Wendigo

*"Just because we hve survive the threachery of your ancestors, that does not mean we have forgotten or forgiven. Count yourself lucky there are greater enemies."*

Besieged by the Wyrm and betrayed by their fellow tribes, the Wendigo have learned much about hatred over the centuries. The Europeans came to steal, murder, and conquer, and the tribes that came to the Americas with them were no better. Though the old wars over territory are now over, the Wendigo have forgotten little and forgiven less. Their anger is hot as blood on the snow; their hatred is cold and unyielding as glacial ice.

The Wendigo are named for their totem, the cannibal spirit of winter that has taught them much of their cold fury. They emulate him in many ways. They hunt as quietly as a snowfall, swiftly falling on their prey with the force of the North Wind. But they also view winter as the symbol of their purity: Vision clear as ice, heart spotless as fresh snow. They believe the European werewolves were caressed by the Wyrm long ago, and its corruption still lies within them. With the Croatan gone and the Uktena desperate enough to lie with the newcomers and delve into secrets best left forgotten, the Wendigo claim they are the only truly Pure Ones left.

Their rites and spiritual traditions reflect this concern with purity. The Wendigo meticulously attempt to expunge any trace of possible corruption from their rituals. Their moots are hidden well away from the eyes of any outsiders, and the Wendigo are not above killing even other Garou to defend their secrecy. Ritual purification is a common practice, particularly before or after hunting or going to war.

When they hunt, the Wendigo are terrifying even by the standards of werewolves. They do not bother with cruelty or mercy, instead killing with remorseless implacability. They are ghosts on the wind, dealing out sudden and bloody death. Even the Red Talons respect their skills — and, of course, understand their losses.

Outsider tribes know little of the Wendigo’s internal organization. In truth, the Wendigo are remarkably traditional. They have kept the Litany intact for long ages — even stressing the importance of avoiding human flesh, despite the influence of their cannibal totem. Leaders are expected to exemplify the tribal ideals of purity in particular. Homids and lupus are both well-respected, but unfortunately metis have a more difficult time within the tribe. They are living symbols of a failure to remain pure, and must work all the harder to prove their parents’ transgressions have left no inherent corruption on their souls.

Apart from their fairly strong alliances with the Talons and their Uktena brethren, the Wendigo have tenuous relations with the other tribes. They can work with any tribe if the need is great enough, but the situation must be dire indeed for a Wendigo to ally with a Fianna, Get of Fenris or Shadow Lord. The other “interloper” tribes are generally held at arm’s length, with the possible exceptions of the Silent Striders, Stargazers and Black Furies. But these days no tribe, not even the Uktena, is truly close to the Wendigo. Younger Brother’s scars run too deep.

At present, the Wendigo are on the defensive. The territories they have left are their primary concern. But they know that things just aren’t that simple. If they remain in their much-diminished holds, the other tribes will fall — it’s simply a matter of time, given their failings. And when that happens, the Wendigo, too, will be overrun. So their youngest and boldest roam out beyond the territories, entering cities and visiting other caerns to find how the war against the Wyrm is going — and where they may need to show the Enemy why it should fear the winter wind. Wherever they go, though, they remind the other tribes that they act from necessity rather than friendship. They still remember how they’ve been wronged. They still harbor an icy Rage.

## History

In the ancient days before the Wyrmbringers and their Garou allies, the Wyrmcomers, the Wendigo tribe was one of three that tended to the humans and wolves of the Pure Lands. The Uktena tribe was known as Older Brother, the shamans; the Croatan was Middle Brother, the leaders and diplomats, and the Wendigo was Younger Brother, the warriors, who came to settle in northern North America.

### Early History

When the Tribe came into existence, Wendigo didn’t choose them. The Tribe was chosen by Sasquatch. At some point Sasquatch ceased to be the Tribe’s totem and Wendigo chose them. The reasons behind this are forever the fuel to many brawls among Wendigo. The truth behind the disappearance is, Sasquatch is Wendigo. Forever changed by the journey to the Pure Lands. The Wendigo, with the assistance of this new, ferocious spirit, took it upon themselves to guard the bridges over the collapsed Bering Street so that no Wyrm beast would follow the Brothers trail.

