Dexterity and Werewolves

[RedEye]

I was listening to some Chopin piano pieces and got to wondering; just how much dexterity would a Werewolf have?

Let's take three types: these are examples only-there are other Werewolves...
Gestalt- has human-like paw-hands with proportionally sized claws.
Probably has a 50% precision grip*
Lon Chaney/ Brillo-Face- has completely human hands but can't seem to figure out how to use them, and claws are of the "?" variety.
Full precision grip, just not used.
Goldenwulf's Were's and Kiern- hands with large claws that don't look tll that maneuverable or deft.
Suited to grab large things, but not precision at all*

*Precision Grip: The abililty to touch thumb and fingers. Humans have a 100% precision grip. A 50% grip would have thumb and first, middle fingers touch, but not the ring or pinkie. It's what makes us so good with tools.

I figure this is valid, since the question id "What would a Werewolf be... and tool use with fine precision grip is a part of that.

SO...what kind of grip do you thing the average Werewolf-on-the-street would have. Could he/she play the piano? Drums? Tie Knots? that sort of thing. Could a Werewolf fix a Volkswagen (Aircooled)-the simplest engine I can think of off hand.
What could they do with their hands, outside of the usual ripping-to-shreds?

[chubhound]

I'd say they have as much manual dexterity as the person writing the story says they have. Personally, I can't really imagine WHY a werewolf would want to repair a car engine or play a classic piano piece in their...uh....hybrid/gestalt/crinos/gauru/whatevertheheckyouwannacallit form. I like the image of a werewolf being able to manipulate a sword, or use a bow & arrows, or swing around a flail in their hybrid/gestalt/crinos/gauru/whatevertheheckyouwannacallit form, but that's just a personal preference on my part due to my likeing of a certain Role-Playing game's depiction of werewolves. But now that I think about it, if you had a werewolf fix your car....would YOU have the nerve to tell them you think you're getting overcharged? Plus, the mental image of a werewolf all dressed up in a tuxedo, sitting down in front of a huge crowd at a grand piano, and proceeding to play "Moonlight Sonata" just seems pretty interesting. Not to mention pretty darn funny.

[JoshuaMadoc]

I'd love to see a werewolf play, if not the drums, the guitar, super-fast and shifted, among other activities.

[Ookami-kun]

I think they are dexterous... they are wolf-like after all. XD

[Kzinistzerg]

I'd bet it depends on exactly how the author portrays them. It also depends on how shifted they are. With human intelligence, I'd bet they'd have a better chance of being able to use their claws to assist.

[RedEye]

My point is-in all this-to find some sort of consensus on what a Were' would be able to do with those things on the ends if his/her arms.

In most of the movies; they seem to be stuck with the shred/rend business, regardless of how intelligent they might be.

One of the things that brought this up was a cat I had, named Gabby. He had polydactily: extra toes. His dewclaws were literal thumbs, and he could pick things up with his "hands". Fortunately for humanity, he was as sharp as a bowling ball. Yet he did like to pick up things and examine them, sometimes holding with one "hand' and manipulating with the other. He was neutered, needless to say.
I was just wondering, based on a real animal, what a Were' would be capable of.

[Midnight]

Honestly... if I was a werewolf in hybrid/half-shifted/crinos/gestalt or whatever, and I wanted to do something delicate (like, for example, type a message board post)... I'd shift back to human. Why compromise?

This really makes me think of that urban legend about the zero-gravity ballpoint pen...

[Set]

I've seen animal paws manipulate things pretty well. Cat paws especially. I don't think there'd be that much loss of function in a shifted were's hands.

[Aki]

Fine-manipulation tasks might take a bit of work, but I imagine with enough practice most could be done. Ones that require less, like picking up and utilizing a weapon would likely suffer little or no difficultly ....or quite some difficulty, depending on weapon. A bow might be trouble, as claws would pose a problem and utilizing too much of their strength could snap the bowstring....or if they got a stronger string, could snap the bow. Comparatively, a pistol wouldn't be much of a problem aside from sound. Things are loud and Were ears are sensitive.

[JoshuaMadoc]

Wouldn't a special pair of gloves with claw-fittings to make them more blunt rectify the problem with handling bowstrings? They could also try and get practice with a longbow first, to accomodate their possible large frame, then they could train to regulate their strength/pressure application on shortbows, and finally work on using ballistas big enough for them to fire.

I can't say the same about the use of firearms though -- unless a werewolf is willing to put up with cutting his claws for the occasion, or if the trigger ring is big enough for the fingers.

For the issue about sound, maybe the guns could have a small but effective sound suppressing system built within the firearm/bullets, if a silencer is unavailable.

