House Rules

Rage Across Three Rivers House Rules

Fundamental Caveat:
The storytelling crew has the final call in any dispute.
Also, “mommy and daddy” behavior towards storytellers will not be tolerated.
Precedence in calls do not make for a continuing rule.
The Head Storyteller has the final call.

Source Material:
Laws of the Wyld revised is the primary source book.
Revised tribe books will also be considered primary source material.
The Player’s Guide to Garou, Umbra Revised, Storyteller’s Companion and Handbook, Hammer and Klaive, and Werewolf the Apocalypse Revised will have rules translated by the storytelling staff for use in Minds Eye Theater.
Any cross genre interaction will use rules from Dark Epics or the Mind’s Eye Theater Vampire Storyteller’s Guide at storyteller discretion.
Other Werewolf the Apocalypse books may also be allowed at storyteller discretion with possible translations.

House Rule Terminology:
Out of Grouping: Any power that is not within a character’s breed, tribe, or auspice.
Tempers: A term for Willpower, Gnosis, or Rage.
Max Ability Rating: This is the current max rating of named Ability Traits for a particular ability. Powers may increase your "Max Ability Rating" on a temporary basis. (Example: You have 4 Melee Ability normally, your totem gives you one more all of the time, and a Fetish gives you one more for the scene, your "Max Ability Rating" is now 6 for a time, then drops back down to 5 when the Fetish wears off, and back down to 4 if you lose the benefits of your totem.)

Rare:
Here is a list of things that PCs can possibly get or be that need express storyteller permission to come into play.
Changing Breeds except Garou (with the exception of Hengeyokai), Corax, and Ratkin. Fetishes of level 5+. Kinfolk that are also anything but kinfolk. Hengeyokai. True Faith. Joining a Tribal Camp. Mentors x5. Individual Merits with a value of 5+. Anything outside of garou genre.

Character Creation:
By the book. limit 7 points in merits, 7 points in flaws though flaws can exceed 7 one only gets 7 freebie points, 5 points in negative traits, each derangement is 2 points but these count as points from negative traits. All Lupus must spend a point on the Linguistics ability to begin play with a language other than wolf speak and the garou language. All characters begin as Cliath unless the player specifies their desire to start as a Cub in which case they are refunded the experience for their gifts which is 9 points that may be spent on other things. All cubs begin without the knowledge of the Garou language, but it may be learned through roleplay at no cost. Lupus cubs start without the knowledge of any language except wolf speak.
You may not begin play with an out of grouping gifts without storyteller approval. You may not begin with rites without storyteller approval (you would also need the rites background).
Use the experience point chart on page 173 of Laws of the Wild when spending freebie points during character creation. Please ignore the point costs in the example on page 113.

Trait Caps:
Cubs, Cliath, Fostern, and Kinfolk: 12
Adren: 14
Athro: 16,15,14 (Player chooses which categories the caps go to)
Elder: 18,16,14 (Player chooses which Categories the caps go to)

Kinfolk:
Kinfolk use character creation rules in Laws of the Hunt Revised with the following additions and exceptions. Merits are uncapped. Flaws are capped at 7 freebies as garou. Kinfolk at rare storyteller discretion may be allowed to be other supernatural types as well.
Kinfolk do not need Virtues, so don't worry about that when building a Kinfolk character.

Systems:

Combat: Each round of combat is 3 seconds.

Phases of the round:
Phase 1 is rage expenditures for extra actions/blood expenditures.

Phase 2 is the initiative count. This is a count down from the highest traits involved in a combat to one. Your initiative is the number of traits you can bid on the type of challenge you are attempting. Weapon traits do not count towards this number. A character may act on his initiative. You may hold an action until your next viable action would come up in initiative. If you do not use a held action at this point you lose it. Initiative begins again on each follow-up action with offhand actions coming last in the round. Only physical actions may be taken during Rage follow-ups.

Actions: You have one free activation per round during normal actions (this free action cannot involve an opposed challenge). Any other activation of a power or effect requires an action.

