imported>Valdes at 15:27, 4 April 2026

2026-04-04T15:27:17Z

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'''Garou''', also called '''Beastmen''' by the old settlers, are lion-like biped creatures native to [[Dragonwilds:Antumnos]]{{CiteJournal|journal=Purified King's Token|quote=Inside each token rests a single pebble taken from Antumnos, the Garou homeworld, and if you focus your senses you're sure you can feel the faintest pulse from within.}}. According to [[Dragonwilds:Vannaka]], his ancestors and the Garou have some sort of history with each other. They originally worshipped [[Dragonwilds:Lougrim]], who was considered a [[Dragonwilds:Gods|goddess]] and their '''High Queen'''. The Garou are found throughout the [[Dragonwilds:Fractured Plains]], [[Dragonwilds:Stormtouched Highlands]], and [[Dragonwilds:Bloodblight Swamp]]. There are a few known types of Garou:

==Culture==
The Garou are divided into two castes: a highborn caste capable of wielding magic, and a commonborn caste that cannot. highborn Garou are physically larger than their common-born kin due to generations of selective breeding, producing bloodlines with greater strength, speed, and magical ability.{{CiteJournal|journal=Garou Druid|quote=Noble-born garou are larger than their common-born kin, resulting from very careful breeding practices. The noble bloodlines are stronger, faster, and capable of magic, clearly superior to the lower class of their society.}} Despite this divide, commonborn Garou are not treated poorly; there is no system of slavery or servitude among them.{{CiteJournal|journal=Garou Hunter|quote=They are not mistreated by their kin. There are no garou slaves or servants, but a lowborn garou can never rule.}} While commonborn may challenge for the throne, none have ever succeeded due to the physical and magical advantages held by the highborn.{{CiteJournal|journal=Garou Hunter|quote=The lower-born garou can never rise to the role of king. Many have tried, but all have failed. The highborn are simply stronger and wield magic that the lowborn cannot match.}} Most Commonborn Garou become hunters, where their exceptional skill with a bow earns them distinction.{{CiteJournal|journal=Garou Hunter|quote=lowborn garou often take up the hunter's mantle. Their precision with a bow is practically unmatched, and they delight in nothing more than seeing their quarry draw its last breath.}}
===Political structure===
The Garou were once separated into different clans until Lougrim united them under her rule. Each nation was ruled by a king, a gender-neutral title used by monarchs of all genders throughout their history on Antumnos.{{CiteJournal|journal=Garou King|quote=The title of King is gender neutral, and kings of all genders are recorded across garou history. This is because the mantle of queen has belonged to only two beings, Lougrim and her devourer. She fell upon the capital of the garou nation, the city of Magrawn, where she called out a challenge to all the reigning kings of the garou clans. They answered the summons and she defeated each of them together in a single, decisive, battle. From then on, she held the mantle of High Queen of the garou.}} Authority is earned through combat rather than bloodline; a leader must defeat all rivals to claim power.{{CiteJournal|journal=Garou Cloak|quote=Garou claim power not through birthright, but by proving their strength over all rivals.}} The right of challenge holds the highest place in Garou tradition, with strength and cunning valued above all else.{{CiteJournal|journal=Leathery Parchment|quote=My people have a tradition that is sacred above all others; the right of challenge. There is nothing we respect more than strength or cunning.}} No leader may refuse a challenge without forfeiting their right to rule.{{CiteJournal|journal=Garou Cloak|quote=A garou leader must be ready to face all challenges, because to refuse even one is a sign of weakness.}} These duels are always fatal; the Garou do not show quarter, and combat ends only when blood is shed.