Reference Guide
This is a reference guide for all those who want to read my story, but know nothing of Werewolf: The Apocalypse role playing game by White Wolf. Werewolf is part of a series known as The World of Darkness, which includes RPG's such as Vampire: The Masquerade, and Mage: The Ascension. If you'd like to know more about The World of Darkness as a whole, please go to White Wolf's website: www.white-wolf.com
Introduction
The World of Darkness is a world much like our own, but much darker. It is a world where your darkest fears not only exist, but walk by you on your very own street. It is a world of blood, pain and death. But most importantly, it is a world of the end times. The Apocalypse, Ragnarock, it has gone by many names, but they all mean the same thing: The end of all things. And it is here. However, not all hope is lost; there are still those who fight for their mother, Gaia. But they are not knights in shining armor. No, the Garou, the warriors of Gaia, know that to kill a demon, sometimes we must become demons ourselves. The Garou, what the humans have come to call lycanthropes, or werewolves, are almost as bloody and monstrous as the evil they battle. Some are even worse. Monsters they might be, but still, they are the warriors chosen by Gaia herself to protect Her, and lo, pity the one who gets in the way of his sworn duty to his Mother.
Terms:
Before reading this section, I suggest starting on the story first, then referring to this page when you come across a word or concept you do not understand, otherwise you'll probably become bored.
The Garou: Werewolves, the chosen guardians of Gaia, what we call 'the world'. The Garou were originally from 16 tribes, now there are only 12, two are extinct, one has gone over to the Wyrm, and the last has drawn away from the Garou Nation and entered the Umbra.
Auspices: A Garou's Auspice is the phase of the moon under which he was born, and dictates her role in Garou society. The Auspices are:
Ragabash: The Ragabash are born under the new moon, and are the tricksters of Garou society. Be sure, if any Garou starts to think too highly of themselves they will soon find a Ragabash willing to take them down a peg or two with his clever wit. The Ragabash are most associated with shadows and stealth.
Theurge: The Theurge are born under the crescent moon. Born under this shadowy moon, the Theurge are the mystics of Garou society, and are the most vocative with spirits. They are the shamans and the Ritemasters; when one wants to deal with spirits and the other supernatural denizens of the World of Darkness, one wants to speak with a Theurge.
Philodox: The Philodox is born under the half moon. They are the keepers of Garou tradition and history, the mediators, and judiciaries. They are often the leaders of a Sept during times when there is no open war or Sept-wide battles.
Galliard: The Galliard is born under the gibbous moon. They are the bards or Garou society, the spirit of the Garou who raise a werewolves will to persevere when things look their worst. They are the artists, the singers, the heart of the Garou Nation.
Ahroun: The Ahroun are born under the full moon, and thus as the Ragabash tend to have the lowest Rage since they are born under the new moon, the Ahroun tend to have the highest Rage of all the Garou. While all Garou are to some extent warriors, it is the Ahroun for whom battle is the beginning and the ending. They are the obvious leaders during times of battle, when enemies approach, a pack automatically looks to its highest ranking Ahroun to lead them through.
Caern: The caern is the social and spiritual gathering points of the Garou, they are areas where the spiritual energy of the world collect and pool. The Garou protect these areas fiercely as they are their most sacred locals. The organization of Garou who live at and protect a caern are known as a Sept, and are essential to the communication and relations of the different Tribes. While in the past caerns used to be run by individual tribes, more and more Septs are made up of Garou from many tribes. Caerns are often devoted to certain things such as Healing, Strength, Stamina, or Wisdom, etc.
Fetish: A fetish is an object that has been bound with spirits; this can give the object (including weapons) many magical properties, and as such they are great treasures among the Garou. All Klaives are fetishes.
Frenzy: When a Garou loses all control on their Rage, while a Garou is in frenzy, they can not distinguish friend from foe.
The Gauntlet: That which divides the material world from the spiritual world; this barrier dictates exactly how easy it is to get into the Umbra, and is not consistent in all places, as in the Gauntlet at a Caern is much thinner than in most places given its spiritual and magical nature. The thinner the Gauntlet, the easier it is for Garou to cross to the Umbra, and in places like a Caern a Garou can sometimes cross without even using a medium such as a mirror.
