Werewolf the Forsaken Headcannons.
(Felt like sharing some of my own headcannons for Werewolf the Forsaken, some of which I have used in my own games, its honestly my favorite bit of werewolf media ever, and each time I go back my muse comes up with more and more ideas for it. )
-Father Wolf's duties sometimes put him into conflict with the Gentry of Changeling the Lost. He didn't always manage to catch or slay them, but he left enough of an impression upon the Hedge and the Gentry that the image and story of the Big Bad Wolf, in all of its incarnations throughout history was influenced by Father Wolf. Even now shadows of Father Wolf still wander the Hedge and can be found aiding his distant children, and are one of the reasons even the modern Gentry don't always try to break into the mortal world. Just as with creatures like the Beshilu, Father Wolf left such a scar on their psyche the fear overrides the opportunity.
-With Kindred being connected to dark powers from dread realms and the Strix borderline being confirmed to come from the lower realms (the same places as in Mage The Awakening), this gives the Uratha a natural reason to hate or even hunt Kindred. If Uratha are the immune system of the world, then dealing with Kindred is akin to immune cells fighting cancer cells. The Kindred have no place in this world, they cause unnatural deaths and corrupt areas by their mere presence. In their very beings Werewolves know that Vampires are the enemy and they have the power to slay them by the dozen, yet for everyone they slay there always seem to be dozens and dozens more, and they already have plenty on their plate dealing with keeping balance between the spiritworld and the human world.
-Most cities are secretly controlled or influenced by Kindred. Yet Kindred are utterly terrified of places where the Uratha are in control and affect local politics the way they normally would.
"We can't stop here! This is Wolf Country!"
-The growing tribe known as the 'Eaters of the Dead' are finding such success and power from hunting and eating Vampires, because of the Kindred's connection to the Strix, and consuming spirits like the Strix is part of their nature, the Uratha just have yet to realize this part of Vampiric lore, even if innately they may have reason to hate the Vamps.
-Due to how the odds are stacked against them, the Forsaken tend to have to operate in Cells (similar to Hunters) with each pack and those allied to it being a Cell, where the Alpha or one of the other upper ranks of the pack keeps in contact with distant Forsaken packs but not enough that if the Pure or other such hostiles destroy the pack, it won't jeopardize others.
-Pack Dynamicks: Unlike the Garou or the Pure, the Forsaken have a pack structure similar to actual Wolves where it is a partnership where all members take care of one another and 'Alpha' is a title given as needed instead of the Alpha Male Dudebro behavior seen elsewhere. Different packs also treat being Alpha as either a transactional thing (where the Wolf most knowledgeable or skilled for a certain type of Hunt is the one to take charge), something to be voted on, or more military style where experience + Age = leadership, and even then its more like being the Team Mom/Dad rather than always barking orders.
-One of the greatest weaknesses of the Forsaken is their constant chest thumping, pride, and their difficulty in coordinating multiple packs together. Its not impossible but requires genuine effort for things such as a Protectorate to be formed, and most of them tend to fall apart eventually. Long term Protectorates which last generations are rare, but genuinely powerful things among the Forsaken, and even the Pure fear angering them.
-The Pure outnumber the Forsaken by the three-to-one odds. This means that most Hunters and even other Supernaturals are going to run into The Pure most of the time, and have no idea about the Forsaken. Thus the popular perception of Werewolves as monsters who kill and eat humans without a care, instead of the 'immune system of reality' as Forsaken tend to be. But some groups out there do understand there is a difference, such as the Night Watch, who formed an alliance with the local Forsaken to fight together against the Vampires besieging their part of the city.
-The Pure are always going to outnumber the Forsaken, but their numbers only make up so much of an advantage. Between their own individual strengths, their blessings and Auspices from Luna, and longterm spiritual allies (as well as a closer tie to, and understanding of the Human world), the Forsaken outmatch the Pure individually and can make up for the lack of numbers. It's essentially the NATO vs Warsaw Pact debate, and the fact that the Forsaken are still around after all of this time proves the Pure don't have the capability of wiping them out. If the Forsaken could work together and combine their packs and Protectorates, then they might be able to severely harm the Pure's numbers.
-The Pure tend to tie themselves with Supremacist movements. Even if they look down on all humans as an inferior species/race, they find it easier to move in those kinds of circles because they know what to say or do. It reminds them of home and bigots always make for useful idiots and scapegoats for their own plans.
