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Administrator
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- Joined:
- Jun 11, 2016
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Originization
Silver Wolf, the Ivory Claws’ totem wolf, is obsessed with purity. He will not accept a pledge of service and brotherhood from any werewolf who has served “Luna’s weaklings.” Indeed, the Ivory Claws use blood magic of their own to discern a werewolf’s lineage. If the recruit descends from the Forsaken, rather than a Pure werewolf, she is not permitted to join the Ivory Claws. Only the “purest of the pure” are granted Silver Wolf’s Gifts of blood absolution. Some werewolves abandon the Forsaken for the Pure for their own reasons, breaking the Oath and being stripped of Luna’s blessing, but those renegades never join the Ivory Claws.
Where the Fire-Touched rage with passion and fanaticism, the Ivory Claws are almost cold in their fury. They seem to possess the greatest foresight among the Pure and are frequently the ones who make the farthest reaching plans. They are the Pure most prone to maintain some semblance of a human life, though the humans who fall under their power are said to endure dire fates. Young Forsaken sometimes wonder if the Ivory Claws might not be able to be reasoned with, perhaps even encouraged to strike a peace agreement, but their hopes are all too easily clawed to ribbons. The Ivory Claws’ hatred of the Forsaken isn’t rabid like that of the Fire-Touched or savage like that of the Predator Kings, but it’s no less intense.
Only those with strong bloodlines rise to positions of power and influence among the Tzuumfin. Power passes hereditarily among them, rather than being based on merit through challenges, as it is with the Forsaken. |
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Renown
The Clans primary renown is Purity, The Ivory Claws are not like the Clans of the Moon, and follow a different standing, the following behavioral codes are taught to all members of the tribe, though not always in the same words. Violating these is much like violating a tribal vow, but doing so also carries social censure among them.
- Let the seeds rot uneaten; consume only the fruit of slaughter: The Pure are children of Father Wolf. They have abandoned the alien heritage of the humaniform Moon-spirit who spawned them, and live only as shapechanging wolves. Wolves are carnivores first and foremost. Ancient human tribesmen who venerated the Moon collected nuts and fruit, and later planted fields of grain. Silver Wolf detests this part of his servants’ heritage and forbids them to eat nuts, berries and grain. Fruits and vegetables that they do eat must have the seeds removed from them if the Claw wishes to remain truly obedient and pure.
- We hunt; we do not sow. Plant fiber shall not be worn against the flesh: The purest Pure werewolves wear only clothing crafted from animals. In the most ancient days, this meant leather, fur and wool. Truly pure Ivory Claws never wore garments of cotton or linen. Since the Second World War and the advent of materials such as polyester, Ivory Claws have had a much easier time obeying this stricture.
- Never venerate the monster of the night sky: The Moon took on human form to mate with Father Wolf, but never forget this: she was not human. She is an alien creature, neither of the Earth nor of the Earth’s spirit wilds. The Uratha emerged from her womb, but the rituals of the Pure from the most ancient days have carved her alien taint from their souls. The Ivory Claws, just as all of the Pure Tribes, reject the Moon’s heritage and her spiritual influence. The Tzuumfin never perform their rituals under the light of the full moon; if a rite must be performed on a night of the full moon, the rite must be performed indoors or (preferably) underground. Traffic with Lunes is forbidden.
- Abstraction leaves only doubt. Create no work that does not reflect the world as seen: The Ivory Claws forbid themselves to create abstract works of art. Sculpture, painting and similar forms are to be as realistic as possible. Tales of fantastic fiction are forbidden (although the realm of the “realistic” is considerably more flexible in the World of Darkness). Strangely, perfect honesty is not required of the Ivory Claws; every member of the pack understands that there is a time for lies. But artwork — creation — must stand as a reflection of the slumbering world, rather than as a platform against which any viewer can apply his own philosophy.
