Garou Chapter Two

TRAITS (2.0)

Regardless of Rank, Garou (and other “shifters”) characters have a maximum of ten Traits each of Gnosis, Rage, and Willpower, and five Traits in any given Ability.

All shifters gain five Free Traits in addition to those gained from Negative Traits and Flaws (even though some of the source books don’t include this). A character may gain two Free Traits by taking a Derangement at character creation. If she does so, she may only gain Free Traits from three Negative Traits.

A shifter may gain an Ability Trait, Attribute Trait, or Background Trait at the cost of one Free Trait. Gnosis and Rage Traits cost two each, while Willpower and Basic Gifts (subject to normal approval restrictions) cost three Free Traits.

TRIBES (2.1)

Should you elect to create a Cub (Rank zero), you are not required to select a Tribe. If you don't you will be able to select your Tribe after your rite of passage, although you cannot choose a Tribe that has Background requirements or limitations which do not match the Backgrounds you possess. As an example, if you create a 'tribeless' Cub and do not have any Traits of Pure Breed, you will not be able to select the Silver Fangs as your Tribe after your rite of passage. Cubs without Tribes start at character creation with three Willpower Traits. They have no Advantage or Drawback and may not purhase Tribal Gifts until after they have passed their rite of passage.

Black Fury
The Tribal Advantage restores a maximum of one Willpower Trait per week during downtime.

Bone Gnawer
Rather then being available once per session, the Tribal Advantage gives a number of extra monthly Influence actions (as Contacts) equal to the Bone Gnawer’s Rank. This is separate from the Contacts Background. Note that the starting Gifts for Bone Gnawer characters are Cooking, Resist Toxin, and Tagalong.

Fianna
Add Craft to the list of Abilities under the Fianna Tribe Advantage.

Get of Fenris
The starting Gifts for Get of Fenris characters are Razor Claws, Resist Pain, and Visage of Fenris.

Glass Walker
In addition to the free Influence Trait, Glass Walkers have the following advantage. Each of their Kinfolk levels dedicate to increasing the Influence maximums increases it by three levels, rather than just one.

Shadow Lord
For the Tribal Advantage, before the first test is thrown in a Social Challenge, the Shadow Lord can spend one Gnosis to gain a number of bonus Social Traits for that challenge equal to his Rank. This works regardless of the opponent’s Pure Breed.

Silent Strider
After successfully exercising his Advantage, a Silent Strider negates the first surprise he is subjected to during the remainder of the scene.

Silver Fang
The Silver Fang Advantage is that they may expend a Social Trait to retest a Social Challenge. Ignore the list of Derangements under the Disadvantage. Instead take any Derangement listed on pages 212-214.

Uktena
The Uktena Advantage is that they do not need to spend Mental Traits to gain vivid clarity when peeking across the Gauntlet.

Wendigo
Traits granted by the Wheel of Seasons allow the Wendigo to exceed his Trait maximums. The Physical Traits granted during the winter by the Wheel of Seasons are not restricted to “soaking damage”.

BACKGROUNDS (2.2)

Ancestors
A Narrator may disallow any Ability if it is inappropriate for an Ancestor to have had it. For example, Quantum Mechanics or Revenant Lore would have to be well justified in the history of character’s ancestors. A character cannot use Ancestors to gain Traits of an Ability the character has, even if he has expended some or all of those Traits.

Additional Backgrounds can be found on page 53 of Dark Epics. Garou cannot take Retainers.

Fetish
All non-standard Fetishes, and all Fetishes level five or higher, require High Approval. Note that a list of additional (Low Approval) Fetishes and Talens is presented at the end of Chapter Four.

Klaives or Grand Klaives that have different melee-weapon shapes than normal, or are made from materials other than silver, require High Approval. They typically give no more benefits than the standard forms of these weapons. The tradition of crafting and wielding Klaives is a sacred one steeped in honor. Few with the skill to make these sacred weapons are willing to deviate from the standard form accepted by the Garou Nation.

Creatures without Rage may attempt a Willpower challenge instead, to resist the effects of a Harmony Flute.

No more than two extra levels of damage can be inflicted by an (activated) Fang Dagger. An activated Fang Dagger remains active for the remainder of the scene.

