Seasonal Rites

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Rituals by Name

Rituals by Type

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Seasonal Rites

Seasonal rites vary from tribe to tribe and place to place. Each tribe and sept has its own means of celebrating the turning of the seasons. Some septs celebrate only the major rites of the solstices and equinoxes; others perform a rite at least once per moon. The rites below are the most popular. They are the fundamental rites celebrating Gaia's constant cycle of life-in-death-in-life.

These rites renew the Garou's connection to Gaia as the Earth Mother. Some Garou even believe that were such rites to cease entirely, dire repercussions would result. A few of the more mystic (or perhaps just crazier) Garou insist that if such rites weren't performed, Gaia herself might find no point in continuing the cycle, and the world would enter a perpetual Fimbulwinter...or worse.

System: Seasonal Rites must, obviously, occur at the exact time of the year the particular rite celebrates, and at least five Garou must attend. When performing the rite, the ritemaster must make a Stamina + Rituals roll (difficulty 8). If performed at a caern, the difficulty of the roll is 8 minus the caern's level. Therefore, a seasonal rite performed at a Level Three caern has a difficulty of 5.

General Rites

Level 2

Rite of Reawakening

Rite of the Winter Winds

The Great Hunt

The Long Vigil

Level Two

Rite of Reawakening

Source: WW3801 Werewolf: the Apocalypse Revised p. 165

Description: This rite takes place at the vernal equinox, the time of rebirth. The ritemaster begins the rite at sundown by leading the gathered Garou on a quest into the Umbra. Such a quest is sometimes symbolic, but more and more often as the time of the Apocalypse draws nigh, the questors seek true danger (or it finds them) in the Umbral Realms.

The quest always involves seven trials. These trials represent the seven gates that bar the way to the Underworld. Such trials vary dramatically from tribe to tribe, but there are always a variety of challenges presented to the members. One test might involve facing a Bane in combat, while another challenge might consist of finding a fetish lost within the Deep Umbra. Each test requires the participants to relinquish something of themselves, be it a cherished personal fetish, an old grudge, or false pride. If the Garou can win their way past these challenge gates, they can renew the Earth, banishing the winter-spirits and paving the way for the green, growing season.

At the end of the rite the Garou return to their bodies. At this time many tribes seek out Garou Kinfolk, or other humans and wolves, and reacquaint themselves with the joys of the flesh, celebrating the incredible beauty of life and the necessity of its continuation in future generations. Not surprisingly, this is the night when a large percentage of metis cubs are conceived. Although such couplings are always taboo, the intense drama of the rite sometimes overrides such concerns.

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Rite of the Winter Winds

Source: WW3801 Werewolf: the Apocalypse Revised p. 165

Description: On the longest night of the year, Garou enact this rite as a salute to Helios and an encouragement for him to begin lengthening the days again. Some werewolves believe that if this rite is not performed, the nights will continue to lengthen until Gaia has fallen into a terrible twilight state of perpetual pain. Most modern werewolves consider this mere superstition, but even such skeptics participate enthusiastically in the rite.

The Rite of the Winter Winds is rarely the same from sept to sept. European Garou practice a common version that begins with the ritemaster gathering the Garou in a circle around a small bonfire. She then leads the group in an extended howl that begins as a low, rumbling growl and eventually rises to an ululating crescendo. When the ritemaster feel the tension is at its height, she leaps forward, snatches up a burning branch and runs into the woods. The other Garou follow her, grabbing branches as they go. Running as swiftly as they can, the Garou make as many frightening and strange noises as possible. This rite is performed both to encourage Gaia's labor in giving birth to the sun, and to frighten off any minions of the Wyrm that might be lurking about, ready to snatch the newborn sun or harm Gaia as she turns her attention away from the surface world.

The ritemaster finally leads the howling pack back to the bonfire, where they hurl their branches into the conflagration. Once the fire is raging, the Garou celebrate with a revel that lasts until dawn, at which time they greet the newborn sun with one last, triumphant howl.

