Werecreatures

[JP SylvrWolfe]

It has been brought to my attention that some of the players would like further clarification on how the were/shifter thing works here in Silver Knights.

Let me begin by stating that it is NOT the sole intent of this game to revolve around shifters and their interactions with society at large. This game is about the whole of the Silver Knights Universe as given by me, the original author. I do realize that many of you have not had the opportunity to experience this or read about it as some of my closer friends have, and for that I direct you to the stickied topic regarding the original work. Also, much of my deviantART site is dedicated to the workings of my silver knights characters.

You can find my dA at: sylvrwolfe.deviantart.com

Now, on to buisness:

There are two major routes one can take regarding being a shifter.

A) You belong to a major pack of some kind, or perhaps a temple (like the jackals). In this case, your wereside is cared for and you have a small support group of like type shifters. There are various packs, pards, and prides that you can join up with, or get your friends together to make your own. The existing options will be listed later in subsequent replies to this topic.

B) You are a loner. You do not belong to any group and hide your were-side constantly. This usually leads to the hollywood type shifter who fights and fights and fights until it finally bursts out and goes RAWR all over the place.

The other option, is kind of like being Ghey...some loner shifters DO NOT CARE, and are all kinds of open about what they are, reveling in the fact that it scares people, or makes them question the sanity of the person claiming to be able to turn into a werewolf or whatever.


Ultimately, werecreatures are a dirty little secret, mostly ignored/unmentioned in society. There are the enthusiasts, the nutjobs, the conspirasy theorists who will constantly go on about how shifters are real and they exsit and all that UFO type shit...and there IS a governmental organization dedicated to policing their activities....

But ultimately...weres are played much like in the movies. Mum is the word, unless you are in a place where it is safe to mention it.

SAFE PLACES:
SHIFTERS! Nightclub backroom or small hidden `saferooms`.
Central Park (assuming you are out of earshot of another PC/NPC)

Another point one must remember when playing a were is that you are affected by lunar/solar phases.
These are called ~Shift-Triggers~, and are unavoidable.

For instance:
Werewolves shift under the full moon.

That is a shift trigger.

Every shifter has one, and it should be mentioned somewhere in your CS if possible. Otherwise, it will be brought up by an op later in the OOC chat and could lead to some interesting conflicts in play.

Common terms shifters would know:

Shift - To change forms. ~Dude...its a full moon, I gotta shift like, right now!~

SCD - Special Crimes Division. These are the cops/feds devoted to policing the shifter community. If you call these guys, its because you are a were and need police assistance...or are a badguy and need arresting.

BEAST - A type of were that changes into a dire/uber sized werecreature. Typically, Muscleweres, macros, and anthing REALLY HUGE falls into this category.

The Temple - The Jackal Cult`s temple. This referrs both to the religon and the actual pyramid shaped worship site.

The Dynes/Dyneansism - Werewolf religon that worships the seven aspects of creation. Typically only taught by one well versed werewolf to another willing to learn pupil.

Knights - Those big armored guys who help SCD.

Saferoom/Safehouse - a place designed to deal with a shifter when it goes into a rage. Usually padded or reinforced with some kind of heavy metal.

Tainted/Dirty metal - Silver laced metals. The more silver in an item, the more it burns upon contact with skin.

SilverBlood - A shifter born with natural immunity to Silver. VERY rare.

Mating Season - Self explanitory. This is when the animal desire to mate occurs.

This should answer quite a few questions, and of course, please post further questions to THIS topic, and we will be happy to explain further and answer new questions as they arise.

[mikakyubi]

Dear JP,

Allow me to begin by pointing out that this will be a large, detailed set of questions, and to ask your indulgence in this matter. This being said, allow me to begin.

Let me begin by stating that it is NOT the sole intent of this game to revolve around shifters and their interactions with society at large. This game is about the whole of the Silver Knights Universe as given by me, the original author. I do realize that many of you have not had the opportunity to experience this or read about it as some of my closer friends have, and for that I direct you to the stickied topic regarding the original work. Also, much of my deviantART site is dedicated to the workings of my silver knights characters.

The focus may not be predominantly upon were/shifter society, but it is rapidly approaching the point where the focus will of needs shift to such, primarily due to an overwhelming PC presence as such.

As well, it is strongly recommended by me that some vague, general idea be put forth as to the intended direction of the plot and the role of the PC's in said plot, thus allowing for the tailoring of characters appropriate to the universe and storyline.

I have been reading the original work in detail, and taking extensive notes. I have noted the prevalence of terms originally seen by me in White Wolf Games' World of Darkness setting, specifically Werewolf: The Apocalypse. Many would in no way be familiar extensively with these tertms, and thus, a detailed lexicon should be drawn up. Also, some clarification would be appreciated on how much of the original work's background and world data is being imported to this version. It will of course spell out a lot for players, and would make reading it a necessity, if it is all or nearly all of it.

A) You belong to a major pack of some kind, or perhaps a temple (like the jackals). In this case, your wereside is cared for and you have a small support group of like type shifters. There are various packs, pards, and prides that you can join up with, or get your friends together to make your own. The existing options will be listed later in subsequent replies to this topic.

This should be the subject of immediate and detailed clarification, so those intending to play weres who are part of this society will have a background and world-view to draw upon in the creation of their character. Also within said data should be a reasonable amount of information on exactly how widespread such a culture is, and how rigidly it is held to, plus the benefits and penalties of membership/non-membership, in detail.

B) You are a loner. You do not belong to any group and hide your were-side constantly. This usually leads to the hollywood type shifter who fights and fights and fights until it finally bursts out and goes RAWR all over the place.

The other option, is kind of like being Ghey...some loner shifters DO NOT CARE, and are all kinds of open about what they are, reveling in the fact that it scares people, or makes them question the sanity of the person claiming to be able to turn into a werewolf or whatever.

This aspect of were behavior, specifically their underlying apparently rather feral nature needs to also be addressed for detailing general personality traits amongst weres.

Ultimately, werecreatures are a dirty little secret, mostly ignored/unmentioned in society. There are the enthusiasts, the nutjobs, the conspirasy theorists who will constantly go on about how shifters are real and they exsit and all that UFO type shit...and there IS a governmental organization dedicated to policing their activities....

But ultimately...weres are played much like in the movies. Mum is the word, unless you are in a place where it is safe to mention it.

You mention ignored and/or unmentioned. This implies that a more-than-decent number of people are aware of it, most likely part of general society, not merely specialized groups and organizations. It also implies that the society in general is in no way concerned (or tries not to be) about the presence of such creatures. This will, of course, have an impact on the rest of human society outside of the fringe groups. It will also have a stark impact on whether others can deal with or accept their existance. Clarify, please.

The Temple - The Jackal Cult`s temple. This referrs both to the religon and the actual pyramid shaped worship site.

The Dynes/Dyneansism - Werewolf religon that worships the seven aspects of creation. Typically only taught by one well versed werewolf to another willing to learn pupil.

Details here would be appreciated. While many PC's may not choose to PLAY such a character, having the details open as an option would be helpful, especially if someone wants to create a were who is deeply devoted or religious. It is, of course, up to a PC and the GM to enforce the non-use of OOC knowledge. One may OOCly know the universe and some (even many) of its' secrets, but a good roleplayer should not and indeed will not end up using this knowledge ICly.

Knights - Those big armored guys who help SCD.

This should also have more detail gone into. Most importantly is how they work, how they are organized, the perils and advantages of knowing one (or more), and perhaps some history, such as why they are called Knights.

Mating Season - Self explanitory. This is when the animal desire to mate occurs.

This, too, could use some general clarification, such as exactly what times of year this specifically is, and whether a were is fertile or even deeply interested during the non-season times. Again, details for RP.

Many thanks for answering my requests and addressing my concerns. Please excuse the seemingly pointed criticism and deep probing I tend to do, it is a holdover of my continuing involvement with dice-and-paper tabletop RPG's. I also only seek to allow others to play their characters well and with attention paid to the universe's details.

Yours in appreciation,
Mika Kyubi
Kitsune-at-Large

[JP SylvrWolfe]

This is a series of questions that I dont think I can answer quickly.

The other ops and I will try to answer as many of these questions as quickly as possible.

In response to your first question, I have only this to say:

This game does not revolve around shifters...it revolves around life in New York City after the CyberKnights have made super-heroic acts more commonplace.
The concentration of super hero activity has given rise to villains...other heroes...wannabes...and the like.
The ultimate goal was to take people who typically work/live in this city, and stick them in the middle.

Mundane characters become pawns for villains, much like when the Joker used Harold to try and kill off the Commissioner in Bruce Timms Batman: The Animated Series.

Heroic characters try to make a name for themselves while maintaining a secret identiy and having a `real life`.