Kinfolk
Kinfolk takes the place of Retainers for Garou, a Background that Garou cannot purchase due to the effects of The Curse. For determining the statistics of kinfolk, use the same guidelines as those for Retainers in Prime.

Mentor
Mentors will not teach out-of-Tribe Gifts. Learning a Gift form a mentor includes all the disadvantages of learning Gifts from another Garou. Mentors can teach rites of the same level as the Gifts they can teach.

Pure Breed
Level five in Pure Breed requires Mid Approval.

The Traits granted by Pure Breed are not automatically added to all Social Challenges with Garou. The challenge must be one where the Garou’s noble bearing can be seen (or is known), and where such a patrician demeanor would affect the outcome of the challenge. This includes challenges for stare downs, Etiquette and Leadership Ability challenges, and Gifts such as Calm, Curse of Hatred, Mastery, Obedience, Paralyzing Stare, Roll Over, Staredown, and Visage of Fenris.

Because of the greater weight of accounting placed upon the descendants of the Garou Nation’s heroes, whenever a character with Pure Breed loses temporary Renown Traits, he will never lose less than half his Pure Breed total, rounding up. For example, a character with Pure Breed three will lose two Honor for “not protecting a helpless human”, rather than one Honor.

Rites
Characters may not have more than five total Traits in the Rites Background. The cost of rites through this Background is one Trait for a Basic rite, two Traits for an Intermediate, and three Traits for an Advanced rite. Two Minor Rites can be purchased for 1 Trait of the Rites Background.

The number of Rituals Ability Traits required before a character may learn rites is one Trait for Minor, two Traits for Basic rites, three Traits for Intermediate, and five Traits for Advanced rites. A Garou of any Rank may learn any rite, but the use of a rite not allowed by Rank is a dishonorable and unwise act. It is worth the loss of a temporary Honor and a temporary Wisdom Renown unless a sept’s Master of the rite is directly supervising the Garou.

Further rules for rites can be found in Chapter Three.

Totem
Pack totems are Jaggling spirits. A base totem (see page 90) costs a number of Background Traits equal to the Background cost of the totem (see pages 243-248). Ignore the charts in the book and use the following for purchasing improvements to the base totem.
Totem Improvement Table
Improvement
Cost
Per 2 Traits divided among Rage, Gnosis, and Willpower
1
Per additional Trait of Essence
1
Per Ability Trait
1
Totem can speak to pack without Spirit Speech
1
Totem can always find pack members
1
Per additional Charm possessed
2
Totem is nearly always w/pack members
2
Totem is respected by other spirits
2
Per extra member who can use Totem powers in the same turn
3
Totem allows members to communicate at great distances
4
Totem can materialize wo/cost
5


Additional Traits, Abilities, or Rage received from a totem may exceed the Garou's Trait maximums. Ability Traits granted by a totem are granted per scene, not per turn. Gnosis or Rage Traits granted by totems (normally listed as “per story”) are independent pools of Traits that refresh at a rate of one per day. Willpower Traits granted by totems are an independent pool of Traits that refresh at a rate of one per week.

Children of Uktena ignore the first health level of damage they suffer each scene while in the Umbra to reflect their “automatic level of soak” against all damage. Each story is considered to be a month for the purposes of the additional Experience Traits granted to Uktena's children. These Totem-granted Experience Traits can exceed the character’s monthly maximum, but may never be used to buy Gifts.

Top Approval is required for any new totem affiliations not found in the Camarilla's Rules Supplement.

MERITS AND FLAWS (2.3)

Silver Tolerance
Instead of allowing you to "soak damage" from silver weapons, a win or tie on a Simple Test (re-testable with the Survival Ability) allows the character to treat the attack as though it had not come from a silver source.

Supernatural Companion
Treat this as the Supernatural Ally Merit from Prime.

Wolf Years
This Flaw is worth only one Trait in the Sanctioned chronicle.

METIS DEFORMITIES (2.4)

Chitinous Skin
This Disfigurement does not give the character an additional Health Level.

Weak Immune System
Rather then having no Bruised health levels, a character with this Disfigurement has one less Healthy health level.

RAGE TRAITS (2.5)

A character may not spend more Rage Traits than half his permanent Physical Traits in any given turn (rounding down).