Physical

Bad Taste (2 points)

Your skin and flesh taste really, really bad. Anyone who bites you — even Leeches, Wyrm creatures, or Black Spiral Dancers — must spend a Willpower point or spend the rest of the scene vomiting uncontrollably. Although useful in combat, this also means that not a lot of Lupus (or humans!) are likely to nibble or lick you affectionately.

Cloak of the Seasons (1 or 3 points)

For 1 point, any environmental penalties (dice pool reductions or difficulty increases due high winds, driving rain, and so forth, or environmental damage from extreme heat or cold) that you would normally receive are reduced by half. For 3 points, you ignore environmental penalties and environmental damage completely: you can wander through an Arctic blizzard completely unclothed and not be harmed.

Fair Glabro (2 points)

You can pass for human when in Glabro form, although you’re still pretty big and scary-looking. You have no penalties to Social attributes when you’re in Glabro. For obvious reasons, shifters with no Glabro-equivalent form cannot buy this Merit.

Feral Near-Man (5 points)

Your near-human form (Glabro for Garou, Sokto for Bastet, etc.) has wicked claws that inflict aggravated damage. Changing Breeds that lack a natural Glabro-equivalent form (even if, like the Ananasi, they can later acquire one with a Gift) cannot buy this Merit.

Lack of Scent (2 points)

You have very little scent, perhaps none at all. Anyone attempting to track you by scent suffers a +2 penalty to their difficulty. Lupus Garou (as well as wolves, and any other species strongly reliant on their sense of smell) find you uncomfortable to be around and may mistrust you.

Mixed-Morph (1 or 5 points)

You’re particularly skilled at partial shifting. For 1 point, you roll Dexterity + Primal-Urge versus difficulty 6 (rather than 9) to shift a particular body part. For 5 points, you also no longer need to spend Willpower to make the attempt.

Wolf Sight (1 point)

You have superb night vision and pick up movement very well, at the cost of seeing colors somewhat less vividly. While everything looks a little drab, you gain an extra die to all Perception rolls at night, or that involve noticing movement. Despite the name, this Merit is not restricted to Garou; Gurahl, however, may not purchase it.

Mental

Berserker (2 points)

You have an unusual degree of control over your Rage. You may enter a berserk frenzy at any time, although you still suffer the consequences of a frenzy (and any actions you take while in one) as usual. You must still check for frenzy as usual when circumstances might cause you to enter one. Shifter types that have no Rage (e.g., Ananasi) cannot purchase this Merit.

Calm Heart (2 points)

You have two extra dice when rolling to resist frenzy. Character types that do not frenzy (e.g., Ananasi) cannot purchase this Merit.

Good Instincts (3 points)

Even more than most Garou, your instincts speak loudly to you. When you make a Primal-Urge or Survival roll, your difficulty is 2 less than normal. As a reminder, difficulty reductions from Merits do not apply to supernatural power rolls unless explicitly called out as doing so.

Homing Instinct (2 points)

There’s somewhere, or someone, in the world that just calls to you. No matter where you are and how confused you might be by your surroundings, something inside always knows which way to go to get there. It doesn’t guarantee you the ability to do so — if you’re confined, or stuck on the far side of an ocean, then your journey may be delayed or even stalled — but even while you’re pacing back and forth in your cell, you’ll still know which direction you would go if you could. If there are significant obstacles (like trying to find your way through a blizzard), a Perception + Primal-Urge roll may be required — this is a change from the version in White Howlers, which requires Perception + Awareness. Your focus is chosen when you take this Merit, and cannot be changed without staff approval. If it’s a place, you can find your way back to an area approximately 100 yards in radius. If it’s a person, this Merit will bring you within 25 yards of them.

Seldom Sleeps (2 points)

You can get by on just one hour of sleep per night. You suffer no penalties for staying awake for extended periods, although you must still rest after exerting yourself, and are not immune to drugs or supernatural powers that induce sleep.

Social

Supernatural

Ancestor Ally (1 point)

One of your Ancestors is especially easy for you to contact; rolls to do so are at -2 difficulty. The explanatory +note for this Merit should describe the ancestor in question and their area(s) of particular expertise. You must have at least one dot in the Ancestors Background in order to buy this Merit.

