A Werewolf Chronicle In Paris

[Acrozatarim]

So my next Werewolf game (and my first with the post-playtest, proper Idigam Chronicle 2e ruleset) is going to be set in Paris.

I have some ideas of where I'm going to go with things, but I'm interested in sounding out the forum's ideas and inspirations.

What should feature in a Paris Werewolf chronicle? What are cool locations, interesting bits of culture and really cool elements of folklore and urban myth that should definitely be included? What are the obvious spiritual hotspots and centres of occult weirdness?

[Sikla Alkis]

The Catacombs.

Seriously, I couldn't imagine a WoD game without those catacombs. There HAS to be something important to Death Wolf down there.

[Lyrics Of War]

absolutely the catacombs, but also the french country side since the loup-garou as an ever popular ame comes from there. Emphasize the human fear of the night and the furred beast.

[nofather]

I haven't been there in decades, but all I really recall was people were pretty nice.

I know there's a lot of rats there, now. Like, several times the population of people. And obviously there's the political climate. From a World of Darkness standpoint it would be a hot spot for Fire-Touched and beshilu.

[Ephsy]

Is it gonna be played online? I'd love to play.

[wyrdhamster]

France has Gauls/Normans background, and there is large portion of pagan believes, even if they are mostly now Catholic or Agnostic. But for millennium Church was very big part of French identity. Nice touch would be local alternative Pangea myth, maybe more based on Garden of Eden and First Sin? You could based it on mine for Old Testament sketch. With Death Wolf involvement with Catacombs, maybe Firstborns could make larger presence in those local tales? Waiting to read from you on this topic.

What's more? Oh, yes. Gargoyles - always loved them! <3 In Changeling there is Banished Fae that talks with Gargoyles, in Autumn Nightmares if I remember good. In Werewolf, I would make them spirits of specific Choir that are mythical beings, but also object spirits. And they are not Magath. And they are watching everything, for centuries. And they are weird and powerful in local Shadow.

Old Town with truly Gothic buildings. Huge social disproportions of previous centuries, that picked in times of French Revolution ( i.e. Assasin's Creed Unity ).

And Garou ( Big Bad Wolf ) as major legend of Île-de-France region ( that Paris is center of ). There is even a story of local werewolf trials.

Some culture works I would look on your place...

Hopes it all helps you and wait to see more interesting stuff!

[Ephsy]

Anyhow, Underworld-touched Beshilu nesting on the catacombs erupting and making zombies with their bites.

[Lyrics Of War]

Take "As above so below" as an example (fun movie too!). The Beshilu can be gnawing holes in the gauntlet in the catacombs. Explorers take a wrong turn and find themselves in the hisil... hallucinations? Maybe...

[Sikla Alkis]

Leftover violence spirits from the French Revolution, too?

[Ephsy]

Leftover violence spirits from the French Revolution, too?

Yeah... those would have evolved in 200 years.

[Acrozatarim]

The Catacombs.

Seriously, I couldn't imagine a WoD game without those catacombs. There HAS to be something important to Death Wolf down there.

Yeah, no doubt the catacombs will feature. Sadly it doesn't look like the pack will include any Bone Shadows

absolutely the catacombs, but also the french country side since the loup-garou as an ever popular ame comes from there. Emphasize the human fear of the night and the furred beast.

Question is, how likely is it that the Uratha in Paris will have territories that spread out far into the countryside out of the capital?

I haven't been there in decades, but all I really recall was people were pretty nice.

I know there's a lot of rats there, now. Like, several times the population of people. And obviously there's the political climate. From a World of Darkness standpoint it would be a hot spot for Fire-Touched and beshilu.

Yep, planning to make heavy use of both of those. I have a soft spot for beshilu in general, but I'd also like to bring azlu to bear as I've generally underused them in previous games.

Is it gonna be played online? I'd love to play.

No, a face-to-face game with my regular group. We'll probably podcast it once the 2e corebook is released though.

Nice touch would be local alternative Pangea myth, maybe more based on Garden of Eden and First Sin?

While I'm probably not going to run with an alternative Pangaea myth, I do plan on mucking about with some of the folklore by threading it into the Uratha. Probably go with the idea of the link between witches and werewolves being played up heavily, among other things, and use King Philip the Fair vs the Templars as the spark of something interesting that one of the Tribes draws on.

Anyhow, Underworld-touched Beshilu nesting on the catacombs erupting and making zombies with their bites.

Hah, zombie-making Beshilu is an amusing idea. There's certainly scope to pull in Underworld-related stuff, so I'll probably make use of my 2e-ified version of the Lodge of Death, maybe even use Geists at some point.

Take "As above so below" as an example (fun movie too!). The Beshilu can be gnawing holes in the gauntlet in the catacombs. Explorers take a wrong turn and find themselves in the hisil... hallucinations? Maybe...

The alchemical elements of that movie do offer an interesting thread to draw in as well.

Leftover violence spirits from the French Revolution, too?

