Items

Weapons don’t have to do lethal damage to be effective against Garou. Tasers, which have gained in popularity as personal protection devices as well as standard issue for law enforcement officers, deliver a powerful but usually non-lethal electrical charge to its target. Likewise, pepper spray (of which “mace” is one variety) can seriously disrupt a Garou’s senses without causing permanent physical damage.

Tasers come in two varieties. A hand-to-hand version requires the user to connect with the assailant with the taser’s prongs. A long-range taser shoots out a pair of pronged wires that deliver a shock to the target. Since the prongs actually tear into flesh and cause actual damage, they are usually available only to law enforcement and other government agencies (or to Kinfolk who have access to those sources). While costs, voltage, and styles vary, the bottom line is that tasers serve as a successful deterrent against all but the most dedicated attackers.

Pepper spray, available in many forms, has become one of the most popular self-defense mechanisms for women who travel alone at night or in dubious neighborhoods. While the acrid, stinging sensations delivered by pepper spray tend to discourage most attackers from remaining in the vicinity of the user, for Garou the results can be disastrous on a temporary basis. Since Garou, particularly those in Lupus form, rely heavily on their sense of smell, the strong pepper gas throws off a Garou’s olfactory senses sometimes for hours — never mind the other physical effects: watery eyes, sore throat, and harsh, raspy coughing. Pepper spray set loose inside a den or the home of Kinfolk can render the location uninhabitable until the gas dissipates, which may take hours or even days.

Wire of various kinds, including barbed wire or trip wires can also work as deterrents, especially when coated in silver-plate or spray. For that matter, a can of spray paint mixed with silver can provide a serious deterrent, and even cause lethal damage should it get into a Garou’s blood stream via an open cut or wound.

As always, players must obtain Storyteller approval for any kind of non-standard, special weaponry.