-Irinam the Colossus, the actual Spirit of the USA, is irreparably mad at this point. Constantly shifting between different mindsets and personalities, before having moments of lucidity where she breaks down in tears. She longs to be the spirit of the shining city on a hill where all people are equal and free, but the world has poisoned her soul and made her as dangerous as a hurricane. The only reason that she isn't openly running around causing chaos (both intentionally and unintentionally), is a combination of factors.
1: Irinam's better side and moments of lucidity lead her to try and move away from population centers so that when the madness takes her again there's less of a chance anyone will be hurt.
2: The other positive spirits of America like the Statue of Liberty or Uncle Sam (even though he sometimes comes off like Judge Dredd) help to keep her under control and from going on a rampage.
3: Luna herself sometimes tries to help. For she too is a mad goddess, and she considered America's desperate effort to reach the moon as an act of worship for her, and so she sometimes soothes Irinam's madness with dreams of better days.
-The First Tongue is as much instinctual as it is taught. All Uratha, and even Wolf-Blooded feel its pull as the primal ur-language of all things. It slips out in moments of intense emotion even before the First Change but only truly makes sense after a Wolf-Blooded becomes a true Werewolf. Once an Uratha goes through the First change they gain better control over the Ur-language, and The lessons taught by other Uratha to refine the First Tongue is just to help them better switch in and out and to understand the intricacies of the language. It also comes in a written form (Which can be read through the Silver Tattoos of the Forsaken or the various Auspice symbols. Its also canon that a hand sign version exists known as the 'Silent Tongue', developed by the Hunters-In-Darkness).
-Uratha are empowered by their nature as descendants of Father Wolf and Mother Luna, their regeneration abilities ensure they tend to become hyper fit so for them to get sick it has to be some extremely lethal disease like Ebola, or something more mystical like a Hex or a disease spirit from the Hisil.
-Jack Reacher is a great example of a Rahu Stormlord. Warrior of the Uratha but a true leader who looks out for his pack. Also a good example of how Uratha can become hyper-fit and almost super humanly big and muscled if they push their strength stats. The Wolf/Death from Puss In Boots: The Last Wish, is also a fine example of an Uratha, specifically Irraka, the stealthy kind, who was toying with his prey.
-Uratha sometimes feel out of place because they were truly at home in the ancient Neolithic periods and just about all eras before the Industrial Revolution. Now with so much technology, powerful weaponry, the disruption of spirit courts and other monsters like Kindred spreading across the globe, they feel like the world has somewhat left them behind. in times long gone they were the Witchers, Conan the Barbarians/Red Sonjas, ancient heroes of legends told only to those in the know. Its why Tribes like the Ghost Wolves and the Iron Masters might be doing better than others, as they are all about adapting and surviving in the modern world as it changes, and they can make the changes needed to keep up the fight in a new age.
-Humans were not mated with by Father Wolf. Instead the connection between humans and wolves which leads to Wolf-Blooded becoming full blown Werewolves came from the First Born, the first offspring of Father Wolf and Mother Luna, who took upon themselves human mates, and created many offspring for each of the Firstborn wolves who would then intermix with humans and start their own families in attempt to experience the same kind of love as they witnessed shared between Father Wolf and Mother Luna. Why humans specifically? Because just as Helios would banish all monsters during the day, humans had prayed to Luna for eons since we first witnessed her, and she would protect us during the night and offer humanity her chosen metal, Silver, to use against the horrors which prowled the night and so Father Wolf knew her sometimes as a human, and this form was the one which the Firstborn could also assume, and solidified when they took on human mates.
-Jumping the Shark a little bit with this last one, but Father Wolf once fought an aspect of The Wyrm (From Werewolf the Apocalpyse). This aspect was either in retreat from the Garou of its own reality, or it had been victorious against the Garou and sought to infect more realities.
When it encountered Father Wolf, with Luna's help he was able to slay it and consume it, as he would any other spirit which had to be destroyed. Yet the Wyrm's final act was to curse Father Wolf. It ate away at his stomach and started to drive him mad. It made him weaker and caused him to lash out against his children, as the remaining touch of the Wyrm formed the source of the Uratha's rage which they must always keep in check.
Eventually it became too much for Father Wolf and he failed in his hunts, while his children would succeed and prove themselves greater hunters than him, which in turn eventually led to the Firstborn slaying Father Wolf in an attempt to stop his suffering, and likewise the diluted poison of the Wyrm passed on this rage to all subsequent Uratha even generations later.
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