{{CiteJournal|journal=Garou Cloak|quote=When a challenge is made the two garou battle to the death. Mercy is a concept alien to them, once fangs are bared then blood must be spilled.}} Garou leaders are also bound by rigid codes of honour.{{CiteJournal|journal=Iron Crossbow|quote=Ranged weapons proved effective against the garou leadership, bound as they were by strict codes of honour.}} Thanes, Garou who seek the throne, mark themselves with ritual warpaint and pay tribute to Lougrim before issuing their challenge.{{CiteJournal|journal=Garou Thane|quote=The thane anoints themselves with special warpaint and offer reverence to a long-dead goddess before they find the king and call them to battle.}} Kings carry ancient tokens created by Lougrim's high priests, passed between rulers as symbols of authority. Each token holds a pebble from Antumnos, the Garou homeworld.{{CiteJournal|journal=King's Token|quote=These tokens are a unique creation, crafted hundreds of years ago by high priests of Lougrim. They are passed down from monarch to monarch, a sign of their overwhelming power and strength. Inside each token rests a single pebble taken from Antumnos, the Garou homeworld.}} From childhood, Garou are steeped in this culture of strength and challenge; their children play at combat, searching the forests for sticks to use as the legendary weapon Skullsplitter while pretending to be King Raluh.{{CiteJournal|journal=Skullsplitter|quote=Garou children would often play pretend at great, epic, battles... no character was more popular than King Raluh, the mighty. Pups would wander into the forests in search of the sturdiest stick they could find and then announce to the other children that they were the king, and this stick that most legendary of weapons – Skullsplitter.}}
===Hunting and identity===
The hunt is central to Garou identity, stirring something deep and primal within them. During a hunt, all other concerns fade away, replaced by the excitement of pursuit and the satisfaction of the kill.{{CiteJournal|journal=Garou Hunter|quote=Nothing ignites the blood of a garou more than the hunt. It reaches into a primal part of their being and gives them a reason to live. All worries are cast aside. All responsibilities forgotten. There is nothing but the thrill of the chase and the anticipation of the kill.}} Lougrim shaped the Garou into disciplined hunters, granting their first blacksmiths knowledge of weapon-making through visions.{{CiteJournal|journal=Thane's Authority|quote=The design is passed down to the garou from templates granted to the first garou blacksmiths by divine revelation. Lougrim taught them about the curve of the blade, and the heft of the hilt. Designed for the hunt, it could fell most quarry in a single blow.}} She forbade the use of poisoned arrows, viewing it as dishonourable; hunters were expected to kill quickly and humanely, though mages were permitted to use poison in their spells.{{CiteJournal|journal=Poisoned Iron Arrow|quote=Lougrim abhorred the use of poison on arrows, she felt it cheapened the hunt. The mages could wield it in their spells, but a hunter should produce smooth, quick kills, creating as little suffering as possible.}} During her reign, Garou druids followed strict traditions that directed them toward appropriate prey.{{CiteJournal|journal=Garou Druid|quote=In the age of Lougrim, the druids were tempered by tradition and ritual. They were encouraged to focus only on the right sort of prey.}}
===Cultural shifts===
