Edge
2017-11-14, 07:14 PM
This is the product of me wanting a more easily playable werewolf for a number of years (since 3.5e, in fact) that met a few criteria:
A werewolf should be able to fight with their natural weapons, and not be worse off than if they were using manufactured weapons.
If you want to play a werewolf, you probably want to play a werewolf, not someone who's only a werewolf for a few rounds or minutes a day. Shapeshifting should be at-will by default.
Everyone has a slightly different view on what a werewolf should exactly be. There should be flexibility in the exact features you gain from your curse.
With that out of the way, I present:
Werewolf Race Traits
Ability Score Increase. Your Strength score or your Dexterity score increases by 1, and your Constitution score increases by 1.
Age. You age at a similar rate to a typical member of your base race, though you may find the ill effects of old age come more slowly to you.
Alignment. In most settings, most werewolves are overcome by their inner beasts, and are Chaotic Evil. However, the elven Lythari of the Forgotten Realms are instead typically Chaotic Good, and in Eberron, lycanthropes of all types come in every alignment imaginable. Elsewhere, druidic ritual can lead to an inner beast that, if not quite tamed, is on equal footing with the werewolf's rational, humanoid mind.
Size. Your size is Medium. You can instead elect to be Small, if you are a werewolf of a race of that stature.
Speed. Your base walking speed is 30ft. If your size is Small, your base walking speed is instead 25ft.
Keen Senses. You are proficient in Perception.
Twin Forms. You can switch between your humanoid shape and a hybrid wolf-man form or back as an action. Whilst in your humanoid form, you have advantage on all checks made to present yourself as a member of your humanoid race.
Whilst in your hybrid werewolf form you gain vulnerability to damage dealt by silvered weapons, and you gain two claws and a bite. You are proficient in these weapons. Your claws deal 1d4 slashing damage, and your bite deals 1d6 piercing damage, and they both possess the finesse and light properties. You can use these weapons in combination with each other as though you were fighting with two manufactured weapons.
Finally, whilst in your werewolf shape, you have advantage on all hearing and scent-based Perception and Survival checks.
Running Wild. While in your werewolf shape, you may drop down on all fours as a bonus action, increasing your base walking speed by 10 feet before all other modifiers. Whilst on all fours, you cannot use your hands for any purpose other than locomotion. You can return to standing on two legs as another bonus action.
Languages: You can read, speak and write Common and one other language of your choice (typically your humanoid race or ethnicity's language).
Inner Beast. A lycanthrope's animalistic side can manifest itself in several ways. Choose one of the following options as your inner beast.
Rageclaw
Ability Score Increase. Your Strength or your Dexterity score increases by 1.
Lunar Hide. Whilst in werewolf form, reduce the bludgeoning, piercing and slashing damage you take from weapons that aren't silvered by an amount equal to half your proficiency bonus, after all other modifiers (such as resistance). If you have another feature that reduces damage by a set numeric value, it does not stack with this one. Only the greatest reduction applies.
Savage Arsenal. The damage of your werewolf form's bite and claws improve to 1d8 damage.
Darkhunt
Ability Score Increase. Your Dexterity or Charisma score increases by 1.
In Sheep's Clothing. You gain proficiency in your choice of Deception or Stealth.
Taste of the Prey. After successfully dealing damage to a target with your werewolf form's bite attack, you may cast hunter's mark as a 1st level spell as a bonus action. You can cast this spell once, and regain your use with a long rest. Wisdom is your spellcasting ability for this spell.
Moonhowl
Ability Score Increase. Your Constitution or Wisdom score increases by 1.
Lunar Blessing. You have resistance to radiant damage.
Call to the Moon. You gain proficiency in Performance, and know the druidcraft cantrip. Once you reach 3rd level, you can cast the thunderwave spell as a 1st level spell once. Wisdom is your spellcasting ability for these spells.
Lythari
Ability Score Increase. Your Dexterity or Wisdom score increases by 1.
Darkvision. Accustomed to twilit forests and the night sky, you have superior vision in dark and dim conditions. You can see in dim light within 60 feet of you as if it were bright light, and in darkness as if it were dim light. You can’t discern colour in darkness, only shades of grey.
Fey Ancestry. You have advantage on saving throws against charm effects, and magic can't put you to sleep.
Language. You can also read, speak and write Elvish.
My main concern is the quantity of the ability score increases, and the flexibility of them. These werewolves end up with the same net bonuses to ability scores as half-elves, but I felt it was the only way to do them justice.
Twin Forms, I'm quite happy with the balance on, given that is comes with a drawback that can be exploited by prepared foes and even at its most powerful (with the Rageclaw Inner Beast at high level), it is on-par with a two-weapon fighter with the Heavy Armour Mastery feat.
