Post by fateandfaith on Mar 11, 2008 7:18:24 GMT 10
Wolf-Voskons
Also known as the Lupaira, a term relatively unheard of to outsiders, but readily understood in the Eastern lands.
Physiological Aspects
Average Weight: 130-160 lbs (60-72 kg) for females, 200-230 lbs (90-105 kg) for males
Average Height: 3-4 feet (90-120 cm) at the shoulder.
Average Length: 5-7 feet (150-215 cm) from nose to tail tip
Adult wolf-form sizes.
Life Span: Their lifespan tends toward the high end of a human lifespan, thanks to the mild healing ability afforded to them by their shifting. Their prime and reproductive years last much longer into their lives than those of humans, able have children well into their seventies. They are also less susceptible to most well known diseases as the pathogens have to bypass the immune system of both man and wolf, though they have illnesses particular to their kind instead.
Reproduction: Women have the same difficulty as other Voskons with regards to carrying children. As such, in most packs the Alpha pairs do not have exclusive rights to bear and raise litters as with wild wolves in order to keep their numbers strong. Pregnancies are made more difficult by the fact that they rarely have single births, with the most common litter size being two or three children, but the range being anywhere from one to six. As with real wolves, gestation lasts about 62 days.
The Pack
Wolf-Voskons are ingrained with the need for a pack, whether driven by the need for belonging or duty or the desire to protect and be protected. Packs often comprise of enough individuals to fill an entire village and protect a territory of several hundred square miles, perhaps even a thousand or more in the larger packs. While relationships occasionally exist between packs, for the most part each group is a separate unit. While common threads can be found with regards to tradition, religion, society, laws and other such aspects, packs can and often do develop their own unique cultures. There is one aspect universal to all wolf packs, however, and that is the knowledge and reverence of the Law.
The Law: Different from whatever rules are set forth by each individual pack, the Law is almost magic in nature. Once bound by Law, a wolf was compelled to obey the oath they had taken. Should they ignore it, not only would there be punishment from those they had made the oath to, but it is said that the Law itself would turn on them.
Pack Hierarchy: All packs are lead by a mated Alpha pair that stay together until death, though new Alphas do arise if one should die. Their word is law within the packs. The method of achieving the status of Alpha varies from pack to pack. Some allow the title to trickle down trough lineages, while other packs will allow whoever is the strongest among them to lead, though "strength" is not always defined by the body. Some packs follow a blending of both methods, while others are completely different still. The Alpha pair is sometimes supported by a Beta pair, a title that may either be heritable, bestowed by the Alphas or attainable through power depending on the Alphas and the pack tradition.
Religion: The common religious thread running through all packs is the shared belief in their creation myth. While the packs each have varying degrees of adherence to the deities and customs outlined within the myth, it still serves as the basis for all of their beliefs.
The Creation
In the beginning, there was only the darkness. The gods, children all of the Great Mother, warred amongst each other with no higher purpose to keep their interest. To stop their blood from spilling, the Great Mother laid her body down in the darkness and became the earth. The gods then filled the earth with creatures great and small, fashioning them in their image. But the gods could not replicate immortality, and so in time, the animals began to age and die. Though they had left behind children, the Mother still wept for them. Her tears pooled in the low parts of the earth, creating the oceans.
The gods then created the animals of the sea to cheer up the Great Mother. Upon seeing them, the Mother began to laugh, filling the skies with wind. And so the gods created birds.
Life and death continued on as it did. In time, however, the creatures of the sea envied the freedom of those in the sky who envied the connection those on the ground had with the Great Mother, and they in turn envied the swimmers because they were all so different from each other. Their jealousy was so great that, like their creators in whose image they were created, they all began to fight each other, save one lone wolf.
The gods took this wolf aside and showered gifts upon him. They gave him speed to run as the birds flew, strength to challenge even the great beasts of the earth and the ability to swim to make use of the water. Lastly, they gave him the wisdom to oversee all the others. And there was peace.
Though the Great Mother was pleased with her world again, some of the gods had become enamored of conflict and grew restless again. This was when they created First Man. Having bound their energies together, the gods finally managed to make an immortal creature, though he never received a name, as he was still incomplete in a way the gods could not put their finger on.
The First Man lived in harmony with the many creatures of sky, earth and sea, and they taught him many things even though he hunted and lived off their flesh. However, when the Great Mother realized that he alone was immortal, she took his life in anger. The Great Wolf took pity on the man as steward of all the creatures, and he laid down his life for the man. Their souls blended, becoming something neither truly man nor beast, and the wolf-man, now called Ahnonda because he was now completed, took up lordship of the earth for the rest of his days, for joining with the wolf had left him mortal. He made laws and explained to the animals that they need not envy each other, for they were all unique and equally blessed.
Though the Great Mother was pleased, she also felt guilty for causing the death of the Great Wolf, whom she had loved more than any of her other children. She fell into a deep, mournful sleep. In the absence of her watch, the gods ran rampant, each creating different people, all mortal. In time, other animals began to blend their lives with worthy humans in the fashion of the Great Wolf and the First Man, whose union was first and would forever be blessed.
Existing/ Known Packs:
New members are more than welcome to join pre-established packs if they wish.