Both the Impergium and the War of Rage were less severe in the Pure Lands. The Croatan convinced the Wendigo that Gaia would control the numbers of the humans. Like everything else, if the humans remembered their place, they never felt the claws of Wendigo. As for the Fera, if they didn’t stink of Wyrm or aid the enemies of Wendigo then they were allowed to live.

During the late Impergium, the Get of Fenris of Russia started culling the numbers of Wendigo kinfolk in Siberia. This lead to an all out war between the Get and Wendigo. The war has fueled many legends in Siberia and Russian Ghost stories. Neither side remembers how the war ended, most assume it ended with the Impergium. The Wendigo never forgot these transgressions in Siberia.

The first major city in the pure lands was called Cahokia. The three brothers have never seen something like this and argued bitterly of what should be done about this great threat. The destruction of the city left the three brothers in a bitter rivalry, causing resentment and a withdrawal from each other.

The southern tribes under the protection of the Wendigo became part of the League of Five Nations in 1450. It was an attempt to mend the relations between the Three Tribes. At the same time, rivalries between various indigenous Nations split the internal cohesion of the Wendigo, so that they could not, at first, coordinate their efforts to deal with the Wyrmcomers.

### Victorian Age

The Wendigo were the first of the Pure Tribes to come into contact with the settlers. The reaction of the Tribe was a harsh dismissal, although their Kinfolk tribes did not always followed suit and sometimes had pity with the foreigners and tried to aid them.

The death of the Croatans shocked the Wendigo. Moon bridges that could have ensured that messengers of Middle Brother could have reached the others faster had been closed off, resentment and anger still simmered and the Croatans did not trust their brother tribes enough to wait for them. Knowing that the Eater-of-Souls was close to entering this world and beginning the Apocalypse, they instead chose to sacrifice themselves to contain it. Arguments between the Uktena and Wendigo who was responsible for letting the Croatans die escalated and drove a wedge between the two tribes that lasts to this day.

After the destruction of the Croatan, the Wendigo remained warriors, and they refused to yield in the face of the Wyrmbringers' invasion of the Pure Lands. They fought, fell back and fought again over the course of more than a century. In the end, the Wendigo were forced to retreat to their most remote caerns and wage war from there. Bitter arguments on how to proceed were made, if Kinfolk who had accepted European customs should be taken along and how to proceed with their old Caerns and if the Wendigo should turn to the Uktena for help. It ended with a tribe divided, with the most radical withdrawing to the polar circle, while others remained at least near their Caerns until messages had reached the Uktena and monitored the activities of the Wyrmcomers.

The West as the Wyrmbringers called it was the First People’s land for centuries. The Wyrmbringers call this the “Indian Wars”. Humans, wolves, Wyrmbringers, Wyrmcomers all fought until the lands were stained with blood and rank of Wyrm. The Wyrmcomers took caerns by force, not paying any attention to rites performed at those caerns for centuries. Because of this, it is believed the Storm Eater was released. The Wendigo were forced to work with their enemies to bring down this horrible beast. This of course didn’t last long, Wounded Knee proved that their thirst for the land made no such alliance possible. The First People lost hope after that battle and they scattered. The loss of the old ways broke their pride and broke the Wendigo's hearts.

### The 20th Century

This is the century that the Weaver took hold of most lands and never looked back. Even the first people got swept up into this madness. A great Wyrm road was built for easy access to Alaska. Snowmobiles and great vehicles made access to the north easier. Stupid Wyrmbringers risked their lives to find the North Pole, even placing a stupid sign there for others to see. Mostly throughout the history of the Wyrmbringer and Wyrmcomer invasion, they left the Wendigo's lands to the North alone. Only the Get of Fenris could handle the northern conditions. They were too busy following blood in the south. Now with all these new Weaver tools, the lands have been breached.

