Hexwolf

A Hexwolf is a person who has been afflicted by Lycanthropy, a curse that forces them to transform into a powerful but homicidal wolf-humanoid monster. However the Church of Light created a ritual that allows a hexwolf's curse to be bound, preventing them from becoming mindless monsters and giving them a measure of control over the transformation.

## History

Lycanthropy is a powerful and ancient curse, first attested in 788BA. The curse was created by an early witch queen, known as the Wolf Witch in order to create powerful foot-soldiers that would be nearly immune to the weapons of the time.

When the Wolf-Witch was defeated most of her hexwolves were slain, but some remained and fled deep within the wilderness, over generations passing on their curse to others. While the original spell to create hexwolves wholesale has been lost, a similar ritual using a tooth extracted from a transformed hexwolf exists.

It is said that Aideilia was the first witch to be able to bind a hexwolf’s curse and return their humanity to them, doing so for one of her early companions Astrid Duvaire. Although curing a hexwolf is technically possible, the curse is deeply embedded within the victim’s psyche and soul and attempting to do so requires a form of spiritual amputation akin to a lobotomy. Adeilia found this too abhorrent and forbade such a thing to be done to all but the willing.

### Hexwolf Rights

During the reign of Aidelia, Hexwolves  were allowed to live in peace, typically exiled to places away from others where their curse would not endanger others, or in special sanitariums where medicine was used to keep their emotions in check. With the Collapse of the empire, the mercy shown to hexwolves has in most part vanished and most are on the run or forcibly recruited into the Crusade.

## Statistic

A Lycanthrope lacks the spellcasting ability of other Arcane Skills, rather, a Lycanthrope has the ability to temporarily unbind their curse in order to become more powerful. Doing so requires a successful Focus roll.

However should the Focus roll end’s skill die end up a 1, the Lycanthrope still channels their power but loses control and goes on a rampage, attacking the nearest target (friend or foe) blindly. At the start of each turn, a Lycanthrope must make a Spirits roll to regain control. A Hexwolf who severely harms an ally or innocent while berserk must make a Spirit check to avoid losing sanity.

A Lycanthrope may always elect to willingly botch a focus roll (including after failing to transform) and go berserk if they chose so. A Hexwolf’s transformation lasts until they calm down, typically requiring at least one minute of rest.

When channeling their Lycanthropy the character gains the following traits

* Increase Str by 2 Steps
* Gain 4 points of natural armor only bypassed by silver or fire
* Add +1d8 to their melee unarmed attack
* Add +2 to their Notice rolls
* Gain the Berserk Edge
* Make a healing check every round but cannot do so to heal wounds inflicted by fire, salt, silver, or magic.
* Take an increase d6 damage from Silver weapons
* Gain the Saltbane Hindrance
* The Hexwolf rips through any clothes they wear short of extremely loose fitted robes and the like, any armor worn is likewise damaged unless specially fitted as to allow quick release.

A Hexwolf may technically wear armor, but their transformation enlarges and morphs their shape so that any human fitted armor will not fit. Creating armor for a hexwolf costs four times as much as normal armor as it has to be specially built. This armor must then be put on by a hexwolf after they transform which takes a minute.

For every hour spent in their Lycanthropic form the Hexwolf must make another Focus roll to remain in control. On a failure they may elect to turn back. On a 1 (reguardless of skill die) the Hexwolf goes berserk. For every additional hour spent in this form the Focus roll gains a cumulative -1 penalty, this can lead the Hexwolf to become unable to transform or regain control again.