the final arbiter in what counts as benefiting from Brutal outcomes. Although firing a sniper rifle to take out an enemy has the goal of causing damage, the activity requires a far too composed mindset to benefit from unbridled Rage. Likewise, some nonviolent acts, such as resisting mental coercion or making a giant leap, might be treated as benefitting from Rage, at the Storyteller’s discretion. (A Brutal outcome would of course
also cause destruction and harm, while simultaneously aiding in the attempt. Rage is a double-edged sword.)
Brutal die results cannot be rerolled by spending Willpower, but other Rage dice results can.
RAGE DICE SUMMARY
• For every point of Rage, replace a regular die with a Rage die in pools
• Rage dice have similar faces to regular 10-sided dice, except that “1” and “2” are considered Brutal die results
• Two or more Brutal results cause a Brutal outcome, usually causing the test to fail, unless the goal was to cause harm or damage
• Brutal die results cannot be rerolled by spending Willpower. » Click to show Spoiler - click again to hide... «
Using the Werewolf Dice: Regular Dice Blank face = 1–5 = Failure
![Attached Image](/board/uploads/post-74340-1694349253.jpg)
= 6–9 = Success
![Attached Image](/board/uploads/post-74340-1694349305.jpg)
= 10 = Success, potential critical win
Rage Dice ![Attached Image](/board/uploads/post-74340-1694349376.jpg)
= 1–2 = Brutal result
Blank face = 3–5 = Failure
![Attached Image](/board/uploads/post-74340-1694349253.jpg)
= 6–9 = Success
![Attached Image](/board/uploads/post-74340-1694349305.jpg)
= 10 = Success, potential critical win
Werewolves and Health No matter what form werewolves have taken, from the rampaging crinos to the nimble lupus, they are far more hardy than ordinary humans and can survive injuries that would put a regular person in the grave. In werewolves’ supernatural forms, their healing abilities are even greater, as mighty flesh withstands vicious blows and grievous wounds knit themselves together before an onlooker’s eyes.
Regeneration Any damage not caused by fire or silver, or that is otherwise stated as doing Aggravated damage to werewolves, is considered Superficial, regardless of form. In addition, while in their supernatural forms, a werewolf rapidly regenerates any Superficial damage sustained. As long as they’re in a supernatural form, a Garou’s player can make a Rage check to instantly heal a level of the character’s Superficial damage each turn, or two levels if the character is in crinos form. Doing so isn’t itself an action and can be performed in addition to any actions the werewolf is performing. Regenerating in this manner is done at the start of the turn, when actions are declared. Aggravated damage takes far more effort: Regenerating each level requires two Rage checks.
Incapacitation and Death A Garou who has been incapacitated by Aggravated damage is taken out of action and falls unconscious, unless they’re able to regenerate at least one point of Aggravated damage. (This can be done even if unconscious, providing they have enough Rage.) If allowed to rest for a night they also regenerate one Aggravated health level automatically, as normal, but if they Sustain aggravated damage from fire or silver before resting, they die.
Note that no other form of damage, short of complete bodily annihilation, can kill a Garou, as their mangled form refuses to yield to anything but the banes of their existence. It’s tough to kill a death-machine that doesn’t want to be killed.
Once dead, however, the corpse of a dead Garou always reverts to the form of their birth, leaving no trace of their supernatural qualities.
Werewolves and Silver Cutting or piercing damage from silver is always Aggravated to a werewolf. Once they transform into one of their supernatural forms, the mere touch of silver burns their flesh as if it were red-hot. A Garou in glabro, crinos, or hispo form sustains one level of Aggravated damage per turn during which they touch silver with their naked flesh or fur. They also gain one point of Rage with each level of Aggravated damage sustained in this way.
The Forms Garou have the ability to transform their bodies into multiple forms. Each form has advantages and disadvantages, as well as limitations with regard to manual and social interaction. The glabro, crinos, and hispo forms are known as the
supernatural forms, and they have regenerative properties, as well. Most Gifts can only be performed while in a supernatural form.