In 1999, the territory of Nunavut was created under Aboriginal rule. Finally, Wendigo kin have a land they can call their own. It gives the Wendigo hope that other Wyrmbringer nations will follow suit. Many claim the land to be useless or unwanted, but others say an untainted piece of the Pure Lands is never useless.

## Appearance

The Wendigo are not as ethnically mixed as other tribes: they are almost exclusively born to native peoples of North America, particularly in the north. Wendigo with strong Pure Breed are clean-limbed, strong timber wolves that with coats in varying shades of gray.

## Kinfolk and Territory

The Wendigo’s human Kinfolk are exclusively Native American peoples, particularly those concentrated on reservations or in tribal communities away from the larger cities. Wendigo Kin usually understand more of the old ways than other Kinfolk do, having been entrusted with a surprising amount of tribal lore. The tribe has a relatively high number of wolf Kin in their strongest territories — Canada, Alaska and the plains states of the US — though they refuse to breed with wolves that have been raised in captivity.

## Tribal Totem

Wendigo, the cannibal spirit of winter. They also strike pacts with lesser spirits of ice and storm, and with spirits that share Great Wendigo’s hunger, such as Wolverine and Mosquito.

## Character Creation

Wendigo are a hardy, warlike group; strong Physical Attributes are prominent among the tribe. They favor Abilities that are most useful for war and the hunt, and there are precious few Wendigo that don’t have at least a dot in Survival. Contacts and Resources are discouraged Backgrounds.

**Initial Willpower:** 4

**Beginning Gifts:** Beat of the Heart-Drum, Call the Breeze, Camouflage, Ice Echo, Resist Pain

## Organization

Outsider tribes know little of the Wendigo's internal organization. The Wendigo are loath to mix members of their Tribe with other Garou, seeing it as a danger to their purity. More rebellious members of a younger generation question the wisdom of this decision, since it limits the influence the Wendigo have in the Garou Nation, which ultimately isolates them even further.

## Camps

The Wendigo are few in number and closely knit; they could not survive the splintering that some tribes seem built upon. But just as their human Kin have many societies in their tribes — warrior societies, police societies, educational societies, and more — so do the Wendigo gather in some camps. While these groups create many differences of opinion, they are united in their lineage.

### Gluskap's Lodge

A curious camp, Gluskap’s Lodge works to teach the ways of the humans to the tribe, in order to allow them to better understand their human Kin and the rest of human society. Any breed — including metis — can join Gluskap’s Lodge, although the camp is led by homid Garou, the better to teach human ways.

### Myeegun's Lodge

Counterpart to Gluskap’s Lodge, Myeengun’s Lodge serves to teach the tribe more about the way of the wolf. Like its brother-lodge, Myeengun’s welcomes any breed, but its leaders are always lupus Garou.

### The Sacred Hoop

This camp walks amongst other tribes more than any other Wendigo group, and aids the tribe in working together with the Nation against their enemies. The Sacred Hoop speaks of beauty, youth, and brotherhood among all peoples, and strives to bring the Nation together despite the harsh lessons history has taught them.

Preaching reverence of all spirits White or Red, this camp was came to power and has fought for prominence in the Wendigo tribe in a manner that has left neither the Sacred Hoop, nor the Warpath, as the clear winners since the 60’s. They are the ones who have invited Whites to drum circles, and written books on powwows and other aspect of Native American culture. They worked to exploit the New Age interest in native cultures and shamanism, to bring about a better understanding of their kin and the ways that still hold true to the Earth Mother. As more and more members of the tribe have become dissatisfied and impatient with their elders however, this camp’s membership has grown old and somewhat thin.

### The Secret Hoops

Dire times call for dire measures, and many Pure Ones are more than willing to risk triggering the End Times in order to have a chance at driving the Wyrmbringers out of the Pure Lands. The Secret Hoop are all that keep these warlike Pure Ones enthralled in their wary tensions with each other, which is the only thing (the camp believes) that keeps them from turning their full attention on eradicating the Wyrmbringers.

