Culture

Silverclaw · Post by **Silverclaw** » Sat Nov 27, 2004 7:58 pm

What kind of culture and behavior do you think the werewolves should have?

I think that them living in packs are essential. Wolves are pack animals as well as humans. A ranking order should be their as well. An alpha, beta, omega and such. Even in human form the ranking order would be held.
Werewolves would most likely hunt in their packs like real wolves.

When in human form, I think they would still have some wolfish behavior, but not overdone.

WolvenOne · Post by **WolvenOne** » Sun Nov 28, 2004 5:52 pm

Assuming they can form packs, they probably would do so. Both humans and wolves have a rather pack driven culture so it'd make sense that they would do so IF, they can indeed find other werewolves they can form a pack with.

Terastas · Post by **Terastas** » Sun Nov 28, 2004 11:33 pm

Even if they didn't have pack mentality, it would be natural for anyone with lycanthropy to seek out other other lycans. A werewolf might start off as a lone wolf, but this would be a lonely lifestyle, so if given the chance, he would seek initiation into a pack or congregate with a few other local loners to form a new one. Every pack would have an alpha, but seeing as they are half human as well, the status of alpha would be determined by the rest of the pack -- he may lead, but if they feel s/he is acting foolishly or acting towards a personal agenda, their human sides would allow them to choose a new alpha and either temporarily exile him (werewolves have too few friends to make an exile permanent) or reintroduce him into the pack as an omega.

The pack arrangement wouldn't be as obviously stated as is with a typical wolf pack, but it would be evident. An omega in a werewolf pack would likely be someone that is indicisive, is good with kids, or detests violence, though it could just as well be a former alpha that had (as previously stated) either abused his status as alpha or proven too incompetent to retain it. On the whole though, I imagine a pack would be more concerned with the majority consent.

WolvenOne · Post by **WolvenOne** » Mon Nov 29, 2004 1:22 am

Okay, I should've clearer, yes, they'd probably form packs, but I don't think they'd liken thier group to a pack or use human terminalogy to describe eachothers positions.

Instead, it'd simply be the way things worked out. Much like Terastas said.

Simply put, humans tend to integrate themselves into small tightly knit groups, especially if they feel strained or estranged from people in general for some reason.

TakeWalker · Post by **TakeWalker** » Mon Nov 29, 2004 10:24 am

While my overarching argument would be that it depends on how long werewolves have been around as to whether or not they would have developed their own culture, I've got three words for ya:

Werewolf Support Group

WolvenOne · Post by **WolvenOne** » Mon Nov 29, 2004 2:26 pm

I've got three words for ya: Werewolf Support Group

Actually there's a pretty good short story out there that involves a Werewolf Support Group. In that story though, the existence of werewolves is common knowledge, what they face in that setting is something more along the lines of racism then superstition.

If I remember correctly the story is called "Never Moon a Werewolf," it's been published in a book of werewolf stories I own, if you can find a copy, I highly suggest picking it up.

Terastas · Post by **Terastas** » Mon Nov 29, 2004 4:12 pm

TakeWalker wrote:Werewolf Support Group

That's an idea, and one you could really expand on a lot. The first idea of what that could be that I thought of would be a place where a werewolf could go to meet all the other werewolves in the city, not just to share sentiments and understanding about what it's like to be a werewolf, but a place where a new werewolf could find someone they could trust. The werewolf that organized the event could begin every meeting with:

"The individual may accept you, but the masses will only hate you. Look around at those that have come to see you this night; these are the people that you can trust."

Maybe one of the requirements to joining the werewolf support group would be to give the leader your address and agree to let it suffice as a safehouse for less fortunate werewolves if need be (homeless and/or hiding from Van Helsing wannabes,, for example). Not just a group that would offer sympathy to each other, but a group devoted to keeping their fellow werekin alive and unexposed.

Vuldari · Post by **Vuldari** » Wed Dec 01, 2004 9:33 am

Personally, when I think about werewolves I don't invision a " pack" of them. I usually think of a werewolf as being a rarity. Even taking into account the "contagious" nature of Lycanthropy, I don't see there being entire cities full of them. Anyone unlucky enough to be attacked and "infected" would likely die from their injuries more often than surviving to become one themselves.
That said, the behavior of a werewolf would be as varied as the persons themselves I would think. Some may seek out other Lycans for kinship, whille others may view them as rivals, or at least painful reminders of what they are, and reject the company of other Werewolves.