As the Bone Gnawer Gift.

As the Bone Gnawer Gift. • All Hell (Level Five) — The Twitcher conjures a swarm of rat-spirits and Wyldlings, and pandemonium ensues: mundane objects fly about, the walls breathe, people smell colors and see sounds, and chaos rules. Wyld-spirits teach this Gift.

System: The player spends two Gnosis points; all non-Ratkin present with a Willpower score lower than the Twitcher’s Infamy are subjected to the Delirium. Beings normally immune to the Delirium treat their Willpower as two higher than normal when determining how they react (but not whether they succumb).

Ratkin make extensive use of mystic rites, and many of the same rites as Bone Gnawers (such as the Rite of the Cardboard Palace). They also use a variation of the Rite of the Totem called the Dedication Rite, which consecrates a band of wererats into a pack bound to pursue a specific, particular goal. One rite, however, stands above all others in importance.

Hazer Tag

Level One, Mystic The Ratkin have learned time and again that other shapeshifters, especially Garou, will blame them when things go wrong. This would not worry the Ratkin, except that some werewolves are also very good at tracking the rats back to their nests. This rite throws them off the Ratkin’s scent.

System: The Ratkin performs the rite over a sample of his own excrement before secreting it on an unaware patsy — often easier if the Ratkin uses droppings from his Rodens form. For (Gnosis) days, all attempts to locate the Ratkin will lead to the chosen patsy. Trackers using supernatural senses may find the Ratkin, but only if they roll more successes than the ritemaster.

Rite of the Birthing Plague

Level One, Mystic Garou inherit a legacy of heroism; Ratkin receive a curse. During this rite, the Rat Totem leads the pack of wererats to their Kinfolk, and a solitary shapeshifter attacks and bites the victim, infecting her with the Birth­ ing Plague. Ordinary humans and weak-blooded Kin die in agony; the strongest Kinfolk emerge as new Ratkin.

System: The ritual only affects Ratkin Kinfolk. After delivering the bite, the ritemaster rolls Wits + Rituals (difficulty 7). The victim must make a Stamina roll with a difficulty equal to (10 – the ritemaster’s suc­ cesses) to survive the hallucinations, visions, and fevers of the Birthing Plague. If the target survives, roll one die. On a result of 8-10, the Kinfolk survives unscarred. 3-7 indicates that the victim survives, but with a new derangement. Only on a result of 1-2 (for humans) or 1 (for rats) does the victim emerge as Ratkin.

Ratkin make use of a great number of fetishes, in­ cluding some that mimic the function (if often not the form) of Garou fetishes. Others, especially those created by the Ratkin Engineers, can appear as almost anything — and have similarly bizarre effects. Every member of

the Warrior Aspect knows how to create a special Fetish called a Pain-Dagger, and must create one of these holy weapons to join the Aspect. These Blade Slaves start play with a Pain-Dagger, but may spend dots on the Fetish Background to increase its power.

Standard Issue Sunglasses

Level One, Gnosis 6 The Ratkin get everywhere but tend to be twitchy and easily noticed in a crowd. An air-spirit bound into a cheap pair of sunglasses, this fetish helps deflect suspicion. These sunglasses make humans ignore the presence of the Ratkin as much as possible.

System: When the Ratkin activates the fetish she becomes practically invisible to humans, no matter what form she is in. Anyone looking for the Ratkin must make a Perception + Alertness roll (difficulty of the fetish’s Gnosis); she needs to beat the Ratkin’s activation suc­ cesses to find her.

Pain-Dagger

Level One, Gnosis 6 The Pain Dagger is a sacred blade crafted from some­ thing of significance to the Blade Slave and bound with a spirit of war, of disease, or of pain. It is an expression of the purity of a Ratkin’s devotion to the Warrior Aspect. The blade is only used in battle; once it is drawn, the Warrior’s pride is at stake. Only a Blade Slave can own and bond to a Pain Dagger — stealing one from a War­ rior is tantamount to stealing a piece of their soul, and any non-Warrior to own a Pain Dagger will not live to know the prize they have stolen. The Blade Slave must treat the spirit inside the blade with respect or face a significant loss of Renown.

