The Five Auspices

Full Moon — Hunter’s Aspect: Dominant

The Auspice

All werewolves are hunters, but the Rahu is a Warrior. Where other auspices are experts in the best ways to conduct the hunt, the Rahu is the expert on ending it. She charges into battle, weapons or fangs at the ready, and does not retreat until either she or the quarry is dead.

Rahu do not fight for the sheer glory of battle — they leave that to the Cahalith. A full-moon fights because it is right to do so. She seeks Purity, because Purity is good and proper. The Rahu frames every interaction in terms of conflict. This can make talking with a Rahu a trying experience.

Role in the Pack

The Rahu ends the hunt. When the pack has done its job — tracked the prey, researched its weaknesses, herded it into position — the Rahu delivers the killing blow. In the pack hierarchy, the Rahu is often the one others look to when violence is necessary.

Auspice Benefit

Tenacious: Once per chapter, ignore the effects of all Conditions or Tilts hindering the Rahu in combat for two turns.

Gibbous Moon — Hunter’s Aspect: Monstrous

The Auspice

When a Cahalith is on the hunt, the world around her knows it. The grass bends under her paw, the shadows lengthen to cover her and then retract to show her in exactly the right, horrifying light. Death is coming for her prey, and the prey, in a small, sad place in his heart, knows and accepts this.

Cahalith are lorekeepers, bards, dreamers, and motivators. They record the deeds of the pack in story and song, and their dreams carry prophetic weight. Every night their sleep is vivid; sometimes it is a warning, sometimes a promise.

Role in the Pack

The Cahalith keeps the pack’s history, motivates the pack through dark times, and provides supernatural intelligence through prophetic dreams. They are the ones who know the old stories — the ones that contain the clues to defeating ancient prey.

Auspice Benefit

Prophetic Dreams: The ST may grant prophetic dreams at any time. Once per chapter, the player can declare an action was foretold — granting +3 to an ally’s roll or –3 to an enemy’s, or choosing to fail for a Beat.

Half Moon — Hunter’s Aspect: Isolating

The Auspice

The prey is alone. Other creatures shun it. The prey seeks only to find a safe place, hide, and wait until dawn. Around it, people close their windows, turn up the volume on their televisions, and ignore the howls.

Elodoth are diplomats, mediators, negotiators, and community builders. They wield influence where others fight with stealth and weaponry. They are perpetually aware of the line between light and darkness, and with some effort, they can push another werewolf over that line.

Role in the Pack

The Elodoth manages the pack’s relationships — with other packs, with spirits, with human contacts. They are the judges who interpret the Oath of the Moon, the negotiators who broker deals with spirit courts, and the investigators who uncover the truth behind mysteries.

Auspice Benefit

Darkness Into Light: Once per chapter, cure a werewolf of Death Rage (Stunned for one turn if in Basu-Im). Alternatively, force a werewolf into Wasu-Im with Presence + Empathy + Primal Urge vs. Resolve + Composure.

Crescent Moon — Hunter’s Aspect: Mystical

The Auspice

The prey might not see spirits clearly, but it hears them and senses them. The target shies away from areas with spiritual resonance, falls back on superstition, and finds his own senses betraying him.

Ithaeur are spirit masters, ritualists, fetish crafters, seers, and advisors. They deal with the denizens of the Hisil with an instinctive mastery. Where others see chaos in the spirit world, the Ithaeur sees ecology — dense, labyrinthine, and beautiful.

Role in the Pack

The Ithaeur is the pack’s expert on the Shadow. They identify spirits, negotiate with courts, craft fetishes, and perform the rites that keep the pack spiritually healthy. When a spirit needs to be bound, banished, or bargained with, the Ithaeur leads.

Auspice Benefit

Spirit Howl: Once per chapter, spend 1 Essence. Spirits of lower Rank flee, hide, or go dormant. More powerful spirits show deference. Hostile spirits have Defense penalized by Wisdom Renown.

New Moon — Hunter’s Aspect: Blissful

The Auspice

The prey has no idea that anyone is coming for him. He greets the cool night air with a smile, perhaps indulges in pleasures, and never glances at the shadowy form inching its way closer to his exposed throat.

Irraka are stalkers, assassins, spies, and thieves. They move through the shadows, striking quickly and quietly. Where the Rahu wants the prey to know it is dying and why, the Irraka would prefer the prey to simply be dead before it knows what happened.

Role in the Pack

The Irraka is the pack’s advance scout, infiltrator, and assassin. They gather intelligence, bypass defenses, and deliver the killing blow from the shadows. In social situations, they are the ones who can get close without raising suspicion.

Auspice Benefit

Closer Than You Think: Once per chapter, the Irraka can move initiative to within 1 of a target’s, close to melee range against a non-attacking foe, or subtract 2 Doors from Social maneuvering.