United Kingdom Rites

United Kingdom Rites are rites that are only available to the Uratha in the British Isles.

The following six rites are some of the rituals found almost exclusively among the Uratha of the British Isles. While equivalents of these rites will likely exist outside the borders of Britain, these rites remain in frequent use by the British Forsaken and have their roots in the customs of the ancient peoples of the land.

First Edition Rite List

• Blood Ogham: This ritual allows the ritemaster to communicate a single sentence in a variant of the runic-style language known as Ogham, used by the ancient tribes of Britain. The rite itself is used to mark the boundaries of territories and hunting grounds in a manner that is immediately recognizable to werewolves and wolf-blooded, but undetectable by normal humans. Werewolves seeing Blood Ogham upon a surface know that they are risking trespassing on another pack's territory, and are free to act accordingly.
• Rite of the Final Howl: The Forsaken of Britain are no strangers to hearing tales of desperate last stands against the Pure or some hideous and alien creature from the Shadow. Though calling for aid can be considered the act of a coward and a weakling depending on the circumstances, sometimes a werewolf has no choice but to howl for help or die. Even then, if the situation is dire enough, a werewolf could be long dead before help arrives, and may need to communicate one last piece of information to other Uratha in the area. For this last breath attempt to send a message, the Forsaken created the Rite of the Final Howl.
• Beseech the Mother: The blessing of the Cahalith auspice moon is precious indeed, and all Gibbous Moon werewolves find their dream-visions compelling at worst and incredibly useful at best. But they are rare and unreliable prophecies, as random in their manifestation as they are shrouded in myriad interpretations. British mythology features a few tales of wisdom and enlightenment coming to people in dreams, and this ritual is designed to mirror that belief, by begging Luna Herself for another Cahalith sleep-vision beyond his first (the one received once per story). This rite can be used as many times as the Cahalith desires, though each successive attempt after the first receives a -2 penalty to the dice roll.
• Rite of the Cairn Stones: How a culture treats its dead is always an important part of any society, and though Uratha are drawn from human cultures, the werewolves have their own customs for honoring the fallen. This rite allows a more personal remembrance around the burial site of a packmate, and is popular among the Forsaken of the British Isles for its poignant and solemn use as a grave marker.
• Scarlet Messenger: These are times when a werewolf needs to get a message to somebody, and all other options are exhausted. Mobile phones fail due to reception and incompatibility in the Shadow, howls can only be heard so far and there might be any one of a hundred reasons why a character cannot call for help from someone nearby or contact someone several miles away. The Scarlet Messenger ritual solves that problem with style, creating a short-lived spirit capable of delivering a message to anyone, anywhere.
• Bloody-Handed Hunter: The rite wad developed to honor the family lines and ancestry of some Blood Talons that reach back to the era of Celtic warriors as "bloody-handed heroes." This is not a ritual that romanticizes the Celtic culture as particularly noble; rather it harkens back to an era of violent men who spent a great deal of time killing one another. That savage passion echoes in the modern ritual, and transfers to the werewolf's claws.

References

• WTF: Shadows of the UK, p. 99-101