Drawing a Pain-Dagger takes a point of Gnosis, which automatically activates the fetish. It’s an easy weapon to use — the difficulty to attack with it is 5, and it deals Strength + 1 aggravated damage to anything except the wererat bonded to the Pain-Dagger.

Some Pain-Daggers allow the wererat to use a Charm of the spirit bound within. Each Charm increases the Pain Dagger’s level by one. The wererat must take two dots of the Fetish Background per Charm. Each use requires an activation roll for the fetish. Any of the following charms are available if the character has bound an appropriate spirit: Airt Sense, Armor, Blast, Create Fires, Create Wind, Freeze, Shatter Glass, Short Out, or Tracking. Use the successes on the activation roll in place of any required roll or spirit Traits — Armor or Freeze would use the successes in lieu of the spirit’s Rage or Gnosis, Shatter Glass or Tracking work as normal as long as the Fetish activation succeeds.

STEREOTYPES

Kray Meren shares what he knows:

Bone Gnawers: Stop holding yourselves back. You know what it’s like, you feel it every day. You aren’t slaves, stand and fight! Rise up and seize what is yours!

“Rat’s chosen children live in every city, among and around us. Sometimes, they go too far, but even when they do I wish we had their strength of purpose.” — Seven Spoons

Ajaba: You’re kindred spirits as far as I can see. Both of us victims of the cats. You want to fight, I can smell it. We’ll fight with you.

“Small, smelly, and spoiling for a fight. They throw themselves into battle too quickly, but we need their energy.” — Musonda Crushing-Jaws

Bastet: Here, kitty kitty. You want to know a secret? Come closer. Knife? What knife? Oh, fine. No knives. Now, the secret: we know where all of you live.

“We have seen too much sickness to spend our time with bringers of plague. I spoke with one and learned much, but it is a feat I do not wish to repeat.” — Jason Shadow-Walker

ROKEA

The immortal weresharks have been isolated from other werecreatures for thousands of years. Now, some of them are now taking a more active interest in the world above the waves.

Sea is a different realm that lives by different rules, for it predates both Gaia and life. Sea was the eternal mother to her Three Daughters, C’et, Kun and Qyrl — beings that those who walk on Unsea think of as the Triat. C’et, the mother of hard-shelled creatures, is much like the Weaver. Kun, the mother of all fishes and the force of creation and fertility, resembles the Wyld. Qyrl, the Tentacled One, wishes to extinguish the sun and plunge the world into darkness and shares some traits with the Wyrm.

Kun saw that Qyrl desired to end the world and created the Rokea to survive this disaster — the Great Unmaking. The weresharks’ most important duty is survival and for millions of years they performed it exceedingly well. The War of Rage did little to threaten them. Once the kill­ ing started, the few Rokea who cared for the creatures of Unsea retreated into Sea. A handful fought in defense of their allies among the Mokolé, but most stoically mourned lost friends and allies, and simply ceased coming to shore.

After the War of Rage, few weresharks bothered to return to the land. Even more than before the War, the Rokea turned their focus away from humans and Unsea, and cared only for Sea and their lives in it. Their lives were timeless and unchanging and most gave little thought to the small portion of the planet not covered by water.

Few Rokea noticed the spread of humanity. Most thought of ships only as a chance to obtain rarely-tasted warm meat to fill their ever-hungry bellies. First steam and then diesel ships brought new and unpleasant smells and tastes to Sea, but even then, few of them worried about where these strange vessels came from. The poi­ sons produced by these ships troubled the weresharks, but compared to the vastness of Sea, such ills were easily avoided and barely noticeable; they never imagined that humanity could seriously harm Sea.

All of this changed in the late 1940s, when humans blasted Sea with underwater nuclear tests. The Rokea felt the oceans recoil from these Small Wounds. These blasts poisoned Sea on a level and scope that was ex­ ponentially greater than any harm mankind had done before, tainting both the realm and the Umbra.

Many Rokea realized that the Small Wounds — both those targeting Sea, and those on land that dropped poi­ sonous fallout into the oceans — threatened their ability to survive. They began considering ways to stop humanity from creating more Small Wounds, but unfortunately their isolation limited their tactical planning. When one

ROKEA LAW

All Changing Breeds have their Litanies. The Rokea’s is the oldest and the simplest, known as Kun’s Law.