- Cleave only to the purest blood: This law seems like common sense; Ivory Claws who want the greatest chance of bearing Uratha offspring try to mate with humans who have strong Uratha bloodlines. Some Claws insist that no member of the tribe may mate with a human who has the blood of the Forsaken; the most strictly orthodox Claws insist that only humans with Ivory Claw blood in them make appropriate mates. More pragmatic members of the tribe believe that too much inbreeding will cause problems within the tribe, and point to the relatively recent rise of obsessive-compulsive disorder and other maladies as evidence of this. Those pragmatists are more likely to mate either with descendants of the Forsaken, or “strong” humans with no obvious werewolf ties. Such “strong” humans may be exceptionally talented athletes, scientists, soldiers or politicians; if the werewolf believes that the human’s genes will be a positive addition to the tribe, he may well violate this stricture in order to plant his seed there.
- Let not the living and dead mingle: On the surface, this is another representation of the doctrine of purity: the living and the dead are naturally separated by the grave, and each should remain in his own territory. Existence in a half-dead, half-alive state is unnatural and should be stopped.
Just as many of the dietary laws of ancient humans were originally put into place to protect those humans from hazards of food poisoning and animal-borne disease, some of Silver Wolf’s proclamations exist to protect his children from spiritual and physical calamity.
Orthodox Ivory Claws are forbidden to traffic with ghosts, to summon the spirits of the dead or to become involved in the activities of the walking dead. Ghosts and vampires have powers over emotions and it is said that they can possess the living. By forbidding the Ivory Claws to interact with such beings, Silver Wolf protects his children all from the dangers of possession and supernatural emotional manipulation; his children also benefit by allowing certain secrets to disappear into the grave. |
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Initiation
The Ivory Claws associate themselves with so many different ethnicities across the world that it is impossible to catalogue the tribe’s set of initiation rites. This may seem contradictory for a tribe so defined by purity, but purity is not the same as monomania. The Ivory Claws do not force their new recruits to live as drones. The Tzuum- fin expect that new recruits will be Ivory Claws and serve the doctrines of purity and pain, but elder Ivory Claws know that the tribe’s circumstances vary too widely to demand uniformity. However, nearly every Ivory Claw initiation rite involves the following elements:
- Fire:
Fire burns away impurity. Many young Ivory Claws are asked to ritually burn themselves to sear away their inherent impurity, or to remind themselves of Silver Wolf’s pain.
- Pain through Silver:
Silver Wolf’s agony in self- sacrifice is a constant reminder to the Ivory Claws that the Moon and the Tribes of the Moon are enemies. Silver Wolf burns eternally in molten silver. Ivory Claw elders know that it is critical for the entire tribe to know Silver Wolf’s pain. But it is not enough for initiates to simply know pain. They must viscerally understand long-lasting pain, the pain caused by millennia of burning silver. The final part of the Ivory Claws’ initiation rite echoes this agony. The initiate’s guide takes a pure silver knife — one that has been specially prepared, and is only used for this purpose — and embeds it in the initiate’s flesh.
The initiate may not remove the blade for a full week, or heal the wound the blade causes beyond allowing the skin to stitch up around it. A generous ritemaster might wound the initiate in a forearm or other location that won’t incon- venience him too badly for the week; a more maniacally devout or bitter ritemaster may well pierce a lung.
- Pure Water:
By immersion or consumption, the Ivory Claw makes it clear that he cannot ever succeed in his quest to become more pure, but can never stop striving toward this impossible goal.
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Agony
Silver Wolf is a creature of honor through pain. Despite constant agony that would kill any mortal werewolf, Silver Wolf retains his vision, wisdom and honor. Through the pain, he guides his subjects. His advice and power can lend them the ability to see through their own pain, and enable them to inflict a small fraction of that pain on his enemies. These Gifts are taught by spirits of pain or venomous animals, mostly in the service of Silver Wolf.
Official Abilities
- Stoicism (•)
Silver Wolf teaches his subjects that their own pain is nothing in comparison to his own. Through this Gift, they learn to ignore their suffering. They do feel pain that is inflicted on them while this Gift is active; however, they are able to shunt that pain aside and act as fully capable warriors despite it.
