Welcome to the Doghouse(Interest Check) (I don't know when to quit...)

[TheRedFear]

Ok. Unless someone is interested in Co-GMing this monster it probably won't get off the ground. And by Co-GMing, I mean you'll be shouldering lion's share of the narrative burden cuz I stupidly wrangled myself into the GM position of two other games, foolish bastard that I am...

So with that out of the way...Welcome to the Doghouse.

-----Background Information-----

World War Deus. Adolf Hitler squanders vast resources in the pursuit of some occult superweapon that would turn the tides of the war. Many would argue that contributed significantly to German defeat in the war. At least, that's the way it happened in our world. But the cosmos are vast and infinite. And somewhere out there, there is a reality where the resources ol' Adolf poured into paranormal research were not entirely in vain.

Hans Deitriche. A seemingly normal boy who never knew his father. Always a bit heavier than a boy his size should be. A bit stronger. A bit more unruly. But a good boy at heart. He never hated Jews. But he did long for a father he never knew. So when a recruiter for the Hitler Youth Brigades began to spend time with the boy...playing stickball with him, taking him to the cinema, Hans was drawn right in. Then one day young Hans trusted his recruiter with a secret he'd harbored ever since puberty. That when the moon swelled, his bones stretched and his muscles screamed and he became more powerful than a hundred men.

Hans survived horrific experimentation for almost a full month before Nazi scientists vivisected him. His death was not in vain. Before long the power locked in his veins...once granted only to a select moon-blessed few...became power to create a nightmarish army the likes of which the world had never seen before. An army of fur and fangs and howls, made possible by a simple little man-made virus.

May 10th, 1940. The invasion of France begins, and eager to test his new weapons Hitler unleashes his hellhounds. German Bomber planes drop a hellish weapon of terror on the unsuspecting city. One hundred giant steel cages fall from the bomber planes. One hundred ten foot towers of snarling terror tear their way out of those cages and unleash their savagery upon the french people. And every frenchman 'fortunate' enough to escape one of these monstrosities with only a wound to show for the encounter clings to their humanity just long enough to return to cherished family and friends...and spread the tragedy further. The night is forever immortalized in history as "La Nuit des Cris"...the Night of Screams.

Within the space of a few days France ceases to be a city of men and becomes a city of mad, ravenous wolves. 

The truth is impossible to hide. Too big to bury, or obfuscate. In one spectacular display of horror the existence of the Wolfen is revealed to all mankind. The natural Wolfen...the trueborn and properly turned alike...quickly emerge and offer their aid to battle the tide of madness that their new viral cousins represent. And though it is not without great cost, eventually the True Wolfen stand victorious along with Allied forces over their Viral brethren and the Nazi war machine.

But La Nuit des Cris and all that came after is not so quickly forgotten by humanity. Sadly the heroism and sacrifices of many natural Wolfen is very quickly forgotten. Humanity quickly turns upon all Wolfen, and though their power is great the never-ending tide of humanity and warforged technology...with help from a few "special allies"... inevitably wins the day. By 1950 the Wolf and Beast Courts of Europe and Japan...already weakened by the war against the Virals...have been all but eradicated. By 1979 their American counterparts teeter on the edge of an identical fate.

In the early months of 1980 Aidan O'Donnel...the last surviving Wolf King of America...shows up outside the White House of the United States with a hundred other werewolves at his back. As news cameras roll, Aidan stuns the world by offering the President an unconditional surrender. Aidan's decision...a decision that branded him a traitor and coward in the eyes of many of his people... accomplishes what he hoped. The mass organized slaughter of his people comes to an end.

A slower kind of death takes it place. Slowly but surely the surviving Wolf People are gathered and forced into "Kennels" around the country. Part wildlife reservation, part prisoner concentration camp. Though the government no longer funds the mass-eradication of the Wolfen, simply being outside a Kennel is a death penalty-crime for a Werewolf.

The year is now 2012. The United States congress debates a new law that will force mandatory bloodscreenings on citizens throughout the country in an effort to weed out all remaining Wolfen living outside the kennels. And as this momentous decision looms, somewhere in the panhandle of Texas lies a roadhouse outside the major city of Silverton. Last year the roadhouse was reopened and completely renovated under a new title...The Doghouse. Where countless men with angry wives seek refuge from the northern texas nights.

-----Playable Characters-----

You MAY create your own character. But here are some premades. If you decide to take a premade you may make changes to them. Zee doesn't HAVE to be a lesbian if you don't want her to be. And if you'd rather use Britney Spears instead of Alicia Keys for Aisha's facegrab that's fine too.

WOLFEN

Name - Rake
Breed - Natural
Role/Position - Alpha Male
Status - Taken: Me bitches! Suck it!

Born in a Kennel, Rake would have spent the rest of what would have been a short life as one amongst many werewolves packed into too small a space to contain so many territorial creatures. But his girlfriend had an infectiously free spirit, and convinced him and a few friends to make a break for it. Rake the was only one to make it over the walls alive.

With a classic case of "Survivor's Guilt" Rake channeled his sense of failure and began to seek out others of his kind. Viral and Natural alike. He has formed something of an underground railroad to help others of his kind escape persecution, while trying to protect his new pack. Rake is a bit of a womanizer but because Werewolves tend to mate for life with each other he generally only beds non-Werewolves. At least that's what he tells most non-Werewolves. Fellow werewolves just smirk.  The truth is he truly thought in his heart his first mate would be his only mate for the rest of his life, and sleeping with another werewolf...even though she's been dead for a decade...feels wrong.

Name - Mei "Zee" Zheng
Breed - Natural
Role/Position - Alpha Female
Status - Available.

Zheng Mei's mother Zheng Bao came from a wealthy family in China. She had a promising future as a world class concert-level pianist ahead of her. But she was charmed by a wealthy American business man who swept her off her feet in a whirlwind romance and brought her back to the States. Before long the fairytale romance did what mosy fairy tales do...it took a dark and tragic turn. He became domineering, posessive, and physically abusive.

Bao strayed from the arms of her husband one night, twenty years ago. A dark, handsome...and impossibly sexy stranger passed breifly through her life, and left her with a child she passed off as her husband's. Bao sheltered Mei from the worst of her husband's abuses all her life. But as puberty came on, young Mei's pheremones called to her 'father'. His drunken attempt to rape her resulted in his spectacularly gory death. Bao witnessed the entire thing and what remained of her sanity after years of abuse and fear utterly collapsed. Mei learned to survive on her own and taught herself to master her wolf side. An increasingly negative series of experiences left Zee with a powerful hatred for human beings. All except her own mother whom she secretly visits in the Asylum every month.

Zee is agressive, dominant, and rarely fails to make sure everybody knows she is the biggest, baddest, sexiest bitch on the planet. She thinks she should be leading the pack, and she just might be powerful enough to take that position from Rake by force. The only reason she hasn't tried yet is because she knows a fight for dominance between them could go either way...and because she knows that even if she did win it would likely fracture the pack. Many prefer Rake's more loose and relaxed style of leadership. Still she dislikes many of Rake's decisions and often challenges them...especially when he allows humans into their inner circle.

She is a lesbian, but there was one night...when the Blue Moon drove werewolves around the world into a mating frenzy...where she  and Rake failed to get to their containment cells on time(they had to track down, catch, and resecure a couple of other packmembers who'd slipped away) and had sex with each other. This has only increased her resentment and hostility toward Rake, though she was already defiant enough toward him that few can tell the difference.

Though many looking in from the outside might think Zee would be first in line to put a knife in Rake's back nothing could be further from the truth. Whatever her flaws, Zee is loyal to her pack, and regardless of her personal opinion of him, Rake is part of her pack. It is right and proper to challenge a weak or foolish Alpha and unfortunately that can sometimes end in death...but that is the natural order of things. But she would never betray anybody in her pack, even Rake. And whoah unto the poor dumb sunuvabitch who suggests otherwise. If she ever decides to put a knife in Rake, it won't be in his back. She'll look him right in the eyes if she does it. He deserves that much respect at least.

Name - Jason Kingston
Breed - Viral
Role/Position - Medic
Status - Open

Jason was a promising med-school student with a bright promising future waiting for him. Unfortunately there was a werewolf waiting for him too. It was entirely random. He was just minding his business on his way home when it struck. Something distracted the beast before it could finish Jason off...but not before it infected him with the viral strain of lycanthropy. Jason went into denial. He convinced himself it was just a scratch and he'd be fine...right up until his first full moon change when he infected his sister Aisha.

Jason hates what he's become. He hates everything about it and dedicates most of his free time and energy to searching for a medical cure for himself and his sister. Of course the fact that countless world governments have tried and failed does nothing to dissuade him.

Jason does have a genuine desire to help people. Seeing his mother fight cancer all her life gave him a great deal of sympathy for people with terminal diseases...he just never wanted to be one of them. Before the search for a cure consumed his free time he was an avid outdoorsman, enjoying camping, hiking, swimming, and rock climbing. It isn't in his nature to want to hurt people, but a natural side effect of knowing the best ways to mend a body, is knowing the best ways to damage a body...

Name - Aisha Kingston
Breed - Viral
Role/Position - Lawyer
Status - Open

Aisha never told her brother, but she was about one week away from commiting suicide when Jason infected her. She had just been diagnosed with breast cancer, and after watching the long, slow, painful battle her mother fought against the disease...a battle she lost...Aisha was determined to end things on her own terms. And then her little brother grew fangs and took a chunk of meat out of her arm.

Best night of her life.

Aisha LOVES being a Werewolf, even though as a viral she has to struggle harder than naturals to control her power. So what? Control is over-rated. Aisha loves it all. Her increased sexuality. Her strength and speed. Her senses. And of course her new lease on life. Turns out Lycanthropy totally pwns Cancer. As an added bonus, her new predatory instincts have made her one of the fiercest and most unstoppable lawyers out there. Although she is currently taking a breif break from practicing law to focus on living her new life to the fullest, and struggling to gain greater control over her power she has put her new predatory instincts to devastating effect in the court room.

Jason sees her passionate and untamed new personality as further proof of the need to cure her. Aisha loves her brother of course, and often tries to get him to loosen up and recognize that as far as she's concerned he didn't curse her. He blessed her. She's stopped short of actually revealing how close to suicidal she was though, as she hates remembering how weak and helpless she felt at that point in her life.

