World of Darkness: Changing Breeds is a sourcebook for the Chronicles of Darkness. It contains rules and information for playing as were-creatures other than werewolves.
Summary[]
From the Onyx Path catalog:
- Nature is FED UP with us.
In fact, she’d like to have a chat With you.
So lay right there
And let’s begin.
I’ll do the talking
And you do the SCREAMING.
This book is for
The Beast inside
Each one of us.
- This book includes:
- A thrilling and revealing run through the hidden world of shapechanging werebeasts.
- Complete rules and insightful advice for creating shapechanging characters of any breed, suitable for Storytellers and players alike.
- Dozens of playable shapechanger breeds, such as the catlike Bastet, the cunning feathered Corvians and the mysterious Oceanborn.
- A look at Man’s world through feral eyes.
Contents[]
Prologue: Fox Running[]
A story about a Mexican werecoyote experiencing the First Change.
Introduction[]
- Sources and Inspiration
- Fiction:
- Bitten by Kelley Armstrong
- Tarzan of the Apes and other related books by Edgar Rice Burroughs
- "My Lady of the Hearth" by Storm Constantine
- "Birds," "Crow Girls," Greenmantle, Someplace to be Flying, Spiritwalk, "Seven Wild Sisters," "Wild Horses" and many others by Charles de Lint
- Anansi Boys and "A Dream of a Thousand Cats" (from The Sandman) by Neil Gaiman
- Grimm's Fairy Tales by William and Jakob Grimm
- The Conan stories by Robert E. Howard
- Owl in Love by Patrice Kindl
- The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling
- The Firekeeper series (Through Wolf's Eyes, Wolf's Head, The Dragon of Despair, Wolf Captured, Wolf Hunting and Wolf's Blood) and Brother to Dragons, Companion to Owls by Jane Lindskold
- "The Shadow Over Innsmouth," "The Dunwich Horror," "Imprisoned With the Pharaohs," "Rats in the Walls," "Pickman's Model," "The Other" and "The Cats of Ulthar" by H.P. Lovecraft
- Touching Spirit Bear by Ben Mikaelsen
- Equus by Peter Shaffer
- The Orphan's Tales: In the Night Garden and In the Cities of Coin and Spice, plus Yume No Han: The Book of Dreams and The Labyrinth by Catherynne Valente
- The Kitty series by Carrie Vaughn (Kitty and the Midnight Hour, Kitty Takes a Holiday and Kitty Goes to Washington)
- The Island of Doctor Moreau by H.G. Wells
- White Wolf books detailing changing breeds both old and new. World of Darkness: Skinchangers by Chris Campbell, Jess Hartley and Peter Schaefer
- The Wood Wife and The Coyote Road: Trickster Tales by Terri Windling
- Additional Inspirations:
- Grendel by John Gardner, The Owl Woman by Elen Sentier, Deerskin by Robin McKinley, The Shape Changer's Wife by Sharon Shinn and The Rose and the Beast: Fairy Tales Retold by Francesca Lia Block. Also: Jaguar Moon by Teri Adkins, Nocturnal by Madelaine Montague, the Immortal Ops series by Mandy M. Roth and Ghost Cats by Jaycee Clark, Elaine Corvidae, Shelley Munro and Michelle M. Pillow.