Certainly. Any violence spirit tough enough to have survived since the French Revolution is probably quite the heavyweight these days too.

[Acrozatarim]

Right then, so having had some time to make notes and think, the very rough draft of where I think I'll go with the campaign. My players, obviously, keep out, you nosy sods

My last big Werewolf campaign didn't feature any idigam, and now I have these shiny rules I've written for 2e I kinda want to put some idigam in. Thing is, my last big campaign *did* feature a rather idigam-like ancient spirit that had become Wounded by Baalphegor and had ended up wedged between the Spirit and the Underworld for various reasons. I don't want to do basically just a repeat of that.

So I figure this time I'll use two idigam; two opposite sides of the coin, possibly in actual opposition. One at the centre of Cromlech lines that meet under Paris, an ancient Earth-Bound Coalesced from death and rot that has long since slumbered with its servants forming their own society and cult around it; now it slowly threatens to wake, bringing a swell in spiritual power that the werewolves are unable to explain but know they must contain. The other is high rather than deep, a Moon-Banished crafting itself a throne of data and technology amidst the tower-heights of La Defence, operating subtly for now as it gathers Essence and power. Where the High Cromlech is a behemoth of dark symbolism, the Data Angel is careful, measured, taking time to achieve its goals.

Neither idigam will be a heavy player at the very beginning - the High Cromlech is asleep but stirring, while the Data Angel is taking every precaution it can, operating to be as deniable as possible. Things will slowly ramp up as the game progresses, but I'm looking at a mid-game state where one or both idigam becomes revealed even if not fully active yet. Their presence will be felt from early on, though, as their spawn begin to spread and the Hunting Ground begins to metamorphose from their influence.

I'm looking at there being broadly four themes for the game - Fire, Death, Division and Transition.

Fire: Anger, passion, emoiton, madness, revolution. A spark can lead to riots and literal flames, or unleash unfettered creativity. Fire changes and consumes; it unleashes energy. Paris is a place of fire, whether a night sky awash with illumination from the glowing city below or the ruddy embers of burning cars in the streets. Werewolves are creatures of fire; their rage and passions burn close to the surface. The Fire-Touched are strong here.

Death: The heavy weight of history, pressing down on the landscape through layers of bones. Paris is saturated with death; cemetary upon cemetary, plague-graves, catacombs that worm beneath the city. The streets echo with the ghosts and whispers of past ages and lost souls. Memento Mori are everywhere. The werewolves are a part of that lineage, bearing relics and reminders of death from the past. Ancient parts of the city hold many mysteries; the dead often have the answers. The Bone Shadows are strong here.

Division: Lines are drawn. Everyone is divided. The Forsaken are not unified. Two Protectorates lay claim to portions of Paris, each driven by different ideologies and crises. The Pure are not unified. A great fault line hangs between the Ivory Claws and the Fire-Touched. Yet other werewolves pay allegiance to the Lyceum, Apollo-worshipping heretics. Whispers speak of other, stranger wolf-cults. Paris is a place where innumerable times, places and peoples mix, but the lines between them are pronounced, and tensions are strong.

Transition: Even where there are deep lines, it can be hard to know exactly where the boundaries lie. Territories are a patchwork of rival factions, and alleigance to one faction doesn't necessarily prevent alliance with another. Paris is a place of transition and change, spiritually and symbolically; Claimed stalk amongst the population, and Hosts leave the two worlds bleeding into each other. Time brings change to the city-scape, ancient buildings rubbing shoulders with the new. Bale Hounds foster covens of witches and cultists, teaching them rite-magic that should not be theirs.

We've got three Uratha in the pack; a Storm Lord Irraka, Blood Talon Rahu and Iron Master (either an Ithaeur or an Elodoth), then one Wolf-Blooded player character as well (quite significantly souped-up to give him a better chance of keeping pace with the other pack members). Will be interesting to see how this turns out!

[Ephsy]

I'd love to play a Bone Shadow Cahalith there. Damn you for not having migrated to an online platform.

[nofather]

I have to admit to being incredibly jealous of people playing 2e games already.

[Shock]

So I figure this time I'll use two idigam; two opposite sides of the coin, possibly in actual opposition. One at the centre of Cromlech lines that meet under Paris, an ancient Earth-Bound Coalesced from death and rot that has long since slumbered with its servants forming their own society and cult around it; now it slowly threatens to wake, bringing a swell in spiritual power that the werewolves are unable to explain but know they must contain. The other is high rather than deep, a Moon-Banished crafting itself a throne of data and technology amidst the tower-heights of La Defence, operating subtly for now as it gathers Essence and power. Where the High Cromlech is a behemoth of dark symbolism, the Data Angel is careful, measured, taking time to achieve its goals.

And for some reason, I can picture this easily fitting into a Demon game.

The Idigam settling in deactivated infrastructure. Demon PCs go in expect Angels and normal G-M bits, only to encounter Moon-Banished.