THE PACK Message Boards

If werewolves didn't die...somehow, someway....we'd be up to our necks in Werewolves.
Old Werewolves...telling us about what it was like in the "days", while waiting for their dentures, and asking for someone to change their diapers.
Middle-aged Werewolves: Slapping us on the back at the local bar and telling "Human" jokes.
Young Werewolves: Griping about how their Piercings keep closing up, and asking...You don't want that piece of Steak, do you?...and telling Stupid Human jokes.
So, of course, in the fullness of time...they die, and this doesn't happen.
Dammit.

kitetsu wrote:

Apokryltaros wrote:Dinars to donuts says that a werewolf isn't going to survive being sucked into a jet engine, either.

What if the werewolf ended up like that guy who survived getting sucked in by a fighter jet engine?

Never heard that story, care to share/link?

If a WW ended up like though, I imagine they'd get managled up pretty bad.

I, personally, am not opposed to a sort of limited immortality for werewolves.

It would be something like this....

You CANNOT die from:
-old age
-disease
-heart attacks, strokes, anurisms, etc.

You PROBABLY WON'T die from:
-serious injuries that would kill a normal human. I.e. Getting shot up with bullets would kill a normal person, but your regenerative and healing abilities are enough that you stand a darn good chance of surviving. The doctors would be scratching their heads, but wouldn't be so shocked that they'd call the Pentagon.
-starvation or water deprivation. The typical three days without water = death and nine days without food = death does not apply to you. Though EVENTUALLY you might die from being deprived of these things, you can certainly make it a lot longer than the average human can.
-drowning. As with starvation, you might still die from it, but you can take being deprived of oxygen and having your lungs fill with water a lot longer than a regular human.

You WILL die from:
-falling from an X story building and splatting on the sidewalk.
-burning to death
-being shoved into a meatgrinder, until your body comes out as some sort of mush.
-etc...Basically, anything that would require that some sort of magic goo appear and pull your various pieces back together or completely repair cells that have been totally destroyed or altered chemically...well, tough luck. You're not gonna make it.



This model of limited immortality certainly doesn't cover all the possibilities for death and is probably open to dispute in some areas...but you get the idea. You *can* still die, but it'd take a lot to kill you.

Aki wrote:

kitetsu wrote:

Apokryltaros wrote:Dinars to donuts says that a werewolf isn't going to survive being sucked into a jet engine, either.

What if the werewolf ended up like that guy who survived getting sucked in by a fighter jet engine?

Never heard that story, care to share/link?

If a WW ended up like though, I imagine they'd get managled up pretty bad.

Well, i can't get links from TV shows, now, can't i? It was in Ripley's Believe it or Not though. The guy who got sucked in didn't get mangled badly, if i remember right, he just got bruises and some cuts.

kitetsu wrote:

Aki wrote:

kitetsu wrote:

Apokryltaros wrote:Dinars to donuts says that a werewolf isn't going to survive being sucked into a jet engine, either.

What if the werewolf ended up like that guy who survived getting sucked in by a fighter jet engine?

Never heard that story, care to share/link?

If a WW ended up like though, I imagine they'd get managled up pretty bad.

Well, i can't get links from TV shows, now, can't i? It was in Ripley's Believe it or Not though. The guy who got sucked in didn't get mangled badly, if i remember right, he just got bruises and some cuts.

I heard about that one, and I think it is the reason the little cover on the intake is on the Outside and not nestled behind the turbine in the newer engines, I dont remember exactly about how the newer engine's are constructed. x_x
The guy lucked out and was simply pulled in one end and out the other without touching much inside I think. As for a link, I cant help there either.

Renorei wrote:You PROBABLY WON'T die from:
-starvation or water deprivation. The typical three days without water = death and nine days without food = death does not apply to you. Though EVENTUALLY you might die from being deprived of these things, you can certainly make it a lot longer than the average human can.

I'm curious...why did this make it onto your list? It doesn't make any sense, especially if you like the idea that werewolves have a faster metabolism than humans. Faster = you die quicker. I've been around animals of varying metabolism, I know what effect it has. The thoroughbred will get skinny long before the appaloosa.

And correct me if I'm wrong, but I thought it took several MONTHS for a human to die from starvation.

Set wrote: And correct me if I'm wrong, but I thought it took several MONTHS for a human to die from starvation.

Which kind of starvation: literal no food whatsoever while locked in a dungeon starvation, or supermodel/anorexia nibble nibble on crumbs starvation?
The former kills within a week, whereas the the latter is a vaguely pretty death that lingers.