- Nonfiction:
- The Life of Mammals by David Attenborough
- Medicine Cards: The Discovery of Power Through the Ways of Animals by David Carson, Jamie Sams and Angela C. Werneke
- Africa's Animal Kingdom: A Visual Celebration by Kit Coppard
- Native American Myth & Legend: An A-Z of People and Places by Mike Dixon-Kennedy
- Living Stories of the Cherokee edited by Barbara Duncan
- American Indian Myths and Legends by Richard Erdoes and Alfonso Ortiz
- Women Who Run With the Wolves: Myths and Stories of the Wild Woman Archetype by Clarissa Pinkola Estés
- Spirits of the Wild: The World's Great Nature Myths by Gary Ferguson
- Animals in Translation: Using the Mysticism of Autism to Decode Animal Behavior by Temple Grandin and Catherine Johnson
- Intimate Nature: The Bond Between Woman and Animals edited by Linda Hogan, Deena Metzger and Brenda Peterson
- Wild Life: The Remarkable Lives of Ordinary Animals by Edward Kanze
- In the Company of Crows and Ravens by John M. Marzluff, Paul Ehrlich and Tony Angell
- Cesar's Way: The Natural, Everyday Guide to Understanding and Correcting Common Dog Problems by Cesar Millan and Melissa Jo Peltier
- The Nine Emotional Lives of Cats: A Journey Into the Feline Heart by Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson
- The Orphan Girl and Other Stories: West African Folk Tales by Buchi Offodile
- Inside the Animal Mind: A Groundbreaking Exploration of Animal Intelligence by George Page
- Living Wisdom: Animal Spirits by Nicholas J. Saunders
- Crows: Encounters With the Wise Guys by Candace Savage
- The Others: How Animals Made Us Human by Paul Shepard
- Additional Inspirations:
- Yes, Your Teen Is Crazy!: Loving Your Kid Without Losing Your Mind by Michael J. Bradley and Jay N. Giedd, The Dark Side of the Light Chasers by Debbie Ford and Reviving Ophelia by Mary Pipher and Ruth Ross. Other sources for beast-folk lore include Gods, Demons and Symbols of Ancient Mesopotamia by Jeremy Black, Anthony Green and Tessa Rickards, Monsters: An Investigator's Guide to Magical Beings by John Michael Greer, Harper's Encyclopedia of Mystical and Paranormal Experience by Rosemary Ellen Guiley, The Element Encyclopedia of Witch Craft: The Complete A-Z for the Entire Magical World by Judika Illes, Symbols of Africa by Heike Owusu, The Magician's Companion: A Practical and Encyclopedic Guide to Magical and Religious Symbolism by Bill Whitcomb, wikipedia.com, National Geographic and Smithsonian magazines, The Paintings of Susan Seddon-Boulet published by Pomegranate Press and The Dorling Kindersley Visual Encyclopedia of Animals by Dorling Kindersley.
- Movies:
- An Inconvenient Truth
- Koyaanisqatsi
- Grizzly Man
- The Bear, directed by Jean-Jacques Annaud
- Cat People (Original and Remake)
- The Fly (Original and Remake)
- Tarzan and His Mate
- Greystoke: Legend of Tarzan of the Apes
- Babe
- Babe 2: A Pig in the City
- Night Watch (Nochnoy Dozor)
- Day Watch (Dnevnoy Dozor)
- Jaws films (and their many rip-offs)
- Grizzly
- The Blair Witch Project
- Dagon
- Donnie Darko
- The Protector (Tom yung goong)
- Animal Farm
- Nell
- The Silence of the Lambs
- Hannibal
- Serenity
- Cape Fear
- Strange Says
- Casino Royale
- Jungle Fever
- Girl, Interrupted
- Additional Inspirations:
- An American Werewolf in London, Brotherhood of the Wolf, Captive Wild Woman, Cruel Intentions, The Ghost and the Darkness, Ginger Snaps, Gorillas in the Mist, The Island of Lost Souls and The Island of Dr. Moreau, The Jungle Book (animated and live-action versions), March of the Penguins, Passion in the Desert, Two Brothers, The Wasp Woman, Wolf, Wolf's Rain and Wolfen.
- Music:
- Afro Celt Sound System, Azam Ali, Emilie Autumn, Sheila Chandra, Daemonia Nymphe, Dead Can Dance, Lisa Gerrard, Yungchen Lhamo, Loreena McKennitt, S.J. Tucker, Steve Roach, Wendy Rule and Vas. Maddy Prior's "The Fabled Hare" and "Twa Corbies."
- Fiction:
- Lexicon
Chapter One: The Wild Heart[]
Lays out the vital lore, theories and particulars regarding the changing breeds as a whole
- Feral Pictograms
Chapter Two: Building the Perfect Beast[]
Explores the rules and guidelines for making and running a feral character. These include new Advantages, Aspects, rules for werebeast shapes and the strange effects of the Delusion.
