Bestiary

The Nocturna, also known as a Nighthag, is a defiler of hopes and dreams. These Banes wander the Umbra in search of particularly potent dreams or noteworthy dreamers. When they’ve found an appropriate sleeping victim, they poison that individual’s sleeping hours, twisting his dreams into visions of despair and distrust.

A dream of success and wealth might suddenly become a nightmare of ruin and failure due to the betrayal of a loved one. The common refrain of these dreams is the downfall of the sleeper, always at the hands of a trusted friend, lover, spouse, parent, packmate, or other close ally.

Rage

6, Gnosis 7, Willpower 5, Essence 18

Image: Nighthags appear as beautiful women with long tangled hair, wickedly hooked claws, and a mouth full of pus.

Background

The Garou believe Nocturnae to be tiny fragments of the nightmares of the Wyrm itself, shaken loose from its dark dreams to roam the Umbra. Nighthags tend to form a particular attachment to a single victim, revisiting him repeatedly until she destroys a relationship with one of her loved ones, egged on by mounting fatigue and paranoia. If a Nocturna’s target steadfastly refuses to give in to the dire portents of her dreams, the Bane eventually grows frustrated; one night it will materialize and kill whichever loved one its victim seems most loathe to abandon, and then frames her for the crime.

Storytelling Notes: While Nighthags present little direct threat to the Garou in a physical confrontation, they rarely bother with mere violence. Garou are a special prize for a Nocturna. A werewolf living outside the safety of a caern is a boiling cauldron of Rage and hair-trigger instinct at the best of times, and given to believing in dream-omens in a way most modern people aren’t. If the Garou themselves seem unlikely to fall for a Nighthag’s manipulations, then their Kinfolk make even more inviting targets.