Set wrote:

Renorei wrote:You PROBABLY WON'T die from:
-starvation or water deprivation. The typical three days without water = death and nine days without food = death does not apply to you. Though EVENTUALLY you might die from being deprived of these things, you can certainly make it a lot longer than the average human can.

I'm curious...why did this make it onto your list? It doesn't make any sense, especially if you like the idea that werewolves have a faster metabolism than humans. Faster = you die quicker. I've been around animals of varying metabolism, I know what effect it has. The thoroughbred will get skinny long before the appaloosa.

And correct me if I'm wrong, but I thought it took several MONTHS for a human to die from starvation.

Its about 4 to 6 weeks of starvation, given you have water (I think). Then again it would depend on you're constitution, more muscle, you'll live longer as your body has more protein to live on, more fat, you're body will wear faster.

I'd think that the average lifespan of a WW would be shorter due to the higher metabolism from being part wolf, and the energy from shifting.

Starvation, immortality, and the like:

My werewolves are pretty jealous of yours, if yours never die of old age and can resist starvation, thirst, and so forth. Mine generally get over Type II diabetes, but not Type I. It can help with problems like lumbar disc disease and chronic pain, but if you've had a surgical fix involving metallic hardware, you've got serious problems. Basic colds--yeah, mine are that lucky, too. And, it's fairly easy to stay healthy compared to a genetic-standard human, but, I feel that giving werewolves too much resistance to death and disability creates all kinds of plausibility issues as well as writing issues. It's more fun to write about werewolves who still have human issues to overcome. Many of mine still have to wear glasses--though they get used to relying less on sight and more on other senses after awhile.

Baphnedia:

You know, Scott - you really know how to be the end of a fun concept to get a lot of posts in...

I did that on purpose; I didn't want this thread to become just a list of goofy ways to kill a werewolf.

Neilak20 wrote:

kitetsu wrote:

Aki wrote:

kitetsu wrote:

Apokryltaros wrote:Dinars to donuts says that a werewolf isn't going to survive being sucked into a jet engine, either.

What if the werewolf ended up like that guy who survived getting sucked in by a fighter jet engine?

Never heard that story, care to share/link?

If a WW ended up like though, I imagine they'd get managled up pretty bad.

Well, i can't get links from TV shows, now, can't i? It was in Ripley's Believe it or Not though. The guy who got sucked in didn't get mangled badly, if i remember right, he just got bruises and some cuts.

I heard about that one, and I think it is the reason the little cover on the intake is on the Outside and not nestled behind the turbine in the newer engines, I dont remember exactly about how the newer engine's are constructed. x_x
The guy lucked out and was simply pulled in one end and out the other without touching much inside I think. As for a link, I cant help there either.

Sounds like a stroke of luck more than anything...so unless Werewolves have some mystical abundance of luck, they probably won't end up like that guy unless they're unlucky enough to be pulled into a engine, yet lucky enough to survive withouty being managled to hell and back.

Your born----> life sucks----> then you die

That was great.

1. A silver bullet straight through the heart
2. A silver bullet missing the heart but hitting the upper lobe of the left lung, causing a tension pneumothorax
3. A silver-coated copper bullet
4. A gold or platinum bullet
5. Any other bullet, fired in the right location
...

237. Falling from a four story roof, landing on his head, and ing open his skull
238. Watching Darkwolf, Howling II, or The Beast of Bray Road
239. A knife. Nah... too messy. Do you mind! He's my friend!
240. Hanging
...

9023. Thermonuclear holocaust
9024. Being onboard a giant spacecraft that crashes into the sun
9025. Plasma ray bursts from an Illarthi fighter craft
....

40,752. Quantum teleporer malfunction

What about a catapult?

23Jarden wrote:
What about a catapult?

Only if the cat had a laser strapped to its head.

More Dangerous than the Catapult would be the Dogapult...Werewolves are descended from some Canid lifeform...

Perhaps there would be the UNIVERSAL SAVING COMA, wherein the Were' would just pass out until things got better ....Lot's better. THat old horse has been used in countless Horror Movies, when the writers couldn't come up with a more believable way to sustain the Headline Horror.

There would have to be some sort of Mortality function...OK, Were's are Tougher than Smooths (they are a Positive mutation after all) but
old age would probably be the number one cause of death...at, say, 125 or 150 years of age. Maybe some would live into their Two Hundreds, but not many.
Otherwise, we wind up with Werewolves all over the place, just from basic reproduction/Crossing increases. Then, everybody has to pretend they don't notice all the Werewolves around, because they'd get cranky if they realised their Secret was out.....

RedEye wrote:More Dangerous than the Catapult would be the Dogapult...Werewolves are descended from some Canid lifeform...