Ghost Kin (2 points)

Ghosts find you compelling — although this Merit does not give you the ability to sense or speak with them. You gain a -2 to difficulties on Social rolls that deal with the restless dead, but not spirits, ancestors, or astral entities.

Immune to Wyrm Emanations (6 points)

While you still take damage from the Wyrm-spawned foulnesses you may be exposed to — balefire, poison, supernatural radiation, etc. — you suffer no dice penalties from them, and you cannot be possessed by Banes. Your packmates will, naturally, expect you to take the lead in dealing with such situations.

Moon-Bound (1 point)

You’re more closely tied to your auspice than most Garou. When your birth moon is waxing, you gain one extra die on all your dice pools; when it’s waning, you lose one die on all of your dice pools. Shifters that do not have auspices, or that are influenced by the sun rather than the moon, cannot take this Merit.

Natural Channel (3 points)

The difficulty for stepping sideways is 1 point less for you.

Silver Tolerance (7 points)

You are able to soak damage from silver (difficulty 8), although damage you suffer from silver is still aggravated. Shifters that are not harmed by silver cannot purchase this Merit, although they can purchase Gold Tolerance for the same price.

Ananasi Only

Gender-Morph (6 points)

By breaking into Crawlerling form and then returning to Homid, you can change your sex. Although you look very similar whether in male or female form, you do have a notably different scent, and, of course, most people won’t look twice at someone who’s “obviously” the opposite sex from whoever they may be pursuing.

Venomous (3 points)

You have venom sacs even in Homid form, and can use any venom-based Gifts in that form freely.

Corax Only

Double Draught (2 points)

Rather than just one, you can drink from both eyes of a dead person, seeing both the best and the worst that results from their death.

Mokole Only

Manshape (1 point)

Your Archid form is essentially humanoid in shape, and — if properly covered up, and in very dim light — might possibly be mistaken for human, although anyone who sees your scaly skin will still suffer from the Delirium. You must have the Archid characteristics “Biped” and “Grasping Hands” to buy this Merit.

Ratkin Only

Gauntlet Runner (2 points)

You can pass through the Gauntlet even in the presence of human witnesses.

Kinfolk Only

Feral Appearance (1 point)

You look pretty rugged in a way that werewolves find appealing. Add 1 die to any Appearance rolls dealing with Garou.

Gall (2 points)

Unlike many Kinfolk, you’ve learned to stand up for yourself and express your opinion, even if doing so puts you in conflict with a Garou. This doesn’t necessarily mean you’re obnoxious or overbearing, just that you treat your werewolf cousins more or less like anyone else. While some of the stuffier or more haughty Garou may not care for this, most of them respect honesty and forthrightness. When making Social rolls that involve a display of backbone, you gain +1 to your dice pools.

Good Old Boy (2 points)

You’ve got a way of projecting a sense of bonhomie and companionship that puts others at ease. Maybe it’s a front you put on to make it easier to get along, or maybe you really are just a friendly, trustworthy sort of person. Whatever the truth is, you gain one extra die on all Social rolls involving Garou or Kinfolk.

Kinfolk Fetish (5-7 points)

Somehow — a gift, an inheritance, extraordinary luck — you’ve come possession of a Fetish (a one-dot Fetish for 5 points, two dots for 6, or 3 dots for 7). You may be unable to attune or use it if you do not have the Kinfolk Gnosis Merit.

Kinfolk Gnosis (5-7 points)

You’ve been granted one of the greatest signs of Gaia’s favor — you have Gnosis, just as the Garou do (one point for the 5-point version, two for the 6, and three for the 7). Gnosis is recovered in the same way your shape-changing cousins recover theirs, and can be used to power Gifts and Fetishes.

Recognize Garou (3 points)

You’re very good at picking up on the signs that someone may be a werewolf — nothing mystical, just a familiarity with the qualities that they tend to have. Whenever you make a Perception roll to try to determine if someone is Garou (including the Black Spiral Dancers!), your difficulty is reduced by 2.