Shadow Lords

The Shadow Lords are a tribe as dark, forbidding and unyielding as the lands of Eastern Europe that spawned them. Their deeply ingrained hierarchy gives them a strength that is sorely lacking in the other tribes. Their tales are filled with descriptions of their prowess, cunning and innate superiority. Highest among Shadow Lord instincts is a sense of "manifest destiny." They see the Garou as the ultimate lifeform on the planet. Therefore, Garou are the obvious rulers. Furthermore, among Garou, there is no greater tribe than the Shadow Lords.

After that, it doesn’t take a genius to figure out this tribe’s agenda. In the end, the only thing the Shadow Lords will respect from Garou of other tribes is power. Even then, they will always be waiting to seize the opportunity to displace their rivals at the slightest sign of weakness.

The dark strengths of the Shadow Lords are possibly their greatest weaknesses. Their boundless pride, perhaps better called arrogance, is easily warped by the Wyrm. Under the Wyrm’s maddening tutelage, the Shadow Lord’s pride blossoms into full scale megalomania.

Totem: Grandfather Thunder

Initial Willpower: Two Traits

Tribe Advantage: Will of Thunder
By spending one Willpower Trait, a Shadow Lord can double the total number of Social Traits she has bid in a Social Challenge. This includes doubling Traits to resolve a tie or crush an opponent in an overbid.

Tribe Drawback: Burden of Failure
Because of the unforgiving nature of their tribe, Shadow Lords suffer double Renown loss for any failing or transgression on their part.

Backgrounds: No restrictions.

Beginning Gifts: Aura of Confidence, Fatal Flaw

Wolf Form: They appear as massive dark gray or black wolves with massive, thick shoulders, much like pit bulls.

Organization: The Shadow Lords boast of a chain of command that would make any corporate division proud. No member is ignorant of his position, power or, more importantly, responsibility. At the lower levels, the eager young pups stand ready fill any vacancy that might open in the tribe’s ranks, including vacancies they sometimes create. Those already comfortable in positions of power are constantly on guard for capable upstarts, because they must constantly prove themselves. All in all, the Shadow Lord drive for dominance creates a constant current that inundates their hierarchy with the most capable members while washing away those who can no longer compete.

Habitat: The Shadow Lords are highly adaptable, not as much as the Glass Walkers or Bone Gnawers, but they more than manage. They can be found as lawyers, businessmen, crime lords, politicians or just about any profession where they can exert control over others.

Protectorate: The Shadow Lords respect only power, and the few humans they deal with must either respect it or wield it. Many of their well-established Kinfolk occupy complementary positions of power. As one would expect, vampires and Shadow Lords often find themselves at odds with each other, like two predators competing for the same ecological niche. It’s only a matter of time before the two realize they stand a great deal to gain from cooperation; some say they already have...

Outlook: The Shadow Lord character has to realize that while it is perfectly obvious to her that she is the obvious choice as leader, others may not see things as clearly. Some Garou will perceive the ambitious Shadow Lord as a potential tyrant. Nonetheless, if she is not chosen outright as the pack’s leader, she must achieve that position (or a greater one) by some other means. Some choose to lead from behind the scenes, manipulating others in a  puppet show. In some cases, staging a coup is a simple matter of challenging the current, inept leader. Others must go as far as to humiliate and discredit the current leader. Regardless of the means you use, the end result will justify your means. Do not fail. Your superiors cast a grim eye upon failure.

Quote: "The meek may very well inherit the Earth, but not until we’re finished with it."

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