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The Great Hunt

Source: WW3801 Werewolf: the Apocalypse Revised p. 165

Description: The rite falls on the eve of the summer solstice, or Midsummer, when Helios stays longest in the sky and is thus at the zenith of his influence. The short hours of darkness offer the creatures of the Wyrm little place to hide, and the werewolves respond by holding a sacred hunt.

Exactly at midnight, just as Midsummer begins, the ritemaster calls upon Gaia to bring to the attention of the sept a creature or creatures worthy of the Great Hunt. In preparation the Garou chant, howl, and tell tales of bravery. Also common is a ritual bloodletting, wherein each Garou cuts herself and sheds some of her blood into a large bowl. The mingled blood is then painted in the form of pictograms on the forehead or breastbone of each of the hunters. At dawn, Gaia sends the waiting sept a sign proclaiming the target of the Great Hunt. This sign may come in any form, from a vision seen by an entranced Wendigo ritemaster to a news story flashing on the screen of an old television in a Bone Gnawer caern. Although the person or creature chose by Gaia is almost always associated with the Wyrm, Gaia demands on rare occasions that one of her own be sacrificed in the Hunt. Only the greatest warriors are ever chosen as the targets of a Great Hunt, and Gaia only demands such a sacrifice from her children in times of great need, for the freed spirit of such a warrior is said to transform immediately into an avenging angel for Gaia.

The Garou have only until midnight to complete the Hunt. If successful, the blood of the fallen creature is spilled onto Gaia's soil (or into the ether if the Hunt takes place on the Umbra) as a sacrifice to Gaia. If the hunters fail to slay their quarry, it is considered a terrible omen for the coming year. Some Theurges say that no sept will succeed at the Great Hunt during the year of the Apocalypse. At the least, a failed Hunt means poor luck for the sept in the year to come. Anyone participating in a successful Great Hunt gains Glory. The danger of the particular Hunt determines the amount of Glory gained.

System: Characters participating in a successful Great Hunt gain - presuming the target is of average threat level - three points of Glory Renown. If the Hunt is unsuccessful, each participating character loses two points of Glory Renown. In addition, the difficulty levels of all rites performed by the sept are increased by one until the next Midsummer.

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The Long Vigil

Source: WW3801 Werewolf: the Apocalypse Revised p. 166

Description: This rite marks the autumnal equinox, when the season of long days gives way to the season of long nights. Although summer is the traditional season of war among many human cultures, the Garou know that their shadow war will be all the more difficult during the lengthening hours of darkness. To prepare themselves, they hold the Long Vigil, a rite designed to sharpen their appetite for the battles ahead.

The Long Vigil begins at sundown, around a raging bonfire (save in some urban caerns). The sept spends the day before the Vigil bedecking the caern with trophies of war collected during the previous year. From bent rifles and shredded flak jackets to broken Wyrm-fetishes and strings of teeth to the skulls of Wyrmish monsters to smeared blood mixed with the dust of vampires, all manner of mementos adorn the heart of the caern. As the sun slips below the horizon, the ritemaster begins to chant praise to Helios, thanking him for his blessings during the summer, and praying for his safety in the coming winter. The ritemaster then praises Luna and beseeches her aid in the long nights to come.

To aid in the ritemaster's plea for aid, the Galliards of the sept come forward and begin to recite tales of the most glorious battles of the last year and the deeds done in her name. They point to each trophy in turn to tell the story of how it was won from its owner. Particularly eloquent members of other auspices who distinguished themselves in the previous year are sometimes allowed the honor of being the first to tell their own tales. Once the Galliards have finished, the other members of the sept begin to recount their own versions of the great deeds of the previous year. The tale-telling lasts all night; as dawn approaches, the ritemaster invokes Luna one final time. He dedicates all the deeds of the previous year to Luna, her brother Helios and her sister Gaia, and he promises that the year to come will be just as glorious with Luna's blessing. As the rite concludes, the Garou hurl as many trophies as possible into the bonfire, destroying their hard-earned mementos as a sign of faith that they will take many more in the year to come.

Tribe Rites

Below are Seasonal Rites for each tribe. Tribe Rites are only available to learn within your own tribe. Click to expand for details on the boxes. By clicking on the name of the tribe, you can view all of their Tribe Rites.