Gnosis: Basically, the Garou's gift from Gaia that allows them to use Gifts (spiritual powers). Carrying sliver, such as in klaives, reduces a Garou's Gnosis.
The Gurahl: Werebears. They are relatively peaceful, and are in fact Gaia's Healers, as the Garou are Gaia's Warriors.
Kailindo: the Garou exclusive martial arts which involves instantaneous transformations while performing fighting moves; needless to say this is an extremely deadly and useful gift. Also, those who use Kailindo are known as Kailindori. Kailindo was developed by the Stargazer Tribe.
Kinfolk: Kinfolk are people or wolves who are descended from werewolf ancestors, but are not werewolves themselves. Most Garou prefer to mate with people who are Kinfolk, since many already know of werewolves, and they do not suffer from Delerium (see Crinos under 'Werewolf Forms'). If a werewolf mates with another werewolf, the results are always Metis; thus it is illegal to mate Garou with Garou, though it happens, and much too often by the elders standards.
Klaive: The klaive is a knife or dagger with a blade made of silver. They are ritualistic to the Garou, especially in duels among Garou; however, to draw a klaive in combat almost always means the duel is one to the death. Garou elders try and discourage these types of duels, but with the threat of Frenzying, even ordinary duels carries a risk of fatality. The art of klaive dueling is known as klaivaskar. There are such things as 'Grand Klaives' and they are some of the greatest fetishes that the Garou own, they are basically big ass swords made of silver. I'd be careful that if any of your pack carried a Grand Klaive that they actually knew how to use it, 'cause a Grand Klaive in the hands of an untrained cub of a Garou is often more dangerous to his friends than to his enemies.
Metis: Metis are always the product when werewolves mate with each other. They are born in Crinos form (ya, think how that would feel for the mother, it is not unusual for the mother to die during birth, and they must be in Crinos form during the birthing process) and are always deformed in some way. They are the lowest part of Garou society, and are the victims of heavy prejudice. When they are given work to do, they are given the lowest and most menial task. While not all tribes treat their Metis the same, well…while some tribes claim to treat their Metis well, the Metis might not be so ready to agree with them. Are Metis bitter creatures? Oh, ya, you better believe it. Do they hate their Garou brethren? I don't think you'd find many to actually tell you to your face, but…
Moot: Garou gatherings, many are like parties, though some moots, especially those run by the Silver Fangs and the Shadow Lords, are more formal affairs.
Pack: The pack is the lowest level of Garou organization, and is, basically, the Garou you work with when you go out on quests. They are your closest friends and comrades, for everytime you go into a dangerous situation, it is your packmates with whom you place your life. To lose a pack for a Garou is tragic, and most do not survive long after the death of the rest of their pack.
Rage: One of the Garou's main gifts is their Rage, which they get from Luna, aka the moon. The main benefit of Rage is that it allows them to transform, when role-playing Rage can be used to automatically transform, without rolling dice to check and see if you make a successful Change. Rage can also be spent to give a character extra actions in battle. Unfortunately, Rage is a double edged sword; when a person's Rage exceeds their Willpower (which can be used to get automatic successes on rolls) then they run the risk of frenzying.
Sept: See Caern above.
The Triad: The Wyld, the Weaver, and the Wyrm. These are the three forces which make up existence. The Wyld is chaos, raw energy; the Weaver spins the raw energy and chaos, and creates structure and stability; The Wyrm eats what the Weaver creates, and is the balancing force. This is how it was at the beginning of time, but it is not so now. The Weaver became too ambitious, and spun a web around the Wyrm, trapping it, and stoping it from eating what it created. This not only made human progress run unchecked, but drove the Wyrm insane. Now the Wyrm desires nothing more than the destruction of the world, evil and corruption are its gifts to the world. The Garou still devoted Gaia are sworn to fight the Wyrm and all its minions, though some Garou, most noticeably those of the Stargazer tribe, believe the fault lies with the Weaver, whom first drove the Wyrm insane.