• Survive: Their first and greatest law is that their race must survive. Kun created the weresharks to endure the Great Unmaking, and none of their kind should endanger their Breed’s survival.

• Hunt: Like all sharks, Rokea are apex preda­ tors. Hunting, thinning the schools and devouring the weak and the unfit are all part of their duty to the Sea.

• Spawn: Although they do not age, life in the Sea is never safe, so there must be new Rokea to replace those that die. Unfortunately, they breed quite slowly.

• Swim: Sharks die when they cease swimming. Forward motion is an inherent part of Rokea life. They feel a drive to move and to perpetu­ ally explore new waters.

lives a life of sleeping, swimming, and hunting as an apex predator, subtle planning is not a vital skill set to develop.

Some organized raiding parties that sank human ships. Others preyed on the coastlines, darting inland to destroy human targets before retreating back to the sanctuary of Sea. These efforts were short-sighted, disor­ ganized, and, ultimately, doomed to fail. Centuries spent eschewing land left the Rokea unable to understand the ways of Unsea or the complexities of human civilization, and they had no way to identify, let alone target, those

who were responsible for the Small Wounds, or their apparent war on Sea.

Over time, the number and size of the Small Wounds continued to increase. In 1955, the oldest and most pow­ erful of Rokea called a gathering of their entire species to reach a decision on the Small Wounds and how they should attempt to deal with this increasingly dangerous problem. The weresharks met in a shallow area of the ocean a few hundred miles southwest of San Diego. Rokea from all of the oceans gathered in the grotto known as Turna’a, where they listened to their huge and ancient elders debate the issue.

Then, disaster struck. During the middle of

their gathering, the US set off an underwa­

ter nuclear test at Turna’a. The Small

Wound killed almost all of the Rokea

present, destroying more than three quarters of their population and fill­ ing the rest with rage and fear. Fire and radiation destroyed all of the eldest weresharks, and almost all of the wise and mystical Darkwater auspice. With their leaders dead, the weresharks’ plans to deal with the Small Wounds collapsed, and the Rokea did what they do best — reacted with

blind instinct.

Survivors among the Rokea lashed out

at those they believed respon­

sible. Many Dimwaters

looked for traitors among

their own kind, taking

out their Rage on the nearest targets, and sowing the seeds of suspicion throughout the Breed. At the same time, many of the Brightwa­ ters struck back against humanity,

and began a rampage against ships and swimmers that struck fear among beachgoers, fishermen, and boaters — but did nothing to harm the people respon­ sible for the nuclear tests. Their attacks did provoke

a reaction, although it was not the intended one.

Terrified by the increase in shark attacks

along every coastline, humans developed

a heightened paranoia about the creatures. Several famous horror films of the 1970s and 80s depicted sharks as deliber­ ate and ravenous killers who preferred human prey, And any empathy humanity may have had for the cold-blooded killers was virtually extinguished.

THE TURNA’A NUCLEAR BLAST

Part of a Naval operation known as Opera­ tion Wigwam, the bombing of Turna’a is a tragic conundrum — a devastating disaster that never should have happened.

In addition to the unlikely coincidence of it occurring directly above (and during) the most comprehensive Rokea gathering in history, the blast was only 500 miles from San Diego — closer to US shores that almost any other nuclear test. This has lead some believe that an agent of Qyrl must have learned of the wereshark gathering and coerced the Naval officers responsible for planning the nuclear test to have it occur at the place and time it did.

The Rokea were struck entirely by surprise, lending credence to the theory of the tests being a targeted attack. After all, they claim, something — or someone — must have hidden the small fleet so that none of the Rokea gath­ ered at Turna’a noticed either the ships or the preparations for the test. The blast’s few survivors barely saw the ships in the moments before the weresharks fled into the Umbra.

