Assembly Area

Thanks guys. I'll do some digging, incidentally this is the story I prepared for my players. It concerns the origins of the Black Spiral Dancers. Some coming directly from the Howlers book:

"Long ago, before the Wyrm had truly arisen as the great and terrible foe we now know it to be, before the 16 became the 13, When the Garou ran unchallenged across Gaia's good earth, 'neath the golden light of Helios and the silver glow of Luna… In that time cliaths, in that time we made many mistakes.

The War of Rage, where our Arrogance led us to turn Fang, Claw and Rage on the other blessed Children of Gaia. In Slaughter and Bloodlust.

The Impergium, where our Idiocy led us to cull our own kin and Kith. Turning tribe against tribe and brother against brother in a desperate and pathetic bid to push our own Tribes dominance over those we should have defended and sheltered.

And then came the Dance of the White Howlers where our collective Stupidity and Bone deep drive for Glory led an entire tribe of Gaia's favoured children into the vilest and most tragic of Fates any Garou could ever suffer.

Proud and Fierce were the White Howlers, Beloved of the Lion, masters of the frozen territory of the ancient lands of Caledonia and others long lost to memory. Their Ahroun matched in ferocity only by my own tribe, their Theurges cunning and wise, Spirits still speak of the great heroine Taerlach Talespinner, who convinced Helios himself to end the great Ice Age. Their Galliards filled their great northern skies with the calls of victory and challenge. Their Philodox and Ragabash… if only their tribe had listened and learned.

The Howlers had spent centuries in conflict with their neighbours; The Fianna in their heartlands of Gaul and Ireland, the Get of Fenris on the frozen seas and of course the Silver Fangs with the endless legions of Rome behind them.

Fearless, the Howlers marched every Garou from their homeland into the territory of their enemies. The kin and cairns they left in the care of the weak, the sickly or the old. What need they fear? No enemy came from further North, and the army of the White Howlers knew they could never be overcome… Gaia pity them, they could never have known what was to come.

While all the strength of the Tribe was away, bringing the Lions fury to their enemies… that's when it began:

First came Banes, swarms of them, corrupting the water, the land and every sacred place of the tribe.

Then came the Fomori, harassing and violating the Kin, Homid and Lupus both and finally irreversibly tainting the White Howler bloodlines.

What sights must have greeted the Exhausted and Wounded White Howlers on their return home, when they found all that had been done. They wept and they mourned and they raged. Many of them succumbed to Harano and simply lay down to die. Those that did not succumb did their duty and wherever they found the Wyrm, even amongst their family and friends they fought it and saw it smote by their fury.

All across their range the Howlers roamed, and everywhere they found more corrupted kin, cairn and territory, more stains upon Gaia. What little could be saved and purified they did, what could not was put to the fang. They saw many things before eventually they found it, the Great Pit.

Twisting, Dark and Foul was the Pit. A great, gaping and festering wound in the flesh of Gaia, what spirits were sent to investigate were lost or came back wrong. They knew what that was, a dark portal to some wretched place, knowing this A great Moot was called, and all remaining White Howlers argued over what was to be done.

The loudest and strongest voices were for all out battle against it and its denizens. They argued that only by destroying this wound and its denizens could the enemy be weakened enough for the White Howlers to heal themselves and their land.

Wiser, cooler heads gave an alternative, this enemy was mighty, too mighty for the Howlers to face alone. Let old grudges be buried, let Garou stand with Garou, let every Garou come and bring Rage and Death to this enemy!

Envoys and messengers came to every tribe; by Moon bridge and Spirit Messenger they came, by foot and horse and boat they came. The message could be heard in every place where the Garou nation held sway. The messengers found; polite demural, outright disbelief and even hostile destruction. Whatever the subtleties, these responses formed a harmony of objection as the entire Garou nation turned its back on the White Howlers.

Undeterred, representatives of every Auspice from the Howlers came forth to entreat those who shared their moon birth. For the Litany, even then, was clear. Wherever it dwells, Wherever it Breeds.

“Come,” said their Seers. “Our will is waning like the silver-thin moon, our hearts are heavy, and our spirits are weak. Come let the light of your wisdom guide us through this terrible dark place.”

There was no response.

"Come,” said the Scouts. “Our path forward is twisted, and we are uncertain of the way. Come help us find the path to victory and to revenge.”

There was no answer.

“Come,” said the Warriors. “Our weapons are worn on the bones of our enemies, our shields are battered, and the greatest battle lies still before us. Come lend us your arms, your claws, your fangs, and we will slay the Wyrm for once and for all!”

There was no reply.

“Come,” said their Judges. “The law is clear, and we must obey. Come help us uphold it!”

Only silence did they receive.

After many moons passed and no aid did they receive one final message came, this time from their Singers.

"Listen, you who turn your back on us,” they sang. "Listen and remember our words, though you pretend not to hear them. We will not march to our fate with bowed heads, grim though it may seem. Our hearts are full, for we know we do our duty. We shall dance the blackest of spirals to the heart of the Wyrm and, win or lose, we will meet our fate with heads held high for our song does not end here. Our song will continue."

This. Was the last call ever heard from the White Howlers, those who went in search of them found no living trace of this once mighty tribe. For their entire tribe had marched as one, alone into the spiralling pit.

Centuries passed and we believed their story had ended. We were wrong, for while the Howlers were gone their fall gave the Wyrm one of its greatest weapons against Gaia. The Black Spiral Dancers.”

It's being told by an Adren Get galliard to a new pack of Cliaths.

Well, first of all welcome. Secondly both thank you and congratulations for selecting both Werewolf: The Apocalypse and Us for your gaming needs 😉. Now as to your question, the vast majority of the time those issues are solved by the Rite of Talisman Dedication. Dedicated items can either change size to compensate for the new form OR simple "fade" into the skin to appear as patches of fur or whatnot. If the items aren't dedicated, they're either destroyed or dropped. With all that said, I would invite you to join our discord not only will you usually get an answer much faster but you will also have access to our badass community and all the players and storytellers who hang out with us there. The link for which is right here: Discord! | Rage Across Internet (rageacrosstheinternet.com)

What hate? Nobody hates Galliards.

I can't claim to be able to read their minds but maybe you're forgetting that those are Danny and Tom's first characters. I mean they can only have one auspice. Moreover, it's a difficult and potentially intimidating role. As for me, I'm already the ST, isn't that Galliard enough 🙂?

lol