The Tribes: The tribes are the highest level of Garou organization; your tribe is the place where you are always welcome, and dictates many of your traits, and your views on life. As I write, I will add more tribes to this list, but for now I will refer only to those that are pertinent to what I have already written; if you'd like to get a basic description of all the active tribes outside of the Stargazers and the Black Spiral Dancers, please go to the White Wolf website listed above.
The Stargazers: The Stargazers can tracer their origins from the land Tibet, where their greatest Caern used to reside, before it was destroyed by the Wyrm working through the Chinese invasions. The Stargazers are predominantly Asian, but have been known to travel through out the world, spreading their wisdom. The Stargazers are the monks of the Garou, and believe if one is to fight the evil in the outside world, one must first defeat the evil within themselves. They are the originators of the Garou exclusive martial arts known as Kailindo. So, while they are best known as teachers of wisdom, and for their even tempers, one threatens the life of a Stargazer at her own peril. In an unprecedented move, the tribe as a whole has separated itself from the Garou Nation very recently, and has returned to its ancient homeland to save what little of their sacred places still remain. There is even talk that they will move permanently into the Umbra. However, while most Stargazers have gone with their tribe, there are some who have chosen to keep up their old ways of teaching wisdom to their brother Garou. The tribal totem of the Stargazers is Chimera, the many-faced spirit of wisdom and enigmas.
The Fianna: The Fianna are from the Scotish highlands, and embrace many of their Kinfolks traits, and are marked by their great passions and harder partying. They have close ties with the fae, and have even been said to mix their blood with them. Their totem is the Great Stag.
The Glasswalkers: The Glasswalkers are one of two tribes who choose to live in human cities. But while the Bone Gnawers tend to live in squalor and poverty, the Glasswalkers move among the 'crème' of society. They are rich and affluent, and are very much into their technological toys. Glasswalkers are among the only Garou who use firearms. Their totem is Cockroach, which would seem strange at first, until one remembered that cockroaches are perhaps the best survivors there are.
The Silver Fangs: The once greatest and most noble of the Garou, the Silver Fangs as of late have fallen into the hard-times of many royal and noble human familys; inbreeding has caused mental and physical deformities, and their over-abundant pride has earned them little friends among their fellow tribes. However, many Garou still look to the Silver Fangs for their greatest leaders, because of the tribes precepts of honor, fairness, and goodness. Their totem is the honorable Falcon.
The Uktena: One of the two tribes of Native American Garou tribes that survives today, the Uktena are known for their extreme interest in all things magical and mystical, and hiding their secrets from their fellow Garou. They guard their fetishes and secrets religiously. Some Garou claim they have let their studies bring them far too close to secrets of the Wyrm.
The Black Spiral Dancers: The Black Spiral Dancers were once known as the White Howlers, when they were still part of the Garou Nation, and were a proud and fierce tibe. But they one and all fell to the Wyrm, and now do its bidding. Often deformed by the evil powers they embrace, not to mention that many of them are of Metis origin, the Black Spiral Dancers are possibly the worst enemy of the Garou.
The Children of Gaia: Peaceful (if one could ever call a werewolf 'peaceful') is the more flattering term for the Children of Gaia; a less flattering term might be 'hippies'. But in a society devoted to death, a tribe that promotes peace and working together is something of a breath of fresh air.
The Red Talons: A tribe made up entirely of Lupus Garou, the Red Talons for the most part hate humans with a passion; it is even said that their Moots have human sacrifices as the main event. If you have the misfortune to meet a pack of Red Talons in their woods, you better start making peace with your maker, because you're going to meet him very, very soon.
The Shadow Lords: Think, 'Silver Fangs gone bad'. They are not evil per se, but…well, they know what they want, and they have little qualms about the methods of getting it. I wouldn't want one guarding my back.
