Welcome to BITTEN.

What is BITTEN?
BITTEN is an action-adventure horror game. The players take the parts of werewolves. These are not mindless destroyers but an ancient lineage charged with protecting the world from unholy horrors and eldritch fae. The PCs will face the hordes of Undead and the arcane scum who seek to sink the Earth into the Underworld. The Lycanthropes will venture into the Shadowfell to defeat the Gloaming Court, preventing them from preying on mankind any more. And the weres will try and do all this in secret, for fear of bringing the Police or more specialised Werewolf-Hunters down on their heads.

This game uses the rules for Dungeons and Dragons 5th Edition, using the SRD and custom content from a number of sources to create a unique experience. System-wise, it is a work in progress - a system with kinks that need to be ironed out. The GM (LUNA) is not a professional RPG designer, and so this cobbled-together work, while curated with care, can need the occasional tweak.  It is also not beyond reason that players might want to add to the mass of work here, creating a custom class for themselves relating to their own vision of the werewolf curse. This would be a HUGE win for the GM, who adores when people buy into his vision.

What kind of game is BITTEN?
Dungeons and Dragons is built upon the principle of there being three pillars to the game: Combat, Social Interaction and Exploration. In short, 'Go to new places, meet people, then kill them!'  Perhaps not as blase as that, but still a tried and tested formula for the Fantasy Game.

BITTEN uses the same rules but has a fourth pillar that arguably is as important, and that is to 'Protect' or 'Guard' territory. Werewolves claim territory as part of their animalistic urge - and once claimed, this turf needs to be curated, protected and developed. Perhaps there are unquiet spirits in the graveyard, or the cement works secretly houses a doorway to the Feywild. The werewolves must ensure that the Material plane is uncorrupted by these presences, and if necessary, put an end to them.

BITTEN works best when the characters have their own agendas and goals, rather than following an 'on rails' plotline. Players' self-motivation and direction is key to creating a successful game because often the hooks to adventure lie within the Werewolves' own territory. This might give the game a more 'West Marches' feel, but a pack is a pack for a reason and should stand ready to back one another up.

What are the themes and motifs of BITTEN?
Any god werewolf game must include some recurring themes - the struggle between the inner beast and one's humanity being chief among them (like in Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde), including dealing with the consequences and fallout from their actions. Conflict arises from the interplay of mundane and magical worlds.

Change and transformation is a painful process, either when a man becomes a wolf, or when a monster becomes a hero. Most change should be bought through suffering, strife or conflict.

Betrayal (such as the Werewolves failing to protect the Great Wolf, or when the White Queen cursed the Werewolves) is also a recurring theme.

This post is likely to be edited frequently to better describe the expectations in this game.

How do I RTJ?
Unlike some other games which might ask for a completed character sheet and 200 words of backstory, I am looking for something a little different. I would like to know the character you want to play based on what you have read from the setting and source material. I have written a great deal and I'd love for that not to go to waste.

So, instead of sending me an RTJ with something akin to 'I want to play an Aasimar Barbarian (Totem Warrior)/ Wizard (Illusionist)', send me a couple of hundred words about the character, who they were before they underwent their first change. When they got bitten. What they feel when the call of the wolf cries in their bones. Have they chosen to follow a Lycanthrope Path, or do they cleave to the human world and its limitations?

Remember, please, the following:

• This is an action-horror game (For reference, the film 'Predator' was an Action-Horror)
• This is a mature, not adult game
• I'm looking for players who buy into the setting and want to expand upon it.
• If you can't answer the question 'What does your character want to do?' with a list of options and a goal to achieve, you're going to find this game hard because the conflict has to come from the proactive protagonists.

I welcome lurkers, content-creators and co-GMs.

Creating a Character

Making a character for BITTEN is very similar to making a character for Dungeons and Dragons 5e game. There are a few slight changes.

Attributes:
Attributes/ Abilities are generated using the standard array (15, 14, 13, 12, 10, 8).

Race:
There is only a single race that players can choose from - and that is Werewolf. Funnily enough.
Link to Werewolf Race

Class:
There are six basic classes:

• Strong Hero
  The Strong Hero uses their Strength score to best advantage. Taking a level in this class demonstrates physical training for overall strength and power. Strong Heroes excel at hand-to-hand and melee combat, as well as at other activities that best utilize physical power. A Strong Hero might be a bodybuilder or an athlete who concentrates on the power aspect of sports. They may be quietly intimidating or robustly boisterous. They might be as gentle as they are large or a lout and a bully
  
• Fast Hero
  The Fast Hero uses their Dexterity score to best advantage. Taking a level in this class demonstrates training in hand-eye coordination, agility, and reflexes. Better defences, a good attack progression, and a natural aptitude in athletics that require speed and grace combine to define the Fast Hero. A Fast Hero might be literally quick on their feet, or they might simply move with catlike grace. They might possess uncanny coordination and amazing reflexes. They use their natural inclination toward Dexterity-based endeavours to make their way in the world.
  