Aisha is one of the few pack members who gets along well with Zee, but if push came to shove she'd would most likely back Rake because she fears Zee might cast away(or worse) the humans who are closely ascocciated with the pack like Beth, Sara and Phil.

Name - Seth...just Seth.
Breed - Natural(Werecoyote)
Role/Position - Stealth
Status - Open

Seth is...unbalanced. Unstable. Okay let's face it. Seth is batshit insane. He's a runt by Werewolf standards. That's because he's not actually a werewolf, although nobody...Seth included...knows that. Despite his small size and lack of physical strength(by werewolf standards. By human standards he could still kill benchpress a motorcycle) Seth is arguably the deadliest member of the pack in a fight because of his uncanny knack for killing his opponants before they even know he's there. This is because as a Coyote he has inherent illusionary powers which he uses subconciously to hide himself on the battlefield, appearing only a moment before he strikes. Seth has a perverse love of pranks. The more he likes you, the less likely his pranks will kill you. But there's never any garuntees with Seth.

Seth used to be a fairly normal guy, going through a tough time in life due in part to his emerging Coyote nature. A terrorist attack on his synagogue killed his entire family and broke an already emotionally fragile mind. He has a bizarre form of multiple personality disorder, in that all his personalities are all aware, awake, and vocal all the time. Seth himself remains the dominant personality but the voices, feelings, and thoughts of the others in his mind constantly influence his behavior, making him seem highly erratic and chaotic to most people.

Seth vanishes for much of the day most days, returning at night and refusing to give a straight answer about where he was. Efforts to follow him have thus far failed. If Seth doesn't want to be tracked, you're probably not going to be tracking him. Seth actually maintains a dayjob as Mr. Seth, a junior highschool english teacher. Whether this is an alternate personality, or part of the most bizarre and elaborate and lengthy prank in history, only Seth can say. "Mr. Seth" is a remarkably popular, stable, well-liked teacher who students often feel they can go to with their problems.

Yeah. Be afraid.

Name - Monroe Simms
Breed - Viral
Role/Position - Muscle
Status - Open

Most people beleive that a Viral will never be able to control themselves the way Naturals can. Those people havn't met Monroe. Although he becomes every bit as beserk and volatile as any Viral when he transforms, he is able to maintain remarkable focus, clarity, and calm in his human form, soccumbing to none of the passions that tend to rule other Virals in their human form.

Monroe is the reason Rake beleives that with time Virals can learn to master themselves just as naturals do. Monroe is a tall and incredibly muscular man. His sheer size alone intimidates most people before they ever try to start a fight with him. Which is a good thing, because to be perfectly honest he's not much of a fighter. He was a pacifist and buddhist before he became infected, and does his best to honor that spirit of pacifism that guided much of his human life.

That said, if he is forced to violence and he does manage to hit you it's going to be the worst day of your life. His strength is absolutely monstrous even by Werewolf standards. Monroe has the most calming influence on Seth. Seth might even be more inclined to obey Monroe's orders than he would be to obey Rake or Zee.

Monroe was infected accidently. Many people get vaccinated aginst the viral strain of Lycanthropy. It's not a hundred percent but it does improve one's odds of coming through a viral attack with humanity intact. There is sometimes a chance...so slim few even know it's possible...to get a bad vaccination. Monroe is living proof.

Name -  Jesse "JB" Belle.
Breed - Natural
Role/Position - Pup
Status - Open


Jesse Belle. AKA Jailbait. AKA Jezebel. Most just call her JB. She's like Daisy Duke in the supple young flesh. The seventeen year old has only recently discovered that she was born a Werewolf, on her mother's side. Her mom ran out on them shortly after she was born, leaving her to be raised by an clueless but good father.

Though her beauty gave her an undeserved reputation as a slut in highschool she is still a virgin, and a very sweet girl. She's rather tomboyish in fact, and can take apart and rebuild a car engine fast enough to make your head spin. Her wolf first fully emerged when she was making out with Tom Brady in the backseat of his chevy. She might have gone all the way as her animal instincts were just beginning to come to life.

But Jesse had been unwittingly leaving signs of her newly emerging nature for over a week prior to this. Breif transformations where she would run wild killing animals, and return to her room to awaken naked with no memory of what happened. Werewolf Hunters arrived, dragging her out of Brady's beat-up old Chevy and preparing to kill her on the spot.

Then Zee showed up. The Hunters didn't stand a chance. JB is the newest member of the pack. She has something of a girlish crush on Rake who sees her as a little sister to be teased and protected. She also idolizes Zee who sees her as an annoying runt...with potential.

Two wolf-huskie mix dogs live on the grounds too. They recently had a littler of puppies. The pack kept one. Jesse named it Baron Von Snugglebottoms. Any attempt to shorten his name...any effort to refer to that puppy by anything less than his full and proper title will likely earn you Jesse's undying hatred.

HUMANS

Name: Bethany Clarkson
Role: Den Mother/Book Keeper
Status: Taken - Bubby

Bethany met Rake and the others as they were helping ferry her son Gabriel north toward Canada along the underground railroad. But Gabe decided he wanted to join the pack instead...and Beth stayed with her son. Shortly before Jesse joined the pack, Gabe was isolated and killed by Werewolf Poachers. Heartbroken, Beth had nowhere to go so Rake let her stay with the pack...the first human "member" so to speak.

Beth has become something of a mother figure to all of the pack, and is the only one besides Rake with enough backbone to stare Zee down. Beth keeps the Doghouse in business. She balances the books, make the orders, and keeps the place afloat as an actual business. 


Name: Phillip "Old Phil" Belle
Role: Protective Father/Bartender
Status: Open

Phil was an army ranger during Desert Storm. He came home and met a feircely beautiful, passionate woman who was quite frankly far out of his league. The relationship lasted just long enough for the woman to drop a newborn babygirl off on his doorstep and take off for parts unknown. Phil called her Jesse, and spent the rest of his life doing his best to raise her right.

One day Jesse went on a date with that damned Brady boy. It was all Phil could do not to wring his little neck, the way he stared at her chest. But Phil knew that Jesse dating was part of her growing up. Part of letting go as much as the thought terrified him.

Then he got word. Jesse had run off with some chinese leather-clad broad and her biker gang. Imagining she had somehow been kidnapped, Phil loaded his shotgun and tracked them halfway across the country ready to rescue his babygirl and kill the sick degenerates who had raped and killed her.

Imagine his surprise to learn he had unwittingly raised a werewolf. Imagine Rake's surprise when Phil made it clear he wasn't going anywhere without his little girl, werewolf or not. Like Beth, Phil stayed on board to raise his girl. He taught Jesse all she knows about being a mechanic, but Phil tends to stick to serving as a bartender in the Doghouse. He also keeps a Mercury-loaded shotgun under the bar, just in case any members of the pack...except Jesse of course(he'd let Jesse tear him to shreds before he even contemplated shooting her...though he'd at least try to run away first. Not like he has a deathwish)...slip loose on those full moon nights. With Rake's consent. In spite of Zee's objection.

Name - Sara Marshal
Role - Waitress/Occultist
Status - Open

Sara is Jason's girlfriend. They've been dating since college, where she majored in linguistics and planned to begin a career as a UN Translator. They met because of the long late nights they both spent in the college library. She loved him enough to go on the run with him and help him search for a cure. As Jason searches for a scientific cure, Sara searches for occult books and scrolls to find some answer there. Although many of her findings turn out to be fakes or the ravings of madmen her persistence has yeilded a small but impressive library of legitimate occult texts. Her linguistic skills allow her to decipher ancient languages and unwravel the secrets they contain.

Although her efforts have been fruitless in terms of a cure she has amassed a surprising degree of occult lore and knowledge, and has even learned to work ritual magicks. She lacks the power of a true Witch or Mage, but given time and resources to prepare she can create potent magical effects, items, and potions. To maintain the appearance of the Doghouse as real Bar and Grill, she works there as a waitress and gets along well with Aisha, Beth, and JB. Zee...not so much. She generally just tries to stay out of Zee's way.

Name - Lilith Astor
Role - The Chosen O*cough*...nevermind.
Status - Open

Lilly Astor is the youngest in a large family of werewolves. There's just one problem. She's human.

It's strange. Even with one human parent the child of a Werewolf will always be a Werewolf. Their abilities just mature slower. But with two werewolf parents, being born human is almost unheard of. Almost. It does happen from time to time, although by 2012 it's become so rare as to be nearly unheard of. Due largely in part to the near-eradication of the species. It was rare before. It's almost unheard of now.

Her family is wealthy and powerful, with many connections in both public and private life. But Lilly is something of a black sheep. She is brilliant beyond comprehension, having graduated with an ivy league college degree by the age of 14. She is already a geneticist who is well known in her field at the age of 21 and though few know it her research...and her recommendation...is what Pro-Bloodscreening politicians plan to present before Congress in the coming weeks. Although she knows it will risk even her own beloved family she beleives that if another mass outbreak ever took place it would lead to the complete...as opposed to near-complete...extermination of all Wolfen.

She beleives bloodscreenings can help prevent this. Better to have everyone in the kennels than extinct. At least in the kennels there is life. Where there is life there is hope. The struggle for freedom can continue as long as there are wolfen alive to work toward the goal. At least that's what she believes.

What she doesn't realize is that there are more things that go bump in the night than Werewolves, and they may be exposed too if her plan goes forward. Somebody has placed a contract on her life and as outraged as they are at her actions, there are some in her family who care enough to take steps on her behalf. And though she doesn't know it yet, she harbors a secret inside her that can change the shape of things to come for generations.

Personality-wise, Lilly is very straightlaced. She was raised as something of a society girl, and went to all the best schools money could buy. She is well-mannered, dignified, and proper. Because of her highly advanced intellect she has trouble making friends and connecting with people. She tends to be shy and akward in romantic situations, and in social situations generally.

She has made one good friend, who ironically is her polar opposite in almost every conceivable way.

Name - Hailey Fox
Role - Lilly's BFF
Status - Open

Hailey is Lilly's best friend on planet earth. Hailey is also something of a human train-wreck. If a song could define somebody, Hailey would be defined by 'Tequila Makes Her Clothes Fall Off'. She is street savvy, a wild child, and a party girl. She and Lilly compliment each other well. Hailey helps Lilly loosen up and learn to play well with others, while Lilly bails Hailey out of jail every week. A perfectly symbiotic relationship.

Hailey does have a good heart even if she is a troublemaker. And she genuinely does love Lilly, considering her the dearest friend she will ever have. She would die to protect Lilly if it ever came to that, without hesitation. Even if...more often than not...it's Lilly who ends up protecting Hailey. From herself.

Hailey comes from a family of money much like Lilly. But in your classic tale of the attention-starved rich girl she started acting out, rebelling, running away, and eventually got herself firmly cut off from the family money. She bounces from job to job. Tatoo artist one week, bar tender the next. And though she hasn't resorted to stripping, she's not above go-go dancing, or the occasional wet t-shirt contest.

NPC Characters

NOTE: I MIGHT make these NPCs available as PCs at some point. I'm not certain yet.

Name: Victor Navarro(I like this name. I use it alot for a variety of different characters and settings. Get used to seeing it if you RP with me regularly. Heh.)
Species: Wolfen(Natural)

Victor Navarro is a very old and powerful Werewolf Alpha. He was the top enforcer for Aidan O'Connor, the last of the Wolf Kings. There were many who thought he was powerful, cunning, and intelligent enough to take Aidan's crown if he wanted it. But despite their differences Aidan and Victor were truly close friends and packmates, and Victor always supported Aiden...until Aidan's final decision. Victor was outraged when Aidan surrendered to the humans. Oh Victor wasn't stupid. He knew the way the war was going they were going to lose...but he had a plan to turn the tide. A plan so audacious that even in such desperate circumstances many Wolfen within his own court and even his own pack were taken aback after he outlined it. Victor could not gather enough support for his plan...at least not before Aidan enacted his own plan...so he cursed Aidan a fool, took a handful of loyalists and went underground.

Victor and his pack, along with a growing number of other Wolfen have re-emerged. Their true nature as Wolfen is hidden of course, but there's nothing secretive about Victor himself. He is now CEO of Victorious Initiatives. A private military company that provides mercenary support personel to the US Military, funds extensive weapons research and developement, and is rumored to engage in the occasional black op for rogue foreign governments...not to mention their own. Victorious Initiatives also provides bodygaurds and security consultance for the rich and famous all around the world.

It's not clear why yet, but Victor wants Lilith Astor. He hasn't had her brought to him by force because of Madison. Not yet. But he needs her for something...

Name: Madison Astor
Species: Wolfen(Natural)

Lilith Astor's older(by about three decades, though she doesn't look a day over twenty) sister, Madison was one of the few in the Astor family who got along well with Lilith. The two sisters bonded quite well, although they have not communicated in some time. Madison is Victor's mate, and went underground with him when he turned his back on Aidan she still visited her family for a time, but as progress on Victor's plan continued Madison's visits became more infrequent.

Madison and Victor have a strange relationship, by werewolf standards. They are deeply in love with one another. And for the most part they are exclusive with each other, bowing to the strong monagamous instincts ingrained within them. But they are both ambitious and power-hungry, and they recognize that sex(especially with a werewolf) can sometimes be a strong tool to manipulate and control others. So each have a few lovers on the side, but only for the sake of controlling or manipulating valuable assets. Each knows about the other's lovers and tolerates them. But at the end of the day nobody can even begin to measure up against Victor in Madison's eyes, heart, or bed. Victor feels the same about Madison. Their bond and love for each other is quite real, whatever else can be said about them.

Madison is the one who told Victor about Lilly, and she's willing to help him gain Lilly's trust. For the sake of his mate, Victor has agreed to take his plans slow insofar as they apply to Lilith.

Name: Elsabeth Bathory
Species: Vampire


Vampires are peculiar creatures. Most of them are cold, heartless, almost emotionless creatures. Part of the reason they feed on human blood is to enjoy breif periods of time where they once again feel passion, and life. But there are some vampires who take this lust for the pleasures and passions of life to truly meteoric heights. And Elsa is the queen of that particular game. For most vampires the flush of life and vitality gained from feeding is fleeting, but Elsa has ways that ensure she can go weeks, even months between feedings without losing the flush. Not that she ever actually does go more than a day or so between feedings. But she can.

Some think she bathes in tubs of virgin blood. Others think she has a pet Witch on retainer. Whatever her trick, it works. Whatever her trick, it also makes her more powerful than vampires two or three times her age. She is one of the deadliest creatures in the world...and she has placed a contract on Lilly Astor's life. She has no wish to see the same fate befall vampires as what happened to the Wolfen. The plan Lilly has presented to politicians threatens to expose Vampires. She placed a massive sum of money on Lilly's head, and has access to enough resources and power to pay off anybody who fulfills the contract regardless of what it is they crave. Very few actually know that Elsa has placed the contract and she wants it to stay that way.

Powerful as she is, the Astor family is made up of many werewolves at least one of which is a match for her all by herself. Even Elsa might succumb to such an onslaught of retribution as they would unleash on her and her court if they knew. Elsa might be persuaded to cancel the contract under the right circumstances. But it probably wouldn't help Lilly much. Plenty of creatures besides Vampires are threatened by Lilly's Blood-Screening plan.

Name: The Triad
Species: Magi...maybe. Fae? Possible.

The Triad are three identical sisters...or three clones...or something. Nobody's entirely sure. They are identical to each other. They finish each other's sentences. The pain or pleasure of one is felt by the other two and all three seem to think of themselves as a single communal entity. If any one goes more than a hundred feet from the rest all three seem to sicken.

Most people think they were Magi triplets who attempted to increase their power. But power comes at a price and the loss of their individual identities seems to be that price. Others think they're a strange breed of Fae or Gorgon. They speak in strange cryptic patterns but they seem to know alot about...well, alot. They see the possibilities before they become actualities and for a price they'll share their knowledge.

The Triad have taken a distinct interest in the Doghouse and those operating it. This suggests the the Doghouse or somebody there is going to be the focal point of major events looming in the future....or that they're banging Rake. Hard to say for sure. Either way their semi-regular prescence has recently begun to attract others in the supernatural community to the Doghouse. Most just to seek the Triad's ever-elusive council, but some because they want to see what the fuss is about.

-----Possible Roles------

This setting holds many supernatural beings, from Vampires, to Magi. Demons and Fae. As the Doghouse slowly developes a reputation, more and more paranormal clientele are being drawn there so if you'd like to play something other than a Werewolf PM me and i'll think it over. Feel free to make up a type of creature.

The Doghouse could also use more employees. It was originally a gas station and mechanic shop. Those structures are still in place behind the bar. JB is the quasi-official mechanic on duty. More waiters and waitresses are needed. Rake keeps banging the human ones they hire on and then dumping them, causing them to quit. Sara and Beth are quite annoyed about it.

----Werewolf Powers/Traits/Culture---

Werewolves in this setting tend toward monogamous instincts...especially with each other. That said, sleeping around is easier to do with non-Wolfen partners.

Because so much werewolf lore and culture has been lost most werewolves don't realize it, but they are spiritual creatures by nature. Werewolves can see and speak with Ghosts. With training they can learn to astrally project, and even learn to contact different more exotic kinds of spirits like elementals, or spirits from other even stranger realms. Natural Werewolves can develope these abilities much more easily than Virals, but even amongst Naturals many of these secrets have been lost.  Werewolves naturally draw spiritual energy from the environment around them, fueling many of their powers. The more powers they use the quicker their energy reserves drain. The quickest way to replenish this energy is to hunt, kill, and feed. Human life does replenish energy more efficiently than most animals. Human or animal, the heart is the single richest concentration of spiritual energy in any living being. Dead animals or people with missing hearts is often a tell-tale sign of Werewolf activity indicating somebody needed a quick and large recharge.

If it's possible for Werewolves to die of old age, nobody has seen it happen yet.

Werewolf pheremones are extremely potent to the opposite sex. This effect bypasses human conventions of sexual preference altogether and directly targets a person's most primal reproductive instincts. If you are fertile, you find yourself strongly sexually attracted to an opposite sex werewolf even if you would not normally consider them attractive. Note that while the feeling is strong, it's not mind control. It doesn't force somebody to have sex with the werewolf, but it does make the act of seduction much easier. Strangely, people who are genuinely in love with somebody else are completely immune. They might still consider the Werewolf to be attractive, if indeed the werewolf is an attractive person. But the pheremones seem to somehow be blocked.

Even in human form a mature werewolf is fast enough that their movements look like a blur to most humans, and strong enough to benchpress a large car. As a physiological result their muscle and bone density is much greater than humans. A petite werewolf female like JB might appear to weigh in around a hundred pounds, but if you actually put her on a scale she'd be roughly three times that weight.

Werewolf bones are popular on the supernatural black market as they can be alchemically treated and reshaped into remarkably strong weapons and armor in additional to other uses. Other parts of werewolves are popular on the market too, leading some beings...both human and non-human...to seek their fortunes as werewolf poachers.

During the full moon, Werewolves assume a far more deadly form. The Destroyer Form. The Destroyer Form ranges from seven to ten feet tall when standing upright. In many ways it resembles a massive ape with long arms, and powerful upper bodies but with the hind-legs, head, and tail of a wolf. In this form the Werewolf is much stronger and faster, now able to move so fast it seems to blink from place to place, and strong enough to rip a military tank apart peice by peice. Just taking this form burns massive amounts of spiritual energy...a process that often robs the werewolf of the capacity for higher thought and reasoning, reducing them to ravenously hungry wild animals who will attack anything and everything around them except for Werewolves they recognize as packmates. On rare occasions some Werewolves have been able to refrain from attacking non-werewolf loved ones in the Destroyer Form but such restraint rarely lasts long before the ravenous hunger takes over.

Strong Alphas can exert some degree of control over their packmates even if their packmate takes the Destroyer Form, but the extent of control can vary according to circumstances. It's easier to stop a beserk packmate from killing someone he loves than it is to stop him from killing someone he hates.

Werewolves burn much hotter than normal humans. They can walk naked through a blizzard and feel fine. They also stand out like bright neon lights to thermal scanners.

There's only two ways to be a "natural" werewolf. The first is to be born a werewolf. If one of your parents was a werewolf, you'll display subtle signs throughout your life. Unusual strength, stamina, agility, and speed. Elevated body temperature. These signs gradually increase through childhood until puberty when the process suddenly begins to rapidly accelerate. During these times the fledgling werewolf is prone to randomly shift halfway to their hybrid forms at night and hunt small animals. This period of time is often what alerts potential Werewolf Hunters or Poachers to a possible werewolf in the area. The "pup" is nowhere near as deadly as they will be when their wolf fully emerges so they are the preferred targets for Hunter or Poacher teams who want relatively easy but lucrative kills. If both parents are werewolves, the child will be capable of shifting even to the destroyer form from birth. These werewolves tend to develope greater control of their abilities at younger ages.

The second way to be a natural werewolf is that certain kinds of people can become one if bitten by a natural. Everyone has a totemic animal spirit guide even though very few people realize it, and even fewer actually know what their animal spirit guide is. If somebody with a Wolf as their spirit guide is bitten by a natural werewolf and survives, they become a werewolf. Though they must learn to adjust they are everybit as capable of control as those who were born this way. They just lack the experience, not the capacity. Other people bitten by werewolves should just count their lucky blessings to have survived the experience.

The viral strain of lycantrhopy doesn't care what your spirit guide is. It forces a wolf into your spiritual being. Much of the difficulty Virals have with control comes from the constant inner conflict of the invading wolf spirit, and their original spirit guide. Virals do have a minor advantage over Naturals in one area. With rare exception, Naturals can only assume the ferocious power of the Destroyer Form during full moons, or with careful ritual preperation. Virals can assume the Destroyer form at will with a little practice, though they lose their higher reasoning capacity the same as naturals when they do. They also tend to shift if extremely angry. This is both their power and their burden.

Werewolves heal at an extremely rapid rate, with most wounds often healing before an onlooker's eyes. Their bone strength makes their bones resistant to most small arms fire. That said, large and massive amounts of physical trauma delivered rapidly can breifly overwhelm even their regenerative abilities. Werewolf Hunters work in multiple highly coordinated teams weilding heavy machine guns and bullets specially designed to peirce even the hyper dense wolfen bones and cause massive flesh and muscle trauma. Once wounded enough the werewolf will be slowed down enough to be finished off with flamethrowers. Purely human hunter teams almost always endure casualties before they're able to inflict enough damage unless they plan their hunt exceedingly well.

Silver has no effect whatsoever on Werewolves(though it works wonders on Vampires and other supernatural beings). Mercury on the other hand is highly toxic to Werewolves. Centuries ago Mercury or Quicksilver was mistakenly thought to simply be silver in a liquid form. The word "Silver" was often used interchangably to refer to both the actual metal Silver, and to Mercury. Werewolves of the time encouraged this confusion, to keep people from guessing that Mercury was the true weakness of Werewolves. Even small traces of Mercury will weaken and slow a werewolf significantly if introduced to their blood stream. Larger doses can induce hours of excruciatingly painful paralysis, but not death. Fortunately the government never learned of the Mercury weakness or the war would have ended much faster. Even many werewolves are unaware of this weakness today. Fortunately those who do know of the weakness have...for whatever their reasons...declined to go public with the knowledge. The "Silver" myth does continue to this day. Most Hunters know better, but every so often some n00b tries it and earns themselves a nasty shock.

The claws and fangs of Werewolves can kill almost anything, including creatures that are otherwise extremely difficult to kill if not outright immortal. If anybody knows why this is true, they havn't been a Chatty Cathy about it. Because of this the Wolfen ruled atop the supernatural foodchain for most of recorded history. Vampires, Magi, Demons, Fae, other Werecreatures....all had to bend knee before the Wolves and adhere to the laws layed down by the wolves or risk tempting their fury. This is why many were quite happy to watch humans knock the werewolves off the top of the foodchain. To this day many supernatural beings still have resentment and twitchyness toward Werewolves. If you're used to thinking of yourself as invincible, you're probably not terribly thrilled to be in the same room as one of the few things on the planet that is indeed capable of killing you. Needless to say without the order imposed by the wolves, the supernatural communities have been getting a little rambunctious for the last few decades and many think it's only a matter of time until one group attempts to impose themselves on the rest like the Wolves did.  Generally speaking Demons are particularly hostile toward Werewolves.

Life inside a Kennel varies from Kennel to Kennel. Most kennels have a nearby city named after them. Cities where those who built the kennel lived during the construction effort and settled afterwards. Werewolf Hunters and poachers tend to both originate within and gravitate toward such cities. Much like the modern American prison system, many are losing faith in the Kennel system. Year after year the funding seems to decrease, the quality and number of guards goes down. Inside the kennels life tends to be brutal and short. Werewolves are territorial. They tend to divide into packs that average between 6-15 members. Larger packs will be largely familial with most members joined by blood or marriage. Conflict is rare within familial packs. The popular myth of wolves competing for dominance and position usually only happens in packs made up of unrelated wolves coming together. Because kennels force so many werewolves into limited space, conflict becomes very common. Especially between Virals and Naturals. Most Naturals blame the Virals for everything that went wrong and don't think it's worth the hassle to have a Viral in their pack.

The children of Virals are actually Naturals...but they're also carriers for the virus and can create other Virals if they bite people without a Wolf spirit.

It's not unheard of for Werewolves to bump uglies with other werecreatures and inhuman races and create children. Such children are almost always natural werewolves, the same as if the non-wolf parent had been a human. They might display minor quirks of their parentage...like the child of a Wolf and Coyote displaying the Coyote's love of humor and pranks(both malicious and benign) but that's about the extent of it. Yes there's a reason why the Wolf side is more dominant than the other animal side. No, you don't know it. There are occasional stories of strange hybrids, but that's all they are. Stories. As far as anybody can prove...

The blood relatives of a Werewolf are immune to THAT werewolf's pheremones. (Don't worry Phil, you don't experience chemically-induced boners when your babygirl walks into the room. Zee and Aisha on the other hand...Heh.)

Prior to the purges, Wolves often gathered in what they called Courts. A Wolf Court was made up of hundreds (or sometimes even a few thousand) of packs of Werewolves. Generally the packs would hold competitions to determine an "Alpha Pack"(Not every court used that particular name for their "Alpha Pack", but an Alpha Pack by any other name could still rip you to shreds). The Dominant Alpha males and females in the "Alpha Pack" became the de-facto King and Queen of their court. The King and Queen were usually mated, though there have been exceptions throughout Wolfen History. Additional titles, positions, and offices in any given court would vary by the will of the ruling King and Queen(as would the balance of power between a King and Queen) but certain positions were common. Most courts had some sort of specialist in the occult(and in more than a few cases this position might even be held by a Mage with strong ties to the Wolves). Some sort of Lorekeeper was also considered a critical and highly valued position.

The competitions to determine Alpha Pack status in a court used to invariably involve combat or some other physical contest, although in the decades leading up to World War 2 and the unveiling that followed, several prominent courts had begun embracing more intellectual contests as a preferable means of determining the Alpha Pack. The King and Queen would rule over a large and vast swath of territory encompassing dozens of cities. Sometimes even hundreds. For example Aidan O' Connor counted all of California, Nevada, and Utah, and Arizona as his territory. If you asked Aidan he would have thrown Colorado in. The King of the neighboring Court would have contested the point.

The King and Queen of the larger Courts would often delegate regions of their territory to be overseen by other packs in their court. How much power and territory was delegated in such a manner varied from court to court. Generally anywhere from five to a Hundred packs would carve up any given city(depending on the size of the city) and claim that territory for themselves. The degree to which these packs cooperated...or competed...with each other also varied from court to court and city to city. The Dominant pack was expected to keep the peace in the city and send status reports up the food chain toward the King and Queen of their court. Relatively small towns or cities with low status/value might have only a single Pack overseeing that territory...or no pack at all.

Because of their power, numbers, organization and inexplicable ability to kill that which was otherwise unkillable Wolf Courts were almost invariably the dominant power in supernatural politics within their territories. Vampires, Magi, other werecreatures and more had to answer to the Wolf Courts. The degree to which Wolf Courts lorded their status over the others in the supernatural community varied. Some Courts established amicable working relationships with their "vassal" members...others cruelly exploited them. Some all but ignored them as long as they didn't make waves. Generally speaking the Wolves would impose population limits(restricting how many humans Vampires could recruit), enforce rules to minimize risk of exposure, and suppress/mediate rivalries to ensure little or no collateral damage when conflict broke out between factions.

In certain regions of Asia and Africa non-Wolf Shifters banded together to form their own Beast Courts to counter the power of the Wolf Courts. Considering most of these shifters to be cousins as opposed to the entirely alien Fae, Vampires, and Demons the Wolf Courts proved surprisingly tolerant and instead allied with the Beast Courts rather than eliminating them for what many considered a provocative action. That's not to say there wasn't some political tension(and even a few violent skirmishes) but cooler heads amongst both types of Courts prevailed. When the Wolf Courts collapsed under the human onslaught, many Beast Courts disbanded. The reasons varied. Most of the courts comprised shifters who were more solitary by nature and had only joined to band together against the perceived(rightly or wrongly) "bossiness" of the  Wolves. Others feared that being overly organized would risk exposure to the humans and bring them the same fate as the wolves. Whatever the reasons only a handful of Beast Courts remain and they're far smaller than they used to be. Some include Wolves.

While werewolves were individually as much a threat to humans as any other supernatural being...and this is much more true now that the Courts have collapsed...most Courts actually had a law(Or at least a code of conduct) pertaining directly to the protection of humans from the others in the supernatural community. Mind you some Wolves had differing ideas of "protection. Many(but not all) leaned more toward the beleif that protecting humans "in general" mattered more than protecting specific individuals. But overall, the Wolves made sure that other supernatural beings at least practiced some degree of restraint in the way they preyed upon humanity. This is why so many Wolf Courts quickly stepped forward to combat Hitler's Virals. So yes, this means humans actually wiped out their own first line of defense against the supernatural when they attacked the Werewolves.

If somebody with a wolf totem is bitten by a Viral they are considered a natural for most practical intents and purposes with one caveat...they are also carriers of the virus, just like the children of Virals.

Let's face it: If it exists there is a sexually obsessed fetish subculture in human society dedicated to it. The same is true of werewolves.  People who specifically seek Werewolves out for sexual purposes(as opposed to poaching or hunting) are generally referred to as "Shaggies"...those who want to "shag" the "shaggy beast". Originally made up of furries(few of whom survived early misguided attempts to sexually entice a werewolf in it's destroyer form) the shaggy subculture took on a life of it's own with the creation of the internet and spread far and wide. Particularly attractive Shaggies are called Daphnes or Freds depending on gender. Gay shaggies are called Betties, regardless of gender. Shaggies stupid enough to want to try and have sex with a werewolf in it's animal form are Scoobies...needless to say few Scoobies who actually meet a werewolf in person as opposed to flooding the internet with werewolf slash fiction actually survive the encounter...and Shaggies who are deliberately trying to become infected and thus become werewolves themselves are Scrappies. They tend to do alot better than Scoobies in terms of survival rates because many of them are willing to pay.

No, there is no such thing as a Vampire-Werewolf Hybrid. Nor is such a thing possible in any way shape or form. For that matter, no type of hybrid is possible with a Werewolf. Werewolves have occasionally bred with other shapeshifter breeds...in these circumstances the offspring's breed will reflect the parent with the greater reserve of spiritual energy...this is almost always going to favor the werewolf parent, but there are occasional exceptions, especially now that there are so many virals with low spiritual potential.

Werewolf packs share an instinctive empathic bond. This allows for crude, rudimentary communication without words. This is also the vehicle by with dominant alphas can exert some degree of control over a packmate in the Destroyer form. At higher levels of spiritual developement some packs can increase this into a full blown telepathic bond allowing for complex conversations to take place mentally, even across distances.

Back when the Courts were strong some Werewolves could use a variation of the Pack Bond to form a deeply intimate spiritual bond with a mate. Such unions were the equivalant of Marriage amongst Werewolves and not entered into lightly for these bonds were almost impossible to break once forged. Some theorized that the human concept of "soulmates" originated from a crude understanding of this spiritual union practiced by Werewolves. There are a number of advantages such soulbonded lovers have including the ability to pool and magnify their spiritual energies. The technique for this has been lost to most werewolves today but there are still a few soulbonded pairs out there who can teach the trick. To date every attempt to form such bonds with Virals has gone poorly. The lucky ones simply failed outright. In a few instances the bond actually took hold and both Werewolves involved promptly went insane. The Viral spirit is already locked in deeply intense conflict. Bonding yet more spirits into that conflict just makes it that much worse for all parties involved.

Wolfen Bards and lorekeepers would often tell tales of romantic sagas about Soulbonded mates. The more popular romantic tragedies told of stories where two Werewolves create such a soulbond unintentionally without realizing what they were doing. these stories were considered fictional though as the process of creating a soulbond is not the sort of thing that "just happens"...as far as anybody knows. While the technique has been lost many werewolves still have some concept of the notion that such bonds are possible but don't know how it's done. Fear of accidently initiating such a bond...even though such a thing has never been proven to actually happen... is what makes many Werewolves reluctant to engage in casual sex with each other unless they at least genuinely care for each other.

Wolfsbane doesn't harm werewolves, but it does have an effect. Just not quite what most people expect. Wolfsbane is sort of like Marijuana for Werewolves. But it also acts as a natural contraceptive. So it is a "bane" in the sense that it can prevent the creation of werewolves...for one steamy night. Well, actually a few nights if you smoke it. It can also be brewed as a tea which dilutes the effects, preventing the marijuana-like effects and serving as a contraceptive for just one night. Werewolves themselves started the myth of Wolfsbane as a ward against werewolves. Many werewolves kept gardens of the poisonous plant in the middle ages to prevent unwanted pregnancies during mating cycles. They needed some sort of explanation for why they would grow such useless plants so they claimed the plant warded off werewolves. It both justified their actions, and simultaneously elevated them above suspicion when people suspected a werewolf in the area.

Werewolves can "Speak" to Canines. Dogs, coyotes, even poodles though we all know deep inside they shouldn't really be considered dogs. And of course, wolves. Mind you the average canine hasn't got anything more interesting to say than "I'm hungry", "This is my territory" and "Why did you neuter me, you asshole?"

Werewolves have long had a complex relationship with the moon. Some worship it as a god or goddess. Others curse it as the bane of their existence and still others are rather clinical or indifferent toward it.

Before the arrival of the Virals Werewolves normally changed into their destroyer form only one night a month, when the full moon was at the peak of it's cycle. During the night immediately preceding and immediately after the transformation night however there would often be chaotic and dangerous shifts in their personalities. Most would become irritable, agitated, paranoid, gluttonous or lecherous...all traits you'd asocciate with a predator. The day immediately following a full moon's peak would be a day of lazyness, listlissness, almost a form of depression.

With time most Naturals can learn to suppress the change even on a full moon. They often still go into seclusion with the rest of their packs regardless. Partly to help calm down any packmates who have a particularly bad reaction to the "Moon Madness" or those still learning control and partly because even they remain very agitated during this time and might be easily provoked to the point of letting their control slip. To date no Viral has been succesful at resisting the moon's call though Rake has high hopes for Monroe.

[Starlequin]

...
Duuude.
Me like...
I especially dig the additional supernatural elements and the Mercury bit, nice touch.
I call dibs on Seth, as well as maybe an OC if this picks up. And possibly I could be persuaded to co-GM, if there's enough interest and no objections.

[Josietta]

Awww man.. this seems pretty cool. If its a slower paced game I'd be all over it. :D

I'd love to hold onto Jesse if i may ;)

EDIT:

I'mma hafta back out unfortunately.. I will dig myself in a hole if i keep this up. I realized today just how bad I have it and I need to join some group games anonymous or some such! >.<

[Caela]

Wow TRF, you really fleshed this idea out! I am SOOOO interested. Will make an original if that's cool. Thinking a member of Rake's pack and a natural, both parents being Wolfen. Thinking she'd be a sort of teacher/guide type, helping pups learn to control their abilities.

[Kokaine]

Dibs on Aisha ;)

[TheRedFear]

Heh i'm not even done. I need to go fix some typoes and there's more setting and character info to add, along with fleshing out werewolf abilities. Especially their more spiritual powers(although few werewolves know how to develope those powers nowadays), and probably some historical info on what the Wolf Courts used to be like structure-wise before they collapsed. How other supernatural beings view them, etc, etc.

This is an idea i've been developing for years(someday when my every waking moment isn't consumed with the desperate need to keep a roof over my head i'd like to write it as a graphic novel) so there's tons of background info I havn't even cracked into yet. Every once in a while I do like to RP it with others and see what interesting new ideas they manage to introduce.

Lilith's character was originally an incarnate goddess, and there was this whole convoluted celestial hierarchy...then a simple decision made by a friend in a one-on-one RP gave me a far more down-to-earth and more compelling approach to take with the character.

SHe's on hold because she's a fairly important character and I want to make sure whoever plays her is a good solid player.

Wow TRF, you really fleshed this idea out! I am SOOOO interested. Will make an original if that's cool. Thinking a member of Rake's pack and a natural, both parents being Wolfen. Thinking she'd be a sort of teacher/guide type, helping pups learn to control their abilities.

Originals are quite welcome. And like I said, feel free to tailor premades to your needs and desires

...
Duuude.
Me like...
I especially dig the additional supernatural elements and the Mercury bit, nice touch.
I call dibs on Seth, as well as maybe an OC if this picks up. And possibly I could be persuaded to co-GM, if there's enough interest and no objections.

Happy to give you the reigns, but you seem about as enthusastic about the idea as I would be in your place, lol. So we can wait and see if anybody else wants to GM. But i'll give you first right of refusal on the position though, hehe  ;D

Dibs on Aisha ;)

All yours  ;)

Awww man.. this seems pretty cool. If its a slower paced game I'd be all over it. :D

I'd love to hold onto Jesse if i may ;)

Consider Jess your personal pet bitch.

Not sure what the pace of the game is, but I don't plan to place any minimal requirements on anybody's posting rate. I figure if the game's good people will post frequently cuz they want to, not cuz they have to. But I know better than most the struggle of juggling multiple RP games with real life responsibilities, so I don't want to hold people to standards I may not be able to match myself.

Besides, RP Police are so bourgeois.  C:)

[Reia]

I absolutely love this. Very interested in playing Zee, or maybe an original.

I'm also up for being CoGM if you need one still.

[Faustus]

Occult skills and dating a medic? Yep, sounds like my type of character. I'd love to take up the role of Sara Marshall for you, if you don't mind.  ;)

[TheRedFear]

Occult skills and dating a medic? Yep, sounds like my type of character. I'd love to take up the role of Sara Marshall for you, if you don't mind.  ;)

Cool. If you're familiar with Buffy and Angel tv series, the difference between Sara and a "Real witch" is the difference between Wesley Windham Price the Third and Willow Rosenburgh.

She's familiar with alot of rituals and can work them, but she can't do that flashy "on the fly" magic that real Magi perform.

I almost wish you all knew Buffy/Angel unisystem cuz it's perfect for this game.

I absolutely love this. Very interested in playing Zee, or maybe an original.

I'm also up for being CoGM if you need one still.

Zee is yours...unless you change your mind and go for an original instead. Co-GM is also yours if Star doesn't want it. Hell, might take you both on as Co-GMs. The less GM work I gotta do the better. Heh. Yes i am a lazy SOB.

[Josietta]

Awww man.. this seems pretty cool. If its a slower paced game I'd be all over it. :D

I'd love to hold onto Jesse if i may ;)

EDIT:

I'mma hafta back out unfortunately.. I will dig myself in a hole if i keep this up. I realized today just how bad I have it and I need to join some group games anonymous or some such! >.<

[Reia]

Zee is yours...unless you change your mind and go for an original instead. Co-GM is also yours if Star doesn't want it. Hell, might take you both on as Co-GMs. The less GM work I gotta do the better. Heh. Yes i am a lazy SOB.

I'll go with Zee. And just let me know about GMing.

[Starlequin]

Actually, I could be down with co-co-GMing, if that would be cool with Reia.

RedFear, do you already have a plot in mind, or were you going to leave that to the players or something? I've been storyboarding in my head most of the day, and i think I've come up with a few ideas you might like. We can discuss in PMs if you want.

[TheRedFear]

Actually, I could be down with co-co-GMing, if that would be cool with Reia.

RedFear, do you already have a plot in mind, or were you going to leave that to the players or something? I've been storyboarding in my head most of the day, and i think I've come up with a few ideas you might like. We can discuss in PMs if you want.

I do have a few plots in mind but more are always welcome.

[Reia]

Actually, I could be down with co-co-GMing, if that would be cool with Reia.

I'm absolutely fine with that. It probably would help with such a large group. :)

[TheRedFear]

I'mma hafta back out unfortunately.. I will dig myself in a hole if i keep this up. I realized today just how bad I have it and I need to join some group games anonymous or some such! >.<

Psst. Hey little girl. C'mere. Want some candy? Special candy. Nose candy. C'mon. One lil peice won't hurt.

It's a well known fact that it doesn't count if you don't inhale.

[bubby]

*Lifts hand*

Bethany?

And is it written in stone to use the pic you've chosen?

[TheRedFear]

*Lifts hand*

Bethany?

And is it written in stone to use the pic you've chosen?

Nope. Like I said in the opening post, you're free to use any pic you want. Hell you can even tweak the personality if you like. Zee doesn't have to be a lesbian. Aisha doesn't have to use Alicia Keys for a pic. Monroe doesn't have to be a buddhist/pacifist. Etc, etc.

[bubby]

Yay! Then dibs on Bethany!

[Josietta]

Psst. Hey little girl. C'mere. Want some candy? Special candy. Nose candy. C'mon. One lil peice won't hurt.

It's a well known fact that it doesn't count if you don't inhale.

Oooo you are tempting.. you are!  *wriggles and whimpers*   Will you forgive me if my posts can get slow at times? If so I'd love to join you and Jesse.. oh so does call to me.. *nibbles lip*

[bubby]

Hook...and REEL!! zzzzzzzzzzzzzZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ!!!  ;D

[TheRedFear]

Oooo you are tempting.. you are!  *wriggles and whimpers*   Will you forgive me if my posts can get slow at times? If so I'd love to join you and Jesse.. oh so does call to me.. *nibbles lip*

Psh i'm used to forgiving you for slow posts already and we've barely been playing together a week.  ;)

[Josietta]

This is true! too true! *smooches on*  :-*

[Caela]

hehehehe...You guys make me giggle!

Is stealing Lily. :D

[TheRedFear]

Now we just gotta try to lure Undi over here.

What can i say? I like the bootie-flashin' avatar thing.

[TheRedFear]

Added a few NPCs who I may make available as PCs. Not sure yet. Must discuss with the Co-GMs.

Also added a few extra bits to the Culture/Traits section.

More Characters and Setting Info to come...

[Caela]

Hey TRF, do you want us to start working up CS's and if so, do you have a preferred format for them???

[Josietta]

Hey TRF, do you want us to start working up CS's and if so, do you have a preferred format for them???

+1. I was looking for that earlier

[bubby]

+2...but it's their idea! >.>

[Kokaine]

+3 ... just cuz I wanna jump on the bandwagon... (no but seriously I've been thinking about the character :P)

[TheRedFear]

lol kinda been debating that myself. In the sense of "How should a character sheet look". Specifically, the "Powers" section. I havn't even gotten to the optional portion of Powers yet.

I may create an OOC thread, put a sheet template on it, and a list of optional powers for Virals and Naturals.

[TheRedFear]

Character Sheet Test Template

INSERT PICTURE HERE
Pics should be of actual real life people. An exception MIGHT be made for CG pictures if they're particularly lifelife.

Name: (Unless you prefer I just call you 'Maggot')
Nicknames: (If any...)
Species: (Werewolf? Human? Vampire? Damphir? Fae? Magi?)
Age: (May or December?)
Gender: (How do you pee? Standing up? Sitting down? With a smile on your face and a song in your heart?)

Height: (One of the most immediately noticable things about a person, but people often forget to include it in descriptions)
Appearance: (General appearance. Hair, race, eyes, build, etc)

Powers(Species): N/A
Powers((Optional): N/A
Skills: N/A

Background Story: (Origin Story. Why are you the way that you are?)
Personality: (The way that you are.)
Sexuality: (Hey, this IS an E game)


Leave Powers and Skills blank for now cuz I am debating what will be on the powers list, and how to limit their availability.

[Caela]

~bounces off to work on CS's~

[Josietta]

*will be working on hers and should have it done tomorrow*

You gonna put an OOC  or you want us to post them here or PM them?

[TheRedFear]

https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=130640.0  Here ya go. Post 'em here.

[LunarSage]

Couple of questions...

How are you going to handle the fact that most players (at least guys) don't tend to want to play submissive characters?  I know I sure don't.  I'm a dominant person in real life and I couldn't stand to play a submissive character.  You only have two "alphas", which I forsee as something of a potential problem in the long run.  I know that in another game with werewolves and other shifters that Josi and I play in, it became apparent that everyone wanted to play an alpha.  Too many chiefs and not enough indians as it were.  At the very least no one wanted to be ordered around by another PC.

Also, wouldn't it make sense that there might be werewolves at the Doghouse that are so bitter toward humanity that they go around secretly slaughtering humans in the night?  Given how humanity has treated them, I certainly wouldn't blame them in the slightest.

[Starlequin]

If I could interject here a moment...

At current, it looks like the only male non-alpha character slot thats been filled is mine, and I have no issues with playing less than alpha characters. However, even if the other slots do get taken (come on in, take   look around, see if we have anything that fits you...), TRF has, i think, done a pretty good job of structuring their personalities such that, if theyre played along similar guidelines to as written, there shouldnt be that much in the way of struggles for power or dominance; each char seems to have his own basic goals (one wants to find a cure, another wants to find inner peace and master his inner Wolf, etc.), and pack membership is supposed to be a way for them to do that. Which should hopefully defuse any pissing contests before they begin (and if not, well...I'll bring the popcorn, you get the drinks). And as for the ladies...I'll be honest: I did not look at a single profile for any of the female characters and ever once think, 'Oh, yeah. Subbie.' Every character listed is pretty much a bad ass in some form or another. Hell, we have a housemom who stares down beasts that are capable of ripping tanks apart. (Which, yeah, is probably par for the course for most moms, but still.) So I guess what i mean to say is, its not so much about dom and sub, as it is trusting the Alpha to  calm down and lead the rest of his pack with a cool head when all they might want to do is get bloody or sweaty. In other words, pretty much what leadership is all  about. (And if thats still not good enough -- "It's Magic!")

And as for any Werewolf serial killers, I expect there would be a place for them, too. Elsewhere. The Doghouse Pack seems pretty capable of policing their own, and i would think any bloodthirsty dissenters would be handled poste haste, by whatever means necessary.

*sigh* And now, I'mma go ice down my thumbs.

[LunarSage]

Wolves lead by dominance and force, though.  It's all about pecking order and I assumed that was how werewolves in this setting were, as werewolves in every other fictional setting I've seen have been.  If that's not the case here, please let me know.

[Starlequin]

*considers LS's point and drums his fingers on the counter*
Yo, boss? Got a customer here wants a word with you...

[TheRedFear]

Wolves lead by dominance and force, though.  It's all about pecking order and I assumed that was how werewolves in this setting were, as werewolves in every other fictional setting I've seen have been.  If that's not the case here, please let me know.

It both is and is not the case. lol

Some recent studies have indicated a trend in real wolf packs where fights for dominance are rare. These packs are usually familial packs where most of the pack is blood related in some way. Struggles for dominance more commonly happen in "patchwork" packs made up of wolves unfamiliar with each other.

Technically this would be a patchwork pack, but but in many ways they've become a family. And like Starlequin quite astutely pointed out, they each have their own reasons for being here. Nobody's trying to out-wolf each other(Well...maybe Zee. Heh). They're trying to survive together and watch each other's backs.

Besides let's not forget...we're talking about werewolves here. "Were" being a word for Man. They're not just wolves. They're people and every bit as capable as people of making concious decisions to act against what their instincts might otherwise tell them to do. Wolven instincts and social patterns do indeed INFLUENCE a werewolf, but they don't dominate them. For example Rake doesn't feel compelled to piss on the doorway of the Doghouse to make sure everybody knows it's his territory. Not in human form anyway. Heh.

Just as people have different styles of leadership, so do Werewolves. Rake's style is more laid back. He knows his pack. He knows who's capable of what, and he's not going to ask Monroe to rip some guy's head off because he knows that's not in Monroe's nature. Zee on the other hand will rip the head off, hollow it out, have it engraved, and use it as a soup bowl. And probably get really annoyed when Jesse and Seth sneak into her bedroom later that night and bedazzle the damn thing.

Rake just sees himself as the older brother to everyone else. Not their commander in cheif. The extent to which he might be perceived as bossy is no moreso than you would expect from a big brother who's trying his best to look out for you. He's not there to push anybody around or dictate how they should live...he's there to find others of his kind and give them a home and family if they want one...or at least help them find a place where they can figure out what it is they DO want without the ever-present threat of finding 50 heavily armed soldiers on their doorstep one day. That doesn't mean he can be very "Dominant Alpha Male" at times...but for that matter so can any of the others. Rake isn't the Alpha because he beat everyone else into submission. He's the alpha because he protects the others.

These are precisely the kinds of reasons Zee hasn't tried to seize control of the pack from Rake. Because even if she manages to beat him, these people aren't going to roll over and offer their throats just because she was able to beat Rake down. Granted in some packs it may very well work that way. But this isn't a pack of strangers just tolerating each other's precence. This is a family of survivors who trust each other and depend on each other.

In many ways the group dynamic I'm trying to capture here is like the dynamic of the crew of Serenity in the Firefly TV series/Film. Malcom Reynolds may have been "The Captain" but it was rare to see him get authorative or push his crew around. And more than a few times that he tried, they pushed right back. Only in grave situations did he really get harsh and commanding.

And yes it's quite conceivable some werewolves do kill humans for sport, or vengeance. Hell it's not just conceivable. It's a fact. Of course most such werewolves either learn to hide the evidence VERY well, or wake up one day surrounded by heavily armored/armed Hunters or Poachers. Or even other local werewolves who decide to deal with the troublemaker before his antics bring Wolfhunters down on them all.

It actually would not surprise me is Reia decides to have Zee be such a werewolf. And as long as she's not obvious about it, and keeps it away from the Doghouse(Don't crap where you eat afterall) Rake might even be inclined to turn a blind eye.

