Places

The Membrane separates the relatively comprehen­ sible realms of the Near Umbra from the endless enigmas of the Deep Umbra. The barrier is like the Gauntlet, but far more difficult to cross. The easiest way to enter the Deep Umbra is through a spiritual anomaly at an ancho­ rhead (usually found within the Aetherial Realm.) Packs of elders guard these gateways, much as septs of Garou guard caerns; these packs often call on ancestor-spirits and powerful Stargazers for aid.

Some Stargazers theorize that the Deep Umbra may be accessible by means other than Anchorheads, such as the Dream Zone, but the unpredictable nature of the spirit world makes repeating these journeys difficult. Rare travelers have found ways to enter the Deep Umbra di­ rectly by powerful, lucid dreams, but this possibility is as dangerous as it is promising. Tales abound of things in the endless void, watching and waiting to enter the realm of flesh. Mages have stories of Marauders driven mad in the depths of the Deep Umbra, driven by pure chaos and the

need to raid Earth for its spiritual energy. From there, the stories get stranger. Technomancers have documentation of aliens crossing the Membrane to conduct experiments on supernatural creatures, ranging from the intellectual Greys to an impossible gorilloid race called the Zigg’ralur. Suffice it to say that although all things are possible in the Near Umbra, anything that has to be kept out of our reality by the Membrane is sufficiently insane to destroy the minds of the unprepared masses.

Beyond the membrane, Gaia’s presence is less and less perceptible in the Deep Umbra. Reality breaks down, and navigation becomes progressively more difficult. This is the home of the Weaver, Wyld, and Wyrm, and it’s a challenge for even the eldest Garou. The only comforting sanctuary is the domain of Luna as she passes through the heavens. As with the Astral Realm, mages are far more prepared to deal with the horrors of this realm than werewolves are.

Like stories of the World Tree, tales of the Deep Umbra are contradictory, and have changed over time. No two journeys are exactly the same. Elder Glass Walkers have returned with tales of ships sailing through luminiferous ether; elder Shadow Lords intimidate cubs with caution­ ary tales of a pitch-black, deathly cold abyss where only insight can lead a troubled mind to safety; Stargazers, as

one would expect, have wondrous tales of living constel­ lations, intelligent light, extra-dimensional enigmas, and a panorama of more stars than a cub could ever witness on Earth. What a traveler seeks, she will ultimately find, if that’s a hero’s fate. If she leads a pack into her vision of the Deep Umbra, she can lead them to rapture and revelation or to the terrors of psychic annihilation. Fates beyond the stars await beyond a werewolf’s greatest dreams and nightmares.

Since Garou are creatures of both flesh and spirit, they must balance their time in the physical world and spiritual world. If a werewolf spends too much time in one world, he becomes disconnected from the other. For each lunar cycle spend in the spirit world (as it waxes from new moon to full moon and wanes back to new moon), returning to the physical realm becomes more difficult (increasing the difficulty by 1). Conversely, if a Garou remains in the physical world for the same length of time, stepping sideways becomes harder (also increasing the difficulty by 1).

Staying exclusively in one realm or another for a longer time is even more perilous. After a year and a day in the Penumbra, a shapechanger gradually becomes a creature of spirit. This is complicated by the fact that the farther a werewolf travels from the physical realm, the harder it becomes to keep track of time relative to its normal pas­ sage on Earth. Especially when memories of one’s former life begins to fade, becoming a permanent part of a distant realm becomes all too easy.

For ordinary people who find themselves in the Umbra (such as those escorted with the Gift: Grasp the Beyond), the risk of disconnection is greater. Removed from reality, they will gradually forget their former lives. Over time, they become progressively more ephemeral, eventually becoming creatures of spirit. Such transmogrifications result in confused and tormented entities that don’t pos­ sess supernatural abilities; instead, they become witnesses and victims for more powerful spirits.

Many Garou believe that if you seek something in the spirit world, and you’re destined to find it, you eventually will. Heroes seek challenges, and werewolves find them in the Umbra. While any path a pack follows will lead somewhere adventurous, chances of success and survival increase when travelers know their way around the cos­ mos. The Umbra may be enigmatic, but some methods of Umbral navigation are relatively reliable, at least for the spirit world.

