A Storytelling Game of Savage Resistance
Have you ever taken a moment to just stop, observe the world around you, and see the injustice of it all? You can see it, the scars and sores of the land. You can smell it, the degradation and decay in the air. You can feel it, the fever and tremors of a dying world.
The question is: When will you rage?
At its heart, Werewolf: The Apocalypse is a Storytelling game of Savage Resistance. What does that mean? It means that Werewolf: The Apocalypse is a game where players tell stories about how they fight for what they believe in. Where primal urge guides both tooth and claw, where being a monster is the best chance we have to fight the injustices of the world. It’s a game where the most powerful thing you can do is express your Rage to fuel your fight against the forces opposing you.
Yet it is also a game of defending what is important. About culture and ideology, about honoring tradition and adapting to change. In the battle for Gaia, outmoded customs and heritage can stagnate and prevent the adaptation to a rapidly growing and evolving threat.
The shapechanging Garou have been fighting an ongoing war, and they have never been closer to losing. Many say the war has already been lost. The Malady is rampant, and Rage, as with most weapons, can cut both ways. It is a dark time for the dying Garou, while the primordial forces of the Weaver and the Wyrm continue to grow, and the essence of the Wyld fades with every passing year.
Saving Gaia
Through the years, Werewolf: The Apocalypse has maintained a unique position within the World of Darkness in that the player-character monsters depicted in the game are ones who strive for a noble cause - saving the planet. However, it is the conflict of their monstrous tendencies, in addition to how they respond and act, that casts long shadows over their efforts. Gaia is dying and it is the Garou who stand as her warriors and protectors, but also may be blinded by their own ideologies, to where they might escalate the very outcome they hope to avoid.
In the 5th edition of the game, Werewolf: The Apocalypse will continue to be a game that explores radical environmental activism. It will also continue to examine a dark and distorted reflection of our own world where the range of injustices throughout provoke violence and savagery. It will be a game about tearing apart your enemies... and just as importantly, living with the repercussions.
But it will also be a game that explores the differences between people and how we help/hinder each other. It will be a game where working as a pack will be the difference between life and death. It will be a game about finding balance, so as not to fall into extremes. Werewolf: The Apocalypse - 5th Edition is a story of desperation, one where many believe Gaia has taken punitive action against them for their failure.
The times are changing, the situation has grown increasingly dire for the Tribes as they move away from the recent past and return to the present. While the Garou continue their fight against rampant pollution, climate change, and deforestation they now face a series of fresh challenges. The Malady brings with it growing internal resistance, the Gauntlet begins to harden, and the past itself ripples back in echoes to haunt the Garou of tonight.
The Path Ahead
In the coming months, we will begin to further explore and elaborate on where the Garou are now, discovering where they have come in the intervening years since last expanding upon their struggle. We will discuss new problems that Werewolves face as a result of issues spawned by the choices they have made through generations of obstinate violence. Over the course of these updates, our goal is to include you in the ongoing development of Werewolf: The Apocalypse - 5th Edition and share with you many of the milestones in this process.
Our first step is to introduce you to some of our amazing writers and development team on the project, discussing what drew them to contribute to Werewolf: The Apocalypse.
This is only the beginning of our journey. For now, be sure to join our Sept on Discord and become part of our community of many different tribes to discuss your love of this Storytelling Game of Savage Resistance with your fellow Garou and Kinfolk.