Black Furies

Details

Level One Rejuvenate the Soil (Seasonal) Source: WW3851 - Black Furies Revised p. 78 Description: Autumn - This rite is for Black Furies only. In the earliest days of agriculture, and even before the advent of agriculture, when humans hunted for meat and gathered fruits and vegetables as they could, they were fully aware that spending too long in one place would leach the life from the soil. When tending to herds of mortals still mattered to the Black Furies, they taught their charges the ways of the Earth Mother; Rejuvenate the Soil is one of those secrets. In Autumn, the planter takes a pound of seeds from the choicest crop produced or gathered this year, and burns that mass in a bronze bowl while murmuring prayers to Gaia in her guise as Demeter. She must insure that no ashes or cinders leave the fire, lest the ritual lose its efficacy. When the fire is complete, the Fury mixes in a few drops of her own blood. Using a labrys, the Fury next carves a glyph of fertility — at least three feet across, and preferably larger — into the soil at the center of the area to be affected. She then smears or pours the blood-ash mixture into the glyph. An area radiating out from the glyph will regain some of its bounty over the winter. System: The player should roll Stamina + Survival, difficulty 6 (unless the area is a former blight, in which case it must be ritually cleansed and even then the difficulty is 7 the first year). Every success yields an acre of improved cropland for the next year.

Fianna

Details

Level Two Beltane (Seasonal) Source: WW3854 - Fianna Revised p. 77 Description: The celebration of the dawning of the light half of the year is as abandoned as that of the dark half (Samhain) is reflective. Just after dark, the ritemaster bids every fire in the caern extinguished; after a few minutes of darkness, a new fire is lit, and its flame distributed to rekindle all the others, symbolizing a fresh start and return of light. Music, food, dancing and loving are the order of the night. Kinfolk are especially welcomed to the party, not only to share the fun; children conceived during Beltane are reputed to have a greater chance of breeding true. On the downside, the Litany is very fragile on this night as the head of passion burns away all rationality; elders watch over the cubs, but even the older sept members have occasionally succumbed to temptation. Beltane is a festival celebrating new vitality. System: Those who participate in a successful Beltane rite gain an extra Robust Physical trait for the next 3 days. Rites of Cleansing and other purification rituals gain a single free retest. Imbolc (Seasonal) Source: WW3854 - Fianna Revised p. 76 Description: Imbolc is a festival of fertility and of hope; though many cold nights may lay ahead, winter is ebbing before the promise of spring. Ritual bonfires dot the caern, and the night is filled with tales of struggles won and the surety of better times ahead. It is also the sacred festival honoring the goddess Brigid, and deemed a favorable time to ask for the spirits' aid in endeavors of art or craft. Children born of Garou on this day are considered especially lucky, for more often than not their Garou blood runs true. Participants in the Imbolc rite regain 2 traits of lost Willpower. Furthermore, Fianna that have overcome Harano often claim that taking part in the Imbolc rite was the moment they began to claw their way back. Lughnassa (Seasonal) Source: WW3854 - Fianna Revised p. 77 Description: In the ancient agrarian communities, this was the celebration of the beginning of harvest. For the Fianna it represents the fruits of labor, and the gathering of strength for the coming winter. Bread made from grain of the year, and fresh made mead and beer as well, are ceremoniously consumed. Those who participate in a successful Lughnassa rite gain an extra Stalwart Physical trait for the next three days, and a free retest on mental challenges relating to Lore or wisdom during the festival. Samhain (Seasonal) Source: WW3854 - Fianna Revised p. 76 Description: The Fianna calendar year begins on this night. An uncharacteristically subdued celebration with a grand feast, music, and drink, the Samhain Rite is a time for reflecting on the year just passed. Tributes are given to honor the year's fallen, whose spirits are often in attendance; for these honored fallen the sept saves places at the table and choice seats in the bardic circles; Theurges frequently enact the rite Feast for the Spirits so the dead may revel once more with their comrades. It's believed by some that the dead wait until this night before moving on to their next life, or perhaps their essences become "fully fledged" spirits at this time. Because the Gauntlet is slightly thinner (-1 to the Gauntlet at Storyteller's discretion) on this night than on any other night of the year, it is also a night when all manner of spirits (benign and otherwise) cross over to cause mischief or simply to observe the living world. Those who take part in the Samhain ritual regain two traits of lost Gnosis during participation