When Kuldra killed and consumed Lougrim, claiming the title of High Queen, Garou society changed. The authority of kings diminished over time; once rulers of nations, they became clan leaders subordinate to the god-eater.{{CiteJournal|journal=King's Token|quote=The power of a king has waned over the centuries, no longer sovereigns of nations, but now masters of the clan. Servants of the High Queen, Kuldra, the god-eater.}} Though they now serve Kuldra, the Garou maintain their traditional challenge rituals; power is still determined by strength.{{CiteJournal|journal=Garou Cloak|quote=Even after turning from the moon-goddess Lougrim, becoming servants of the High Queen Kuldra, the garou continue their ancient rituals. Might, always proving right.}} Their priests acknowledge Kuldra as High Queen while continuing to mourn the goddess who shaped their people.{{CiteJournal|journal=Grieving Moon Staff|quote=They accept and revere Kuldra as their High Queen, yet they grieve the moon goddess that made them who they are today.}} Lougrim's merciful teachings were abandoned under Kuldra. Where the Garou once refused poison and hunted cleanly, their new High Queen encouraged them to use every available weapon.{{CiteJournal|journal=Poisoned Iron Arrow|quote=After Lougrim's fall it became clear just how foolish it was to seek such a merciful path, their new High Queen had made it clear that they should use all tools at their disposal.}} Under Kuldra, the druids became more vicious, embracing a brutal philosophy where only the strong deserve to survive.{{CiteJournal|journal=Garou Druid|quote=But under the auspice of the dragon queen, they are more prone to cruelty. Survival of the fittest is the chant they now sing.}} Kuldra despised humans, considering them inferior. Under her rule, humans became the primary target of Garou hunts.{{CiteJournal|journal=Thane's Authority|quote=Under Kuldra's leadership, the chosen quarry was human. The dragon queen had a deep hatred for the humans, she found them weak, petty and flawed.}} Despite these changes, some Garou speak of a legendary silver wolf, believing it to be Lougrim reborn and gathering strength to one day challenge Kuldra.{{CiteJournal|journal=Dire Wolf|quote=There are legends of a silver wolf among the garou. Some of them whisper that it is a goddess reincarnated. That she is rebuilding her power, to challenge their new High Queen again.}}
During the conflicts in the [[Dragonwilds:Third Age]], some Garou were captured by Zamorakian forces and subjected to vampyric experiments.{{CiteText|source=Dog Days - Vannaka|quote=Sometime in the third age, I think, Zamorakian forces captured them and there they became part of a vampyre experiment, to create something new.}} These experiments created werewolves, leading [[Dragonwilds:Vannaka]] to search around [[Dragonwilds:Ashenfall]] for hints about his ancestors.{{CiteText|source=Dog Days - Vannaka|quote=My ancesters... the werewolves. Aye, yes, my biggest secret. Tooth and claw beneath the silvery moon.}}
==History==
While it is unknown when the Garou arrived in Gielinor, having settled within [[Dragonwilds:Ghornfell]] of Ashenfall, it is known that sometime before their arrival, Lougrim had stumbled upon Antumnos, the homeworld of the Garou. She was treated as prey before taking the form of a powerful predator, forcing the hunters into submission.{{CiteJournal|journal=Garou King|quote=When Lougrim first visited the world of the garou, a place known as Antumnos, she was treated as prey. Her hunters were no match for a goddess, of course, and she assumed the forms of powerful predators, forcing them into submission.}} She soon arrived at the capital, the city of Magrawn. After learning of their culture and customs, she called out a challenge to all the reigning kings of the Garou clans. They answered the summons, and she defeated each of them together in a single, decisive battle. From then on, she held the mantle of High Queen of the Garou.{{CiteJournal|journal=Garou King|quote=she called out a challenge to all the reigning kings of the garou clans. They answered the summons and she defeated each of them together in a single, decisive, battle. From then on, she held the mantle of High Queen of the garou.}} Sometime during the [[Dragonwilds:Third Age]], when the humans were traveling through Ghornfell, searching for [[Dragonwilds:Iron Deposit|iron]] from a region over,{{CiteJournal|journal=Iron Platelegs|quote=From the outset, the search for iron}} the Garou ambushed them. During the darkness of the night, they picked off the humans one by one.{{CiteJournal|journal=Torn Journal Page|quote=They came in the night. The driver fell first; his life quickly ended with an arrow to the neck. Eva grabbed her staff and prepared to unleash a torrent of flame on our attackers, but a crack of thunder sent us sprawling across the forest floor.}} This ignited a fierce conflict between the humans and the Garou. Each incursion escalated the tension between the two sides, pushing them perilously close to the brink of war.