- Accord
- Den-Warder
- Heart-Ripper
- Root-Weaver
- Sun-Chaser
- Wind-Dancer
- Favors
- Aquatic (** or ***)
- Bioluminescence (*)
- Darksight (*)
- Echolocation (** or ***)
- Extra Limbs (*+)
- Fang and Claw (* to *****)
- Limbless (-*)
- Many-Legged (****)
- Musk (***)
- Natural Armor (* to *****)
- Needleteeth (***)
- Quills (** to *****)
- Razorskin (*** or ****)
- Size (****)
- Speed N/A
- Water Breath (*)
- Webbing (****)
- Wings (****)
- Aspects
- Alarming Alacrity (* to *****)
- Asthmatic Reaction (***)
- Aww!!! (* to *****)
- Bare Necessities (* or ***)
- Beast Magic (* to ***)
- Beast Surge (***)
- Birth Blessing (*)
- Blank Burrow (****) *
- Blend In (*)
- Brave Escape (***) *
- Burrowing (** or ***)
- Carnivore's Puissance (**)
- Catwalk (* to *****)
- Clamber (* to *****)
- Clever Monkey (* to *****)
- Culling the Weak (**)
- Durga's Blessing (** or ***)
- Earthbond (**)
- Exoskeleton (**)
- Extraordinary Specimen (*)
- Foretelling (**)
- Fortune's Favor (** or ***)
- Grave Misfortune (**)
- Gross Eater (* or **)
- Hare Heart (-*)
- Hound's Honor (* to *****)
- Hybrid Forms (****)
- Hypnotic Allure (***)
- Invisible Marking (*)
- Keen Sense (* or **)
- Leap (* to ***)
- Long Life (* or **)
- Magnificence (**)
- Marcy's Touch (***)
- Mimic (* or ***)
- Mindmap (***)
- Mindspeech (**)
- Mother's Fury (* to *****)
- Nine Lives (*****)
- Pack Bond (***)
- Partial Change (**)
- Pearl of Great Price (**) *
- Piggyback Passenger (***)
- Resilient Form (*+)
- Righting Reflex (* to ***)
- Sense of Familiarity (**)
- Sexual Dimorphism (**)
- Shadow Bond (***)
- Skin Double (****)
- Slumber's Touch (***)
- Snatch and Carry (**)
- Spinebite (*****)
- Spirit Animal (*+)
- Spirit Gift (*+)
- Spirit Secrets (***)
- Spirit Sight (**)
- Spook the Herd (***)
- Stampede Rush (** or ***)
- Stash (* to *****)
- Swarm/Flock Form (****)
- Sweet-Voiced Fiend (*)
- Swift Wing (***)
- Tar Baby (***) *
- Tell (-*)
- Territory Bond (*** to *****)
- Tiger Heart (*)
- Toss the Scent (*) *
- Totem Guardian (**+)
- Truth Sense (* to *****)
- Twisted Tongue (*)
- Unnerving Cry (**)
- Unsettling Eye (*)
- Unspeakable (*** or *****)
- Venomous (*** or ****)
- Wallwalking (**)
- War Heart (*****)
- Warrior's Restoration (**)
- Weatherskin (*)
- Weaver's Wisdom (* to *****)
- The Wild Cry (* to *****)
- * Trickster ferals only.
- Merits
- Animal Companion (* to ****)
- Beast-Kin (****; normal humans only)
- Den (***)
- Pack (* to *****)
- Predator's Bearing (**)
- Socially Small (**)
- True Breed (**)
- Feral Advantages
- Feral or Humanocentric Derangements
- Cage Shock (mild)
- Feral Frenzy (severe)
- Neoprimitivism (mild)
- Feral Antics (severe)
- One with the Bears (mild)
- Hate of Man (severe)
- Beast Fears (mild)
- Obsessive Humanity (severe)
- Filthy Brutes! (mild)
- Hunter King (severe)
- I'm No Animal (mild)
- Banish the Beast (severe)
- The Forms
- Hybrid Forms
- War-Form Weaponry Chart
Chapter Three: The Breeds Beneath Our Skins[]
Ranges across the spectrum of beast-folk, revealing their legends and traits, habits and talents.