Especially among Garou, taking specific forms is a powerful signifier and has undeniable social impact. Standard pack interactions are almost always in the homid and lupus forms — generally whichever the individual is most comfortable with, or to show deference, as in rolling over for the lupus. Taking other forms usually has a purpose beyond the tool-use and movement benefits. For example, a galliard may adopt the glabro form during a climactic moment while regaling sept-mates with a song of sacrifice; or an indignant Black Fury may go crinos at a moot, signifying, “Fuck politics, I’m challenging you to a fight to the death, right now.” Choose your form wisely.
Shapeshifting Shifting form is a two-dice minor action and requires a Rage check, according to the form’s
cost. (This cost must also be paid for each additional scene in which the Garou maintains the form.) If the check causes them to lose their final point of Rage, the shift fails and they lose the wolf, as a Garou needs at least one point of Rage to stay in a supernatural form. Just as with Gifts and regeneration, shifting takes place at the beginning of the turn, as actions are declared, and a character can shapeshift only once per turn.
Note that too-frequent (or frivolous…) shifting takes a terrible toll on body and mind. Should a character shift back and forth multiple times in a short time span, such as by seeking simply to shed Rage, the Storyteller may realize such massive bodily stress by inflicting appropriate levels of Aggravated damage to Health and/or Willpower. (Let the player know before you do so, the better to inform their decision-making.)
Shapeshifting in front of mundane humans normally causes them an episode of the Delirium (see p. 142). Certain individuals familiar with the truth of the Garou
might not be affected, but in almost every case, the self-preservation instinct written into human memory quickly comes to the fore.
Homid: The Human The homid form is the one similar to that of a regular human, and it is the natural form of most Garou tonight. For most non-supernatural methods of detection, homid form is indistinguishable from non-Garou. Being homid is great for using tools, communicating, and handling most of the interactions of the modern world.
Cost: None
Abilities and Limitations: In homid form, Garou are unable to regenerate, but they are able to touch silver without suffering damage.
Glabro: The Near-Human The glabro form is a big, hunched, and hairy human. It’s not overtly supernatural, and more sinewy than hyper-muscular, but the wolf is just beneath the surface. Close inspection reveals a surprising amount of body hair as well as a loping gait. Taking glabro form is still good for using tools, but is also a bit more durable than homid form — it’s good for wielding weapons and for not making people go
holy shit a giant fucking wolf-monster just tore those people to ribbons while you’re doing it.
Cost: One Rage check
Abilities and Limitations: While the form isn’t obviously unnatural, Garou in this form make regular humans uneasy, and non-Intimidation Social tests with them suffer a two-dice penalty. The following also apply:
• A 2-dice bonus to all Physical tests
• The Garou can regenerate one Health level with one Rage check
Crinos: The War-Form, the Monster The crinos form is a nightmarish hulk of claws, fangs, and whipcord muscle, combining the most fearsome traits of wolf and man. Walking carnage, the crinos form always means death for something. Just the sight of it terrifies most mundane individuals, whether they’re human, wolf, or anything else is in its path. It’s the form that immediately screams
werewolf! to anyone observing it. Having been so horrified, though, they might not recall the experience afterward.
Cost: Two Rage checks
Abilities and Limitations: Ordinary communication is nigh-impossible, and a Garou in crinos has difficulty forming expressions beyond single words — “kill,” “enemy,” “Wyrm,” — usually with a guttural, snarling delivery. This condition makes non-Intimidation Social and Stealth tests automatically fail. The following also apply:
• A 4-dice bonus to all Physical tests
• 4 bonus Health levels (apply any damage to them to the regular track if not regenerated before shifting back)
• Natural +3 damage claws (Superficial vs werewolves, vampires, and other supernatural creatures with similar resistance)
• Natural +1 Aggravated damage bite
• The Garou can regenerate two Health levels with one Rage check
• Mundane humans witnessing it almost certainly experience the Delirium (see p. 142)
At the start of a turn, if they didn’t kill something in the previous turn, a werewolf in crinos form must spend one Willpower point to avoid going into frenzy (see below). Upon leaving crinos form, their Rage is reduced to 1.
Hispo: The Dire Wolf The hispo form resembles that of a huge, primordial wolf. It’s “That’s a really big dog”-big, but not immediately visibly supernatural. The hispo form is great for long-distance travel, both in terms of four-legged speed and remarkable hardiness. It’s not great for speaking or using tools, but it has a fearsome bite, as well as superior senses.