- Barbed Arrow (••)
The character taps into Silver Wolf’s pain and lets it flow through them into their foes. The werewolf must touch their foe in order to activate the Gift.
- Pangs of Anguish (•••)
This Gift allows the user to take pain he has suffered before and inflict a sympathetic agony in his victim. With a glance, the werewolf is able to create stabbing pain in the target. The pain usually mirrors some event in the Gift user’s past, though the pain might also take the form of a remembered anguish — a cardiac victim might suffer chest pains, while a mother might relive the agony of childbirth within the space of a few seconds.
- World of Pain (••••)
As creatures of quicksilver and smoke, spirits do not suffer from the indignities of the physical world. When spirits are attacked by creatures of mud and blood, spirits simply lose drabs of their cohesion — they take Corpus damage, in terms. But spirits do not suffer from wounds. When this Gift is successfully activated, one spirit designated by the Uratha suffers real pain, and the spirit’s wounds get worse as though it were a living creature. In fact, the agonies are often even more distracting, as the pain of the flesh is something few spirits have previously encountered. The Uratha does not have to touch his target to activate this Gift, but the spirit must be within five yards in order for the werewolf to target it.
- All-Consuming Excruciation (•••••)
The Uratha using this Gift temporarily soothes Silver Wolf’s pain by tugging a large fraction of it away from the great totem spirit and onto a living being. No living being can withstand such agony and remain sane. Though the target of this Gift suffers no physical wounds, his mind breaks under the onslaught that Silver Wolf stoically suffers every second. The werewolf must touch his target to activate this Gift; however, it is not a reflexive Gift (meaning that either the target must be unawares or willing, or that the werewolf must touch the target and hold the target until he activates this Gift).
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Dominance
The power to command others skillfully is an aptitude many desire but few possess. To sway another’s will requires courage and strength of mind, as well as a modicum of subtlety. Spirit teachers typically bestow these powers on Uratha (or on a lineage of werewolves) to whom they owe gratitude. Storm Lords and Rahu have affinity for Dominance; Elodoth and pack leaders often learn these Gifts as well. Teachers of Dominance Gifts are usually ancestor-spirits, girt with appropriate symbols of authority and command.
Dominance Gifts do not function against other supernatural entities; they are Gifts that allow werewolves to establish dominance among themselves and their relatives. A werewolf can use a Dominance Gift only against other werewolves, the wolf-blooded, or ordinary humans.
Official Abilities
- Warning Growl (•)
This Gift is the simplest of the secrets of Dominance, lending supernatural power to the sort of growl an alpha wolf uses to warn off a potential rival. The werewolf using this Gift growls deeply and loudly while focusing their gaze on a particular target, striking sudden doubt into their heart and affecting their ability to face their opponent. The target must be able to hear the growl to be affected.
- Luna’s Dictum (••)
With this Gift, the werewolf is able to articulate a command of no more than a few words and compel obedience. Some werewolves choose to speak these words in a soft, subtle whisper. Others prefer bellowing orders. This Gift cannot harm those who hear it, either directly or indirectly; it simply conveys a brief impulse to surrender to the werewolf’s authority.
- Voice of Command (•••)
At this level of Dominance, the werewolf learns to voice more complex and subtle decrees, in a tone that demands attention and respect. A thread of anger runs through the werewolf’s words, making everyone in earshot take notice of their declarations.
- Break the Defiant (••••)
A werewolf with this level of power is able to project a force of presence that strips away a target’s desire to resist. The werewolf snarls in a tone full of menace, chilling the target to the marrow.
- Tug the Soul’s Strings (•••••)
With this level of mastery, a werewolf understands genuine coercion, forcing others to do things even against their will. While the affected person doesn’t harm themselves, the werewolf calling upon this Gift can incite them to perform deeds that defy their identity and to cause harm to others, even if the target is normally harmless and gentle.
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Warding
Protecting the sanctity of the Uratha’s many holy sites is the reason various wards were originally developed. Over time, however, the People have found myriad ways to put wards to use outside loci, though they are still primarily used to guard those locations. These Gifts are typically taught by wolf- or ancestor-spirits.