The Umbra: Once, long, long ago, the spirit world and the material world were one and the same, and it was a golden age. Well, not anymore. Now they are separate, and the world of the Spirit is known collectively as the Umbra. Garou can cross to the Umbra at will with the help of mirrors and other reflective surfaces. The Umbra is the home of all spirits, though they can be brought into the material realm through summoning rituals, or if they are powerful, they can truly materialize and become very real, and usually very dangerous, enemies. At this time I'm not going to go much into the inner workings of the Umbra, I would rather revel that through my storytelling.
The Weaver: See The Triad above.
Werewolf Forms: There are five forms that a Garou can take, they are:
Homid: Human form. This is also the term given to Garou who are born to human parents.
Glabro: Glabro form is mostly human, with a bit of wolf mixed in, say with strong, sharp nails or claws, and a relatively sharp increase in muscle mass. In Glabro form, a Garou gains great strength and even greater speed than in homid form. While a very few Garou can get away as being human in this form, most are quite obviously not Homo Sapiens.
Crinos: The war form of the Garou, this is a half human, half wolf, 8 to 12 (usually closer to 12) foot tall incarnation of death. The Crinos is literally your worst nightmare come to life; when a person who is not Kinfolk sees a werewolf in Crinos form, they instantly undergo the Delerium, i.e., they lose their marbles for awhile.
Hispo: Think big-ass wolf.
Lupus: Wolf form, unrecognizable from mundane wolves. Also the the term used for Garou who are born to wolf parents.
Willpower: See Rage above.
The Wyld: See The Triad above.
The Wyrm: See The Triad above.
The Zephyr: The Zephyr are a subgroup of the Stargazer Tribe who are known for following less the way of the monk and more of the wonderer and explorer; they make up the warriors of the Stargazers and has produced the best of the Kailindori Masters.
Okay, I'm sure that there is stuff that I have forgotten to add that I should have added, but obviously I can't think of everything. So, please email me or post something in the forum if you have any questions. Also, I'd like to say that if anything here or in my stories differs from the Werewolf RPG it is at my discretion; I am basing my storyline off the RPG, and just as White Wolf suggests I am tailoring some things to make it easier on both me the writer and you the reader.
This is a reference guide for all those who want to read my story, but know nothing of Werewolf: The Apocalypse role playing game by White Wolf. Werewolf is part of a series known as The World of Darkness, which includes RPG's such as Vampire: The Masquerade, and Mage: The Ascension. If you'd like to know more about The World of Darkness as a whole, please go to White Wolf's website: www.white-wolf.com
Introduction
The World of Darkness is a world much like our own, but much darker. It is a world where your darkest fears not only exist, but walk by you on your very own street. It is a world of blood, pain and death. But most importantly, it is a world of the end times. The Apocalypse, Ragnarock, it has gone by many names, but they all mean the same thing: The end of all things. And it is here. However, not all hope is lost; there are still those who fight for their mother, Gaia. But they are not knights in shining armor. No, the Garou, the warriors of Gaia, know that to kill a demon, sometimes we must become demons ourselves. The Garou, what the humans have come to call lycanthropes, or werewolves, are almost as bloody and monstrous as the evil they battle. Some are even worse. Monsters they might be, but still, they are the warriors chosen by Gaia herself to protect Her, and lo, pity the one who gets in the way of his sworn duty to his Mother.
Terms:
Before reading this section, I suggest starting on the story first, then referring to this page when you come across a word or concept you do not understand, otherwise you'll probably become bored.
The Garou: Werewolves, the chosen guardians of Gaia, what we call 'the world'. The Garou were originally from 16 tribes, now there are only 12, two are extinct, one has gone over to the Wyrm, and the last has drawn away from the Garou Nation and entered the Umbra.
Auspices: A Garou's Auspice is the phase of the moon under which he was born, and dictates her role in Garou society. The Auspices are:
Ragabash: The Ragabash are born under the new moon, and are the tricksters of Garou society. Be sure, if any Garou starts to think too highly of themselves they will soon find a Ragabash willing to take them down a peg or two with his clever wit. The Ragabash are most associated with shadows and stealth.