Damage and Soak:
If a creature cannot soak Aggravated Damage, then such an attack will do +1 levels of damage to them.
Some creatures that cannot naturally soak Aggravated Damage are, Humans, Vampires, Spirits, Fomori, Fae, Mages, Wraiths, etc.

Counter-attacks:
Work exactly as per page 170 of Laws of the Wyld Revised. You may not counter-attack until you have taken your first action during a round.

Temper Rules:
When bidding a temper in any challenge the character doubles their temper (other than temper vs temper challenges were doubling is unnecessary). On tie comparisons for Gnosis and Willpower one always bids their permanent rating. On tie comparisons in Rage challenges one always uses the higher of permanent or temporary Rage.

Trait Refreshing:
Ability and Attribute Traits refresh at the end of every scene. Totem traits will now refresh on this interval as well, instead of every round.

Bidding:
Named traits gained from a power or form may be bid in a challenge as normal but refreshing the power or shifting in and out of the form does not refresh these traits. Only spending a Willpower to refresh traits or getting a full night’s rest can refresh these traits. These loses should be noted on your character sheet during play.
Static challenges: On a trait comparison in a static challenge if one exceeds or ties the traits of the challenge one wins the challenge.
When you are comparing traits for ties, you add in your Max Ability Rating in the appropriate ability retest for the challenge.

Spend Limits:
Many gifts require the user to spend a number of traits to fuel them. Your spend limit for any power is your Max Ability Rating of the appropriate retest for the power plus a bonus for rank (1 Cliath/Fostern - 2 Adren/Athro - 3 Elder/Legend).

Mental Defense:
If one defends successfully against a Mental, Social, or Willpower challenge from a power, then one is immune to that power used by the same source for five minutes In Character time.

Stepping Sideways:
If one spends two mental traits and one gnosis to step sideways it is considered your free action power usage for the round and one is still free to take an action.

Form Benefits:
Crinos Form: All Strength Based attacks are increased in damage by one while in Crinos Form. You may "test down" one level of damage from any attack that a Garou could normally Soak (Simple Test, win or tie).
Hispo Form: You may test down one level of damage from any attack that a Garou could normally Soak (Simple Test, win or tie).

Pure Breeding:
Garou Pure Breed only works if the breeding is of the same tribe that the user belongs to.
Pure Breed only gives additional social traits up when comparing traits for ties against other Garou (BSDs included) in Etiquette, Leadership, and Intimidation based challenges (this includes any challenge that retests with those abilities).

Rage challenges and Frenzy rules:
A standard Rage challenge is a difficulty based on the moon phase. 4 traits Full, 5 Traits Gibbous, 6 Traits Half, 7 Traits Crescent, 8 Traits New. Anytime a character makes a Rage challenge they must immediately throw a Frenzy challenge. A Frenzy challenge is a challenge of the characters Permanent Willpower versus a difficulty of Current or Permanent Rage total, whichever is higher. The Fianna tribal disadvantage does not count against them on this challenge. Anytime a pc fails a frenzy challenge they must test for Thrall of the Wyrm as per page 186 Laws of the Wyld Revised.
Frenzy has the following benefits in Rage Across Three Rivers - You may still use Physical Gifts while Frenzied, You gain a free Temp Rage per round while Frenzied, and you are immune to wound penalties, even those inflicted with Powers and Gifts

Mortally Wounded Health Level:
Any attack that does enough damage to reduce a character beyond the Incapacitated Health Level puts the character at the Morally Wounded State. A character may attempt to make a Rage back challenge to avoid this state see page 189 LotW Revised for rules on raging back. If they fail this challenge they are immediately set to Mortally Wounded. Mortally Wounded characters may be conscious or unconscious at storyteller discretion, and will die naturally in around a minute if medical aid or healing is not administered. They have all the disadvantages of the Incapacitated Health level and may not spend Willpower to remain active or resist this pain with any power. They are literally bleeding to death. At storyteller discretion overwhelming damage may bypass this health level and result in immediate death.

Power Levels:
Higher Level Powers will likely override lower level powers.