While many of the Rokea sought the Turna’a Small Wound’s source in familiar territories, others ventured on to Unsea, in an effort to find and kill the people responsible for this attack. These fearless souls, mostly Brightwaters, explored deep into the Unsea in search of those who had brought such devastation upon their Breed. Many of these weresharks eventually came to spend almost as much time on Unsea as Sea, something the Rokea call “swimming between,” and thus those were labeled “betweeners.” Most new betweeners knew little about human customs or civilization, and had no desire to learn. Instead, they lashed out with incredible violence, slaughtering humans as far inland as they could manage before needing to return to Sea to regain Gnosis.

These attacks, coupled with the paranoia sown by the Dimwater’s search for traitors, roused concern amongst the wisest of the remaining Rokea. Some worried that

betweeners would cause the Garou to return their atten­ tion to Sea, and called for them to return to Sea. Others claimed that the concerned weresharks were cowards, or worse, in cahoots with whatever servant of Qyrl had instigated the attack on Turna’a. Many who could not understand the betweeners’ ventures into Unsea accused them of having abandoned their duty, turned their back on Sea, and of being servants of Qyrl one and all.

Without a clear target to attack, the Rokea turned on one another. Slew fought slew, clutch-mate against clutch-mate, and the blood of the Rokea spilled through­ out Sea. In the ensuing confusion of violence, one un­ identified Rokea proclaimed that no wereshark should ever venture to Unsea, and any true Rokea would hunt these betweeners down. Eager for answers, most Rokea rallied to this cause, and the betweeners became scape­ goats for all that had come before.

The Betweener War

At first, the rest of the Rokea went to Unsea to forcibly drag betweeners back to Sea, before making them forswear further trips to land. Despite their promises, however, many betweeners lost little time returning to Unsea. Some went back to hunt, continuing on the goal that had originally driven them to leave Sea. But others had become infected with a most un-Rokea-like affliction during their time on land: curiosity. This morbid fascination with the human

The Same-Bito do not participate in the betweener war, not out of some ancient compact but because the rest of the Rokea already consider the weresharks of the Beast Courts to be traitors and deviants. They spend time in Unsea, they interact with other Changing Breeds — includ­ ing the Hakken Garou. Why, a few even mate with humans, and rumors spread of weresharks born to kadugo parents — a horrifying idea that no sane Rokea could accept. That they are be­ tweeners is the least of their crimes.

This would be enough to earn the Same-Bito the same fate as the betweeners…if the Beast Court weresharks did not have sufficient strength to defend themselves. Enough Same-Bito ex­ ist — and with enough powerful allies — that the Rokea do not hunt them en masse, but a significant victory against the betweeners might make the ocean-dwelling weresharks reconsider.

culture long denied them did nothing to convince the rest of the Rokea of the betweeners’ stability.

As the betweeners continued to return to land, making an open mockery of the other weresharks, their Sea-dwelling brethren grew more and more agitated at their rebellion. After more than a decade of their rule being widely ignored, the ocean-dwelling Rokea decided it was easier and safer for the Rokea as a whole to kill all betweeners. This organized killing was new to them, and driven by a largely unfamiliar emotion: fear.

Over the years since Turna’a, the Rokea worked to increase their numbers, but it’s slow going. The Rokea do not breed quickly, and depending on their species, gestation can be as long as two years. As well, they face the one human force far greater than even fear or hatred: greed. Fishing fleets have increased in size and efficiency, swiftly depleting the stocks of some fish eaten by sharks, which impairs their growth and the Breed’s expansion rate.

ROKEA LEXICON

Betweener: A Rokea who chooses to live on land, returning to Sea to regain Gnosis and retain her shape­

shifting powers.

C’et: One of the undersea Triat, an incarnation of stasis and permanence analogous to the Weaver.

Dirtwalker: Derogatory term for a land-dweller.

Grotto: An undersea caern. Some have specific totems spirits, while others are watched by Sea or Undersea.

Kadugo: Human Rokea Kinfolk, offspring of a normal human and a Rokea. A Rokea mating with a kadugo

may produce a homid Rokea.

Kraken: Another name for Qyrl.

Kun: One of the undersea Trial, the incarnation of creation and fecundity analogous to the Wyld.

Kunspawn: Another name for the Rokea.

Moon’s Blood: Silver. Believed to be the discarded remnants of the Oversea’s Balm mixed with his blood.

