Surviving and Thriving in the Urban World of Darkness: A Guide for Garou

 Welcome to the blog, or welcome back if you're a regular reader. Thanks for stopping by.

This is Shores of Night. On Sundays we talk about Werewolf: the Apocalypse, White Wolf's eco-horror roleplaying game. I talk about things within the game that interest me, explore areas which I think need to be considered, and sometimes try to make stuff. 

Apologies for missing last week, life got in the way. I'm finding things a bit hard at present because I'm consuming too much news content and even though I'm in the UK, current events in the US are weighing heavily on my mind. It feels like life has become that much more difficult and, in the themes of Werewolf, that what's happening will only lead to the planet suffering more. It feels like our cities will become darker and less pleasant too, though perhaps not to the extent that they would be in the World of Darkness. At least we can be relatively sure that what's happening in the "real world" (if such a thing exists) isn't directed by an insane force of entropy that wants to destroy and corrupt everything... right? 

I just want to say  - I hope you're bearing up okay. Things seem bleak, even from across the ocean. I can't imagine how bad things feel for people in the USA - especially for Werewolf fans (who often seem to be more aligned to environmental or progressive politics). Please believe me when I say we may not be Garou, but we are a nation, and we will overcome. 

With that said let's direct our attention to the subject of today's blog, which is surviving and thriving in the Urban World of Darkness. Last time we talked about a few subjects: Finding Safe Havens, Alliances, and Intelligence and Deception. Today, we'll discuss hunting and finding sustenance in the city; the dangers of hopelessness, depression—even Harano; and the need for community.

With that in mind, let's begin. 

1) The Problem of Food: Cities are places where only the most opportunistic animals thrive alongside humans there. Species like rats, foxes, magpies and crows do well, because they scavenge what we leave behind. They tend not to make good hunting or food themselves. The food sold to humans is often—perhaps even usually—tainted by the Wyrm. While purification rituals can be done, it creates complications and raises the risk of weakening the Garou's connection with the wolf. There are only so many burgers and steaks a Garou can eat before the desire to hunt will grow too strong to ignore, particularly for Lupus characters. Some cities - like London - might have deer populations that can sate this need, but most don't. 

That leaves one very obvious choice for the werewolf who must hunt: the local zoo. The problems with that are probably self evident, but let's talk about them a little. First, a zoo is going to be a monitored area, one peppered with CCTV cameras. That raises the spectre of discovery from the outset, especially if the characters are operating in Homid or Lupus form. I know that some Tribes can pretend to be dogs just long enough to fool someone, especially given the rise in popularity of wolfdogs. That being said, zoo staff are probably the people most likely to recognise an actual wolf at fifty paces. In addition, while a Bone Gnawer might pull this stunt off, the idea of a Silver Fang, or any character with a high Pure Breed Background score could fool someone into thinking they're just a dog is pretty laughable. Consequently, zoos offer a greater chance of detection than a lot of other urban areas. Even scoping the area out would be dangerous, unless you've got Gifts to "coincidentally" make the cameras glitch or Weaver spirits in them ignore you.  

That's especially important when we consider that it's not just the kill most Garou need, but the chase. It won't be enough to kill a deer that's confined, you'll have to break it out and pursue it. Fortunately, most animals sense what humans ignore, that werewolves are predators. They can feel it and generally want to be as far away from Garou as they can be. Even a herbivore that's used to humans, and perhaps welcomes some of them, is going to run when a werewolf makes their presence felt. That helps the Garou, since it means humans are more likely to notice a missing animal and signs of a strange chase, rather than blood all over the zebra enclosure. All the same, it's no easy thing to hide such an event and the potential for blowback is pretty big. The last thing you want is to attract hunters to your territory. 

If the hunt is the important aspect to your characters, you can always take to the Umbra, where prey is abundant if inedible. There are enough Wyrm spirits in cities to allow you to sate the need, but at the same time that won't provide sustenance and for any strict carnivores in the pack, you'll just be making their need to hunt for food more urgent. This compounds the problem in many ways.

I think the thing to underline is that Garou aren't your classic movie werewolf, cursed to become a horrible monster under the full moon. They differ in the fact that they're much more flexible, and have a wolf's instincts much of the time. They're also social creatures and one of the important aspects of the hunt is that it acts as a bonding exercise. It's necessary for their wellbeing as much as it is to sate those lupine needs. In a landscape that's largely alien to that side of them and, for Lupus and probably Metis characters, might be akin to fighting the Wyrm on the moon, some toll on their mental health is inevitable.

2) Stress, Depression and Harano: Imagine for a moment you're living in a place which every part of you reviles. It's too loud, too smelly, too bright, and too busy. You might understand why, but it still grates against your nerves. On top of that, there's almost nothing natural to look at, just rusted chrome, decaying concrete and the flickering of neon. You might not even see the sun - let alone the moon or stars - and the high buildings act like valleys, casting your world into gloom most of the time. We've talked about how cities must be a sensory nightmare before but in the context of over stimulus. Now let's think about how that might affect a Garou's mental health. I'm sure we've all been in environments that simply feel wrong and where we struggle to cope. 