Glass Walker

Details

Level Two Memorial Day (Seasonal) Source: WW3856 - Glass Walkers Revised p. 81 Description: Though we belong to many nations, the only one that counts in our hearts (for most of us) is the nation of Gaia and the Garou. Every nation has a day to honor its fallen in war, and on that day, we honor ours. At dawn on Memorial Day (which, by the way, varies from country to country; we observe similar holidays in every land), every Glass Walker in the city gathers in the Hall of Honor. It's similar to the Grave of the Hallowed Heroes, but is kept within a caern only if that's our only caern within the city. In the Hall is a record of the name of every Glass Walker in the city that died serving Gaia or Cockroach. Sometimes it's a dedicated computer with a touch screen monitor, other times a more dignified statue or engraved marble wall serves. During the rite we add any new names to the record and then call a spirit of the city into the Hall. In exchange for a favor, the spirit agrees to keep the Hall, and by symbolic extension the souls of the fallen, safe for another year. May they rest in peace. System: The ritemaster rolls Wits + Rituals (diff 6). If the roll is successful the spirit agrees to guard the Memorial Hall for a year. If the roll is botched, the spirit attacks all those gathered. Promethean Daze (Seasonal) Source: WW3856 - Glass Walkers Revised p. 81 Description: At first glance, this rite appears almost generic. A week of feasting and cleansing isn't unique to the Glass Walkers. But look at when we hold it, and the reason behind the rite becomes clearer. The Promethean Daze happens right at the end of the year, along with human celebrations like Christmas, Kwanzaa, Chanukah, and, of course, the New Year. We're often called the "tribe of Man" and this rite certainly gives some weight to the moniker. This rite breaks down into two parts. The first part is marked by gluttony, and as a result tends to take up most of the week. We eat, drink, fight, and make love (to Kinfolk, in theory) to our hearts' content. During that time, we supposedly work to throw off our limitations. It all happens through conversations, old grudges break down over wine and dinnertime conversations find an informality that lets us find simpler ways of operating. System: The ritemaster rolls Wits + Rituals, difficulty 7. If a simple success is achieved, all participating Garou recover all Willpower to face the new year. Level Three The Little Rite (Seasonal) Source: WW3856 - Glass Walkers Revised p. 81 Description: Another way we keep our ties to Cockroach is through the ironically named "Little Rite," which is held on the 15th of March every year. Why the Ides of March? Maybe to remind ourselves not to get above our station like the Roman conspirators, since this rite honors all the things that we forget, but can't live without. Whether it's Cockroach and his tiny children, the machines that make us coffee and keep our juice cold, or the paperboy who never gets a word of thanks; we dedicate this day to keeping our relationships with others pure. To that end, we give gifts. We dump whole sacks of powdered sugar onto our kitchen floor overnight for the cockroaches, or spend time listening to the binary chatter of Net-spiders, or tip the boy a few hundred bucks. Septs often celebrate the Little Rite together as well with a massive gift to the minimum wage workers in the mail room below the caern, or with an all-out assault on the Banes in a Net-spider nest so that the thing is entirely clean. However we do it, the Little Rite makes sure that we don't forget anything or anyone. The city is made up of details, and forgetting any one of them is dangerous. System: At the end of the gift-giving, the challenge is made. With success, the caern totem grants blessings related to the gifts given -- a well-tipped trashman may mean better relations with trash-spirits or money-spirits, while a generous donation to a church may result in a potential place of refuge. The Storyteller should come up with appropriate blessings based on the gifts given, the amount of thought put into the effort, and any roleplaying -- this should not be a gimme for greedy players, and if the caern totem believes that the gifting and prayers were grudgingly given or insincere, the totem should respond in kind.