Garou glyph for Luna
Luna, also known as the Lambent Lady and Seline, is a Celestine, the spiritual embodiment of Earth's Moon. Notably, she is also one of the great spiritual patrons, the female alpha.
Overview[]
Luna herself embodies the Moon - unlike a mere Incarna, a Celestine literally is its affiliated concept. To destroy Luna the Celestine in the Umbra would destroy the moon itself. Luna's Umbral home is in the Aetherial Realm, which may or may not blend into a Penumbral reflection of outer space. Journeying to the Umbral moon is a most serious quest in Werewolf society, but one often necessary to take. It is only from Luna that one can acquire Moonsilver and Pathstones.
Luna's character is mercurial, changing with each phase of the Moon; she generally reflects the traits of each of the Auspices of the Garou when in the appropriate phase. During the new moon, she is a playful trickster and fond of riddles. During the crescent moon, she is a mysterious prophet. During the half moon, she is judge and counselor, a giver of sage advice. During the gibbous moon, she is a storyteller and particularly fond of song. During the full moon, she is at her most warlike. She has no set appearance, differing greatly depending upon which avatar she is appearing through. She is strongly associated with insanity.
Avatars and Servants[]
Luna herself is, as a Celestine, far too powerful to appear before such beings as the Garou. Instead, she appears through Incarna avatars, facets of her greater self through which she can appear. Of course, no one avatar can exactly represent Luna in all her glory. One of the most prominent of her faces is Sokhta, or Phoebe, generally considered to be a more accurate representation of Luna than some other Incarnae, and also affiliated with the lunar zodiac described in Rage Across The Heavens. Moira is another such avatar, appearing as an old woman, associated with fate and destiny.
Luna also has a variety of spirit servants to carry out her will throughout the Tellurian. The most common spirit servant of Luna is the Lune, a Jaggling spirit that waxes and wanes in power along with the lunar phases. They are capable of opening Moon bridges, and are generally well-disposed to the Garou. There are also Moonshadows, shadowy counterparts to the Lunes that can act as Anamae to beings that enter into pacts with them. Others include Blood Warriors, Great Green Cheese-spirits, the Harvester, Selene, Tythus, Falling Stars, and Strangelings.
Patronage[]
Luna is of deep importance to the Garou. Creation myths differ, but many cite Luna as the most direct creator of the Garou, although others say Gaia created them and Luna took over as a guide and patron. It is her ever-shifting face that determines the Auspice of a werewolf when it is born. She is also tied into their Rage; Luna is one of three beings generally listed as giving the Garou this potent spiritual weapon (along with Gaia and the Wyrm). The first sight of the moon each night replenishes a werewolf's Rage, and the phase also affects the likelihood that they will frenzy, with the greatest possibility during the full moon.
Moon bridges are one of the most significant forms of travel through the Umbra, many of them occurring between two caerns. To establish a moon bridge, each of the two caerns must have a pathstone (obtained only from Luna herself) and have performed the proper rites. They travel in large arcs through the Umbra, the top of which reaches into the Aetherial Realm itself. Moon paths are a related form of travel (most accurately, moon bridges are a specialized and more reliable form of moon path) that appear more randomly through the Umbra. Both are easiest to travel during the full moon, and incredibly difficult to cross during the new moon.
Since the beginning of the Era of Apocalypse, Moon Cults have begun springing up in veneration of Luna, choosing to support her ends over Gaia's. Although these cults are often mistrusted and separated from other Garou, they nevertheless maintain many of the old gifts and rituals granted by Luna that have fallen to the wayside for Gaian Garou, such as communing more effectively with Lunes and (in very rare cases) opening up the moon paths of old.[1][2]
Many common gifts are taught to the Garou by Luna's spirit servants, and many of their most potent gifts can only be taught by an avatar of Luna herself. She might also be tied into their shapeshifting ability (refer to Losing the wolf). In exchange for the strengths she offers the Garou, Luna exacts a price - the werewolf's weakness to silver. This is in keeping with the Umbra of Werewolf: the Apocalypse, in which nothing is gained without something given in return, where every act is repaid in kind.
Luna acts as patron to some of the Fera as well, including the Bastet. The Bastet are not as closely tied to Luna as the Garou, and as such do not receive auspices, though they are still weak against the lunar metal. She also acts as patron to the Gurahl, Mokolé (along with Helios), Ratkin, Ajaba, and Rokea. Those last three seem to have a relatively weak connection compared to the others, but still enough to make them suffer from a weakness to silver. None of the extant Fera have such a close tie to Luna as do the Garou, that much is certain. The Mokolé remember that the Camazotz were closer to her, however. She was also a patron to the Grondr and Apis.
Deep Umbra[]
Entering the Deep Umbra through Anchorheads near Luna’s domain in the Aetherial Realm leads to beautiful moonlit expanses populated by powerful Lune Incarnae. How the Lunes react to travelers depends on the phase of the moon. If Luna is full, they tend to be hospitable to a degree, playfully interacting with travelers as the full light of Luna infuses them. As Luna wanes, the Lunes become more anxious and sinister, willfully tricking travelers, or growing hostile at the slightest perceived insult to their mistress.
Gallery[]
References[]
- ↑ WTA: 5th Edition Core Book, p. 40
- ↑ WTA: Shattered Nation, p. 137
- WTA: W20 Umbra: The Velvet Shadow, p. 47, 104
- WTA: Rage Across the Heavens, p. 24-26