Oversea: The sky, used to describe both the physical sky and the Celestine who rules the sky.

Oversea’s Balm: The moon, sometimes called “The Balm”. The Rokea do not recognize Luna as a separate

Incarna, to them, the moon is entirely part of Oversea.

Qyrl: One of the undersea Trait, the incarnation of destruction, ambition, and entropy, analogous to the Wyrm.

Rorqual: A dolphin or whale in service to Sea, capable of supplying Gnosis to the Rokea and mentoring

weresharks.

Same-Bito: Asian weresharks, considered traitors and heretics by the Rokea.

Sea: The oceans and seas of the world. The term describes both the physical ocean and the Celestine who rules it.

Sea’s Soul: The Umbra. On land, called Unsea’s Soul.

Small Wounds: Originally used to describe stars, this term now describes nuclear explosions.

Three Daughters: The undersea Triat of C’et, Kun, and Qyrl.

Undersea: The sea floor.

Unsea: Land; the term is used for physical land, including both Undersea and dry land, and the Celestine

who rules the solid earth.

Wound, the: The sun. Sometimes called the Great Wound. The Rokea recognize it as part of Oversea,

rather than an individual Incarna.

These same mechanized fleets also threaten the Rokea directly. Over the past decades, they have began hunting sharks, for traditional dishes like sharkfin soup and for traditional medicines and modern health supplements alike. Rokea can easily avoid capture or devour any who dare to threaten them. However, before her First Change, a wereshark is just another shark, vulnerable and driven by blind instinct. Despite their best efforts, the number of new Rokea continues to fall.

Hunting down and killing betweeners is often part of the Rite of Passage for newly changed Rokea. Most watch for betweeners coming to or leaving Sea, but a few daring young Rokea head to Unsea to hunt down betweeners directly. Unfortunately, Sea-dwelling Rokea have virtually no understanding of the human world and often have great trouble performing simple actions — like crossing a busy street or understanding directions. Those Rokea who stick to the rules of their kind avoid Unsea entirely, except to hunt betweeners and their Kinfolk. Sharks are chaotic creatures, however, and not inclined to obey rules, and so some remain on Unsea after engaging in a betweener-hunt, and despite good intentions, may even become betweeners themselves.

Betweeners

The wonders of the Unsea fascinate some weresharks. After they visit once, they can’t help but stay. Others fear that their species’ isolationism will lead to extinc­ tion. They come to land to learn to fight the humans who kill their kind in ever-increasing numbers. A very few find friends, allies, or lovers among humans or other shapeshifters and continue to visit Unsea to be with them. After more than twenty-five years of the betweener war, there are less than 100 human Kinfolk outside of the Beast Courts, and no known homid Rokea.

No betweener can spend all of their time on Unsea, however. Rokea are creatures of Sea, and after a few weeks even betweeners feel the call of the ocean and must spend at least a few days there. All betweeners must return to the sea periodically in order to regain Gnosis — something the Rokea cannot do on land or in fresh water.

Going to or from Unsea is always a significant risk for a betweener. Any Rokea who sees them come to or leave the land knows what they are, unless the betweener can successfully pretend to be part of a hunting party or other legitimate short-term traveler to Unsea. Weresharks have never been particular adept at keeping secrets from their own kind, but every betweener who successfully travels back and forth between Sea and Unsea learns how to lie very quickly indeed.

Many also learn another new lesson when they en­ counter fomori and other agents of the Wyrm on land: the

evils known to Sea are not the only ones that exist in the world. Most soon get over the typical Rokea indifference to the Unmaker and actively fight Qyrl in all of its forms — including those that have no direct impact on Sea. A few have become successful at hiding from the betweener war by moving further inland, but their migration is limited by their need to return to Sea to regain Gnosis.