— The forces of the Triat are more obvious when you’re in the spirit world. If you’re seeking a trail to a Wyrm, Weaver, or Wyld realm, Gifts that detect or manipulate these primal forces (like Sense Wyrm and Sense Weaver) can mean the difference between a safe journey and an unexpected detour into a living nightmare.

— Spirits possess extensive knowledge of the spiri­ tual landscape. Talk to them. Whether you negotiate, communicate or command them, they’re powerful al­ lies. Everything ephemeral needs something in exchange their assistance; the Garou use the word chiminage to describe gifts and favors that can motivate spirits. This could be something rare you bring into the Umbra (or from a distant realm), or it may take the form of a quest, sacrifice, performance, or act of obeisance.

— When certain spirits travel across the spirit world, they forge trails as they go. These tracks are known as airts, and many spirits have an airt sense for detecting and interpreting them. Garou have their own arsenal of abilities for interpreting these signs and clues, including insights into their own Primal-Urge and facility with Enigmas. Unfortunately, these paths are temporary; in fact, they can disappear when a Garou is following them. When a pack loses their trail, they may need to bribe another spirit that possesses the Charm: Airt Sense to help them.

— Analogies are powerful in the spirit world. A Garou seeking something distant in the Umbra should follow similar things he can see and experience around him. If you seek a realm of darkness, chase shadows. If you’re searching for a realm of the Weaver, wade into webs. If you’re reaching for the heavens, start climbing something. These methods don’t always lead to a direct path, but sometimes, the journey that involves falling a thousand miles begins with one step off a cliff. — Some realms are connected by spirit gates. Garou who are fortunate enough to find them can walk directly through a portal/ gate/sphincter/airlock/valve from one realm to the next. Unfortunate Garou must deal with guardians at a spirit gate. Anchorheads are the most obvious example of spirit gates, since they lead from the Near Umbra to the Deep Umbra (pg. 318); however, in that case, the guardian at the gate may be a Garou elder or ancestor-spirit.

Rumors abound of more exotic forms of Umbral travel: — Glass Walkers tell tales of epic journeys across the Weaver’s webs, reinforcing the idea that they may be the framework for the entire Umbra;

— Shadow Lords and Uktena whisper of tunnels the Wyrm’s minions have bored and drilled through creation so spiritual armies can move unseen;

— Red Talons retell the legend about chasing a Wyld spirit, only to find it suddenly disappear or reappear later

… or to realize that it’s led them on a merry chase to somewhere perilous;

— a Galliard may brush aside a velvet curtain and find herself backstage in the theater of reality;

— a Ragabash might go drinking with a werecoyote and end up riding a mysterious Ghost Train;

— a Silent Strider may track a ghost to a shortcut through the Underworld; and so on and so on and so on. The sky is no longer the limit, especially in realms that have no sky.

When traveling in the Penumbra, werewolves move as they usually do. Walking and running are the easiest methods of travel, but since the Delirium and the Veil are no longer concerns away from the watchful eyes of humanity, alternatives are possible. Some Gifts (and some fetishes and talens temporarily loaned from spirits) allow the possibility of flight. Particularly heroic travelers may find their ability to run and leap borders on the superheroic, especially if a realm is a little light on gravity. Some spirits may even carry Garou out of the Penumbra. Once that landscape is left behind, distances become less predictable and rigid. There are no maps, milestones, or directions.

Following a sympathetic route becomes easier when a Garou finds a trod, Moon Path, or similar path (such as a river, a thin strand of web stretching to the heavens, a rainbow, or even a beam of sunlight). In the absence of these paths, most werewolves simply meditate on their destination and let instinct be their guide. Travel times pass without seeming rhyme or reason, although they may correspond to quantifi­ able concepts, such as the phases of the moon, the stanzas of a poem, the length of a ritual, the passing of a season, or even the amount of time it takes to recite dialogue from a movie. (In game terms, travel time is entirely at the discretion of the Storyteller; let the story be your guide.)