Theurge: The Theurge are born under the crescent moon. Born under this shadowy moon, the Theurge are the mystics of Garou society, and are the most vocative with spirits. They are the shamans and the Ritemasters; when one wants to deal with spirits and the other supernatural denizens of the World of Darkness, one wants to speak with a Theurge.
Philodox: The Philodox is born under the half moon. They are the keepers of Garou tradition and history, the mediators, and judiciaries. They are often the leaders of a Sept during times when there is no open war or Sept-wide battles.
Galliard: The Galliard is born under the gibbous moon. They are the bards or Garou society, the spirit of the Garou who raise a werewolves will to persevere when things look their worst. They are the artists, the singers, the heart of the Garou Nation.
Ahroun: The Ahroun are born under the full moon, and thus as the Ragabash tend to have the lowest Rage since they are born under the new moon, the Ahroun tend to have the highest Rage of all the Garou. While all Garou are to some extent warriors, it is the Ahroun for whom battle is the beginning and the ending. They are the obvious leaders during times of battle, when enemies approach, a pack automatically looks to its highest ranking Ahroun to lead them through.
Caern: The caern is the social and spiritual gathering points of the Garou, they are areas where the spiritual energy of the world collect and pool. The Garou protect these areas fiercely as they are their most sacred locals. The organization of Garou who live at and protect a caern are known as a Sept, and are essential to the communication and relations of the different Tribes. While in the past caerns used to be run by individual tribes, more and more Septs are made up of Garou from many tribes. Caerns are often devoted to certain things such as Healing, Strength, Stamina, or Wisdom, etc.
Fetish: A fetish is an object that has been bound with spirits; this can give the object (including weapons) many magical properties, and as such they are great treasures among the Garou. All Klaives are fetishes.
Frenzy: When a Garou loses all control on their Rage, while a Garou is in frenzy, they can not distinguish friend from foe.
The Gauntlet: That which divides the material world from the spiritual world; this barrier dictates exactly how easy it is to get into the Umbra, and is not consistent in all places, as in the Gauntlet at a Caern is much thinner than in most places given its spiritual and magical nature. The thinner the Gauntlet, the easier it is for Garou to cross to the Umbra, and in places like a Caern a Garou can sometimes cross without even using a medium such as a mirror.
Gnosis: Basically, the Garou's gift from Gaia that allows them to use Gifts (spiritual powers). Carrying sliver, such as in klaives, reduces a Garou's Gnosis.
The Gurahl: Werebears. They are relatively peaceful, and are in fact Gaia's Healers, as the Garou are Gaia's Warriors.
Kailindo: the Garou exclusive martial arts which involves instantaneous transformations while performing fighting moves; needless to say this is an extremely deadly and useful gift. Also, those who use Kailindo are known as Kailindori. Kailindo was developed by the Stargazer Tribe.
Kinfolk: Kinfolk are people or wolves who are descended from werewolf ancestors, but are not werewolves themselves. Most Garou prefer to mate with people who are Kinfolk, since many already know of werewolves, and they do not suffer from Delerium (see Crinos under 'Werewolf Forms'). If a werewolf mates with another werewolf, the results are always Metis; thus it is illegal to mate Garou with Garou, though it happens, and much too often by the elders standards.
Klaive: The klaive is a knife or dagger with a blade made of silver. They are ritualistic to the Garou, especially in duels among Garou; however, to draw a klaive in combat almost always means the duel is one to the death. Garou elders try and discourage these types of duels, but with the threat of Frenzying, even ordinary duels carries a risk of fatality. The art of klaive dueling is known as klaivaskar. There are such things as 'Grand Klaives' and they are some of the greatest fetishes that the Garou own, they are basically big ass swords made of silver. I'd be careful that if any of your pack carried a Grand Klaive that they actually knew how to use it, 'cause a Grand Klaive in the hands of an untrained cub of a Garou is often more dangerous to his friends than to his enemies.
