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Function of Werewolves
(This information is so far spread across the internet, there is no way of telling where it originated from)LYCANTHROPIC DISORDER
Lycanthropic Disorder is a mental condition in which the subject (called a Lycanthrope) believes that he or she is a werewolf. The subject does not actually change shape, but is nevertheless capable of being as dangerous as an actual werewolf. Most cases of supposed werewolfry are really the works of Lycanthropic Disorder victims.
MAN TO BEAST
In real werewolves a physical change to wolf form does occur. The change can be voluntary (at will), or can be forced by certain cycles of the moon and certain sounds (such as howling).
WEREWOLVES & IMMORTALITY
Werewolves are immune from aging and from most physical diseases due to the constant regeneration of their physical tissue. They can, therefore, be virtually immortal. However, they can be killed by any wound that destroys the heart or the brain, or any form of death that causes brain or heart damage (such as hanging or other oxygen-deprivation methods).
THE MIND OF A WEREWOLF
Though primarily a true wolf while in wolf form, there is some proof that the werewolf retains enough knowledge to assist his killing; recognition of victims, evation of traps, and human cunning have all been seen on werewolf cases.
BECOMING A WEREWOLF
There are several ways to become a werewolf. They include being givin the power of shape shifting through sorcery, being cursed by someone who you have wronged in some way (called Lycaeonia curse), being bitten by a werewolf, and being born to a werewolf. In each case, the blood becomes tainted or cursed.
DAMNATION
A person who becomes a werewolf against his will (birth, curse, or bite) is not completely damned until he tastes of human blood. Once he does, his soul is eternally damned and nothing may redeem him. Even without tasting of human blood, however, as long as the taint lays upon the immortal soul, it cannot enter Heaven, and will remain chained to the mortal plane upon death.
WEREWOLF PACKS
Like real wolves, werewolves can live alone for many years, yet the instinct for a pack often leads them away from their secretive lifestyle, into revealing their nature to a priest or close associate, or converting another to werewolfry for companionship. This is when the otherwise cagey werewolf opens himself to dection! Werewolf packs cause immense destruction. A pack consists of one werewolf who became a werewolf through sorcery, birth, or curse - in other words, his is the original tainted blood. This werewolf is called the Alpha werewolf. The remaining werewolves in the pack are called Beta werewolves because they became werewolves through the bite of the Alpha and carry the Alpha's tainted blood.
ALPHA & BETA WEREWOLVES
The relashinship between Alpha and Beta werewolves is a complex one. Once a subject is bitten by a werewolf, his or her life and death are doomed to the werewolf curse. The victim does, however, have some hope - as long as they themselves do not taste of human blood, the curse is reversible. If the Alpha werewolf is killed - through some action of the Beta - the Beta's curse is broken. It is important to note that whether the Beta werewolf was bitten by the Alpha werewolf himself or by another Beta, it is the Alpha who must be destroyed - the source of the original tainted blood. It is also an interesting note that since Betas and Alphas share common blood, an Alpha cannot physically harm a Beta of his own bloodline by his own hans without inflicting the same injury upon himself. However, if a Beta is harmed or killed by another, it does not affect the Alpha.
SYMPTOMS OF WEREWOLFRY
When hunting for a werewolf it is important to remember that your biggest clues will come through your suspects personalities. Becoming a werewolf is not transparent, no matter how the victim tries to hide it. The tainted, sub-human blood greatly alters the subject's own mind and personality, even physical appearence. Therefore, look for symptoms in your human suspects that include increasing violence, increasing aggression, unprovoked rages, insomnia, restlessness, and other bizarre behavior. Unfortunately, over time these symptoms can be brought under control, so do not rely on them exclusively. A good example of this comes from a case reported by the ancient priesthood society, Manos Del Sol, of Brazil. A rash of werewolf killings there was tracked to a high ranking officer in the army. The society became aware of the man mainly through rumers of his violent behavior and changed personality. The case was successfully resolved with the man's capture.