In progress. If anyone has things they think should be changed or added, just let me know.
Also known as the Lupaira, a term relatively unheard of to outsiders, but readily understood in the Eastern lands.
Physiological Aspects
Average Weight: 130-160 lbs (60-72 kg) for females, 200-230 lbs (90-105 kg) for males
Average Height: 3-4 feet (90-120 cm) at the shoulder.
Average Length: 5-7 feet (150-215 cm) from nose to tail tip
Adult wolf-form sizes.
Life Span: Their lifespan tends toward the high end of a human lifespan, thanks to the mild healing ability afforded to them by their shifting. Their prime and reproductive years last much longer into their lives than those of humans, able have children well into their seventies. They are also less susceptible to most well known diseases as the pathogens have to bypass the immune system of both man and wolf, though they have illnesses particular to their kind instead.
Reproduction: Women have the same difficulty as other Voskons with regards to carrying children. As such, in most packs the Alpha pairs do not have exclusive rights to bear and raise litters as with wild wolves in order to keep their numbers strong. Pregnancies are made more difficult by the fact that they rarely have single births, with the most common litter size being two or three children, but the range being anywhere from one to six. As with real wolves, gestation lasts about 62 days.
The Pack
Wolf-Voskons are ingrained with the need for a pack, whether driven by the need for belonging or duty or the desire to protect and be protected. Packs often comprise of enough individuals to fill an entire village and protect a territory of several hundred square miles, perhaps even a thousand or more in the larger packs. While relationships occasionally exist between packs, for the most part each group is a separate unit. While common threads can be found with regards to tradition, religion, society, laws and other such aspects, packs can and often do develop their own unique cultures. There is one aspect universal to all wolf packs, however, and that is the knowledge and reverence of the Law.
The Law: Different from whatever rules are set forth by each individual pack, the Law is almost magic in nature. Once bound by Law, a wolf was compelled to obey the oath they had taken. Should they ignore it, not only would there be punishment from those they had made the oath to, but it is said that the Law itself would turn on them.
Pack Hierarchy: All packs are lead by a mated Alpha pair that stay together until death, though new Alphas do arise if one should die. Their word is law within the packs. The method of achieving the status of Alpha varies from pack to pack. Some allow the title to trickle down trough lineages, while other packs will allow whoever is the strongest among them to lead, though "strength" is not always defined by the body. Some packs follow a blending of both methods, while others are completely different still. The Alpha pair is sometimes supported by a Beta pair, a title that may either be heritable, bestowed by the Alphas or attainable through power depending on the Alphas and the pack tradition.
Religion: The common religious thread running through all packs is the shared belief in their creation myth. While the packs each have varying degrees of adherence to the deities and customs outlined within the myth, it still serves as the basis for all of their beliefs.
The Creation
In the beginning, there was only the darkness. The gods, children all of the Great Mother, warred amongst each other with no higher purpose to keep their interest. To stop their blood from spilling, the Great Mother laid her body down in the darkness and became the earth. The gods then filled the earth with creatures great and small, fashioning them in their image. But the gods could not replicate immortality, and so in time, the animals began to age and die. Though they had left behind children, the Mother still wept for them. Her tears pooled in the low parts of the earth, creating the oceans.
The gods then created the animals of the sea to cheer up the Great Mother. Upon seeing them, the Mother began to laugh, filling the skies with wind. And so the gods created birds.
Life and death continued on as it did. In time, however, the creatures of the sea envied the freedom of those in the sky who envied the connection those on the ground had with the Great Mother, and they in turn envied the swimmers because they were all so different from each other. Their jealousy was so great that, like their creators in whose image they were created, they all began to fight each other, save one lone wolf.
The gods took this wolf aside and showered gifts upon him. They gave him speed to run as the birds flew, strength to challenge even the great beasts of the earth and the ability to swim to make use of the water. Lastly, they gave him the wisdom to oversee all the others. And there was peace.
Though the Great Mother was pleased with her world again, some of the gods had become enamored of conflict and grew restless again. This was when they created First Man. Having bound their energies together, the gods finally managed to make an immortal creature, though he never received a name, as he was still incomplete in a way the gods could not put their finger on.
The First Man lived in harmony with the many creatures of sky, earth and sea, and they taught him many things even though he hunted and lived off their flesh. However, when the Great Mother realized that he alone was immortal, she took his life in anger. The Great Wolf took pity on the man as steward of all the creatures, and he laid down his life for the man. Their souls blended, becoming something neither truly man nor beast, and the wolf-man, now called Ahnonda because he was now completed, took up lordship of the earth for the rest of his days, for joining with the wolf had left him mortal. He made laws and explained to the animals that they need not envy each other, for they were all unique and equally blessed.
Though the Great Mother was pleased, she also felt guilty for causing the death of the Great Wolf, whom she had loved more than any of her other children. She fell into a deep, mournful sleep. In the absence of her watch, the gods ran rampant, each creating different people, all mortal. In time, other animals began to blend their lives with worthy humans in the fashion of the Great Wolf and the First Man, whose union was first and would forever be blessed.
Existing/ Known Packs:
New members are more than welcome to join pre-established packs if they wish.
In progress. If anyone has things they think should be changed or added, just let me know.