Partial Shifting:
Requires a Nine Trait physical challenge, and the expenditure of willpower, otherwise, it works like normal shifting except for one body part. All game mechanic effects are at Storyteller’s discretion.

Item Creation and Crafting Rules:
Making a basic item has a negligible craft time and requires the appropriate Crafts ability at one or two. An item with a Crafts rating of 3 requires a month of craft time. An item with a Crafts rating of 4 requires two months of crafting. An item with a crafts rating of 5 takes three months to craft. All items beyond Crafts 5 increase the crafting time by one month per extra craft level.

Crafting an item requires an extended challenge at storyteller discretion depending on what the item is. This challenge is performed at the end of the item creation time. The number of successes on this extended challenge will determine the final crafts rating of the item. If they fail to achieve the target crafts rating then two simple tests are thrown to determine a botch. If the crafter botches then the item is ruined along with all materials. If they simply fail to achieve the target successes (but do not botch) then the item ends up with a crafts rating equal to the number of successes gained. The crafter may use their crafts ability as a pool of retests on this challenge. The crafter may also spend levels of crafts ability instead of using levels as retests to shorten the crafting time by one month per level of crafts ability spent.

The difficulty of the challenge is three times the crafts rating of the item. There may be some buffs that can increase the crafters traits at story teller discretion, but many will not work (their durations may be too short, or they may just not make sense like trying to craft jewelry in Crinos form).

A Crafts 4 item may either gain or lose a trait, or gain a special ability at Storyteller discretion with crafters input. A Crafts 5 item may choose two from this pool or in the case of a weapon may instead gain an extra level of damage. The benefits of items of Crafts Level 6+ are completely at Storyteller discretion.

Fetish Creation:
Will always require intense roleplay as the PC must negotiate with the spirit in question to establish terms of service and appropriate chiminage.

Creating Fetishes often requires the expenditure of Permanent Gnosis Traits on the part of the crafter of the fetish. For a level One or Two fetish the expenditure is One. For Level Three or Four Fetishes the expenditure is Two. For a Level Five Fetish the Expenditure is Three. For Fetishes of Level 6+ including Legendary Fetishes the cost is at Storyteller discretion.

If a fetish is created with an item with a crafts level higher than the level of the fetish the permanent Gnosis expenditure is reduced by one. Garou can take on great Quests for the spirits they are attempting to convince to enter the fetish. If they do so they can sometimes reduce the permanent Gnosis cost by one more.

Fetishes of Level One or Two will be of comparable power level to Basic Gifts. Fetishes of Level Three and Four will be comparable in power level to Intermediate Gifts. Fetishes of Level Five and higher will be extremely powerful.

The challenge for the Rite of the Fetish will be a Social Challenge against the spirit’s primary temper (Temper House rules apply). There are special bonuses that can be gained in this challenge. Rite of Contrition will lend a One Trait bonus on this challenge. Exceptional Chiminage may grant bonuses on this challenge. If the crafts level of the item is higher than the level of the fetish to be created then each crafts level above the level of the intended fetish grants a one trait bonus on the challenge. Theurges gain a free retest with creating fetishes. The Merit Natural Channel gives a bonus trait in this challenge.

Fetish Recipes are considered to have a crafts rating equal to the level of the fetish plus one (So for example the recipe to create a base Klaive (which is a level 4 fetish) is a crafts x 5 item). Creating new recipes will follow the crafting rules outlined above. When a PC creates a new recipe it will be noted on their sheet.

Soul of Lightning: Level 4 Fetish, Gnosis 7. Adds 1 level of lightning damage to claw strikes. If more than 4 damage is done in one attack, the victim is stunned for the rest of the current round and the next round. The fetish stays active for 5 rounds once activated.

Talen Creation:

As per LotW Revised. Carrying excessive Talens will anger the spirits. If you possess more than one of any type of Talen, than you will begin to accumulate Spirit Notoriety.

The Talen "Soul Candle" does not exist in Rage Across Three Rivers.