Lycanthropy
General Description: Lycanthropy (more accurately known as Therianthropy) is a wide ranging disease which causes periotic dramatic changes in the physical make-up of those affected. In addition, Lycanthropy can also result in permanent alteration of the psychological profile of those afflicted as well. Lycanthropy should be distinguished from other types of shape changing which are brought about through magical means. Lycanthropy is the only form of shape changing which involves an actual disease.
Common Symptoms: Those afflicted with Lycanthropy undergo regular transformations in to one or more of a wide range of possible secondary forms. These forms usually mimic those of certain types of predatory animals. The transformations usually occur as a result of some Trigger Event outside the afflicted's control, but can occur due to the willful desire of those infected. The exact number and rate of transformations is variable, but seldom occur more than once a day. Once the change is triggered, the infected change into their lycanthropic form and stay that way for a period of up to eight hours. At the end of that time, they revert back to their normal humanoid form.
Secondary physical symptoms can include a number of subtle changes to the infected's physical form, such as a greater amount of hair growth on their body, lengthened middle fingers and toes, pronounced canine teeth, and general robustness. However, these symptoms usually only manifest in final stage lycanthropy.
Primary psychological changes can include: A heightened desire for a particular type of food,usually meat; aberrant social behavior ranging from harmless eccentricity to homicidal mania; increased sexual desire; general rebelliousness and a distrust of authority; animal-like mannerisms such as growling, and; even extreme psychosis. These psychological symptoms most commonly appear in end stage lycanthropy, but can appear at any stage.
The Course of the Disease: The disease is commonly believed to involve three stages of infection, each more complete than the previous one.
Stage One: Once someone becomes infected, they enter the first stage of the disease. This stage lasts until the first transformation. During this stage, there are few if any symptoms. In some cases it has been observed that those infected suffer from some mild flu-like symptoms, but this may just be coincidence. Infected individuals may begin to exhibit some psychological symptoms, but this varies from case to case.
Stage Two: First transformation usually occurs within a month of the initial infection, but can occur as soon as the first few hours. At this point, all transformations occur as the result of some Trigger Event. The trigger for a particular individual can vary widely, but usually involved some phase of the moon. Whatever the Trigger Event, those infected cannot control their changes. It occurs whether they wish it to or not. The change takes anywhere from 10 seconds to two minutes. The subject will usually remain in his lycanthropic form for a period between four and eight hours, but shorter time periods are possible. The psychological make-up of the lycanthropic form of the infected can vary a great deal from that of the person's normal personality. Just how much depends on the individual and the type of lycanthropy he is inflicted with. At a minimum, subjects in their second form exhibit a high degree of animal like behavior and are difficult to reason with in any fashion. More extreme changes can result in a lycanthropic personality which is thoroughly monstrous and homicidal. The afflicted will revert to his original personality as he returns to his true form.
During the course of Stage Two, the infected's body adapts to the disease within itself. Transformations become less painful and the subject slowly gains the conscious ability to initiate transformations. However, they are still at the mercy of any transformation brought about by their Trigger Event. As consequence of the body's acceptance of the disease, the subject begins to show more and more permanent physical and psychological changes. These changes can often be quire subtle and can be missed by the subject's close family members and friends. However, to an acute observer, the changes soon become readily apparent. Put simply, the psychological profiles of the subject in his normal and lycanthropic forms come closer and closer together, eventually merging.
Stage Three: At this stage the subject has gained the ability to change form at will, although he is still susceptible to his unique Trigger Event. All of the physical and psychological changes which will take place have done so by this time. At this point Lycanthropy can no longer be thought of as a disease, but more as a symbiotic partner of the subject.
Disease Transmission: Lycanthropy is usually transmitted through the bite of an infected individual. However, it can also be passed along through exposure to infected blood, sexual contact, and some types of magics. There are even rare cases where the disease becomes pneumonic and can be contracted merely by close proximity to someone infected. However, in all forms save its pneumonic, Lycanthropy is not very contagious. The chance of infection from a single bite is no greater than 5% and likely less. Some races are also more susceptible to the disease. Humans and elves are the most in danger of infection, Fey races less so, and a dwarf with lycanthropy is almost unheard of.