For Garou, that’s exactly what a city feels like. It's not just the overstimulating surroundings, the lack of connection to nature, the overwhelming sense that everything is happening at once, with no way to switch off. To make matters worse, the Wyrm and Weaver are everywhere you look, putting you into a hyper vigilant mode and you feel divorced from Gaia. 

That's stressful as all hell, enough to make you wonder how the Bone Gnawers and Glass Walkers have coped over the centuries, and how a pack that chooses to make its territory within the urban landscape manages to operate for long. To some extent, the limited senses of Homid form must seem like a blessing as they blunt the full force of the overstimulation to a degree. That constant pressure must wear them down. This could be a setting where Rage takes centre stage. Perhaps werewolves live in a constant state of irritation, running the risk of succumbing to frenzy more frequently. 

Tribe holdings become more important, with hidden spaces springing up to help Garou cope with their stress. Bone Gnawers plant little guerrilla gardens in unused spaces, while the Glass Walkers cultivate green spaces high above the street in roof gardens. The local urban Sept sets up a gym just for their members to get that stress out of their bodies, deftly avoiding questions about why they order so many punchbags because rage shifting into Crinos and ripping the punchbag to pieces happens so frequently. 

All in all, its not surprise Harano is such a danger when you consider these environmental pressures. At this point, I have to admit that Harano has never come up in my games - we've never gone to that place. Let me explain a little what it actually is, in case you're in the same boat. The Common Parlance glossary on page 69 of the 20th Anniversary Edition describes it as an "inexplicable gloom, inexpressible longing for unnameable things, and weeping for that which is not yet lost. Some say it is depression caused by contemplation of Gaia's suffering." There's also a Flaw, on page 484, called Harano Prone which is described as, 

"Characters suffering from this Flaw are prone to bouts of deep depression, indolence, and mood swings. You must make a Willpower roll every scene in which you suffer from some form of setback. If the roll fails, you fall into a bout of temporary Harano. You may become morose and inactive, or suddenly spring into self-destructive activity. Your perceptions go awry, causing you to lose a die from every dice pool. If you botch the Willpower roll, you also gain a temporary derangement. You may delay the Harano attack for a single scene by spending a Willpower point." 

On the face of it, that's pretty much a form of manic-depression, but werewolf flavoured. What bewilders me is that anyone can stop it happening to them, but that might be my own lore coming to the fore (sorry, I'm not actually "down with the kids", but how often do you get to talk about having "lore"?) It feels like it should be something that werewolves struggle with regularly, especially in urban environments, and like the Gnawers and Walkers should have high numbers of members who suffer from it. From my perspective, Harano should be a constant threat, one that's potentially only a few Willpower rolls away. That seems particularly true for battles fought in cities, where you might not see immediate improvements from your battles and where victories might be more likely to be pyrrhic. 

In that light, community becomes even more important than usual. Garou are social creatures, with a culture steeped in its own legends and rituals. In the same way that humans need connection and meaning, so do werewolves. 

3) Community: Connection with likeminded souls is essential for our wellbeing, and so it shouldn't be a huge jump to realise the same is true for the Garou. This feels especially true in light of the discoveries about wolves and wolf behaviour in the over 30 years since Werewolf was published. The old assumptions about wolves have been largely disproven through observing their behaviour in the wild. We know now that packs tend to be families made up of a mother and father and their cubs, and battles for dominance are pretty rare. "Alphas" and "Betas" have gone on to become just another aspect of human folklore, about humans not wolves, and seem to slowly becoming something to mock rather than respect (thank Gaia). The key to this is that wolves and humans are both social species, needing connection and the chance to relax with other members of their groups. 

As it is for wolves and humans, so it is for the Garou. That's one reason Ronin - those werewolves who have rejected or been exiled from their Tribes - are viewed with suspicion and pity. It's also why the Silent Striders are often met with hostility. Their way of life is anathema to most Garou who simply can't comprehend why you would operate without a pack or Sept. Unlike vampires who can vanish for years and do their own thing (which I imagine the more artistic Toreador actually do), Garou don't have the luxury of time and their sacred duty keeps them involved in community. They find purpose in their culture's rituals, be that howling to Luna when she's full or beating the Bawn, because they build togetherness and a sense of unity. It tells them they're not alone, and we all need that. 

In games, it really helps to incorporate that aspect and there plenty of ways to do it. One might be simply give Player Characters a Mentor for free, letting that NPC act as a guide. That can be especially useful at the start of the game because the chances are your players won't be experts on Garou etiquette, so giving them someone to look to can aid with them learning about Garou culture and communal norms. Another might be to make sure you have an NPC pack with which the PCs can become friends, starting them at the same Rank. This can allow the Player Characters to develop friendships and connections that don't have the pressure of status or responsibility, and allows you, the Storyteller, to perhaps arrange a session focused on kicking back and socialising with the other pack. Roleplaying out those many rituals and social conventions can also add depth and enjoyment to your game, and gives your Theurges, Philodoxes, and Galliards a chance to shine (as well as justify spending XP on something that's not combat focused). One of the most memorable sessions I was in involved me making up a rite on the fly and roleplaying it out. 

Next time, we'll talk about how Garou claim and protect territory in the city. I hope you'll join me next Sunday for that. 

Thank you for reading and please take care of yourselves. In a world slipping into shadow, we need each other more than ever. That's what pack is.