From: Thanatos Subject: WTA: New Tribe!!! Date: Thu, 18 Feb 93 22:58:00 CST Rakkon Of all the Garou tribes and sub-tribes, none are more looked down upon more than the Rakkon. Thieves by nature, they simply cannot resist the shining glint of something valuable, and will do anything within their (considerable) power to retrieve the object of their desire. It does not neccessarily have to be a thing of man, or something that the homids prize, like diamonds. But usually, the more another prizes an object, the more the Rakkon desire it, whether it be an object d' art, a shiny sword, a briefcase full of bearer bonds, a fetish of a sept leader. Most would think that the Rakkon wouldn't give a damn about the struggle with the Wyrm, but this is not entirely true. They have adopted an alien philosophy that confuses most who hear it, though the Rakkon say it makes perfect sense to them. They hold that these objects of desire are so alluring because they are saturated with the power of the Weaver. There is some truth to this, since something like a diamond, or a valuable painting, or a powerful fetish would take a great deal of work to create, and thus would be saturated with order. Since the Wyrm seeks to undermine the Weaver, it ust be stopped, lest all they prize fade into dust. Like I said. Many take it with a grain of salt, and think it only lip service to get them out of a bind, when they do have to rely on other Garou. Their desires also give them unparalleled contact with homids, since 80% of what they want must be gotten through them. However, they are less interested in culling populations than anyone else. This closeness allows them contacts and resources most Garou would shun, but secretly envy when they run into problems. Strangley, only about 65% of Rakkon stock are homid. It would seem that this desire stems not from the homid side, but all breed manifest this upon birth. Although it is more difficult for a Lupus to establish the contacts, the tribe holds those who succeed in higher regard than Homid who do. Thus, the desire to climb up the ranks is almost as potent as the desire to garner an object. One problem with the Rakkon is that the ability to side step in order to thieve is considered "cheating" by most in the tribe. Thus, when a cub is being trained, the ability is glossed over, and not stressed as most tribes do. The resulat is that any Gauntlet is +2 to difficulty, due to their inexpeience and their subconscious desire NOT to run away but rather to deal with the problem with their own skills. Often the Rakkon will come head to head with the Toreador clan, as they tend to desire much that the clan does. This creates a grand animosity, since they see this as the Wyrm in action, destroying the objects they covet so. They will seek out the private caches of Toreadors, hoping to run into such a creature, and put an end to the evil. After an object is grabbed, if it is of sufficient value, it will be returned, usually to the place it was stolen from, or to a private dealer, so that at a later date, another Rakkon may try to pierce the more elaborate security established to protect it. Thus it is the mere act of stealing that motivates this desire, and not the intrinsic value of an object, kept in some room to collect dust. Often, the auspice of a particular Rakkon will decide what they seek. Thus, an Ahroun would value martial items, from 15th century katanas to the latest Pentagon hardware. Galliards seek out objects d'art. Theurge prefer objects of philosophical value that can be savored (and thus are seldom returned) such as books and rare tracts. Ragabash usually go for the glitziest item they eyes can catch on. Sadly, the Philodox are often the most deranged of the tribe as they try to balance out what they thieve amongst the four auspices. Often they will lock into a compulsive habit, such as being compelled to steal in a specific order, (Ragabash, Theurge, Galliard, Ahroun) or they may have to steal enough from each group so that the weights are identical. Totem: the Crow Initial willpower: 3 Backgrounds: Players start with 5 background points, and may spend them on anything but Allies (they tend not to make friends), Rites, and Pure Breed. Beginning Gifts: See below. Wolf Form: Brown, with grey rings around the eyes. Organization: The Rakkon have intricate webs of favors and contacts, but lack any true hierarchy. They seldom get together for moots, and when they do, simply tell stories about capers that succeeded and failed, since sometimes the failures are just as important as successes in the learning process. Habitat: Rakkon dwell virtually anywhere where items can be obtained. They are nomadic by nature, often fleeing an area after making quite a pest of themselves, often chased out by other Garou. Protectorate: The Rakkon often protect those like themselves, such as the gypsies, and other nomadic people, who flee because of "unjust" persecution. Also, the Rakkon are well known for their desire to protect convicts who were good at their trade, and got unfortunately caught. Quote: The Wyrm? Ha! That thing is nothing compared to the Citibank job I pulled off last month. Why, you shoulda seen the...what? What fetish? I haven't seen any... Oh, THIS fetish! Hm...I must have found it lying around...in your pocket...BYE! Rakkon Gifts: Blur of Milky Eye (Level 1): Same as Ragabash Gift Balance (Level 1): As the Stargazer power Cybersenses (Level 2): Same as Glasswalker Appraisal (Level 2): By Spending a point of Gnosis and rolling Perception + Empathy, a Rakkon can estimate the value of an object given a specific individual. For instance, if the Rakkon comes across a painting in a gallery by an unknown artist, and remembers a favor oved her by her sept leader, she may spend a point of Gnosis, and make the roll to see how much the painting would mean to the person in question. This is subconscious, meaning the subject does not know the appraisal is being done, but the Rakkon must have engaged in a conversation with the target before the power can be used. It is also helpful when a Rakkon is confronted with a hostile creature. A Rakkon can engage in a bit of subconscious 20 questions, to see what would make the hostile go away (food, an item, etc.) Also, the gift is useful in determining bribes for homids. Difficulty is target's willpower. Catfeet (Level 3): As the Lupus power Make the Mind Forget (Level 3): With a Gnosis point and a successful Manipulation + Alertness, a Garou can make an opponent forget what was on his mind, and wander away from an area, in a daze for a number of turns equal to the amount of successes on the roll, Difficulty the target's willpower. If target is attacked, she immediately snaps back to reality, and loses one action. At the end of the time, the target will shake her head, and wander back to her post, unable to recall what drew her away from her area. This can be used on animals as well as homids. Phantasm (Level 4): As the Fianna power Doppleganger (Level 4): As Thieving Talons of the Magpie (Level 5): As the Ragabash power Assimilation (Level 5): As the Homid power Note: The level four and five Gifts of the Rakkon are taken from the best of other tribes. Most were stolen, and the Rakkon seem to have no desire to develop their own, concerned more with using their own natural abilities, choosing gifts that will get them out of a tight squeeze, or saves them time in casing a site. Reknown: The Rakkon, mch despised by other tribes, have a slightly different system of gaining Reknown. First, all "besting" vampires only have to do with Toreador, or other art collecting vampires. Besting a normal vampire is worth half the total. Glory reknown is rewarded for pulling off a mission, as per the following table: Minor Theft (picking a vampire's pocket): 500 Major Theft (Breaking into medium security museum): 750 Greater Theft (Breaking into a maximum security museum): 1000 Greatest Theft (Breaking into a Kindred Controlled museum): 2000 Getting caught (and escaping) is worth half the total. Merely attempting such a feat is worthwhile in the eyes of a Rakkon. Also, telling stories of a successful mission is worth 100 Glory, and LISTENING to one is worth 50 Wisdom (whether it was successful or not). Thanatos, DeathUrge, Master of Unknown Time and Space tgt33358@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu