Rpg thoughts: Lycanthropes, howl at the moon!

A full moon, a howl in the night, a scream in the dark. Lycanthropes have been a part of horror and fantasy for a very long time. They have had the privilege of walking on both sides of audience perception as wanton cruel villains, and as darkly fascinating heroes. I believe my first introduction to werewolves in any meaningful way was in An American Werewolf in London, which I likely saw at way too young of an age. I stand by the fact that that film still holds the championship belt for the most painful looking werewolf transformation in film history. It is safe to say that lycanthropes are likely one of my most enjoyed fantasy creatures. This has led me to using them in a lot of my tabletop rpg sessions as villains, allies, and characters who are just trying to make their way in the world. In this editorial, I will explore and share ways in which I have used these shifting creatures, or even possibly how I could use them. Hopefully, It could spark some interesting ideas in the creative minds reading this to make something both frightening and fun.

Werewolves in 2004 Van Helsing are some of the best to date.

To start, I’d like to look at the typical idea of a lycanthrope. When I say typical lycanthrope, I am referring to the beast that lives inside of a mortal and emerges once a month at the full moon. When an individual turns they are nothing but the beast; they are wild feral and have no control over their actions. It is only when they awake after the moon has passed that they become themselves. These are the cursed lycans doomed to endure until they are restored or, more likely, killed by a silver weapon of some kind. For me, using these in a storytelling game like Dungeons and Dragons, allows me the opportunity to create often very tragic and sympathetic characters. If an adventuring party comes to a town plagued by a werebear that is destroying whole house's, occupants and all, it creates an air of urgency to stop the beast. Consider what happens when it turns out to be the town priest who has been actively helping the victims, or what if it is a child who is scared and doesn’t know what's happening. This puts the party in a moral conundrum that leads to some very interesting moments of character development and could even cause a rift in the party. If the lawful good paladin see the cursed individual as a threat that has to be destroyed, but the chaotic good wizard has a theory on how to remove the curse, what's going to happen? Will the party seek the fastest solution or the one with a chance to save the cursed? Will they risk a angry mob if they kill a beloved member of the town? Will they put their lives on the line to keep the individual restrained while they work for a cure? What happens if one of the party gets bit? This is where things can get very tricky for a Dungeon Master, but if you know your world and know the party, it certainly can work.

The next point to bring up is the evil lycanthrope. These are beings that are fully aware of what they do when they shift.Some may even have control, but regardless, they enjoy the pain and slaughter that they commit. They may be killing just for kicks, or they may even be scheming masterminds with a grand plan. Regardless, due to the power they possess and their killer instinct, they can make a huge threat to a group of adventurers. These beings can exist in many fashions. One of my most enjoyed creations of this nature was a big bad evil guy for a story arch in a campaign. The creature was a wererat who had fashioned himself as Lord Below, in a major city where the player characters had begun to call home. The Lord Below was an apha wererat who had

Never forget wererats are indeed valid threats.

called together others to act as his swarm .It was his ambition to take the city above. He was starting by kidnaping children and infecting them to raise them as his own personal horde along with those who joined him. This is one way to get a party's attention for a long term campaign against an evil lycanthrope. Another way that could easily be used for this type of villain is to introduce  the Lone Killer. This is when a series of grisly murders begin to pop up and there seems to be a pattern and evidence of a lycan. However, he doesn’t ever turn his targets and there is a specific mode of operation to the creature's mind set. Examples include specific types of victims or even certain locations in which the kill must be made. Both of the above mentioned concepts can lead to some great villains.Sometimes lycanthropes may not be the big bad; they may be a major sub-boss in the story serving a greater master. Think of the werewolves working for Dracula in 2004’s Van Helsing. If a greater evil can give a evil lycanthrope what it wants and it knows how to temper the beast, lycans can be deadly elite henchmen for a mastermind.

The next thing that comes up when using lycanthropes are the good aligned werefolk. There have been a few examples of this in a few different works of fiction. These are the lycans that maintain some semblance of their humanity despite their shifting, some even using the dark gift as a tool to do good. The most popular example that comes to mind when one talks about these kind of werebeasts comes from the Worgen from the World of Warcraft video game, and honestly that's not a bad example to consider. Characters like this are more  loners, often staying away from large groups of people. They understand that most will view them as monsters if they aren’t careful. That

Worgen in the World of Warcraft are both
fierce and proud. 

being said, this doesn’t stop the afflicted from doing the right thing, good lycanthropes often take on the role of a protector or guardian type character in my narratives. There was a moment when I was thinking to myself: What would a group of good aligned lycanthropes look like? So, I had the thought of, an order of Paladins, Clerics, and Priests, dedicated to order, justice, and protection of the weak called the Lunar Sacrament. They are feared by most due to the fact that makes them different from from most holy orders. You guessed it, they are Lycanthropes. Its is the idea of to fight the darkness, you must use the darkness. I thought about what would be their errant forces. I determined that they travel in groups called packs, because it's fitting. A pack for this order of lycans, consists of a cleric, a priest, and three holy knights. I knew that seeing squads of roving lycans likely would be overwhelming to adventurers. So, what would be their Knight Errant type? There are some who walk the path of the lone crusader. These are, more often than not, the most well known members of the order, essentially being champions. However, one doesn’t need to go the paladin route. Just because I was inspired by the band Powerwolf doesn’t mean everyone will be. Exploring druidic customs as well as monastic paths could lead to some fascinating concepts when creating these kinds of characters.

Now we come to my last major point. How do you handle a player character who wants to be connected to lycanthropy? Well,there is good news!  With the wonderful world of the open game license that is D&D,  homebrew rules exist! I have found that there are indeed some very creative people in this community who love the idea of playing a lycanthrope or lycan touched character. Below, I will put some links that I have approved for use in most of my games. I hope they help you as they have me. Regardless, I hope you enjoyed this brief exploration into werewolves and their kind in this little read. If you did please feel free to comment your thoughts and stay tuned into The Wanderer’s Corner. New content posts every Saturday, see you next weekend!

Home Brewery World of Warcraft Races (Worgen):

http://homebrewery.naturalcrit.com/share/ryDhrVf2e

Reddits Werewolf Prestige Class by Wardrow:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B3fJRdxUJqHCRk0zWEFKVnFaajg/view

Wizards of The Coast Unearthed Arcana: Eberron (Shifters)

http://media.wizards.com/2015/downloads/dnd/UA_Eberron_v1.1.pdf

Rpg Thoughts: "Urban Fantasy"

Urban fantasy has been a staple of fiction for an extremely long time. From Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter to the Dresden Files, monsters and creatures of fantasy have walked the streets of many modern day metropolises of the world. Many have even made the jump to television, and movies. However, what I’m here to talk about is urban fantasy in the table top roleplaying community. I am currently running a heavily modified version of Dungeons and Dragons, fifth edition, where the story takes place in an alternate history Los Angeles just after the second world war. The heroes in question work for a secret paranormal branch of the government and have been sent to try and find the Black Dahlia killer, who is believed to be a supernatural entity. I am borrowing from plenty of rpg systems, as well as other sources of fiction, to create the world for this game. In my acquisition of some of these materials and ideas to create my own setting, I got to thinking. What is important to think about when creating an urban fantasy adventure? I think I’ve narrowed it down to three major things.

A great example of urban fantasy in an rpg.

The Stars, as a game master, it is important to keep in mind your players. So before anything, make sure that your players are interested in playing in a more modern setting. If they say no, that’s okay it’s not your job to force them into a new thing. Don’t be afraid to approach other friends to play in a game like this.  In fact, I’ve learned that this type of setting can really be a great way to bring in new players, as it is a little more familiar to the everyday world. Once you have your players, sit down with them individually. Talk with them about their characters and what they want to play as. This is a general rule of thumb for rpgs in my opinion, but for urban fantasy settings it is dang near a must do. Try and get the players to come up with how their character has become what they are today. There are plenty of online questionnaires that you can use for helping a player come up with their character. I go for a more personal touch when I do this. I like to sit down with a player one to one, perhaps with a coffee or lunch, and just ask them a series of questions. Often times in going on this stream of consciousness style of questioning you get characters you’d never expect from players. More often than not, it becomes a character that the players actually get really attached to and will remember fondly. Plus, with this style of questioning, it often gives you an idea for more plot points that you can twist and weave into your group's narrative. Just remember, taking notes is a good thing.