Special Materials:

Silver does an aggravated level of damage when it comes in contact with silver vulnerable creatures while in a vulnerable form. This increases the damage of all Silver weapons by one against silver vulnerable creatures while they are in their appropriate form.
Moonsilver increases the damage by two instead of just one.
Gold works like silver except against gold vulnerable creatures.
Cold Iron works like silver except against Cold Iron vulnerable creatures.
There are various other rare materials in the WoD that may be discovered. See Rage Across the Heavens for a few examples.
Creating Fetishes out of Special Materials will make them more receptive to spirits and may increase the power of the fetish.

Backgrounds:

Ancestors: This may add onto abilities that you already possess, or be used to gain abilities that you do not possess.

Abilities:

Meditation: The mental trait burn for Gnosis is limited by your levels of Meditation (Permanent). You may also spend levels of Meditation instead of mental traits in the same fashion.

Klaiviskar: A complex Martial Art of "Klaive Dueling" that is mostly controlled by the High Tribes of the Nation, though they sometimes teach it to outsiders, it is rare. Each dot of Klaiviskar that you learn also comes with a "Maneuver" that can be performed in combat. These "Maneuvers" allow for some actions one might not normally be able to take, or simply make a combat action that you might normally take easier. All Klaiviskar Maneuvers are made as Physical Challenges that you add your Klaive traits onto for comparisons on ties. Many Maneuvers cost a number of actions to perform, these actions are paid after the Maneuver, as they unbalance the Duelist and require that many actions to recover from.

1-Klaive Parry: +2 Traits: By using up an action for a defense, you gain a defensive bonus on your parry, in which you still get to add your Klaive traits in for as well.
1-Bind: +1 Trait: Upon winning the Challenge, your opponent is locked up with you, and loses the ability to attack, until they break the bind with a further physical actions, or you decide to end the bind. You are also locked with your opponent though, you may only follow up with Riposte, Disarm, or Pris'd Argent Maneuvers until you break the lock.
2-Disarm: +1 Trait: Upon winning the Challenge, your opponents weapon is flung from his hand, and lands 6 steps away.
2-Feint: By using up an action for defense, Gain +2 Traits on your next attack.
3-Blind: Cost-Minus one Damage: Upon Winning the Challenge, your opponent is down two traits on physical and perception based challenges until the damage to their face is healed.
3-Riposte/Pris'd Argent: +2 Traits: Directly after a successful dodge/parry you gain an immediate free attack on your opponent. This is considered a Counter Attack.
4-Fleche: +4 Damage/Cost-2 Actions: The Duelist moves through his opponent and makes a powerful slash, ending on the other side of them. It requires 2 more actions after this one to recover from the manuever.
4-Slashing Swing: +3 Damage/Cost-1 Action: The Duelist makes a massive swing, that throws them off balance, and leaves them two traits down on all defenses until the action cost of the maneuver has been paid.
5-Silver Shield: Cost-1 Action per round maintained: While active, the user gains a free Riposte against all incoming melee attacks.
5-Stop Hit: +2 Damage/Cost-1 Counter Attack: This attack is a Counter Attack, that the Duelists opponent cannot retest with an ability. If this attack does not kill/incapacitate the Duelists opponent, then the opponent receives a free attack on the Duelist, in which the Duelist cannot dodge/parry.

Kalindo: Coming soon.

Martial Arts: Coming soon.

Iskakku: As per the Child of Gaia tribebook. The “knock out” caused by level 5 Iskakku is considered “Incapacitated” on the wound penalty chart, for purposes of game mechanics.

Primal Urge: May be used to retest any action inherent to a Garou. This includes, but is not limited to retesting Fetish activation, crossing the Gauntlet, and both partial and full shifting of forms.

Wyrm, Wyld Weaver Lore: These lores can give you a deep understanding of their subject, but always come with a price. At level 4 of Wyrm Lore you gain a derangement as you learn too much about the enemy, and those who know of your knowledge may end up trusting you less. At level 5 of all three lores you develop a constant low level taint of the type of lore you have.