Metis: Metis are always the product when werewolves mate with each other. They are born in Crinos form (ya, think how that would feel for the mother, it is not unusual for the mother to die during birth, and they must be in Crinos form during the birthing process) and are always deformed in some way. They are the lowest part of Garou society, and are the victims of heavy prejudice. When they are given work to do, they are given the lowest and most menial task. While not all tribes treat their Metis the same, well…while some tribes claim to treat their Metis well, the Metis might not be so ready to agree with them. Are Metis bitter creatures? Oh, ya, you better believe it. Do they hate their Garou brethren? I don't think you'd find many to actually tell you to your face, but…
Moot: Garou gatherings, many are like parties, though some moots, especially those run by the Silver Fangs and the Shadow Lords, are more formal affairs.
Pack: The pack is the lowest level of Garou organization, and is, basically, the Garou you work with when you go out on quests. They are your closest friends and comrades, for everytime you go into a dangerous situation, it is your packmates with whom you place your life. To lose a pack for a Garou is tragic, and most do not survive long after the death of the rest of their pack.
Rage: One of the Garou's main gifts is their Rage, which they get from Luna, aka the moon. The main benefit of Rage is that it allows them to transform, when role-playing Rage can be used to automatically transform, without rolling dice to check and see if you make a successful Change. Rage can also be spent to give a character extra actions in battle. Unfortunately, Rage is a double edged sword; when a person's Rage exceeds their Willpower (which can be used to get automatic successes on rolls) then they run the risk of frenzying.
Sept: See Caern above.
The Triad: The Wyld, the Weaver, and the Wyrm. These are the three forces which make up existence. The Wyld is chaos, raw energy; the Weaver spins the raw energy and chaos, and creates structure and stability; The Wyrm eats what the Weaver creates, and is the balancing force. This is how it was at the beginning of time, but it is not so now. The Weaver became too ambitious, and spun a web around the Wyrm, trapping it, and stoping it from eating what it created. This not only made human progress run unchecked, but drove the Wyrm insane. Now the Wyrm desires nothing more than the destruction of the world, evil and corruption are its gifts to the world. The Garou still devoted Gaia are sworn to fight the Wyrm and all its minions, though some Garou, most noticeably those of the Stargazer tribe, believe the fault lies with the Weaver, whom first drove the Wyrm insane.
The Tribes: The tribes are the highest level of Garou organization; your tribe is the place where you are always welcome, and dictates many of your traits, and your views on life. As I write, I will add more tribes to this list, but for now I will refer only to those that are pertinent to what I have already written; if you'd like to get a basic description of all the active tribes outside of the Stargazers and the Black Spiral Dancers, please go to the White Wolf website listed above.
The Stargazers: The Stargazers can tracer their origins from the land Tibet, where their greatest Caern used to reside, before it was destroyed by the Wyrm working through the Chinese invasions. The Stargazers are predominantly Asian, but have been known to travel through out the world, spreading their wisdom. The Stargazers are the monks of the Garou, and believe if one is to fight the evil in the outside world, one must first defeat the evil within themselves. They are the originators of the Garou exclusive martial arts known as Kailindo. So, while they are best known as teachers of wisdom, and for their even tempers, one threatens the life of a Stargazer at her own peril. In an unprecedented move, the tribe as a whole has separated itself from the Garou Nation very recently, and has returned to its ancient homeland to save what little of their sacred places still remain. There is even talk that they will move permanently into the Umbra. However, while most Stargazers have gone with their tribe, there are some who have chosen to keep up their old ways of teaching wisdom to their brother Garou. The tribal totem of the Stargazers is Chimera, the many-faced spirit of wisdom and enigmas.
The Fianna: The Fianna are from the Scotish highlands, and embrace many of their Kinfolks traits, and are marked by their great passions and harder partying. They have close ties with the fae, and have even been said to mix their blood with them. Their totem is the Great Stag.
The Glasswalkers: The Glasswalkers are one of two tribes who choose to live in human cities. But while the Bone Gnawers tend to live in squalor and poverty, the Glasswalkers move among the 'crème' of society. They are rich and affluent, and are very much into their technological toys. Glasswalkers are among the only Garou who use firearms. Their totem is Cockroach, which would seem strange at first, until one remembered that cockroaches are perhaps the best survivors there are.
