Lodge of Swords

Membership

Of all the widely known Suthar Anzuth lodges, the Lodge of Swords is perhaps the hardest to join. Anka-Ur only acknowledges those Blood Talons who give their absolute all, time and again, to carrying out their decisions. Few werewolves can be described as lazy or totally undedicated to Urfarah’s duty, meaning that from among those that already shed blood, sweat and tears, Nomad Wolf chooses only a few who have the extra will to push harder and further. Some Suthar Anzuth, those who truly go above and beyond what is expected of them in their packs, can sometimes attract a subtle following of weak carrion-spirits that are the eyes and ears of Anka-Ur. These emissaries take the form of rats, vultures, starved dogs or whatever unassuming creatures fit the local Shadow ecology. They follow and they watch and observe, remaining around the werewolf for exactly one cycle of the moon. This is commonly referred to as the Trial of the Heart, in which these curious spirits relate to Nomad Wolf whether they believe this Blood Talon really is a cut above the rest of the Blood Talons in regards to dedication and duty. In short, these spirits hunt for crusaders among the warriors. When questioned, these spirits are not secretive. They admit their purpose without any need for demands or threats, and if slain (by the Blood Talon or anyone else) they are replaced within a few hours by others taking a different form but fulfilling the same purpose. Getting rid of these observers is next to impossible, and even werewolves sworn to other lodges can find themselves trailed by these spirits. Nomad Wolf thinks little of the other servants of Fenris-Ur and offers his chosen Uratha a position in the Lodge of Swords no matter what their previous lodge allegiance. Any character who meets the lodge’s high standards is a potential target for these spirits, but a Blood Talon earns the right to enter the Lodge of Swords through proving their dedication over and over again throughout the month-long observation. If the character has truly brought about significant change within their hunting ground — new alliances, new loci, the defeat of a powerful and longstanding enemy, etc., then they will be confronted by Anka-Ur himself. The totem appears to the Blood Talon when the werewolf is alone, speaks of his admiration for the character’s Heart, and offers them a place in the Lodge of Swords if they wish to bond with those who share their strength of will.

Prerequisites

• Resolve •••
• Brawl, Weaponry or Firearms •••
• Glory ••
• Purity ••
• Willpower 6

Benefits

Swordbearers are given a Packstone upon joining, and exceptionally successful applicants may be gifted with a Mercy Gem as well. Lodge members are diligent in their causes and gain certain Skills quickly through experience. The experience costs of purchasing or raising these Skills — Brawl, Weaponry, Intimidation and Persuasion — becomes new dots x2 instead of new dots x3.

Fetishes

Packstone •: Packstones are small, jagged, thumb-sized chunks of bone that are choked up and coughed out by Nomad Wolf himself. They are formed of spirit matter, but are manifested into physical form so that they appear undetectable from any other bone, beyond their unique, twisted shape. The werewolf must carve Anka-Ur’s name into the “stone” when they receive it, and make the attuning roll. If unsuccessful, they may try again next time they are in their lodge totem’s presence. If successful, the character may take the chunk of bone back to their pack to prepare the fetish for its purpose. Every pack member who grips the jagged bone nugget in their fist and draws blood from their palm is “remembered” by the Packstone. From that moment on, the owner can activate the fetish by squeezing it in their hand and drawing blood, and then detect the exact distance and physical health (in terms of damage taken) of each packmate, no matter their position in either of the two worlds. Anka-Ur is said to consume spirits of carrion or scavengers to create these fetishes. He alone creates them for his adopted children, rather than teaching them the knowledge to make the items themselves; some Ithaeur have guessed that other powerful wolf-spirits might have the ability as well, but less cause to use it.

Horn of Munin ••••: It's said that a Blood Talon Cahalith, one of the founding members of the Lodge of Swords, made this fetish's creation his life's final work. It is a huge horn, carved from block of red marble and inlaid with obsidian ravens and bound in iron bands. He is only known as Muninson now, but, as he aged, he grew tired of the pointless battles often fought by his tribemates and wished for a way to put them to a stop - to give a chance for cooler heads to prevail and to prevent a mockery of Glory. Legend has it that it is his spirit that animates the horn. The Horn of Munin's function is to allow all werewolves within range under the effects of rage to remember their calmer natures. All within 50 feet of the bearer immediately make a Harmony roll - any success immediately drops the creatures out of Death Rage of Gauru form. Those who fail the roll are stunned (and they lose their next action). The werewolf who activates the fetish takes two levels of bashing damage when doing so - sounding the horn is a tremendous effort, even punishing.

• Durability 2 (reinforced to 7), Size 3, Structure 10
• Action: Reflexive^[1]