The Course and Cause of the Transformations: The believed agent of the disease is an unique type of bacteria which possesses the ability to store and use magical energy. It is the store of magical energy which makes transformation possible. No ordinary disease could produce such rapid and dramatic effects.
When first introduced to the subject, the bacteria propagates throughout the entire body, but most notably in the muscles and bone structures. Each begins to restructure the individual cells of the infected's body, preparing it for its first transformation. Only once this process is complete can the subject transform for the first time. The process takes from a few hours to a few days, depending on the individual. The bacteria will still remain active in the body for as long as the subject is a lycanthrope, as it is still required for the transformations to take place.
The actual transformation is instigated by the body's production of certain key hormones. While the hormone required is the same from subject to subject, it is produced through subconscious reactions to certain important stimuli within the individual. The required stimuli varies from case to case, which is why different Lycanthropies have different Trigger Events.
Once the transformation begins, the bacteria utilize an encoded biologic blueprint within themselves to guide the changes along. This encoding tends to remain the same over time, which is why new lycanthropies will usually changed into the same type of form as that of the individual who originally infected them. The amount of change, while seemingly total, is actually minor. While bone structures may shrink or enlarge, their general configuration remains the same. The same is true for the muscles and internal organs. It is possible that, in a more natural, non-magical form, the bacteria would bring about the same sorts of changes over the natural course of time. It is its reserve of magic energy which speeds up the transformations to occur in a matter of minutes and not months.
A common phenomenon associated with Lycanthropic transformations is the sudden increase in mass of the individual when he changes from his humanoid form to his animal form. Where does this extra mass come from? During the process of transformation, the bacteria produce a substance which is generally known as Sheen. This substance is created from the body's natural fat content (and even possibly from the infected's stomach contents! This explains both why infected individuals are usually ravenous after changing and have low body fat.) and is used by the bacteria as a form of pseudo-muscle tissue. The resulting Sheen has a mass many times that of the material which created it. This tissue is added to the individual's natural muscle mass, giving the secondary form greatly enhanced strength and endurance. However, Sheen starts to break down after eight hours of use. This is why it becomes increasingly difficult for a lycanthrope to maintain his secondary form past this time limit. When the subject reverts back to his primary form, the Sheen is extruded from his body in the form of an oily gel. After reverting to his original form, a lycanthrope is covered in this substance (hence the name). Sheen does try quickly in direct contact with the air, becoming a fine powder after only a few minutes of exposure.
Transformations, especially in early second stage Lycanthropy, are quite painful. However, as the body adapts to the regular changes, the transformations become less and less so, eventually even becoming pleasurable.
Beyond that simple distinction, the types of Lycanthropy can be split into two groups: Benign and malignant. Benign lycanthropy results in a secondary form (and ultimately the entire individual) whose psychological outlook is still healthy and relatively normal, despite possible non-destructive changes to their personality. Malignant lycanthropy results in a individual with is thoroughly evil and hateful no matter their form. The reason for this wide different between types is not fully understood, but it may be because of the source of the magic fueling the changes. For example, if the power is channelled through a evil deity, that could result in malignant lycanthropy.
Curing the Disease: Caught early, Lycanthropy is surprisingly easy to cure. First Stage lycanthropy can be cure through the administration of proper herbal treatments or a simple Cure Magical Diseases spell. As the disease progresses a cure becomes more and more problematical. Final Stage Lycanthropy is all but impossible to cure. At the very least, the cure will be long and time consuming, requiring the expertise of many individuals. The cure can also be made much more difficult if the infected individual does not wish to be healed.
Detecting the Presence of Lycanthropies: The physical and psychological similarities between most lycanthropies have already been mentioned. However, some lycanthropies will not display even one of these symptoms (or the symptoms will be masked and nearly impossible to detect). Worse, entirely normal individuals may display lycanthropic type symptoms as well, making the detection of real lycanthropies tricky at best. Because of the ability of the bacteria to store magical energy, lycanthropies can sometimes be detected with a simple Detect Magic spell, but this method is highly unreliable. There are other, much rarer spells which do a better job at detection. Without the aid of magic, however, the best method for detecting who may be a lycanthrope is acute observation.