What usually stopped the two sides from advancing was the [[Dragonwilds:Whispering Swamp]], forming a buffer between the two factions, as both sides did not enjoy the idea of drowning in combat.{{CiteJournal|journal=Whispering Swamp|quote=When war broke out between humans and garou, it was the swamps that formed a buffer between the two factions. The muddy water was difficult to fight in, and neither side enjoyed the idea of drowning on the battlefield.}} The tide of battle shifted in the humans' favour when [[Dragonwilds:Bandos]] sent an emissary to Ashenfall to ally with the humans,{{CiteJournal|journal=Iron Platelegs|quote=However, the situation reached a critical juncture when Bandos dispatched an emissary to the villagers of Brynmoor, offering a solution to their Garou predicament.}} as Bandos wanted revenge on Lougrim.{{CiteJournal|journal=Priest's Journal|quote=We were here first, and we've no desire to share. Bandos wants revenge, for some slight or other the goddess created.}} With an alliance formed between the humans and [[Dragonwilds:Goblin (race)|goblins]], the Garou were slowly pushed back, but Lougrim found an alliance with the [[Dragonwilds:Dragonkin (race)|Dragonkin]], helping the Garou turn the tide of the war.{{CiteJournal|journal=Scorched Journal|quote=The beastman and their goddess no longer stand alone. Our alliance forced them back into the shadows, and we were so close to removing their stain from this sacred land. Yet, somehow, they have plucked new friends from the shadows. Allies of a terrible power that we had no inkling of before. The dragons they summon are terror enough. Setting fire to our villages, burning our watchtowers to ash.}}{{CiteJournal|journal=Pungent Scribble|quote=There I was, chasing down a beastman runt, when a great walloping dragon comes outa nowhere and lands on the goblin boss man.}}
As the Garou pushed the humans and goblins back, Bandos finally intervened, challenging [[Dragonwilds:Velgar]]. His arrogance cost him his victory; fighting without weapons, armour, or protective ward, Bandos was forced to retreat, abandoning his goblin followers and human allies.{{CiteJournal|journal=Bloodblight Cape|quote=Yet, arrogance is not a mortal taint and the war god reeked of it. Bandos cast aside his wards. He refused to don his armour. The god pressed into the lair of the great dragon, and tried to wrestle him to the grave. He nearly succeeded. Bandos wrapped his arms around the dragon's serpentine neck and dug his fingernails beneath the scales. Velgar, in his writhing fury, called down a poison-filled rock from the heavens and cast it at Bandos, striking him in the temple. As the god reeled, he released Velgar, allowing the dragon to breathe a jet of anima-infused poison, at the unsteady god. Still wavering from the blow, Bandos breathed in the toxins and felt weakness for the first time in centuries. A smart tactician, Bandos retreated. Better to face the shame of retreat, than risk the oblivion of death.}}{{CiteJournal|journal=Muddy Scrawl|quote=Big high war god has left us. Big high war god ran away.}} With Bandos' retreat, the war ended in Garou victory. Lougrim offered peace to the humans, so long as both sides did not cause conflict with one another. This peace remained until the end of the Third Age, when Kuldra led the [[Dragonwilds:Dragon Rebellion]]. She became the new High Queen of the Garou while her forces wiped out the human population in Ashenfall.
During and after the rebellion, the Garou were left alone by the dragons, becoming one of the few inhabitants of Ashenfall, along with the goblins in [[Dragonwilds:Brynmoor]] and the undead in [[Dragonwilds:Fellhollow]].