My main concerns come from Darkhunt and Moonhowl's Inner Beast features that include racial spellcasting. Is this too much on top of the base chassis?
A werewolf should be able to fight with their natural weapons, and not be worse off than if they were using manufactured weapons.
If you want to play a werewolf, you probably want to play a werewolf, not someone who's only a werewolf for a few rounds or minutes a day. Shapeshifting should be at-will by default.
Everyone has a slightly different view on what a werewolf should exactly be. There should be flexibility in the exact features you gain from your curse.
With that out of the way, I present:
Werewolf Race Traits
Ability Score Increase. Your Strength score or your Dexterity score increases by 1, and your Constitution score increases by 1.
Age. You age at a similar rate to a typical member of your base race, though you may find the ill effects of old age come more slowly to you.
Alignment. In most settings, most werewolves are overcome by their inner beasts, and are Chaotic Evil. However, the elven Lythari of the Forgotten Realms are instead typically Chaotic Good, and in Eberron, lycanthropes of all types come in every alignment imaginable. Elsewhere, druidic ritual can lead to an inner beast that, if not quite tamed, is on equal footing with the werewolf's rational, humanoid mind.
Size. Your size is Medium. You can instead elect to be Small, if you are a werewolf of a race of that stature.
Speed. Your base walking speed is 30ft. If your size is Small, your base walking speed is instead 25ft.
Keen Senses. You are proficient in Perception.
Twin Forms. You can switch between your humanoid shape and a hybrid wolf-man form or back as an action. Whilst in your humanoid form, you have advantage on all checks made to present yourself as a member of your humanoid race.
Whilst in your hybrid werewolf form you gain vulnerability to damage dealt by silvered weapons, and you gain two claws and a bite. You are proficient in these weapons. Your claws deal 1d4 slashing damage, and your bite deals 1d6 piercing damage, and they both possess the finesse and light properties. You can use these weapons in combination with each other as though you were fighting with two manufactured weapons.
Finally, whilst in your werewolf shape, you have advantage on all hearing and scent-based Perception and Survival checks.
Running Wild. While in your werewolf shape, you may drop down on all fours as a bonus action, increasing your base walking speed by 10 feet before all other modifiers. Whilst on all fours, you cannot use your hands for any purpose other than locomotion. You can return to standing on two legs as another bonus action.
Languages: You can read, speak and write Common and one other language of your choice (typically your humanoid race or ethnicity's language).
Inner Beast. A lycanthrope's animalistic side can manifest itself in several ways. Choose one of the following options as your inner beast.
Rageclaw
Ability Score Increase. Your Strength or your Dexterity score increases by 1.
Lunar Hide. Whilst in werewolf form, reduce the bludgeoning, piercing and slashing damage you take from weapons that aren't silvered by an amount equal to half your proficiency bonus, after all other modifiers (such as resistance). If you have another feature that reduces damage by a set numeric value, it does not stack with this one. Only the greatest reduction applies.
Savage Arsenal. The damage of your werewolf form's bite and claws improve to 1d8 damage.
Darkhunt
Ability Score Increase. Your Dexterity or Charisma score increases by 1.
In Sheep's Clothing. You gain proficiency in your choice of Deception or Stealth.
Taste of the Prey. After successfully dealing damage to a target with your werewolf form's bite attack, you may cast hunter's mark as a 1st level spell as a bonus action. You can cast this spell once, and regain your use with a long rest. Wisdom is your spellcasting ability for this spell.
Moonhowl
Ability Score Increase. Your Constitution or Wisdom score increases by 1.
Lunar Blessing. You have resistance to radiant damage.
Call to the Moon. You gain proficiency in Performance, and know the druidcraft cantrip. Once you reach 3rd level, you can cast the thunderwave spell as a 1st level spell once. Wisdom is your spellcasting ability for these spells.
Lythari
Ability Score Increase. Your Dexterity or Wisdom score increases by 1.
Darkvision. Accustomed to twilit forests and the night sky, you have superior vision in dark and dim conditions. You can see in dim light within 60 feet of you as if it were bright light, and in darkness as if it were dim light. You can’t discern colour in darkness, only shades of grey.
Fey Ancestry. You have advantage on saving throws against charm effects, and magic can't put you to sleep.
Language. You can also read, speak and write Elvish.
My main concern is the quantity of the ability score increases, and the flexibility of them. These werewolves end up with the same net bonuses to ability scores as half-elves, but I felt it was the only way to do them justice.
Twin Forms, I'm quite happy with the balance on, given that is comes with a drawback that can be exploited by prepared foes and even at its most powerful (with the Rageclaw Inner Beast at high level), it is on-par with a two-weapon fighter with the Heavy Armour Mastery feat.
My main concerns come from Darkhunt and Moonhowl's Inner Beast features that include racial spellcasting. Is this too much on top of the base chassis?