[Terastas]

Regardless of how the gestalt's hand/paw looked, I think a lot of werewolves would have difficulty doing anything since the gestalt hands would look different from the human hands they are accustomed to working with. Even if they had 100% dexterity, a lot of werewolves would have trouble learning because they eventually resume a human form and once again become accustomed to working with human hands. A werewolf would have to stay at gestalt form at length if they wanted to teach themselves how to do anything delicate with gestalt hands.

So I have a feeling that if most werewolves had to do anything delicate, they would do it, as Midnight suggested, in human form. The only exceptions I think would be if it was urgent and they didn't have time to shift out of his gestalt form, or if for one reason or another the situation called on him remaining in gestalt form.

A pack might have a few "fire drills" where they map out a plan of action and train their kin for a worst case scenario, which could involve doing some things a werewolf could be pressed to do which would usually require human hands, like starting a car, locking a door or sending a text message (for emergency use only). Other than that, I think any attempts at human activities with gestalt hands would just be done roughly.

[Figarou]

When it comes to the werewolf....all of us are picky in what we want. Some wants lots of fur....others want less to no fur. Some wants a tail...some don't. (The list goes on.)

Thing is....each part has a purpose. For one thing...fur helps keep the werewolf warm.

The tail has its arguements. Some say its used to keep the werewolf balanced while standing. If thats the case...how come we don't have tails for that purpose? Some animals uses body weight to keep thier balance. I know the cheetah uses its tail to keep its balance while running on all fours. What about the horse? That tail of his can't possibly keep the horse's balance in control.


Now for the hands. There hasn't been any big arguements on that. (yet)
I've seen many pics of werewolves with what appear to look like human hands. Thing is....the fingers are a bit longer than normal. And there are claws instead of finger nails. With those types of hands, I see no difference compared to human hands for grasping items. Making a fist could be a bit difficult with that type of hand. Thats what we humans use if we decide to punch someone. Now....we know having the werewolf slash with its claws is better than punching...right?

If the werewolf has 100% wolf paws instead of hands in Gestalt form...then I can see its limtations on grasping items. I see it mostly walking on fours. It may use its mouth to grasp certain items.

[Set]

Horse tails are essentially fly swatters. They can indicate mood, but are mostly just used to keep the bugs off.

Slashing vs. punching... In terms of pain, blunt force trauma tends to be worse. (Plain english: generally, getting punched hurts more than being cut.) How effective clawing would be really depends on the claw type. If it's attatched with only skin like human nails the claw is far easier to just tear right off. Attatched to bone makes it stronger, but they're still breakable, and I don't know many humans who claw as a natural defense anyway. Wolves don't do it at all.

On the subject of adjusting to claws I really think how much they'd get in the way tends to be exaggerated. Human females can still function with long red fingernails. I see no reason why it would effect a werewolf to such a degree that they couldn't do anything they were previously able to just because they have claws.

[Scott Gardener]

I've tended to picture werewolves with more human-like and more dextrous hands than most fans. I still give them pads, claws, and the works, but I don't generally make them all that pudgy and oversized. Still, for sculpting and working with clay, the fur can get in the way. Static electricity can be an issue for werewolves who build computers while in Gestalt form. Limits of hand use is a lot like limits of speech as good plot devices for keeping human forms around in societies where werewolves aren't needing to keep it a secret.

[Figarou]

Slashing vs. punching... In terms of pain, blunt force trauma tends to be worse. (Plain english: generally, getting punched hurts more than being cut.)

That depends on where you get punched. I got punched in the chest when I was younger. It didn't hurt compared to getting punched in the mid section (stomach.)

Now...if a werewolf clawed your mid section...expect your insides to fall out.

How effective clawing would be really depends on the claw type. If it's attatched with only skin like human nails the claw is far easier to just tear right off. Attatched to bone makes it stronger, but they're still breakable, and I don't know many humans who claw as a natural defense anyway. Wolves don't do it at all.

Ever watch girls fight at school? I have. The hair gets pulled and wow...do they scratch each other up!! (Why do you think they call it a "Cat fight.")

[Kzinistzerg]

I can attest to the effectiveness of nails. Usually I keep mien essentially claw-like... very sueful. If you've got real force in your arms, it isn't hard to draw blood with them.

Also, getting punched in the ribs won't hurt as much because your ribcage, being dome-like, won't cave in. Skin will.

[Rhuen]

This is making me think of Fantastic Four where the thing was trying to pick up a ring off the ground. Having intellgence doesn't mean your hands can do what you want them to do.
If the werewolf can run on all fours than the hands have to give up at least some dexterity, but no more than a raccoon really. Basically the thumb may become less versitile, unable to touch the pinky with it, but still able to go halfway across the palm at least.