Newly spawned supervillains try to make their bones by killing off a Knight or blowing away a chunk of the city.

So on and so forth...basically taking people and forcing them into situations that test their mettle, both mental and physical. Ideally, when we are done, it wont be ONE long plot, but rather a large series of much smaller plots that involve specific characters interacting with one another independant of the GMs main storyarc of keeping the city moving.

In short:

Soap Opera style. Like watching an old X-Men cartoon. Love, lust, violence, heroes, villains, and day to day mundanery.

[JP SylvrWolfe]

My original statement:

A) You belong to a major pack of some kind, or perhaps a temple (like the jackals). In this case, your wereside is cared for and you have a small support group of like type shifters. There are various packs, pards, and prides that you can join up with, or get your friends together to make your own. The existing options will be listed later in subsequent replies to this topic.

Mika writes:

This should be the subject of immediate and detailed clarification, so those intending to play weres who are part of this society will have a background and world-view to draw upon in the creation of their character. Also within said data should be a reasonable amount of information on exactly how widespread such a culture is, and how rigidly it is held to, plus the benefits and penalties of membership/non-membership, in detail.

To this, I reply...

1) Joining a Pack!

Joining up with a local pack is actually something one would do in play. Typically characters come in with no real ties to the New York packs/pards/etc., since it is assumed that new characters are also either A)New to the city or B) New to the lifestyle they have aquired.

The major packs one can join:

SilverClaws of the SilverBlood - A werewolf pack run by Luke Garrett (NPC/OP Char). He is a silverblood (werewolf immune to silver), just like his father Nathaniel Garrett. You can find either of these characters usually around Special Crimes Division headquarters in NYC. Anyone wishing to join this pack is only required to be a shifter of the Wolf or Fox type and must request it of either NPC Leader figure. This is a devout pack, one typcially learns about Dyeanism from the pack Shaman - Nightwolf (NPC).

Son of Terra - An open pack run by JP Tovar (PC). He is a BEAST (DireIcewolf) Werewolf who runs a local mixed pack. You can find him in either SHIFTERS! Nightclub working as a bartender, or around local schools trying to get a gig for his band. Joining this pack only requires that someone be a shifter in need. Typically this is an agnostic pack, but sometimes the triumverate of leaders, Christina, Leo, and JP can be convinced to speak of their personal views on religion.

The Jackal Cult/Temple- This is a closed cult. Invitation only, so to speak. While invitations are easily aquired, as in, just ask anyone wearing the robes of the jackal temple...its a closed cult insofar that one has to become a werejackal to join. Its easy to be turned, many give in after just a few moments of interaction with their more skilled `recruiters`, and are bitten/marked/infected quickly thereafter. This is a pure religious cult, and one will learn the many secrets of the jackal temple upon being inducted. Generally, the Jackals are VERY defensive about their deeper ceremonial acts, and will not be likely to just spout information about the deeper secrets. This is one of the few pack/cults that will care COMPLETELY for their packmate, to the point of actually giving them housing, clothing, money, and food.

This is all the major packs available that already exist, and feel free to create your own! Bear in mind that the two non-cult packs that exist are feircely territorial, and you may have to fight for territory/hunting rights in the woodland reclimation area to the north of the City.

2) Benefits of belonging to a pack!

Joining a pack gives you certain benefits that should become readily obvious once you join. You get friends, people to help you learn more about what you are/have become. You also get hunting territory without having to fight as hard, since you no longer are alone. Fights can be joined by packmates with little to no other reason beyond the fact that they are your packmate and wish to defend you. You also can learn the deeper secrets of your wereside, and perhaps unlock abilities that would not have been available to you otherwise.

On the other hand...once you are in a pack, you are to take orders from your Alpha/Leader. Thses are orders you simply cannot refuse without reprecussions...and expect to be punished for failures. Also, the enemy of your pack becomes your enemy...so some people you may have made friends with before joining up with a pack suddenly become your enemies without warning.

Certain locations in the playable locations list are only available to certain packs...and they will be listed in the `Where to Go` section of the city archives.

[JP SylvrWolfe]

SILVERBLOODS: Weres who are immune to silver. These people all bear an identical mark...their metalic Silver hair.

SILVERBLOOD-line is by special permission ONLY

[Saber]

RAGE/ANGER based shifts : Shifts that are induced by extreme anger. They come on quick, and usually are violent and uncontrolable at first.