Now of course if you feel the existing characters are too submissve, or otherwise undesirable...create your own. You can be "an Alpha" without being "the Alpha" if you get what I mean. Zee is a perfect example. Everybit as powerful as Rake. A dominant strong willed personality.  She could lead her own pack without a male. Maybe someday she will. But for now she's gotten attached to the people around her(even if she doesn't like to admit it) and she's content to remain. At least for the time being. Victor Navarro and Aidan O'Connor where another good example. Like brothers for most of their lives, at least until the end when their bitter argument drove them apart. Each easily a match for the other in every way...many might even argue that overall Victor was the slightly superior werewolf. A bit stronger, a bit tougher, maybe even a bit smarter...but Aidan was the one more Werewolves wanted to follow. He was the one who inspired and ruled with just the right combination of strength and wisdom. Aidan rarely had to throw his weight around to enforce his will because he made good decisions more often than he made bad ones, and even other Alphas who were arguably stronger felt comfortable with him calling the shots.

So if you want to play a more powerful, or more dominant kind of wolf who joins the pack, go for it. If you want your character to challenge Rake for control of the pack, go for it. These things are the source of drama and drama(in RP anyway) is a good thing. Ideally these things will be resolved in the course of RP.

Now if your concern is how to resolve things when two characters get into a confrontation and neither one's PLAYER wants to back down...well ideally most of us can resolve these things with a polite chat in PMs and find a way to settle it without anybody having to lose face or feel slighted. If not, that's what Mods are for.

Of course we've all been in situations where a Mod was part of the problem, or the players just could not agree on an outcome. THAT my dear friend is why I said to hold off on Powers and Skills in the character sheet for the time being. Me, Star,a nd Reia are currently discussing options that will allow us to determine the number and potency of powers players will have available to themselves, without creating something overly complicated. Hopefully if all else fails we'll have that as a fallback measure to determine how any given confrontation between characters(and their players) should end.

[LunarSage]

Very articulate and well reasoned response, TRF.  Thank you.  That does answer my questions.  I was, however talking about characters and not players.  If players can't agree it's generally the GMs who make the call, and I'm fine with that.

I think I'll try making a character... though it will be of my own creation.  I've never been keen on the idea of playing pregens. 

[Kendra]

I love the detail put into this TRF would love to try my hand at  Hailey if that's okay
- there's little written up on her so figure she'd be easier to flesh out as my own.

Is there a rush on doing up the CS for these?

[TheRedFear]

No rush at all Kendra. We dont even have an IC thread up yet. Hailey's all yours.

[Kendra]

Completely wicked, thank you

will shoot off to see what I can do then  ;)
*hugs*

[Kendra]

sorry for the double post here ... was just wondering as it's not stated
does Hailey know that her best friend is from a family of WW's ?
she's unaffiliated so it won't make a difference to her either way but just to add it to her CS

[Caela]

Unless TRF gainsays it, I am going to say that Hailey would know about Lily's family. It might not have been the first thing Lily told her about them but she would have fessed up to it eventually!

[TheRedFear]

Amazingly that's actually something I never gave any thought to. So whatever you ladies decide is fine with me. Though I would have said that even if I had given it thought.

I mean it when I say that I want you guys to feel free to make these characters your own, so don't be afraid to change and tweak things to your content. Pictures, relationships, personalities, etc.

[Kendra]

absolutely brilliant ;)

Caela will pm you and we can hash out details to plump up our CS's if you like

sorry TRF - I get a little carried away when I start making a CS
trying to get the feel for a premade character with a premade friendship shouldn't be too hard *fingers crossed*  ;D
will be working on it this morning at any rate ;)

[Josietta]

Got my sheet FINALLY posted in the OOC :p

[Kendra]

mine too - I think I went a little crazy with it but Hailey just seems like my kind of girl  XD

[LunarSage]

Yep I know, I still need to make a sheet.  >.<

[Starlequin]

Don't feel bad, man; mine is still just floating in the aether atm...

[Faustus]

Don't feel bad, man; mine is still just floating in the aether atm...

You and me both, Star.  :-\

[Narianna]

I wanna play Elsa Bathory soooo badly! lol I'm trying to convince myself that I wouldn't be stretching myself too thinly... I know she is currently listed as an NPC, but would she ever be a possible PC?

[LunarSage]

Bathory... I see what you did there, TRF.   ;)

[TheRedFear]

I wanna play Elsa Bathory soooo badly! lol I'm trying to convince myself that I wouldn't be stretching myself too thinly... I know she is currently listed as an NPC, but would she ever be a possible PC?

My main concern about the NPCs being made into PCs is that they're basically "The bad guys". Well, I guess that depends on how you define bad guys. In his mind Victor is only saving his people, and in the process he gets to avenge them after the holocaust and ongoing opression perpetrated against them by the human species. Elsa is trying to save her species(Well, mostly herself. Her species are just lucky to be riding her coat tails. Heh) from the same fate that befell the Wolfen.

I suppose humanity is the real bad guy here. Lol.

Anyway getting back to my main point, my concern with making the NPCs into PCs is that their roles place them in antagonistic positions to the rest of the characters. That would make it difficult for those playing them to interact with the other characters on a regular basis. Not impossible, but difficult. Elsa might be one of the easiest to convert to a PC I suppose since as of yet, nobody knows she's the one who put the bounty on Lilly. So as long as she guards that secret she'd be just a very hedonistic and powerful vampire queen as far as most people are concerned.

What do the rest of you think on the matter? Not on Elsa/Narianna specifically. In general what do you think of opening "the bad guys" up to be played? If you're not comfortable stating an opinion publicly PM it to me, Star, and Rei.

Bathory... I see what you did there, TRF.   ;)

Hehe. Much like I use the name "Victor Navarro" for many of my characters(especially my wolfie ones), I often use various versions of Bathory in many of my settings. In a post-apocalyptic setting of mine she's nothing more than a thaumaturge who has spent her life in the alchemical pursuit of immortality and power but will never have the power of a trueborn mage(sort of like Sara in this setting. Or what Sara could be in a few centuries if she finds the right formulaes and rituals). That said centuries of life experience, resources, and ruthless ambition still make her a most formidable foe.

[Narianna]

Was anything ever decided on this?

[LunarSage]

I have no opinion on the matter.  I'm good either way.

[Starlequin]

It's being discussed, Nar. I'm pretty sure Navarro and his pack will be NPCed, but Elsa may still become playable if youre still interested in the character. No promises though; I may be wrong.

[Narianna]

Ok, no problem. I understand if she isn't.  :) She just seemed like she'd be a fun character to play. I may still make up my own character if I can't play her. Maybe someone from her court... Maybe a double agent of sorts... Ooo! Maybe an assassin! Haha. I'll turn some gears and see what I come up with.

[Narianna]

So here's a few ideas I'd like to throw out...

1. A young witch, her mother's apprentice, set out to prove herself to her Mistress, Elsa Bathory, by hunting down and disposing of the elusive Lilly Astor. Could her heart be turned? Could she be made aware that her Mistress is merely using her for nothing more than her powers?

2. A wereleopard working as a waitress at the Doghouse.

3. Elsa Bathory's unsuspecting human doppleganger. Think Vampire Diaries-esque? Maybe she could be useful for disposing of Elsa Bathory?

Would any of the above be acceptable or even intriguing perhaps?

[bubby]

I personally like bad guys being played. I'm in a game currently where the 'bad guys' are supposed to be NPC'd, and they are not, and the game is becoming stagnant due to nothing happening.

[Starlequin]

((That game sounds kind of...buggy...))   :-\

[bubby]

((That game sounds kind of...buggy...))   :-\

*Swats you* Wrong game. I LOVE bugs!  ;D

[LunarSage]

I think I know which game she means, and I agree, it has gotten pretty slow.  Of course, I'm partly to blame for that too, hehe.   :P

[Kokaine]

^ +12

[TheRedFear]

So here's a few ideas I'd like to throw out...

1. A young witch, her mother's apprentice, set out to prove herself to her Mistress, Elsa Bathory, by hunting down and disposing of the elusive Lilly Astor. Could her heart be turned? Could she be made aware that her Mistress is merely using her for nothing more than her powers?

2. A wereleopard working as a waitress at the Doghouse.

3. Elsa Bathory's unsuspecting human doppleganger. Think Vampire Diaries-esque? Maybe she could be useful for disposing of Elsa Bathory?

Would any of the above be acceptable or even intriguing perhaps?

The general consensus from the FEW opinions offered thus far(combined with my own stance) have me learning toward keeping the "Bad guys" as NPC-only, at least until such a time as they're no longer serving an atangonistic role in the storyline. Assuming the PCs havn't killed them off at that point. Heh.

That being said, Elsa is probably a lesser antagonist so I havn't entirely ruled it out yet in her case.

As for your other ideas, I like your first two alternate ideas. The werefeline waitress is fine, though I havn't given too much thought yet to the various werefelines in terms of their powers, society, etc. They probably wouldn't be as powerful as the Wolves overall though. I know a leapord is (arguably) a superior predator to a Wolf, but there's a reason stemming from the mysterious origins of the various werecreatures that explains why Werewolves are the most dominant of them all.

I think your first idea for a witch loyal to Elsa is very interesting though. It could be worked in fairly easily, but keep in mind that would also place you in a somewhat adversarial position to other PCs, unless your character is taking a more subtle approach to her mission like seeking to befriend Lilly first...we'd need to discuss that more in depth though to explain why she would bother doing that rather than simply kill Lilly outright and collect the bounty. I have a few rough ideas on that point if you want to go that route.

[TheRedFear]

Added more info to the powers/traits/culture section.

[Narianna]

The general consensus from the FEW opinions offered thus far(combined with my own stance) have me learning toward keeping the "Bad guys" as NPC-only, at least until such a time as they're no longer serving an atangonistic role in the storyline. Assuming the PCs havn't killed them off at that point. Heh.

That being said, Elsa is probably a lesser antagonist so I havn't entirely ruled it out yet in her case.

As for your other ideas, I like your first two alternate ideas. The werefeline waitress is fine, though I havn't given too much thought yet to the various werefelines in terms of their powers, society, etc. They probably wouldn't be as powerful as the Wolves overall though. I know a leapord is (arguably) a superior predator to a Wolf, but there's a reason stemming from the mysterious origins of the various werecreatures that explains why Werewolves are the most dominant of them all.