Cost: One Rage check
Abilities and Limitations: In this form, a Garou cannot speak as a human would, but the werewolf can communicate well enough with wolves and other Garou who understand such form-based nuances. Due to the form’s fearsome size and presence, tests to avoid detection are done at a two-dice penalty. The following also apply:
• A 2-dice bonus to all non-Stealth Physical tests
• Natural +1 Aggravated damage bite
• The Garou can regenerate one Health level with one Rage check
Lupus: The Wolf The lupus form is that of a regular-sized wolf. Indeed, it might easily be mistaken for a large dog in certain areas (particularly where wolves are infrequent visitors…). The lupus form excels in distance travel at speed and in navigating areas where its comparatively small size aids at stealth or accessing difficult-to-reach areas, such as digging under a fence or creeping into a drainage pipe.
Cost: None
Abilities and Limitations: In this form a Garou cannot regenerate but is not affected by silver. It cannot speak as would a human, but it can communicate well enough with wolves and other Garou via primal body language and vocalization. Depending on the environment it can also gain various two-dice bonuses, such as to Survival or Stealth, depending on whether being a wolf would be beneficial in that specific situation.
Frenzy When in crinos form, Garou always feel under threat of losing control. And while “ordinary” Rage can make them lash out in the moment, frenzy is a complete, extended loss of control as the werewolf unleashes their full fury on everything around them.
Entering Frenzy A Garou enters frenzy if, at the start of a turn while in crinos form, they didn’t kill anything in the previous turn and they fail to spend a point of Willpower. This can be voluntarily, as a response to overwhelming odds, or involuntarily if the Garou’s Willpower is completely depleted. The Storyteller can also call for a frenzy test in cases of extreme provocation, such as any harming of Touchstones, in which case a Willpower test must be made against a Difficulty of 2 (or 3 in crinos form).
Frenzy Effects When a Garou enters a frenzy, their Rage immediately increases to 5 and they shift to crinos. They then mercilessly attack anything perceived as a threat, starting with whoever, or whatever, provoked the frenzy, if applicable. If anyone is attacking them, the werewolf must try to close the distance and engage the target with their natural weapons. If no one is attacking, they try to pursue those who flee, and thereafter they assail any bystanders. The Garou does not perform any defensive acts, such as taking cover or attempting dodge tests against ranged weapons, but does attempt to regenerate Health, making Rage checks as normal to do so.
While in frenzy, the Garou becomes immune to Health-based penalties (such as Impairment) short of dismemberment, and they receive a three-dice bonus to resisting Mental Gifts or Gift-like effects, such as vampiric powers, unless the powers specifically affect a target in frenzy. The werewolf cannot themselves use Gifts, however, and must keep acting out frenzy, or the player must yield control of the character to the Storyteller. The player may not use Willpower in any way, such as rerolling dice.
Leaving Frenzy Once every perceived threat is dead or silenced, the player can make a Willpower test at Difficulty 2 to leave Frenzy. If they choose not to or the test fails, the frenzy resumes until no one but the frenzying Garou is left standing, their Rage drops to zero, or the scene ends. (Certain Gifts and other abilities can also end the frenzy.) No matter how the frenzy ends, the Garou reverts to their natural form and has their Rage set to zero, losing the wolf (p. 133).
![Attached Image](/board/uploads/post-74340-1694349781.jpg)
FRENZY SUMMARY
• Garou characters enter frenzy when they fail to spend Willpower due to crinos form or if they are severely provoked and fail a Willpower test.
• On entering frenzy, Garou increase their Rage to 5 and shift to crinos. (Make Rage checks as normal.)
• While in frenzy, Garou ignore impairment penalties and gain a three-dice bonus to resist most mental abilities of effects.
• Garou cannot use Gifts while in frenzy.
• Garou can leave frenzy by winning a Willpower test at Difficulty 2 when all enemies are dead or incapacitated. Failing this they will keep rampaging until out of Rage or the scene ends.
