DM-Nastics 2.0 #004 - Three Wolf Moon

1. Character has been either cursed or grievously wounded - they can be saved by the awesome healing powers of lycanthropy.

2. I'd have to make sure that the character takes a critical hit, or a legendary action curse from an appropriate monster.

3. I'd have an NPC that might know of a monster willing to aid the PC's. They would take their fallen comrade to be changed.

4. Perhaps the curse might not have worked quite as intended. You might now have an intelligent armored wolf that takes humanoid form 3 days/month.

5. As the PC gets used to the curse, they realize that they can manipulate the curse to allow them to shift form at will - but it's far more exhausting and draining, more akin to the Barbarians rage. They might need to take a point of exhaustion every time they change out of sync with the moon.

6. See #4

TLDR: cursed by hag, not bitten. I want the player to enjoy being a werewolf half the time, the other half they should feel like they are cursed. I would put heavy emphasis on their tie to the moon and its phases.

First off, I would make sure the player knows what to expect: they should not be a +2 version of themselves masquerading around in a wolf skin; but an adventurer struggling to control their bestial nature, which rests on the edge of a D20.

1. How do you work the infecting lycanthrope into the story?

While lycanthropes might emerge, none will be infections. However, they are all coming from Wolfwalkers Coppice and are all locals who were down on their luck. The true cursing entity lies within, a green hag.

I would present the opportunity (50%), but leave it the PC to get them and their party there (50%).

2. How do you guarantee that the character who wants it is the victim?

Should the adventuring party come to her wanting, she will grant them a boon for a price (their services upon the 1st full moon). Regardless of intention, wording would vaguely hint that it’s the whole party being turned and that’s because it would be, but we are not going to pursue this course.

Should the party slay her (which is what I would expect) they will find a wolf statue with (DC 10) humanoid hands, feet, and facial features. The inscription on the base reads (in a language the PC knows),

“When the cloud wall beyond doth break and soft light wander upon thine face, then stare deep into mine eyes to see thy fate and thy demise.”

When the moon is in the sky and its light touches the statue it’s eyes glow red, anyone who looks into it will transform into a werewolf (% depends of the phase of the moon in ¼). They will remain transformed until the moon sets, the curse is not permanent (unless they use the statue to transform on a 4/4 phase).

3. How do you inform the other players?

Hopefully they will see the change, or be able to recognize their friend PC’s features using passive perception. Ideally they would roleplay it out, but possible they straight up kill the PC.

4. How will you implement the drawbacks of the curse and/or maintain party balance?

I would like to tie the transformation to the moon even more than traditional. The moon has 8 phases (1d8: new (1), crescent (2, 8), quarter/half (3, 7), gibbous (4, 6), full (5)d8- 1 new and 5 full), but for this it is effectively 4 because they would be unable to transform on the new moon. Have 4 forms of transformation of increasing power (25% to 100%- not stating it out, this is long already) while having a wisdom save to keep control (make the save when they smell or taste blood) with increasing difficulty (6 (crescent), 12, 18, 24 (full)- this is my tuning lever so start high and adjust). If they do not have control I would try to run as a modified confusion: once they are exposed to blood 1- non combat action (howl at moon, take a bite of something dead, snarl), 2-4 full attack on nearest living thing (using max movement if necessary or dash if not in range), 5-6 whatever PC wants; does not stop rolling for actions (not considered out of combat) until area they are in is entirely free of the scent of blood, even if all enemies are down. Once they are away from blood for 10 minutes they regain control until blood is spilled again.

Like I said above, once they transform on the 4/4 cycle (effectively full) the curse becomes permanent and they transform anytime they are exposed to moon light (save to control actions, transformation uncontrolled). Once curse is permanent they will gain some strengths and weaknesses in human form.

5. As the story goes on, how will the character grow into the curse?

On a full moon when they do not transform (not exposed to moonlight) they hear an ethereal voice calling them. That night they dream of a face in the sky with double moon eyes and the other features faintly defined by stars, it wishes to make a deal with them: they will have control of senses and may also transform in accordance with the moons phase without the moons aid 1/day (once transform cannot un transform until the moon leaves the sky traditionally), however they must give themselves to the moon completely on the nights of the full moon (4/4 cycle nights, effectively 3-4 days/ 30 as our moon goes). If they do not accept the deal they will have advantage on ¼ and 2/4, disadvantage on ¾ and 4/4; if they do take the deal they no longer make wisdom saves, but transform without control on the full moon and if they do not expose themselves on the full moon the consequence will be dire.

I would do this cautiously, as it removes much of the risk for the reward (balance lever). The only real werewolf draw backs would be RP weaknesses and out of commission 3-4 nights/ 30, which could easily be ignored.

6. You do you!

not sure if I did a good job with this, but I as far as being a werewolf goes I want the reward to feel worth the risk, but I want the risk to feel like a real risk.

This is complicated and probably not what they wanted, but I want to play up being a werewolf rather then what makes werewolves OP (also, I did warn them). If they don’t want to roll play a werewolf in a roll playing game (seems like the kind of thing I would like but my players would not), they can go and get a remove curse from a temple for a hefty price. Would like to make it harder, but this way the cost for a player having different opinion from me is in game gold rather than out of game time.