Lupine Lore

[Storyteller]

Lupine Lore

Lupine Lore 1 - You so stupid

OMFG! Werewolves exist! They eat humans and stalk the night on full moons! They are akin to the mythical creatures made popular in movies and books like American Werewolf in Paris and Teen Wolf.
Werewolves may be vulnerable to certain superstitious means of damage - holy water, crosses, silver, faith and gypsy curses.
Werewolves are actually called Lupines, not werewolves.
Lupines tend to live in sparsely-populated wilderness, such as forests.
They are wild, dangerous, and few have lived to tell of their encounters.
A bite from a Lupine will turn you into one.

Lupine Lore 2 - What someone on the road to knowledge would

Lupines tend to cluster in groups, like packs of wolves.
Some Lupines live in the cities, although this is fairly uncommon.
Lupines tend not to get involved in a pro-active role in human affairs.
Lupines are not reliably hurt by religious objects, such as holy water or crosses. You've probably heard of somone who found that out the hard way.
Lupines may have abilities that are supernatural - aside from turning from human to werewolf and back.
Lupines can take the shape of humans, the stereotypical large humanoid werewolf form, and wolves.

Lupine Lore 3 - What a Lupine Hunter would know

Lupines can take more shapes than just the basic 3, and some of them seem to have the ability to look very different when in the wolf shape - they could look like normal dogs, or other animals of that size.
Lupines tend to get involved in human affairs, although this is often done destructively.
Silver is the Werewolves' bane, grievously injuring them.
Some mortals aid and help them, although it's not certain why they do so.
Lupines have been around for a long time, they aren't a recent apparition or mutation.
Lupines do have some type of social order, which may be more complex than that of the animal wolves. Details on that are elusive.
Lupines have enemies, some of whom have formed into groups that specifically target them.

Lupine Lore 4 - What an Arcanum Scholar would know

The term 'Garou' (from the French 'loup-garou') is used by some to refer to Lupines.
Lupines' way of life is close to nature - their behaviour is similar to that portrayed in New Age culture as pagan nature mysticism.
There are probably a dozen or so breeds of Lupines, the same way that there are different breeds of wolves or dogs. Their demeanor varies greatly depending on their breed. Specific ways of organizing, acting, and ability are also dependent on a Lupine's breed, and one or two may even be known in detail.
The mortals that aid the werewolves and often live with them are known as Kinfolk.
The supernatural abilities of Lupines include blinding speed, extraordinary strength, the ability to marshal the forces of nature (akin to the description of pagan nature spirits), and the skill at disappearing from sight and traveling unseen.
Lupines sometimes lose control and rampage, destroying every thing in their path.
There are three distinctly different groups of enemies Werewolves have to deal with: a group of outcasts, some multi-national corporations, and a third undefined set of opponents.

Lupine Lore 5 - If you can read this...

...you are standing to close to the Cairn
The Garou are divided into approximately thirteen social groups, known as tribes. The concept of breed, tribe, and some other characteristics are more complex than they appear. Many of those names may be known, although the spelling and specifics will be extremely fuzzy, at best.
The Garou order of dominance is based on strength and ability, an internal ranking structure defining who is the alpha, just as in wolf society.
Garou form into packs, which - just like wolves - have a pack alpha.
There is something unusual about Garou mating, the details of which are not clear.
Garou have their own quasi-religious mythology which is often practiced by Garou priests of some sort. Similar to many other religions, theirs is heavily fear-based, inducing a superstitious dreading of a final day of judgment when they will all die.
Garou social dynamics are based around a system of honor.
The more aged and able a Garou is, the more he is able to tap into his supernatural abilities. The Garou believe that it is spirits of nature that power those abilities.
There are other shape-shifting creatures that often exist in near proximity to the Garou. Those can take the form of other 'known' animals, and are represented in many human mythologies.
Garou often live in clusters around what is known as a 'Sept', which is ruled by the local dominant Garou.
There is a hostile tribe known as the Black Spiral Dancers, and two other hostile groups known as the worm and the weaver. Details about the two latter are extremely difficult to come by.
Garou society hasn't always been this way, and Garou live in seclusion for a reason. Something makes humans panic when they see Garou, which has helped maintain this veil of secrecy.

Sources:
Thanks to Liz and Jack of Emerald City Reborn