• On leaving frenzy a Garou’s Rage drops to 0, causing them to lose the wolf. Harano and Hauglosk The Garou have a seemingly impossible task before them, whether they believe their call to be bringing Gaia back from the brink of death, correcting the imbalance of the cosmological Triat, or the outright destruction of the Wyrm and its host. They are intensely passionate creatures, even beyond the violent expressions of bloody rage that characterize them. It’s no surprise, then, to discover that the emotional states of Garou are often affected by the enormity of what lies before them.
Overall, the Garou are certain of their own principles. Inspired by their spiritual duty to Gaia and guided by their own individual (and pack…) interpretation of that purpose, the stalwart Garou fight on, roused by the pursuit Renown and an innate sense of what’s right in an endless war that quite possibly cannot be won at all.
For some Garou, though, that righteousness gives way to one of two particularly perilous kinds of fatalism: harano and hauglosk.
Harano and hauglosk are represented by a mirrored 5-box tracker on the character sheet. (5 left for harano, 5 right for hauglosk)
Both trackers start empty — the Garou has neither experienced enough failure nor turned callous enough to show.
Harano As the werewolf experiences setbacks, and the apparent futility of their struggle becomes apparent, so do they slide toward harano, a state where they succumb to hopelessness and give up on serving Gaia. For such Garou, the war isn’t worth fighting anymore. Wretched creatures, Garou in harano may abandon their Patron Spirit’s Favor and Ban, and some even seem to lose the ability to shapechange at all.
Little by little, harano can set upon even the most confident of Garou, eroding their confidence with self-doubt and emptying whatever hard won victories that might have been. Harano is most common among werewolves who bear leadership roles, but it can seize any Garou by making them doubt the value of their contribution.
HARANO IN PLAY Every time the Garou suffers a major setback, or their Touchstones are put in danger or damaged due to the actions (or inactions) of the Garou, the player must make a
Harano test, with a dice pool equal to the amount of filled boxes on
both the harano and hauglosk trackers. (This test is made at a minimum of one die; do not use Rage dice for this test.) The Difficulty is usually 1, but the Storyteller can decide that severe setbacks or other crises warrant a higher Difficulty. Failing the test results in a box being filled on the harano tracker, from right to left. If the tracker ever becomes filled, the werewolf has succumbed to harano, leaving the service of Gaia and their role as a playable character.
DESPERATE RAGE A Garou player character can voluntarily fill one of the harano boxes to increase their Rage to 5, which represents them tapping into their finite reserves of desperate fury. This action can be done only once per session, and the Storyteller can decide to prohibit this if playing a limited one-shot story.
HARANO SUMMARY
• Harano tests are taken at major setbacks or other tragedies
• The Harano test dice pool is equal to the number of filled boxes on both the harano and hauglosk trackers
• If the test is failed another harano box is filled in
• The player can opt to voluntarily fill a box on the harano tracker to immediately increase their Rage to 5
• If the harano tracker is completely filled the Garou character succumbs to harano, leaving the game Hauglosk Hauglosk is the dread state of a werewolf who has lost all compassion and mercy to the fanaticism of their cause. Every time they disregard consequences and let the ends justify the means, they slide closer to hauglosk.
Although hauglosk has always been a risk for the Rage-driven Garou, its losses are keenly felt now, in light of the Cult of Fenris having forsaken what remains of the Garou Nation to combat the Wyrm on its own terms. Similarly, debates rage at moots around the world as to whether the Impergium was a period of hauglosk for the entirety of the werewolf kind.
Note that hauglosk is different from mindless rage (though hauglosk may result in many a mindless rage). Werewolves suffering from hauglosk undertake their course without regard for its consequences, so impassioned are they by the need to do
something, anything at all. Hauglosk is also a long-term ongoing state, and many Garou never come out of it.
HAUGLOSK IN PLAY Every time a werewolf violates a chronicle Tenet (see p. 199) they must make a
Hauglosk test, with a dice pool equal to the amount of filled boxes of both the harano and hauglosk trackers. (This test is made at a minimum of one die; do not use Rage dice for this test.) The Difficulty is usually 1, but the Storyteller can decide that severe violations or transgressions warrant a higher Difficulty. Failing the test results in a box being filled on the hauglosk tracker, from left to right. If the tracker ever becomes filled, the werewolf has succumbed to hauglosk, becoming an unredeemable fanatic and a Storyteller character.
