The Hounds
of
Hell
GAROU CREATION:
This page is here to guide you in your decisions when creating your character and some of the choices that you will need to make to flesh out a design or concept to a playable level inside the game. Where this may be slight intimidating if you are new to Werewolf: The Apocalypse Mind's Eye Theatre system, we shall try to guide you to a full understanding of your character and their background before you step into the game itself.
So to get started:
You'll Need: A copy of Laws of the Wild:Revised Edition.
You'll Need: An email address you can consistently access.
The first thing you will need to do is register on www.puppetprince.com if, you haven't already. Joining is free and only requires an email address.
If you are new to an online roleplaying environment then we have plenty of helpful players and moderators who will be more than happy to help you out, so log into our chat at:
#Hounds:OOC
Once you've created your puppetprince account you will need to join our chronicle. Log into your puppetprince account and on the right side you should see a link to "Find a Chronicle". Browse through the available chronicles and select "Werewolf: The Apocalypse: The Hounds of Hell" on the page that loads you will find a link to join the chronicle.
Now that you've joined us, you'll need to craft your character. Every player is different in how this process is accomplished. Some like to conceive a character based on an image, some need a name first, some need a background to show them who the character is. Whatever your choice you will need some form of background for your character as the moment you arrive our players will undoubtedly want to know who your character is and where they come from, we are a roving biker gang/werewolf pack, after all.
Next will be your character sheet, from the character tab on puppet prince select "Create A Character", on the new screen that appears, enter your character's name and select our genre type: Werewolf The Apocalypse. You'll be taken to your character sheet to proceed with your build. You'll want to refer to Mind's Eye Theater's Laws of the Wild: Revised Edition by White Wolf publishing to proceed.
First you will need to choose a Nature and Demeanor for your character. Your nature is who you are underneath it all, it cannot be changed without a radical life changing event (imprisonment, near death encounter, torture, etc.) and any change later in game must be agreed to by the Storyteller and roleplayed appropriately. Your Demeanor is what you show the world of your personality and can be changed though it still isn't easy, you are who you are. Selecting a Nature and Demeanor is a tough decision for many players who don't have a firm idea of who their character is. If this decision isn't easy for you then I urge you to consider developing a little more back story for your character so they can tell you who they really are. The book has a full list of archetypes you can select from.
Now your Breed, Tribe & Auspice, again refer to the book. You'll find that the breeds each carry distinct advantages and disadvantages, the Homid breed is recommended for new players. The tribes present quite a variety of different frameworks for a characters backgrounds but are flexible within reason.
Auspice is the moon phase under which your character was born, and it has a lot to do with how your Garou perceives things and deals with problems, Is he/she a judge and arbiter of his/her peers? A warrior who hits first and asks questions later? A deeply spiritual person who is concerned with the earth and Gaia's plan above all else? Your Auspice can be changed but consider carefully as changing your Auspice is for a Garou to basically tell Gaia (GOD) they believe she was wrong and they are not truly as she had planned them to be.
The other categories in this section are determined by your Breed, Tribe and Auspice. Your Rage is basically raw energy that a Garou can use to drive itself to superhuman feats, to use it all is to fall over exhausted where you
stand. Your Gnosis is your spiritual energy, think of it as the extremist form of concentration, to use it all is mental exhaustion, your Willpower is your will to live, let it run out and you're in dire straits indeed. Your initial Willpower is three. Again, your initial Rage and Gnosis will be determined by your Breed, Tribe & Auspice.
In brief, a new character receives Seven, Five & Three points to distribute in the Physical, Social & Mental traits categories at your discretion, though these points may not cross categories once selected, for example, you may take seven social traits, five mental and three physical, you may not (using the same example) take eight social traits, five mental and two physical. To demonstrate a particularly strong quality in your character, multiple points may be spent on a particular trait. For example, if your character is a mental primary (meaning that the mental category will receive seven traits) you may elect them to have knowledgeable x3 and spend your four remaining points on other mental traits. It is suggested that you think of your bidding traits as adjectives to describe your character, are they particularly cunning, insightful, gorgeous, magnetic, ferocious or brutal? For a description of the traits and their common uses please see Laws of the Wild: Revised. No individual trait may have more than five points. This limitation is determined by your rank in Garou society.