Setting is my second major point. Out of setting, the three sub points I focus on are the When, the Where, and the Type. Before you even begin approaching players, having a handle on what kind of story you want to tell is important. For my urban fantasy game, I wanted to tell a post war detective drama set Los Angeles with elements of a hidden world of magic. That was all I knew going in. It was the When, post World War 2, the Where, Los Angeles, and the Type, detective drama. Try and nail down your concept into a sentence, then you can expand outward to a broader idea. This sentence is your hook to get players curious and asking about the game and eager to start playing. Once I knew I had people interested in the concept, I started looking more into the idea. I started thinking. What mysteries might be connected to the world of magic? How is magic involved in this place? Where does our world begin to blend with the other? It really depends on what you established in your sentence. Let's say you are playing a game in the American west with magic and it's a Indiana Jones esque relic hunt! First of all, awesome! Second of all, it’s now deeper question time. Is it post or presently the American Civil War? How do magical creatures and humanoids feel about westward expansion? What’s the Relic? Who or what made it? Who or what wants it? Is magic going to be absolutely everywhere, or is it more subtle?  The list goes on. I’d say answer those questions till you feel comfortable with how the world itself works. As game masters, it is important to ask: if the game goes off the main story, will it still work? If you feel the answer is yes, then congratulations you have an urban fantasy setting for your game, or any setting for a game really.

The final note that I have for anyone looking to run this type of game is to make sure you have a healthy set of character concepts ready. Having non-player characters at the ready to populate the newly created setting can really breathe a great amount of life into your game. Not all of these will be major npcs; but,  as they say, there are no small parts. Minor npcs you may only need a name, race, and occupation. For example, in my detective game the party needed weapons of a magical variety, I had written down Angus McCree, leprechaun, arms dealer. From there, a story began to form as to who he was. Now, with larger, more in depth characters I like to take time and really dive into their story, and drive. Much like I recommended earlier with your perspective players, ask yourself the questions you posed to your players. Answer how you best feel the npc would respond and you are well on your way to having a well- fleshed out character for your players interact with, be it in a positive or negative way.

With these three tools at your disposal, I certainly feel that anyone can act as a game master for a urban fantasy game, heck, for any tabletop rpg really. If you enjoyed this read feel free to keep your eyes peeled for more content coming on Saturdays, here on The Wanderer's Corner.

Welcome to The Wanderer's Corner

Salutations and good morning, afternoon, evening, and night! Welcome to The Wanderer’s Corner, pull up a chair and please make yourself at home. I hope that you’ve found your way here in good spirits and enjoy yourself at the Corner. Allow me to introduce myself, I am Daniel. I am graduate from NAU with a BS in Creative Media and Film. I would say, in absolute certainty and pride, that I am a nerd. I love to write fiction and screenplays; I love tabletop RPGs; I am an active gamer, and my love of genre fiction knows nearly no limits.

The Wanderer’s Corner is here to act as a sort of mouthpiece out to the world for me and to show that I can indeed articulate my thoughts on the page. This will also be my way of keeping skills sharp; but, these aforementioned reasons are only part of the equation for me. I am creating The Wanderer’s Corner to, hopefully, entertain and educate some people. I want people to come to this page for some light reading that will make their day a bit better because honestly, in the world we have today, sometimes we just have to get away.

So, how am I going to take you and myself away, where to? Why through the rabbit hole that is nerd culture, of course. I will be writing everything from reviews, to random thoughts on things than venture into my head. These escapades will be published every Saturday for you all to enjoy. Rest assured, most posts, if not all, will be outlandish, random, strange, whimsical, and dare I say, decent? Now, before our flight into odd editorials begins, I must express some general rules:

1) Play nice! No one likes a jerk, and I have no time for it. No creepers, dodgy-folk, malicious individuals, or mean spirited bridge dwellers (i.e Trolls) are welcome here.

2) If you wish to comment, please do! Comments are welcomed as  long as you are in compliance with rule one and  profanity is kept to a minimum.

(It is a bad habit, I too, am trying to kick.)

3) All are welcome! Nerd to Jock, Boy to Girl, Blue Alien

Octopus to Eldritch Horror you have a place here. -so long as

you are in accordance with the first and second rules.

Huh? how Asimov of me to keep it to three rules. Curious, well in any-case, buckle up, set Course, ready to mount, and jack in! I am Daniel, this is the The Wanderer’s Corner, and we are about to venture into the wilds of escapism in a world gone mad!

"Welcome to The Wanderer’s Corner, pull up a chair and please make yourself at home"