The Silver Fangs: The once greatest and most noble of the Garou, the Silver Fangs as of late have fallen into the hard-times of many royal and noble human familys; inbreeding has caused mental and physical deformities, and their over-abundant pride has earned them little friends among their fellow tribes. However, many Garou still look to the Silver Fangs for their greatest leaders, because of the tribes precepts of honor, fairness, and goodness. Their totem is the honorable Falcon.
The Uktena: One of the two tribes of Native American Garou tribes that survives today, the Uktena are known for their extreme interest in all things magical and mystical, and hiding their secrets from their fellow Garou. They guard their fetishes and secrets religiously. Some Garou claim they have let their studies bring them far too close to secrets of the Wyrm.
The Black Spiral Dancers: The Black Spiral Dancers were once known as the White Howlers, when they were still part of the Garou Nation, and were a proud and fierce tibe. But they one and all fell to the Wyrm, and now do its bidding. Often deformed by the evil powers they embrace, not to mention that many of them are of Metis origin, the Black Spiral Dancers are possibly the worst enemy of the Garou.
The Children of Gaia: Peaceful (if one could ever call a werewolf 'peaceful') is the more flattering term for the Children of Gaia; a less flattering term might be 'hippies'. But in a society devoted to death, a tribe that promotes peace and working together is something of a breath of fresh air.
The Red Talons: A tribe made up entirely of Lupus Garou, the Red Talons for the most part hate humans with a passion; it is even said that their Moots have human sacrifices as the main event. If you have the misfortune to meet a pack of Red Talons in their woods, you better start making peace with your maker, because you're going to meet him very, very soon.
The Shadow Lords: Think, 'Silver Fangs gone bad'. They are not evil per se, but…well, they know what they want, and they have little qualms about the methods of getting it. I wouldn't want one guarding my back.
The Umbra: Once, long, long ago, the spirit world and the material world were one and the same, and it was a golden age. Well, not anymore. Now they are separate, and the world of the Spirit is known collectively as the Umbra. Garou can cross to the Umbra at will with the help of mirrors and other reflective surfaces. The Umbra is the home of all spirits, though they can be brought into the material realm through summoning rituals, or if they are powerful, they can truly materialize and become very real, and usually very dangerous, enemies. At this time I'm not going to go much into the inner workings of the Umbra, I would rather revel that through my storytelling.
The Weaver: See The Triad above.
Werewolf Forms: There are five forms that a Garou can take, they are:
Homid: Human form. This is also the term given to Garou who are born to human parents.
Glabro: Glabro form is mostly human, with a bit of wolf mixed in, say with strong, sharp nails or claws, and a relatively sharp increase in muscle mass. In Glabro form, a Garou gains great strength and even greater speed than in homid form. While a very few Garou can get away as being human in this form, most are quite obviously not Homo Sapiens.
Crinos: The war form of the Garou, this is a half human, half wolf, 8 to 12 (usually closer to 12) foot tall incarnation of death. The Crinos is literally your worst nightmare come to life; when a person who is not Kinfolk sees a werewolf in Crinos form, they instantly undergo the Delerium, i.e., they lose their marbles for awhile.
Hispo: Think big-ass wolf.
Lupus: Wolf form, unrecognizable from mundane wolves. Also the the term used for Garou who are born to wolf parents.
Willpower: See Rage above.
The Wyld: See The Triad above.
The Wyrm: See The Triad above.
The Zephyr: The Zephyr are a subgroup of the Stargazer Tribe who are known for following less the way of the monk and more of the wonderer and explorer; they make up the warriors of the Stargazers and has produced the best of the Kailindori Masters.
Okay, I'm sure that there is stuff that I have forgotten to add that I should have added, but obviously I can't think of everything. So, please email me or post something in the forum if you have any questions. Also, I'd like to say that if anything here or in my stories differs from the Werewolf RPG it is at my discretion; I am basing my storyline off the RPG, and just as White Wolf suggests I am tailoring some things to make it easier on both me the writer and you the reader.