This camp plays a delicate game based primarily on the reality of what would happen should the Whites be eradicated from the face of the Pure lands. It’s not only something that might happen but something that several members of both the Warpath and Ghost Dance have been planning and articulating for over 500 years. Should any of their more radical plans come to fruition, the Wendigo would find themselves, as well as the Uktena, and perhaps the Red Talons and some of the more militant Black Furies, against the might of the entire Garou Nation. This battle would surely be the Wyrm’s greatest work yet and would only serve to drive the poison further into Gaia’s dying veins. So as long as the Warpath and the Ghost Dancers have existed, so have the Secret Hoop pulling the strings that are attached to individual Wendigo here and there as needed. They play primarily on the fact that the Warpath and the Ghost Dancers have always argued, and are ignorant to the initial reasons why and ignorant to how similar their goals truly are. It would be a great blow to the tribe and the Secret Hoop should the Warpath and Ghost Dancers ever figure out just how closely they have been played against each other all these years.

### The Warpath

They may say otherwise, but the hearts of the members of the Warpath have been turned to vengeance, and they seek only to repay their sufferings with violence. They are fierce warriors who have done much to protect and benefit their tribe, but when their attention turns to other wolfchangers, they can do as much damage to their brethren as they are capable of bestowing upon the Wyrm.

When other Garou think of Wendigo this is what they see, these are the stereotypical Wendigo. They are angry, bitter, and willing to take the fight to the Whites and even to the Wyrmbringer Garou. They enjoyed their greatest size and power in the 1800’s as some of their more notable kin, such as Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse, fought the White power. While they have shrunk in size in the recent years, there is a number of youngsters who tire of the elders’ hollow words of peace and cooperatively and willingly join the camp’s ranks. In recent events, the rise in native owned casinos is a blow to many a Wendigo’s pride, and such nonsense is at the heart of many Warpath member’s Rage. They see the very concept as a disgrace and a sign of full submission to the Whites’ ways. The Warpath has not yet taken their battle to their own people, but some say it is only a matter of time.

## Wendigo Caerns

* Sept of the Siberian Wilds (Arctic northeast of Russia, roughly 70 miles inland from the Bering Sea)
* Sept of the Dry Waters (Badlands National Park, South Dakota)
* Sept of the Earthshaper (near Lake Champlain, New York)
* Sept of the Frozen Star (maple grove in Central Ontario, Canada)
* Sept of Grandmother's Tear (near Netsilk Lake in Far north Nanavut, Canada)
* Sept of the Great Hill (a hill overlooking the Seneca Fiver, New York)
* Sept of the Greatest Mountain (Mount Katahdin, Maine)
* Sept of the Guardian Beast (Martha's Vineyard)
* Sept of the Hidden River (hidden forest off a tributary of the Skeena River, British Columbia, Canada)
* Sept of the Howling Winds (ice caves near Bristol bay, Alaska)
* Sept of the Laughing Sea (Ugamak Island, Aleutian Island, Alaska)
* Sept of the Lowland Spirits (on the coast near the La Grande River, Quebec, Canada)
* Sept of the Mountain Mirror (a lake near Denali)
* Sept of the North Winds (between Totagan Lake, Jervis Bay Lake, and Ozhiski Lake. Ontario, Canada)
* Sept of the Ocean's Gift (coastal shoreline near New Brunswick, Kouchbouguac National Park)
* Sept of the Painted Sands (Mesa del Lobo, Dine Reservation, Arizona)
* Sept of the Rock Plains (fissure near Snake Butte, Montana)
* Sept of the Runninf Ice (northwest coast of Greenland)
* Sept of the Seam of Heaven (mountain off the shore of Tlingit, Alaksa)
* Sept of the Seven Stars (Devil's Tower National Momument, Wyoming)
* Sept of the Shinging Island (Cover Island, Toronto)
* Sept of the Shrounded Rock (isnald near Rialto Beach, Washington)
* Sept of the Last Breath (Caribou River Park Reserve, Manitoba, Canada)
* Sept of the Still Waters (Attakapas Wildlife Management Area, and surrounding territory, shared with the Uktena)

## Tribal Culture

The Wendigo are among the best of Garou warriors, skilled at tracking and silent ambush. They direct as much of their power as they can against the Wyrm, and for many Wendigo, that includes the European Garou, whose influence ultimately resulted in the destruction of the Croatan.