Cosmology: This ability gives you an understanding of the Umbra, its landscape and the societies of spirits that live there. The knowledge about spirits that comes from this power is entirely social knowledge. The hierarchies of the spirit world and their politics come with this knowledge as well as understandings of Chiminage.

Umbra Lore: This ability is a pure understanding of the metaphysical mechanics of the Umbra. Realms, locations, moon bridges, ley lines, this ability covers many of these things. It tells you nothing about the inhabitants of the umbra other than rudimentary knowledge of Realm inhabitants.

Spirit Lore: This lore is a more technical lore. It teaches the user about the specific types of spirits that can exist, how they come into existence and what their purposes are in the world. This knowledge includes the capabilities of different types of spirits, their patterns of behavior, and where they can likely be found. This lore has less to do with the social concepts of spirits and more to do with the technical aspects of them.

Gifts:
Primal Anger: The character may sacrifice as many health levels as they want per instance of this power’s use, but the power may only be used once per scene.

Strength of Purpose: The challenge involved is an extended physical challenge with a difficulty of seven traits retest with Rituals. This power may only be used once per scene.

Bloody Feast: The user gains a Strength Trait for every one level of damage they inflict, instead of two. These traits last for the rest of the combat/10 minutes.

Balor’s Gaze: May not be negated with willpower, frenzy or the gift “Resist Pain.” The Gift "Bark of the Willow" will still allow you to ignore the wound penalties imposed by this gift.

Pack Tactics: Spend a Willpower point. The user may split a number of extra traits equal to his Leadership ability amongst his pack mates for one action that they prepare and implement together.

Electroshock: Each rage expenditure can only hit one target with this power. For example, if you spend 3 rage you can hit 3 different targets with the effects of Electroshock, but you may only hit each target once with each rage spent. Otherwise run as written in the Glasswalker tribebook.

True Fear: The Challenge to activate this power will be Physical Traits VS Physical Traits. The power still retests with Intimidation for both the aggressor and the defender.

Might of Thor: This power lasts for a combat/10 minutes, instead of a certain amount of rounds. After that combat/10 minutes the negative effects are applied.

Weak Arm: Use the write up from the "Red Book" Laws of the Wild, the only difference is that it still retests with the "Brawl" ability like in Revised.

Stench and the City: Defeat your opponent in a Physical Challenge (Retest Primal Urge). If you win, spend a number of mental traits, for each mental trait spent your opponent is one trait down on all challenges for the rest of the current round, and until the end of the next round.

Distractions and Snarl of the Predator: These powers inflict their results for the round in which they went off, and until the end of the next round.

Alberich's Claws: Spend one Rage. If the next attack with Natural Weapons hits an inanimate, mundane, object, the object is destroyed (size of the area that the attack hit). Magical Items and Fetishes are in a case by case basis.

Berserker's Song: Social Challenge, retests Performance to active. Spend 2 Rage. Voluntarily enter a Frenzy that you can leave at any time, in this frenzy you can still employ basic tactics, and use simple weapons (swords, axes, etc). You are also immune to mind influencing powers while in this frenzy.

Spiritual Wrath: Costs on Gnosis per use. Make an attack with your claws that cannot be soaked. Only works on beings of one aspect (Spirits, Wraiths, Vampires, Humans, etc).

Renewed Vigor: If the Garou has spent 3 Rage this round and delivers a killing blow, he may choose to spend a willpower to grant all allies within line of sight 3 temp Rage.

Shell: Activated at will. While active you cannot spend Rage, Frenzy, or Shift (except back to your breed form). You automatically fail any Rage Challenges. You may not use empathy, primal urge, and fail any challenge that retests with abilities if you are forced into such a challenge. You are two traits down on initiative. You are totally Immune to mind-altering effects.

Heat Metal: Static Mental Challenge, Retest Repair, difficulty 6 for simple base metals, and 8 for complex alloys. You may heat any metal within line of sight. Touching heated metal causes one level of unsoakable aggravated damager per round.

Purity of Spirit: You may activate this gift reflexively. Spend one Gnosis per level of damage done from silver to negate it. You then ignore Silver Damage up to that amount from each attack, for a number of rounds equal to the amount of Gnosis spent during the initial activation. You may not reactivate this gift until the duration runs out. You may not have this gift and Luna's Armor active at the same time.