Perhaps there would be the UNIVERSAL SAVING COMA, wherein the Were' would just pass out until things got better ....Lot's better. THat old horse has been used in countless Horror Movies, when the writers couldn't come up with a more believable way to sustain the Headline Horror.

You mean like in Underworld 2? and countless other movies...

Neilak20 wrote:

RedEye wrote:More Dangerous than the Catapult would be the Dogapult...Werewolves are descended from some Canid lifeform...

Perhaps there would be the UNIVERSAL SAVING COMA, wherein the Were' would just pass out until things got better ....Lot's better. THat old horse has been used in countless Horror Movies, when the writers couldn't come up with a more believable way to sustain the Headline Horror.

You mean like in Underworld 2? and countless other movies...

You got it!

Set wrote:

Renorei wrote:You PROBABLY WON'T die from:
-starvation or water deprivation. The typical three days without water = death and nine days without food = death does not apply to you. Though EVENTUALLY you might die from being deprived of these things, you can certainly make it a lot longer than the average human can.

I'm curious...why did this make it onto your list? It doesn't make any sense, especially if you like the idea that werewolves have a faster metabolism than humans. Faster = you die quicker. I've been around animals of varying metabolism, I know what effect it has. The thoroughbred will get skinny long before the appaloosa.

And correct me if I'm wrong, but I thought it took several MONTHS for a human to die from starvation.

I haven't figured out exactly why this made my list. The truth is, with fictional creatures like werewolves, I like to figure out what would make for the coolest and most interesting story first, and then find a justification for it later. If I can't come up with a justification, I make them magical.

For these semi-immortal werewolves, it seemed like the most interesting story possibility would be to have them be rather epic...not totally invincible, but pretty darn astounding none-the-less.

And, it seemed rather odd for them to be able to survive an onslaught of bullets, but to die from a little thing like food deprivation.



As far as what the justification would be (if I'm going for any semblance of realism here), these werewolves would have to use something besides metabolism as a way to rapidly heal injuries. One of my favorite alternatives is based on an episode of Futurama that I saw. Fry somehow became the host to worm parasites...but instead of weakening his body, they made it stronger, and better.

Parasites that damage your body and weaken you are ultimately counter-productive. The reason is becuase by weakening and ultimately destroying your body for food, they are also forcing themselves to have to find a new host, meaning that there is a good chance that the parasite will die in this process. An ideal, highly evolved parasite would in fact not do any damage to it's host's body....so basically I'm sorta tossing around a model of lycanthropy that, instead of it being a virus, it is actually a highly evolved parasite (though I suppose viruses are technically parasites). They can do tissue repairs and improvements, as well as all kinds of other stuff. If you are injured, they rush immediately to the injury and assist your body in repairing it. They would also be key to the transformation process, somehow. The relationship would be symbiotic, benefical to both.

I am not sure what they would eat. They could eat your body's tissues I guess, but that doesn't seem to be something that would be helpful. Perhaps they are somehow photosynthetic...they need a host to live in for whatever reason, but get their actual energy from the sun. Or maybe they are capable of finding energy from your feces.

Anyway, I really haven't figured it out yet. Like I said, the justification comes after figuring out what makes for cool characters. If I ever actually wrote a story with these 'epic' werewolves, I'd probably end up chalking it up to magic, as it would be easier than coming up with something remotely plausible.

Set wrote:

Renorei wrote:And correct me if I'm wrong, but I thought it took several MONTHS for a human to die from starvation.

Nope, It takes 1 week for a human to survive with NO food. it takes several months for a human to survive with very little food.

And what does this picture have to do with werewolves being able to die or not?

Dying Werewolves get great dramatic lines to say! Possible Tear-Jerking lines to say! Profoundly philosophic lines to say!

This IS a Movie, after all.....

RedEye wrote:Dying Werewolves get great dramatic lines to say! Possible Tear-Jerking lines to say! Profoundly philosophic lines to say!

This IS a Movie, after all.....

"When I die, remember to vacuum me"?

I say if anything lives dies (so yes a werewolf dies sometime)

Teleporter malfunction! Oh wait! How about getting sucked into a jet engine? Or a elevator malfunction? Or the mighty chicken bone caught in the throat?

What about an accident with a guillotine?

Yes werewolves can die....i know its sad but yea they can. Either from old age , from multiple shots from silver bullets,decapitaion, ect ect.

wolfman1991 wrote:Yes werewolves can die....i know its sad but yea they can. Either from old age , from multiple shots from silver bullets,decapitaion, ect ect.

IM GOING TO HAVE TO AGREE WITH WOLFMAN1991