Endymion's Guide to Backgrounds for Werewolves

Joined: 01 Dec 2007 Posts: 331

Character creation is an ongoing thing, and so long as you play the character, he or she will never stop developing. However, a good portion of that development happens in the background that you create for that character. This is the place where you will really flesh out the things that happened in his childhood, and his life before coming to the current chronicle. The details of what has made him into the man that he is today. (Or woman!) Any Storyteller worth their salt will put great value and stress on the background that you submit for your character, because when they want to incorporate your character into a storyline, most of them will check his background for something that can be used as a plot hook. Whether you were abused as a child, or unusually violent, hunted by something supernatural or even something just mundane! You can never tell when something in your past is going to make life interesting again! Or even justify an action that you want to take during the chronicle. With that in mind, here are a few things that you should keep in mind when preparing to write a background for a Werewolf character.

How old are you?
Age is the cornerstone of a character's experience and potential. Age changes a character's outlook on life. Are you young, inexperienced, and naive? Are you tough and grizzled, tired of the challenges of life, and just looking for a place to settle down? The only real limitations posed on age in Werewolf: The Apocalypse are those brought on by the First Change. You probably experienced your first change just after puberty, or early on in your adult life. Few characters change in middle age, and almost none should transform as children. Most lost cubs undergo their first change alone, and live in ignorance of their true nature for many years until wandering across a fellow Garou.

What was your family life like?
The first relationships that you form are with the members of your family. The family teaches you how to interact with other people. Did you have a difficult family life? Who were the members of your family? Remember that a family that does not have to be made up of blood relations. Are any of the members of your family still alive? If so, how do they see you? Are you the favorite child, or the family embarrassment. Are any of your family Kinfolk, and if so, do they know what is really going on with you?

When did you have your First Change?
The First Change is one of the most defining moments in a young Garou's life. With it comes the certainty that you really are something special and different. Once you have experienced the First Change, your life will never be the same again. What sort of stress drove you to change forms for the first time? Physical? Emotional? Was it hate or lust? What were your actions as a full-fledged werewolf? Did you kill someone? Remember that most First Changes are never pleasant. The beast inside rages in exultation. How did you come to terms with the fact that you were a shapechanger? Was your first reaction driven by superstition, logic, religion, or something else? Or were you simply raised by parents who knew it was coming, and prepared you for it?

Where do you live now?
What sort of culture do you come from? Although the Chronicle that you're in determines where you live, geographically, you need to decide what kind of home or den that you keep. What sort of home do you keep? Is it dirty or neat? What sort of things make it special? Do you live as a human, or a wolf? Or do you just keep separate from other beings all together? Have you met any Garou by this point, and found out what you are? And if so, have you had your Rite of Passage yet?

Do you try and lead a normal life?
Do you still interact with people or wolves that you knew before your Rite of Passage? Do any Non-Garou or Kinfolk know that you're a Werewolf? Do other Garou know about your moonlighting in a normal life? Details of your normal life can be very important to the Chronicle. Countless stories can be based on events in your mundane life, like the problems that are created by juggling more than one identity. Remember that a high rage score makes sustaining a normal life increasingly difficult, as you have to protect your loved ones even from yourself.

What motivates you?
This is a /really/ big one. Every character should have several personal motivations. Once a story is complete, you may gain some new goals or desires. These may range from being recognized as a better man than your father was, to preserving a dying way of life. Your primary motivations are central to understanding who and what you are. Once you Changed, your priorities probably also changed drastically. Things that were once important, now are not, and new values dominate your life. If you want to have a real and complete character, you must have an understanding of what keeps you from total aimlessness and depression.

Once you have these details, some or all of them you can set about writing the story! It might even be that you sit down and make a list beforehand. Or, you simply refer to this guide as you're writing, for help with ideas of what to put into your background. Two things that I will always stress are these - READ YOUR TRIBEBOOK.. and never rush your background. Immediately playing with a hollow, half-made character is never as fun as waiting an extra day, and playing someone that you can relate to, or vividly imagine in your mind. One last thing. When you've finished it all, and you're done with everything, let the background sit for 24 hours, and then read it again. You more than likely will find a thing or two that you want to change, or that will fit better if you added this or that.

- Endy