MERCILESS WILLPOWER A Garou player character can voluntarily fill one of the hauglosk boxes to restore all Willpower damage, which represents them summoning up a merciless resolve to keep going, everyone else be damned. This action can be done only once per session, and the Storyteller can decide to prohibit this if playing a limited one-shot story.
HAUGLOSK SUMMARY
• Hauglosk tests are taken when a Garou violates a chronicle tenet
• The hauglosk test dice pool is equal to the number of filled boxes on both the harano and hauglosk trackers
• If the test is failed another hauglosk box is filled in
• The player can opt to voluntarily fill a box on the hauglosk tracker to heal all Willpower damage
• If the hauglosk tracker is completely filled the Garou character succumbs to hauglosk, leaving the game Renown As do many Traits, each Renown score has a ranking of one to five. Overall, a werewolf’s Renown represents how well they embody being Garou, from how virtuous other werewolves perceive them to be to how positively the animistic spirits of the Umbra regard them.
A Garou’s Renown has a few important functions.
• For most Gifts, the Renown type associated with that Gift contributes to the dice pool to use that Gift and determines how effective it is. See the individual Gift descriptions for more.
• In certain cases, various Renown types may add dice to Social pools, as they represent not only the individual Garou’s growing legend but also their reputation among spirits and other werewolves. The Storyteller determines whether a Garou may rely upon their Renown to affect an interaction with a spirit or another werewolf. In most cases, this use of Renown shouldn’t be the case — specific Skills and the Status Background represent such an episode more fully. But in certain situations, calling upon one’s Renown as a cultural gesture makes sense.
EXAMPLE: Diwata Hammer-of-Banes is making an appeal to the Garou in attendance at the moot. It’s a bombastic call to war, and the Storyteller agrees to let her player add her Glory value to Diwata’s Charisma + Persuasion roll. General rules for how Renown affects characters can be found on p. 106.
Chagrin A werewolf can temporarily suffer a reduction in Renown, affecting not only their reputation but their legend and the willingness of spirits to reward entreaties via Gifts.
When a Garou acts in overt opposition to a Renown virtue’s creed, and in an especially noteworthy way, the Storyteller may declare that character to be
in chagrin. Mark that Renown type on the character sheet as subject to chagrin.
Chagrin shouldn’t come up in consideration of every action a werewolf undertakes — it’s dramatic when used only in important circumstances, as a temporary but significant consequence for certain actions. Don’t overuse it, and don’t let it complicate the flow of a scene with minutiae.
• Fleeing a battle out of cowardice would potentially cause Glory chagrin; simply retreating from a conflict would not
• Betraying a packmate to a rival Garou would potentially cause Honor chagrin; giving a false name to a cop would not
• Revealing the location of the caern to a Black Spiral Dancer whom one is trying, against the pack’s wishes, to “rehabilitate” would potentially cause Wisdom chagrin; accidentally pursuing one’s quarry into a well-laid ambush would not
A Garou in chagrin reduces the value of that Glory, Honor, or Wisdom score by 1 (or 2, if subject to the Rite of Shame, p. 184) for all dice pools to which it is relevant. Also, as long as a character has a Renown type subject to chagrin, no experience points can be spent to increase it.
Chagrin is a temporary status, and emerging from it is based on the character’s contrition. In most cases, performing an act of noteworthy Glory, Honor, or Wisdom suffices. In particularly egregious cases, a Rite of Contrition may be required (see p. 182). Ultimately, the player whose character is in chagrin and the Storyteller should discuss what is needed to emerge from chagrin, with the Storyteller as the ultimate arbiter.
Delirium Why doesn’t the world know about werewolves? Or, rather, why is what the world knows about werewolves inconsistent, clouded by folkloric interpretation, and looked down upon as superstition rather than trusted fact?
Ironically, humanity
does know about the presence of the Garou — it’s just buried at a fundamental, subconscious, racial-memory level. Humans do indeed understand the terror that werewolves can inflict, and people still grasp the cultural lessons of the Impergium, even if no modern individual can remember the specifics of it.
The result is what Garou know as the Delirium, and what humans recognize as an existential need to avoid werewolves.