The Same-Bito

Because of their ties to the Beast Courts, the Same-Bito do not have as much to fear from other Rokea, despite being an entire society of betweeners. Many Same-Bito spend significant amounts of time on Unsea, learning the ways of humans and the other Changing Breeds. The few homid Same-Bito prefer to spend most of their time in the sea. The Same-Bito have worked in concert with other members of the Beast Courts to drive off the few young Rokea who attempted to gain Renown by hunting them on land. This cooperation between land and sea dwellers is yet another reason for other Rokea to hate the heretics. So far they have decided to leave the Same-Bito alone and only attack betweeners who lacked other shapeshifters willing to defend them. The Asian weresharks may be traitors and heretics, but they’re organized traitors and heretics.

Same-Bito regularly work with the other members of the Beast Courts, but their relationship is somewhat distant because of their need to stay close to Sea. Like the other Hengeyokai, they actively oppose the Wyrm, and fight against its manifestations both on land and in the oceans.

The Same-Bito have close ties with the Zhong-Lung, the Mokolé of the Beast Courts. These weresharks revere

SAME-BITO TRAITS

The Same-Bito are the only Rokea to accept homid weresharks in any way. Same-Bito reduce their starting Rage by one point compared to the same auspice of Western Rokea. They can also purchase human Kinfolk as a Background, but must spend two Background points per dot on it.

A few Same-Bito can transform into a type of small shark known as the goblin shark. These Rokea are the spiritual leaders of the Same-Bito. All of them have the Swim Sideways Merit for free, and can purchase Step Sideways for 3 points in order to enter the Umbra on land. Due to their small size, reduce a goblin shark Same-bito’s Strength by one in both Chasmus and Squamus forms.

the Zhong-Lung as wise and sacred teachers, and, from them, have learned much about both the land and the long history that these two Breeds share. However, for all their wisdom and good intentions, the Same-Bito remain a minority among a depleted Changing Breed.

For the vast majority of their existence most Rokea obeyed Kun’s law and simply survived. They didn’t fight against Qyrl — and for most, this inactivity remains the status quo. Their ancient ones counsel the weresharks to wait, promising that soon humanity will destroy it­ self. Then, the Rokea will remain and can rebuild their numbers. Some Rokea, especially among the betweeners, have begun to question this passive attitude.

An increasing number believe that the survival of their Breed — and perhaps all sharks — depends upon taking ac­ tion now, before the situation becomes worse. For thousands of years, agents of Qyrl have operated undisturbed in the oceans. None of the other Changing Breeds can easily get to them, and most Rokea ignore the Kraken and its minions. If they take action against ocean-going manifestations of the Wyrm, the Rokea’s efforts could help the other Changing Breeds — whether the dirtwalkers realize it or not.

Currently only a handful of betweeners fight Qyrl, but this situation is beginning to change as an increas­ ing number of younger Rokea travel Unsea to gain information about threats to Sea and to their kind. As these temporary land-explorers do not live on Unsea, they are less likely to be seen as having forsaken Sea. And, since they do provide information that helps the Rokea to survive, most of their fellows are willing to tolerate them — or at least not kill them on sight. As they explore, these adventurous Rokea are learning to hate the being that dirtwalkers call the Wyrm — and some wonder it is Qyrl bearing a new name.

Piracy

For almost two decades, one of the ways the Rokea have defended Sea has mimicked human piracy. Were­ sharks target fishing vessels that hunt sharks, and cargo ships that dump nuclear and chemical waste in the oceans far from any oversight. From Indonesia to Africa, angry and desperate Rokea swim up to these ships and devour the crews. Once they are finished, they either drag the ship down to Undersea or run it aground. Although governments have no idea that weresharks are respon­ sible for missing ships, most of the developed world has stepped up efforts to stop piracy.

The Rokea do not breed with each other, and they have no metis. Except for the rare homid Rokea (only

found among the Same-Bito) almost all of them begin their life as sharks. Awakening from shark to Rokea is a slow and relatively painless process that occurs when they reach maturity, between the age of two and three years old. The shark’s mind gradually expands and they become simultaneously conscious and instinctively able to understand and use the Sending.

After they awaken as intelligent beings, young Rokea perform a journey known as the Long Swim, where they begin exploring the ocean, talking to any spirits, were­ sharks, or other entities they encounter, and eventually finding a grotto where a Rokea or spirit teaches them Gifts and instructs them on how to change form. From this moment onwards, the young wereshark ceases to age, and can only die by violence, disease, poison, or other non-age-related harms.