I think your first idea for a witch loyal to Elsa is very interesting though. It could be worked in fairly easily, but keep in mind that would also place you in a somewhat adversarial position to other PCs, unless your character is taking a more subtle approach to her mission like seeking to befriend Lilly first...we'd need to discuss that more in depth though to explain why she would bother doing that rather than simply kill Lilly outright and collect the bounty. I have a few rough ideas on that point if you want to go that route.

I've been designing a Werewolf in case you weren't a fan of any of those suggestions so I'm perfectly ok with playing her instead. :) If I go the Wereleopard route, I'd already figured she wouldn't be as powerful as the Werewolves.

As for the witch, my idea was to take the more subtle approach and integrate her in with the other PCs. I'd love to hear your suggestions and ideas on that.

But as I've said, I've made a Werewolf idea as a backup so it's all up to you which character idea you like best. I'm excited about all of them, honestly. *laughs*

[TheRedFear]

You can play multiple chars if you want. Just make sure to clearly distinguish who you're playing and when. Caela's got herself an Original Character, and Lilly Astor.

As for how your witch can enter the equation there's a variety of options. It depends on whether your witch is more loyal to Elsa, or more loyal to her own fellow Magi. Drop me a PM and we can discuss it more in depth.

Offhand if you decide she's more loyal to Elsa it could be that Elsa prefers your character just stay close to Lilly and feed her information on Lilly's actions...she prefers your girl be a spy and not an assassin. Afterall your char's actions might be traced back to Elsa if it's known that she's Elsa's "pet witch", which defeats the whole purpose of her trying to make sure nobody connects her to Lilly's (hopeful)demise.

[Caela]

lol...Was just looking at the first page again...TRF, my facegrab for RyAnn is an actress names Vanessa Marcil.

[TheRedFear]

More setting info added

[Sarah Morgan]

This game sounds totally like something I'd like, assuming you have room for more characters?  I'd probably start off by playing someone human, simply because there aren't that many of them, and because it could be fun to play someone in the minority.  Also, I'm intrigued by the idea of a human actually being stubborn enough to stand up to Drake even if he dumps them, and actually not give up on him.  Though I'll admit I'm a big romance fan, but said plot could also give some side drama.  My girl would obviously befriend other characters too, but that was just the first thing that struck me as I read through the posts so far.  Though if the idea totally sucks, just let me know, and I'll work on something else, no problem.  I'd have to figure out some reason why a human would want to work at the pack anyway, or some sort of back story, but my brain is too tired to think of one just now.

[Josietta]

*waves to Sarah* hiyas!!! I'm Josi, I play Jesse (who I do need to intro!), we'd love to have you with us! While I'm not the GM I'd suggest filling out the character sheet and posting it up here for approval. Star or Red should be along before too ling. :)

[TheRedFear]

This game sounds totally like something I'd like, assuming you have room for more characters?  I'd probably start off by playing someone human, simply because there aren't that many of them, and because it could be fun to play someone in the minority.  Also, I'm intrigued by the idea of a human actually being stubborn enough to stand up to Drake even if he dumps them, and actually not give up on him.  Though I'll admit I'm a big romance fan, but said plot could also give some side drama.  My girl would obviously befriend other characters too, but that was just the first thing that struck me as I read through the posts so far.  Though if the idea totally sucks, just let me know, and I'll work on something else, no problem.  I'd have to figure out some reason why a human would want to work at the pack anyway, or some sort of back story, but my brain is too tired to think of one just now.

Sounds good to me :)

Though it's Rake, not Drake. As in the lawn and gardening tool. Or a rake of the claws. hehe. YOu can play your own original creation and we can work out a story to fit her in without a problem. Or take a premade character and twek her to your satisfaction....or both. The more the merrier.

[Kokaine]

Question: How open is the pack to other sorts of creatures? I have an idea floating around in my head and though he probably wouldn't come in til later, I'd want him allied with the pack (or at least not against them).

[TheRedFear]

Question: How open is the pack to other sorts of creatures? I have an idea floating around in my head and though he probably wouldn't come in til later, I'd want him allied with the pack (or at least not against them).

Generally distrustful, but their main guideline with other creatures is "don't start none, and there won't be none"

Alot of other creatures still harbor generations worth of resentment from the memory of how the wolf courts used to oppress them. At least it was oppression from their point of view. Keep in mind alot of these creatures are indeed very nasty customers and would have made alot of trouble and raised alot of hell if the Wolf Courts hadn't kept them in check. Which is in fact becoming a more common occurence since the Wolf Courts fell. Oh they're not being stupid about it but most cities around the country have seen a slow but steady uptick in murder, kidnapping, and dissapearance rates over the last few decades.

Since the claws and fangs of a Werewolf are also amongst the few things capable of killing many otherwise nigh-unkillable creatures that also leads to some tension. When you're accustomed to thinking of yourself as untouchable, standing in a room with one of the few things on earth capable of "touching" you can be a bit uncomfortable.

Also now that Werewolf poaching has become such a lucrative career choice, more than a few supernatural beings have jumped on the band wagon. Not many humans can succesfully hunt werewolves without suffering significant casualties, but Vampires(younger ones anyway) love money too, and their survival odds are much better than a human hunter/poacher. the same is true of many other types of supernatural being.

This is why the pack tends to be distrustful of other supernatural beings in general...BUT it's a harsh world out there. Friends and allies are few and far between. They can't afford to throw away genuine oppurtunities to forge useful alliances and friendships. So they're initially wary but will generally give other beings a chance. A probationary period if you will.

I WAS considering that the basement of the Doghouse would be a sort of unofficial VIP area catering exclusively to other supernatural beings. The bar definitely has seen a rise in patronage from other supernatural beings since the Triad(See NPCs section) started to frequent it. I'm thinking the pack figures putting all the freaky night prowlers in one area will help avoid problems with the human customers and perhaps forge some inroads there. But there's the distrust factor to consider. They have very good reasons to be wary of other supernaturals.

[Kokaine]

Mmkay, that all makes sense and sounds fair.

My idea was for a twist on a Youkai, specifically a Kitsune (fox demon). Essentially he'd be rare (hence the need to ally himself with someone worth being allies with) but with his own strengths and able to work with the pack. He could either just show up at some point and try to gain trust or he could have established history with one or more of the pack so they know him. This is, of course, provided you're willing to accept another breed into the game.

[bubby]

Mmkay, that all makes sense and sounds fair.

My idea was for a twist on a Youkai, specifically a Kitsune (fox demon). Essentially he'd be rare (hence the need to ally himself with someone worth being allies with) but with his own strengths and able to work with the pack. He could either just show up at some point and try to gain trust or he could have established history with one or more of the pack so they know him. This is, of course, provided you're willing to accept another breed into the game.

*KNows what pic she'd use and just drooolllss*

[Kokaine]

*KNows what pic she'd use and just drooolllss*

*snickers* Shhhh!!! :P

[bubby]

*snickers* Shhhh!!! :P

;D  :-*

[TheRedFear]

Mmkay, that all makes sense and sounds fair.

My idea was for a twist on a Youkai, specifically a Kitsune (fox demon). Essentially he'd be rare (hence the need to ally himself with someone worth being allies with) but with his own strengths and able to work with the pack. He could either just show up at some point and try to gain trust or he could have established history with one or more of the pack so they know him. This is, of course, provided you're willing to accept another breed into the game.

Sounds good, though we'd need to figure out where he specifically falls in the "Demon/Shapeshifter" Paradigm. I realize in japanese Culture the word "Demon" doesn't mean quite what it does in Western culture. They use it a bit more liberally and it applies to many types of beings who might fall into other categories in western cultures.

In this setting most Demons(in the western sense of the word) have a particularly powerful hatred of Werewolves. So if you want a demon with fox-like traits that's fine but we'll need to hammer out some details on why he doesn't hate Werewolves like most demons do. On the other hand if he's just a "Werefox" that's fine too. I was pretty much already thinking that Werefoxes are sort of like Werecoyotes in that they're tricksters too, but a bit more focused than Coyotes.

Tricksters in general are usually looking to teach some sort of lesson with their tricks. They're big fans of irony. If you're a penny pincher and you attract a trickster's attention expect him to scam you for a fortune. Or clean out your bank account if you really raised that trickster's dander up. They're usually motivated toward some combination of teaching a lesson, getting a laugh, and turning a profit.

For example(borrowing this from some old RPG I read with tricksters)...a trickster might come to a wealthy person claiming to be an inventor in need of funding, and will present a genuinely good idea worth investing in. If the person just gives the trickster money without asking alot of questions the Trickster will pocket it and string them along indefinitely, milking as much more as possible from the hapless dupe before vanishing altogether. If the investor flatly refuses even though the proposal is good the Trickster might just move on...or he might decide that penny pinching bastard needs a lesson in giving others oppurtunities to succeed and wipe out the guy's bank accounts or burn down his business or something(preferably the punishment should fit the crime...but if all else fails, hacking Kiddy Porn onto his personal computer and anonymously tipping off the FBI works too...or Nair in his shampoo. Depends on how malicious the trickster in question is). However if the investor does their due diligence and invests moderately, while looking for regular progress updates and such(demonstrating good judgement, a willingness to help others, but not willing to be easily played for a fool) the Trickster will reward that person's wisdom by either delivering a genuinely good product or otherwise finding a way to bring some discreet good fortune their way.

Now in that scenario there's plenty of different ways a trickster can play things out. They can easily be malicious and set the scenario up so that their subject is all but certain to fail whatever kind of test the trickster is applying to them. Or the opposite if that they can set the person up to succeed. Or they can be plotting to pocket a profit for themselves all along, or be genuinely trying to teach a valuable lesson to somebody(maybe not even the target of the trick, but someone close to them). Or they could just be in it for a laugh from the very start. And hey, sometimes a laugh itself can be a lesson if you're teaching the prideful to come down off their high horse and stop taking themselves so seriously. 

Generally speaking, Coyotes tend to go for the laugh. Foxes tend to go for the lesson. Ravens tend to be about pocketing a personal profit for themselves. That's not to say there aren't lesson-oriented Ravens and Coyotes, of Foxes who set their targets up to fail so they can pocket a profit for themselves. It varies from situation to situation and invididual to individual. But in broad terms, Coyotes want the laugh, Foxes want to teach, and Ravens just want shiny things to line their pockets/nests.