When a human, animal, or other “nonsupernatural” onlooker observes something that obviously reveals an individual as Garou — such as changing shape, especially into the crinos war-form — the onlooker is likely to panic, flee, or even lapse into catatonia. Even afterward, once they regain their senses, affected individuals rationalize what they saw — or even block those memories entirely.
In general (unless the Storyteller opts otherwise), the effect of the Delirium upon a human witness depends on that individual’s
Composure + Resolve | Composure + Resolve Outcome | Do they forget what they witnessed? |
---|
1-5 | Fear | Yes |
6-9 | Controlled fear | Usually |
10 | Resignation | No |
An outcome of
fear usually indicates that the individual will flee if the opportunity exists. Other potential fear responses are panic, disbelief, fetal-position catatonia, and desperate but probably ineffectual “playing possum” responses.
Controlled fear indicates the urge toward self-preservation, but with possible rational or protective responses, such as shooting at the horror while running away or a desperation to escape that includes locking doors or turning over obstacles in hopes of inhibiting pursuit.
Resignation indicates that the onlooker accepts what they’re dealing with and makes a decision from there. In most cases, people resigned to a hulking werewolf before them realize that fleeing is the wisest course of action, but some people choose to stand their ground or even fire a desperate shot at the monster. These people usually die, but the important distinction is that they kept their wits about them.
Forgetting what they witnessed can take a number of forms. It may literally be forgetting the episode, as with a blackout; it may be a rationalization, no matter how implausible (“And then a pack of wild dogs tore the guy apart!”); or it may be an episode of fugue or self-doubt (“I can’t even remember what it was I saw, but there was blood everywhere…”). If the details of what a witness remembers matter, the Storyteller decides what’s most appropriate or dramatically interesting.
Delirium and Technology In times past, the Delirium was a failsafe for the Garou. Information traveled slowly, and eminently fallible eyewitness reports were the only way the Garou remained at the edges of human memory and terror.
In modern times, however, the Delirium hasn’t kept up with the myriad ways humans surveil one another, and therefore the Garou in their midst. Omnipresent security systems, private and institutional drones, and the fact that everyone has at hand a supercomputer with a camera all conspire to stretch the protections offered by the Delirium to the thinnest they ever have been.
No surprise, then, that certain civil authorities and even long-dormant security agencies have found themselves responding to the exact sort of “unusual threats” represented by rampaging Garou packs. (For more information on werewolf hunting organizations, see pp. 288–290.)
The Delirium doesn’t take effect for those who observe the behaviors of werewolves through
any level of technological remove. That is to say, YouTube and Instagram videos of a werewolf going apeshit don’t send people fleeing in terror when these things show up in people’s feeds. Probably they elicit wonder at the quality of the “special effects” on display. Security camera footage of werewolves tearing a dockside warehouse apart doesn’t send the federal agents watching it into mental shutdown, and it probably ends up in an evidence file somewhere. Audio recordings of werewolves aren’t as immediately damning, because it’s less obvious who or what is making any given noises, but they often include other details that may well bring down trouble on an indiscreet pack’s heads.
Delirium and Other Creatures Delirium affects humans in particular. Animals generally recognize the Garou as terrifying predators on their own, especially as werewolves assume the more aggressive forms, and flee instinctively when a Garou assumes more wolfish (and generally faster-moving) shapes. But animals don’t have an innate sense for who’s a werewolf, unless someone reveals themselves as such.
Other supernatural creatures are often unaffected by the Delirium — at least those beings of a first-order nature. That is to say, vampires seem to be immune to the Delirium, but the miserable, blood-addicted thralls who often travel in their wake are still (usually) affected. Of course, many vampires seem to understand the immediate threat a werewolf poses on its own and choose, rationally, to flee the Garou’s presence, instead of being compelled by the Delirium.
Will-workers and hunters seem to be special cases. Overall, sorcerers seem to have a fundamental understanding that the supernatural exists, thus negating the effect of the Delirium upon them. Hunters, on the other hand, are affected as normal humans, for the most part, though some of them seem to have the ability to suppress the urge to flee. At least, in most cases, this breakdown is true. Garou who treat its details as universally true may find themselves surprised at a most inconvenient time… ■