Rokea organization is just as simple as one would expect. Their organizational unit is the slew — a group of between three and seven weresharks, gathered in a similar way to a Garou pack. The highest-ranking member of the slew chooses the leader for any particular task. Ideally, the member with the most knowledge of a particular place or situation is the leader for any task relating to their knowledge. Leadership in most slews is highly fluid, with most or all members taking turns, depending upon the particular situation.

The Rokea have no formal organization above that of the slew; instead, Rokea society revolves around respect for elders. The oldest and wisest weresharks have survived for centuries — and on a few occasions, millennia. Other Rokea treat them with great respect, but as honored elders rather than rulers. Ever since the Turna’a blast killed almost all of the elders, what little leadership the Rokea possesses has been in flux. The eldest surviving Dimwaters claim to speak for all Rokea, but many resent their influence, and obtaining a consensus on anything but the simplest issues has proven almost impossible.

As Gaia’s only Sea-dwelling children, the Rokea differ in many ways from the rest of Her family. These differences, both physical and spiritual, all contribute to the schism between the Rokea and the rest of the Changing Breeds.

In Chasmus or Gladius form, anyone striking the Rokea with bare hands or feet takes two levels of lethal damage (that can be soaked), due to the wereshark’s rough, tooth-like scales.

Rokea cease aging when they reach adulthood. A careful Rokea — if such a thing exists — is practically immortal.

Gnosis and Spirits

Rokea must be at least partially immersed in salt water in order to regain Gnosis. They can also regain Gnosis from grottoes, and from undersea spirits called Rorqual — embodied spirits that are nothing short of living caerns.

Weresharks can perceive spirits of the deep ocean without needing a Gift, but cannot step sideways without using a Gift or the Rite of Passing the Net.

Rage, Frenzy, and Willpower

As a result of needing to move to breathe underwater, the Rokea hate being restrained or confined. Rokea on land will pace unless the player succeeds in a Willpower roll (dif­ ficulty 6) each scene. If restrained, such as being grappled or handcuffed, the Rokea must immediately check for frenzy.

Permanently short-tempered, a Rokea must roll only two successes on a Rage roll to frenzy. If she rolls four or more successes she enters Kunmind, a state similar to the Thrall of the Wyrm. Kunmind causes the Rokea to attack any creature within reach, trying to eat anything close by, without regard for friend or foe. Rokea never enter fox frenzy.

Rokea begin play with Willpower 4.

Regeneration

Rokea regenerate as Garou do, and like werewolves they cannot soak silver damage other than in their breed

SENDING

The Sending is the Rokea’s natural means form of communication. Weresharks can send and receive faint electrical pulses, which travel up to half a mile through open water. On land, the Sending has a range of about 50 feet. Under normal circumstances, no rolls are required to use this ability, it’s as natural as talking is to humans. However, unless the character uses the Darkwater Gift: Silent Sending, all Rokea within range perceive these Sendings.

Sending also allows weresharks to freely com­ municate with undersea spirits without spending Gnosis or using a Gift. Rokea can receive Send­ ings in all of their forms but cannot normally produce them in homid form. Until they have spent at least some time on land, most squamous weresharks know no human languages and can­ not communicate with anyone in homid form.

forms. Squamous Rokea can regenerate damage in their breed form as long as they are immersed in salt water.

Renown

Sea and Kun are the main arbiters of a Rokea’s Re­ nown. Rokea seeking Harmony or Innovation Renown send tales of their deeds to Sea and Kun via servant spirits, and they bestow Renown upon the wereshark as they see fit. Valor Renown, on the other fin, must be recognized by Rokea who are not a part of the Rokea’s own slew.

Rokea do not require rank challenges the way werewolves do. A wereshark who reaches the requisite amount of permanent Renown is simply considered to be of the appropriate rank.

There are two breeds of Rokea, squamous and homid. All weresharks are the offspring of a Rokea and either a shark or (in the case of the Same-Bito) a human Kinfolk; even on land where their mating urge is strong and constant, Rokea feel no physical attraction to those of their own kind.