==Notable Garou==

*[[Dragonwilds:Garou Hunter]]
*[[Dragonwilds:Garou Thane]]
*[[Dragonwilds:Garou Berserker]]
*[[Dragonwilds:Garou Druid]]
*[[Dragonwilds:Garou King]]

* [[Dragonwilds:Ashien]]: A legendary Garou druid who was among the first to wield a [[Dragonwilds:Blightwood Battlestaff]]. According to legend, the goddess Lougrim sent her on a quest to defeat a [[Dragonwilds:Abyssal demon|demon]] in the swamps. {{CiteJournal|journal=Blightwood Battlestaff|quote=Ashien, a legendary druid among the garou, was among the first to wield such a weapon. As the story goes, they were wandering the swamps when the goddess Lougrim came to her in a vision and gave her a quest. Ashien was to journey deep into the swamps and do battle with a demon that dwelled within.}}

* [[Dragonwilds:Dahnu]]: A Garou who was raised with love by the druid Gahl after her village was destroyed. She became a skilled hunter and eventually claimed a king's throne through reason and wit rather than combat. She ruled her people well until Velgar ended her reign. {{CiteJournal|journal=Hunter's Stagbow|quote=She had no talent for magic, and could not learn his druid spells, so he taught her how to hunt with a bow, and she was a natural. Dahnu, as he named her, made a bow out of the first deer she and her father had hunted and that bow became a symbol to all she encountered. In time she would claim a king's seat. Defeating the prior monarch with reason and wit. Charming him out of his power and offering her people another way. Her people thrived, making her father proud. Until Velgar brought her reign to an end.}}
* [[Dragonwilds:Gahl]]: A Garou druid who lost everyone he knew in the wars. After finding a Garou village in ruins and goblins threatening a Garou pup, he killed the goblins and raised the child (Dahnu) with love, teaching her to hunt with a bow when she showed no talent for magic. {{CiteJournal|journal=Hunter's Stagbow|quote=Gahl was a garou druid who lost everyone he knew. In the wars inflicted on his people by the other races of Ashenfall, he grew jaded with the cruelty he saw all around him. This reached its peak when he found a garou village in ruins and goblins dancing and laughing as they threatened a newly born pup, in her crib. The village is gone now, dragged beneath the soil. Gahl's vengeance unleashed upon the goblins, erasing them from existence. He took the child as his own and raised her in a way alien to his people -- he raised her with love. She had no talent for magic, and could not learn his druid spells, so he taught her how to hunt with a bow, and she was a natural.}}
* [[Dragonwilds:King Raluh]]: A legendary Garou king who, according to stories, was granted a weapon called [[Dragonwilds:Skullsplitter]] by Lougrim that could destroy any foe. {{CiteJournal|journal=Skullsplitter|quote=Garou children would often play pretend at great, epic battles. They would create their own stories, true, but they enjoyed reenacting the battle of legend, and no character was more popular than King Raluh, the mighty. Pups would wander into the forests in search of the sturdiest stick they could find and then announce to the other children that they were the king, and this stick that most legendary of weapons - Skullsplitter. As the legends go, King Raluh had been granted a weapon by the Moon Goddess, Lougrim. A weapon capable of destroying any foe. Armour was as paper to Skullsplitter and fables had him crush the bones of villain and monster alike.}}
* [[Dragonwilds:King Rolthar]]: A mighty Garou king who challenged Velgar to combat and was slain. Velgar respected his strength and returned his body to his people for a proper burial. His resting place is now on a mountain in the [[Dragonwilds:Stormtouched Highlands]]. {{CiteJournal|journal=Elder's Storybook Page|quote=Before your grandfather had teeth, there was a king who was stronger than all his rivals. King Rolthar was mighty, proud and gifted with cunning. Moon after moon, challengers would throw themselves at him, and each fell before the hour passed. He was beloved by his citizens, a wise king who kept our people strong. Yet his strength was so great that none could match him, and it birthed a melancholy he could not escape. He sought foes that might prove a challenge. Seeking a victory worthy of praise. He chose to face the dragon. Velgar was the strongest warrior in the realm. Rolthar spent months in preparation, crafted a blade of iron and sounded the challenge horn. The dragon was too strong, his scales too solid, yet the king refused to relent. When Rolthar's strength finally faltered, and his last breath escaped, he still held his blade. Velgar slew Rolthar, as all strongest must, and brought the body home. "This warrior is the pride of your people," he told the tribe, "give him a burial worthy of his strength." His resting place now sits high on the mountain, watching over us.}}

==Trivia==
* Garou is a French word, meaning "werewolf", while in Japan the word means "hungry wolf".

==References==
{{Reflist}}

[[Category:Factions]]
[[Category:Garou]]

Dragonwilds:Garou (race) - Revision history

imported>Valdes at 15:27, 4 April 2026