Virtually all Wendigo, save for those in Russia are descended from Native American peoples and wild wolves, and their Kinfolk are the same. Most of their internal customs, like the *powwow* or the *potlatch*, are derived from Kinfolk practices.

### Political Culture

Some hardline Wendigo believe that they can drive the Wyrmbringers from the Pure Lands or wash the Wyrm-taint from the land with the Wyrmbringers' blood. This extremist view has been gaining in popularity as frustrations build in the tribe, and some talk of an alliance with like-minded Red Talons. Most take the view that defeating the Wyrm in all its forms should take precedence over choosing a particular breed of homid to dominate the continent.

The Wendigo limit their ties to the other tribes as much as possible. Although they are still somewhat close to the Uktena, they also have allies among the Silent Striders and Red Talons, and a healthy respect for the Black Furies.

While some Wendigo will ally themselves temporarily with European Garou, it will usually be short-term and with much distrust. They have a particular hatred directed at the Fianna, Get of Fenris, and Shadow Lords.

Justice among the Wendigo is usually a swift issue. If there are personal disagreements, it is solved through a duel. In other cases, a council of tribal Elders congregates to find a fitting punishment, often either banishment from the tribe or death.

### Religious Culture

The Wendigo were, and still are, a deeply traditional and spiritual tribe that holds fast to many rituals of their native blood and Garou heritage. They practice ritual purity before hunts, battles or other major undertakings, and seek aid from the spirits for many matters. They continue to seek some news about their lost brethren the Croatan.

Purity is held in the highest regard in the tribe. Practitioners will go to elaborate means to make Rites and rituals as pure as possible, and members will purify themselves before major and minor events ranging from war to hunts. Many Wendigo will also turn to spiritual means, such as journeys into the Umbra to look for answers to their burning questions or quests.

The Wendigo tribe takes its name from its totem, the winter cannibal spirit of North America. Wendigo teaches its children the power of the cold, cutting wind and stealth abilities, which they use to ambush the forces of the Wyrm (and, occasionally, trespassing Wyrmcomer Garou). Some even practice ritual cannibalism, in emulation of their Totem. These Wendigo do their best to keep their activities secret from the rest of the Nation.

## Sterotypes of Other Tribes

### Black Furies

There’s little justice in this world, is there? Only what you make with your hands.

### Bone Gnawers

They do what’s necessary to survive — understandable. But they have given up their pride, which is more than I am willing to do.

### Fianna

They offer hospitality and assistance from within the caerns they took from us so long ago. Such loremasters should sing less of their glory and more of their shame.

### Get of Fenris

No loyalty and no honor. Respect for strength is not a virtue — it’s just fear.

### Glass Walkers

This is the world you wanted? Are you happy in it?

### Red Talons

Your anger is very like ours, cousins, but would you defend our Kin the way we defend yours?

### Shadow Lords

Be certain they understand that we reject their bargains, and we will defend what little we have left with fang and claw. These crows take only what’s easily gained.

### Silent Striders

Wise, sad strangers. They don’t turn on their neighbors to make up for what they’ve lost — I almost wish I could want to be like that.

### Silver Fangs

They failed us long ago, and they still fail us today.

### Stargazers

You can trust them. They want nothing of their own save understanding.

### Uktena

Older Brother is as desperate as we are now. His path is as crooked as his serpent totem, and I fear it’s taking him into places darker than Uktena’s den.