• Homid: Prevalent only among the Same-Bito and exceedingly rare even then, human-born weresharks enter their First Change around the same age that werewolves do. They look more like normal humans and understand humanity far better than squamus Rokea and can speak human languages. Most Rokea find the notion of human-born weresharks to be abhorrent.

Beginning Gnosis: 1

• Squamus: The vast majority of Rokea are born of sharks. Weresharks only breed with the largest and deadliest species: makos, white sharks, tiger sharks, ham­ merheads, blue sharks, and thresher sharks. Squamus Rokea possess the same Ability restrictions as lupus Garou, and cannot have an Appearance rating above 2. Such characters do however gain a free dot of both Primal-Urge and Survival.

Beginning Gnosis: 5

The Rokea’s three auspices are based on both the sun and the moon.

• Brightwaters: These Rokea are born on a sunny day, or under the light of the full moon. They are consummate warriors with an odd desire to stay near the sea’s surface. Most betweeners come from among the Brightwaters.

Beginning Rage: 5

Starting Gifts: Eyes of the Wound, Restraint • Dimwater: Dimwater Rokea are born on extremely cloudy days, or at night during anytime except the new or the full moon. They are the most common type of wereshark

and are also natural leaders. Dimwater Rokea tend to be the most interested in exploring and traveling to all portions of the oceans. They are also the strongest proponents of hunt­ ing down and killing betweeners and their human Kinfolk.

Beginning Rage: 4

Starting Gifts: King Fish, Sea’s Voice • Darkwater: These Rokea are born during eclipses or under the new moon, and are the rarest of the auspices. Innovative and curious, they are the calmest of the Rokea, and those most interested in new ideas and in exploring the extreme places — physically, mentally, and spiritually.

Beginning Rage: 3

Starting Gifts: Blood of the Deeps, Silent Sending

Rokea are capable of five different forms, however, most rarely assume homid form. Rokea only learn how to assume their Glabro-like form, called “Round Back” or Glabrus, after spending time on land learning to use it.

• Homid (“Long Fins”): This form is that of a somewhat squat and coarse-featured, human. Human-born Rokea (among the Same-Bito) tend to share their human parent’s heritage and appearance, while shark-born Rokea take on the appearance of the humans of the area from which they first emerge from the sea, regardless of any distant human ancestry.

• Glabrus (“Round Back”): Similar to Glabro, in this form Rokea grow a few inches in height, but double in weight. They become huge, ugly, and muscular, with the first hints of a dorsal fin on their backs. Their shark-like mouths can bite (difficulty 5), dealing lethal dam­ age equal to their Strength. This form incites reduced Delirium (treat an onlooker’s Willpower as though it were two points higher).

• Gladius (“Standing Jaws”): These monsters are

monstrous humanoid sharks, standing more than ten feet tall, with jaws capable of biting an adult human in half. Their bite does Strength + 1 Aggravated damage. This form incites full Delirium.

• Chasmus (“Fighting Jaws”): This huge and

dangerous shark is the preferred combat form for Rokea. Weresharks gain half-again their length in this form — a 20-foot white shark becomes a 30-foot Chasmus. Their bite does Strength + 2 aggravated damage. Rokea in Chasmus form incite full Delirium in onlookers.

• Squamus (Swimming Jaws): This form is indistin­ guishable from a normal (if unusually large) shark. Only about 20% of the world’s shark population is represented among Rokea Squamus forms: the biggest, fiercest, and most predatory.

Form Statistics

Glabrus Gladius Chasmus Squamus

Str: +2 Str: +3 Str: +4 Str: +2 Dex: +0(+1)* Dex: –1(+2)* Dex: N/A(+1)* Dex: N/A(+3)* Sta: +2 Sta: +2 Sta: +3 Sta: +2 Man: –2 Man: –4 Man: –4 Man: –4 App: –2 App: 0 *The numbers in parentheses apply when the Rokea is in the water.

Rokea begin play with two Gifts, one chosen from the general Rokea Gift list and one auspice starting Gift. While many of their Gifts are similar to those known by the Garou, they are almost without exception taught by spirits that can be found without leaving Sea, regardless of which spirits the Garou might learn them from.

General Rokea Gifts