Spirit Savage: Only works on Spirits. Make a Physical Challenge, retest brawl, and spend a Rage. For Spirits with 1-4 Willpower, this gift works as written if you win the physical challenge. With 5-7 Willpower the user must Win or Tie 2 Simple Tests to affect the target. For Willpower 8-10 the user must outright win 2 tests to enact this power on the Spirit. High than 10 Willpower will be dealt with at ST discretion. You lower your target's Rage by one plus one per physical trait spent.


Hero's Stand: As per the Wendigo Gift Last Stand, the only difference is that Hero's Stand does not have the weakness of being surprised by beings not touching the ground, but Hero's Stand still does not allow the user to move until the battle is finished, one way or another. Retests with Survival.

Castigate: This gift requires an opposed Social Challenge with the victim, in which the victim gains 3 traits up in defense. Retests Intimidation.
If successful, the aggressor spends a number of social traits and picks one gift that they are aware of the victim having (max level equal to traits spent), and removes it from them for the remainder of a story. The victim also loses a permanent renown. This gift only works if the victim has spirit notoriety of any kind.

Ubiquitous Presence: Social Challenge against target, retests with Intimidation. Spend 2 social traits per trait down you want to inflict on your victim. These traits down count in all challenges and last for a day and a night after the curse is inflicted upon them. Normal spend rules apply to the amount of traits spent, not the traits down inflicted.

Invoke the Storm: Retests with Occult. The damage from this gift is 5 Aggravated per strike.

Assimilation: Retests with Empathy.

Blissful Ignorance: Retests with Stealth.

Blur of the Milky Eye: Retests with Stealth.

Burrow: Retests with Athletics.

Call of the Wyld: Retest with Empathy.

Curse of Hatred: Retests with Expression.

Dazzle: Retests with Empathy.

Disquiet: Retests with Empathy.

Howl of the Banshee: Retests with Intimidation.

Invisibility: Retests with Stealth.

Jam Technology: Retests Crafts.

Madness: Retests Intimidation.

Mind Speak: Retests Expression.

Spirit Ward: Retests Rituals.

Staredown: Retests Intimidation.

Thieving Talons of the Magpie: Retests Stealth.

Truth of Gaia: Retests Empathy.

Tribal Advantages and Disadvantages:
If a Tribal Advantage gives you an ability or trait it may take you over your current cap.

The Shadow Lord Tribal Advantage has no pure breed requirement.

The Fianna disadvantage does not apply to Frenzy. This is changed from the book. Instead of losing on ties, Fianna are instead down two traits in willpower challenges.

Merits and Flaws

Gnosis: This Kinfolk Merit is allowed in our game. See the Revised Laws of the Hunt for details.

Pack Mentality: This flaw gives no bonus trait, only the negative trait.

Combat Expertise: You have one free retest, that may be used on one Attack or Dodge challenge per game session.

Diverse Fighting Style: You have at least one "phantom" trait in any combat ability you do not already possess.

Infectious Courage: You are up 4 Traits when defending against Fear Effects. Packmates within line of sight are you 2 traits when defending against Fear Effects.

Rites

Rite of Tying the Snare: Mental Challenge, Retest Rituals. The person performing the ritual must have an accurate name for the victim. Any attempt to escape the area performed upon for the victim is down 2 traits.

Rite of Feeding the Wolf: Static Social Challenge, difficulty 9, retest Primal Urge. Regain one rage and one additional rage per social trait spent.

Totems:

Racoon:+3 Survival, +2 Stealth, +1 Brawl - Ban: Leave small shiny objects for him to find.

Mammoth:Enigmas +2, Brawny +2, Rage +2, Gnosis +1 - Ban: You must work towards bringing Mammoths back from extinction.

Kiunik, Otter:Dexterous +1, Dodge +1, Gift: Pulse of the Invisible - Ban: The pack must follow random moon paths in the umbra to undertake quests for Otter.