Blood Rite Lycan Rule Interaction

[Spectrulus]

Hey guys, I have an opportunity to play a character rather than DM two games, and I had a rules question.

Predatory Strikes counts your unarmed strikes as a single weapon for Rite purposes,

Blood Rites states they take an bonus action to activate, and last until the weapon leaves your grip.

I want to read this as: Since you (usually) can't remove your hands/feet, would that character be able to use blood rites on your unarmed strike as Base race, and if you go into a Hybrid transformation, both your claws are already good to go.

Does that make sense to y'all?

[Lunali]

I think technically by RAW you have to be in hybrid form to use a rite on your unarmed strikes, but if I were the DM, I'd allow it on your normal form. As for the duration, the actual duration on the rites is until your next short or long rest, letting go of your weapon just causes it to end early.

[ProsecutorGodot]

Technically true, your unarmed strikes are always present it's simply the feature that you gain while transformed that lets you apply a blood rite to both at once.

The other side of this argument, however, is that your fists aren't considered "a weapon" when you aren't in your hybrid form and so the rite would fade with your hybrid form. Unarmed Strikes allow you to make weapon attacks, but they are distinctly not weapons. Since your rite can only be applied to weapons, it wouldn't function outside of your hybrid form.

I would probably rule in favor of the rite fading, as I don't think it's intended for the Blood Hunter to benefit from these rite enhance unarmed strikes when they aren't in their hybrid form. I can see a compelling argument in favor of allowing them to maintain the rite though, perhaps as a sign that their feral nature carries over a bit more than their Order might like. As long as it's made thematic I'm willing to make exceptions.

[Spectrulus]

Would the races that have natural weapons, Tabaxi, Lizardfolk, etc, change anything about this? Besides the fun concepts about Lizardfolk Were-Gator and Tabaxi Were-Tigers.

[ProsecutorGodot]

Would the races that have natural weapons, Tabaxi, Lizardfolk, etc, change anything about this? Besides the fun concepts about Lizardfolk Were-Gator and Tabaxi Were-Tigers.

I'm not aware of any RAW mechanical difference between "Natural Weapon" and "Weapon" so I'd say it's probably good to go. It would be pretty awkward for the Lizardfolk though, seeing as now his teeth are on fire.