Again, we'll help if you ask, for a new player this can be a bit of a daunting process. It is possible to play without the book but it will put you at a disadvantage in the game and make understanding the rest of this process quite difficult.
Next you will consider Negative Physical, Social or Mental traits. THIS IS NOT REQUIRED; though may be useful for fleshing out your character and to give yourself a little extra boost. Each Negative trait taken rewards a free point that can be used anywhere on your sheet (Within the limits specified by your characters Rank in Garou society). You may take up to five negative traits (cumulatively between the three categories, Physical, Social & Mental) but be warned you WILL be expected to roleplay them accordingly!
Your bidding traits completed, you will now indicate your abilities. Abilities are skills developed through experience. Was your character formerly a police officer? Then he/she would certainly know how to subdue a suspect (The Brawl ability) avoid getting hit or shot (The Dodge ability) use a baton (The Melee ability) and use a firearm (The Firearms ability). Perhaps your character was singer? (Performance:Singing) perhaps they were not just a bar and lounge act but a professional singer (Performance:Singingx3)? You receive five points to distribute into your abilities.
Again multiple points in an ability will demonstrate a greater degree of mastery of that ability. The limit is five for a new character, one being considered to have a passing knowledge or even a hobby in that ability, three is considered to be a professional in that ability whereas five would be a master of it, as if your character had a PhD in that ability.
Next are your backgrounds. again, five points, but backgrounds are meant to indicate those things that your character acquired throughout their lives, it could be powerful allies who help your character but may require a favor in return, a spiritual connection with a powerful ancestor who can teach and guide them in times of trouble?
A magical item or artifact (Called a Fetish), or it could be as simple as material resources, after all even werewolves must eat. Again more points can be used to indicate the potency of a background or in the case of some the number of individuals whom your Garou can contact. (For example, Allies 2 is two allies you can call in who may not even know one another, it's best to use the notes section of your sheet for details such as these.)
Next are your gifts. At character creation your character will have three gifts. One from your breed, one from your tribe and one from your auspice. Again, the book, while not required, will make this selection much easier. You may only take Basic gifts at character creation unless otherwise specified by the Storyteller. As your Garou gains Rank you will gain access to more. For reference: Each basic gift costs three points, each intermediate gift costs six points and each advanced gift costs twelve points.
Did you buy the rites background? If you did then each point you've invested into it (again, limit five as per your Rank) is an occasion upon which you can perform your rites. If you do not have the background, while you may know how to perform a rite and may even be able to teach it to someone else you lack the connection with the spirits necessary for it to be effective. Rites are ceremonies and rituals that Garou can use to provoke a specific spiritual effect.
THERE IS NO ALLOTMENT OF POINTS FOR BUYING THEM AT CHARACTER CREATION.
However, they can be very useful and can be purchased with free points. Rites cost 3 points each.That is correct, I said free points. You get five free points to round out your sheet. Use them where you will, but remember the limitations applied to your Rank. (Backgrounds 5, Abilities 5, Physicals, Mentals and Socials 11)
On submission the Storyteller may submit an added bonus of free points for you to spend on your sheet so keep your eyes peeled for this as it will happen on your character being approved for play.
Merits & Flaws are an additional means to rounding out your character. What are some of the special qualities about them? Are they Blind? Do they Taste Bad? Do they have a Dark Secret?
Maybe they can see spirits?
Using your free points you may take up to Seven Merits. Like Negative Traits, flaws reward experience. The cost for each Merit and Flaw is different so you will need to use the resources available at the bottom of this page. The tab "Merits & Flaws" will provide you with information and help you make the choices you need to make in order to give your character more or less.
If you have any free points left over you may purchase additional Willpower, Rage or Gnosis (limit 5) but they are three points each, like gifts (Basic) and Rites (Basic), instead of one like everything else.
REMEMBER: Characters MUST be submitted to the Chronicle on Puppet Prince, written up Backstories MUST be submitted to your "Journal" Section of your character sheet on the Puppetprince Site.
Some notes and resources are available below for anyone to use in helping create your character. Please click on an image to be taken to further pages, each of these have a link attached as well as titles:
