[Index]
Cypher Bestiary
Werewolves hunt alone or in packs in big cities or almost-empty moorlands. They prefer weakened or inebriated prey, bringing them down with a bite to the throat.
Health: 24
Damage Inflicted: Moderate wound
Movement: Short; long in wolf form
Modifications: Attacks and Speed defense as level 6 while transformed; perception as level 7 while transformed
Combat: A transformed werewolf bites.
A transformed werewolf also has one or more of the following traits.
GM Intrusion: A character who takes their last moderate wound or any major wound from a werewolf must make a Might defense roll or be cursed to become a werewolf themselves. Even a successful defense roll means days of sickness (tasks hindered by two steps) as their body fights off the last of the curse... Then the character notices dark fur growing on their body where none was before.
Most of the time a werebeast is a human, with human thoughts, goals, emotions, and abilities. The brutal transformation can be brought on by moon phases, changes in season, or intense feelings such as anger and fear; in the span of under a minute, the werebeast's bones break and rearrange into new shapes, leaving an animal that acts only on instinct. They remain aware of their actions and may feel horrified remorse once they resume their human form, but their higher cognition is forced into the backseat. In fact, the most disturbing thing about werebeasts is that they reveal what a human is capable of under the right (or wrong) conditions.
Werebeasts tend to live in isolation, or accompanied by werebeasts with the same beast form. This reduces the risk that they'll harm a loved one in their beast form; it also means that characters who stumble upon their hideout may be set upon by a bevy of enraged werebeasts.
In human form, werebeasts are usually level 2 humans.
Werebeasts usually have human names appropriate to the setting and time period, such as: Embry, Lucian, Rusty, Frankie, Beau, Dash, Teddy, Libby, Max, Hunter, Luna, Ari, Barry, Dot, Kira, Finley, Rex, Juniper, Boris, Lowell, Tala, Morgan
A "transformed" werebeast is one that appears either as a huge creature, or a huge human/creature hybrid.
Adventure Seed: Beasts are preying on families in a small town. When hunters follow their trail into the woods, the beast tracks turn to human footprints.
How did the werebeast develop the ability to shapeshift?
| d6 | Origin |
|---|---|
| 1 | Heritable trait (that may have skipped generations) |
| 2 | Bitten by the same kind of werebeast |
| 3 | Cursed |
| 4 | Summoning ritual gone wrong |
| 5 | Inherited trinket that keeps reappearing |
| 6 | Intentionally, by seeking arcane knowledge |
What causes a particular werebeast to transform, if not the full moon?
| d6 | Trigger |
|---|---|
| 1 | Rare tide |
| 2 | Unexpected pain, such as a stubbed toe, or damage |
| 3 | Taking an amount of damage that would normally kill them |
| 4 | Intoxication |
| 5 | The sound of an approaching storm |
| 6 | Entering a holy place |