Christian Barr, an Elodoth Storm Lord member of the Lodge of Feast
Many cultures look on the ritual of sharing food as a spiritual bond. The Lodge of the Feast shares this belief. But, where others break bread and share wine, members of the Lodge of the Feast bond with one another over meals of human flesh.
The patron spirit of the Lodge of the Feast is Ravening Wolf.
Overview[]
The core belief of the lodge is that eating human flesh is not morally wrong in and of itself —unhealthy, yes, but not wrong. Many see themselves as gourmands and aesthetes who are attempting to indulge in their favorite vice as “responsibly” as possible. Others don’t even care about moral judgments, and are in it for the sweet taste of forbidden flesh. Some may even harbor doubts, feeling they’re morally wrong, but unwilling to do anything about it. No matter a Feaster’s beliefs, though, Feasters know not to flaunt their habits — they’re well aware that other werewolves might try to tear them apart for their “heretical” views.
The Lodge of the Feast exists in many forms, and not all cells are aware that they have kindred organizations out there. Ravening Wolf may appear to an isolated family of hillfolk in the Appalachian Mountains, teaching them how best to preserve “the old ways.” He might give his patronage to a pack of upper-class modern-day aristocrats, teaching them to celebrate good friends and good food behind closed doors. These small cells might not even think of themselves as “the Lodge of the Feast,” or even use the word “lodge” to describe themselves — said hillfolk might still think of themselves as “the Charfields,” and the upper-class pack might speak of “the executives’ club” with a knowing wink. What the lodge lacks in widespread organization, it gains in communal loyalty. The camaraderie of any given group of Feasters is quite remarkable. The bonds of shared food, particularly of the forbidden variety, tend to bring them together as tightly as any family or pack. A lodge member is quick to assist a table-sister, as much out of emotional bond as practicality. It’s a self-reinforcing system; as members assist and support one another, their kinship grows. Most local cells of the lodge tend to range from four to eight members; larger groups are rare (and terrifying), and smaller groups usually try harder to subvert new companions. Communal feasts are generally held once every lunar month, most typically on the new moon. One member, usually the most influential and the one best able to acquire a “fatted calf” without causing a stir, plays host. All the known members of the lodge in a given area are invited, and any absence is usually the subject of much speculation. The host always performs the Communion of the Flesh at a lodge feast, and it’s common for the various Feasters to offer one another small gifts after the occasion as small pledges of continued brotherhood. In a way, it’s very like the human holidays that celebrate prosperity with a family feast. While the Lodge of the Feast in theory is equally oriented toward the consumption of human and wolf flesh, in practice humans are very much more the lodge’s favored foodstuff. Certainly, there are more humans than wolves to go around, and it’s easier to acquire a helping of “long pig.” But it also has to do with temptation. The average werewolf is exposed to so many humans, both growing up and after the Change, that werewolves almost inevitably first feel the hunger for forbidden flesh when a human is present. The temptation grows while among human crowds, or even when spending intimate time with a human. Some gourmands go out of their way to experiment with the taste of wolf, but for the most part, the Lodge of the Feast deals with sating a hunger that is already present.
Membership[]
Many werewolves discover the forbidden delights of eating human flesh without any outside encouragement. At that point, they have a choice: they must give up on their newfound vice entirely, give into it completely and face inevitable madness, or attempt to find a third path that might allow them to feed their darker appetites while retaining some measure of sanity. Perhaps too often, their inquiries lead them eventually to Ravening Wolf and the Lodge of the Feast. Of course, the Feasters have to be careful about admitting their intentions. Though subtlety isn’t a hallmark of werewolves, it’s not inconceivable that an Uratha might pose as a human-eater in order to root out a suspected cabal of predators. The test of an applicant’s sincerity is simple enough — kill a human (or, rarely, a wolf) for food, and share a meal with the lodge contact. If the would-be Feaster goes through with it, there’s a fine chance that even a werewolf who had been planning to betray the lodge will be seduced by the experience and become a member in full. After this initial test, the lodge usually watches over the newcomer for the next week or so, just to be certain. If they seem to be sincere at that point, then they are invited to their first communal feast with their new brethren. This meal may be a lavish dinner held in a wealthy werewolf’s estate, serving the most exquisitely cooked viands in an elaborate distortion of high cuisine, or a rude ritual “picnic” held on a huge stone in the wilderness. The feast is a social occasion, dark though it may be, and always involves the ritual Communion of the Flesh. The new member’s health is toasted many times during the feast — all part of the celebration of sharing food and hospitality.
Game Mechanics[]
The following are an overview of the game mechanics.
Prerequisites[]
Rituals ••
Benefits[]
Ravening Wolf’s blessing allows members of the Lodge of the Feast to spiritually inure themselves at least in part against the spiritual deterioration that comes with eating human or wolf flesh. Lodge members are allowed to spend a Willpower point on the roll to resist degeneration for eating human or wolf flesh. This benefit applies only when attempting to resist degeneration for that particular sin against Harmony; any other sins that would call for a degeneration check must be faced with the usual number of dice. In addition, all lodge members are taught the Communion of the Flesh rite upon initiation, at no experience point cost.
Rites[]
The rite of Communion of the Flesh is said to exist in a thousand different forms around the world, not simply in the hands of the Lodge of the Feast. The rite was first performed over meat crudely seared over a small fire, or not cooked at all. While members of the Lodge of the Feast see themselves as the keepers of the rite, it can be found by those who look for it — perhaps scrawled into the back of a battered “pagan spellbook” in the dusty stacks of a used bookstore, detailed in the diaries of a Spanish conquistador, or even taught outright by a gluttony-spirit. Some humans have managed to discover the rite in a form they understand, and some of those have even tried to enact the rite. It’s a futile endeavor for them, and one that is sure to mark the nearby Shadow. The Communion of the Flesh does not enable werewolves to eat human or wolf flesh with impunity; the rite makes the experience more “filling,” not safer. A werewolf could well run mad after partaking in this communion too often, though they would delight in the process.
References[]
- WTF: Lodges: The Faithful, p. 124-127