Official Abilities
- Ward Versus Predators (•)
The simplest of protections, this Gift lets other predators know that a tract of land has been claimed by a werewolf. All such predatory animals instinctually realize that to intrude into the territory is an invitation to be attacked or killed, and most are cowed by such knowledge, avoiding the warded ground religiously thereafter to avoid a potentially fatal confrontation.
A ward doesn’t prevent other werewolves, other supernatural beings or humans from entering one’s territory. It works only against mundane predatory reptiles, birds and mammals. Other werewolves and supernatural beings with the senses to recognize the ward notice it, however. Crossing into the territory is, therefore, a conscious choice and an invitation for harm.
- Ward Versus Humans (••)
Many times, the biggest danger to a locus comes not from werewolves’ supernatural rivals, but from humanity’s teeming ignorant masses, ever eager to transform the world around them and never suspecting the troubles this calls down from the Shadow. Entering, much less clearing, woods warded by this Gift calls forth feelings of unparal- leled dread from the depths of the hindbrain. “Something lives in there that’s mightier than you,” the mind screams. “Something hungry that will eat you up.” Someone intent on entering the warded area might convince himself to do so, but a casual hiker or other such indifferent walks away.
This Gift does not work in areas normally teeming with humans, such as a few city blocks. The very mass of people in the area is more than the power can contend with. Uratha who use the Gift in such a place need to localize the area affected to a building, back alley or park- ing lot that isn’t intensely populated or active. The warded area can keep people at bay thereafter. This Gift does not keep other supernatural beings, such as mages or ghouls, at bay. It does work on wolf-blooded, however.
- Technology Ward (•••)
Werewolves are creatures born of a primal time. They rely on their teeth and claws first, the powers won from the spirit world second, and human technology as a distant third. Naturally, they favor stacking the battlefield in their favor by doing what they can to ensure that their prey must rely on similar advantages instead of advanced tools. This Gift is an effective means of removing any technological advantage, thus giving werewolves the edge.
A werewolf howls up a spiritual barrier that wreaks havoc on any electronic item and any mechanical device more complex than a simple lever or bow within the warded area. Electronic devices are rendered completely useless within the zone, and complex mechanical devices such as automo- biles and firearms are disabled. Cars governed by onboard computers stand no chance of working. All purely mechani- cal devices, including most firearms and older model cars, stand a good chance of suffering a mechanical failure.
- Shadow Ward (••••)
This Gift is invoked on rare occasions, as it denies werewolves access to one of their major strengths — the ability to access the spirit world. Shadow Ward actually strengthens the Gauntlet in the warded area. The were- wolf using the ward outlines its boundaries with intricate designs and patterns. She then calls on the power of the physical side of her being while denying her spiritual side. The ripples of that renunciation intensify the barrier to the spirit world even in areas one would normally consider spiritually sacrosanct. (In fact, repeated use of this Gift may permanently damage an area’s spiritual connection and create a Barren )
The Gift is considered important to offset damage to the Gauntlet often done in urban settings by Beshilu and other creatures that seek to collapse the wall between the material and spirit worlds. And yet, some Uratha are wary of werewolves who know this Gift for fear that it will be turned on the holy sites of the People.
- Ward of Spirit Slumber (•••••)
Singing a lullaby atttributed as Luna’s song to her offspring by Father Wolf, the werewolf’s voice pierces the Gauntlet, where the soothing melody continues to echo. Spirits crossing into the warded area hear the song’s haunting strains and are lulled into a deep enchanted slumber. Werewolves frequently use this Gift to protect an area from hostile spirits without actively injuring or offending the spirits.
The ward works on both sides of the Gauntlet, affecting spirits both in the physical world and in the Shadow reflection of the target area. Spirits within the ward’s area (those that were already present or those that enter the area while the ward is still in effect) immediately fall into a deep slumber which can last for days. Most spirits who don’t succumb immediately to the ward’s effect recognize their peril and leave the warded area as quickly as possible.
Spirits falling into slumber from this ward do not wake unless physically assaulted. Once the ward effects end, any spirit put to sleep via this ward may wake up after a short amount of time.
