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moonbeast
Senior Scribe
USA
522 Posts |
 Posted - 06 Apr 2016 : 13:29:02
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Hi all, I was curious about the lore as well as more details on the culture/society of lycanthropes in the Realms.
For example, is it strictly treated as a disease/curse-like affliction? Or can a lycanthrope pass on the condition to an offspring?
And are there known instances or settlements (in Faerun) of large bands of lycanthropes? Maybe a village or settlement of a couple hundred Malar-following lycans?
And lastly
. where can I read more about (canon) D&D information about lycanthropes? Any sourcebooks (from either TSR or WotC) that covered this topic? Or maybe it was detailed extensively in an old Dragon magazine issue?
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hashimashadoo
Master of Realmslore
United Kingdom
1155 Posts |
Posted - 06 Apr 2016 : 17:50:44
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Some big questions there:
The easiest to answer is that lycanthropy is both a disease and an inherited condition. The disease can be passed on through a bite but the condition can also be passed on when were-creatures mate with each other. The condition is more controllable if you are born a lycanthrope though.
There are several communities that boast large numbers of lycanthropes in the Realms. The Grey Wolf Uthgardt tribe is the most recently detailed (but they're weird since if you leave the tribe, their lycanthropy goes away). The People of the Black Blood are a Malarite lycanthrope cult with sects in the Chondalwood, Chult, Cormanthor, the High Forest, and significant numbers in the Moonwood. Malar's Chosen also had a cult of particularly powerful lycanthropes not far from Silverymoon. The Adder Swamp in Chessenta was populated by two clans of opposing lycanthropes; the Dagger Hills in Daggerdale are full of were-creatures; the sewers under Calimport have quite a large population of them - basically. Lycanthropes can be found all over in varying numbers.
There's a 1992 accessory called Night Howlers by Ann Dupuis that focused on infected lycanthropes and the 1975 Blackmoor supplement by Dave Arneson has more general info on them. There was never a Dragon article that focused on lycanthropy in the Realms, though there was an 'Ecology of the Wererat' article in #251 and a couple articles on playing/running them. Personally, I'd recommend Van Richten's Guide to Werebeasts, which, although it's a Ravenloft accessory, is the single biggest and most detailed information on lycanthropy that I've read. |
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Edited by - hashimashadoo on 06 Apr 2016 17:51:35 |
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Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
36875 Posts |
Posted - 06 Apr 2016 : 18:39:10
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The Black Lion Uthgardt tribe also has a lot of lycanthropes -- specifically, black were-lions.
There's a group of werecats in Waterdeep that fight the local wererats.
Sean K Reynolds did his own lycanthropy sourcebook for 3.5, Curse of the Moon. I quite recommend it -- part of the goal of the book was addressing the imbalances and rules wonkiness for lycanthropes, and I think he did a great job. |
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Thauramarth
Senior Scribe
United Kingdom
731 Posts |
Posted - 07 Apr 2016 : 06:58:02
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For OD&D, there's PC4-Night Howlers, which set out rules for lycanthrope player characters. I've used that, with some tweaks, in the Realms.
For AD&D, there is, of course, Van Richten's Guide to Werebeasts. While it was designed for Ravenloft, a lot of the material can be used ina Reals setting.
If yiu want something very Realms-specific, the old FR7-Hall of Heroes has some lore details on Realms lycanthrope species under Kelemvor's entry.
In general, the church of Selūne is favourably inclined to lycanthropes, and a number of its priest are (good-aligned) lycanthropes. |
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Arivia
Great Reader
Canada
2965 Posts |
Posted - 07 Apr 2016 : 07:20:02
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| Don't forget that lycanthropes are discussed in Races of Faerun, as well. Most of the entry is rules, but there's enough there to give you a general perspective on lycanthropes in the Realms. |
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sleyvas
Skilled Spell Strategist
USA
11995 Posts |
Posted - 07 Apr 2016 : 13:48:46
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| After the Crintri were cast out, the people of Dambrath started favoring lycanthropy. Granted, I liked the Crintri, but perhaps these people can be turned into something now that I think on it. |
Alavairthae, may your skill prevail
Phillip aka Sleyvas |
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Lycanthropy in the Realms