• Tough Hero
  The Tough Hero uses their Constitution score to best advantage. Taking a level in this class provides improved health and physical stamina. Better hit points, good fortitude, and the ability to shrug off some amount of damage combine to define the Tough Hero. A Tough hero might be built like a truck or possess a great amount of endurance. They can take a lot of physical punishment, rarely get sick, and are often is hard to move.  A Tough Hero can be stubborn or single-minded, may feel protective of others, and usually succeeds because they stay in the contest long after the competition has crumbled. They are often steadfast and confident to a fault.
  
• Smart Hero
  The Smart Hero uses their Intelligence score to best advantage. Taking a level in this class demonstrates educational training in an academic or technical subject. Learning and reasoning powers combine to define the Smart Hero. A Smart Hero might be brainy or bookish. They may possess uncanny reasoning skills or the ability to puzzle their way out of any situation. They’re bright, quick-witted, and possessed of a great deal of knowledge - or at least the ability to gather that knowledge if they so choose.
  
• Dedicated Hero
  The Dedicated Hero uses their Wisdom score to best advantage. Taking a level in this class demonstrates a focus on willpower, common sense, perception, and intuition. Sense of self and devotion of purpose, as well as keen senses and a greater ability to analyse information combine to define the Dedicated Hero. A Dedicated Hero might be insightful or understanding, or they might be perceptive or possessed of wisdom beyond her years. They may be alluring or fascinating. They might be devoted to a cause, an ideal, or a faith that’s bigger than themself while still possessing unshakable confidence in their own abilities
  
• Charismatic Hero
  The Charismatic Hero uses their Charisma score to best advantage. Taking a level in this class demonstrates a facility for connecting with others, developing proficiency at influencing their actions, and improving your ability to win their support through debate, compromise, or seduction. Personal magnetism, applied interaction techniques, and a touch of charm combine to define the Charismatic Hero. A Charismatic Hero might be charming or engaging; they might be strikingly handsome or possessed of great personal magnetism. They may be alluring or fascinating. Whether captivating or compelling, they are definitely appealing on a number of different levels.

The six basic classes also allow for some specialisation which are termed as Advanced Classes

• Bodyguard
• Daredevil
• Gunslinger
• Infiltrator
• Investigator
• Martial Artist
• Soldier

These classes are considered 'mundane' or human paths to power and as such, there are no options to magical effects. A werewolf character can select a Basic Class (and an Advanced Class at thrid level) in place of a Werewolf Path. Werewolf Paths are more powerful (by design) and relate to the Werewolf race much better.

The Paths are full classes, not specializations. They are:

• Path of the Warrior
  The Werewolves that choose the path of the Warrior seek to rend heir foes apart with more than brute strength but with intelligence too. They are more than wild berserker, seeking to help their pack attack to full advantage. A pack with a warrior in it can face down more deadly foes under their thoughtful leadership and guidance.
  
• Path of Destruction
  Easy power brings great destruction in its wake. This is true too for the Werewolves who give in too easily to their inner urges. They become towers of muscle and blood-hunger that don't know when to stop fighting. Those that follow the Path of Destruction know, eventually, their pack mates will have to put them down. Eventually, all those that follow the Path of Destruction become consumed by bestial urges and lose all sense of self.
  
• Path of the Hunter
  The Wolf Must Hunt is a common refrain among the Werewolves who must sate their inner beast's desires. Those that follow the Path of the Hunter become paragons of hunting, better even than wolves, and tracking their prey becomes something at which they excel.
  
• Path of the Mystic
  The werewolves that choose this path sacrifice their own vitality to create effects that change the world. Some might call them witches, or magicians, but their magic comes from the legacy of the White Queen - not from themselves. And because of this, they seem an untrustworthy sort.
• Path of the Judge
  The egos of men ae bad enough - how much worse than when the men can transform into killing machines of fur and teeth? This is what the Path of the Judge was created for - to ensure a pack can function, to discern the truth and to find the facts. Not all those who follow the Path of the Judge are skilled interrogators or investigators, but then, they do not need to be. Their gifts and powers revolve around discovering the truth of things regardless. Those that follow the Path of the Judge use a weapon to discern the truth about the world and the beings within it instead of relying on their claws and teeth.

Backgrounds
Like normal D&D characters, characters in BITTEN get backgrounds. These conversion documents provide some helpful hints on how to adapt these backgrounds for a modern setting.

• Academic
• Adventurer
• Athlete
• Blue Collar
• Creative
• Criminal
• Dilettant
• Doctor
• Emergency Services
• Entrepreneur
• Investigative
• Law Enforcement
• Military
• Political
• Religious
• Rural
• Student
• Technician
• White Collar

Wealth and Gear
Unlike in normal D&D, characters in BITTEN use an abstracted wealth score to decide what they can afford. It isn't nessicary to decide how many CD's you have or if you can afford an '19 or '20 reg car, but it is useful to note what gear you might have access too when you need it.

To determine your beginning wealth, roll 2d4 and add the wealth bonus from your background.  Use the equipment guide to buy the pertinent items for your character.
This message was last edited by the GM at 23:57, Sun 31 May 2020.