Werewolves, Ridden, Hosts or other creatures of part spirit and part flesh who are in the Shadow Realm are affect- ed by the ward as if they were spirits. Other creatures in the Shadow Realm that aren’t part spirit (such as mages) are not subject to the ward’s effects; nor are spirits that are bound into fetishes or otherwise not independently active (with the exception of those possessing living hosts).
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Scourging
The Scourging list is considered an affinity Gift list for the Ivory Claws. It represents their relationship to the Purity Renown and the benediction of Silver Wolf. The core idea of purity is that un-alike things should not mix. Silver Wolf and his servants demand adherence to that principle. These Gifts are most commonly taught by eagle spirits.
Official Abilities
- Sense the Impure (•)
Silver Wolf insists on the highest standards of pure blood for his subjects. This Gift allows the Ivory Claws to determine the purity of a subject’s blood — or a substance — merely by scent. If the target is a liquid, gas or a living creature, the werewolf must be within a few feet of the target of the Gift in order to activate it. If the target is a solid, the Uratha must touch it to activate this Gift.
- Relentless Focus (••)
Purity begins in the soul. The Uratha using this Gift gains intense focus on whatever actions are most important to him, and only the greatest of temptations or distractions can gain his attention. This Gift can be used only once per scene.
- Purify (•••)
This Gift separates different substances out from a small, mostly pure mixture. The mixture cannot be living or recently dead material, but can be solid, liquid or gas. The Gift can affect no more than one liter of liquid or solid, or a small room’s worth of gas. This Gift can ensure that there is no poison in a drink, change 14kt gold into 24kt gold or drive dangerous gases from a room. Purify does not split a mixture into all of its components separately. Instead, whatever substance comprises the majority of a mixture is left alone, and anything that isn't that substance is extracted in a single, visible mass.
Although the Gift is magical in nature, Purify obeys the laws of chemistry: Purify will not break a molecular compound apart, but only perform a physical change. For example, Purify cannot break alcohol down into carbon, hydrogen and oxygen — but the Gift could pull water and other substances out of an alcoholic drink, leaving behind 100% pure alcohol.
At the character’s discretion, the impurities in the substance may be pushed a few inches away from the newly pure substance — enough to leave a clean, full container of the pure material and a puddle of other material outside of that container.
Purify renders poisoned or contaminated food or drink safe to eat. Purified explosives probably won’t work. Purified gems shatter; purified precious metals become more valuable per ounce.
- Expel (••••)
This Gift pushes all parasitic or symbiotic life forms out of a living creature (including animals, humans and Uratha). Expel cleans infected wounds perfectly, heals bacterial disease completely and expels any parasites. Microorganisms are destroyed invisibly; any visible parasite is killed and forcibly expelled through the nearest suitable opening.
Unfortunately, this Gift does not discriminate between beneficial symbiote and parasite. Most creatures’ digestive tracts contain extensive quantities of microorganisms to help them digest food. Expel eliminates those as well. This can lead to a few days of intestinal distress for the subject of the Gift, until he has eaten enough local food to re-establish the balance of his digestive systems.
Expel does not work on magical diseases, viruses or prion-based diseases. It cannot expel a spirit from a host body, though the Gift can force out a supernatural parasite with a material form.
- Cast Out (•••••)
Purity of spirit is as important to Silver Wolf as purity of body. Cast Out drives a possessing spirit from its subject. While many Uratha know the rite Banish Spirit, Cast Out works much more quickly. However, Cast Out is also incredibly painful — for the Uratha who uses it, the spirit the Uratha targets with the Gift and the person possessed by the spirit. The use of Cast Out is a sure way for an Ivory Claw to make a long-term enemy out of the spirit she targets.
To use Cast Out, the Uratha must cut their hand and place (smear, flick or fling) their blood on the possessed person or thing. The wound causes great pain and heals slowly (it is an aggravated wound). After being expelled, the spirit suffers a one-die penalty from pain. Cast Out works on possessed animals or things as well as humans.
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