Creating New Breeds and Species
- Bastet
- Rajanya
- Bubasti
- Hatara
- Bahgrasha
- Other Species:
- Balam
- Cait Sith
- Qualm'a ni
- Klinkerash
- The Land Titans
- Azubuike
- Jhaa
- Mholé-Rho
- Other Species:
- Iravati
- Laughing Strangers
- Minjur
- Baitu
- Archunem
- Reynardi
- Mistai
- Other Species:
- Wapathemwa
- The Pack
- Maerans
- Riantes
- Vargr
- Other Species:
- Warrigal
- Royal Apes
- Hanumani Brahman
- The Order of the Luminous Sun Wukong
- Abathakathi
- Other Species:
- Tothians and Babi-Ahsh
- Hugranjah
- Spinner-Kin
- Nanekisu
- Carapaché
- Other Species:
- C'hi Hsu
- Sicarius
- Ursara
- Yonah
- Nanuq
- Other Species:
- Storm Bears
- Wind-Runners
- Uchchaihshravi
- Alces
- Flidaisin
- Other Species:
- Takuskansa
- Wing-Folk
- Gente Alada
- Corvians
- Chervaliers Rapace
- Vagahuir
- The Strigoi
- Other Species:
- Brythians
- Shadow Breeds
- The Cold Kings
- Whiskey Croc
- The Horned Folk
- Mendeans
- The Oceanborn
- Olutakami
- The Riverkin
- Kinno'balo
- Serpentines
- Mélusinae
- The Swarm
- Minna Lemnua
- The Taurae
- Yumni
- The Cold Kings
Chapter Four: Faces in the Smoke[]
Reveals a collection of werebeast characters, from Old Man Possum to a surprisingly deadly deer-girl.
- Felipe Miguel Santiago Bandaris, "Keeper of the Family Crest" - Wind-Runner (Equestri)
- Copperhead McCain - Serpentines (Mélusinae)
- Fawn Richards - Wind-Runner (Flidaisin)
- Sovah Volente - Wing-Folk (Strigoi)
- Old Man Possum - Laughing Strangers (Wapathemwa)
- Rucksack Mary - Bastet (Qualm'a ni)
Background Information[]
Rucksack Mary (Chapter Four) is also from the Bastet Breedbook from Werewolf: The Apocalypse. Also some of the Bastet groups in the book reuse Bastet Tribe names with slight alterations or no changes.
Memorable Quotes[]
Characters[]
- Gold Crow - ?
- Hank - ?
- Race - ?
- Emile Autumn - Musician
- Ghost - Bastet, Panther
- Sir William - Human
- Cord Chambers - Human
- Josoa - Human Guide
- Denny Gorvis - Human, Trapper
- Marcannon - Human
- Dr. Epona Steed - Wind-Runner
- Mickey Frank - Human
- Adele - Human, Nurse
- Blind Willie - ?
- Rennie Thorpe - Human, died
- Kyle Volente - Wing-Folk, Golden Eagle
- "Bear" - Changing Breed, type?
- Hyper - Rucksack Mary's Band, Changing Breed, type?
- Mandrill - Rucksack Mary's Band, Changing Breed, type?
- Crash - Rucksack Mary's Band, Wing-Folk, Falcon
- Steve-Steve - Rucksack Mary's Band, Changing Breed, type?
Terminology[]
Accord, aiaetha, Alpha, band, beast-blood, the Berserk, butoka, the Change, Changing Gift, Changing Folk, Den-Warder, the Delusion, Essence, feral, First Change, the First Tongue, the Fury, going beast or going feral, harmony, Heart Path(s), Heart-Ripper, kin, the Lost Folk, 'Man, Beast and Nature', Moonbane, Moon-Callers, Nahual, newblood, quiet codes, rabbit run, Regency, Root-Weaver, running off, "shit-speak", soul-kin, the Storm, Sun-Chaser, therian, tiger storm, were-, Wind-Dancer
References[]
| Previous release | Game Products | Next release |
|---|---|---|
CofD: World of Darkness: Reliquary   |
Chronicles of Darkness books | CofD: World of Darkness: Midnight Roads
|